You Are The Apple of My Eyes
Chapter 462 Punish Vivian (Part Three)

The cup shattered at Vivian's feet, splashing scalding hot tea all over her cheap slippers. Vivian winced and slightly panicked as her skin burned.

She stared at the mess and gritted her teeth.

Humiliation clamped its gnarly hands around her throat, squeezing bitter tears out of her bloodshot eyes. If she were not standing on Shi family property, she would have already pounced on Jessica and scratched her face until it bled.

She had never worn such ugly and cheap slippers in a very long time and served anybody tea.

As expected, Jessica continued torturing her by treating her like a lowly maid.

But she was not a maid. She was the lady of the Ye family.

She was Howard's daughter, and nobody ordered her around.

"What are you thinking about? Are you still not convinced?" Jessica scoffed, seeing that Vivian gritted her teeth and kept silent.

"Do you still think you're the high and mighty Vivian Ye? Your father and brother already know what you've done. They're humiliated and angry. How could such a vicious woman be a member of the Ye family? If you dare hurt me, they will disown you completely, and you will live the rest of your life as a vagrant. Believe me."

Of course Vivian believed her.

From the moment her father made a concession, she knew that she had been abandoned.

Howard was a smart man. Now that he had a son, he did not need to keep her around. If the situation called for it, he would sacrifice her to protect Henry.

Vivian clenched her teeth and forced a smile, "Why will I hurt you, Ms. Shi?"

Jessica looked up at her. She did not expect to see her so calm. She had been torturing her since she brought her here, but not once did she beg for mercy.

Well, even if she did, Jessica would not just let her go.

Jessica rolled her eyes and then smiled kindly. "Don't call me Ms. Shi. It sounds so unfamiliar. Just keep calling me Jessica."

The statement and the expression on Jessica's face confused Vivian, but she kept her face neutral and her mouth shut.

Jessica was known to have unpredictable mood swings. Some even surmised that she was crazy, but Vivian did not think so. Jessica was just as manipulative as she was. When Vivian did not comment, Jessica continued in a sad tone, "Well, it's fine if you don't want to call me that. We don't know how John is yet and don't want to waste your time."

'What?

What does Jessica want to say?'

When Vivian was about Osay something, Julie burst in.

"Vivi, Vivi..."

She was relieved to see her daughter standing.

It seemed that Jessica only decided to order her around and serve her, not torture her badly.

Julie's sudden appearance surprised Jessica. She frowned and asked Jake, "What the hell is she doing here?"

Before she could object, Julie was already rushing to her daughter.

'Jake personally accompanied her here?'

Jessica asked in her mind, eyeing her father's butler carefully.

"Mom?" Vivian turned to Julie and called her in a trembling voice. The moment she laid eyes on her mother, the tears she had been forcing back streamed down her face.

A parent was always a child's shelter from the storm. No matter how strong children grew up to be, they would always seek comfort and protection from their parents.

In the end, only her mother truly cared about her.

Only Julie came for her while everybody else had turned their back.

Vivian sobbed helplessly.

But they were sobs of joy. She was glad and thankful to be found.

"Vivi! Your face..." Looking at her daughter's swollen face, Julie felt a lump in her throat. Vivian was covered in thick clothes, so she could not tell if she had sustained any other injuries. Julie asked in a broken voice, "What have they done to you?"

With tears still steadily streaming down her face, Vivian held her mother in her arms and said, "Mom, I thought you abandoned me."

Only when she held her mother did she feel that she was saved. Only when she smelled Julie's familiar perfume and shampoo did she feel that she was still alive.

"How could I abandon you? You're my daughter." Julie gently patted her daughter on the back to comfort her.

It hurt Vivian, but she decided to breathe through the pain.

She did not want her mother to worry about her, so she did not say anything. Then, Julie started caressing the back of her head. She leaned on her touch, feeling much better. Seeing the mother and daughter hugging like no one was around, Jessica walked toward Jake and asked, "Care to tell me what's happening?"

"Sam wants you to let them go."

"What? No way!" Jessica raised her voice and pointed at Vivian angrily. "She's the reason my father's in a wheelchair and my brother's missing. I can't let her go so easily." Then, she pointed at Julie and added, "And now that her accomplice is here, she's not leaving as well."

Julie was too scared to look at either Jessica or Jake.

But Vivian grasped the piece of good news that she just heard. Sam was letting her go home.

She stared at Jake in disbelief.

The butler walked closer to Jessica, leaned in, and whispered something in her ear. Then, Jessica seemed to calm down.

'What did he tell her?

Are they trying to pull a ruse?'

Unable to hear what Jake told Jessica, Vivian began to feel uneasy.

She held her mother's hand tightly and waited.

All of a sudden, Jessica looked at them, her eyes filled with hatred. Vivian looked right back at her with fearless eyes.

After whispering something to her, Jake left and Jessica walked toward Julie and Vivian.

"My father told me to let you go. I don't want to." Jessica raised her chin and looked at Vivian with disdain. "But keeping you here leaves a stain on my land. Before you leave, I will ask you a few questions, and it will be in your best interest to answer them truthfully."

Vivian hesitated for a moment. She did not know what kind of plot they were trying to pull, so it would be best if she kept her answers short and simple.

As soon as she heard that her daughter could go home with her, Julie immediately told Jessica, "Ask away."

Jessica drew a short breath and asked Vivian, "Do you know that John is missing?"

Vivian blinked twice, wondering why Jessica asked the strange question. After a few moments, she answered, "Yes, I know."

"Do you still want to marry him?"

Vivian's pupils shrank. She stammered, "I..."

She wanted to say that she still wanted to marry John, but she hesitated. At the exact same moment, her mother squeezed her hand. Vivian decided not to answer. Without waiting for Vivian's response to her last question, Jessica asked a new one, "Do you still want your wedding dress?"

"No," Vivian answered resolutely.

She hated that damn black wedding dress to the core.

Of course she would not want it anymore.

"Very well. You may leave now." Then, Jessica turned around and let them go.

Before Vivian could even process that she was now free, her mother had already taken her hand and towed her away. As soon as they were out the door, Julie started talking.

"Did you want to tell Jessica that you still wanted to marry her brother? You're so silly, Vivi. They haven't found Mr. Shi. He could be dead already for all we know. It's more likely now that he'll be found a corpse Time Group is now under James Shi's management. As soon as they declare Mr. Shi to be legally dead, James will be the new president of the company. Even if Mr. Shi turns up alive, marrying him will yield you nothing.

Let's hurry up and go home. I don't want to stay here any longer. Stone Road creeps the hell out of me."

Vivian had been wondering what Jake had said to Jessica so that Jessica would let her and her mother go easily. She was so consumed by her thoughts that she did not hear a word Julie said. But Jessica heard everything.

Sitting on the sofa, Jessica smiled and ordered Yvonne, "Add this one as well. Make sure the transition sounds natural, and then send it out to the media."

"All right. I'll have someone work on it right away." Then, Yvonne left with all the recordings.

As soon as Vivian made it home, she heard the news.