Khloe was stiff. "Daddy, I really didn't know there was anything between them..."

Laurence patted his young daughter on the hand, then looked at Kylie with disappointment. "You can't blame Khloe. Look at you, and you're nothing like the sweet girl she is, running around like a troublemaker all day. Who would like you?"

He looked back at Khloe and spoke in a loving tone: "When it comes to choosing a wife, of course, decent and gentle girls like Khloe are everyone's first choice."

"Decent? Gentle?" Kylie taunted. She twisted her cigarette butt in her hand, then pressed it against the coffee table. A bit ruthlessly, and a little too loudly, she spoke again: "My mother was also decent and gentle—she was even an upper-class lady. Why do you fool around with this disreputable singing woman?"

"Who do you think you're talking about?!" Kylie's words affected Alice Davis's most sensitive spot. She stood up, her lips trembling.

That time she had been a singer in an underground music hall, had been the most dishonorable episode of her life. She never allowed anyone to mention it.

However, Kylie felt ruthless and wanted to remind everyone. "I'm talking about the one who responded, obviously!"

Kylie also stood up and sneered at Laurence. "You understand my temper: the things you don't want me to do are the things I most love to do. If you don't let me hang out with Lord Ethan, then I'll climb into his bed later tonight!"

She rubbed her belly and smirked. "Maybe I can even get a bonus!"

Laurence's face clouded over. "You rebellious daughter!" Scolding, he raised his hand and pointed at Kylie. "Do you still recognize me as your father? If you want a foothold in this city, you'd better do as I say!"

She had lost her father and family ten years ago. Kylie's heart began to ache when thinking of it. But the more she felt pain, the more she forced a cruel smile.

"Do you regret giving birth to me? You should have ejaculated against the wall!" Kylie yelled.

Laurence pushed Khloe out of the way and strode towards Kylie. He raised his arm and was about to slap her against the cheek.

But his arm was seized midair. Kylie pinched his flesh so hard that her fingernails were almost embedded in her father's arm.

"You think I'm still the weak Kylie you can scold and beat?" She pushed aside his arm and clenched her teeth. "Ten years ago, the weak penniless Kylie you drove out of your home died in the streets!"

Laurence's face went pale in a flash.

"You made your bed, so you must lie in it," Alice said, stepping forward. "If you hadn't fooled around with a man, and gotten yourself pregnant, maybe your father wouldn't have thrown you out."

Kylie's eyes swept over Khloe, who was obviously very nervous. Kylie knew that the dirty trick about her pregnancy had been concocted by Khloe and her mother to drive her out of the picture.

She felt a cold breeze, and said: "God sees and knows everything, so watch out!"

Seeing that Kylie was turning around to leave, Alice anxiously tugged at her husband's sleeve, to remind him of their last bargaining chip.

Laurence hurriedly roared: "If you don't do as I say, you'll never see your mother again!"

Now, the only thing that could be threatening to Kylie was the loss of her mother's ashes.

They expected Kylie to stay, unwillingly, for the sake of the ashes, but she suddenly laughed. "You can try, but if even a gram of my mom's ashes is missing, you'll lose your 10% shares! I mean it!"

Laurence hadn't expected Kylie to say that. When he moved past the bewilderment, Kylie had already gone.

"Daddy, your blood pressure is unstable—don't get angry." Wiping her tears with one hand, Khloe patted her father's chest with the other, in an effort to calm him down.

"That rebellious daughter; I wish she were half as good as you." Laurence was so angry, and he could only breathe vigorously.

"Honey, how does Kylie know about the shares?" Alice confusedly asked as she passed a glass of water to her husband.

Emily Garcia, who had been Kylie's mother and Laurence's ex-wife, had also been the daughter of the man who owned Garcia Entertainment. Emily's father had passed away shortly after she'd given birth to Kylie. After taking over the company, Laurence was never satisfied and continuously wanted more. He drove Emily to death, with his demands and his affair with Alice Davis. Later, this drove Kylie away.

But Laurence hadn't known that when Emily's father had entrusted his company to him, Kylie's grandfather had taken the means to protect Kylie's inheritance: fifty percent of the company's shares belonged to Kylie.

But Kylie didn't have access to the money; she would receive half after marriage, and the other half after giving birth to a child. In the meantime, the shares were managed by the estate executor.

As CEO of Garcia Entertainment, Laurence still only received less than twenty percent of the shares. That was the main reason he opposed Kylie's relationship with Lord Ethan.

The Parkers were much more powerful than the Finches. If Kylie truly had something to do with the Parkers, Laurence would never be able to get a larger share in the company.

He was a man who always put his interests ahead of others. His prosperity mattered a great deal.

"Honey, there's no need to be angry. If you really want to get those shares, I have an idea," Alice said, smiling evilly. She asked Khloe to go fetch Laurence's anti-hypertensive drugs, then carried on: "Doesn't Kylie have to get married before she can inherit some of the shares? Let's just get her married!"

"What?" At first, Laurence didn't understand where she was going with this.

"If she gets married, she'll naturally give birth to a baby within a year," Alice slowly said. "At that time, the share will..."

"Hmm!" Laurence tutted. "Then, they'll simply fall into another's hands!"

"Right, and this person she marries might be on our side," Alice responded flirtatiously.

Khloe came back and understood what her mother had been saying. She squatted in front of them, and spoke: "Mommy, then we'll have to look for someone who has a close relationship with you, and who's also tractable..."

"How can we find such a man?" Laurence looked at his wife with confusion.

"We'll have to try hard to find him," she worriedly replied. "You know your daughter; she's stubborn. The more you oppose her, the more she rebels...So, if Lord Ethan knew she was a treasure pot..." Alice winked at her daughter, prodding her for help.

Khloe was suddenly enlightened. She added: "Oh, mommy, is it possible to get Lord Ethan to approach Kylie because he knows about her shares suddenly? A man like Lord Ethan can easily get any upper-class lady to marry him; it wouldn't make sense for him to choose Kylie unless he wants her money."

Hearing these plans, Laurence began to worry, and his eyes filled with disgust. Catching sight of his expression, Khloe hurried to continue: "If Lord Ethan truly loves Kylie, I'd be happy for her—I'd even break it off with Aiden for her. But with this plan, we can make sure that he likes her for the right reasons—we can't let Kylie suffer any loss!"

Even though Khloe masked it as a good intention, the implied meaning of her plan was obvious.

Laurence was beginning to panic. He turned to his wife and said: "This matter can no longer be delayed. You're part of the family—hurry up and find a way!"

"I'm not her mother; it would appear wrong for me to say too much," Alice replied, pretending to be embarrassed.

"I order you to speak; I'm head of the family!" Laurence immediately pretended to take charge of the situation. He waved his hand to instruct Alice to say what was on her mind.

"The man I want to recommend is Khloe's cousin. He's an honest child, even though his family's not rich. I'm sure he'll treat Kylie well once they are married."

Khloe sneered. Her cousin, Kevin White, had been violent since childhood. He was also lazy, an exact parasite of society. But he did have a special fondness for Kylie.

Imagining that Kylie might suffer domestic abuse every day after marriage, Khloe had a hard time hiding her pleasure.