The Cherished Wife

"I'm not joking. For the sake of 200 million, he casually handed me over to a man with a terrible reputation and character. He has never cared about my feelings. If he knew we were married, given your status and position, you'd be entangled with the Shaw family in unnecessary ways for life."

This was not something Noelle wanted to see.

Charles, however, laughed at Noelle's words. It was genuine laughter. "Silly girl!"

Noelle pressed her lips together. "I'm being serious. Why are you calling me names?"

"I'm not calling you names!" Charles squeezed her fingers gently.

"Since I chose to marry you, I've already considered all these things. And now that we're married, shouldn't we share our blessings and face difficulties together? Isn't that what marriage is about?"

He continued, "If I were so easily manipulated, I wouldn't be Charles Hoffman. Trust me, I'll handle these things."

Seeing Noelle's confused expression, Charles patted her head again. Noelle was annoyed and pushed his hand away. "Do you have ADHD or something? Why are you always patting my head? You've messed up my hair."

She leaned her head against the window, watching the buildings flash by. "Sometimes, I wonder why people can't live more simply." Charles raised an eyebrow and smiled slightly. Then, he heard his phone ringing. "Can you answer that for me?"

Noelle picked up his phone and pointed at the name on the screen. "It's Mr. Wells!"

Charles instructed, "Answer it. Put it on speaker."

"Okay." Noelle did as he asked, and Ronald's voice came through the speaker. "Mr. Hoffman, there's news." Noelle looked at Charles, slightly confused. "Do you want me to turn off the speaker?" she asked. Charles replied, "What did they say?"

"They've started an investigation, but Robert insists he was coerced and won't name the person behind it."

Charles frowned. "Keep monitoring him. Anything else?"

Ronald hesitated. "I just received a video." After a brief pause, he added, "It's about your wife."

Noelle raised an eyebrow, looking at Charles with confusion while mouthing, "Me?"

Charles frowned as well. "Speak!"

Ronald swallowed hard, his

hesitation making Noelle anxiou et

She tightened her grip on the phone. Chartes noticed her tension and gave her a reassuring look.

Noelle forced a small smile, indicating she was okay. She then said into the phone, "Mr. Wells, it's me. Did you say the video is about me? Just tell us directly."

"Yes, it's about you. It shows what happened upstairs at your grandfather's birthday party."

With a clatter, Noelle dropped the

phone. She froze for a moment and

then picked it up with trembling hands. "What video? I was groggy that day. Who recorded it? Property © NôvelDrama.Org.