A Vengeful Ex-Wife

"Oh yeah. I overheard Lorenzo talking with Mr. Xi. He told him the money had been transferred to your account. What's going on, Maria? You never received that money at all, huh? Oh my god!" Summer was stunned, gasping for breath.

Maria nodded. At the moment, a complicated feeling squirmed in her heart. She had no clue James had given her 300 million dollars. 'So what did he mean by that? Did he care about me? Even just a little?' Summer put down her chopsticks and murmured, "Then where did the money go?"

'Good question!' Maria thought. She was also racking her brains trying to find the answer. After a while, Maria came to a sobering conclusion. "I bet it was Lorenzo. Judy's involved in this too! I just know it!" Judy Lan was James' stepmother, Maria's former mother-in-law. Judy never liked Maria, and was just waiting for a reason to kick her out of the Xi family.

"Seriously? So Lorenzo lied to James and stole 300 million! That takes some balls." Summer struggled to keep calm. Her breath was coming in short, quick bursts. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Maria picked up the chopsticks and ate another bite. "It doesn't matter. I'll do some sleuthing later. Just forget it for now, Summer. I'm starving!" "No matter who took the money, I'll make them pay up!' Maria made up her mind. She couldn't rely on Summer this time because the thieves were James' so-called family. James probably wouldn't believe Maria if she told him. She needed proof.

Finishing the hotpot and bidding Maria farewell, Summer went home and changed her clothes before coming back to work. Then she reported what she and Maria had agreed on. "Mr. Xi, I'm sorry. I couldn't convince Ms. Song to sell the property. She said she wants to discuss it with you in person."

James looked up at Summer in silence. Under his gaze, she felt a little nervous, but she still forced herself to stand up straight and look directly ahead. In fact, she didn't even discuss this with Maria at all. She was enjoying the hotpot too much. Maria told her what to tell James before they returned to work.

It was only a handful of seconds, but it felt like forever. Still staring at Summer, James gave her another order. "Get the word out. Let everyone in H City know not to hire Maria Song." Hearing that, Summer's heart skipped a beat. She looked at James, wanting to put in a good word for Maria. "Mr. Xi, I'm afraid..." He gave her a deadly look, and she bit back her words.

'Sorry, Maria. My hands are tied. Mr. Xi is the guy who signs my paychecks." Summer lowered her head, feeling guilty.

No one dared to disobey James.

That night, HM Group fired Maria. They gave her a bogus excuse for the firing. She had no idea till she showed up the next morning for work.

The department head came to her in person. He circled around her with a serious face, looking her up and down. At last, he said, "Maria Song, you didn't fasten the last button of your uniform. Since you don't care about your personal image, you're fired! Clear out your desk and leave!"

Amused by the reason for her dismissal, Maria was speechless. It was almost like a prank.

She'd never heard such a ridiculous thing. She was pissed off and immediately threw the folder on the table. "That is completely lame! What about those who have two or even three buttons undone?" Frightened, everyone else in the office lowered their head to check if their buttons were all done up.

The department head was frightened by her reaction. He didn't expect her to fight back. He scratched his forehead with his little finger and said with a frown, "Look, you're new, and still on probation. I decide whether you stay or go. Don't make this any harder than it has to be. Just pack up your stuff."

Maria was not willing to give in. "I've been here ten days, and my record is exemplary. I need a reason, not an excuse!" She crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked him in the eye.

The department head was just following orders. It was nothing personal. He struggled with this for a moment and got closer to her, looking around to make sure no one was keeping tabs on him. "Listen," he whispered. "Did you piss off the wrong person or something?"

His boss told him she had angered James. But he wasn't about to let her know that.

Maria was smart. She got it, and knew exactly what was going on. She wasn't angry at the department head; he was just doing as he was told. "Okay, I get it. I'll pack up my stuff. It's not your fault." 'So it was James who arranged this. Good job!' Maria nodded.

Without saying another word, she started to box up her stuff and left with her belongings.

After canning the firebrand, the department head breathed a sigh of relief. He wiped the sweat from his forehead.

When Maria returned to her hotel room, she fired off resumes to other companies, going through their application process. They turned her down right away.

If this were James' work, then he was being thorough. He didn't just want her fired, he wanted her out of the city. Maria smiled helplessly.

'At least I have already met Colby Zheng,' thought Maria.

When Alina got the news, she was in a spa with Stella. The clay mask on her face almost cracked when she smiled. Things couldn't be going better. Her assistant said that James arranged things so Maria couldn't find a job anywhere in H City. Alina was ecstatic.

What James did made her feel so much better. She wasn't mad anymore. And it proved how much James cared about her.

Looking at Alina with admiration, Stella gushed, "Alina, Mr. Xi loves you so much! I heard she got fired. Ha! She's so screwed!"

"Maria is just too arrogant and over-confident. How could she hope to come out on top? She's too naive!" Alina's tone was full of complacency. She believed James could help her get the shop she wanted. 'That shop is as good as mine!'

"Exactly! Who does she think she is?" Nodding hard, Stella believed that she was right to side with Alina. After Alina married him, James also would more or less take care of the Qin family for Alina's sake. Alina was in a good mood all day. After leaving the beauty salon, she bought Stella a handbag with a hefty price tag. It cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. After James had screwed Maria over, he waited for her to voluntarily hand the space over. He thought she'd be out of options and have to leave H City quickly.

However, it didn't work out like he planned. Instead of begging for mercy or leaving, Maria hired a designer for her shop. The interior construction started a few days later. James heard the news when he asked Summer for an update on the property.

After work, he swung by the area. In the silence of the night, he parked the car and stared through the fishbowl window out front. Summer was right. Someone was working inside.

James leaned against the seat and rubbed his hands together. 'Why is this taking so long? I've crushed everyone else who challenged me.' It had been so long since someone dared to do this that he'd forgotten how he dealt with them.

Maria was really stubborn. He had to do something. He didn't care if she was a woman or not. It was time for more drastic measures.

Rolling along the street, the black Harkim suddenly stopped at an intersection. Lorenzo turned around and explained the situation to his boss. "Sorry for the sudden stop, Mr. Xi. Maria Song is standing in the middle of the street. I couldn't just run her over."

Without raising his head, James said, "Funny, that's just what I was going to order you to do. Make it so." Lorenzo nodded, "Yes, Mr. Xi." An evil smile spread across his face. Maybe he'd be rid of her for good. Lorenzo was about to gun it, when there came a knock at the rear window. It was Maria. "James Xi, open up! Let's talk."

Her voice was somewhat muffled by the pane of glass between them, but everyone in the car could hear her.

Ignoring it, Lorenzo was about to speed up and drive away, but the man in the back seat signaled for him to stop. He rolled down the window, glanced at Maria briefly, and ignored her in favor of the document he was working on.

A sweltering gust of air hit them, making them even more uncomfortable. "I know you want that space, James Xi. I can give it to you."

"What's the catch?" the man asked, closing the file folder without looking up.

Maria didn't answer his question right away. She smiled and asked, "It's really hot out here. Do me a solid and let's talk about this inside."

James' eyes darkened and he seemed a little unhappy, but he finally uttered, "Get in."

He thought that Maria would get in the car from the other side, but she didn't. After Lorenzo unlocked the doors, Maria opened the door on James' side. Then she tried to squeeze in. "Move over. I'm slim enough, but there's not enough room!"

Her soft body pressed against his. Unexpectedly, James caught her familiar scent He frowned. As if she didn't notice how awkward the situation was, Maria continued pushing him over. James' face darkened even more. "Can't find a place to sit? Then get out!"