CHAPTER 24: CHAPTER 24: I RAN INTO ZANE THORNE AT ALTARA HOSPITAL

Zane Thorne noticed the documents on the table, casually flipped through them, and found that there were actually several forces targeting Natalie Vaughn today. His brow furrowed.

He had never dealt with this kind of thing before, and he didn’t expect so many people to be targeting Natalie. Yet, the reason the video got out had to do with his incomplete handling of the matter.

"What are you planning to do?"

Natalie had just finished a glass of milk, and the large rim of the cup left a bit of milk foam on her lips. Ever since Zane had compromised somewhat, her mood had skyrocketed, and she softened up.

"Hmm? Felix said he’d help me shut them down."

Felix Langdon: ...

How did it become his idea? Clearly, it was Natalie’s decision, he was just the executor. Felix raised an eyebrow at Natalie and saw her eyes wide open, blinking at him.

Hiss—just how changeable is this sister-in-law of his?

Felix shifted his gaze to Zane, nodded slightly.

"Those who don’t know their place should be taught a lesson."

Zane didn’t think there was anything wrong with this decision.

"What about your account?"

Natalie lifted her eyes to look at Zane, watching him for a while before she was sure he was actually concerned about her.

With a faint smile, she shrugged it off indifferently.

"I was just playing around with it."

No one knew how much impact this incident would have, but it gave her a chance to slack off for a while.

Zane leaned back against the sofa, relaxing all of a sudden, his right leg crossed over his left, exuding a lazy vibe. He swirled his glass of wine, casually looking at Natalie.

"It’s your thing."

Zane’s words weren’t clear, but Natalie understood.

Why should her things be ruined because of others? Even if she were to scrap the account, it would have to be by her own hand.

"I’ll think about it these next couple of days and maybe shoot a video afterward."

Zane noticed the milk foam at the corner of Natalie’s mouth, his gaze paused for a moment, then he lowered his eyes and didn’t look at her again.

"You can ask Theo for help."

Theodore Langdon was at the bar tonight. Just appearing in her video would trigger everyone’s curiosity, and she wouldn’t have to say anything about the bar. Just as well, Theo wanted to learn a bit of karate from her.

But such a thing would not benefit Theodore at all and might even cause him some trouble because of her.

Natalie was a bit hesitant, but Felix had already made the decision for Theodore.

"That kid always wants to show off, so this works out well for him. It’s just, sister-in-law, you might need to teach a bit more, make the videos longer, and compile a series."

Felix, with a businessman’s mindset, was using Theodore to curry favor with Natalie, hoping it would come in handy in the future.

Just like that, two light words from the two men resolved the issue of Natalie’s account.

...

Five days later, her injuries were almost healed, and Natalie finally went back home once. As soon as she walked in, she was greeted with a snort from Mr. Vaughn.

"You lousy kid, grown wings now, won’t even come home!"

Natalie changed her shoes, stood there, watching Mr. Vaughn in the living room, clearly looking forward to her return while pretending to be angry.

"Who’s the lousy kid?"

Mr. Vaughn glared at her.

"If not you, then who?"

Natalie blinked, walked over to Mr. Vaughn, hooked her arm around his, and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Aren’t I dad’s sweet little heart?"

This one sentence successfully softened Mr. Vaughn, who led her to sit on the sofa.

"Nina, are you blaming dad? Blaming dad for being too harsh on the phone that day, or for arranging a blind date for you privately?"

Natalie crinkled her nose.

"You were too harsh that day. It’s the first time you’ve ever spoken to me like that since I was a kid, but now I don’t blame you."

Mr. Vaughn’s heart softened completely, just as James Vaughn came home from work, and Mr. Vaughn pointed the finger at him.

"Blame your brother, it was his idea to set you up with Zane."

James Vaughn: ....

Natalie raised her eyebrow when she looked over.

This wasn’t the first or second time such a thing happened. Whenever Natalie acted innocent, in their dad’s eyes she would always be the beloved one.

James was used to it and adeptly poured a glass of milk for Natalie.

"I bought you a house a few days ago, check it out when you have time."

Before, when Natalie heard this, she didn’t care. She either stayed at school or at home, no need to look at those houses. But things were different now, and she reached out to James.

"Where are the keys?"

James was a bit surprised.

"I’ll find them for you later."

Mr. Vaughn on the side furrowed his brow as well.

"Your brother bought you a house; you can just leave it there. Why do you need the keys? Are you planning to move in?"

Natalie shook Mr. Vaughn’s arm.

"Dad~ I’m about to graduate soon and need to start my own career."

"Not going back to the company?"

Natalie shook her head.

"I want to open a studio. Dad, just agree to it, and I won’t be mad at you anymore."

Mr. Vaughn: ...

James gave Natalie a meaningful look. He knew his sister well. Wanting to move out at this time couldn’t just be about opening a studio.

Of course, the family would definitely agree in the end. Their dad and mom were both so soft-hearted that as long as Natalie acted a little spoiled, they’d be completely swayed.

After dinner, James called Natalie into the study.

"How are you getting along with Zane?"

Even though James didn’t really manage Natalie’s affairs, he kept an eye on her. He knew about the online incident and that Felix had a hand in it, given his good relationship with Zane.

Natalie snuggled into the comfy chair.

"Alright, you just want your little sister to get married soon, right?"

James didn’t feel wronged being blamed, spotting the marks on Natalie’s palm and leg, his brow tightened.

"How did you end up injured from a fight?"

No wonder it took so long for her to come home.

Natalie didn’t care much, crossing her legs.

"Haven’t gone to training these days?"

Natalie’s eyes rolled; she was just fretting over how to teach Theodore. Learning was one thing, teaching was another. She knew she wouldn’t be a good teacher. Those simple video tutorials she made before were barely pieced together by recalling how James taught her.

"Are you free in a couple of days? Help me out."

James handed Natalie a tube of scar removal cream he’d found.

"For what?"

"Theodore wants me to teach him karate. I’m planning a teaching series, and he’ll appear in it. He genuinely wants to learn, and I genuinely want to teach him something."

By this point, James understood what she meant.

"Want me to guide you? What’s in it for me?"

Natalie rolled her eyes at him.

"I haven’t settled the score with you about the blind date yet. Tell me, why did you recommend Zane to Dad? Did you know him before?"

James didn’t plan on keeping it from Natalie.

"Back when your sister-in-law was sick in Altara, I went to take care of her and ran into Zane at the hospital."

Natalie’s leg-crossing paused abruptly, her brow furrowed.

"What was he doing at the hospital? Was he sick?"