Little did Pearl know, as she left with the stack of documents, Harold watched with a cold smile.
At the company, Pearl handed the documents to Oscar with her left hand, her right hand injured and untreated.
Oscar took the documents, examined them, and his expression turned dark instantly.
"Pearl, what's going on? These aren't the documents needed for the meeting! The meeting is about to start, you should know how important it is!"
"How could this be?" Pearl's face turned pale as she checked the documents again and again. The documents were indeed incorrect! But she clearly remembered verifying them previously, and there should have been no mistake.
What was going on?
"Sorry, Mr. Brown," Pearl's head was pounding, and she felt a bit dazed. Before she could explain, she heard a gentle voice.
"Oscar, long time no see."
Pearl paused, staring blankly as Haley gracefully walked over to Oscar.
"How did you get here?" Oscar was taken aback when he saw Haley.
"Well, I just went to the Brown family Estate, and coincidentally, after Pearl left to get some documents, I noticed that a file was left behind. I thought you might need it, so I brought it to the office," Haley explained softly.
Oscar took the document from Haley, glanced at it, and nodded slightly.
"This is for the upcoming meeting. Good thing you brought it in time. Thanks," he said.
Pearl looked shocked. The document Haley brought was exactly what she needed!
A dreadful thought crossed Pearl's mind. Did Haley switch her documents to make her look bad in front of Oscar? Was Haley trying to gain Oscar's favor by coming to the rescue?
The more Pearl thought about it, the more uneasy she felt. Her gut told her Haley wasn't simple.
"Why so formal?" Haley smiled. "Oscar, I have a lot to say to you."
"Back then, I left without a word, I'm sorry, and now I'm back..."
"The meeting is about to start. If you have something to say, we can talk later," Oscar interrupted, glancing at his watch.
Haley's expression stiffened.
"Well, you go ahead and focus on your work, Oscar," she said, stepping forward to straighten his tie.
Pearl stood by, her heart aching as she watched their closeness.
Despite being Oscar's wife, she felt like an outsider at that moment.
She suddenly felt ridiculous, like a clown.
Oscar gently pushed Haley away and noticed a slight cut on her hand, furrowing."Harold, take her downstairs to tend to her wound," he instructed.
Pearl glanced at her own still bleeding right hand, and a bitter smile crossed her face.
Haley had just been lightly scratched by glass shards, while her injury was much more severe.
Oscar cared so much about Haley. Even if she had a minor injury, he would be concerned.
Pearl realized she meant little to him.
Pearl's eyes welled up with a hint of bitterness. She stood there in a daze for a while, suddenly remembering that the meeting was about to start. she subconsciously moved to follow Oscar to the conference room. After all, she was his personal secretary, and accompanying him to handle work was inevitable.
However, just as she reached him, Oscar stopped her in her tracks.
"You don't seem well today. Go back and rest, you don't need to attend the meeting," Oscar said.
Pearl stood frozen in place, unable to move for what felt like an eternity.
It wasn't until Oscar had walked away that she mechanically responded, "Alright."
It seemed like Oscar might not need her anymore, neither in his personal life nor in his work.
Pearl's eyes stung with bitterness. She stood there for a long time, replaying her past with Oscar in her mind, until Haley patted her shoulder, bringing her back to reality.
"Pearl, I remember you have a wound on your hand too. Go treat the wound," she said, looking caring.
"No need, I'll go back to rest," Pearl declined.
She left the office unsteadily and headed home.
Haley watched her disheveled figure with a smirk.
Everything was unfolding just as she had anticipated.
Haley could see that Oscar still loved her!
As for Pearl, would Oscar even spare her a second glance?
Back at the Brown family, Hathaway saw her looking lost and sneered, "Aren't you supposed to be delivering documents at the office?"
Physically and mentally exhausted, Pearl had no energy to argue with her. She bypassed Hathaway and went straight to her room.
"Stop right there!" Hathaway grabbed her hair. "I'm talking to you, are you deaf?"
"If you keep treating me like this, I'll make Oscar divorce you!"
"Let go." Pearl winced in pain as Hathaway pulled her hair, trying to break free from her grip, and gave her a cold look. "Hathaway, do as you please."
"Anyway, our marriage won't last long."
With that, Pearl quickly walked to her room.
Hathaway watched her leave, cursing incessantly.
"Pearl is becoming more and more unreasonable! How could Oscar marry such a woman? Her face just makes me angry! Wait and see, Oscar will divorce you sooner or later!"
Those harsh words no longer stirred any emotions in Pearl's heart. She just silently returned to her room, sat on the chair, and stared into space for a long time.
There was a photo of Oscar on the table. She picked it up, gazing at his handsome face, tears streaming down uncontrollably.
Their marriage was like a withered flower, devoid of any vitality.
What was she holding onto?
Clearly, Oscar had never loved her.
A tear fell onto the wound on her hand, causing a sharp pain piercing through, but Pearl remained oblivious, sitting there like a puppet.
After work, when Oscar returned home, Hathaway greeted him with complaints, not forgetting to criticize Pearl.
"Where's Pearl?" Oscar inquired.
"She's in the room," Hathaway sneered. "She came back today and immediately got mad at me. Does she think she's a princess or something?"
"I'll go check on her." Oscar headed straight to the room.
As he pushed the door open, he found the room dimly lit.
Pearl hadn't turned on the lights, and there was a blurry figure not far away.
Oscar walked over and pulled her up from the chair.
"Pearl, what's been going on with you lately? Making frequent mistakes at work. Do you need a break?" he asked.
"Mr. Brown, you're back." Pearl composed herself. "I'm sorry, it won't happen again."
She didn't want to explain anything. If she said she suspected Haley of orchestrating the document mistake, would Oscar believe her? He would only stand by Haley's side.
Seeing Pearl's indifferent demeanor, Oscar felt a slight discomfort in his heart.
He let her go but accidentally touched her right hand, sensing something unusual.
"What happened to your hand?" Oscar asked, a hint of concern in his voice, even though he hadn't consciously realized it.