Chapter 159 Encounter with a Rival in Love
Samuel is indeed Stanley's biological son.
But a few months ago, Samuel was still Stanley's illegitimate child.
Samuel, this "illegitimate son," had always lived away from home and wasn't close to Stanley.
Even after the truth came out that Zachary was actually the illegitimate one, Stanley and Samuel still weren't close enough.
Family bonds are deeper when nurtured from childhood.
Samuel must still worry that Stanley will favor Zachary in the future.
That's why Julie used Stanley to threaten him.
But Samuel's face remained calm as always.
Never mind that Stanley didn't care about emotional depth and cared more about legitimate bloodlines.
Even if Stanley did favor Zachary, so what?
In just a few months, he had already won over most of the Crawford Group's core members.
At this point, even if Stanley wanted to change heirs again, Samuel wasn't afraid.
Because the Crawford Group was a proper company, and because the core and board members disagreed, Stanley couldn't make rash decisions.
He lit another cigarette.
The smoke blurred his handsome face.
He said nothing, just glanced at York.
York immediately understood and pulled out his phone to show Julie a surveillance video.
The footage showed Julie's two men harassing Maeve last night.
The part where Amelia came to the rescue wasn't in the video.
Samuel had deliberately deleted it beforehand to avoid Julie causing trouble for Amelia.
Julie watched the entire video and recognized Maeve in it.
Maeve was from Goldenvale, and she wasn't familiar with her.
But as people from the same social circle, they had some contact here and there.
So she knew the woman being harassed by her men in the video was the Sullivan family's daughter.
Julie's expression gradually changed.
Samuel said, "You should know very well that my first major project in Goldenvale is a collaboration with the Sullivan family. If my people hadn't happened to run into them and dealt with the situation in time, you can imagine the consequences."
Julie got goosebumps on her arms.
Her men had nearly ruined Samuel's business.
If her father found out about this, forget one slap—her fate would be much worse.
Because her father had also been suppressed by Samuel.
Her father did love her, but he cared more about power and money.
Julie swallowed.
"I'm sorry, Samuel. It's all my fault. I'll take that slap."
"Good that you know your mistake. I don't blame you. We're cousins. As long as you don't interfere with my path, you'll still have good days ahead and still be the Crawford family's little princess."
Julie shivered again.
The words sounded nice, but they were all threats and warnings.
"Yes..." she said.
Samuel continued, "I know why you came to Goldenvale. Lucas isn't someone you can mess with now. Leave soon, or I'll throw you back myself."
Julie bit her lower lip.
She really wanted to say, what business was it of his who she pursued and liked?
Lucas was just a son from a bankrupt family—he wouldn't affect his business!
But she didn't dare.
She swallowed all her words and turned to leave.
However, she didn't take Samuel's warning about Lucas to heart.
And she would pay a huge price for this.
After Julie left, Samuel finally saw the message Amelia had sent.
He felt frustrated.
Of all times, Julie had to show up right when Amelia replied to him.
Making him miss the chance to reply instantly.
That slap was still too light.
He held up his phone like a boy in his first relationship, carefully replying to Amelia's message.
[I was busy with something just now and didn't see your message. Don't worry, Lyric is in my hands, and I'll make sure it behaves.]
He first explained why he hadn't replied immediately, then made a promise.
But Amelia didn't reply.
Because the Sullivan family had arrived.
It wasn't Bobby who came to pick her up; it was Steven.
Steven wasn't wearing his daytime suit but a gray casual outfit instead.
Because Amelia also wore casual clothes this morning.
He had deliberately picked something that would match Amelia's outfit.
But when he entered, he saw that Amelia had changed clothes.
She was wearing something very formal.
It didn't match his casual outfit at all.
There was obvious disappointment in Steven's eyes.
But Amelia didn't care about his expression.
A man who had been with Yasmin—even if he knelt before her, she wouldn't give him a second glance.
Especially since Steven was a complete jerk to begin with.
She had already looked into him.
Steven kept many lovers, not for his own use, but to use those women's bodies to achieve his goals.
His career over the years relied on the Sullivan family and the women he kept.
He himself had no real abilities.
Such a man deserved to go to hell.
So Amelia didn't get in his car. Instead, she had Holden drive and follow Steven's car.
Steven had wanted to struggle a bit, hoping to spend some time alone with Amelia.
But when he heard Natalie was also going, he gave up.
The two cars drove one after the other toward the city center.
They soon stopped in front of the Sullivan Manor.
It seemed the patient indeed had a good relationship with the Sullivan family and was willing to stay on their property.
"This is it."
Steven led the way, but once in the living room, he didn't let Natalie go upstairs.
"Please wait downstairs for a bit. There's plenty to see down here. I'll have someone show you around."
Natalie glanced at Amelia.
Seeing Amelia nod, Natalie followed Steven's people.
Amelia, meanwhile, followed Steven upstairs.
Steven couldn't help trying to chat with Amelia, walking slowly.
"I was young before and misjudged, which is why I was with Yasmin, but I've broken up with her now."
Amelia rolled her eyes at him and ignored his words.
Steven choked, then said, "Aren't you on bad terms with her?"
"There's no such thing as good or bad terms. From the moment she cut ties with the Richardson family, she's just a stranger to me."
Steven choked again.
But he quickly found a new topic.
"I heard Geraldo got sick after leaving Luminance Art Gallery that day. How about we visit him at the hospital together sometime?"
"No need. Going to see him with you would make Geraldo sick, too."
Amelia didn't hide her disgust.
Anger immediately appeared on Steven's face.
Amelia spoke again, "What? Did you ask me here to chat, Mr. Sullivan, or to ask me to treat your grandfather's friend?"
That one sentence completely extinguished Steven's anger.
He remembered—the Sullivan family was asking her for help.
No matter how angry he was, he had to wait until this was over.
He quickly put a smile back on his face.
"I was being too talkative. Ms. Richardson, please."
He stopped dawdling and walked at a normal pace.
Soon Amelia arrived at a room's doorway.
When the door opened, and she saw who was inside, Amelia's eyes suddenly widened, and the color slowly drained from her face.
Amelia didn't look closely at the old man lying in bed.
But she recognized the girl standing beside him immediately.
Scarlett was Finn's junior.
No, she was Finn's wife now.
Amelia never expected that the patient she was supposed to see would be Scarlett's grandfather.
If Scarlett were here, then... would Finn be nearby too?
She didn't know what her feelings would be if she saw Finn again, but she was certain she didn't want to see him.
At this moment, Scarlett also clearly saw her face. Her eyes widened even more than usual, full of surprise.
She hadn't expected that the Miracle Physician the Sullivan family recommended would be Amelia.
Their eyes met, both frozen in place.
Bobby asked in confusion, "Ms. Richardson, why aren't you coming in? Is something wrong?"
Something was wrong. Very wrong.
If she had known the patient was the grandfather of the person who came between her and Finn, she would never have agreed to come.
"Ms. Richardson?" Steven was also calling her.
Only then did Amelia snap out of her shock and anger.
But her expression was cold.
She met Bobby's gaze and said firmly, "I'm sorry, Mr. Sullivan, but I can't treat this person. You'll need to find someone else."
With that, she turned and walked away.
Bobby quickly caught up, walking alongside her while asking quietly, "Ms. Richardson, I don't understand what you mean. Do you think you can't treat him, or don't want to?"
Amelia said directly, "Don't want to."
Bobby's expression changed, but he patiently asked, "Can you tell me why?"
Amelia stopped and laughed coldly.
"The reason? Go ask Ms. Lewis, and you'll know. Now, please stop following me. I'm leaving."
She didn't linger, quickening her pace downstairs.
Bobby hesitated, then instead of following, turned back to the room.
"Ms. Lewis, do you know Ms. Richardson?"
The shock in Scarlett's heart was even greater than Amelia's.
She had always thought Finn's ex-girlfriend was just an ordinary girl.
Apart from being exceptionally beautiful, she had no other qualities.
She never imagined she was the famous Miracle Physician of Thornfield.
It wasn't until Bobby asked that Scarlett came to her senses.
"We've met a few times."
"Just met a few times? Then why did she say..." Bobby glanced at the sleeping old man in the bed and lowered his voice, "Why did she say she doesn't want to treat your grandfather?"
Scarlett bit her lower lip, unsure what to say.
After a moment, she said, "I'll go find her myself. Please help watch my grandfather."
Bobby nodded, and Scarlett quickly rushed out.
By this time, Amelia had reached downstairs.
The Sullivan Manor covered a large area. It took her two minutes to find Natalie.
Natalie was in the villa's theater, having just sat down. The movie hadn't started yet when Amelia arrived.
"Mom, let's go home," she said.