Chapter 93 I Don't Make a Habit of Being Anyone's Mistress
Sophia never imagined Harper would come to see her.
Choosing to fly all the way from Emerald City to Silverlight City on a weekend, no doubt to discuss her engagement to Michael.
After texting Elara to request time off, Sophia followed Harper to a coffee shop outside the corporate park where they were conducting their field study.
"What would you like to drink?" Harper handed Sophia the menu, showing no hostility.
Sophia showed no panic either.
Shortly after they placed their orders, the server brought their coffee.
Sophia took a sip of her cappuccino, getting foam around her lips which she gently wiped away with a napkin.
She looked up at Harper sitting across from her. "I don't have much time, so please speak directly."
Harper sat elegantly with her long hair draped over her shoulders, her entire demeanor soft and gentle, even her voice barely above a whisper, "Miss Johnson, I'm not here to stake my claim. This arranged marriage between our families wasn't my choice. Though I must admit, Michael and I are of similar age, and his appearance, character, and abilities are all outstanding. Marrying him would arguably be my best option. Since I have no say in my own marriage, I naturally hope my intended husband meets my standards. I hope you can understand."
Sophia curved her lips slightly. "From what you're saying, while you have no feelings for Michael, you're quite satisfied with his qualifications and don't plan to break off the engagement with the Green family. So why are you here talking to me? What exactly do you want me to understand?"
Harper lowered her gaze momentarily in silence. "I've seen you before at social events, accompanying Andrew, moving gracefully among all sorts of people with such poise and diplomacy. I admired you, and I liked you, so I don't want you to misunderstand me. I'm content with this marriage arrangement, but I'm not interested in Michael personally. I simply need this marriage. I won't interfere with whatever relationship you have with Michael, and I hope we can coexist peacefully."
Sophia frowned slightly and smiled. "I think you're the one who's misunderstood. I don't make a habit of being anyone's mistress. While I won't deny that I do have feelings for Michael, I would never actively destroy someone else's marriage for love. If he chooses to marry you, I'll cut ties with him completely."
"I—I didn't mean it that way." Harper urgently tried to explain but couldn't find the right words to express her thoughts.
Sophia glanced at her coolly and took another sip of coffee. "If that's not what you meant, please think carefully before speaking. I don't want to waste time debating right and wrong with you."
Harper clearly took this to heart, keeping her head down as she organized her thoughts and chose her words.
As a member of high society, she had only ever learned how to speak pleasantly and how to be a well-bred, likeable young lady.
No one had ever taught her the sharp logical thinking required in business, how to clearly and concisely state her position.
She had only learned to appear gentle and virtuous during small talk, but when facing someone like Sophia who had years of business experience, she couldn't even express her true thoughts clearly.
It wasn't until Sophia's coffee cup was empty that Harper finally found the right words, "Miss Johnson, Mr. Green has been busy with Green Group affairs lately. I can tell he's trying to find a way to break off our engagement. I didn't come here to insist on this arrangement—I was afraid you might see me as an enemy, so I wanted to clarify my position. Regardless of whether our families' engagement succeeds, I have absolutely no romantic interest in Mr. Green. I truly have no control over the engagement and can't help with anything. I admire you greatly, so I don't want you to harbor any prejudice against me."
A canary in a gilded cage would always yearn for the wild birds soaring freely through the mountains.
Once, in George and Jane's eyes, Sophia had also been nothing more than a chess piece to be manipulated at will. She could probably understand Harper's feelings toward her.
Having grown up under family control, Harper had no personal ambitions. Even regarding marriage, she could only hope that the arranged partner her family chose would be somewhat acceptable.
Clearly, Michael's qualifications exceeded Harper's expectations.
Despite knowing that Michael and Sophia were in love, Harper still couldn't find any reason to oppose this engagement, nor did she have the ability to defy her family's arrangements.
She could only come here to express her true feelings to Sophia, hoping some honest words might ease her guilt.
But where in the world could everything work out perfectly for everyone?
Sophia smiled. "You're overthinking this. As a commodity in a business transaction, you only have value to the Green family and the Phillips family. You and I are neither related nor friends—why would I waste energy hating you?"
Harper was speechless. She had thought Sophia would resent her for taking Michael away. Instead, Sophia's clarity made her entire trip and heartfelt confession seem like a joke.
"Do you really love Michael?"
Harper was beginning to doubt. After knowing each other for sixteen years, if there had been true love, how could Sophia so easily let go and accept him marrying someone else?
"What do you think I should do? Stop eating, lose sleep, and waste away with a haggard face?"
Sophia asked with amusement. Seeing Harper press her lips together in silent acknowledgment, she laughed.
"To be honest, Michael is the only man I've ever wanted. But if I can't have love, I'll use that time to build my career and nurture family and friendships instead. Why waste time wallowing in useless emotions?"
Harper stared at Sophia with pure admiration. She truly respected such clarity of mind.
Sometimes she wondered if she would ever be able to live as freely as Sophia if she discovered one day that she wasn't the Phillips family's biological daughter.
But alas, everyone had their own fate.
...
Meanwhile, at the Smith household, a storm was brewing.
The moment Emily walked through the door, instead of a warm greeting, she was met with a ceramic mug flying toward her in fury.
She instinctively dodged, and the mug shattered on the floor, sharp fragments flying up and cutting her once-proud face.
"Dad..." Tears immediately sprang to her eyes as she looked timidly at George.
"Shut up!" George had no patience for her excuses. "How many times did I warn you not to cause trouble for this family? And you had the audacity to provoke Green Group directly?"
Green Group had recently adopted new chip technology and, besides preparing to launch their new flagship phone, was also planning to use the chips in their automotive division.
Smith Group wanted a piece of that pie and was preparing to negotiate a partnership with Green Group, only to discover that Emily had thoroughly offended both Green Group and Vertex Innovations Ltd.!
Now they couldn't access the chip technology, and the project collaboration had failed. Bringing Emily back had been the biggest mistake of his life!
"Get out of the country! Don't come back without my permission!"