Chapter 205 The Real Enemy

I stopped fighting back, and Edward's tone got a lot gentler.

"Diana," he said, "have you forgotten how David used to bully you when we were kids?"

His words took me right back to my childhood. Edward was spot on; David and his gang of troublemakers used to give me a hard time. But later, I figured out that David actually had a crush on me back then. He just didn't know how to show it, so he acted out to get my attention. Those were just childish antics, though. The real heartbreaker was Edward. I regret being so naive and missing out on David, who always liked me, while wasting years with Edward.

Edward noticed my silence and spoke slowly, "I heard from the Wilson family that if David can boost the ratings of the variety show the Wilson Group invested in by more than eight percentage points within three months, they'll cut ties with him and stop meddling in his life."

"What if he can't?" I couldn't help but ask.

Edward seemed ready for this question. With a sly smile, he looked at me and said, "If he fails, he'll have to follow the family's plans and accept an arranged marriage. As the eldest son, he has to do what's best for the family."

My heart sank, and I gasped. Raising a show's ratings by 8 percentage points was no small feat. At that time, any show with high ratings had a star-studded cast and massive promotion. David had to pull this off on his own, without any help. It seemed impossible.

Edward could see what I was thinking. He paused and then said, "If you ask me for help, I wouldn't mind giving David a hand."

I glared at him, my anger boiling over, and spat in his face. "No way! I'd rather die than owe you anything!"

Edward wasn't surprised by my reaction. He switched gears and asked, "Diana, aren't you curious about who the Wilson family wants David to marry?"

"Who?" I asked, despite myself.

Edward's lips curled into a mocking smile, and he chuckled. "You know them. That family moved to Ignis a hundred years ago and has been doing business there ever since. If David marries their daughter, he'll probably go to Ignis to expand the family business. Who knows when he'll come back." He crossed his arms, still smirking, and watched me like he was waiting for a show.

At that moment, my mind was a total mess, like I was lost in a fog. I felt completely confused and helpless.

Edward must've gotten bored with my lack of response. He stared at me for a bit, then got up to leave.

Before he walked out, he said coldly, "Diana, if you agree to remarry me, you wouldn't have to struggle so much."

I didn't say anything and just watched him go.

Sure, Edward was right; remarrying him might make my life easier. But for me, it would be pure torture. I'd rather face some hardships than make the same mistake again.

For a long time after that, Lila and I threw ourselves into our work. We went to every social event together. Luckily, things went pretty smoothly. We didn't land a ton of projects, but it was enough to keep Stellar Legal Advisors running. During this time, I tried reaching out to David multiple times, but he never responded to my calls or emails.

One day, while I was busy at the office, the receptionist called to say Nolan was here to see us. I was surprised and quickly invited him in. After the whole mess with Edward, most of our lawyers had left, and the new ones didn't know Nolan.

Lila was thrilled to see Nolan.

She started updating him on our recent work. Nolan listened patiently without interrupting. Just as Lila was about to ask for his advice, Nolan pulled a file from his briefcase and placed it in front of us. Curious, I opened it and saw it was a case Lila and I had analyzed in detail, but the client hadn't chosen us.

I looked up and asked Nolan, "What's this about?"

Nolan adjusted his glasses and said, "This client must've been one of those who left Stellar Legal Advisors, right?"

"Yeah, we put a lot of work into this case, but for some reason, they didn't pick us," I said, feeling a bit down.

"Do you know who they ended up choosing?" Nolan asked.

Lila sighed and said, "I guess we're still not up to par with your firm."

Nolan shook his head. "I reviewed your materials, and they were solid. But after leaving Stellar Legal Advisors, the client didn't come to us. They went to a firm called 'The Aria Legal Advisors.'"

I was shocked. "Isn't that the firm Edward set up for Aria?"

Nolan nodded. "Yeah, they offered a super low quote, so the client went with them. But Aria couldn't handle the case, and eventually, the client came to me."

I added, "Nolan, your fees aren't exactly cheap."

Nolan shook his head, looking a bit exasperated. "So the client wasted time and didn't save any money. Now you know who your real competition is, right?"

Marital Turmoil: Back Off, First Love!
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