Chapter 9: He's going to be a father?

Carlos's head tilted, and the entertainment magazine fell to the ground.

He didn't even bother lifting an eyelid, obviously well-accustomed to the scene before him.

Without looking, Carlos knew exactly what the magazine reported, most likely,

"Explosive! Capital Circle's Crown Prince's Secret Late-Night Rendezvous with Female Internet Celebrity."

"XX Bar, Carter Clan's Young Master's Furious Defense of a Beauty."

"A Certain Young Starlet Sweetly Flaunts Love, And Her Partner is Him!"

Most of those photos were either profile shots or taken from behind, no one dared to directly expose the Crown Prince of the Carter Clan's face, after all, Carter's legal team is famously undefeated in the nation.

Evan Palmer, staring at his son's indifferent face, was far from pleased.

Evan had passed his forties but didn't look old at all; he was slim and had a refined appearance.

Carlos didn't much resemble Evan as father and son when they stood together; they looked more like brothers. It was only due to Evan's good looks that Mrs. Carter had insisted on marrying him, defying the family's arranged marriage plans.

Evan's dissatisfaction with Carlos had a long history.

After marrying into the Carter Family, he was loving and obedient in front of Old Master Carter, along with Mrs. Carter. However, after all these years, he had only risen to the nominal position of Deputy CEO.

And Carlos?

He had been trouble since childhood, always back-talking the Old Master. Sent abroad for years, he came back with nothing but a degree. As soon as he returned, doted upon by his grandfather, Carlos was put in charge of the newly-invested Carter Entertainment and even made the Group General Manager.

Carlos truly was a disgrace; he was a mainstay in the Chinese entertainment news, always embroiled in scandals.

Evan had turned a blind eye until now, but this latest piece of news was too much, prompting him to confront Carlos first thing.

"You messing around is one thing, but if you cause a death, not even your grandfather can protect you. Tell me, is that internet celebrity's unborn child really yours?"

Carlos's expression shifted.

"Child?"

Only then did he pick up the magazine from the ground. The magazine's cover read,

"Internet celebrity openly admits, the father of her child is the Carter Clan's Young Master."

The heavily made-up woman on the cover, along with two photos of Carlos and the internet celebrity entering the cinema one after the other... Carlos's face darkened.

Evan warned Carlos.

"The mid-year report for Carter Entertainment is out, and it's another loss. Don't say I didn't warn you, the board is already displeased with you. If this scandal escalates and affects the stock price of the parent company, you can say goodbye to your General Manager position."

After he slammed the door and left, secretary Oliver Ross entered with an apologetic face.

"Boss, I'm sorry, I really couldn't stop the Deputy CEO."

"Oliver, you should find some time to enroll in a training course, improve yourself."

"Boss, I've already completed my bachelor's and master's at Harvard University, are you suggesting I go for a PhD to further improve?"

"Sanda, Muay Thai, and Taekwondo. Take lessons in each; next time he comes, you'll be able to stop him."

"But the Deputy CEO is your dad."

"He's my dad, not yours. If you hurt him, I'll cover the medical bills."

"..."

"What are you waiting for?"

"Boss, do I really need to take up those classes? You know I'm more of a brainy type, simple in body."

"Get to that cinema and check the surveillance. I need to know, on Valentine's Day evening, exactly who the woman was that I was in the same screening room with?"

Carlos forcefully tossed the entertainment magazine onto Oliver's body.

"Have my child? She wishes! If I find out who plotted against me, I'll make sure they disappear from the face of the Earth."

Carlos remembered the night's events; it was clear he had been set up. However, by the time he woke up, the person was already gone.

He had the family doctor take his blood for testing, but no traces of drugs were found in his system.

The opponent had come prepared, definitely not simple. A sharp ferocity flashed across his handsome brows and eyes.

Oliver Ross quickly took the magazine and was about to check the surveillance footage at the cinema.

"Tell the secretary to order me lunch on your way out, according to the photo."

Carlos sent the photo to Oliver, who saw it was millet pumpkin porridge and scallion oil noodles.

In the garden of People's Hospital, Emily Parker and Old Master had just finished lunch.

Old Master ate to his satisfaction and, while Emily was tidying up the lunchbox, pulled out a bag as big as a sack.

"Little nurse, I can't just eat your food for free, and you won't accept money, so take these things instead."

"Old Master, these are too valuable, I can't accept them."

Emily saw that the old man's big bag was filled with boxes of sea cucumber, ginseng, bird's nest, cordyceps, and various foreign nourishments, all clearly very expensive.

"Then what to do, if you don't accept them, I'll... I'll..."

"I won't eat the food you made," Old Master Carter was so frustrated he turned red but couldn't bring himself to say those words.

Having eaten the young nurse's cooking, there was no way he could go back to eating the hospital's meals—he'd rather starve.

"Then I'll just take a box of protein powder."

Emily calculated the cost of the meals and chose a box of well-known foreign protein powder, the price of which was similar to her monthly lunch expense.

"This protein powder is bought by my son-in-law, who says it helps strengthen the body and maintain health. Both my daughter and I are taking it. I have a few more boxes back home; I'll bring them all for you tomorrow."

Old Master Carter became more and more pleased with Emily the more he looked at her. This little nurse was neither one to take advantage of others nor to suffer losses blindly; she was intelligent.

Emily thought to herself that this kind of protein powder was indeed a supplement, but given that Old Master Carter was a patient with hypertension, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia, consuming this powder might cause him to have excessive nutrition and increase the burden on his body. His son-in-law seemed ignorant of these facts, hence gifting such supplements.

She agreed to take it.

Back in the pharmacy, her colleagues saw Emily with a box of protein powder and came over to look at the brand.

"Emily, is this protein powder for Doctor Willow? This brand is expensive, a box costs over a thousand, right? I heard it's often out of stock overseas."

Just then, Adam Willow came looking for Emily and overheard the nurse's comment, which brought a warm feeling to his heart.

"Emily, why waste money like this? You know I don't usually use such nutritional supplements. My mom does take them, but the herbal medicine you prepare for her is enough. She said she came here yesterday to see you but you were busy."

Adam learned from Mother Willow, who had mentioned her visit to the hospital the previous afternoon when he returned home last night.

Mother Willow had grumbled a bit, complaining about not getting her prescription from Emily, but luckily she ran into Emily's sister, Sophie Parker. Sophie was good-looking, a student from Harvard University, and was warm and generous; Mother Willow kept singing praises for Sophie.

"I've been really busy at work lately, so I won't be able to take care of my mother's medication in the future. This protein powder seems good though, it can replace the herbal medicine and is more convenient. From now on, just buy this to nourish her body."

Emily simply decided to give the protein powder to Adam.

The protein powder was indeed from a well-known foreign brand that could strengthen the body, but it had one drawback: it could easily lead to weight gain if consumed in excess.

"Emily, are you angry?"

Adam was taken aback—did Emily mean she wouldn't help his mother with her health anymore?

Was she really angry?

Was it because he gave Sophie a ride home, or because he left her and Sophie to have lunch together?

Adam wanted to say more, but Emily's phone rang. It was from her good friend Evelyn Hanson.

As soon as she answered, Evelyn blurted out in a hurry, "Emily, I'm at that private cinema. I know you don't want to dig into this, but I can't let someone bully you over something that started because of me."