Chapter 53: Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Arriving home, I felt relieved as if I could escape from everyone's scrutiny. But the thing that bothered me the most was still in front of me. It was very quiet in the house and I immediately sensed that something was wrong because Rollo should have been in the room at that time.

I walked towards Rollo's room, but Enzo stopped me.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"To Rollo's room," I replied calmly.

Enzo frowned as I mentioned the little boy's name. He said, "Don't forget your job. Coming home doesn't mean you're free. You're still working, Flora."

I knew Enzo didn't like Rollo and that he always acted annoyed and made things difficult for me due to misunderstandings. However, his words made me feel very hurt as he seemed to be looking down on me.

I sighed and followed Enzo into the bedroom. He began to undress, while I stood there emotionless, looking down at the floor. I wondered what Enzo thought of me. Am I his wife? A female partner he could easily manipulate? Or just a cold woman as he described me?

But I pushed those thoughts aside and looked at Enzo, who was nearing me. I asked, "Rollo should be here, shouldn't he?"

Enzo stopped and said, "Min took him to school."

Hearing this, I felt relieved. Min didn't like Rollo at first. She had even hit Rollo with some toys causing him to cry. But now, unexpectedly enough, Min took the initiative to take Rollo to school.

I hadn't felt happy for long when Enzo's words interrupted my thoughts.

"Don't dream, I won't let your son study with Min. My daughter is not allowed to associate with any lower class."

I could tolerate his condescension and humiliation towards me, but I couldn't accept Enzo looking down on my son like that.

"Don't be so overbearing, your words will make you regret it. Even if it's during working hours and I comply with your request, you have no right to belittle my son like that."

Enzo glared at me, looking very unhappy and angry. He seemed like he could slap me right away, but he just breathed heavily and gave me a scornful smile.

"Don't act so high and mighty. I'll definitely find a way to get rid of that little brat. If you want him to be safe and sound, you should be obedient."

I gritted my teeth and clenched my lips, wanting to retort but afraid that Enzo's words would become true. Seeing me silent, his expression softened and he no longer seemed angry.

Today was no different, except that we were making love in Enzo's bedroom, in the same house where we both lived. While this was normal for a married couple, I couldn't help feeling uncomfortable.

After the encounter, Enzo didn't allow me to leave. When I was about to leave the room, he spoke in a hoarse, grave voice that made me tremble:

"Where are you going?"

"I... haven't finished my work at the company..." The lovemaking had drained me of energy, and as the one in charge of the project, my mind couldn't relax enough. All of it was overwhelming.

Enzo was still half-asleep, holding onto my waist tightly and saying, "Don't leave. This is your home, not a hotel. Do you really think of yourself as a prostitute that just goes and leaves after sex?"

Hearing his words, I didn't leave and instead lay down to sleep some more. No one in the company knew that I had a relationship like this with an important business partner like Enzo Robert.

The company's chairman only thought that I had begged or something, but in reality, I agreed to this foolish demand of his. Before leaving the company, everyone knew that I went to see Enzo, but if I stayed away too long, they might suspect that our relationship was not pure.

My tired body and my restless mind made me unable to think clearly enough to resist Enzo's embrace. It was the first time that we slept together on the same bed after making love, holding each other so intimately.

When I woke up, I was alone in bed, and the outside was tinted with the red glow of sunset. I sighed, got up, and went to change clothes.

Downstairs, Enzo was drinking tea in the living room with our two children. Min held a book and was explaining something to Rollo.

When they saw me coming down, Rollo was the only one who cheerfully ran up to hug me and shout, "Mom!"

I looked at Min and hoped that she would do the same, but it seemed she was still angry with me from the previous incident, so when she saw me, she pouted and turned her head away. As for Enzo, he was still indifferent as always, drinking tea and not paying attention to me, even though we had just had a "fight" and slept together.

Enzo suddenly said, "Go make dinner."

I looked at him in confusion, "Huh?"

He didn't even look at me but continued reading his documents, but I knew he was talking to me. He said, "The maid in my house has quit, so you should fulfill your duties as a wife and make dinner."

Enzo's point was that he wanted me to quit my job at the company and focus on being a homemaker. Money was not a problem for him, and I could buy whatever I wanted without needing to ask for his opinion. The only condition he put forward was that I couldn't have an affair behind his back, and once was already enough.

Enzo's words left me dumbfounded. Was he insane?

"I don't agree," I said firmly, looking at him straight in the eye without hesitation or avoidance.

Enzo's face suddenly became very displeased, and I felt that his irritation wasn't caused by what I had said, but rather by the fact that I had changed from before. This time, I wouldn't be easily fooled or controlled by him.

Dinner was tense, and I couldn't taste the food's flavor.

As I predicted, the next day the chairman called me into his office again. His expression was even more serious than before, and I knew he was worried about Enzo and the DIZ corporation.

"What's going on? Your face looks terrible, are you okay?" I asked him.

He looked at me without saying anything, just sighing as if the situation was too difficult to put into words.

"Flora, are you sure this project is going well?" he finally asked.

I nodded, saying that the collaboration with DIZ was going smoothly without any obstacles. But the chairman's hesitancy and unease when mentioning the project made it clear that something was wrong. I couldn't stand his veiled references and asked:

"If there's nothing else, I'll leave then."

He then reluctantly revealed the main issue.

"In reality, there is an important issue. Our partner says they will stop investing in the project if they don't see any profit from it."

I was surprised. If DIZ halted its investment in the project, it would be extremely difficult to continue. My company didn't have the capability to keep the project going without their support, but they wanted to see results before continuing to invest. I was lost in thought and worried. This project was crucial, and we needed DIZ's complete support. If we could handle it ourselves, I wouldn't have accepted Enzo's unreasonable demands.

The chairman sighed. "I'm feeling very confused. Let's keep this a secret for the time being. Our employees might panic if they find out, and the worst-case scenario is that they will quit their jobs."

I understood the chairman's concern and nodded my agreement. "I understand. But what should we do next?"

"We can't stop this project. We were too complacent, thinking that as long as we succeeded in collaborating with DIZ, we wouldn't have to worry about capital. But now even though the project is progressing well, the revenue from it is not enough to convince DIZ."

Enzo's words from the previous evening came to mind. He was gradually undermining my determination and effort. I clenched my fists, angry at him. I'd worked hard to meet his selfish demands, but in the end, it would all be for nothing.

If DIZ unilaterally withdrew from this project, they would have to compensate us for the losses, but for them, the amount would be insignificant. However, if we failed to meet our end of the agreement, my company would need to pay a sky-high compensation fee. This showed the huge difference between me and Enzo.

"I want to go home early," I said, standing up from the chair.

If I didn't step forward to resolve this matter, no one would be able to. If we weren't careful, we could become indebted to DIZ.

"Enzo, is this what you're doing to make me follow your demands?" I said indignantly, not able to mask my anger at him.

Enzo looked up at me, frowning, then returned his attention to the documents in front of him. "Hasn't your company violated the contract before? You accepted the risks and relied entirely on DIZ. Therefore, I have the right to ask for the promised profit from the investment in this project."

I couldn't refute him. He was clearly more knowledgeable in this aspect than I was, and he could turn us into debtors of DIZ at any time.

I could only continue negotiating with him to change his mind. "I know we were too complacent in this matter. But if you don't continue to invest, then we... we can't continue the project."

My current situation is no different from an ant carrying a large stone even though the ant can carry an object 20 times its size but…

I pursed my lips, looked at him in confusion for a moment, and then continued:

I took a deep breath before continuing. "Can...can you continue to fund us? I promise we'll make up for it in three months."

Enzo put down his papers and asked, "What can I base my trust on regarding you and your company?"

I didn't know what to say to make him believe me. I was just too worried and talked recklessly. I took another deep breath and said, "If what I said isn't successful, I'll accept your request."

"Tell me," Enzo replied.

"I'll quit my job and become a housewife as you wish if what I said doesn't work," I squeezed my hands tightly and said. This was my last resort in negotiating with him.

I knew Enzo was very interested in this, and if he really wanted to destroy my career, there were many other ways, but he resorted to this to make me obediently follow his demands.

After I finished speaking, I bowed my head and didn't want to look at Enzo anymore. I didn't hear his response immediately, so I thought he had lost interest, but then I heard him laugh.

“Very well, I look forward to what you have to say. All right, I'll continue to fund you, but the other is still work to be done."

The other thing in his words is that I must agree to make love whenever he wants.

Although he accepted my offer, I did not feel relief at all, more pressure and anxiety. What will really happen if I really fail, will I have to quit my job? Just stay at home doing housework?

And does Enzo really want me to? What makes him so stubborn, I gradually realized that what he was doing to be able to control me was not because he was aggressive or stubborn as I thought, but it was like he wanted to imprison and control me. Every time everywhere.