Chapter 6

That evening, Jacob went home to pick Penelope up at 6:00 pm so that they could attend the banquet together. Penelope was on her period, so she was sore all over. She told Jacob in a frosty tone, "I'm on my period at the moment, so I'm feeling extremely uncomfortable right now. I'll skip out on the banquet this time." "Honey, Mr. Ulrich, an extremely prestigious guest who hails from the capital, will be attending the banquet tonight. Please try to hang on for my sake, alright?" Jacob picked up the gown that was discarded on the coffee table. Then, he sat down and tried to help Penelope to change into her gown. At the same time, he tried to appease her. "Once we've met him, I'll have someone send you home right away." Penelope avoided Jacob's touch. She drew to her feet and began making her way upstairs. "I'll change into the gown myself." Jacob was surprised when he noticed how abhorrent Penelope was toward his touch. He quickly said, "Lauren, please brew some ginger tea for Mrs. Thornton. She can have it on the way to the venue." Sometime later, Jacob and Penelope arrived at the banquet's venue. They soon noticed Rebecca approaching them while being surrounded by a group of rich women. Penelope pretended not to notice Rebecca and her entourage at all. She just walked past them coolly without saying anything. A second later, she heard Jacob's displeased tone. "Who gave you permission to wear a gown that has the same cut and design as my wife's gown? You'd better change out of it right now!" Rebecca shuddered upon hearing Jacob's exclamation. Almost immediately, she broke down in tears. "It's fine." Penelope couldn't be bothered to watch the latest performance. She demanded coldly, "Jacob, take me to Mr. Ulrich." "Alright. Have some ginger tea and rest for now. Be careful not to scald yourself." Jacob twisted the lid of the thermos flask open before passing it to Penelope. He continued wearing a gentle smile the whole time. Then, he turned to look at Rebecca. His expression was now frosty. "If this happens again, I won't let you off the hook this easily!" "Oh? Mr. Thornton, you're finally introducing your precious wife to me, huh?" A man clad in a white tuxedo could be seen striding over to Penelope and Jacob. He happened to be holding a wine glass filled with red wine at that time. His laughter was rich and hearty. "Do you still remember me, Mrs. Thornton? We played poker together on your wedding day." Penelope gazed at the man, finally realizing the reason behind Jacob's insistence to bring her to the banquet. She replied coolly, "Of course. Back then, you invested 30 million dollars into his company and helped him secure his first business deal that was worth 100 million dollars." "Your husband knows when to repay a favor. He's worth my investment." Henry Ulrich gazed at Jacob. A hint of approval was present in his eyes. He continued teasingly, "Every time he sees me, he has to show his marriage license to me just so he can show off the fact that he's married to a wonderful wife." Jacob stated seriously, "I count my blessings every day that I was able to marry Penny in the first place. She's the beacon of light that has illuminated my dark life." Penelope merely sneered in return. Had she not known about the fact that Jacob had already married Rebecca, she'd have stupidly believed Jacob's lies. The only reason why he had married Penelope was to use her in order to secure the investment from Henry. He didn't love her at all. Penelope had fought for Jacob's affection for eight long years in this gambit of love, yet Rebecca was able to defeat her without even lifting a finger. How ironic. "It's rare for me to be able to meet your wife, Mr. Thornton. Why don't we play a round of poker later on?" Henry suggested. "Alright." "No, thank you." Since Penelope didn't want to act all lovey-dovey with Jacob any longer, her tone was naturally cold. "Sorry, Mr. Ulrich. I'm not feeling well at the moment, so I'm going to take my leave now." Penelope ignored Jacob's surprised look and proceeded to leave. Soon, he caught up to her quickly and grabbed her hand. "Please don't be angry at me, Penny. I've already punished Rebecca severely. You won't see her ever again." "You should do what you need to do. Leave me alone." Penelope shoved Jacob away coldly before entering the ladies' washroom. After washing her hands, Penelope left the washroom, only to be blocked by Rebecca. Rebecca folded her arms in front of her chest. There was a cold look on her face. "The only reason why Jacob defended you is because he wished to reassure Mr. Ulrich that his marriage is fine. After all, he now has a 100-million-dollar project to manage. "This is your only worth, Penelope. Once I'm done giving birth to my child, Jacob won't hesitate to kick you out of the family!" Penelope did her best to suppress the pain that was flaring from her heart. She looked Rebecca in the eye while retorting sarcastically, "Are you really sure that you're pregnant with Jacob's child?" Having noticed the hint of mockery in Penelope's eyes, Rebecca was secretly shocked. Still, she replied, "Of course! Jacob has spent a lot more time with me compared to the time he has spent with you! I'm the real deal, after all! You're just my replacement!" "I hope you can keep up that confident façade of yours for the rest of your life," Penelope said icily. "Now get out of my way. I'm going home." Rebecca had a feeling that Penelope was hinting at something. She was about to respond when she heard Jacob's voice from a short distance away. "Michael, why is it that my wife has yet to return from the washroom after so long? Get someone to check things out right now." Rebecca's expression faltered slightly. She quickly grabbed Penelope's hand and smacked it against her cheek with all her might. Then, she ripped her own gown before collapsing to the floor. With one hand plastered on her belly, she began sobbing out loud. "I'm so sorry, Mrs. Thornton! I'll change out of this gown right now! Just please stop kicking me in the belly, okay? My baby is only four weeks old! It can't handle your kicks at all!" "What happened?" Jacob demanded as he approached Rebecca hastily.