Strolling along the shady path in the backyard. The night was deep and the dew heavy, making the backyard seem even colder than the front yard at this moment. The backyard was extremely quiet. Street lamps gently scattered light on the pavement, also casting it upon the evergreen greenbelts by the roadside.

He, too, wanted to pick a woman to appease his elder brother and put his mind at ease.

Unfortunately, every time he saw those fake, coquettish women, he wanted to throw them into the Pacific Ocean. He didn't feel even the slightest bit of fondness for them. How could he possibly get along with them?

The kind of woman he liked was like Julia: unpretentious, strong, independent, and confident. Not the type who, just because they were born and raised in affluent families, thought they were princesses, expecting everyone to cater to them, idle and only interested in a life of pleasure.

"Ouch!"

A sudden low cry came.

"Someone under the tree, be care—"

A high heel struck James Horne on the head. Instantly, a wave of pain surged through him. The high heel, after hitting his head, fell and also knocked the glass of wine he was holding to the ground. The glass shattered into pieces, spilling wine everywhere.

"—ful!"

The voice, clearly female, continued from the top of a tree by the road.

Rebecca Hughes, seeing her high heel accidentally fall and hit a gentleman, hurriedly slid down from the tree in a few quick movements.

James Horne's face darkened. To be struck by a high heel falling from the sky while walking in his own backyard! It really hurt.

He immediately covered the struck spot, staring in astonishment as a figure in white landed in front of him like a monkey.

"Hey, are you alright? Sorry about that! I lost my footing for a moment, and the shoe just dropped. Damn these high heels! And damn my brother, Uriel Hughes! I told him I don't like wearing high heels, but he insisted. Look, now the shoe has caused trouble." Rebecca Hughes asked James Horne with care and concern, all while grumbling about the one who made her wear the heels.

James Horne looked at the girl before him. She appeared to be about twenty-four or twenty-five years old and stood around 168 centimeters tall, making her roughly as tall and slender as Julia. Her long, black hair cascaded to her waist; it was so long she didn't bother to tie it up. She had delicate features, and her beautiful, lively phoenix eyes twinkled with natural, playful mischief, yet also held a clear, honest simplicity. Her lips were red, her teeth white. She wore a silver-white evening gown that looked quite expensive; James conservatively estimated it was worth at least tens of thousands of dollars. She exuded an air of nobility mingled with an elfin slyness.

This must be the young lady of the Hughes Family, right?

The Hughes Family was also an affluent household. However, the elders were gone, leaving behind two young masters and one young lady. The Hughes family had made its fortune in shipping, owning many passenger and commercial vessels. The eldest son, Uriel Hughes, was the head of the family. The second son often sailed with their commercial ships, journeying across the sea. Each voyage he returned from would bring new business for the Hughes Family. The young lady was Rebecca Hughes.

Rebecca was raised by her two elder brothers, as their parents had died young. The brothers had to take over the family business early on and were thus preoccupied. For their only sister, they provided food, shelter, and entertainment, ensuring she didn't suffer any material hardship. However, they neglected her education. Consequently, Rebecca, though an heiress in appearance, had the nature of a wild girl.

He schooled his shocked expression into a cool one, pressing his lips together without a word.

"Your expression changes like a chameleon, always shifting."

As James's expression changed, Rebecca giggled at his side.

James's face turned greener. He'd never seen anyone injure someone and then stand right in front of them, mocking their expression for being like a chameleon's!

"Good thing you're not badly hurt. A shoe isn't that heavy; otherwise, it might have poked a hole in your head, and then I'd really be in trouble." Rebecca picked up her high heel, put it back on, and then stood before James. Seeing him still glaring at her coldly, she smiled. "If you're really angry, then okay."

Standing on one foot, she took off the high heel she'd just put on and handed it to James. "Here, the shoe's yours," she said with a smile. "I'll stand right here. You can climb to the top of that tree and drop the shoe on my head. That way, we'll be even."

James's face got even greener.

What kind of way was this to get even?

"If you don't take it, it means you don't want to settle this. So don't blame me for bullying you, okay? Anyway, it was an accident. I did call out for you to be careful, but who knew you'd have your head in the clouds and not hear me, still walking over. But you can't be blamed either; the shoe fell too fast. You're really good-looking, you know. Don't pull such a long face. My brother Uriel is just like that—always so stern. He's handsome, but when he pulls that poker face, he scares all the girls away, no matter how good-looking he is."

Rebecca rambled, jumping from one topic to another.

He'd never seen an heiress like this before.

James couldn't help but criticize her in his mind.

How on earth did the Hughes brothers raise their sister?

To end up with such an incredibly odd heiress.

Rebecca put on her high heel once again.

She started patting herself down, though it was unclear what she was looking for.

After patting herself all over, she said regretfully, "I'm so sorry. I'm wearing an evening gown tonight, and it doesn't have any pockets, so I didn't bring any medicine. Otherwise, I could put some on your head for you."

Does this girl cause trouble so often and hurt people that she usually carries medicine with her? Looking at her clumsy, carefree manner, she probably is a careless person who easily injures others.

"You should go inside and put some medicine on that. Your family's wine party must be ending soon too. I'm going to head back first; these kinds of parties are so dull, don't you think? I heard this party is basically a matchmaking event in disguise. The Horne family men are all top-tier catches, with tons of girls chasing after them. So why even host a matchmaking party? It's really strange. It seems like good things are genuinely hard to 'sell off.' Just like the two in my family—I've tried to 'sell' them countless times, but they're still on the shelf."

Rebecca didn't give James a chance to speak, chattering on incessantly. From her words, it was clear she already knew James's identity.