“When did I say I was going back to the manor tomorrow for a barbeque?” Zachary asked.If Duncan wanted to have some barbeque, could he not eat somewhere else? Why did it have to be at the manor?“And squid, lamb, and big prawns. Anyway, I like eating whatever you roast.”Duncan continued talking to himself about the food as if he did not hear what Zachary said.Zachary proceeded to hang up immediately after that.Though, Duncan’s words did make him think about the idea. Tomorrow was Sunday and they did not need to go to work. Plus, he had never brought Serenity to the manor before. He would do as Duncan said and invite a few friends to the manor for a barbecue. There was indeed a barbecue area back at the manor.He could even bring Serenity back to stay for a few days and let her familiarize herself with the surroundings. The beautiful landscape there might cheer her up too.While the plan brewed in his head, Zachary texted Duncan: [Got it. Call Josh too, and tell him to bring
Serenity had long learned that the Yorks were not living in Whitmore Mansion, the residence they stayed in during the New Year’s holidays. The Yorks had cleaned up the place and moved back in just to deceive her.Lying was hard work!Zachary replied fondly, “Alright, I’ll listen to you. Anyway, it’s our home. We can go back whenever we want to and stay however long we wish.”Serenity was about to take the apron off him while saying, “I’ll go make dinner.”“There’s no need. I only have two more dishes to cook, then I’m done. You should just sit here and appreciate the blooms while I finish up.”Zachary stopped her, not allowing her to enter the kitchen.Serenity then kissed him on the cheek.Zachary felt happiness blossom in his heart.He returned to the kitchen to continue cooking with elation.“Babe.”Serenity knew he liked to hear her call him “babe”. She would indulge him while they were at home. “You invited Josh and Mr. Lewis to the barbecue but I don’t think that’s enou
“Dad brought Sonny to play in the park.”Serenity asked him, “Has Dad left already?”“Dad’s gone back already. He said he’ll come again tomorrow to take me out to play. I wanna go to the zoo and Dad said he would bring me there. Aunt Ser, do you want to come with me to the zoo tomorrow?”Hank took Sonny out to play for a while and the little guy was really happy. Now, he only had his father on his mind and kept talking about him.Serenity laughed and said, “Aunt Ser is going to a barbecue tomorrow. Your mom’s going too. Do you want to come, Sonny?”Without any hesitation, Sonny replied, “I want to go! Then I’m not going to the zoo with Dad anymore.” Both the aunt and nephew went back and forth with questions and answers, happily chatting away. Serenity only ended the call after a long while, then proceeded to call Jasmine and Elisa, inviting them to go on a road trip to Wildridge Manor together the next day.It was said that Wildridge Manor was captivating and was a scenic area
Zachary helplessly looked at the two women.Once Serenity was done laughing, he said, “Honey, have some soup first.”Serenity said in relief, “Luckily, I wasn’t drinking soup earlier, or else I might have spat it out.”“Dig in.”Grandma May laughed as she scooped from a dish she liked. After tasting it, she frowned and said, “Seren, these weren’t cooked by you, were they? It tastes a little different from before.”“Does it taste bad?” Zachary asked. “If you think it tastes bad, I’ll call Kevin right now and get him to pick you up so you can go to the hotel and eat all the delicacies there since my homecooked food isn’t to your taste.”“Such a belligerent tone. It must be Zachary’s cooking.”Grandma May continued to eat as if nothing had happened and said to Serenity, “Seren, Zack’s cooking hasn’t improved much. You should let him practice more. Let him cook on the weekends and prepare all your meals. With more opportunities to practice, his cooking will get better.”Zachary’s
It was after Zachary had lost weight and started having gastric problems again that Serenity felt pity for him and that was how their relationship got better. Thus, his deception and concealment of his identity had come and gone with the wind.Serenity came out of the bedroom with a jacket on and she had helped grab one for Zachary too.“It’s really windy tonight and the spring chill is still lingering. You should put on a jacket before we go out.”Serenity walked over and thoughtfully helped Zachary put on his jacket. His face was full of smiles.Grandma May looked away, unwilling to look at her silly grandson.The couple left for their walk, hand in hand.Meanwhile at the Browns’ rented house, Mrs. Brown came to the door.She was anticipating greeting her son when she heard the door open. Once she saw that it was really Hank, she asked in concern, “How was it? Was it open? Where did Liberty bring Sonny? Did she hide with Sonny somewhere else because we kept disturbing her?”
Hank sat down on the sofa and after a moment of silence he said, “That Mr. Lewis seems to be pursuing Liberty.”“No, it doesn’t just seem like it. He really is pursuing Liberty. If he didn’t feel anything for Liberty, why is he constantly going to Liberty’s diner?”Mrs. Brown heard her son bring this matter up and took this opportunity to advise him. “Hank, look at how Liberty has opened her own business now. And a breakfast diner at that. With her cooking skills, business will definitely be good.“She’s also a very hardworking woman who knows how to get by and is now losing weight. She’s not as ugly as she was before. You see, she can even attract top executives like Mr. Lewis, which means she’s still immensely valuable on the market.“The main thing is, right now, her family is strongly backing her. Don’t even mention that Serenity is Zachary York’s wife—just her rich aunt alone is impressive. I’ve heard Mrs. Stone has a lot of say in the Stone family.“As long as you remarry Li
Without realizing it, Hank had become his sister’s enabler for many years.Mrs. Brown was at a loss for words.The door opened.Hank dropped the conversation with his mother, guessing that Jessica had come home.As expected, when the door opened, Jessica walked in with two portions of fast food.“Darling, you’re back. You’re right on time—let’s eat. I got two set meals for us.”Jessica walked over, carrying the two set meals. She sat down beside Hank and opened a bag to take out one set meal and passed it to Hank. Then, she placed her portion on the coffee table, opened the fast food cover, and began to eat.Hank looked at his mother, then looked at Jessica, and asked, “Darling, did you only get two sets? What about Mom and Dad?”Jessica said as she ate, “I didn’t buy any for them. They can cook whatever they want. There are still two packets of instant noodles at home—enough for them to have one each. And there still are three eggs, enough for the three of you to have one each
The first thing the next morning, Duncan got up anxiously. He got changed and went out the door after washing up without even eating breakfast.He was terrified that his mother would shove Lily on him and make him accompany her everywhere.In the face of a mother who was always urging him to get married, the best policy was to leave.Truth be told, Duncan could understand where his mother was coming from since he was already thirty-six, after all, and not twenty-six. His eldest nephew was about to get married too while as the youngest uncle, he still had no girlfriend. How could his mother not be worried then?The result of escaping to Brynfield so early in the morning and calling Zachary at the entrance to the neighborhood was—“Go away!” Zachary was still lying on his bed with his wife in his arms. When he received the call from his good friend, with a dark expression, he bluntly replied Duncan with those two words.“Why are you so fierce? Considering our many years of friendsh
Zachary, afraid that his wife might refuse to spend time with him at his office in the future, emphasized that he was not busy today.He had already cleared his morning schedule because he needed to accompany his beloved wife for her prenatal checkup.His secretary was well aware of Serenity’s checkup dates. Whenever he saw Serenity turn up at the office with his boss, his secretary would quietly adjust his schedule.Sometimes, on the day of the Serenity’s checkup, his secretary would not schedule any appointments for Zachary at all.Even if appointments were scheduled, Zachary would request they be canceled or rescheduled.Now, in Zachary’s eyes, his wife’s matters were the most important.With Alex now able to share the workload, Zachary felt that he, as the eldest of his generation who had shouldered the bulk of the burden for so many years, deserved a break.Plus, there was the elite team the company had trained; if not now, then when would they be put to use?Everyone was
Tony turned around and left.Only after hearing the door close did Carrie dare to open her eyes.She had woken up while Tony and his son were on the phone, but she did not dare move, fearing that Tony might suspect her of eavesdropping.Just now, when that old lecher stood by the bed looking at her, there was definitely a murderous glint in his eyes. She could feel it.Sooner or later, he would kill her.Carrie was filled with panic. She wanted to escape but was afraid she would not succeed. No one was there to help her.For a moment, Carrie even considered running to Camryn to confess everything, but she quickly dismissed the thought. The reason she ended up in this situation was entirely due to Camryn.She and Camryn were sworn enemies. Their conflict would not end until one of them was dead. However, even if she died, she would drag Camryn down with her.-Meanwhile, in the CEO's office at York Corporation, Zachary, seated at his desk, kept glancing up at his pregnant wife.
“You should have gotten rid of them all back then and cultivated a network of people loyal only to you.” Manny felt that his father should not have spared those people in the first place.Tony said, “There were too many of them, all relatives and friends with the same goal as us. We couldn’t eliminate them all at once.”Back then, he had incited everyone to join him in wiping out the entire main family, sparing neither the elderly nor the children.It was because they were all from the collateral branches, jealous of the main family’s long-standing control, and shared a common goal that his conspiracy succeeded.He had also spent over a decade waiting for the right opportunity.Who would have thought that even after wiping out the main family, he still could not obtain the family seal, token, or totem? Without these, he could not become the true head of the family and could only act as a proxy. Many of the connections loyal to the head remained inaccessible.Moreover, much of the
It was his father. Manny composed himself and picked up Tony’s call as he walked toward his car.“Hey, Pops.”“How’s it going, Manny? Has there been any progress?”Tony was still in Carrie’s room at the moment, but had gotten up and walked to the balcony to call his son.Carrie was still fast asleep, though her face was set in a frown. She was obviously discomfited.Tony had pestered her for the majority of last night, so it would be weird if she did not feel any discomfort.Despite her begging, Tony would not let her go. He even forcefully drugged her to make her mess around with him while out of it. He was simply an old pervert.Before she passed out, she cursed him in her heart. However, she knew that Tony only treated her so roughly because she was just his mistress—a tool for him to vent his frustrations on.If she really was his wife, he definitely would not treat her like this.In the past, she had ambitions of taking Mrs. Longbottom’s place and becoming the real missus
Tati also finished her plate of pastries.She followed Isabella out.“Isa, you’re always so busy and exhausted. If you’re feeling even a little unwell, you should have a good rest. Stay home for the day. I can handle the work you have on hand. It’s the same either way.”Tati wanted Isabella to take the day off so Isabella could spend some time with Austin and nurture their relationship.However, Isabella still declined Tati’s kind offer.She said, “Not today. There’s an important meeting today, and I have two important clients to meet. I’m fine, really. Don’t worry. From now on, I won’t touch alcohol.”Given her current status and position, no one would dare to force her to drink during social engagements.Many people also knew that Isabella would not drink outside her home, fearing that she might fall victim to someone’s schemes.However, Isabella would occasionally make an exception. When she was in a good mood, she would have a couple of drinks.Hearing this, Tati stopped t
Austin still smiled gently and said, “It’s all thanks to Ms. Isabella’s guidance.”He felt that he had indeed improved a lot.Grandma May really understood him well. The wife she picked for him could actually help improve his culinary skills.“After eating the sweets, I feel much better.” Tati picked up another piece of pastry and ate it.Austin quietly retreated, not wanting to disturb their conversation and also to avoid overhearing their private matters.“Just ignore him. Are you really going to skip work because of him?”Isabella added calmly to Tati, “If you let him provoke you, he’ll only cling to you even more. If you act like he doesn’t exist and don’t respond no matter what he does, he’ll naturally give up once he sees that you’re completely unresponsive.”Tati said, “I’m afraid that he’ll go and bother Edith and Eleanor if he doesn’t get anywhere with me. They don’t have the same resolve as we do.”She, therefore, decided to bear the brunt of it.“Every time I see hi
Austin replied, “Both Mr. Louis and Mr. Phillip woke up very early, especially Mr. Phillip. He gets up earlier than Mr. Louis every morning. It’s really hard on him, getting up so early in such cold weather.”Sometimes, he himself felt like staying in bed a little longer, reluctant to leave the warm comfort of his blankets.Even after the New Year, Satbury remained quite cold. In contrast, over in Wiltspoon, the temperatures had begun to reach a high of over seventy degrees Fahrenheit in the daytime, with nighttime lows around fifty degrees.The two provinces and cities were simply incomparable. The temperatures in Wiltspoon were just so very comfortable for Satbury locals.Isabella smiled and said, “Phillip is just afraid he’ll get here too late and that you’ll assume he’s not coming over for breakfast, then not prepare any for him. He's such a little foodie.”The house was never short of snacks for the little ones. In fact, any goodies were always reserved for them first.Yet,
Even when she attended banquets, she would show up in formal clothing. Isabella did not remember the last time she wore a dress. Perhaps it was when she was in third grade. In fact, she liked wearing pretty princessy dresses when she was young. Her mother had told her that.As Isabella was the first child and extremely adorable, Delphine had dolled her up like a princess. Her pretty dresses filled the closet. Her parents, aunts, uncles, and relatives would always gift her many beautiful dresses. As she grew up, perhaps when she was in fourth grade, she stopped wearing dresses. Regardless of who gave her new pieces, she would refuse to wear them and give them to her cousins instead. After everyone realized she disliked dresses, they gradually stopped giving her them. Delphine had asked Isabella why she disliked wearing dresses. Isabella reasoned that she could not walk quickly enough while wearing one. She valued speed and efficiency. Delphine said she had alway
While the private chefs Ms. Isabella had hired in the past were respectful, they were leaning toward flattery instead of sincere dedication, like how Austin was toward Ms. Isabella.Dominic was experienced. He could sense that Ms. Isabella treated Austin differently. She was also a special existence to Austin. It was normal for young people to be attracted to each other. Initially, Dominic wanted to advise Austin not to even think about dating Ms. Isabella. However, upon discovering that Austin was a young master of a wealthy family, he decided not to interfere. Dominic was glad that he did nothing.Austin returned to the house. Instead of heading straight to the kitchen, he went upstairs. He stopped outside of Isabella’s room and knocked on the door lightly. No response came from within the room. Perhaps Austin was too soft when he knocked. He knocked on the door again with more force and asked, “Are you up yet, Ms. Isabella? It’s time to have breakfast.”Isabella w