Old Mrs. York was anxious and wanted to slip away, but thought, ‘Wait, I can’t slip away. Elisa is already at the entrance. If I try to leave, I’ll be caught red-handed.‘I need to hide.’Thus, she calmly put down her cutlery and said to Serenity and Jasmine, “I’m full now. I have to go to the washroom.”With that, she got up and walked toward the washroom while saying, “When you get old, every trip to the washroom will take at least half an hour.”Serenity and Jasmine were speechless.“Serenity, are you there?”Elisa appeared just as Old Mrs. York walked away.She rushed in with a mesh bag of sea shrimps in her left hand and a similar bag of sea crabs in her right hand.“Serenity, come take them. They’re too heavy for me!”Elisa was a rich and pampered young lady. She usually had everything handed over to her on a silver platter and never did any labor, so she felt the two big bags of shrimps and crabs were heavy.When Serenity and Jasmine saw this, they rushed forward and t
“We just finished.”Jasmine quickly cleaned up the dishes, and Elisa asked out of curiosity, “There are four sets of cutlery. Is there someone else?”Jasmine said while cleaning up, “Serenity’s grandmother-in-law came over. She’s in the washroom now.”Elisa hummed and stopped asking.She was aware of Serenity’s marriage. Due to the trending news before, she even told her brother to fire John Hunt. She understood Serenity and the Hunt family’s disputes more than others, so undoubtedly she knew Serenity was married too.Not many people from the outside world knew about it.Elisa was not a nosy person, so she did not ask about Serenity’s love life.After Jasmine cleaned up the table, Serenity poured a glass of water for Elisa.“Why are you back from vacation so soon, Ms. Stone?”“It’s because I’m worried about my sweetheart, of course. I was with my parents by the beach for two days and came back to the city last night. I have something to tell you, Serenity. This morning, I went
Serenity had no knowledge that Zachary was the heir of the York family, who was also Elisa’s crush.Elisa only mentioned Mr. York and did not say Zachary’s name, so the two did not know that they were talking about the same person.“Serves him right!” Old Mrs. York snickered in the washroom. “The show is getting more and more exciting.”Old Mrs. York, who had the mindset of watching a good show, perked her ears and continued to eavesdrop on the conversation between the two girls outside.Serenity had not forgotten about Nana. After chatting with Elisa for a while, she said to her best friend, “Jasmine, go check up on Nana. She’s been in the washroom for a long time.”Jasmine hummed and turned to walk to the washroom.Sonny was sitting by the side, playing with his toys. Even if there was no adult looking after him, he would simply play in the store instead of wandering out. He was a smart boy.Elisa had thought that her ploy did not work, but after hearing Serenity’s idea, she w
“It’s a pair of phoenixes, a male and a female.”Serenity got up and walked to the big box where she stored her crafts to bring out a delicate and beautiful box. She placed the box in front of Elisa and said, “They’re inside.”Elisa opened the box and retrieved two well-woven phoenixes from it, and complimented, “They’re so lifelike. Serenity, your hands are amazing. How much are these phoenixes? I’ll buy them.”“We’re close, and you think of me as a friend, so I’ll just charge you the cost for the materials.”Elisa placed the two phoenixes back into the box and said, “It’s precisely because we’re friends that I can’t take advantage of you. I’ll pay however much it’s worth. I can’t just pay you for the cost of the materials. I’ve seen the price of your goods on the online store. I don’t remember the exact number, but these two phoenixes seem to cost a few hundred.”She took out her purse from her Hermès bag and withdrew a small stack of cash. Without even counting, she shoved the
In a hotel not far from Wiltspoon Hospital, Noah Hunt’s parents knocked on the room door of the eldest son of the Hunt family, Stuart Hunt.When Stuart opened the door and saw his youngest brother with his wife looking worried, he asked with concern, “David, what happened? You two don’t look very good.”“Stuart, Noah hasn’t come back since he went out yesterday. We’re worried something might’ve happened to him.”Noah’s father was the youngest among the Hunt siblings, and his parents loved him the most, so they gave him the name David, which meant beloved.“Did Noah say what he was doing?” As the eldest of the Hunt family, Stuart was good at maintaining his composure.David hesitated for a moment and said, Noah said he was going to settle the score with Serenity and make her pay for Mom’s medical bills, but he hasn’t returned since he went out yesterday. His cell phone is turned off too.”Noah’s family did not know that he was being detained in the police station now, and his phon
“Sure, let’s call them.”Stuart also felt that it was better to have more people on their side and agreed with David to call his son and nephew.Unexpectedly, when David called his eldest nephew, Mike, he received news from Mike instead. “Uncle David, I was just about to call you. Something happened to Noah.”David’s face turned ashen, and he quickly asked, “What happened to Noah? He said he went to ask Serenity for money. Did she beat him up? If that damned girl dares to touch a single hair on my boy, I’ll end her! I’ll go back and dig up her mother’s grave!”Serenity’s father was David’s third brother, so David would not dig up his grave. However, his third sister-in-law was not related to him by blood. Since Serenity angered him, he would dig up his third sister-in-law’s grave for real.“Noah brought a few punks to intercept Serenity’s car in the middle of the night. They also brought iron bars and wanted to smash her car, but she fought back. The punks and Noah are being detai
Mike hung up the phone, ignoring his aunt’s scolding.He then let out a long sigh.He seriously felt he was unlucky because Serenity was unharmed even after he got help from so many people.Mike also felt that Serenity had a backer, but he did not know who that was.None of the mediators were willing to help Mike, which indicated that Serenity’s backer must be someone powerful in Wiltspoon. Through their investigation, Mike also did not notice that Serenity and Liberty knew any influential figures.Although Liberty’s husband was a manager in a large company, he was just an employee. Mike had no idea what kind of job Serenity’s husband had for a living, but he found out from the townspeople that Serenity’s husband only drove a national car worth around one hundred and twenty thousand dollars.Any of the Hunts’ scooters was better than the car belonging to Serenity’s husband.This showed that Serenity’s husband was not doing so well.If Mike were to guess who Serenity’s backer wa
Liberty returned to the bookstore and had another unsuccessful day at job hunting.Zachary was speechless when he heard what his grandmother told him.His grandmother sounded like she was gloating.“I won’t talk nonsense with you. Just come over for lunch now. Otherwise, I’ll tell Serenity that you’re the heir to York Corporation! Don’t try me. I found you a way to break this stalemate, but you don’t want to budge. By the way, I’ll tell you another secret. The gift that Elisa wants to give you is from Serenity. You’ll only know what it is when you accept it.”Zachary’s face turned even darker.His grandmother promised him that she would not interfere in his affairs with Serenity, but she threatened him by saying she would reveal his real identity to Serenity.Zachary hung up the call, but Grandma May did not care. She was also about to end the call anyway.“Mr. York, Ms. Stone refuses to give way,” the driver turned his head and said to Zachary.Zachary was silent for a minute.
Lilian often messed with the medicinal herbs her master cultivated, which led to her being chased and scolded by him.It seemed her son had inherited her restless nature.“How’s Sonny been lately?”Liberty had been on edge these past few days because Caroline had been preparing to lure her three brothers into a trap and had not had time to call her son.“Same as usual, but it seems like things have soured again with the Browns.”Serenity added, “Sonny still answers when Hank calls him, but he doesn’t seem happy when his grandparents visit. He doesn’t like going to the Browns’ place, and he doesn’t want to take their calls either.“Hank’s mother and sister are truly incorrigible. They must have been badmouthing you and Duncan in front of Sonny again, which is why he’s upset with them.”During the holidays, Sonny had stayed with the Browns for a few days and started to warm up to them.However, who would have thought that the mother and daughter would start spouting nonsense in f
Once the baby was born, he would apply the knowledge he had learned over the past few months to care for the baby. He was determined to be a competent and responsible father.Serenity released her arms from around him and shifted to her side.Zachary let go, too, allowing her to turn.Then, she planted countless gentle kisses on his face.“Babe, with you here, the baby and I will be just fine. Don’t worry too much,” Serenity comforted softly after kissing him.“You are my rock. If even you are nervous, I’ll start feeling anxious too, and that won’t be good.”Hearing this, Zachary immediately said, “Seren, don’t worry. I’ll protect both of you. Alright, I won’t be so nervous anymore.”He gently touched her rounded belly again. “Lil’ Bun should be a calm kid. He’s not that mischievous.”He felt that the baby’s movements were not too intense.Serenity wanted to tell him that there were times when the baby kicked more vigorously, but she decided against it, knowing it would only m
“Just hit the gym a few more times. Lately, you’ve been spending less time there.”Every day after work, he would come home and orbit around her. As a result, he had less time to work out.It was normal to gain a few pounds eating well and exercising less. Did he really think he could eat anything without gaining weight?The reason he could maintain a model-like physique before was that he exercised daily.“Ow.” Serenity suddenly cried out in pain.This startled Zachary so much that he nearly jumped up, asking anxiously, “Is it stomach pain? Are you going into labor? Let’s go to the hospital right away.”He was about to pick her up, but Serenity stopped him by pressing his hand.“Don’t be so nervous, Zachary. It's not time yet. It’s not happening so soon. It’s just the baby kicking again. His kicks are getting stronger.”As she entered the later stages of pregnancy, the little one inside her was growing stronger. Sometimes, a couple of kicks from the baby could actually hurt.
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