Quinn said with a smile, “My mom will get adventurous with food sometimes, but she prefers the familiar healthy choices.” Locals in Summervale had a taste for rich, flavorful food. Zoey, a northerner with a taste for bland food, eventually influenced the rest of the family to adopt her culinary preferences.Of course, Zoey was not selfish. She considered her husband and children's love of flavorful food and would try new dishes every couple of days. However, she could not bring herself to eat the food as it did not sit well with her stomach.Dave felt bad for his wife and told everybody to get takeaways if they had cravings. “So Mrs. Crawford is from the north like me. No wonder I felt a connection to her right away.” It dawned on Julian. Julian knew where Zoey was from, but he did not feel it was polite to ask her about it during their first meeting.Zoey came from a town far from Wiltspoon. The area had no public transportation, so Zoey would have to drive for hours to g
Two days passed in the blink of an eye and here came Zachary and Serenity’s wedding day. The doors of Wildridge Manor were wide open to welcome guests from all cities. The guests would travel to the manor right after landing in Wiltspoon and would stay at Wiltspoon Hotel as arranged by the Yorks. The hotel’s operation would only resume the day after the wedding. Serenity was awakened by Liberty before sunrise. The makeup artist Zachary hired had already arrived and was waiting for Serenity to wake up. The plan was to put on some light makeup on Serenity, suitable for pregnant ladies. Serenity was sleepy. She did not sleep well as she was too excited and chatted with her friends for a long time before bed. After being awakened by Liberty, Serenity tubbed her eyes and looked outside. She closed her eyes again when she saw the barely lit sky and murmured, “Let me sleep a little longer, Liberty. It’s only a simple makeup that won’t take long. Let the makeup artist eat somethi
As Serenity walked to the bathroom, she said, “You’ve told me the same thing countless times. I can memorize them already.”Liberty laughed. “Have I? I felt like I’ve only said it twice. I’m just worried about you. It wasn’t easy for you to get pregnant, so you must be extra careful. There’ll be many people during the reception. Anyway, you should take care. I reminded Zachary about this too.”“Did Zachary promise you that he won’t let anyone bump into me?”Liberty nodded. “He did.”“You have nothing to be concerned about then. Since Zachary said so, nothing will happen to me. Don’t worry too much. You’ve been worrying about the wedding for the past few days.”Furthermore, Liberty did not let Serenity help out. She would tell Serenity to sit or lie down even with the slightest movement. Serenity was in perfect pink of health, so her baby was definitely healthy and strong too. The baby would not be affected that easily. However, Serenity still listened to her strict sister and
Alice would still throw up every day. She did not gain any weight other than the baby’s throughout her pregnancy. It hurt Clive to see her that way. He harped on about only having one child and refused to put Alice through another pregnancy again. Due to his nagging, Alice wished she would give birth to a son. Although Clive did mention that he preferred a daughter, she wished to have a son who could inherit the Stone family’s legacy. Serenity often told Zachary about Alice’s honesty. Many people would refrain from revealing their preference for a specific gender for fear of being accused of discrimination. However, Alice never failed to be straightforward in saying she wanted a boy.“Mom.”Speaking of the devil, Serenity and Liberty heard Sonny’s voice. At first, Liberty thought she was hearing things. It was still too early in the morning, and Sonny would usually not be up. After hearing his voice again, Serenity told Liberty, “It’s Sonny. He’s awake.”Liberty exited the w
Serenity and Sonny whispered to each other their complaints about Liberty being too scary as they walked. Liberty, who overheard them from behind, was speechless. She was like a mother figure to Serenity. She wanted to marry Serenity off extravagantly. “Missus.”The makeup artist Zachary hired stood and greeted Serenity with a smile when she saw her walking down the stairs. Serenity returned a smile. “Good morning, Ms. Gardner. Sorry to have made you wait. I woke up late this morning as I had gone to bed late last night.”“I didn’t wait long. Go ahead and have your breakfast. Then, we can start after you have a short rest.”Most people were not yet aware of Serenity being pregnant. As Ms. Gardner was the makeup artist, Zachary had disclosed Serenity’s pregnancy to her. He also reminded her to use skincare that was harmless for pregnant women. “Let’s eat together, Ms. Gardner.”Ms. Gardner refused politely, “I’ve eaten before coming over.”As she was a seasoned bridal mak
Noah continued, “But Serenity doesn’t need our support.”They thought time had dissipated Serenity’s anger since their last conflict was long ago. They wanted to mend their relationship with the sisters through the wedding. By doing so, they would be able to gain some benefits just by being related to the Yorks. The Hunts wanted to restore their family to its former glory. Everyone looked toward Old Mr. Hunt, awaiting his decision. If not for Serenity and Liberty having some respect left for him, they would have gone to the wedding without his approval. Word of Zachary and Serenity’s wedding had been made known to everyone in Wiltspoon through the entertainment news. It was definitely going to be the wedding of the century. The Hunts wished to witness such a grand event. Serenity’s aunts and uncles wanted to attend the wedding for the delicacies. They even thought of packing up the leftovers to bring home. Since Serenity and Liberty could not care less about them, they
Who knew how their children would treat them when they could no longer care for themselves?Old Mr. Hunt was cautious whether to attend Serenity’s wedding or not. Since she did not invite them, they should not attend and should refrain from causing any trouble on someone else’s big day. “We won’t do anything there, Granddad. Can’t we just show up and have a few drinks? It can mislead others into thinking that our relationship with Serenity has eased. You must be aware of how difficult our situation is now,” Mike asked unhappily. He and his family wanted to attend the wedding. “I believe though it may be difficult, it’s still manageable. Mr. York may have initially targeted you, but he has stopped, right? I see that you guys have been doing well lately. You don’t even give me any living expenses when you're faring well. When things aren’t going smoothly, you’d ask me how much pension I have left to spare for you.”After glaring at Mike, Old Mr. Hunt added, “Anyway, your grandm
“They’re also trying to get our remaining pension. The house we’re living in now belonged to Scott and his wife. We were only able to secure this place to stay because we’re Scott’s parents.“Although our children have been providing us with some living expenses every month, that’s actually the rent that Serenity requested them to pay. Without Serenity’s enforcement, they wouldn’t even give us a single penny. Ultimately, we’re just relying on Serenity and Liberty.“We’re old. We have to accept our fate and be realistic. Let’s stop making pointless struggles.”Old Mrs. Hunt wanted to refute him, yet she could not find any words. What Old Mr. Hunt said was true.“Don’t blame Liberty and Serenity for being cruel. What we did to them ten years ago was worse. Why were we so ruthless back then? They’re our granddaughters after all. Scott and Lisa passed away, leaving their daughters behind. How did we bring ourselves to chase them out and seize their inheritance?”As Old Mr. Hunt spoke,
Zachary was also worried that Serenity would go into premature labor out of shock. He also persuaded her to go for her checkup in a gentle voice. They could not do anything but wait anyway.Serenity finally decided to conduct her prenatal checkup first. Zachary accompanied her. Just moments after they left, the door to the delivery suite opened. A nurse stood there and shouted, “Is Jasmine Sox’s husband here?”“Yes. I’m her husband,” replied Josh quickly. He dashed to the nurse. “You must save Jas, doctor. Save the mother no matter what.”His family members behind him also echoed, “That’s right. No matter what happens, you have to save Jasmine.”The nurse said, “The mother is fine. It’s just that she wants her husband to accompany her as she’s in a lot of pain.”Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.Josh was about to rush inside but was stopped by the nurse.She asked him to change his clothes before taking him inside the delivery suite.Jasmine was wailing in pain. When
With advanced medical technology, a premature baby could still be healthy if taken good care of in the incubator. Serenity said, “Jasmine should be at thirty-five weeks. I just don’t understand why she would suddenly go into labor. Did she fall at home?“Or did she eat something that made her go into labor?”Zachary said, “That’s most likely not the case. Josh’s cousin is Jasmine’s dietician and keeps an eye on her food every day. There’s no way Jasmine would’ve eaten something bad unless she ate it secretly.”Serenity and Zachary suddenly went silent. Pregnant women had weird appetites. Once they had a craving, they could not go unsatisfied. Sometimes, they would even crave fruits that were not in season. Serenity herself was one of them. Once, she woke up in the middle of the night craving mac and cheese. Of course, Zachary, the ever-doting husband, had to satisfy her request. However, where could he find mac and cheese at that hour?Ultimately, he had to drive to the
People would reap what they had sown. They would have to bear the consequences of their actions. Sometimes, interfering in another person’s fate would backfire. After chatting for some time, Serenity said, “I have to go for my checkup now, Liberty. Let’s talk again when you’re free another day.“By the way, I’ll get someone to bring Sonny to you this weekend. He misses you.”“Okay,” said Liberty. After the call ended, Serenity put her phone into her bag and stood up. She told the man behind the office desk, “It’s almost time, babe. Let’s go.”“Okay. I’m almost done.”Zachary quickly signed and stamped a document before closing it. He walked over with the document in hand. Serenity and Zachary left the office together. He handed the document to his secretary. The secretary did not expect him to pass the document to him personally. He had thought of entering Zachary’s office to request it later. The secretary watched Zachary and Serenity leave. He could not believe
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