Serenity got tired after walking around for some time, so Zachary brought her and Sonny back to the villa where he lived during his bachelor days. As their holiday was coming to an end and they would resume their work life, they decided not to stay in Wildridge Manor anymore for convenience. Once they entered the door, they heard Grandma May’s booming voice. Zachary and Serenity exchanged glances. They did not think she would be here. “Great-Nana.”Sonny was excited to see Grandma May. He ditched his aunt and uncle, running toward Grandma May immediately. The old lady waited for Sonny with open arms. “Zachary, Serenity.”Dylan was in the house too. The booming voice they heard earlier was Grandma May scolding Dylan. It seemed like he had angered her somehow. After greeting Grandma May, Zachary and Serenity sat and asked Dylan, “Did you anger Nana? We heard her from outside.”Dylan looked helpless and aggrieved. Zachary immediately knew what the issue was. He pa
After thinking about it, Emma said, “Come in.”She turned around to enter her room and Ava followed suit. Once the door was closed, Emma whispered to Ava, “We can join hands to chase Celine out. I have the urge to rip her apart whenever I see her now. Unfortunately, even though Mom’s angry at her, she still loves her very much.“After all, Mom and Dad had raised Celine with lots of love. They didn’t know Celine wasn’t their daughter.”“Do you have a plan, Emma? As long as Mom becomes disappointed in Celine and hates her, Celine will no longer be the Fisher family’s daughter. It’ll be better if she loses everything and struggles in Jensburg.”Emma and Ava were not exactly saints. Indeed Celine had helped her brothers and offended her sisters-in-law, but they were also plotting to make Celine lose everything she had. Emma said, “I have a plan. Hear me out and let me know what you think. We can execute it right away if you find it doable.”“Go on.”Emma said in a low voice, “Why
Those people were stingy as well. They would take everything and sweep the house clean at every visit. Luckily, Belinda did not seem to like them a lot. Those thieves dared not visit without her permission. Otherwise, Emma would have gone crazy if she had to interact with them often. “Do you have a way to obtain the aphrodisiac, Emma?”Ava grew angry upon the mention of her husband’s affair and Hunter and Celine’s biased judgments, so she made up her mind to work with Emma to frame Celine and have her kicked out of the family.Their husbands had no hope of becoming a patriarch anyway. Since it was so, they would take Caroline’s side and give her a hand by chasing Celine away. In the event Caroline had a score to settle with them in the future, they hoped she would have mercy on them after having helped her now. “That’s easy. I know some people. We should get Ellie to join in our plan. I believe we’ll be able to handle Celine with the three of us working together.”“Should
Belinda said, “I’m not hungry. I don’t feel like eating. Don’t mind me and go on. I’m heading home soon. You shouldn’t drink on an empty stomach while socializing for work tonight.”Since Caroline had gradually gotten the hang of handling the company, Belinda rarely attended business engagements unless they were important. Other than that, she left everything to Caroline. “Are you still mad at Dad, Mom?”Caroline poured her some tea and gave it to her while asking with a concerned voice. “I heard from Emma that Dad isn’t eating anything either. However, I think it’s not because he doesn’t want to eat. He’s probably in too much pain to do so. Celine is worried about him. She brings food to him every meal. I wonder why she isn’t as concerned about you when you love her so much.”Caroline took the opportunity to badmouth Celine. “Do you think Celine hates you, Mom? She’s used to being spoiled, yet you were suddenly so stern with her and even punished her. She might be criticizing y
The mother and daughter had the same personality. After some time, Belinda said, “Liberty is in Jensburg.”“I know.”Caroline was not surprised. Belinda was taken aback before she let out a self-deprecating laugh. “Oh, right. You have an assistant now. They’re really capable. I don’t know which ancestor of ours thought of establishing a base to train the best assistants for us.“I thought you knew nothing. This is good.”After speaking, Belinda drank a few sips of tea. She held onto the cup and leaned against the chair. Then, she turned the chair and had her back face Caroline while she looked outside the window. The city was illuminated. She said, “I suddenly thought of Tiara’s assistant, Patrick. He was competent and even better than my current assistant. Not only that, he had a good personality and looks to match. I saw him often because I was raised by Tiara.“Time passed, and I found myself falling in love with him. However, the assistants are not allowed to marry or ha
“Is Aunt Tiara’s assistant still alive, Mom?”Caroline changed the topic. She knew Belinda would not agree to amending the family rules. “Patrick went missing after Tiara’s accident. I don’t know whether he’s dead or alive.”Belinda had sent countless people to look for him after she became the matriarch. Alas, it seemed as if he had evaporated into thin air. She was still searching for him. Patrick probably knew something about the incident. He could have some evidence too. He was a ticking time bomb if she did not find him and destroy the evidence. Who knew when he would suddenly resurface and testify that she had killed her sisters?Even if Belinda had a crush on him when she was young, she had to think long-term for her descendants. She would kill him once he was found. There had been no news about Patrick or her nieces for decades. She thought she could hand her position over to Caroline smoothly if her nieces died or never appeared. However, the heavens left Beli
Belinda said, “I truly don’t feel like eating. You should go. I’ll head home shortly. I promise I won’t fall. This is a small matter. I’ll get better after being in a bad mood for a day or two. I’ll be myself again tomorrow.“I won’t be devastated over an old man. I want to hear your thoughts. How do you plan to tackle Liberty now that she’s here?”“I’ll just remain calm and make thorough preparations just in case.”Belinda smiled. “That’s good. As expected of my daughter.“I met my niece, Audrey, when I was in Wiltspoon. There was some tension between us. She thinks I’m a murderer no matter what I say, so she’s hostile toward me.“She suggested I give Liberty a chance and train her so you and Liberty can compete fairly. If Liberty loses, Audrey will accept you as the matriarch. If Liberty wins, we’ll have to give up on all our power.”Audrey was not forthright about it but her intention could be read between the lines. Belinda added, “Why should we give up on what’s ours, Caro
Meanwhile, in the presidential suite on the top floor of Fortress Hotel, Liberty and Hayden sat on the sofa in the living room while Kevin poured water for them and served them a fruit platter.“Liberty, how about staying with me? I live alone, the house is big, and there are many rooms. If you move in, we can also keep each other company.”Hayden invited Liberty to stay at her private villa.While smiling, Liberty turned her head to look at her. “Hayden, if I move into your place, the tabloids here will report that you and Kevin have a relationship breakdown. They might even say that Kevin is delusional and that you prefer women.”Hayden choked for a moment.She was still dressed as a man now. If Liberty stayed with her, it could easily lead to misunderstandings and cause unnecessary trouble.Liberty had just arrived in Jensburg and it would not do her well to be gathering hate when her footing in Jensburg was still weak.Hayden had too many admirers. Though they could not comp
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