Hank gave Liberty the stank eye and questioned, “Didn’t I wire you five hundred bucks?” Chelsea immediately got up and took quick paces over to get a word in after her brother. “Liberty, did you take Hank’s money? You told me that Hank only gave you three hundred bucks, so you can’t afford the bigger shrimps and crabs.” Without lifting her chin, Liberty carried on feeding her son while reminding Hank in a flat tone, “I told you that you should be paying for the groceries and cooking for your mother and sister. You’d have to pay me two hundred bucks for the labor cost if you want me to do it.“I don’t owe you anything. Yet, I have to cook for you and receive nothing but criticisms and lectures in return.” Liberty had to endure the thankless tasks in the past. Hank was speechless. By the looks of Hank, Chelsea knew that Liberty was telling the truth. She shamefully returned to her seat on the sofa. Still, she could not bite her tongue and reproached Liberty, “You and Hank ar
Serenity was a fast eater. She would finish her meal quickly and take over Liberty’s tasks so Liberty could eat. As for the in-laws, they were only concerned about filling their own bellies. They did not care about Liberty. It was as though Liberty would not feel hungry. “Mom, have some shrimp.” Hank helped his mom to a few shrimps before saying to his sister, “Have some more, Chelsea. They’re all your favorites.” Feasting on the crab, Chelsea uttered, “We didn’t get the Alaskan King Crabs this time. These crabs are tiny. They don’t have much meat. I don’t get much taste out of them.” The disdain in her voice was apparent. Hank fell silent for a while before responding, “I’ll take you out to a fancy hotel next time.” “Hotel food is expensive. Your money doesn’t grow on trees. Just wire me the cash next time. I’ll buy the food for Liberty to cook.” Chelsea made it out as if she was doing her brother a favor. “Sounds good.” Since Hank only had to give a bit of money
The vegetables were leftovers from yesterday. Liberty kept them in the fridge, but the vegetables were only enough for one person. Since Liberty bought the vegetables with her money, she was not going to share them with the Browns. Chelsea was stunned. Liberty carried the food out and sat down at the dinner table. She leisurely enjoyed her dinner. Worried that her sister might be picked on, Serenity found the time out of her busy schedule to call Liberty. “Did they gang up on you, Liberty?” “I have a history of chasing Hank down five blocks with a kitchen knife. The worst they can do is get into a tiff with me. When a woman stops caring for her husband, she won't tolerate unreasonable behavior from him or his family.” Serenity was relieved to hear that. “Have you eaten, Liberty?” “I’m having dinner now. How about you?” “I’ll eat after I’m done with work. I should get back to it, Liberty.”“Alright.” Liberty knew that this was one of her sister’s busiest hours. Afte
Although Chelsea had a clear idea of what was going on, she did not do right by Liberty. No matter how highly educated a woman was, she would be bound by marriage and a relationship once she walked down the aisle and had children. Anyone would hate to be in the woman’s shoes. “I have talked to Liberty about it, Chelsea. She refuses to help.” It was not something Hank could promise to make happen. Since the case of domestic violence, the husband and wife had not kissed and made up. Since Hank had Jessica, the only thing on his mind was to keep his lover happy while the hag at home was not worth his time. Liberty seemed to have grown a spine too. She used to back down but refused to do that now. The couple’s marriage came to a standstill. They lived together but slept in separate rooms. They went on with their own lives. The couple did not talk to each other unless it was about the child. “Why can’t she help out on this tiny matter? I’m not asking her to do it for free.
Chelsea lowered her voice even further. “Spend some money to buy a small gift for her. Everything will be solved if you coax her.“In any case, she’s still Sonny’s mother. For Sonny’s sake, and since your niece and nephew need someone to take care of them, bow your head and coax her. You’re a man, so you should be flexible.”Olivia leaned in and picked up where Chelsea left off, whispering to her son, “Hank, for Sonny’s sake, you two still have to continue being together. Listen to your sister and buy some gifts for Liberty to coax her.“Think about how well she took care of you before, and look at how you are now. It’s not like you’ll suffer if you bow your head a little.”When Olivia came over this time and saw that her son could not afford to put on airs as the head of the family to oppress her daughter-in-law, she felt very distressed on behalf of her son.However, this was a result of the instigation by her daughter and her.If they had not instigated her son to split househ
Then, Hank said to his mother, “Mom, go shopping with Chelsea. If you see anything you like, just buy it.”He took out his phone and transferred five thousand to his mother for her shopping spree.“Okay. I’ll shop with your sister later and buy some new clothes. Hurry back to work and remember to come home early afterward.”Olivia sent her son out and winked at him to remind him to buy some gifts for Liberty when he got off work.Liberty pushed the stroller over and placed her son into it before saying faintly, “I’ll take Sonny downstairs for a stroll.”“Go ahead,” said Olivia, smiling lovingly.Liberty immediately put her guard up.‘If my mother-in-law is acting like that, she must be planning something against me. More accurately, my mother-in-law and sister-in-law are trying to trouble me again, right?‘No matter what they ask, I won’t agree.’With that thought, Liberty could not be bothered to deal with them anymore and pushed the stroller out of the house.On the other h
Tania also turned to look at Serenity, who now already had her back to them. “Was she smiling at us? I don’t know her.”“Oh, maybe it was just my imagination, and it wasn’t us who she was smiling at.”Tania’s friend did not think much about it.She turned around again and saw that Serenity had already walked away. She said with a smile, “I must’ve really gotten the wrong idea.“That girl was quite pretty and bore a good mien. I couldn’t tell which family she’s from, so I thought she was someone you knew.” The friend teased Tania, “All the ladies in Wiltspoon will smile at you when they see you.”Tania had three sons. The most famous one was her eldest, who was the head of York Corporation. In the York family, he was the most important person after Old Mrs. York.All the men in the York family were extraordinary. Excluding the youngest two, one of whom was still in high school while the other had just reached adulthood and was not suitable for marriage, the other seven in their ge
Serenity understood why her mother-in-law pretended not to know her and did not take it to heart.After walking back to her parking spot, she unlocked the car and placed the clothes she bought for Zachary on the passenger seat before driving away.A short while later, she arrived at Brynfield. Zachary had yet to return, so she fiddled with her small garden on the balcony.The roses were blooming in overabundance, so she took a pair of scissors to cut a few off. However, she was reluctant to throw them away, so she took them back to the hall to trim them and arranged them into a vase.Ring ring ring...Her cell phone rang.She answered and it was from her neighbor at the store. It was inconvenient to take the pets with her since she was going to shop for Zachary’s clothes, so she asked the neighbor to look after the pets for her.“Mr. Charles, I’m so sorry. I completely forgot. I’ll go over and pick them up now.”Serenity would have forgotten about the pets if she had not receiv
“A baby’s face changes almost every day. We’ll only know who he takes after when he’s a little older.”Serenity agreed. “I should call Elisa and share this news with her.”Jasmine probably did not have time to tell her friends about her newborn. Serenity also forgot to inform Elisa because she was too worried about Jasmine. Zachary told her to call Elisa only after they were inside the car. There were too many people in the hospital. Serenity held back her excitement and immediately called Elisa when she got in the car. Elisa was extremely busy at the company. She was the only one who could manage their joint company at that moment because Serenity and Jasmine were pregnant. Even if they wanted to return to the company to work, Elisa would not allow them. Rest was of utmost importance for pregnant women. Elisa was unmarried and not pregnant. She did not mind being busier. She only picked up Serenity’s call after some time.“Seren.”Elisa held the phone in her left h
“All that matters is that you’re okay, honey. Let’s not have more children. We’ll just have this one son.”Josh spoke while holding Jasmine’s hand.Women had to experience immense pain when giving birth. It came with many risks as well. Josh had heard other people saying that a woman usually had one foot in the grave during childbirth.He was genuinely shocked after accompanying Jasmine through her labor. He had been terrified and worried that something would happen to Jasmine.Luckily, everything ended well. Jasmine and their son were safe. However, Josh did not want to experience something like that again. Having one child was enough. There was no need for a second or third child. The Buchams were a big family anyway. He did not have to bear the responsibility of expanding the family alone.“Okay. We shall not have another baby.”Although Jasmine was brimming with motherly love and recovery from a vaginal delivery was quicker, she still thought childbirth was too
It was not just Camila. The rest of the people there also had the same thought. Josh and Jasmine had a great relationship. If something happened to Jasmine, Josh would be devastated and lose all hope of living.“Congratulations. The mother has given birth to a boy safely. The baby boy is six pounds and three ounces.”The people who brought Josh out were the anesthetist and nurse.The nurse instinctively reported the good news when she saw the crowd.Then, she explained, “The father probably fainted from shock after the baby was born. Come over and help bring him to the side to rest. The mother won’t be out that quickly.”Upon hearing her words, everyone’s mood brightened up.Camila, whose legs felt weak just now, was immediately filled with strength and stood up. Without Drake's help, she went to the nurse and asked, “Does the baby need to be in the incubator since he was born prematurely?”The nurse replied, “We’ll put the baby in the incubator and observe him for a while. If
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.