Belinda and Mr. Gordon returned to Fisher Enterprise late at night. Most of the employees were working overtime. Some had worked slower on purpose to see if both of them would be back. If they could return, it would mean that they had been framed for possessing firearms illegally. Maybe the police were not able to find the guns as well. The Clark brothers were nervous wrecks. They could not focus on work until the secretary informed them that Belinda and Mr. Gordon had returned. Upon hearing that, the brothers exchanged glances and let out a sigh of relief. Justin said, “I knew someone must’ve framed us. I’ve never seen a gun throughout my entire life of being Mom’s son. Even if I did, they were toy guns Mom had bought for me.”Adrian and Jason laughed. Similarly, Adrian had never seen his mother’s or Mr. Gordon’s guns. The Clark brothers quickly went downstairs to receive their mother. Belinda and Mr. Gordon entered the building with bodyguards escorting them.
“When that time comes, my teacher and I will search Fisher Manor again. Unless she swallows the gun and we can’t cut her open to find it, my teacher and I will never fail.”Most of them were aware of Belinda’s way of doing things. Sure enough, at ten o’clock at night, someone rang the doorbell. Elaine was there to deliver invitation cards to Audrey and the rest. They were invited to have dinner at Fisher Manor tomorrow night. Those who held high status in the Fisher family would also attend the dinner. Since it was a family banquet, Belinda mentioned that inviting the Queens would not be appropriate.She dared not and did not wish to be the Queens’ enemy. Audrey told Elaine, “Tell your madam we’ll arrive on time tomorrow evening. Please prepare more dishes as well. Since it’s a welcome banquet for me and Uncle True, everyone should have a hearty meal.”Elaine said politely, “I’ll relay your words to Madam Fisher, Mrs. Stone.”Audrey responded, “I prefer people addressing me
“It’s late. You all should rest,” said Audrey.Most of them were used to being night owls and were not tired yet. However, since Audrey said so, those staying in Queen Manor retired to their rooms for the day. Those who were not staying there went back to their hotels.Zachary stayed at Fortress Hotel. As soon as he sat on the sofa after returning to his room, his phone rang.He had a hunch it was Serenity who called. Sure enough, when he looked at his phone, it was a video call invite from her.The tension in Zachary’s face bled out right away. He accepted the call. Once it connected, the first thing he saw was Sonny’s face.“Uncle Zak.”Sonny was delighted to see Zachary. He greeted him with a smile and turned to say, “It’s Uncle Zak, Aunt Ser.”Serenity bent over and approached the camera so that Zachary could see her. She asked, “Are you back at the hotel?”Zachary replied, “I just returned from a meeting, and you called. Why haven’t you gone to bed yet, Sonny?”Sonn
Sonny liked having younger playmates around. They were tiny and adorable, just like the little boy at Grandaunt Audrey’s place.Whenever he went to Grandaunt Audrey’s house, he had the urge to tell Aunt Ser to carry the baby boy back to their house. He could take care of the baby and had many toys for the baby boy to play with. Zachary smiled. “That’s not true. I love you the most. I’m asking after your little cousin in your aunt’s belly because I’m concerned about her. I’m worried she might be tired or uncomfortable. Don’t you care about your Aunt Ser, Sonny?”Sonny nodded and replied, “I do care about her. I love Aunt Ser the most.”“See? Since you love her, you don’t want her to suffer, right?”“Yes.”“I’m just like you. I asked after your aunt because I care about her. It has nothing to do with favoritism. Do you understand, Sonny?”Sonny blinked and looked toward Serenity. After thinking, he nodded and said, “I understand, Uncle Zak.”Zachary praised him. “You’re so cleve
Sonny replied without hesitation, “Of course. I like Dunc. Having one more dad is pretty good. Other people have one dad, while I have two. Isn’t that great?”When Duncan first asked Sonny if he wanted a new father, Sonny answered that he already had one and was content with that.Now that Sonny had grown up and developed a relationship with Duncan, he could accept having another dad.Since he was more attached to Duncan, who was about to become his stepfather, he had grown distant from Hank. It was primarily because the Browns liked to stir up trouble, which diminished Sonny’s feelings toward that family. Sonny was still very young. As long as the Browns spent quality time with him and were sincere with him instead of trying to use him to obtain benefits, they could still develop a wholesome relationship with him. It would only get more challenging when Sonny grew up. Once he had thoughts of his own, he would no longer be easy to trick. Well, the Brown family was shortsight
“Your mom has been working tirelessly all day and can only rest late at night these days. We should consider giving her a well-deserved break.”Sonny thought about it and said hesitantly, “Okay. I’ll go to sleep and call Mom tomorrow morning. Please wake me up earlier tomorrow, Aunt Ser.”“Sure. I’ll wake you up at half past seven. Your mom usually has breakfast at that hour.”Sonny finally waved at Zachary and said good night to him. After that, he left Serenity’s room and returned to his shared room with Laurence. Laurence was taking notes from a book. He was copying the benefits and side effects of each drug compound. When he saw Sonny return, he raised his head and asked, “Did you manage to call your mom, Sonny?”Sonny walked over and saw what Laurence was writing. He did not recognize most of the words. “My mom is still busy and can’t have a video call with me. Aunt Ser told me to come back and rest. I’ll video call my mom when she’s having breakfast tomorrow morning.“
Serenity could only whisper sweet nothings with her husband after Sonny left. “Serenity, you should relax and have fun at FC Manor with Sonny. Don’t think about anything. I’ll come and get you two after I finish my work here.”Serenity retorted, “You’re the one who needs more rest than I do. I can feel your exhaustion just by looking at your face. Delegate some of your work if you can. Don’t insist on doing everything yourself.“That’ll be tiring. You shouldn’t pull all-nighters just because you think you’re young. You might face health issues if you do it often. You might even die a sudden death.“Remember, Zachary. You aren’t single anymore. You have a wife and a baby on the way. The baby and I will be waiting for your return.”Zachary smiled warmly. “I know, honey. Don’t worry. I’ll always think before doing anything. I can protect myself as well. I’ll consider you and our baby in whatever I do. Just take it easy and wait for me to pick you and Sonny up.”After staring at him
However, since no one ever expressed such thoughts openly, Serenity acted clueless.The happier she was, the more jealous other people would get. “It’s late, honey. Go to bed. Even if you aren't sleepy, our baby needs to rest.”Zachary, who felt a little guilty, quickly changed the topic and coaxed his wife to sleep. Nevertheless, he was reluctant to end the video call himself. Ultimately, it was Serenity who hung up. She put her phone down and caressed her bump. She mumbled to the baby in her womb, “Lil’ Bun, your dad is still keeping secrets from me. Even if it’s a white lie, he’s still lying.”After a short silence, she added, “We can’t blame him, Lil’ Bun. He’s doing it for our sake. I can’t risk going over because of you. Those who love you aren’t willing to let me go over because it’s too dangerous.“Do you think your dad and the rest can return safely?”The baby in her womb moved slightly under her touch as if answering her.Upon feeling a kick from the baby, Seren
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