“Really? You’re coming back next week?” Sonny shouted happily. “Mom, is it almost Christmas? I want to set off fireworks!”“We can’t set off fireworks,” Liberty replied. “If you want to see fireworks, we’ll have to go to Wildridge Manor to see them.”At the foot of the hill Wildridge Manor was situated on, there was a large lawn where fireworks could be set off. In other places, it was not suitable due to the risk of fire. Fireworks were prohibited in the city, but they were not banned in rural areas. However, she could not possibly take her son back to the Hunts’ home for Christmas. Their parents' old house was still occupied by their grandparents.Before Christmas, though, the sisters might have to visit their hometown. No matter how estranged they were, the old Hunt couple were still their grandparents. They should bring some Christmas gifts and a little money for the two elders for the holiday, but nothing more.“That’s settled then!” Sonny immediately decided they would go to
Many matters and properties could only be managed and not claimed as their own if they were merely the acting head of the family. This was the reason the killer of Laurence’s family was determined to eradicate every single one of them.Firstly, they did not want to end up like Belinda, who had labored for years only to benefit someone else in the end. Secondly, the family token and emblem were undoubtedly with Laurence. If the killer could obtain those two items and eliminate Laurence, the only remaining legitimate heir, then the killer would truly be able to lead the Longbottom family.“Clo-clo!” The two little boys shouted when they saw Jane carrying Chloe upstairs and ran over to her. “Mom, I want to hold her!” Laurence lifted his face and stretched out his hands, wanting to hold Chloe.Jane bent down and handed her daughter to Laurence, saying, “Hold your sister tightly, she’s a bit heavier now and isn’t as docile as before.”Though Laurence and Sonny were still very young, t
“It’s good that everything has ended and everyone’s fine,” Serenity said.Since it was over, the weight on their chest was finally lifted. “Are you coming back next week, Liberty? And when are Aunt Audrey and the rest returning?” Serenity asked.“They’ll probably wait until my vacation starts. Grandpa True wants to stay a little longer. After all, he had lived in Jensburg for decades. It’s his hometown.”Patrick was old and weak. Doc had said he could live for at most two to three more years. If things went wrong, he could even pass away next year. The next time Patrick returned to Jensburg, it would be in the form of ashes. He had thought of requesting Mrs. Stone to send his ashes back to Jensburg after he died. He hoped to be buried beside the Fisher family’s private cemetery. That way, he could watch over Madam Tiara forever. “Zachary and Clive will probably be back in a few days. They’re staying for a little while to inspect their families’ businesses here.”Serenity sm
Caroline had discovered the truth. Indeed, her mom had killed her sisters to become the matriarch of the family. Previously, she had already told Mrs. Stone that she would not take over the Fisher family if the truth turned out to be what everyone suspected. She would hand everything over to Mrs. Stone. It would be up to Mrs. Stone to decide whether to take on the responsibility or pass the baton to Liberty. Either way, Caroline did not care. She simply wanted to return everything that did not belong to her in the first place.“Aunt Audrey’s right. You should settle your marriage with Duncan first.”Suddenly, Liberty went quiet.“What’s wrong, Sis? Haven’t you made a decision yet? Didn’t you say you were going to get your marriage license before the year ends?”Duncan was already planning a proposal.“I’ve made up my mind, but I still feel worried about actually doing it. Will Sonny be able to accept it? Will Duncan be okay with me staying in Jensburg so often for such lon
“Everyone can see how well Duncan treats Sonny. I think even a blind person can feel his love for Sonny. You don’t have to worry about that at all.”Duncan would be the best stepfather. He was already treating Sonny like his own. “Sonny has a close relationship with Duncan as well. He isn’t as close to Hank anymore.”“I know, Seren. I won’t overthink anymore and get my marriage license with Duncan before the year's end. I’ve known him for some time and understand him well enough. I won’t regret getting married to him.”Liberty had felt lost for a moment. After talking to Serenity, she returned to her senses and started thinking rationally again. She and Duncan had gone through his parents’ objections and his car accident. The Lewis family were no longer opposed to their relationship, and Duncan was already recovering from his injuries. The Lewises did not even mind if Duncan had to marry into her family.His parents could also accept their daughter taking her last name if they
Serenity was happy and was about to head downstairs after her call when she heard a sound behind her.When she turned, she saw Jane and smiled. “When did you get here?”“I’ve been here for a while. I didn’t make a sound because you were on a call with Liberty.“Is everything okay now?”Jane had known how that night ended. Her brother and sister-in-law were at the scene, after all. They did not help out much and simply supported Mrs. Stone. Laurent and Suzy had gone there to watch the chaos unfold. Since Patrick and the legendary masters were in Jensburg, Suzy also wanted to meet her teacher. After everything ended, Dan followed Laurent and Suzy back to Meadspring. Silver and the rest tagged along too. On the other hand, Sugar returned to the Doyle family. Having been away for so long, her parents would scold her if she did not return to help the family out soon. As for her and Dylan’s relationship, there was no rush at all. He did not even know she was the Chameleon F
Jane filled her car with things to bring to her adoptive parents and grandparents. In return, her adoptive parents would load her car with fresh produce from their farm. Of course, Jane and her in-laws would never refuse their kindness. Whenever she returned from visiting her parents, the Johnson family members would surround her and split the fresh produce she brought back among themselves. Jane knew her in-laws were only excited about the fresh produce because they adored her. She felt lucky to have married into the Johnson family. “That’s your parents’ way of showing their love for you,” Serenity said enviously.Her parents were no longer around. She would never be able to experience a love like that. Serenity did not have a family to return to. Although the house was still standing, her parents had passed away. Going back would only make her sad. Although Serenity’s relationship with her grandparents had improved a little, it could not compare to the closeness Jane s
Jane smiled. “Aren’t you going to tell Dad about this?”“No. He won’t stop me from going anywhere. He’ll probably drive up on his own later.”“Okay. Let’s go.”Jane lifted Chloe and held Laurence’s hand while Antonia followed her with Connor in her arms. Serenity pulled Sonny along.“Where are Cheryl’s children?” Jane asked as she thought of her nephews.“They’re asleep. Their nanny brought them back. We shouldn’t bring them along. They’re too naughty and probably can’t sit still at your mom’s house. Besides, their parents aren’t coming along. It’ll be troublesome if they get hurt.”Antonia would be more than happy to take care of the boys at FC Manor. The house was lively with more children around. However, she and Jane would only bring them out if either Ethan or Cheryl were tagging along.Taking care of someone else’s child was a huge responsibility. It would be fine if nothing happened but, if an accident occurred and the child was hurt, it would be difficult to expl
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