Kade had already done everything he could to help Maria’s family. It was his parents who were worried that Maria’s family business being in trouble would drag him down, so they no longer supported him being with Maria.His mother nagged him about it every day, and after hearing it so often, he became frustrated and did not know what to do. On top of that, he did not fully understand his own feelings. He was not sure whether what he felt for Maria was friendship or love.While he was struggling with this, his company arranged for him to return to Huntington to take over all their domestic business. He took this opportunity to give himself some time to think—was he truly in love with Maria, or was it just friendship?When he heard Imogen say she wanted to match Maria with her cousin, Kade felt a pang of panic and fear of losing her. This gave him a moment of clarity and he realized that he did have romantic feelings for Maria. He was in love with her. Dylan chimed in, “Mr. But
Imogen sighed softly and said in a low voice, “If that's the reason, I actually hope they cut ties completely, because the Butchers already look down on Maria. Even if Kade persists, once Maria marries into the Butcher family, she’ll be treated poorly by her in-laws.“A woman who isn’t liked by her in-laws will have a hard time, unless she doesn’t live with them and her husband supports her unconditionally no matter what happens.“Otherwise, it’s easy for conflicts to arise. If they argue every few days, even the strongest feelings will fade over time.”Dylan asked in confusion, “If you think that way, why are you still encouraging them to be together? Are you worried that your families will try to matchmake you two?”Imogen laughed at him, “You wish, don’t you? Stop flattering yourself. I used to love you, but you made it clear that I’m not the one you love, so we’re completely over.“Now, at most, we’re just friends. And the only reason I’m nice to you is out of respect for your
Caroline stood at the entrance of the manor, dressed in a fully red outfit and draped in a red fox fur cloak. Darren, dressed in black, stood beside her, keeping her company.After a moment, several cars slowly approached and came to a stop at the entrance of Fisher Manor. The doors of the first car opened, and the bodyguards inside stepped out.Soon, Liberty emerged from the second car.“Liberty, you're here,” Caroline said with a smile as she walked forward.Seeing Caroline’s approach, Liberty also smiled and walked toward her. The two quickly stood face to face, both stopping in their tracks.Liberty looked Caroline up and down and praised with a smile, “Caroline, you look stunning today. The red outfit against the snowy white backdrop makes you especially beautiful.”Caroline laughed, “Am I not beautiful on other days?”“You are, but today you're particularly beautiful. Mr. Fletcher, don't you think Caroline looks especially beautiful today? Hasn’t she completely captivated
Caroline thought Liberty was worried about having to shoulder the responsibilities of Fisher Enterprise alone after taking over as the matriarch, so she said with a smile, “I’ll continue to help you until you’re fully capable of taking over. Only then will I leave.”She had spent almost three years familiarizing herself with and managing Fisher Enterprise, so she had more experience than Liberty.Liberty had only been in Jensburg for a few months. Moreover, when she first arrived, she was busy with her new company and did not know much about the Fishers’ family affairs.When Belinda was still alive, she had been most wary of Liberty and would never have allowed her to learn about the Fisher family’s inner workings. Thus, Liberty was currently truly in the dark about many things. “I know you won’t leave too soon, but I still don’t understand anything. Taking over everything now would make it hard to gain everyone’s respect. Let’s wait until I’m more familiar with things before dec
Caroline had only been minimally involved in the selection process, handpicking just a few individuals. She had told Liberty that if the people she chose did not work out for Liberty, they could be dismissed once Liberty moved in.“Your three brothers are here to cause trouble again,” Liberty remarked. “Do you need me to go out and chase them away? After all, you are their biological sister.“You have to take into consideration that you’re siblings and not be too harsh on them. What if you want to reconnect in the future? You wouldn’t even have an olive branch to offer.”Caroline replied coldly, “What sibling relationship do I have with them? They’re only behaving this way because they’re in a weak position. If they were in a stronger position and I were the one at a disadvantage, I’d be in the afterlife by now. They wouldn’t have let me live.“They wouldn’t have allowed me to return to the Fisher family or to swap places with Celine. They would rather continue making mistakes th
“Caroline!” Adrian called out sternly, his face dark and serious. He asked coldly, “I’ll ask you one more time. Are you really going to hand over the entire Fisher legacy to Liberty Hunt?”“This was Mom’s blood, sweat, and tears of a lifetime! If you don’t want to protect it, you can hand it over to us. We’d be more than willing to take over. We don’t want Mom’s life’s work to become someone else’s gain.”Caroline looked directly at her eldest brother and replied, “Adrian, I’ve said it countless times—the Fisher family should have been managed by Liberty’s branch of the family. Our mother took it by force, and what’s taken by force can never truly be yours.“Mom probably regretted it before she died.“Now, our branch of the family has lost everyone’s trust. Even if we don’t let Liberty take over, do you think it would fall to you? There are so many young women in the family, all hoping to be the lucky one.“Rather than letting it fall into their hands, it’s better to return it a
Truth be told, Hunter understood in his heart that they were actually only doing this because Caroline was his biological daughter and they thought Caroline would become the Fishers’ matriarch. Then, he would become the Fisher family patriarch and become even more powerful than before.Hunter had not told his relatives back home about the internal issues within the Fisher family. There was no point in telling them as they would not be able to help anyway. He was also afraid that if he spoke up, the relatives and friends now surrounding him would drift away. He enjoyed the lively life he had now.“Master, the three young masters have returned,” one of the housekeepers informed Hunter. Hunter had asked the housekeepers to address him as “Master.” With Belinda no longer suppressing him, he wanted to savor the feeling of being the patriarch. “What are they back for this time?” Hunter frowned and added, “I told them not to go back to Jensburg, to stay and put roots down here, but
The price for one life was another life. If they killed Caroline and Liberty, they would likely be caught within days. Then, they would face legal punishment, possibly the death penalty. What would be the point of that?What they wanted was control over the Fisher family, but if they were sentenced to death, the Fisher family assets would only go to others. “Adrian, a life for a life. If we kill someone, we won’t be able to escape—what’s the point of that? What if our plan fails, and instead of them dying, we end up dead? They have powerful backers and connections. It won’t be easy for us to harm them.”Adrian said, “Mom succeeded. We’re her sons. She raised us with care since we were young. Are we really inferior to her?”Jason muttered softly, “We are inferior to her. Not just her, we’re even inferior to Caroline.”Adrian glared at his brother, feeling that he was boosting the opposition’s morale while undermining their own.Hunter finally spoke up, “Your brother is right.
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