"I didn't say that. Anyway… I'll leave you to your thoughts." Shirley smiled and said vaguely, "That's all I can say. If you want to know the truth, you'd better find the culprit."Leia was speechless. She clenched her fists and stopped asking any more questions. The answer was obvious. "Also, you'd better stay away from Xavier. He's Stefan's best buddy. He'll always take his buddy's side. If not, Stefan wouldn't know about Quinton having surgery so soon and even happen to have the doctor's contact." When Shirley noticed that Leia had fallen for her trick, she continued making matters worse.However, the truth was that the accident had nothing to do with Stefan. It was related to Stefan's significant other, so she felt that it was related to Stefan too. Shirley felt that she hadn't lied by saying that. "I knew that scumbag Stefan was a cruel villain!" Leia felt that Stefan was the mastermind behind it because of Shirley's words, and figured that Xavier must have helped Stefan.
Xavier made himself very clear. He didn't care about Santiago's background, but he would not let him off the hook if he tried to approach Leia with ulterior motives. "Hah! So, people can live a carefree life after hooking up with a rich, young lady? Isn't that just like what Shirley did? After she hooked up with you, she was always promoted and supported." Santiago snorted. "How hypocritical. I don't even want to argue with you about this."The pot was steaming, and the fried mudfish was finally done. There were some pickles and chili too. It was a sour and spicy meal, which Leia liked.Xavier wanted to say more but Santiago left the kitchen, carrying the freshly-cooked meal. Xavier was left alone in the kitchen, crying because of the smoke.He had lost this round. "Food is ready. Let's eat!" Santiago called out politely.Leia came to the table absently, looking dazed. She tried her best to force a smile but failed. Santiago noticed that something was troubling her, so he put
Adam looked stunned, and immediately tried to persuade Leia, "Oh no, please don't. We'll stop pairing you guys up. After all, Santi doesn't like it either. We're just joking. Don't leave." He was trying to imply that the others were responsible for trying to put Santiago and Leia together, hoping that Xavier would stop glaring at him."It's not because of that..." Leia looked at Adam apologetically. "It's my personal reason that I must return to Beach City. I'm still very interested in this show, and I'll be honored if people see me and Santiago as a couple. It's more than I can wish for. Of course, I'm not scared.""Hmph, how superficial!" Xavier said suddenly, gulping down his wine.Adam averted his gaze when he saw that Leia had made up her mind. He added, "How about this? If you're busy, you may leave. But I happen to have a dating variety show coming up soon. Can I invite you and Santiago to be on it as guests?""Sure!" Leia agreed to it immediately for the sake of shooting
Xavier lifted his chin and said arrogantly, "I'm her boyfriend." When he made that statement, everyone was in an uproar. It was shocking to see a big shot of the entertainment circle admit to a relationship so openly.Leia was confused. She didn't expect that he would reveal this, and snarled at him angrily, "Xavier, are you out of your mind?" Why did he announce their relationship to others at that moment? He even did it before her idol. He merely wanted to stop her from dating her idol. Damn it, how could he do such a cruel thing? She could not accept it at all!"Did I say something wrong? We're indeed a couple. If not, why would we sleep in the same bed in the same room the first day we got here? I think anyone with a brain would get the idea." Xavier smirked, happy that Leia was so affected by him. At least she wasn't fawning over Santiago, and was focusing on him. "I..." Naturally, Leia was at a loss for words. She knew that people would scold her regardless of what she sa
"Umm… Is the person you're talking about... that scumbag Stefan?" Leia asked carefully.Renee smiled bitterly and answered, "Who else could it be?"Leia frowned contemplatively, wondering if she should tell Renee the truth. Stefan was the most suspicious person in this accident because of his history with Quinton, Shirley's statement, and connections. However, Leia didn't have concrete evidence, so she couldn't accuse Stefan of it. Besides, it would only make matters worse by hinting at it; if both parties involved got into a fight again, they would all suffer great losses.But… What if he did something bad again?"Ren, you know how shrewd Stefan is. I think you'd better not trust him too much…" Leia said finally, hoping Renee would pick up on the hint."Yeah, I know. There are too many obstacles between us. Quinton's accident is enough for us to be enemies forever, so I don't want to have anything to do with him. I just want to thank him for helping with this surgery." Renee glan
Leia's words were harsh, but she wasn't trying to be rude. She just felt that this doctor was probably as bad as Stefan since he was recommended by him."Lei, be nice to Dr. Wagner—he's been operating on Quinton for days. If Quinton wakes up, Dr. Wagner will be my family's great benefactor." Renee bowed to Owen. "I'm sorry, Dr. Wagner, my bestie can be hot-headed at times. She only says these things because she cares about me, so please don't take it to heart.""It's fine. We doctors are used to meeting difficult family members, so this is nothing." Owen shrugged indifferently and said meaningfully, "You should be thanking Master Hunt. I didn't intend to take this job, but he was so insistent that I couldn't say no. He even went fishing with me and defeated me, so I was forced to accept the job."Renee averted her gaze. "I know you're here because of him, so I'll be sure to thank him properly.""That's right..." Owen patted Renee's shoulders and comforted her, "Be happy and stop ov
It was none other than Seraphina.She had bribed the nurses working on the floor Quinton was on, and had found out that Renee and the others had gone to the cafeteria to eat. Once they had left, Seraphina had opened the door and entered Quinton's ward. Quinton was now lying in bed after the surgery. He was wearing an oxygen mask and looked very weak.Seraphina walked to Quinton's bed. She stared at him for a while, then put something beside his pillow and took off his oxygen mask. "I'm sorry. I don't want to be cruel, but I just need you to be in a coma so Renee can learn her lesson. I didn't expect you to be so tough. Stefan even helped hire Owen for you..." Her eyes flashed in anger. "You should blame your shameless sister for this. She's been pestering Stefan relentlessly even though he's engaged to me, so unfortunately, you have to suffer the consequences!"After that, she avoided the surveillance cameras and left the hospital quietly.Meanwhile, in the cafeteria, Renee was s
Justin stiffened, his eyes widening. "What… What did you say?" "I'm saying that you're a spy! You probably ordered someone to harm my brother. If not, why did this happen right after we left to eat at the cafeteria?" Renee demanded hoarsely, her eyes watery. She and Justin were the only ones aware of Quinton's condition. On the surface, Justin appeared to be taking good care of her. Maybe he was doing it on purpose to divert her attention so someone could harm Quinton. After all, he was a Baldwin. Everyone knew how ambitious the Baldwins were. They might want to take Quinton's place after getting rid of him.Leia tugged on Renee's sleeve and urged her softly, "Ren, that's too harsh. There's no way he could be a spy. If he was, he wouldn't have spent so much time on you, and would have gotten rid of Quinton long ago. The real spy is someone else..."Renee turned to look at Leia immediately. "Do you know something about this?" "I..." Leia clenched and unclenched her fists hesitantl
They danced for around ten minutes. Renee danced to the song heartily. Her initial gloomy mood also improved.Renee drank some water and took a few deep breaths. Then, she sincerely praised Leia, "Alright. Your welcome ceremony is bizarre, but it helped relieve my stress. I like it very much!"She could tell that Leia had painstakingly prepared that gift for her. After all, it was not easy to ask the Zambawi people from primitive tribes to sing an English song. "I'm glad you like it. I did this because I wanted you to relax and stop taking things seriously. You need to stop being so hard on yourself and get rid of all the pressure!" Leia said honestly. The Zambawi hand-drum dance came with the charms of a primitive dance. Its goal was to set people free. Of course, it was suitable for Renee to relieve her stress."Yeah, your stress is relieved. From now on, you'll start afresh. This is for you. I'm sure it'll be one of your happy memories." Liam handed the previous Polaroid to
"This is your welcome ceremony. This hand-drum dance is to help eliminate bad luck." Leia held Renee's arm, satisfied with her arrangement. She said happily, "Listen to their song! It's a great song!""Is there a song?" Renee frowned; she felt that Leia was always doing bizarre things. She wondered how Leia could come up with such a preposterous welcome ceremony."Mm, listen carefully! It's English. You can understand it." At that point, Leia said to the Zambawi people, "Put on your microphone. And sing louder."The Zambawi people gave their cooperation. They used their typical Zambawi singing to sing the English song. While listening to the song, Renee found it very familiar. "The flowers will bloom in spring, and the birds are free. I'm still waiting, waiting for my love to come back. Hurry home!""Isn't that Spring Flowers by Curtis Harrett?" Renee finally recalled what song it was. It was a song with a happy beat. It could make people happy. The Zambawi people made th
"I don't know, either. All I ever remember from when I was young is that I led a very painful life. I once tried my best to make the Garcia family accept me. I did all the dirty and tiring jobs. I went out to work at an early age to get money for them. I also did all the house chores. "But my foster parents were never nice to me. They would always beat me up or scold me. My elder foster brother also saw me as an eyesore. He always tried to get me killed…" Quinton calmly described his past. He no longer seemed to be in pain. All that was left in him was numbness, as if he were talking about someone else.However, Renee was always in pain whenever she heard him talk about his past. She felt like she had returned to his past with him and experienced those painful things. It was normal for her to feel that way because they were twins. A lot of their thoughts and feelings were synchronized. "I suddenly recalled that I would inexplicably become gloomy many times when I was young. I
"I'm sorry." When Renee heard that from Quinton, she realized the conflict between him and Stefan had yet to be resolved. It was temporarily put aside because of her. She occasionally saw him and Stefan talk to each other and drink together, but they merely put on a show to ease her mind. Their hatred for each other hadn't been eliminated. Instead, it was growing secretly. If Renee were Quinton, she might never forgive the person who had snatched away her beloved and seized her identity. That person even ruined her face."Why did you say sorry to me? It's the resentment between him and me. It has nothing to do with you. Plus, I didn't know he was my brother-in-law then. If I knew, I wouldn't have fought him." When Quinton recalled those affairs, he realized that people were nothing but the sport of fate. If there had been no resentment between him and Stefan, Renee might not have broken up with Stefan. Their families might even get closer. "Stop bringing up the past. It's
During these days, Renee was under pressure because of her affairs. She had no chance to ask Quinton about it. Now, the long flight gave them a chance to have a deep conversation. They could talk about their woes and seek consolation."Me?" Quinton lowered his head and shook his head helplessly. "I'm still the same old me. Nothing is troubling me. I've been busy with Carmine Pawnshop. I have no time to think about other stuff.""You have no time?" Renee touched her chin and smiled naughtily. "Then, you must have been dwelling on other stuff. Let me guess… Is it the thing between you and Joanne?" "Stop asking so much." Quinton did not deny it but refused to talk much about that. "It looks like I made the right guess. You fell out with Joanne, didn't you?" Renee knew Quinton well. Generally, his work would not affect his mood. The only person who could affect his mood was Joanne, who shared a complicated relationship with him. Before Renee left Beach City, she had created a l
After a long while, Quinton turned around. He looked at Renee, who was across from him, and heaved a long sigh."We're about to go home soon. Why do you look this gloomy? What's wrong…? Are you reluctant to part with this place?" Quinton said. "No, I'm not." Renee poured herself a glass of orange juice and sipped it. She frowned and dwelled on it before she said, "I feel empty inside. I don't know if I made the right choice.""Empty?" Quinton asked curiously."I think I've said goodbye to a steady life since I decided to leave. Maybe I'll keep on wandering from now on," Renee said melancholically. The reason why she chose to give it a try with Justin because she was tired. She was exhausted from leading a wandering life and wanted to settle down with someone. Others could not give her the sense of security like Justin. When she saw him, she inexplicably wanted a home. At that time, she thought she could forget about everything and start a new life with him. Unexpectedly, she
Adie was still a child, but he acted like a smart person and could see through a lot of things. He could guess why Austin took them to the Baldwin residence. He had also heard the servants of the Baldwin family rebuking Renee in secret. After combining various situations, he learned about what had happened between Renee and Justin. Despite everything, Justin could forgive Renee under such circumstances. He also treated Adie and Abby nicely. It proved that he was a very compassionate man. A small regret gripped Adie. He wondered why Renee didn't date Justin right from the start. If Renee were with such a kind man, she might be very happy. She wouldn't have to suffer through so many hardships either. "No, you don't know me. I always sweat the small stuff."Justin was displeased since Adie had claimed that he was a good guy, like Renee had. He heaved a long sigh and said, "But it's useless even if I sweat the small stuff, so I stop trying. It all comes down to fate. We can't forc
Renee turned and found Jovan unscathed. Relief washed over her. She said grumpily, "It's none of your business!""Tsk! How cruel!" Jovan clutched his chest and pretended to be in deep pain. At the same time, he teased, "I know. Your soulmate is better. I'm so jealous of him, though he's still a fallback guy.""Go to hell, Jovan!" Jovan's nasty words drove Renee mad. She grabbed a piece of napkin, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it at his face. "If I knew you'd talk so badly, I wouldn't be bothered to save you. Maybe you'll get reborn in Ulria. Then, you have to watch your tongue!""Hey! Yeah, I was wrong. You don't have to curse me like that!" Jovan raised his hands to surrender, but felt quite moved. He poured himself a glass of milk and devotedly toasted to her. "Thank you for caring about me and trying your best to save me. I'll toast to you. And you can do whatever you want.""You're so childish." Renee rolled her eyes and was amused.Justin was quite jealous to see them
"What's that?" Justin frowned and said with disdain, "That's something to fool naive women like you. Only lovestruck fools will believe that." As a materialistic person, he never believed in things like horoscopes and fortune-telling. At most, they were mixed with some psychology. They weren't trustworthy at all.If Renee wanted to use those things to talk about their relationships and destinies, it would seem very childish. "Don't be so extreme. Those things are real and logical." Renee acted like an experienced salesperson and gradually eliminated Justin's prejudice. She said patiently, "If you believe those things, they can guide you and help you to see things through. If not, you can use them to kill time. Just try to get to know them. Isn't that nice?"Finally, Justin was convinced. He had some milk and asked her leisurely, "Fine. Tell me what kind of relationship we have based on those things." "I learned that our relationship is a declining friendship based on our birt