"What do you think?" Stefan's gaze turned steely, his patience running thin. Although Leia did crazy things sometimes, she was acting quite strange. Besides, surgery wasn't a small thing."Okay, I'll tell you..." Leia took a deep breath and braced herself. "Yes, Ren is having surgery, but she didn't want me to tell you guys because... How should I put this? It's a little personal.""What kind of surgery is personal?" Stefan growled, "Stop messing around, I won't go easy on you if anything goes wrong!""Fine, I'll tell you..." Leia swallowed and said seriously, "She's having an appendectomy. Her belly has been hurting lately, so she asked Dr. Wagner to do it for her while they perform the test.""Appendectomy?" Stefan's frown deepened as he looked at the door dubiously. "When did she have a problem with her appendix? How come I didn't know?" "You don't know because you're not observant and considerate enough. Ren's digestive system isn't always good, and she doesn't eat much. If y
"Haha! That's ridiculous. You didn't care enough about Ren and were ignorant about her condition, but you have the nerve to say that I'm lying. Why would I lie for no reason? What good will it do me? I'm not lying, and the person who feels guilty here is the real liar." Leia didn't expect that Stefan would see through her lies so easily, and started rambling out of nervousness.After hearing Leia, even Xavier felt like she was hiding something. "Lei, did you have wine? Why are you rambling?" Xavier took a step forward and held Leia's hand, looking concerned. "Should I take you somewhere to rest? You don't seem well." "No, you can save that for yourself. If I don't seem well, it's because of your witch. I didn't slap her enough. Let me slap her, then I'll be fine." Leia tried to turn the conversation back to Shirley, and hoped the surgery would end soon because she couldn't deflect for much longer."Ms. Osborne, go ahead and slap me if you want. I won't complain this time." Shirley
As Shirley and Leia were busy arguing, they didn't realize that Stefan had slowly approached the door of the room. He didn't believe that Renee was having an appendectomy, and felt that there was more going on in the room. He tried to push open the door to take a look, but when he placed his hand on the doorknob, Leia noticed what he was doing."What are you doing? You can't go in!" Leia rushed over and stood between the door and Stefan, blocking him from looking inside. She had promised Renee to hold off the others, and she would do it even if Stefan got offended and she got into trouble."This is my wife's house, and my wife is in there. I have no idea what she's going through. Can't I go in and take a look?" Stefan's words were polite, but his tone was dangerous. Leia had anticipated that he would lash out, and she knew that if she kept this up, things would turn sour. Nonetheless, she spread her hands out to block his path and said stubbornly, "Over my dead body! I'll never bac
"That's patient confidentiality. Why do I have to tell you?" Owen sounded righteous. He tilted his head a little and instructed the nurse handling the surgery table behind him, "Don't forget to put Ms. Everheart on an IV drip later. Her body is weak after the surgery. Don't be careless." The nurse had cleaned up the surgery table. Renee was lying on it motionlessly, waiting for the anesthetic to pass. At first, Owen said that Renee could have a medical abortion because the fetus was still small. But after the check-up, he found that the fetus was adhered quite firmly, so eventually he needed to perform dilation and a curettage to clear everything. Renee was afraid of pain, so she chose regional anesthesia and let Owen handle it. Now, after everything was over, grief hit her like a wave. She couldn't even protect her baby. Lying on the surgery table, she could hear the fight outside, and tears ran down her cheeks."Confidentiality?" Stefan tried his best to control his temper an
Renee ignored Stefan's question and turned to the nurse standing nearby. "I'm tired. Can you help me back to my room?" The effects of the anesthetic had passed, and she could move, but she was still weak from the abortion and poisoning. She had no energy to handle Stefan, and all she wanted to do was sleep.Stefan wasn't blind—he could tell that Renee was very uncomfortable. Besides, it was obvious she didn't want to tell him about the surgery, so he just controlled his emotions and stopped interrogating her. Taking a deep breath, he finally said, "Let me carry you." Seeing that, the nurse immediately said, "Thank you, Mr. Hunt. Since Ms. Everheart has just had surgery, she might experience some light spotting, but it's normal.""Spotting?" Stefan stiffened. He wanted to ask what surgery could cause that, but he stopped himself. He had been trying to get to the bottom of it, but it seemed like Renee didn't want him to know. He didn't want to make her feel bad, so he decided he woul
"Wait!" Shirley, who had been watching everything indifferently, suddenly stopped Renee and Stefan.Stefan stopped and turned to look at Shirley. His tone was icy as he asked, "What?""Can I speak to Ms. Everheart?" Shirley asked Stefan, looking innocent and harmless."Absolutely not." Stefan rejected Shirley without any hesitation. He had met a lot of malicious women like Shirley, and he knew that she and Renee were not friends. There was no reason for her to speak to Renee."Yeah, you're not close to my bestie. What do you want to say to her? We don't know what wicked intentions you might have..." Leia snapped at Shirley, then said to Renee gently, "Ren, go and rest. Ignore this witch." Renee, however, found Shirley's request quite strange, so she whispered in Shirley's direction, "I'm sure Ms. White has something important to say given her sudden visit... Come to my room later. We can talk." "Okay, Ms. Everheart. I knew you were a fair person." Smugness gleamed in Shirley's
Renee's sense of hearing and touch was enhanced because she was blind, and she could sense that Stefan's emotions were off. She asked hesitantly, "Stefan, are you crying?" "No, I'm not," Stefan said immediately. He turned away and took a deep breath, trying his best to control his emotions. "I don't believe you. You must be crying..." Renee patted the edge of the bed and said firmly, "Come sit here.""Why?""Come here. Stop asking so many questions." Stefan could not refuse Renee. He moved over and sat at the edge of the bed obediently."Turn your face towards me," Renee instructed Stefan."Why?" Stefan asked stubbornly."Just do it!" Renee ordered, her tone brooking no arguments. Helplessly, Stefan moved closer to Renee. He was a tycoon in Beach City, but when it came to Renee, he would do anything she wanted him to. The irony was not lost on him.When Renee felt Stefan nearby, she reached out and held his face. "You..." Stefan immediately tensed up as if someone was a
In the past, Stefan never used to cry—they used to call him an iceberg. Even if Renee had died in front of him, he wouldn't even have flinched. But now, he couldn't stop his tears. Seeing men cry was so rare that people always said men's tears were the best stimulant for women.At first, Renee wanted Stefan to leave the room because she needed some time alone, but when she realized he was crying, her heart softened. She imagined his handsome face streaked with tears, painting a charmingly pitiful image, and suddenly felt the urge to grab him and kiss him. Hmm... She needed to calm down."Hey, aren't you the toughest CEO in Beach City? You cry more easily than Adie and Abby, I think I'd better change your nickname to 'crybaby'," Renee held his arm and said cheekily, trying to stifle her laughter."I'll say it again: I didn't cry. I just got dust in my eyes." Stefan scowled in embarrassment as he tried to defend himself. In his opinion, only feminine men would cry, and those were t
Jovan called Stefan to sound the latter out. Anyway, it would be convenient for Stefan to rush over since they were both at the same spot. "I'll be right there," Stefan said. Then, he hung up.For a moment, silence washed over everyone, as if something terrible was about to happen.After taking in the new information, Leia said indignantly, "What's going on? Why does he want to come? Isn't he too shameless? How dare he come?" Although everything wasn't discussed openly, everyone knew why Stefan and Renee broke up all of a sudden, despite how lovey-dovey they were. The reason was that Stefan had cheated on Renee.Even if the adultery was faked, it was still the cause of their breakup. If Stefan were shameful or guilty, he wouldn't have agreed to come. He was going to face Renee there with their friends and family around. Certainly, it was embarrassing. "Hmph! Why not? He impersonated me, seized my business, and snatched away my woman. Plus, he led a steady life, got married
Jovan's words made the atmosphere quiet and bizarre. "Are you out of your mind, Jovan? It's already very annoying to have someone like you here. Do you have to get another annoying guy?" Leia frowned, crossing her arms. She kept scolding him.Initially, the atmosphere was considered harmonious. It was still considered fine even if there was an annoying person like Jovan. Unexpectedly, he wanted to call another, more terrible person to come here. Things would certainly go wrong. "Ms. Osborne, you're famous for talking harshly, too. You're just like me. I love it." However, Jovan was not mad at all. He grinned while waiting for Stefan to answer the call. Generally, Stefan would not answer Jovan's call. Surprisingly, he picked it up that time."What's the matter?" Jovan purposely put it on speaker mode. Stefan sounded aloof and emotionless.Jovan sounded wicked as he calmly asked Stefan, "Do you want to join a gathering, Stefan?""I'm going to hang up if you don't say anythi
In the past, Jovan had always regarded Stefan as a coward. Stefan couldn't forget about Renee, but he kept pushing Renee to another man. It seemed like Justin was more responsible, considerate, and gentle. Of course, Renee would lead a very happy, steady, and comfortable life with such a man. At the very least, Jovan felt that he could not be that meticulous and considerate. He would only drive Renee mad just to get her attention. "Hmph! Are you trying to humiliate me or yourself?" Justin didn't find that a compliment. Instead, it sounded like smockery. Jovan made it sound like Justin was a nice guy, but would not be picked by Renee. Usually, people like that had to suffer and would not end up well."I'm praising you." Jovan was helpless because of his reputation as the villain. Although he had said a lot of annoying things, he did want to compliment Justin. His love was probably as deep as Justin's, but his and Stefan's ways of loving Renee were much inferior to Justin's.
"That's unnecessary." Justin stood in front of Renee, his face cold. He said firmly, "She's unwell and can't have wine." "Is she unwell? I didn't see that." Jovan sized Renee up before he sized Justin up. Then, he sneered, "And who are you to her? You can't stop her from having wine.""It's none of your business who I am to her. I said she can't have wine." Justin always kept peace with others, but at that moment, he was dominant. He didn't always want to control Renee, but she had drunk a lot of wine that day. It might have hurt her belly. Hence, he felt it better for her to abstain from wine lately. However, Jovan was unaware of that affair. He simply found Justin purposely showing his ownership over Renee, which disgusted him."Waiter, get her a glass of milk. She only wants that," Justin instructed a waiter, showing his consideration for Renee. "It's okay. I can have a little wine. Plus, I'm rather good at drinking. It's not easy for everyone to get together tonight. I do
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