Leia could tell that something had happened to Stefan, but their priority right now was to detoxify Renee. "That's enough! Let go!" Leia pulled Xavier's hands off Elijah's collar, then told Neil and Elijah, "Go give the dragon's saliva to Dr. Wagner.""Okay!" Elijah turned around and gave Xavier a look, then sighed and rushed into the manor with Neil.When Owen saw the dragon's saliva, he was in disbelief. It was practically an elixir in medical textbooks and was rumoured to bring people back to life, and Stefan had actually found it. "Great! We have the items—Ms. Everheart can be saved!" Owen didn't waste any time and immediately went to his laboratory to make the antidote for Renee.After a day of research, he finally came up with the antidote and gave it to Renee. After a while, Renee felt much better. Her pain had lessened, and she didn't feel so weak anymore. "It's magical... I feel like I've come alive!" Renee leaned against the head of the bed, her eyes bright. Before this,
Thankfully, they had managed to fool Renee.After Renee chatted with them for a while, Owen suggested that they let Renee rest. "There are three courses of treatment that she'll take over a span of two weeks. She'll get better with each treatment, but she also needs to rest. Let's not disturb her." "Okay, let's go then." Leia immediately stood up and asked everyone to leave Renee's room.When they reached downstairs and confirmed that Renee was asleep, everyone called Neil and Elijah over and asked them to explain what had happened.Neil had wanted to set off for Dragos immediately with the remainder of the dragon's saliva, but decided he owed them an explanation. Taking a deep breath, he said to everyone, "In order to get the dragon's saliva, Mr. Hunt climbed our dragon statue, the most sacred thing in my clan. What he did infuriated the villagers, and if they're going to punish him by clan laws… They'll cook and eat him, sacrificing him to the ancestors to pacify the dragon's wr
Neil lowered his head, trembling in fear. He glanced at Elijah pleadingly. "Mr. Young, please help me. I did what you all told me; I didn't do anything wrong." "Mr. Stuart, it was my decision, not Neil's. Punish me if you want, but leave him out of this." Elijah closed his eyes, preparing for Xavier's attack. He had expected such a reaction when he made that choice. Stefan and Renee had both been on the verge of death, and Elijah had chosen to save Renee because he knew that was what Stefan would do. If he chose to save Stefan and lost the dragon's saliva, he would have lost the chance to save Renee, and Stefan would have suffered even more. Elijah didn't want to see Stefan have such regrets."Elijah, you're Stefan's most trusted subordinate. How could you betray him? Why?" Xavier's fury turned into confusion. He knew Elijah's loyalty towards Stefan was stronger than Xavier's friendship with Stefan; Even if everyone had abandoned Stefan, Elijah would never do such a thing. "I did
Quinton and Xavier rushed to Dragos with their men, and soon surrounded the tiny village from all directions. They came in large groups of professionals and elites, and had weapons aimed at the village from the sea, land, and sky. It looked like they would annihilate the village if the villagers refused to let Stefan go. Dragos' villagers regarded themselves as the descendants of the dragon, so all of them, regardless of age, stubbornly protected their village.Just as both parties were about to fight, Neil cried and got down on his knees between them. "Everyone just calm down, okay? We don't have to do this. Please don't fight!"Silas Drago, the head of the clan, led the villagers. All of them held spears, and they waved their weapons as they shouted, "Kill! Kill! Kill!""Dad, you're the head of the clan and the most rational person here. Please listen to me… We can't afford to offend them. Just let Mr. Hunt go. They'll also put the dragon's saliva back, so just forget about all
Silas angrily looked ahead. "Not only do they have guns, but they also have cannons and other terrible weapons. I know our village will be doomed if they aim even one of those at us… but we've always been living on top of the mountains away from the world. We never start conflicts, but there are always wicked people coveting our village treasures. If we compromise this time, they'll push their luck next time, and then our village will really be doomed. We're the descendants of dragons, so we must protect it. They've disrespected our dragon, so we have to fight to the death. We won't let them step into the village unless they kill all of us!" At that point, Silas turned and ordered his villagers, "Get ready to fight! Attack!" The hundreds of villagers yelled and roared, shooting arrows with fire towards Quinton and Xavier.Chase quickly blocked Quinton from the onslaught and said desperately, "Mr. Everheart, they're crazy! We can't reason with them. Just go back first, and let us han
Chase and Elijah objected to Silas' suggestion."It's too risky for Mr. Everheart and Mr. Stuart to go into the village. The villagers might even hold them hostage. It's too dangerous!" "Yeah, we'll lose our advantage once they enter the village. We can't even fight back if anything happens. I think we'd better not take the risk..."Xavier frowned and wondered if he should agree. Their concerns were valid—the villagers were barbarians beyond the reach of the law, so promises and morality would mean nothing to them. If he impulsively went with them, he would be at their mercy. It was a great risk. "I'll go with you," Quinton said to Silas calmly. He bypassed the crowd and approached Silas."Are you willing to?" Silas was taken aback, not expecting them to be that trusting and sincere. "I've got nothing to fear—I believe that the descendants of dragons aren't cunning people who would go back on their word," Quinton remarked. He had escaped death many times and was not afraid of
Silas was still angry, but remained silent because Xavier had intimidated him.Seeing that, Neil continued, "You're right, Mr. Stuart. We have our differences, and I think the best course of action right now is for everyone to calm down and take a step back." Everyone remained silent, in agreement with Neil.Then, Neil added, "We ask that Mr. Stuart and Mr. Everheart come into the village to talk to us alone. I know you both are concerned, and it's normal for you to be. Mr. Stuart, please tell us what your condition is, and we'll try our best to fulfill it if we can." Then, he carefully looked at Silas. "Dad, what do you think?"Silas didn't want to make a scene. If these men destroyed the village, Dragos' centuries-old legacy would end because of him, and it would be a great sin. Hence, he finally yielded. "Fine. What's your condition?""I can go into your village with you, but your daughter has to be kept as a hostage on our side until we reach a successful negotiation," Xavier
Quinton and Xavier followed the large group of villagers and climbed up several slopes to reach Dragos, which was on the top of the mountains. The place of their negotiation was a flat ground at the entrance of the village, which stood at the top of a cliff. Both Quinton and Xavier had initially disliked each other, but now, they had become allies."Damn, these people really are cavemen! Be careful, I wouldn't know how to explain it to Renee if you fall and kill yourself." Xavier grumbled as he pulled Quinton away from the edge of the cliff.Quinton glared at Xavier and whispered, "I was just looking for escapes in case they go back on their word and attack us.""I don't think they'd dare to. After all, the village head's daughter is in our hands!""You forget that they don't think like us, and I doubt they'd be merciful considering Stefan has disrespected their God. They worship that dragon, so they might just sacrifice Silas' daughter to take revenge." "What should we do then?
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
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