However, Adie was just a child. The consequences would be very serious regardless of how good he was. Margaret didn't want anything bad to happen to him, and she wouldn't know how to help him if something did."Just tell them not to worry..." Leia patted Margaret's shoulders and reassured her. "If everything goes smoothly, Ren can come back in a week.""That's great. It's alright if she travels, as long as she's okay. I'll take good care of the kids." Margaret heaved a sigh of relief. She didn't ask where Renee was—she was just happy to hear that she was safe. After a brief pause, Margaret looked at Xavier carefully. "Umm... What about Mr. Hunt?" "Stefan..." Xavier clenched his fists and told a white lie. "He's developing a sightseeing project there and can't come home yet.""Is he safe?" "Yeah, he's safe." Xavier took a deep breath, sounding like he was trying to convince himself more than anything. "I'm sure Stefan will be safe!""That's good. The kids can rest easy then. I'l
Renee was rather obedient that night in Jovan's manor. Not only did she have dinner, but she also stayed in the living room for a long time, waiting for Jovan's return.Jovan, who was exhausted, was filled with warmth when he returned and saw her in the living room. "Are you waiting for me?" He walked over to Renee and sat close to her on the sofa, and the dim lighting made the atmosphere look intimate."Are you that surprised?""I am." Jovan looked serious. "I'd imagined this scene countless times in my head… but I know you'd only wait for me like this if you needed something from me." Renee smiled. "Is that how you see me? As someone who's cruel and selfish?" "No, I can only blame myself for not being charming enough. I failed to make you fall in love with me even after pursuing you for such a long time." Jovan shook his head, a bitter smile on his face. He knew very well how she regarded him and dared not fancy wishful thoughts."I do have a favor to ask." Renee was wringing
"Grandpa agreed to it?" Renee's eyes widened in surprise. "I thought he always hated Briar? He knows how cunning she is, so why would he risk letting her join the board of directors? Isn't he worried that Briar might lose control and ruin Hunt Enterprise?" Doubts started to pop up in Renee's mind. Had something really happened to Stefan? There was no way he would have agreed to this if he was still the backbone of the company."Well, you'll know in a few days."-Three days later, Renee was overwhelmed by anxiety. She knew she had to face the truth. She had thought that Stefan would come to her rescue if she waited obediently, but it looked like he might need her to save him instead. Renee had been imagining that Stefan would come to save her like a knight in fairytales, but as time went by, she realized there was no point in hoping and waiting. If she continued like this, she would only be at others' mercy. Clenching her fists, she announced, "Lisa, I'm tired and want to sleep. You
Three days later, Renee woke up feeling like she was floating. "Stefan… Don't go, Stefan!" She muttered, reaching out to grab something. Her hand closed on air, and she immediately woke up."You're finally awake!" Jovan shot to his feet in excitement beside her bed. He had been guarding Renee for three days. Renee was supposed to wake up two days ago after the surgery, but she had remained unconscious. The doctor had said that the consequences would be unimaginable if she did not wake up before dawn that day. Jovan had assumed that this was one of Briar's schemes and had snapped at her, even threatening to kill her if anything happened to Renee. Fortunately, Renee had woken up in time."Where am I?" Renee was in a daze, and could feel bandages on her eyes. The area around her eyes was hurting too, but it was the odd pain that felt like… there was something there."You're in a ward in the hospital," Jovan answered honestly, then added eagerly, "You had eye surgery three days ago, and
Jovan sounded moved."Okay, I won't thank you again..." Renee nodded and asked, "How did you find these eyes for me then? I'm sure it wasn't simple. You must have sacrificed a lot for it, right?" She knew that it was very difficult to find a pair of suitable eyes. Previously, Stefan had screened people from all over the world but failed to find the right donor for her. However, Jovan had managed to accomplish it. Maybe she was meant to have her sight back, but Jovan had undoubtedly sacrificed a lot to get it."No, it wasn't much," Jovan explained calmly, "It's just a bit of money. Worldly possessions aren't as important as you getting your eyesight back." Truth be told, he had spent a lot of money on it. He nearly transferred half of his shares to Briar, and Briar was now also on the board of directors of Hunt Enterprise with a lot of shares in her name. In exchange for her new-found glory, she had introduced the candidate with a suitable pair of eyes to Jovan. "It's just a hunch b
Before long, the attending doctor and nurse walked over. "I heard that the patient is awake. That's great." The attending doctor was relieved that Renee was feeling better. If Renee was still unconscious, he would need to use some risky techniques to save her. "Mr. Jovan Hunt was very worried about you, you know. He didn't leave your side for the past three days, and neither ate nor drank. If you didn't wake up, I'm afraid he would have starved to death before we could save you!" The attending doctor joked as he did a basic check-up on Renee. Jovan scratched his hair in embarrassment and mumbled, "Doctor, stop. I wasn't guarding her… I was just too lazy to move, eat, or drink." He didn't want others to see him as a love-struck fool, but his excuse seemed to prove just that."Look how flustered he is, Ms. Everheart..." The attending doctor glanced at Jovan and teased, "I've performed a lot of surgeries and watched many people wait for their loved ones to wake up, but I can vouch th
Certainly, Renee's thoughts were selfish. If Jovan hadn't been that attentive, Renee would not be able to see again, but Renee had responded so ungratefully. "How do you feel? Can you see me? Do you feel any discomfort?" Jovan held his breath and asked Renee carefully. He was more nervous than Renee, looking like a man whose wife was in labor."I see you." Renee slowly opened her eyes. Her new eyes were light blue, and they were deep-set and mysterious. Her innocent, angelic pair of eyes had given way to a sultry new pair that could easily bewitch others."Your eyes..." Jovan gaped at Renee in amazement."What's wrong with them?" Renee asked anxiously. "Are they very ugly? Is there a mirror? Can I see them?" "No, your eyes are as beautiful as sapphires," Jovan swallowed and praised Renee honestly. Renee now looked like a confident ice queen that people could only admire from afar. For reasons he couldn't understand, Jovan, who had always been confident and self-assured, couldn't
Renee's eyes recovered gradually, and her initial dislike of the eyes gradually ebbed away. After a while, she grew to like them. Her features and fair skin indicated her Aeos origins, and the blue eyes from Varangia complemented them in a unique and harmonious way. Renee held her face and said to her reflection calmly, "Congratulations on your rebirth, Renee..." However, despite everything, she couldn't stop thinking about Stefan. She wondered about how he was, and how he would react when he saw the new her. She wanted to go back to Everheart Manor.Jovan's visits to the hospital had also reduced because Hunt Enterprise was in turmoil after rumors of Stefan's death had spread. It was a golden opportunity for ambitious people like Jovan, so he was too busy to spend time with her. "It looks like you like your eyes very much!" A sarcastic voice came from the door. Renee looked over and saw Briar wearing a mask. "What are you doing here?" Renee demanded coldly. "How could you talk
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