Chapter 1771

“You’re saying she’s completely sincere toward me?”Grace frowned, puzzled.Hearing those words from Arnold sounded too much like he was trying to paint Aurora in a better light.After all, she could still clearly remember Aurora standing right in front of her, saying she wanted to cut ties.She would never forget that.And she knew her daughter’s temperament well enough. How could Aurora ever say the things Arnold claimed?From Grace’s point of view, he was simply trying to soften Aurora’s image.She knew her own daughter. Aurora wasn’t someone who sweet-talked or used pretty words.So, Grace didn’t buy any of this, and she wasn’t about to let anyone stand here and glaze over the truth.“Madam Grace, why won’t you believe me?”Arnold finally grew anxious.He was telling the truth.Why did she refuse to accept it?And as a mother, how could she not believe her own child’s words? Didn’t she think that would hurt her daughter deeply?Wasn’t that a failure on her part?The thought alone m

Chapter 1772

Arnold knew better than to stay and irritate her further. He slipped out quietly, no longer daring to remain in Grace’s sight.Watching him leave, Grace couldn’t even tell what she was feeling.But she was certain of one thing—she wasn’t wrong.Her daughter was hers.Whatever she chose to do with her was a family matter, and no outsider had the right to interfere.Arnold was just a butler. What gave him the right to lecture her?If it came to that, what was the point of hiring a butler?Was she supposed to pay someone to preach at her?The very thought made Grace feel the whole situation was absurd.Outside, Arnold’s emotions took much longer to settle.He had always believed he could speak honestly with Grace because he’d served the family for so many years.He thought that made him an elder of sorts—someone whose words she would at least consider.But in her eyes, he was nothing.Every bit of concern he held had been nothing more than misplaced sentiment.Realizing that left a dull a

Chapter 1773

Hearing that, Grace’s tone turned sharp.“So what, you’re saying meeting your own mother now requires an appointment?”Tessa was speechless.Her fingers tightened around her bag.For a moment, she truly felt Grace was arguing for the sake of arguing, completely unreasonable.But then she remembered the shares in Grace’s hands, and all she could do was swallow it down, again and again, not letting a single crack show.“That’s really not what I meant. You misunderstood me.”Tessa gave her a warm smile and even stepped behind her to knead her shoulders. “Mom, I just meant I’m grown now. If I build a career of my own, wouldn’t that make you proud?“And when people talk about it, won’t they say it’s because I was raised well by my mother?”She continued gently, “And if I actually achieve something, that credit goes to you more than anyone.”Grace’s expression softened at once.Tessa truly knew how to strike the right chords.Just a few lines were enough to swing Grace’s mood from irritation

Chapter 1774

She even knew exactly how to hit the sweet spot that pleased her.Grace pinched Tessa’s soft cheek with a doting smile. “Alright, alright. Only you know how to sweet-talk like that”“I’m only telling the truth.”Tessa clung to her arm and leaned against her shoulder, her voice soft with affection.With her daughter leaning so close, Grace felt something stir in her chest—an unexpected, quiet warmth she couldn’t quite name.Meanwhile, Tessa’s mind was already calculating.This should be enough to get her through today.She still had a meeting scheduled with a partner, and if she delayed any longer, she’d miss it completely.She only hoped her mother would wrap things up soon.But the next sentence made chills crawl straight up her spine.“Tessa, you’re sure you’re not hiding anything from me? Like meeting someone? Or someone saying something to you?”Her face drained of color instantly.Grace had been watching her closely this entire time—every flicker of expression and breath she took.

Chapter 1775

Earlier, Grace still felt a little puzzled, convinced that her two daughters were similar in both temperament and ability.Now it seemed to her that Aurora wanted to compete with Tessa.When Tessa noticed Grace deep in thought, she knew her mother had taken every word seriously.But Tessa was the one who wanted to compete with Aurora.Since childhood, anything Aurora wanted, she always ended up getting too.Aurora made everything look effortless; she carried herself with calm composure by day, even while jealousy tugged quietly beneath the surface.At night, she would push herself harder with her studies, which was how she got into a top university.It wasn’t that Aurora was following in her footsteps—there were only so many elite universities to get into.And because Grace had always favored Tessa, she misunderstood the situation.If she had observed Aurora more carefully, she would have noticed that every time Aurora entered a new school, she broke Tessa’s previous records.For examp

Chapter 1776

Seeing this, Tessa felt a flicker of confusion.She couldn’t shake the feeling that Grace was keeping something from her, especially since she’d called her home in such a hurry at the beginning.Why was she letting her go so quickly now?Tessa couldn’t explain what felt wrong, but something simply didn’t make sense.Grace sat on the sofa, watching Tessa hesitate, and finally spoke with mild confusion.“Didn’t you say you were in a hurry to go earlier? Why are you just standing there now?”Hearing that, Tessa didn’t even know how to respond.She paused before saying, “Mom, are you sure you called me back just to ask me about this?”“Of course. What else did you think I needed you for?”Grace purposely looked at her as if puzzled.“Are you under too much pressure lately? You seem a bit suspicious of everything.”Seeing Grace’s concerned expression, Tessa suddenly didn’t know what to say.And judging from Grace’s tone, she even wondered if something really was wrong with her.Had she misu