Home / Winter's End, Spring's Reckoning / Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

All Chapters of Winter's End, Spring's Reckoning: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

9 Chapters

Chapter 1

"Jonah, are you sure you want to take over your older brother's identity? What will happen to Fiona and your daughter?"I heard my husband, Jonah Lloyd, reply with total determination, "I've already said. From now on, I'm Noah Lloyd. Don't call me by the wrong name."Fiona's a country lady. No gossip will faze her. She loves me so much that even without me, she'll bring up our child."Adele is from the city. If she finds out that Noah has passed away, she won't survive, let alone the son in her. Are you two willing to see her marry another guy and let him raise your grandson?"How did I not know that my husband was close to his sister-in-law? Or perhaps, he had coveted her all along?He continued, "Besides, are you willing to give up the money Noah earns in the army every month? Just do as I say and bury him in my name. Treat me as if I died!"Jonah's parents were suddenly silent. When it came to profit, they chose silence. In the countryside, a family could toil in the fields

Chapter 2

As Jonah and his parents plotted in the room, I turned around and rushed back home with a suppressed rage.I had to get all the family assets into my hands before Jonah took action.People in the countryside were still rather simple-minded. How could they have stolen my belongings and emptied the house?I rushed home and stuffed the money that I saved all these years into my underwear.Then, I located the wedding gifts I brought over when I married Jonah. I hid them in a wooden chest and snapped a lock on it before I finally felt at ease.That chest cost me a fortune back then. It was solid enough to weigh over 50 kilograms.Then, I quickly headed to the city hall and had all of Jonah's identification records registered as dead.Since he was planning on taking his brother's place, as his wife, how could I not help him?I couldn't wait to see how Jonah was going to handle it when people from the army came looking for him.After doing all these, I rushed back to the wake.Upon

Chapter 3

Jonah and his parents yelled in unison."Fiona, how could you be so cruel? Jonah's body hasn't even gone cold, yet you're already bringing Tina back to your parents?" Jonah looked at me as if I had committed a terrible crime.In his eyes, even if he was already dead, I should dedicate my entire life to the Lloyd family. How could I possibly leave them and go back home?"Yes, Fiona. Jonah has just died, yet you're already bringing Tina back to your parents. How do you think the village will see us? We'll be utterly humiliated!""Jonah might have passed, but we're still a family! Let us know if you have any trouble. We'll surely help you!"They might have kindly offered help, but when you truly needed them, they were nowhere to be found.Adele rolled her eyes condescendingly as she touched her baby bump. "Mom, Dad, just let her go! We'll be much better off having two fewer useless mouths to feed.""Adele!" Jonah rebuked.Adele's eyes instantly reddened. "How dare you yell at me!

Chapter 4

"I already told you you have a terrible life! First, you caused your husband's death. Now, your entire house has been raided. All you do is bring bad luck."Adele suddenly appeared, followed by Jonah behind her, carefully holding her by the waist.I wiped away my tears and glared at Jonah."I'm sure you both know the best whether this was done by thieves or someone that we know!"My harsh words caused Jonah's gaze to flicker a little, but his tongue was still sharp."So, what if I took them away? Everything that you own belongs to the Lloyd family! I— I mean, my brother might have left all these, but even if I were to take this house for myself one day, it would have been right! "I am the last and only son of the Lloyd family. Adele is pregnant with our first grandson. This will be all for them in the future!"What Jonah said clearly struck a chord with Adele. She no longer hid her arrogance. She raised her wrist, showing me the gold locket that my parents gave me when I was te

Chapter 5

When I saw who it was, my tears couldn't stop falling.A man in his immaculate military uniform was looking at me with aching concern. He quickly took off his coat and wrapped it around me, pulling me into his arms.As I felt the remnants of his body warmth from the coat, all the grievances I suffered bubbled to the surface.I said with a catch in my throat, "Andy, y-you're finally here!"Then, I buried myself into his neck and sobbed onto his uniform.An equally callused hand lay on my body, but this time, I felt extremely safe. Ever since we were young, Andy, my fifth-oldest brother, doted on me. He was an abandoned baby that my parents picked up by the side of the road. Not long after they took Andy home, my mother was pregnant with me.My parents always wanted a daughter, but their wish never came true. So, they thought that Andy brought me to them.They named him Andy and raised him like one of their own.When Andy knew about his background, he treated me even better.

Chapter 6

When I came around, I saw many people looking at me worriedly.Seeing me coming around, a few of them called out to the doctor excitedly, "Quickly! Fiona's up! Call the doctor!"I opened my eyes to see my brothers and parents sitting all around me.Andy held my hand in delight, saying, "Thank goodness you're up!"My parents went in to me and asked in concern, "Fiona, I made you chicken soup. Do you want some?"I looked around and said, "Hello, everyone, where's Tina?"Before my parents could reply, Andy answered, "Don't worry. She's safe at home."I was relieved to hear that she was alright. I was worried that Jonah might do something to her. I finally saw my husband for who he was in this new life.Before I could say something, Andy tutted at the door and yelled, "What are you still standing outside for? You need me to escort you in?"At that moment, Jonah entered the room, accompanied by a very reluctant Adele. In front of Andy, Jonah lost all his arrogance.As a proud and

Chapter 7

With every sentence Andy made, Adele's face lost a little bit of color. When she heard his final sentence, she shrieked in horror. "What the hell are you talking about! How could I not know my own husband! I could recognize him even with my eyes closed! I left a bite mark on his shoulder!"She went over and tore Jonah's clothes apart. What she saw struck her dumb. She checked on the other side just to be sure.His shoulder was smooth as a baby's bum with not a single bite mark to be found, let alone a scar.At that moment, it hit Adele. She shoved Jonah aside in disbelief. Shaking her head, she muttered to herself repeatedly, "You're not Noah. You're not Noah!"She retreated as her gaze toward Jonah no longer had any love in them.Jonah was completely heartbroken at that moment, but he had no choice but to console her."Adele, don't get worked up. You're still pregnant."Adele chuckled bitterly. "Hehe, my child."The next second, a large pool of blood trickled down her leg. S

Chapter 8

It was Jonah's turn to fluster."What?"He couldn't believe his ears. He looked utterly shocked, but soon turned into rage."Fiona Gardner, I was blind to fall for you! You ungrateful hag! You're a widow with a child! You should be grateful that the Lloyd family is still feeding you! Your useless womb can't even bear me a son! I have to look after my family's bloodline!"How dare he bring up my womb?If it weren't for his mother, who forced me to do the laundry with the well water in the harsh winter, I wouldn't have gotten sick at all.I had to recuperate for half a year before getting pregnant with Tina.When his mother heard that I was having a daughter, she was about to force me to have an abortion.If it weren't for the woman's association stepping in to help, Tina would have never been born!"How dare you register me as dead! Y-You…" Jonah was at a loss for words. He knew perfectly well that with his older brother gone, taking his place and looking after his sister-in-la

Chapter 9

In the end, the child in Adele couldn't be saved.Her pregnancy was difficult from the beginning. She had to rely on medicine to stabilize the embryo. Then came a sudden blow. She found out that her husband had passed away and that the man next to her was actually her brother-in-law.The violent swing in emotions triggered severe bleeding. Luckily, the doctors and nurses were around, and they managed to save her life.However, after the loss of the baby, Adele's state of mind started to decline.She often clung to a torn pillow, calling it her baby. She would also hug the tree in the garden, calling out to Noah.Jonah brought her to hospitals all over the state to seek treatment, but all he got in return were the same results. Adele suffered severe shock, and it would be hard for her to ever recover.Becoming a burden, she was soon despised by her in-laws. They sold her off to a decrepit old widower who lost seven wives.This time, Jonah no longer cared for Adele. The Lloyd fa

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