Zoey grabbed Dahlia's wrist and said coldly, "I will not make any statement, and I will not accept any betrothal gift. You're disappointed in me, and I am equally disappointed in you! I will leave the Harmon family tonight!"
She let go of Dahlia's hand and went straight up the stairs. Dahlia stumbled as she was pushed away, wanting to go after and ask, but she was pulled back by Matteo. He sternly said, "Treating your daughter as an object, do you even deserve to be a mother? Don't bother Zoey!" Dahlia hummed and stomped up the stairs, while Jordan flicked his cigarette butt and followed suit. Ariana timidly glanced at Matteo and got up to leave. Coming back from abroad, Zoey didn't bring much with her, and she didn't acquire any new items in the past half month either. Therefore, when she returned, she still had the same silver suitcase as when she left. The door was unlocked, Ariana walked up to Zoey, and she fiddled with her hands in front of her. "Zoey, are you really leaving? I truly know I was wrong, can you forgive me?" Zoey raised an eyebrow, "What do you think?" "Zoey, let’s not let a man come between us, okay? Aren’t we sisters?” Sisters? At first, Ariana treated her badly, often making up stories that Zoey bullied her and even cutting up some toys and clothes, falsely accusing Zoey of doing it. It can be imagined that Zoey received a beating, while Ariana was hiding and laughing on the side. Until when did Ariana treat her well? After starting middle school, Zoey always ranked first, so Ariana would try to please her and ask her for tutoring. Zoey didn't hold a grudge against Ariana for her past actions, she just saw it as childish pranks. Unable to find the love of a father and mother, she naturally longed for sisterly love. Later, their relationship became really good, all the way until she passed away. Zoey only realized then that Ariana had been kind to her with a purpose. The so-called “sisterhood” was simply a trade, with Zoey’s talent as the price. Demons are demons after all, even if they disguise themselves as angels, they still possess a demon's heart. Zoey gave her a meaningful look and walked towards the door, carrying her suitcase. Ariana ran over and grabbed her arm, looking pitifully at her. "Zoey, my concert is tomorrow night. If you don't support me, what am I going to do? I'm begging you, please help me one more time, okay?" Zoey let out a sigh, "Well, I'll help you this time. But from now on, you'll have to walk your own path." "Thank you, Zoey. Thank you." Ariana watched as Zoey walked out the door, a sinister and evil smile forming at the corner of her mouth. She knew that as long as she shed a few tears, this fool would soften. First time leads to a second. Zoey would be at her beck and call for the rest of her life. Zoey walked towards the stairs, a smile playing at the corner of her lips. Ariana, your retribution has just begun! When Zoey went downstairs, only Matteo was there. She approached and hugged the old man, "Grandpa, when the time is right, I will take you away from here." Matteo patted her back and asked, "Are you really willing to marry Russell?" Zoey let go of him and nodded solemnly, "Grandfather, I am willing to marry Russell, it was not a momentary impulse." Matteo's eyes turned red. "If this kid bullies you, you tell grandpa, and grandpa will break his legs." After saying that, he furrowed his brows and said, “Though he can’t walk anyway.” Zoey burst into laughter, "You wouldn't have seen this situation, he would have been good to me." Matteo gave Zoey some more instructions before she left the Harmon family. She told her grandfather that Russell would come to pick her up, but in fact, she didn't contact him. She just wanted to take a walk alone along the street. Meanwhile, at the Maddox family's old mansion. Nelson stood in front of the Maddox family. Alonso hummed, "You really disgraced the Maddox family today!" Nelson lowered his head and said, "Grandpa, I was wrong. I know I made the Maddox family lose face today, but it's not entirely my fault. If Russell hadn't agreed with Zoey, Zoey would still have chosen me." After speaking, he stole a glance at Russell. Russell chuckled softly, “If a cake is revealed to be garbage, only a fool would still want to eat it.” Russell raised an eyebrow. “People will only say that Nelson was two-timing.” Livia Rogers was choked and unable to speak. She looked at her own son kneeling on the ground, feeling heartbroken. “Let’s put this behind us—Nelson understands his mistake, just let him get up." Russell glanced up coolly. “Since he disgraced the family, he’ll be disciplined according to the family rules.” He looked at the butler and said, "Go to the study and fetch the family rules." The butler nodded and walked quickly towards the study. Livia looked anxiously at the two elderly people and said, "Dad, Mom, everything has already passed, so please don't enforce family discipline. Nelson knows he was wrong!" Alonso was firm in his attitude, "There are laws for the country, and rules for the family. Once the rules are established, they must be followed." Livia turned pleadingly to Braylen Maddox and Aubrie Bender, the second son and daughter-in-law of the family, but they looked away, pretended not to see. Soon, the butler came carrying a rectangular box. Russell said in a low voice, "According to the twenty-one family rules, those who betray and abandon their trust shall be punished with ten strokes; according to the thirty-two rules, those who disgrace the Maddox family shall be punished with twenty rolls. A total of thirty strokes. Felix, begin." Felix opened the box and took out a black wooden stick, which felt like iron in texture. He held it with both hands, standing behind Nelson. "Master, I apologize for the offense." The wooden stick struck Nelson's back hard, and he clenched his teeth but still cried out in pain. After receiving thirty lashes, Nelson knelt on the ground, trembling all over, with cold sweat on his forehead. He looked up at Russell, desperation in his eyes. “Uncle, you’ve punished me. Now, can you give me back Zoey?” The arc of Russell's lips was filled with extreme contempt, and his voice was indifferent and distant. "I said, you should call her Auntie." He raised his hand slightly, and Troy pushed him towards the door. Nelson was unwilling to let go of Zoey, who was his proudest pawn. "Russell, Zoey is just mad at me, she doesn't like you at all!" Troy's footsteps came to a halt as he stood by the side of the wheelchair. Russell glanced sideways, revealing his sharply defined facial features. His attractive lips curved into a very slight arc as he said, "Zoey and I have already obtained our marriage certificate, so you can give up on any hope you had." As soon as the words fell, Nelson instantly slumped down in dejection. How could this happen? Did his carefully planned scheme just get ruined like that? Who exactly did it? Livia held him and cried, but he couldn't hear her. His mind was filled with thoughts of who the mastermind behind the playing of the photos and videos was. The black Maybach drove on the spacious asphalt road. The night outside the window and the dim light of the street lamp intertwined, faintly discernible, the man's deep brows and eyes were clearly dim. Russell habitually searched for the Buddhist beads on his wrist, but they were empty. He remembered that the beads were already worn by Zoey. Is she asleep now? Russell took out his phone and saw a Line message on the screen, which had been sent five minutes ago. "Honey, have you gone to sleep?" Russell opened the chat, intending to reply, but after a second of thought, he called her instead. The line was quickly connected, and the clear chirping of cicadas and the sound of cars whizzing by came through. Russell furrowed his brows and asked, "Where were you?" Zoey sniffed, "Honey, I don't have a home anymore."Half an hour later, a beam of bright light shone on Zoey.She raised her hand to shield her eyes, and as the lights went out, she slowly lowered her hand.Troy had already opened the car's back door and walked up to Zoey, gripping the handle of the suitcase."Mrs. Maddox, please get in the car."Zoey said thank you and then got into the car.She turned her head and smiled at the man, "Honey, nice to see you again!"The pure smile made Russell smile lightly, "I thought you were crying just now when I heard your voice."Zoey blinked. “Of course, I missed you so much it made me want to cry.”“Liar,” he replied, but his lips still curved into a slight smile.Zoey leaned forward and raised her bright little face, "Did my nose get longer?"Russell chuckled and said, "How do you feel?""That must not have happened, because I never lie," Zoey laughed.A faint scent of pear lingered around her, and Russell couldn’t help but swallow. “Sit properly.”Zoey let out a soft "oh" and leaned against t
Zoey scoffed lightly and sent a message directly to Roland Mendoza.[Expose.]In just five minutes, the phone screen was flooded with videos of what happened at the engagement banquet, as well as explicit photos and high-definition uncensored videos of Nelson and Ariana.It used to be spread within the upper class circles, but now it is spread across the entire internet.At one point, the official website of Born Beauty crashed, and there was a chorus of curses.[What a bullshit official announcement, it turns out that the affair was exposed, and they had no choice but to say they were engaged!][That Ariana was simply shameless, stealing her sister's fiancé and crying all the time. She did things that no decent person would do!][Ariana's innocent girl image was shattered this time, and she turned into a slutty woman!][The CEO of Born Beauty was an absolute scumbag! He even wanted to have two relationships at the same time!][Lock up the scumbag and the cheap woman quickly, so they
Russell also saw the news online and knew that most people who went to concerts were there for the drama.Zoey wouldn't miss such an exciting occasion.He chuckled lightly and said, "Stay put and wait for her.""Yes, Mr. Russell."After hanging up the phone, Russell thought for a moment and sent a message to Zoey: "Brent is waiting for you at the same place. When the concert is over, text me."At that moment, Zoey was walking towards the backstage, but the loud music prevented her from hearing the notification sound.The moment Ariana saw Zoey, her gloomy face instantly brightened up, "Zoey, you're here!"Zoey looked at Ariana, who was wearing a shiny performance costume, and smirked, "Since I promised you, of course I will come."Ariana handed the earpiece and headphones to Zoey and held her hand, "Zoey, thank you. I'm sorry, I will make it up to you in the future."Zoey nodded, "Okay!"“Then I’m going on stage now.”"Okay."As Ariana stepped onto the stage, Zoey tightly gripped the
Stephany returned to the audience and gave Ariana a thumbs up gesture.Ariana was full of confidence, "Next, I will sing 'The Perfect Couple'!"The music started playing, and Ariana raised the microphone to lip sync.Just "The Perfect Couple" turned into "Break Up," and then it turned into "Blue World."The band looked confused, all stopped there, because they didn't know what song to sing next.They had never encountered such a situation.Ariana couldn't keep up with the rhythm at all and could only reluctantly try to lip sync.She had no idea what the next song will be, so when the songs transitioned, the big screen displayed Ariana's facial expressions in an awkward manner.The whole venue fell into silence, with the sound of solo singing echoing through the night sky, without any accompaniment, only seeing Ariana performing quietly on stage.Suddenly, the singing abruptly stopped, and Ariana didn't have time to control her expression.The whole audience saw her mouth moving withou
Zoey went to an ice cream shop and rented a power bank to charge.After turning on her phone, she discovered that Russell had sent her a message, which said that the butler was waiting for her at the same place.She replied to Russell's message: "My phone ran out of battery, I just charged it and turned it on. I'll be there in a moment..."Russell's call came in before she finished typing the words.She picked up and heard the slightly anxious voice of a man, "Where are you?""Oh, my phone ran out of battery. I found a power bank to charge it at the milk tea shop and just saw your message. I was about to reply to you.""Send me your location, I will come to pick you up."Zoey was surprised, "You came back?""Um, send me the location.""Oh, okay."Zoey did not hang up the phone and sent him a location."How did you come back?"Russell fell silent for a moment and said, "The project issues were resolved, but I didn't sleep well at the hotel."Troy: "..." Just won't admit it, would you?!
Zoey primarily wanted to tell Russell that she was Dr. Z and wanted to discuss his current physical condition with him, administer detoxification injections, and also check the ingredients of the medications he was taking.Before Russell had a chance to reply to her, his phone started vibrating.After he picked up the call, he said, "Dr. Z has arrived in Woodmerrow, but the exact location has not been revealed yet. This time, we absolutely cannot let him leave Woodmerrow. My mother's brain tumor requires a combination of modern and traditional medicine for treatment. He has refused previous requests, but this time, even if we have to break his legs, we must bring him here."Zoey: "..."In the past, she knew about Russell looking for Dr. Z, but at that time she only thought that Russell was looking for her to treat his leg, because of Nelson's influence, she never intended to treat him, and she didn't expect it was for Marlene.However, who could have taken care of Russell's leg condit
The car stopped in front of Silver Beach Mall.Brent turned around and said, "Mrs. Maddox, this is the most upscale shopping center in Woodmerrow."Zoey smiled and said, "Thank you, Brent. You can just wander around nearby, there's no need to follow me."Brent was very serious, "Mrs. Maddox, I must help you carry the shopping bags, just in case something happens, so that I can report to Mr. Russell. That day I couldn't find you after the concert ended, it still gives me chills today. If anything happened to you, I could only apologize with my life."Seeing Brent's serious expression, Zoey had no choice but to let him follow.Zoey arrived at the third floor and entered Z&L Design, a boutique for women's clothing.After all, it's better to keep the benefits within the family; if one is to spend, it should be on their own brand.The shop assistant stepped forward and put on a standard smile, "Welcome to Z&L Design, we are pleased to serve you."Zoey smiled faintly, "Let me have a look fi
There were many people standing inside the spacious store, and there were also many people gathering at the entrance.Rylee had a vague sense that something was not right, and he asked again, "Mrs. Maddox? Which family does she belong to?"Brent snorted, "Did you think you can afford to mess with Mr. Russell's wife?""M... Mr. Russell? Russell Maddox?" Rylee's face suddenly changed, and he turned around and gave Moriah's face a violent slap, causing her to fall to the ground.Rylee kicked Moriah in the chest and cursed, "You bitch, how dare you instigate me to offend Russell? You want to kill me!"Moriah was in unbearable pain from being kicked. "It hurts so much, honey, I didn't..."Rylee kicked her on the shoulder again, "Get lost! Who the fuck is your honey!"He turned to Zoey and forced a greasy smile, "Mrs. Maddox, I'm sorry, it was my fault. You shouldn't lower yourself to my level. I only got into trouble with you because of that bitch Moriah's instigation."Zoey caressed her s
As time went by, those girls who gave gifts came to know that the things Layne liked were actually the things Evelin liked.They were very angry and, after discussing it, they had a very honest girl call Evelin out.The girl nodded and said to Evelin, "I'm sorry, really sorry."Evelin sensed something was wrong and wanted to turn around and leave, but she was surrounded by twenty girls.Among them were the short hair, long hair, and curly hair that blocked her in the bathroom last time.Long hair stood up, arms crossed, "Evelin, how shameless you are! You actually told us that Layne likes to eat fried chicken and french fries, when in fact they all went into your stomach!"Short hair snorted, "Evelin, how could you be so cheap! How could you come up with such a rotten idea? Aren't you afraid of choking on those things you eat?"Curly hair rolled up his sleeves and said, "You really deserve a beating! With twenty people present, if you
The girls started to show their figures when they entered junior high school. They didn't like wearing plain school uniforms and clothes. They believed that showing off their slim waists was beautiful.The three girls surrounding Evelin were dressed like this, with makeup on their faces and pierced ears."Are you Evelin?" the person with short hair asked.Evelin glanced at the three people and did not show any fear. "I am, is there something wrong?"The girl with long hair sighed and looked her up and down, "You, ate all the delicious food we sent to Layne?"Evelin blinked and immediately understood the intention of the three people. It turned out that they were Layne's suitors.She nodded, "Yes, you guys gave it to him, so it's his. He can give it to whoever he wants to eat, and you have no right to interfere!"The three of them instantly got angry and rolled up their sleeves, all ready to get physical.Evelin raised her hand
Just as Nancy was about to cut her own cheek, blood started to seep from Elliott's forehead.The knife in his hand fell to the ground with a clatter, and he toppled backwards.Dalton acted swiftly and quickly stepped forward to save Nacy.Nacy tightly clung to the man's neck, her voice choked with tears, "Dad!"Nancy dropped the dagger and ran over, "Nancy, are you okay?"Nacy hugged her again, "I'm fine! Is mom okay?"Nancy shook her head, "I was fine too."She looked at Elliott, who was lying motionless on the ground, and asked, "Was he shot?"Dalton glanced at the deceased man and said, "Yes."He looked up at the sky and said, "It was a robot drone designed by Russell."Nancy had a feeling of surviving a disaster, "I am so grateful to Russell and Zoey."Dalton sighed and said, "Yeah, if it weren't for them, we would have really perished here."Nacy asked, "Dad, were you stabbed by a knife? Are you
The evening sun's afterglow shone through the broken glass into the factory.Nancy knelt on the ground, pleading desperately, "Elliott, please don't hurt her, okay? She's just a five-year-old child."Elliott sneered, "Child? So what? Amiya is sad, none of you can be happy! Amiya is in jail, you all will be buried with her! It's all because of your existence that Dalton lost his mind! What can you compare to Amiya? Dalton is truly blind! What have you all turned Amiya into, such a good, innocent and kind person? Tell me, are you all wrong or not?"Nancy couldn't argue with him, afraid of angering him, as he would do something to harm Nancy."We were wrong, all of us. Elliott, could you please put the knife down? Calm down a bit, what you're doing is not worth it."Elliott pointed a knife at Nancy and said, "Not worth it? It's definitely worth it! I'm going to kill all three of you today, oh wait, it's actually four of you, because you're pregnant! M
Dalton was afraid of making Nancy dizzy, so he quickly stopped.In the midst of joy, it is essential to ensure safety and not get carried away.The two of them looked at each other and smiled, their eyes couldn't help but become moist.It was really not easy to come this far.Dalton held Nancy tightly, a 6'2" man burying his face in the crook of her neck, and cried out in suppressed sobs.Nancy patted the man's sturdy back and said, "All the hardships have passed, and we will only get better."Dalton nodded, "It would be fine."Chelsea's call interrupted the two of them. Dalton and Nancy looked over and saw a woman, tears streaming down her face, filled with guilt.Chelsea said, "Nancy, I'm sorry, I misunderstood you."Nancy laughed and said, "Whether there were misunderstandings or not, at that moment, we were expressing our normal and true thoughts."Chelsea asked, "Are you blaming me?"Nancy raised an ey
Dalton looked past her indifferently and gave her an affirmative answer, "Yes!"Amiya simply couldn't accept the fact that she had gone from being a hunter to being the hunted, being manipulated by others."How could this happen? How? Where did it go wrong?" She couldn't believe that her perfect plan had failed.She looked down at the baby in her arms, and it was not Dalton's child at all. Whose child was it?She looked at Sam abruptly, "Whose sperm is this? Whose?"Sam's mouth twitched, "I just randomly picked one, it shouldn't be too bad, right?"There were three types of people who stored sperm in the sperm bank in the past. One type was the highly educated individuals, another type was the wealthy individuals, and the third type was the lower-class individuals.Those low-level workers who couldn't afford to marry a wife, but still wanted to have descendants everywhere, would adopt such a way of behavior.Dalton smirked, "Wo
The Jenkins family invited the big shots from the upper class circle to their full moon banquet, and most of them came to the party with the intention of just watching the excitement.After all, who doesn't love to eat the melon of a wealthy family?The Blevins family, who were once expelled from overseas by Dalton, have also become honored guests and have risen in status, all because the wife who couldn't conceive was abandoned and the mistress, with the birth of a child, managed to turn her life around.People who used to sneer at them in the past, now when they see them, they can't help but nod and flatter them.The banquet hall was lavishly decorated, with photos and videos of the little baby playing on the LED big screen. Dalton was greeting the guests with Amiya, going around.Everyone treated her politely and called her Mrs. Jenkins.Only the Jenkins family and the Blevins family knew that Dalton and Nancy had not yet obtained a divorce certificate.Dalton's excuse was that Nan
Nancy held Nacy in her arms, watching all of this coldly. Chelsea, who had once treated her like a daughter, became hysterical in that moment.The people around kept pointing and whispering."This woman actually targeted a pregnant woman. She is truly wicked!"Anyway, the child was innocent!"You saw how she hurt the pregnant woman, and she didn't feel any guilt at all. This kind of person should be cyberbullied!""That's right! Send photos, send videos to her and upload them online!"***Nacy tightly held onto Nancy's neck, fear evident in her eyes. "Mom, I'm scared.""Don't be afraid, I would protect you."Chelsea looked as Amiya's skirt became stained with blood, and she felt a sense of unease. She directed her anger towards Nancy and said, "Nancy, you wanted to exterminate the Jenkins family, didn't you? You and this bastard have truly destroyed the Jenkins family!"Bastard?As soon as this word came out, the onlookers all imagined a grand drama of a wealthy family."Could it be t
Nancy looked at Dalton and asked, "Did your mother have any thoughts of divorcing me now?"Dalton didn't want any rift between the two of them, so he spoke honestly, "There's something, I guess Amiya did some brainwashing on her. But it doesn't matter what anyone thinks, because no one can influence me. The reason why my parents are acting this way is also because Amiya is really good at manipulating people. Nancy, you are in my eyes and in my heart."Nancy sighed lightly, "I know, I won't run away or be cowardly like before. I loved you, and I fought for us, unless one day you didn't want me anymore."Dalton's thin lips curved up, "I was really afraid that you would bring up the child and say that you wanted to leave me, and all that. We don't want to reach that point, you know?"Nancy nodded, "We could give it a try first, and if it doesn't work, we can go for in vitro fertilization."Dalton was glad that she was able to open up, and he embraced her in his arms. "Good. It's coming s