Everyone said that the eldest son of the Lanes—Rachel and Matthew's father—was Arthur's most favored son. However, they knew very little about Theodore, Arthur's fifth son. Hesper was pretty certain that Matthew was speaking the truth. She could not help but think, 'So Theodore's Grandpa Arthur's favorite son? No wonder Theodore has been living in the Lane Manor. Come to think of it, if it were Uncle Simon who stayed at home and did nothing but tend to the flowers and plants, Grandpa would've kicked him out of the house a long time ago…'However… Hesper knocked her forehead and said helplessly, "I already didn't want to go before I knew that it was a matchmaking session. And now that I know, I want to go even less. Is there any way I can escape from it?"Matthew looked at her for a moment then said, "Well, you can do what I did and bring a sister with you as your shield.""Matthew!" *No matter how unwilling she was, Hesper had to attend the banquet.She did not want to emba
Unlike anyone she had ever seen before, the man in front of her was so handsome that calling him handsome was an understatement. Even Hesper herself paled in comparison to him when it came to appearance. When Silvan heard Arthur's voice, he lifted his head and whipped a smile on his face. "It's been a long time, Master Lane." The moment he smiled, the people around him became agitated, which Hesper found absurd. Everyone in the banquet was competing to gain attention, yet this man standing in front of her was able to gain all the attention without doing anything just because of his face. When Arthur and Hesper walked over, Silvan was slightly stunned. "Are you… Rachael? It's been a long time.""She's forgotten a lot of things. Besides, she was still a little kid back then, so there's no way she would remember you," Arthur said before turning his head to Hesper. "You liked Silvan very much when you were a kid, and you used to follow him around." It went without saying that Hesp
Hesper was still observing the surroundings when Locke grabbed her hand. "I saw Uncle Ehren! He's right there!" 'Uncle Ehren?'Hesper was not familiar with the people in the Sulzbachs. But since they were coming out there to catch some fresh air, she followed behind Locke."Uncle Ehren!" Hesper raised her head and saw a man sitting amid several brightly colored flowers. There was a wheelchair at the side; she wondered how he moved himself onto the bench.It was snowing lightly and the bench was wet."Locke?" The young man tilted his head slightly. Although he was blind, his senses were sharp. "Who's standing next to you? Is it Sil?""Nope! She's a pretty young lady!" Lock replied. He went over and grabbed the man's hand. "I just picked the prettiest lady and asked her to come out with me to see the flowers!" Hesper had only come out for some fresh air, but Locke made it sound quite romantic.Ehren let out a chuckle. Hesper examined the young man in front of her who looked a
It was not easy for Hesper to carry Ehren in her arms. Even though he was blind, he could sense that the arms that were holding him were shaking slightly, so he stopped moving around.'It's not that I'm worried about her. I just don't want her to let go all of a sudden and drop me to the ground,' he told himself inwardly. The silver lining was that his wheelchair was not far away from the bench. Hesper noticed that Ehren was shivering from the coldness, so she said, "Locke, you should push your Uncle Ehren back inside.""Okay. Thank you, miss," Locke replied as he went forward to push Ehren. After he walked two steps forward, however, he noticed something and turned his head around. "What about you, miss? Aren't you coming in? It's cold outside.""I'm fine. I want to stay here for a little while," Hesper replied as she tousled Locke's head. Locke nodded understandingly. "Alright, then. I'll bring Uncle Ehren in. You shouldn't stay outside for too long either. Otherwise, you may
"Alfred knows me better. He wouldn't commit such a mistake, and I trust him with my stuff." Locke had no choice but to nod. "You're too kind, Uncle Ehren. If you always act like this, others will take advantage of you. Next time, I'll have Daddy teach you. When he gets angry, everyone who works for him listens to him..."As Locke pushed Ehren away, the servant scoffed disdainfully. "He's so cocky because he was lucky enough to be born as a Sulzbach. If he weren't one of them… Hmph!"*"So the friend with a bad temper you told me about before was Ehren?" Hesper asked. The reason she was not very surprised was that the Sulzbachs, the Tuckers, and the Lanes maintained a good relationship. It was just that she only learned about Ehren's condition on that day. "It seems to me that Ehren has been bound to a wheelchair for a long time. Was it congenital?""Nope," Nathaniel replied. "It was because of an accident. However, it's been many years since, and so many doctors have examined hi
After that, she turned around to look at Nathaniel and asked, "I'm sure this is fine, right? You've got to stop being such a control freak. Hesper is just your fiancée. She isn't your wife yet…"Dianthe pointed at the QR code on her phone and continued. "Hurry up and scan it, Hesper. I should warn you about one thing though. You shouldn't marry Nathaniel. He's so possessive, and he'll take away all of your freedom as soon as you two get married… My God, just thinking about it is scary. Even my dad doesn't control me that much."Hesper scanned the QR code and lowered her head, trying to hold back a smile. She did not know who gave Dianthe her name, but she felt that they had made the right choice. The name Dianthe meant silent and gentle, and it was true that Dianthe should not speak that much. "You haven't stopped speaking from the moment you got here," Nathaniel commented, his eyebrows tightly furrowed."Being able to speak for a long time without stopping is a special gift from
During the second half, after an introduction by Arthur, Hesper met everyone from her generation from the other families. Based on what he said, she gleaned that she could pick anyone from that group; they'd marry her to anyone of her choice.That stunned Hesper and she distanced herself from Arthur's eyes. Renfrew called her that evening and said that he learned a lot from the new teacher. He ate his food and missed her a little. The snow outside did not stop falling. Hesper listened to him and sighed. It would be the new year in two days. She didn't get to spend it with Renfrew on the first year that they reunited, but she had to sacrifice times like that to make sure that he was able to grow up safe. "Don't worry, Mommy. I'll be a good boy and wait for you to come home."Hesper said alright, took a deep breath, and pretended to be relaxed. "It's getting late. Time for bed. I'll be home soon.""Okay, Mommy. I believe you."After hanging up, Hesper stood in front of the wi
This also meant that they would soon discover that she had traced their IP. It would be too difficult to catch someone based on the address that was all the way on the other side of the ocean, so Hesper didn't plan to catch them with this trick. She just wanted to taunt them and show them that she wasn't predictable. Since she was in the light and they were in the dark, all they could do was play little games.That being said, Hesper still sent someone to the location to see if they could find any valuable clues. ***There was a lot to prepare for the new year countdown at the Lane household. Arthur loved to be surrounded by people. Maybe he wished that he had his family around him at his age, so Matthew was back early. Hesper had been busy with all kinds of work previously, so now that she had some free time, she didn't know what to do. She went to the kitchen to learn how to cook. Everyone knew that Hesper was a good cook, but there were a lot of dishes from Emperion that
He had never anticipated that he would end up loving her so deeply.It could be said that amidst all the misunderstandings and complexities, their journey together had taken many winding paths."I wouldn't risk getting into trouble just to set off fireworks for someone I didn't even like," Rickard said, his voice gentle. "You dummy."His words were soft, but as Hesper listened to his explanation, she cleared her throat, and her eyes turned bloodshot. She had never imagined that the person she had loved so intensely in her youth had, at some point in their lives, secretly admired her.Hesper attempted to smile but ended up with teary eyes. Seeing this, Rickard reached out and affectionately ruffled her hair. "If it's going to make you cry, I won't say anything more."Hesper pursed her lips. "If you don't want to talk about it, then don't."Rickard, despite understanding her reluctance, couldn't help but reflect on the past and openly admitted to the emotions he had felt in his you
They were flooded with memories, and Hesper couldn't help but admit that she had been through so much with Rickard. Her eyes welled up with emotion.The livestream ended, as they couldn't maintain constant surveillance of their lives. Even though they hadn't gone home yet, the crew had left.In the past two days, people had gotten to know them quite well, so the crew decided to give them some alone time.Hesper sat in the passenger seat and stole a glance at Rickard. She couldn't help but say, "I never expected that the only time you were seen as making a mistake in Grandpa's eyes was because of me.""There are many things you don't know," he replied. Hesper raised an eyebrow and asked, "Like what? Tell me."Suddenly, Hesper recalled the countless times Rickard had looked at her. Yet, during those moments, Rickard had always had feelings for Juniper. She knew that was the reality, so she never expected that Rickard might have had the same strong feelings for her as she had for h
Hesper glanced at Rickard, who remained emotionless, but she still reached out to hold his hand.[This is tough to see. Both of Rickard's parents are no longer here… Sigh.][Hesper immediately checked on Rickard. If I were Rickard, I'd love her so much.]Ernest shook his head and remained silent as he flipped to the next page. Most of the pictures were of Hesper after that. She hadn't realized she had so many childhood photos. Julian appeared in some of them, too.Before everything went sour.Rickard didn't have many pictures. As he grew older, he became quieter.Most of them showed Hesper standing next to Julian, but there was something off about them.[Did you notice... In many of those pictures, Hesper was looking at Rickard, and in others, Rickard was looking at her.][Oh my god, is this puppy love? I had no idea!][I remember Rickard had another lover.]Hesper had noticed, too, but there was no need to remind people that Rickard used to hate her, so she dismissed it as a
Hesper and Rickard entered the room and awkwardly informed Ernest that everything had been live-streamed just now. Ernest was shocked, but upon hearing that it was something people do, he nodded."It's fine. There's nothing that others can't hear."Hesper pursed her lips and glanced at Rickard before saying, "We didn't expect the Summers to come and see you. You should move in with us so these people will leave you alone."If Ernest lived with them, no one would dare intrude because they represented power and influence.Who would dare challenge them?"I don't want to get involved in your life. Renfew and Renarie would keep you occupied enough."Hesper understood that he had already made up his mind not to live with them, so she didn't press the matter further.She could understand his concerns, as many things might become inconvenient. Besides, Ernest didn't want to disrupt their lives either."We'll be heading to Fredonia soon, so even though we have filming to do, we wanted t
So what if the cameras were still recording?"Was my son's life not as valuable as your son's?"If he had grasped this earlier, recent events might not have unfolded. Jade had a point.The live chat fell silent. Though they lacked the full backstory, they could deduce what had transpired in the past.[I heard Rickard lost his parents when he was a child. I feel sorry for him.][His parents died because of that incident. It's no surprise if he harbors resentment.][Truthfully, this old man has no shame. If my child were responsible for another child's death, I'd beg for forgiveness.]Everything unfolding before their eyes was purely coincidental, and no one had control over the situation. They could only watch and terminate the livestream immediately if anything escalated.Fortunately, Jade received a stern talking-to and refrained from discussing the matter further, but Mrs. Summers did not fare as well. Hesper and the others bore witness to her irrational behavior.[This is e
"We've known each other for years, Ernest. I saved your life once, and now your descendants want to take my son's life!"As they approached, Jade Summers was angrily berating Ernest before him. Hesper's countenance immediately turned frosty as she walked over to Ernest."You should conduct yourself more appropriately, Mr. Summers Sr."Jade was taken aback to see Hesper, but he composed himself, took a deep breath, and fixed her with a hatred-filled gaze."If it weren't for you, none of this would have happened. You're just a woman. Since when do you get a say in the Duval family matters?"In the 21st century, people were all for equality. Besides, Hesper was no ordinary or unintelligent woman. Naturally, she had a voice in these matters.The viewers were inundated with comments when they heard Jade's words, and the live chat exploded.[Who is this guy? He looks old but lacks respect.][What's the argument about?][I sense some drama.]Rickard walked over. Jade had thought he
[Didn't Hesper mention that Mr. Duval Sr. took care of her? Maybe she did grow up well.][I'm certain she did. Hesper doesn't strike me as someone who would tolerate mistreatment.]Hesper and Rickard were under constant surveillance throughout the journey, and they hadn't allowed Benji to accompany them. Rickard was behind the wheel, with Hesper in the passenger seat.During the drive, they remained silent, but to observers, it appeared as though they were in harmony.Upon arriving at the ancestral mansion, Hesper noticed other cars parked around and cast a curious glance at Rickard. Visitors to Ernest's home were a rarity."Sir, Ma'am, you're back," a young housekeeper greeted them. It was the same person who had assisted Wendy earlier, but they couldn't recall her name. Nevertheless, Hesper had faith in her.Noticing the housekeeper's troubled demeanor, Hesper deduced that the guest inside was likely unwelcome. However, she couldn't fathom who would disrupt Ernest's life. Given
Rickard noticed something in Hesper's expression, prompting him to ask, "Is there something else you haven't told me?"Being intimately familiar with each other wasn't always without its challenges. Hesper could never conceal anything from him.She sighed and replied, "It's nothing. Just that Pennleigh will also be on the list."Rickard fell silent.Hesper was aware that sometimes Rickard might not appear bothered, but Pennleigh's presence did bother him.Observing Hesper's awkward expression, Rickard lowered his gaze and suddenly took on a pitiful appearance, like a big dog caught in the rain.Yet, she knew he was merely putting on an act. Still, every time she saw him like that, she couldn't help but miss the Rickard who didn't engage in such playful antics. His character had undergone a change.Hesper found it amusing but didn't quite know how to express it. She sighed and added, "It's a fantastic opportunity. I know you'll let me go, right?"Rickard had no intention of inte
"Sullivan lied to her. He had her parents quietly killed. She found out after she turned her back on you."Benji lowered his gaze. "She was already dead when you came back. It was suicide."The conclusion lacked the weight necessary for such a betrayal. Hesper shut her eyes. The person she had trusted most was Renee. They had shared countless years together.Hesper acknowledged that their bond might not have been a genuine friendship. Renee had abandoned her when given the choice.However, Hesper had faced such situations before.Thankfully, there had been someone who had placed her first in their heart, reassuring her that she wasn't always relegated to being an option. Hesper stood in silence for a while before simply nodding.There was nothing she could do to aid Renee now. Renee had entered and departed alone, leaving no trace behind with Hesper.When the topic was broached, it weighed heavily on her heart. Hesper understood the situation but found herself at a loss for word