Lana sneered with her head down. "You're the one who doesn't know how to appreciate food. If you don't believe me, go ahead and ask the others. See what they have to say.""This young lady makes a good point. The hawthorn sauce is too sweet, especially when paired with the already fatty foie gras. It might taste pleasant at first, but it becomes cloying after a while. Just look, hardly any of us are reaching for a second piece."Yves was the one who spoke, a renowned international chef in his younger years. After retiring, he had been involved in various culinary-related activities. He was also one of the judges on the recent popular TV show "Chef King Championship", so he was invited as an honored guest alongside Eric tonight.Tonight, he was the only one qualified to comment on the chef's culinary skills.After Yve's words, the others nodded in agreement. It was indeed true that the hawthorn sauce outside the foie gras was overly sweet, and eating too much of it became unpleasa
Upon discovering Lana's vegan diet, Eric was struck with guilt. "Lana, why didn't you tell me earlier that you're a vegan? I could've had the chef prepare special dishes just for you," he exclaimed.Lana, however, was unfazed. It wasn't due to religious beliefs that she avoided meat. She simply couldn't stomach it."It's okay. I can eat the vegan side dishes. They are delicious, by the way," she replied with a smile.Sensing Lana's skepticism, Eric chose to respect her feelings and decided to back off. Nevertheless, he subtly signaled the staff to prepare additional vegan side dishes in the kitchen.Having savored the chickpea and quinoa salad, with Lana consuming almost every bite, she politely excused herself, stating that she needed to use the restroom.Initially, Eric had planned for a wait staff to accompany Lana, but she declined the offer.Preferring the freedom to explore on her terms, Lana disliked the feeling of being controlled.In a matter of moments, Lana returned t
Olivia had intended to challenge Lana, but she was taken aback when Lana proposed a bet."What? Backing down now?" Lana's demeanor turned aggressive, her beautiful face etched with disdain. "Apologize to Chef Alan for your ignorance right now."Olivia, the only daughter of the Sockman family, had been sheltered by her parents and older brothers since childhood. When had she ever faced such humiliation?"Why should I apologize?" Olivia continued to argue defiantly. "I haven't done anything wrong!""Yes, you have!" Lana fired back. "Mr. Wheeler established these private dining restaurants to share exquisite cuisine. "You've attended many special banquets like tonight's, yet you couldn't even identify the ingredients. Tell me, haven't you done something wrong?"Lana's argument was compelling, leaving Olivia speechless.However, what crushed Olivia was Eric's statement."If you can't distinguish between paprika and herbs, Olivia, you should apologize to Chef Alan," Eric said."Er
"Stop!" Olivia screamed, rushing over. "Are you out of your mind? Do you know how expensive this is?"Absorbed in her disappointment over her ruined perfume, Olivia failed to grasp the meaning of Lana's words. Oblivious, she continued to spray the fragrance Lana had tampered with.Something peculiar occurred: the perfume that had once exuded a captivating aroma now had no scent at all, regardless of how much Olivia sprayed.Even the fragrance she had initially sprayed on herself vanished due to the added white liquid in the perfume.Olivia muttered, "How could this happen?" As she continued to spray the perfume, beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.Despite her efforts, the exclusive custom-made fragrance by Westwood remained elusive, its scent no longer detectable no matter how much she sprayed."Ugh…" Olivia grew frantic and suddenly rushed toward Lana, shouting, "You lunatic! How dare you mess with my things! Watch me ruin your face."As Olivia's hand was about to touch
Lana bluntly refused, "Sorry, I don't want your money."Jennifer sneered, "You're actually taking it seriously?"Jennifer was convinced that Lana was actually an idiot. "You're overthinking it. First of all, you should at least have a luxurious penthouse like the one shown in the video.Lana thought it was not worth wasting her time talking to someone not on her level.Neither Eric nor Lana spoke to Jennifer, so she could only quietly gaze at the passing scenery beyond the window.As Jennifer looked at the scenery outside, she felt something was amiss. Eric was driving straight to the city center. However, they all lived in the mountainous villa area. He should be driving on the road heading toward the mountain instead."Eric, are you going the wrong way?"Eric responded curtly, "No."Jennifer, who felt more anxious, asked, "But isn't this way to the city center? If we take the wrong way, it'll take us a long time to reach home."Lana interjected, "I'm sorry, but I don't thi
The next morning, the Clark residence was adorned with decorations. Zeke even invited a band, which led to countless people speculating if there was a joyous occasion worth celebrating for the Clarks.Relatives and friends of the Clarks arrived early in the morning, and the house was lively, as if it was a flea market. It was an unprecedented scene.Carol changed into a new Luxeora dress from the latest season. Her long, wavy hair was loosely tied and adorned with a crystal hairpin. She looked like royalty as she was escorted downstairs by Sarah and Zeke."Carol is getting prettier by the day. She even found a good husband like Mr. Liam. Sarah and Zeke, you're truly blessed." "We've watched Carol grow up, and she has always been a smart cookie. With such good parenting, she'll certainly be able to live a good life in the future."Zeke and Sarah were overwhelmed with compliments by many well-wishers. The Clark family hadn't been so lively in a long time. It was evident that Carol
A wave of panic washed over Carol.She nervously asked, "What's wrong, Mr. Liam?"A hint of disappointment flickered in Liam's eyes as he replied, "Nothing, I'm heading back."Chris and Carol exchanged puzzled glances as Liam left without even touching his food."Mr. Liam, I made this myself. The taste is exactly the same as it was back then. Are you sure you don't want to try it?"Liam's tall, upright figure had almost reached the garden gate, but he suddenly spoke up upon hearing this."Are you sure it's really the same as it was back then?"Carol's lips quivered, and her vision blurred, causing her to almost faint on the spot. "Ms. Clark, Liam …" Chris was torn. In the end, he could only follow Liam and leave the Clark Residence.As Carol watched Liam's car drive away, a sense of utter helplessness settled in."Carol, why did Mr. Liam leave all of a sudden?" Zekere hurriedly asked Carol when he found her. He continued, "He left so suddenly. What about our guests? What a
S replied quickly. "I got famous by accident."Liam smiled slightly and replied, "I hope to meet you in person one day."S replied, "It would be my honor."Chris rushed to Liam and said, "Hey, did I just catch you smiling?" Chris had been close to Liam since they were kids, but he had never really seen Liam smile. He looked pretty good when he smiled.Liam put his phone into his pocket and said expressionlessly, "You must be mistaken.""I swear I saw it!"Billy had been listening attentively while Chris spoke to the others in the restaurant, and he now hurried into the pantry. "Boss, it's not good. Everyone knows what you did last night," Billy said.Lana typed on her laptop as she said calmly, "So what? They have no way to find me. And what brings you here?"Billy grinned and said, "Isn't the National Day holiday coming soon? I'm sure the shop will be bursting with customers, so I came to help."Billy crept behind Lana and said, "Boss, can you include me when you hack int
Would Lana forgive him and spend the rest of her life with him?Liam's heart was filled with a sense of anticipation.Since the reason for the incident had been clarified, everyone let out a sigh of relief at the same time and also went back to rest. Even Leonardo was taken away just to give the two people who had been apart for a long time some space to be alone.After everyone had left, Liam straightened out his clothes and approached Lana, then proceeded to slowly crouch down."Lana!"In the man's deep and sexy voice, there was an unusual tremor and a hint of choked emotion.Liam had no idea what kept him going during these years after losing Lana.Liam didn't dare to do anything too bold. Instead, he gently leaned his handsome face against Lana's hand, repeatedly calling her name.Three years had already passed since Lana left in a fit of anger, setting off a series of events afterward.If she still had any resentment, it would have vanished when she saw Liam's tall figu
Liam's outstretched hand awkwardly hung in the air, and eventually, he could only withdraw it."Speak up if you have something to say, or else, stay quiet. We're not in the mood to listen to you." Hector's attitude toward Liam was still unfavorable, to the extent that he didn't even want to see him.Lana suddenly said, "Something very serious actually happened today."Following that, she placed Leonardo down and showed everyone the wound on his neck.A ring of red marks surrounded Leonardo's delicate neck. In some places, the marks were so swollen that it looked like a tire had been wrapped around his neck. It was a shocking sight to behold.Hector, Violet, Mandy, and Romelius were immediately enraged."What happened to Leo?""What happened to his neck? It could have been fatal if it was any worse.""Who was responsible for watching Leo today? How could they be so negligent and let the child get injured so badly?""This doesn't look like any ordinary wound. It looks like it wa
"Stop looking at me like that. If you want to kill or torture me, go ahead." Cynthia knew what would happen to her after the truth came out, so she gave up struggling. "However, even after my death, I'll haunt you for the rest of your life!"As they listened to her absurd threat, Lana and the Traffic Light Trio burst into laughter."If ghosts were real, then Emilia would be the first to look for you."When her deceased sister was mentioned, Cynthia's smile remained unchanged. "That fool probably never knew it was me who betrayed her until her death."Considering the situation, Cynthia didn't believe she could leave the Garrison Villa tonight."What exactly do you gain by single-handedly destroying the Cooper family?"Lana was still very confused by Cynthia's actions.After all, Emilia and Cynthia were twins and had the same blood coursing through their veins. With all the Coopers gone, Cynthia had nothing to gain from it either!Cynthia sneered at Lana's question. "Lana, yo
On the evening of the banquet, the Garrison Villa was bustling with distinguished guests.Initially, everyone's attention was on the precious great-grandson of the Garrison and Kane family. With his confident and lively demeanor, the chubby child was absolutely adorable. Everyone was naturally curious about who the child might have chosen as his stepmother.It should be noted that the Garrison and Kane family only had one great-grandson. His future was destined to be extraordinary. As long as one could control the child, it was much more worthwhile than dealing with those individuals from the two affluent families.After all, the elders from the two families were very attentive and doting toward this child. Surprisingly, Liam, who was said to have been away from home for a long time, had returned. During the reception of guests, he unexpectedly had a smile on his face.The ladies who had come tonight, vying for the position of Liam's wife, became even more excited.Liam typi
On the night before the banquet, Romelius and Mandy finally brought Leonardo back.Lana was overjoyed, and she immediately went to the bungalow where they were staying.At that time, Leonardo had just returned home and was playing with toys on the living room floor."Leo, you're back! Did you miss Mommy? Mommy missed you so much!"Lana ran toward Leonardo, talking to him while reaching out to hug him. In a flash, Leonardo suddenly ran toward Romelius while holding a toy car.After that, he kept hiding in his arms, refusing to come out. He would occasionally peek out from the gaps to glance at Lana.His actions clearly showed that he refused to accept Lana.Lana's enthusiasm was dampened, and her outstretched arms awkwardly remained in midair. She looked at Romelius and then at Mandy as if waiting for them to persuade Leonardo. However, these two remained silent and only greeted Lana in a casual manner."Oh, Lana, you've come?" Mandy said while presenting her with a basket o
Due to the fact that the Garrison family was going to hold a banquet to introduce the mother of their beloved great-grandson, Leonardo, the Garrisons once again became the talk of the town in Dawsbury.The last time Dawsbury was so lively was when Hector introduced the Garrison family's heir to everyone.As soon as the news was released, the Garrisons became noticeably busier in the following days. All of them were busy scurrying around and helping Hector deliver the invitations.In addition to people who had business dealings with the Garrison family, the invitations were naturally sent to people who were familiar with Lana in the past. Therefore, as soon as the Traffic Light Trio received the invitation, they didn't even go to work and immediately ran to Liam's office—intending to get an explanation from him.At that time, Liam had just finished a phone call from overseas and was deep in thought when the office door was suddenly kicked open.Lincoln stood at the door, looking
With that, Sawyer ignored the unpleasant expressions on Freya and Hector's faces. He immediately picked up his child and walked away.Hector was furious. He glared at Liam, his eyes burning with anger. It was clear that he thought Liam was the one responsible for Lana's predicament.Liam was once again innocently caught in the crossfire.Freya set aside her current tasks, offered some comforting words to Hector, and then got up and chased after them.She knew Sawyer well enough and was certain that he would never have treated someone like this unless there was a reason.As Freya's family of three left, Lana's face bore a sorrowful expression. "Since I'm not welcome here, I guess I'll just go."With that, Lana got up and walked toward the door.Hector and Violet had been waiting for Lana's return for a long time. Now that she was finally back, how could they possibly let her go?Naturally, the two of them chased after Lana and tried to talk her out of leaving. They eventually ma
Liam sensed a challenging undertone in Lana's stare. After all this time, had they truly become adversaries?Releasing Lana abruptly, Violet gently patted her arm, her eyes filled with profound hurt."You're here, alive and well. Why did you leave us in the shadows? Even if you chose not to contact anyone else, you should've considered reaching out to me. Do you have any idea how much I missed you?"Over the years, Violet had been grappling with a deep sense of loss.Though it remained an unspoken sentiment among them, Violet was aware of the underlying blame directed toward Liam for what was believed to be Lana's demise.Had Liam been more emotionally available, their relationship wouldn't have crumbled. It would've stopped Lana from seeking refuge overseas while carrying their child, an act that set the stage for her heartbreaking destiny.Witnessing Liam's anguish and believing Lana to be lost forever had taken a severe toll on Violet's health, aging her considerably."Gr
Liam guided Leo to Lana's room.As they entered, Lana was already awake, bathed in the serene morning light streaming through the window.Upon hearing their arrival, Lana, while brushing her hair, shifted her gaze toward them—a familiar scene echoing times gone by."Good morning, Liam and Leo!" she greeted them effortlessly.Without hesitation, Leonardo squirmed out of Liam's embrace and darted toward Lana, exclaiming, "Hi, Nana!"Lana paused, momentarily surprised by Leonardo's nickname. "Leo, you should be calling me 'Mommy'!" she gently corrected him.Leonardo hesitated momentarily before redirecting his attention to Liam.Even though Liam hadn't exchanged a single word with Lana, he spoke up when Leo glanced his way, firmly stating, "Feel free to do as you wish. There's no need to seek my approval. Alright?"Leonardo nodded obediently and turned his gaze back to Lana, continuing to address her as "Nana."While Lana appeared somewhat displeased by this unexpected turn of ev