Serenity, Liberty, Mrs. Stone, and the others were on their way to the Hunts’ hometown when Old Mr. Hunt brought his sons and two grandsons to Wiltspoon School. Here they were to talk cash with Serenity again. Old Mr. Hunt refused to believe the Yorks were unfazed by all the big hoo-ha the Hunts stirred in the last few days. Serenity might be feeling the pressure now. Alas, they arrived at Wiltspoon School only to find that Serenity’s bookshop was closed. “Why isn’t it operating for business? It’s eight o’clock. It says here they open at eight.” Getting out of the car, Old Mr. Hunt grimaced upon noticing the shop was closed. He ran his mouth and called Serenity out for being a lousy businessperson. Mike looked at the shops around and said, “Granddad, it’s Saturday today. The school is off. These shops target students as customers. They won’t bother opening when the school is closed.” Old Mr. Hunt mumbled, “The brat usually stays open on the weekend. She thinks she’s all t
“Never mind. Let’s go after Liberty. What line of business is she in?” “F&B, breakfast place.” “Oh, right. A breakfast diner. We can have free breakfast at her place then.” After finding out that Liberty was starting a new business, Old Mr. Hunt ran his mouth about Liberty and her refusal to lend a million to his grandson to get back on his feet. If that was not enough, Old Mr. Hunt shot off at his dead son, Scott, for having two disloyal daughters. Serenity and Liberty would be the death of Old Mr. Hunt. Old Mr. Hunt returned to the car, urging his sons and grandsons to freeload off Liberty’s new diner. They could enjoy meals at Liberty’s place whenever they came to the city. It was not like Liberty could do anything if they refused to pay. They were family after all! Old Mr. Hunt brought his sons and grandsons to Liberty’s breakfast diner, only to find the place shut. Seeing that the place was not open for business, he stayed in the car and chided, “Where the hell are t
“Serenity is now the wife of the richest man. Why would she want the house? That’s a bit greedy.” Some people were of the opinion that Serenity should not fight for the house. Someone immediately came to Serenity’s defense. “She should fight for the house after what her grandparents did to her and her sister. Why should John get the house for free?” “I thought John is Scott’s adopted son?” Scott’s name was only known among the seniors and Scott’s generation. The younger generation would not know who Scott, Serenity, or Liberty was. Well, the Hunts were the main reason for that. They went so far as to stop Serenity and her sister from coming back to town. The Hunt family even relocated Scott’s and Lisa’s graves without letting the sisters know. Serenity and Liberty could not even visit their parents’ graves even if they wanted to. The last time Serenity came back, the Hunts were not home. She ended up having a chat with her fellow townspeople. Mrs. Deli jumped in, “Scott
Old Mrs. Hunt’s rhetorical question silenced some of the families with sons. “It’s an unwritten rule that the family fortune goes to the sons in this town, and the sons will handle the final days of the parents. I know that, but my parents didn’t have a son. They only had me and my sister. My parents’ inheritance should be passed down to me and my sister.“Grandmom, can you tell me when my parents adopted a son? Did the adoption go through while they were alive? Can we see the papers? “We have never been notified of any change to our family tree,” raising her voice, Serenity questioned Old Mrs. Hunt. The onlookers turned their heads to the source of the questioning. With Serenity walking alongside Zachary in the protection of men in black, the crowd cleared a path toward the gate of Serenity’s family home. Liberty left Sonny in Jim’s care, so the boy could have a little play nearby. She did not want Sonny to see her arguing with the old lady. Escorted by a team of securi
“Serenity, Liberty, you came back just in time. What’s this about? I’m telling you, the moment you left this house and this town, the house and fields belonged to us. “My son left this house for us. The property belongs to us, so we can give it to whoever we want, but we won’t give it to you since you’re married into other families.” Old Mrs. Hunt felt slightly guilty when she saw the sisters bringing many people over. When she was in the hospital, she had heard about how incredible Serenity had become. Now, she also knew that Serenity soared to the top and became the missus of a wealthy family. This made Old Mrs. Hunt a little guilty. After all, she and her husband had forcibly occupied the house. Back then, taking advantage of the fact that the sisters were still underage and incapable, she even kicked them out. Serenity was only about twelve years old when she and her sister were booted out. After Serenity and Liberty were thrown out of the house, they would return to the
Unfortunately, Old Mrs. Hunt was only an old woman. She could not break free from the two bodyguards that were holding her. The two bodyguards did not harm her and only took her away. When the other members of the Hunts saw what was happening, they quickly rushed over. Nonetheless, both the Yorks’ and Stones’ security teams also moved forward simultaneously to block them out, disallowing them from getting close. “They hit me, they hit me!” Seeing as they were outnumbered, Old Mrs. Hunt plopped to the ground as soon as her feet touched the earth. She slapped her thigh while shouting that she was being hit. Despite that, the people in town only gathered to watch and did not get close. Someone was also taking videos of them. The crowd could see the truth for themselves. They saw clearly that the people brought by Serenity only carried Old Mrs. Hunt away and did not hurt her at all. Old Mrs. Hunt was probably trying to blame the other party. The person recording the video
Serenity sneered, “When my parents just died 16 years ago, we got 1.2 million dollars in compensation. You and Granddad along with your children and grandchildren crowded our house to the point where we didn’t even have a place to stand. “You forced me and my sister to hand over the money, saying that you had a share of it. It’s true that you and Granddad had a share of the money, but how much did you take? “Back then, in order to get more money from my parents’ insurance payout, you stated that Liberty and I don’t need to support you on behalf of our father while you’re alive, and that we don’t need to hold funerals for you when you pass. We don’t need to sustain you in life and bury you in death. It was written in black and white. “Perhaps you’ve destroyed your copy, but the other copy is well-kept by Liberty. I believe the town committee has also kept a copy. The townspeople who were witnesses are still here today. Should we ask them to confront you? “Does the house belong t
Now that Serenity and Liberty were capable enough to come back to reclaim their parents’ property, Mrs. Deli fully supported them. “Yeah, it was you who said that they don’t need you to support you while you’re alive or handle your funerals when you pass. You didn’t raise them in the first place, so how could you be so shameless as to ask them for money? Your sons and grandsons benefitted so much. Why don’t you ask them for money instead?“Your whole family made a fortune from taking advantage of their misfortune, yet you’re bullying the orphaned girls. Your family has gone too far, so you should be struck by lightning instead. You’re old now. How many more years can you live? You’re not even afraid of going to the depths of hell after death, never to be reborn.” Even though the people in town opined that married daughters should not return home to fight for their family property, they felt that Old Mrs. Hunt and her people were too much. They could not help but intervene. “They
“Callum and Camryn came with Trenton, so they’re all having a barbecue together.”Serenity hummed in response. She closed the door to Sonny's room and said to Dylan, “Is it something you don’t want Zachary to know? If so, let’s go to his study to talk." “It’s not that. It’s fine if he knows, but I’ve talked to him, and he couldn’t be bothered. Then I asked Julian, but he said he was busy. He’s taking Ms. Crawford to register their marriage tomorrow. I just wanted a little help from him; I didn’t need him to do it personally.” Dylan grumbled a little about Julian being unhelpful.If Julian could hear this, he would retort, “Why should I help you? Even Zachary isn’t that demanding.”If it were not for the fact that Zachary and his cousin, Josh, were best buddies, Julian would not be so obliging either. Among the Yorks, Grandma May was the person the Buchams most respected. Of course, if it were something important, the Bucham family would definitely help, but Dylan’s request se
“I haven’t felt like snacking lately.”“Is the stuff made at home not to your taste anymore?” Whenever Serenity said she did not want to eat something she usually loved, Zachary would wonder if it was because the chef’s skills had declined, causing his beloved wife to lose her appetite. “It’s not that, I just don’t feel like eating them. I think maybe the baby is like you and doesn’t like sweets.”Zachary smiled. “If our son is like me, that’s fine. He’ll be steady, and in the future, the two of us will protect you.” If they had a daughter, he hoped she would be like Serenity. If she had his personality… Well, it would not be the most charming. Zachary wanted his daughter to be very likable. “I don’t need you guys to protect me, I can protect myself.”“Honey, don’t say that. I’m your husband, your man. You have to give me a chance to show off, or else people will say you married a useless husband. That would be so unfair to me.”Serenity chuckled.“Do you want to go watch So
“I can be just as considerate and attentive to you.”Quinn looked at him and could not help but laugh. “I don't mean anything else by that, you don’t need to be so defensive.”“You envy Serenity,” Julian said. “I don't want you to envy anyone. I want you to be someone others envy.”Uh, this sounded exactly like something Zachary would say. It looked like, occasionally, he really had learned a thing or two from Zachary.Quinn instantly felt smitten. She looped her arm through Julian's and whispered, “I already am someone others envy. I’m not envious of Serenity—I was just making an observation. They say Mr. Zachary dotes on his wife, and Serenity is very lucky. Now that I’ve witnessed it with my own eyes, I believe it. So, I genuinely sighed with admiration. I know I’m very lucky as well. You treat me so well, and I am content. I really don’t envy anyone.”The young couple’s conversation went unnoticed by Zachary. He waited for his wife to settle before answering a call from Dylan.
“Well, Rowan can play for a couple of days, but he has to start working on his homework soon. The college entrance exam is around the corner, and we can't let him relax too much.”“Rowan's grades are very stable and good. It won’t be hard for him to get into college, so don't put too much pressure on him. It's not necessary for him to get into the same university you and the others went to.”Serenity still remembered the pressure she had felt in high school, though it was not as much as Rowan felt, and her sister's expectations for her were more relaxed; she was only expected to do her best. No matter what the results were, Liberty would accept it. Of course, if she could get into an Ivy League university, that would be great. Otherwise, getting into an Ivy Plus university would also be fine. If that did not work out, she could go to a public university or even take a gap year. Liberty would have been okay with any of it. Her sister always told her that as long as she was physica
Zachary would not do such a thing. Julian laughed. “It’s my first time getting married. I’m asking around because I’m inexperienced. That way, I can make a plan.”Zachary turned to look at him. He said, “How many more times do you intend to get married? I didn’t have any experience either back then. It was my first time going to City Hall. Besides, Seren and I got married in a rush and did not even know each other well. After getting our marriage license, I completely forgot that I was a married man.“You’re in a better situation than I was. At least you and Quinn have feelings for each other and a stable relationship.”Julian chuckled. He caught up to Zachary and placed his arm on his shoulder. He said, “We all know what we should avoid after you’ve set an example.”Zachary was speechless. “You and Serenity are an enviable couple now.“I want to learn from you and make people jealous of Quinn as well.”Zachary brushed Julian’s hand off. “I think you’ll do a better job than m
Zachary and Julian exited the house with two housekeepers behind them, holding a tray each with snacks and drinks. The two men had excellent eyesight and quickly spotted the love of their lives sitting at a bench some distance away. Zachary knew that it was because Serenity got tired from walking. In the past, some pregnant female employees would return to work despite being pretty far along in their pregnancies. Their workload was only slightly lighter. Since Zachary had seen those employees insisting on working even though they were pregnant, he used to think being pregnant and giving birth were not that difficult. He had never put himself in the shoes of the female employees. They insisted on working because they feared being replaced if they took an extended maternity leave. When they returned, they could be discriminated against and had to start all over again. While there were opportunities to be promoted in a megacorporation, one had to climb the corporate ladder ste
Quinn burst out laughing. “You’re right. There’s a higher chance of success with more people. However, having a daughter of your own is more satisfying.“Everyone will be fighting to dote on your daughter. That’s better than you cooing over someone else’s daughter.”Serenity looked at Quinn for a while before smiling. “You have a point there.“But I don’t know if Zachary and I are fated to have a daughter.”“Technology is advanced now. It’s definitely possible with IVF,” suggested Quinn. However, upon recalling what Grandma May mentioned earlier, she quickly added, “Never mind. I guess it’s better not to go for artificial methods in your family. If something were to happen… it’ll be devastating.”The Yorks could be destined to have sons only. Even if a daughter were to be born into the family, it would be painful if she could not survive till adulthood. Regret lingered in the absence of what the heart desired; yet to hold it briefly, only to lose it, birthed deeper despair.
“Does this mean you and Julian are getting your marriage license before the year ends?”Quinn nodded. “We’ll head to the City Hall at nine tomorrow morning.”Serenity immediately congratulated her. “Congratulations, Quinn. You’ll find happiness with Julian. You don’t have to worry about him having a change of heart because you’re the only woman for him.”Quinn blushed. “This may sound funny, but I’m glad that he can only get aroused when he’s with me. As you said, he won’t ever have a change of heart because his body won’t react to other women.”She was aware of Julian’s condition and found it acceptable. Besides, they had gotten along well ever since they met each other. She was satisfied with every aspect of him. He was the ideal husband candidate for her. Not only that, her family members had observed Julian. Her father even flew to Wiltspoon to ask around about the Bucham family. He agreed to her dating Julian because he had a positive impression of the Buchams’ personali
Before Rowan took Sonny away, he did not forget to inform Serenity about it. He even told Quinn, “Sonny and I are going to play, Quinn.”Serenity nodded with a smile. She told Quinn, “Let’s go over too.”Although she could not enjoy the facilities at the playground, she could watch them play. Quinn was more than happy to accompany her. She loved having fun. “When are you and Mr. Julian getting married?” Serenity asked Quinn. Quinn blushed. She said, “Julian wants it to be as soon as possible. I’m not in a rush because I think I’m still young.”After a short pause, she added, “I’ll go with his decision. My family likes him.”Serenity laughed. “I heard all about it. Mr. Julian has done a great job with your family. Mr. and Mrs. Bucham are nice people. They’ve been looking forward to having a daughter-in-law for the longest time.”Walter and Stacy were indeed friendly toward the people they knew. With the Buchams and the Yorks’ relationship, the Bucham couple treated Sereni