Callum looked at his sister-in-law’s speechless face and asked carefully, “Should I not have told her the truth? Should I have kept lying to her? Maybe I shouldn’t have let her know that Nana chose her to be my wife.”Before Serenity could respond, he continued, “I just didn’t want to be like Zachary. I was afraid she’d be angrier if I kept the truth from her for a long time till she finally finds out about it, so I was honest with her. I didn’t want to lie to her.”After what happened to Zachary, Callum tried his best not to deceive Camryn.Was telling the truth also the wrong move?Serenity paused before sharing her thoughts, “No, but the way you phrased it will make Camryn think that you’re not sincere. You’re just finishing the task assigned by Nana. Put yourself in her shoes. Would you be happy if you were her?“In addition to her sensing that you’re regarding her as a task, and that you don’t really like her, she’ll feel that she’s not worthy of you. It’s true that she’s the
Serenity said, “Exactly. Bring out your shamelessness and go to Spring Blossoms now to apologize properly. Don’t say stuff like you’re only pursuing Camryn because she’s the wife that Nana chose for you. Just pursue her and let her feel your true feelings for her.“She was willing to accompany you to Jasmine’s engagement party, which means she has feelings for you. As long as she feels that you’re treating her sincerely instead of just a task to be completed, she’ll be able to accept you openly.”Callum thought about it and nodded. “I understand what you mean.”“Camryn can’t see, so she’s very sensitive. You have to be careful and considerate. Don’t be disdainful of her.”“I don’t disdain her. I never have.”Serenity hummed.Callum did not disdain Camryn for being blind. He just adopted the wrong mindset because he was obeying his nana’s arrangement.“I’ll go to Camryn now to apologize. If she doesn’t want to see me, I’ll loiter in her store until she forgives me.”Callum got u
Zachary hummed and said, “Don’t order takeout for lunch. I’ll send food over to your side. Let’s eat together.”Serenity was alone in the store, and Zachary could not bear to let his beloved wife eat takeout. He had already ordered food from Wiltspoon Hotel and a bodyguard picked it up. Then, he would bring the food over during lunch break so the couple could have lunch in the bookstore together.“Okay, I won’t order takeout. You get back to work. School is almost out, so I’ll be busy too.”Serenity hung up the phone after speaking.On the other side, Zachary looked at his phone and complained, “She didn’t even give me the chance to say bye.”Serenity began to work while Zachary finished his work and left the office.The bodyguard just came back from getting the insulated lunch boxes from the hotel. He rushed out to receive Zachary when he saw the latter come downstairs.A few minutes later, Zachary’s car drove out of York Corporation.He left ten minutes before lunch break, so
Serenity wiped the small dining table clean.Her heart warmed when she looked at the dishes. No matter the time, he always prepared her favorites.“What did Callum say to you? What trouble did he get into?” Zachary asked curiously as he filled his beloved wife’s plate with food.“He misunderstood Camryn and did something out of line, so he wanted me to help him apologize. I told him that he had to bear the consequences of his own actions.”Serenity did not go into detail because she felt that it was Callum and Camryn’s private matter. Her brother-in-law told her about it because he trusted her, so she could not tell anyone else about it. She did not tell Zachary lest Camryn felt embarrassed to see him in the future.Even though she did not go into detail, Zachary was a man who had also forced a kiss on Serenity before, so he quickly guessed what happened.He wisely did not continue to inquire.While the couple had lunch, Duncan went to the hospital after work. He stood outside t
Mrs. Lewis thought about it and decided to see Liberty before visiting her friend.With that in mind, she went to Liberty’s ward.When the York bodyguards saw Mrs. Lewis coming, one of them went into the ward to tell Liberty.The bodyguards did not stop Mrs. Lewis when she approached. They helped her knock on the door and opened the door for her.“Mrs. Lewis.”Mrs. Lane and another maid were dining in the small lounge. When they saw Mrs. Lewis come in, they quickly put down their lunch boxes, stood up, and greeted her respectfully.“Oh, you’re all eating? Don’t mind me and continue eating. I just came to see Liberty.”Mrs. Lewis left the house after eating.Mrs. Lane still escorted her into the ward.Liberty finished eating, but Sonny ate slowly. His mother fed him while saying, “Sonny, you can’t eat so slowly in the future. You’ll have to eat by yourself when you go to preschool.”“I know, Mom.”Seeing Mrs. Lewis come in, Liberty passed the bowl to her son to let him eat by
Mrs. Lewis saw that there were no freshly delivered flower bouquets or fruit baskets in the ward and completely believed Liberty’s words.She thought, ‘Did that boy really not come to see Liberty? But he admitted that he was here to visit her.’However, Liberty said that she did not see him.There was only one possibility—her son came but did not enter the ward.That was why Liberty did not see him.In the end, the problem lay with her son.“He was already here at the hospital and on the same floor anyway. Why didn’t he come see you?” Mrs. Lewis asked, pretending to be ignorant.Liberty smiled and said nothing.Duncan and her paths crossed frequently, but most of the time, it was because Duncan going to her store for breakfast.He helped her a lot, but that was only because she was Zachary’s sister-in-law.Mrs. Lewis looked at Sonny, who was eating by himself, and said, “I won’t bother you anymore, Liberty. You should continue feeding Sonny. I have to visit my friend now.”“
Serenity looked at the message her sister sent and was silent for a moment before replying, [Liberty, have you ever thought that Zachary isn’t the reason Mr. Lewis is good to you?]Liberty asked, [What other reasons would he have? He only helped me because of Zachary. When I joined his company, he hired me because of Zachary. I heard him call Zachary.][I originally wanted to wait until you recovered and got discharged from the hospital before talking to you about this, but I feel wronged on your behalf at the insinuations that Mrs. Lewis threw at you.]Serenity sent the message and called Liberty.Liberty swiftly answered the phone.“Tell me, Seren. What is it that I don’t know? Why did Mrs. Lewis say that?”“Liberty, you were unconscious for one night when you were injured. It was Duncan who watched over you all night outside the ICU. He was also the one who saw you in tears and called the doctor. He didn’t sleep at all that night. You were still weak when you woke up, so you d
“Seren!”Liberty said seriously, “I’ve never had such thoughts. I really don’t have any interest in Mr. Lewis, and Mrs. Lewis has already chosen a wife for him. Ms. Harmon is a very good lady.“Even if I want to remarry, I won’t marry Mr. Lewis. We’re worlds apart. Mrs. Lewis will never choose me to be her daughter-in-law. If I get together with Mr. Lewis, I’ll still have to endure my mother-in-law making things hard for me again.“Seren, I finally managed to jump out of the Brown family. You can’t expect me to jump into the Lewis family now, right?“My former mother-in-law was a horrible person, but she doesn’t hurt others. The ladies from affluent families are not that simple. Do you think everyone is like your mother-in-law? It’s hard enough being the missus of a wealthy family. There’s such a large gap between Mr. Lewis and I, and Mrs. Lewis doesn’t like me either. Who knows what she’ll do to me if I become her daughter-in-law?”Liberty’s head was crystal clear. She did not be
Austin quickly left the CEO’s office. Just as he stepped out, he ran into Tati, who was looking for Isabella.“Ms. Tati,” Austin greeted politely.Tati nodded and waited for Austin to leave before she knocked on the office door and entered.“Austin came early today to cook for you,” Tati said, holding a folder in her hand and opening it as she walked toward Isabelle.She sat down at the desk, handed over the folder, and said, “Isa, this is urgent. Please take a look.”Isabella took the document, glancing through it as she replied, “He comes around this time every day, neither early nor late.”“That Longbottom fellow came by again?” Tati asked.It was only after Mr. Longbottom had directly asked to see Isabella that Tati found out the old lecher had come again.“Yes, but I didn’t meet him. He brought some gifts, claiming they were holiday presents for us. I had them sent back. He’s too ambitious, and he has bad intentions. We’re absolutely on guard against him. Why would we give
Isabella turned her head to look at Austin.Austin stopped the massage and asked in a gentle voice, “Are you feeling any discomfort? I can work on it. I don't give people massages often, so I don’t have much experience. I'll keep giving you more massages as practice so I'll be able to serve you better.”“It's not that,” Isabella smiled. “It's actually very comfortable. It’s just that I really want to meet your grandmother every time you mention her.”In Isabella's mind, Austin's grandmother had already become something of a legendary figure.Austin thought to himself, ‘Nana’s already met you. You probably met her before, you just didn't know it was her.’His nana had surely spent a lot of time observing Isabella, getting to know her, and confirming that her character and abilities were suitable for him before choosing Isabella for him.“When you’re less busy, if you’re willing, you can come visit us in Wiltspoon. Lots of flowers bloom in spring, and there’s beautiful scenery ever
When Isabella first took over the family business, many of her grandparents' and parents' friends and relatives openly tried to sabotage her. They played dirty tricks, schemed, and tried various ways to undermine her.They wanted to take advantage of her, and they also did not want her to take control of the family’s legacy. They tried to prevent her from establishing herself in the company, even going as far as to collaborate with outsiders to trap her.She had suffered countless setbacks, faced numerous conspiracies, and even experienced several so-called accidents, nearly losing her life. It was only after all this that she truly understood the treachery of human nature. From that point on, she learned to arm herself with cold indifference.Though she was taking over her own family’s business, it felt like she had to fight through a bloody battle to secure her place, as if she were a king striving to ascend the throne. It was exhausting and disheartening.However, she endured an
Austin said, “He’s definitely here to discuss a potential partnership with your company.“He's just the acting head of the Longbottoms. He doesn’t truly control the family. If the real head returns, everything he’s worked for will go to someone else.“The downfall of Belinda Fisher probably gave him a wake-up call and he doesn’t want to end up like that.“He’s definitely seeking to cooperate with you regarding his personal business. He’s just using the Longbottoms’ name, since their influence in Windermere is enormous.”In terms of wealth, the O'Connors and the Longbottoms were on equal footing, but the O'Connors had fewer members and did not have the same level of influence in Windermere as the Longbottoms.Isabella said, “He’s very ambitious. A partnership would only just be the beginning. Once it’s established, he’ll start thinking about how to cheat us and steal our business.“Plus, he’s very lecherous. Nobody can put a number to how many women he’s toyed with. Some even lost
Tony was aware that whenever his wife had to play the villain, it was always to protect him. He said, “You're right, I misspoke. Your mother isn’t that kind of person.”“Manny, I’ll be leaving soon. You stay here, and I’ll leave half of my men with you. If anything comes up that you can't handle, contact me. I’ll be waiting to hear good news from you.” Tony decided to fly to Wiltspoon in the afternoon. He would only stay for two or three days before returning to Havenmill to handle business.However, as he thought about how he was working like a horse for Longbottom Corporation when many of the benefits did not even belong to him personally, Tony felt a bit disgruntled.“Got it.” Manny did not reject his father’s arrangement.As the Longbottom father and son were discussing how to deal with the O’Connors, Austin entered Isabella’s office.Isabella was busy, so Austin did not disturb her. He quietly sat at the tea table and made some tea.“It seems you’ve learned the art of tea-
Manny had never been to Wiltspoon, but he knew from his father that several prominent families in Wiltspoon had close ties with the Johnsons from Annenburg. It was possible that the child adopted by the Johnsons’ young missus was Laurence. Unfortunately, he could not meet that child, so he could not be a hundred percent certain. The child was currently out of sight and well-protected, hidden so effectively that even the Longbottoms’ information network could not find anything. The other prominent families in Wiltspoon were also helping to keep the child hidden, so Manny deeply disliked the people from these families. Even though they were thousands of miles away, they were still an obstacle to him and his father in their pursuit of becoming the true head of the family.“That's right. If we can conquer the O’Connors, we’ll have a backup plan,” his father said. “You must put your all into it, son. If you need help, just let me know, though this is also an opportunity for you to ge
Tony Longbottom was the only person who would put on such a parade. The big shots in Satbury usually had entourages of their own, but none would put on a spectacle as big as Tony would.As they departed in their car, Tony’s gracious demeanor utterly shattered.His face twisted into an ugly, cruel expression as he said, “I’ve never been treated like this before, even when the legitimate branch of the family still lived, and those two ignorant little girls actually refused to see me multiple times.”Manny was very angry too and he said, “Pops, since they refuse to go about this the easy way, we’ll have to show them the hard way. We can approach it from other angles, and once they’re completely out of business and they have nowhere else to turn to, they’ll be at our mercy.“Won’t they have to do as we please then? I want to marry them, they’ll have to marry me, and if I don’t, I’ll just make them my mistresses. Don’t the O’Connors have plenty of daughters? I’ll fuck every one of them
“Isabella O’Connor is so outstanding, so why are you asking me to go for Tati O’Connor instead?” Manny said under his breath in puzzlement.He had seen photos of the two ladies and Isabella’s appearance was more striking. She had a cold and aloof aura that easily triggered his desire to conquer her, and after just a few glances, he was captivated.If it were up to him, Manny would choose Isabella.Tony looked at his son, smiled, and said, “You can’t control her. Of course, if you manage to make her fall for you, we can talk about switching. But for now, focus on Tati O’Connor.”Tati was also beautiful. However, she did not have Isabella’s cold demeanor. She seemed much gentler, like she smiled often.“Marrying Tati O’Connor would be a big advantage for both you and our family.”Manny thought for a moment and then nodded in understanding. “Got it, Dad.”Manny’s good looks, wealth, honeyed tongue, and generosity toward girls made him good at winning them over. Pursuing a rich youn
After testing the O’Connor sisters and realizing they were not like other women, Mr. Longbottom thought of having his son marry Tati.He knew that his son would not be able to handle or control Isabella, so he set his sights on Tati. Tati probably did not realize she was considered an easy target. Most people underestimated her because she had always kept a low profile.At that moment, a young man got out from the other side of the Rolls-Royce. He resembled Mr. Longbottom. Indeed, he was Mr. Longbotton’s eldest son, Manny.“Dad.”Manny went to his father’s side and glanced at the building before him. He asked, “Aren’t we driving inside?”In Havenmill, Manny could do whatever he wished because his father was the interim head of the Longbottom family. While he had no respect for ordinary people at all, he was clever enough not to offend people he should not.He never parked his car outside the places he wanted to go and simply drove his car through the gates. However, Manny