Hayden replied, “Does that mean you can only pursue the person chosen by your grandmother? Can’t you choose someone else?”Kevin nodded and said, “It can only be the person my nana chose.”Mr. and Mrs. Queen’s eagerness dampened completely.All that enthusiasm was for nothing!Hayden looked for her parents’ reaction while questioning Kevin. Seeing their enthusiasm drained, Hayden decided not to pursue the topic any further.Sophia was unwilling to accept this and asked Kevin, “Kevin, you and your brothers are all capable and outstanding individuals. Why should your grandmother make decisions about your marriage?”Donald chimed in, “Young people nowadays should pursue freedom in love and marriage. Unlike in the old society, parents cannot make decisions for their children’s marriages. They can only offer suggestions.“Your parents remained silent, but you let your grandmother decide for you. Marriage is not child’s play, it is a lifelong event and the wife you marry will be wit
Camryn was more envied than Serenity because she was blind.Callum was the eldest child to the second son of the York family and was also very outstanding in various aspects. Countless wealthy ladies had their eyes on him, hoping he would become their son-in-law. However, he was different from others and fell in love with Camryn, a blind woman.Hayden’s parents believed that Kevin would eventually become someone else’s son-in-law, and would not be related to their family. Their attitude towards him remained unchanged on the surface, but they actually lost a bit of intimate affection toward him.Kevin noticed this but he did not mind it.The point was to disappoint them, and then bring them hope and surprise.He could say that the Queens would never have thought that the bride chosen for him by his nana was Hayden.“Kevin, which family’s heiress did your grandmother choose for you?”Hayden’s mother asked curiously, “You said you came to Jensburg to escape the pressure of being fo
Kevin said with a smile, “I haven’t helped match Mr. Hayden with anyone yet, so you don’t need to thank me.” He looked at Hayden and said jokingly, “Mr. Hayden, you must work harder. When you get married one day, you must invite me to your wedding.” Hayden responded calmly, “If that day comes, I’ll surely invite you to the wedding, Mr. Kevin.” She had made up her mind not to marry anyone in her life. After having breakfast, Sophia asked the maid to help pack all kinds of food and drink for them. Although there was now little hope for Kevin to become her son-in-law, she still wanted her daughter to follow him to the ranch to ride horses and exercise instead of staying at home all day. Hayden said rather helplessly, “Mom, I don’t stay at home all day. I only have one day off a week.” Sometimes she would not even get to rest when she needed to attend parties and social events on weekends. It was not easy to be a member of the Queen family. Donald remained the nominal hea
“Bro, the more you’re wary of Kevin, the easier you’ll show your slip,” Hugh said very softly. He knew why Hayden was guarding against Kevin. It was because she was afraid that Kevin would find out about her identity as a woman. “I wonder who Kevin’s wife candidate is.” They enquired, but Kevin did not reveal who that was.Hugh chuckled and said disinterestedly, “Who cares who she is? It has nothing to do with us anyway. He’s from Wiltspoon, so Old Mrs. York must’ve chosen a rich heiress from Wiltspoon. Even if she’s not from a rich family, she must still be from Wiltspoon. “The first missus and the soon-to-be second missus of the Yorks are both from Wiltspoon.” Hugh looked at Hayden, who understood the look in his eyes. In any case, it would not be Hayden, so Hugh did not want her to be suspicious. Hayden would seldom be so wary of a man, much less suspicious of a man. She was behaving more like a man than a man would at the moment. All the old bosses who were acqua
Kevin rode on a high horse. When Hayden and Hugh came forward, he smiled and said to them, “Mr. Hayden, Mr. Hugh, let’s race.” Hugh smiled and said, “We came here just for horse racing.” “Mr. Kevin, we heard that you and your brothers have the brains and brawn. We’re here to learn a thing or two from your riding.” “I hope you’ll go easy on me, Mr. Hugh. I haven’t ridden a horse for a long time. I’m afraid I’ll lose to you brothers.” Hugh responded, “Mr. Kevin, you’re our honored guest, so I’ll give you a one-minute head start.” Kevin looked at Hayden. Hayden said coldly, “I also haven’t ridden a horse for a long time. If I give you a head start too, you’ll have an unfair advantage. Let’s have a fair competition.” “Okay.” With that, Hugh stayed where he was with his horse while Kevin and Hayden went ahead. Hugh was speechless. Why did he agree to it so quickly? Kevin and Hayden had gone far away, but it had not been a minute yet. Moreover, Kevin and Hayden said it
Hugh quickly slapped Kevin’s shoulder and whispered, “Mr. Kevin, you mustn’t let my brother hear this, or he’ll take this up with you. He doesn’t usually talk much and only nags me, his twin brother. “Look at my brother—he doesn’t look like a woman at all.” Kevin smiled and responded softly, “Your brother is just concerned about you.” Hayden did not look like a woman indeed. If she looked like one, Kevin would have taken action long ago. Even if he made a move now, he could not be impressed when he looked at Hayden. He would feel as if he was pursuing a man. When Hayden looked over, their eyes met. Kevin grinned, whereas Hayden’s gaze darkened. She looked away into the distance. When Hugh noticed that Kevin was always looking at his sister, he nudged and teased him, “Mr. Kevin, you haven’t fallen for my brother like those girls, have you?” Right after he said that, a snack was shoved into his mouth. Hayden scolded him, “There’s so much food here, and yet you can’t k
Hugh continued to ask, “Mr. Kevin, can you show me your wife candidate’s photo?” “That won’t do. What if you fancy her? Wouldn’t I be inviting a love rival for myself?” Hugh was speechless. “Once I manage to pursue her, and marry her, I’ll definitely invite you to our wedding. You’ll find out then who she is.” When Kevin married Hayden, Hugh would become his brother-in-law, so Hugh would definitely be present at the wedding. Since Kevin said that, as thick-faced as Hugh was, he could not press Kevin to show him the photo. Hugh could only say with a smile, “You must invite me to the wedding when you get married, Mr. Kevin. If possible, I’d like to be your groomsman so I can take a piece of your luck. I hope I’ll be the next person to get married so my parents will stop saying that I’m unwanted when they see me come home by myself every day.” Kevin grinned and neither promised nor refused him. He had to first find out if a brother-in-law could be a groomsman. If it was al
Kevin wanted to use the hot spring session to expose Hayden’s identity as a woman. It was worth noting that Kevin was scheming. If Hayden were to go in the water, she would be exposed. Men only wear a pair of pants in a hot spring. Hayden had fake abs on her body at the moment, so she would be exposed if she removed her clothes. She would not simply enter the hot spring. Who cared what Kevin would think? “Mr. Hayden, why aren’t you getting in?” Kevin and Hugh had gone into the water. Seeing as Hayden was sitting on the side and did not get changed, Kevin called out to her. Hayden sat there, and the expression on her good-looking face remained the same. She did not seem shy at all when she looked at Kevin and admired his strong body. It was clear that Kevin had a better build than Hugh. Hugh had been overly pampered. If he knew what Hayden was thinking, he would have thought, ‘...I’m still a boy!’ After hearing Kevin’s shout, Hayden responded apologetically, “I’ve be
Isabella’s bodyguard had only called out to her, not daring to touch her, so she had not woken up. However, when Austin gently patted her face and called her, she woke up almost immediately. When she opened her eyes and saw Austin’s handsome face, Isabella was momentarily dazed, thinking she was dreaming about him.She had actually dreamed about Austin. Had she developed feelings for him? If she had not, why would she dream about him? In all her life, this was the first time she had dreamed about a man. Isabella wanted to touch Austin’s face, but as she raised her hand, she realized she was not dreaming.Austin was real. She could smell the fresh scent on him because they were so close.He had showered.Isabella quietly lowered her hand, hoping Austin had not noticed her earlier intention, lest he misunderstood.“Ms. Isabella,” Austin’s warm and pleasant voice reached her ears, making her want to close her eyes and go back to sleep. With him around, she felt safe and secure.
Hunter had neither money nor power. What could he possibly use to save his sons?“Dad, go home. When the trial starts, we’ll send someone to pick you up so you can attend and observe.”Hunter stood up angrily and stormed off.After he left, Ellie asked Ava, “Are we really not going to do anything? My child is still young. Having a father in prison will always be a stain on their life.”“What can we do? Even if we wanted to save them, we don’t have the means. We know what Caroline is like. She’s not going to let this go lightly this time,” Ava replied. “Anyway, think about last year, when they were caught cheating. How did they treat us then?”Remembering the events from last year, Ellie said, “Let them serve a few years in prison, then. Ava, Caroline is in the hospital. Should we go visit her?”“We should. Let’s go tomorrow. We’ll call Emma and visit Caroline together. The Fisher family is full of terrible people, but Caroline still has some conscience. She’s always been kind t
Hunter was momentarily speechless. He did not have much money. When Belinda was alive, he never had more than five hundred dollars on him. After his children grew up, he secretly asked them for money. During that time, he had money to spend freely, living a lavish life outside.However, all that money had been spent. He had no savings, mainly because he was used to spending extravagantly.He had been unable to save money. He did not own any shops or properties either; Belinda had kept him on a tight leash.The house in their hometown had been built with Belinda’s money, but it was not under his name. It was under his three sons’ names.After Belinda’s death, his sons supported him. Each son gave him over a hundred thousand dollars a month for living expenses.Combined, that was several hundred thousand dollars a month, allowing him to live comfortably in Ashford. He had managed to save a little, but not much, just over a million dollars in total. Hiring the best lawyers for h
Despite this, lying in bed and enduring the pain, Caroline could not help but start to cry, feeling deeply wronged.When Darren came in and saw her crying, he walked over, sat on the edge of the bed, and gently wiped her tears with a tissue.“They’re not worth your tears,” he said, his heart aching for her.Caroline sat up and buried herself in his arms. “Darren, you’re all I have now.”Darren held her tightly, his voice filled with tenderness. “I’ll always be by your side, no matter what happens, Ms. Caroline. Even if the sky falls, I’ll hold it up for you.“If you’re really hurting and need to cry, then cry. Let it all out.”It would also help her sever ties with the past and the family bonds that had caused her so much pain.Caroline did cry—a long, cathartic cry. It would be the last time. From now on, she and the Clarks would go their separate ways.Meanwhile, Hunter went to Justin’s house and called Jason’s wife, Ellie, over. He said to his two daughters-in-law, “By no
After a moment of silence, Hunter repeated the same line. “But you didn’t die, did you? You only got a little hurt, and it’s not even serious.”Caroline almost laughed in anger at this.Sure, she had not died. She had only been injured. Did that erase the fact that her brothers had tried to kill her, though?She retorted, “Dad, if I had tried to kill your three sons, but they didn’t die and only got a little hurt, would you say the same thing to them? Would you tell them it’s just a family dispute, ask them to forgive me, not to sue me, and not to send me to jail?”Hunter instinctively replied, "If you had the intent to kill, how could I let you continue down that path? Of course, I’d have to let you serve a few years in prison…“Carol, I’m old, really old. I only have the boys to rely on in my old age. Are you trying to leave me with no one to depend on in my later years?”Caroline said coldly, “I’ll provide for your living expenses. I’ll make sure you don’t starve. You can even
Darren did not let go even after being struck.Seeing Darren get hit, Caroline’s expression darkened. She coldly said to her father, “Dad, if you really want to kneel, go kneel at the hospital entrance and shout at the top of your lungs that your daughter is unfilial.“Tell everyone that your sons tried to kill your daughter, and your daughter refuses to forgive them, so you’re kneeling there to force her to forgive your sons.“Let’s see if I give in.”Hunter stopped struggling. After slapping Darren, he felt a pang of fear. He was afraid Caroline might retaliate by slapping him to avenge Darren. Fortunately, while Caroline was furious, she did not lay a hand on him.He began to cry. “Carol…” He wept bitterly.Darren released him, and Hunter sat on the sofa, sobbing, “Carol, I’m old. I have no income, my parents are long gone, and your mother is no longer here. I only have your three brothers to rely on.“If you send all three of them to prison, what will happen to me? Who w
Caroline hummed. “I do plan to visit Wiltspoon to see her sometime soon. I just don’t know if I’ll be kicked out when I get there.”“And I should visit Mr. Foster too. How is he, by the way?" Patrick was the longest-living person she had ever met. Back when she lived with her adoptive family in the countryside, the oldest people in town usually lived into their eighties, and few made it to ninety. Patrick was nearly a hundred years old. What was more, he could walk without support and even travel long distances with his old friends.Liberty replied, “He’s doing quite well. Aunt Audrey accompanies him on walks every day. When they don’t go out, he sits by the cradle and watches baby Elias for hours on end.”The bond between generations was strong. When Patrick looked at Clive’s son, Elias, he felt like he was looking at his great-grandson. As Tiara’s great-grandson, Elias was naturally like his own great-grandson, too.“Dr. Carden comes by periodically to check on him and adjus
Liberty had already called Audrey to inform her about what had happened and also mentioned it to Serenity.Knowing the Clark brothers had all been captured, Serenity felt thoroughly relieved and stopped worrying that her sister would run into trouble in Jensburg.She told Zachary that Caroline never let people down.Zachary did not comment.Caroline’s fever had completely subsided, but her coughing had worsened. The doctor had changed her prescription, but the effects were not immediate.When Liberty entered, Caroline was out of bed and walking around, supported by Darren.“Caroline, why are you out of bed?”Liberty scolded her, “Get back in bed and lie down. You’re injured. If you don’t rest properly and keep moving around, you’ll aggravate your wounds, and you’ll regret it.”She did not blame Darren, though. She knew Caroline always came first to him. He always followed her lead and was unable to influence her decisions.“I’ve been lying down all day. My back is sore, and I’m
The housekeeper replied, “Yes, sir.”They did not have much work in the first place, so they did not need to slack off. Once they were done with their work, they had tons of time to entertain themselves.Hunter rushed out the door with his car keys. Despite being over seventy years old, his driving skills were still quite good. Not needing to hire a driver, he drove himself straight to Jensburg.Upon arriving at the city, Hunter did not immediately go looking for Caroline. He was unaware that she had been injured.Instead, he went to meet his old friends to ask them to help him find out if anything had happened in relation to the Fisher family last night.After he finished speaking, one of his friends said, “We were about to ask you the same thing. Your three sons attacked your daughter with knives and even kidnapped her, intending to chop her up and feed her to the fish.“Luckily, that Mr. Fletcher, who works for your daughter, arrived with the police and rescued her, but she wa