“Yeah. We’re back. We arrived with Serenity right when the rain stopped. No one expected it to pour because it was so sunny just before. The elders believe a rainy wedding day signifies cleansing and fertility.”Hayden smiled. “I didn’t know rain was meaningful on a wedding day.”“It’s an old saying anyway. I think it’s just a coincidence. The weather is unpredictable.”Kevin handed the bouquet to Hayden and said, “I caught the bouquet. I hope it’s true that whoever catches this bouquet will be the next to marry.“This is for you, Hayden. I hope we’ll be blessed like Zachary and Serenity.”Hayden hesitated before accepting the bouquet. She said, “The rumors about us will be a hot topic again if you were seen giving the bouquet to me.”“They can say whatever they want. It’s fine as long as you know I’m straight.”Hayden said instinctively, “Well, I can’t be sure. Who knows if you have a similar condition as Mr. Bucham?”“I can let you verify if I am healthy to ensure you’ll be s
Hayden looked at Kevin. “Are you still returning to Jensburg after Zachary’s wedding?”“Of course I have to be where you are unless you’re staying with me in Wiltspoon.”Hayden said, “You have so much free time.”“I’ve been helping Zachary manage the family business since I graduated. He put me in charge of the F&B industry because I’m picky and good at cooking. In his words, if Wiltspoon Hotel’s food couldn’t satisfy me, it wouldn’t satisfy our customers too.“It’s been about ten years since I’ve taken over York Corporation’s F&B businesses. I’m good at my job. Even if I’m not in Wiltspoon, all hotels can operate without a hitch. Besides, every hotel has a managing director and a few deputy directors. I only have to handle crucial matters.“I can choose to live in Jensburg long-term, and nothing will be affected. To me, not being kicked out by Nana is more important.”Hayden had heard him mentioning that Grandma May would chase him out of the house if he could not win her heart.
Hayden could never figure out Grandma May’s actions in arranging her grandsons’ marriages. It was not Kevin’s first time explaining it to her. She could understand his words, yet she did not resonate with the idea. It was probably because she was not part of the York family. She also realized that Grandma May’s children never worried about their children’s marriages. It was all handled by the old lady herself. They simply accepted the daughter-in-law Grandma May handpicked regardless of their looks or family background. Perhaps they were not pressing enough, which prompted the bored Grandma May to take on the responsibility of managing her grandsons’ marriages. “Nana’s reputation and popularity are second to none in Wiltspoon. Even when we were rivals with the Stone Group, they still respected Nana greatly.”Kevin looked proud. He added, “I hope Nana can live a long life to witness all of us build our family and the births of her great-grandchildren.“She always says that she
Serenity had no idea how the guests were doing. Upon her arrival, she met the York elders and family members with Zachary. As the groom and the host, Zachary drank with the guests on behalf of Serenity as well because she was pregnant. When the reception ended, he was worried she would overexert herself and took her to rest in a room.Serenity was indeed exhausted. She almost fell asleep right upon entering the room. Zachary held her up and said, “You should sleep after bathing and changing out of these clothes.”“Don’t I have to entertain the guests later tonight?”“I’ll be back by nighttime. We don’t have to entertain them all day. We should rest early after a long day.”Zachary encircled Serenity’s waist and pulled her into his arms. He said, “You must be worn out today.”She snuggled up to him. “I’m just very tired. I didn’t get enough sleep last night, and Liberty woke me up early in the morning. I’ve been up the whole day by sheer willpower. Now my eyelids feel heavy.”
“Jasmine thinks her baby is a boy. I think ours is a boy too. Maybe our children are fated to be brothers, just like you and Josh.”“That’s not bad.”As much as Zachary would love to have a daughter, he was happy enough to have a child at all with Serenity, regardless of the child’s gender as it was not easy for her to conceive.“You’re right, babe. Not bad at all. Anyway, I’m going to bathe now.”“Don’t fall asleep. I’ll wait for you for fifteen minutes and if you’re not out by then, I’ll go in.”Serenity was speechless. No matter how tired she was, she would never fall asleep in the tub.However, Zachary’s attentiveness and care was sweet. He had fulfilled his promise of planning the grandest wedding Wiltspoon had ever seen while she had also become the most stunning bride for him.Serenity wished their love would always burn brightly, to have children and to grow old together with him. Exactly fifteen minutes later, Serenity exited the bathroom. Zachary immediately lifted
Serenity quickly said, “I know. The pain I felt was when I hadn’t known I was pregnant and was out and about running errands. I was shocked when I found out about the baby.”She dared not tell Zachary about it at that time because he would be worried. Zachary had planned on taking her on a drive because her pregnancy prevented her from going overseas. Considering that a drive would also be tiring, she decided to inform him of her past discomfort. Zachary was relieved to hear that the pain was from before and not now.She had indeed reduced her workload after discovering she was pregnant and stopped making trips with Elisa. Working in the office would not tire Serenity out. After all, she was physically fit from the martial arts classes she had taken. She grew up in a harsh environment too. Zachary wanted to persuade her to stay home even after her marriage leave ended but knew she would not agree. Besides, her first trimester would almost be over by then, and the pregnancy wo
It was morning when Serenity finally woke up. She thought the sun had not set before looking at the time only to realize that she slept through the night when she saw her phone screen.On the other hand, Zachary was already awake. She knew he was preparing breakfast for her downstairs. Serenity was hungry after having slept for so long but feeling recharged from the sufficient rest she had. When she was about to get up, she noticed someone lying at the end of the bed. It was Sonny. Serenity was dumbfounded. Why was the little guy in her room?He had changed out of his suit and was sleeping without a blanket on. She guessed he might have entered after Zachary woke up earlier and probably fell asleep while waiting for her.Serenity went to the edge of the bed to shift Sonny into a more comfortable sleeping position. However, he opened his eyes the moment she lifted her. When he saw Serenity, he said softly, “Aunt Ser.”Then, he hugged her with both hands. “Do you want t
Sonny immediately shook his head. “No. I don’t want to go back with you tomorrow. Mom will send me to school.”Serenity was speechless. She reminded Sonny, “It’s Saturday tomorrow. You don’t have to go to school even if you go home. How much do you dread going to preschool, Sonny?“You were so happy when you first started. Do you dislike it after just a month?”Sonny pouted and whispered, “I don’t hate it. I just think it’s much more fun staying at home.”“You’ll get scolded if your mom hears that. You should work hard and play hard.”Sonny lowered his head and replied, “I know, Aunt Ser. Mom said the same thing. I’ll be hardworking in school and be better than Laurence. I’ll also play hard when it’s time to have fun.“Will you take me to Laurence when the next holiday comes, Aunt Ser?”Sonny missed his playmate. “The next break will be in winter. You have to study hard. When winter break comes, I'll take you to FC Manor if I don’t become too bulky by then. Laurence will be
“Josh was very mischievous when he was young. I’d never think he could be that naughty until I heard my mother-in-law telling me stories from his younger days.”Jasmine had always been under the impression that Josh was gentlemanly and more approachable than Zachary.After their marriage, he treated her well and doted on her a lot.Jasmine did not have to worry about a thing because she could always turn to Josh for help.However, such a man used to be a troublemaker when he was younger. He would climb every wall he saw and give his parents terrible headaches.“Nana brought her daughters-in-law out to gallivant,” Serenity said as she stared at her phone.She just saw Grandma May’s post on Instagram. It was a video of her with Rosella and Sasha. “Nana didn’t even tell me that she was heading out,” Serenity muttered and caressed her bump. She sighed. “I can only travel after this baby is born. Zachary and I haven’t even gone on our honeymoon. He’ll make it up to me after I give
Meanwhile, Serenity, Elisa, and Jasmine were in the office of their fresh produce company.However, the only person working was Elisa.The two pregnant women were simply there to watch her and pass the time.“Has Dylan’s livestream of him eating chili peppers ended?”Jasmine had just returned from the bathroom. She got curious when she saw her two friends no longer watching their phones.“It ended long ago. Imogen stopped him before it even got to fifteen minutes. She got soft-hearted too quickly.”Serenity was eating a plate of fruits. She said, “The person who falls in love first will always give in quickly.”“Dylan can’t eat spicy food. Eating chili peppers for more than ten minutes is enough. He might really die from the heat if he continues.”Elisa smiled and said, “Well, it’s not as if Dylan isn’t in love too. At least he was willing to eat hot chili peppers for Imogen. He even ate them for over ten minutes. From the livestream, it seemed like the chili peppers Layla had
Grandma May had the next two months all planned out.She would gallivant to other places for two months.Half a month after her return, she would become a great-grandmother. Rosella had no opinions. She would simply follow her mother-in-law’s plans.She left and returned to her place to pack her luggage. However, she met Sasha on the way back. When Sasha asked what she was up to, she told Sasha about the plan. Sasha ended up wanting to tag along.Just as Grandma May was ready to leave with Rosella and Sasha, Tania returned home. Upon seeing her mother-in-law taking her two sisters-in-law to roam, Tania held Grandma May’s hand and insisted on going with them.Grandma May was speechless. She glanced at Rosella, who smiled sheepishly.Ultimately, Grandma May and her three daughters-in-law left Wildridge Manor together.When her sons returned home and realized their wives had been “kidnapped” by their mother, they were utterly dumbfounded.Liam immediately called Zachary and co
“Yeah. I thought of that old man. He left me alone in this world so soon.”Grandma May wiped her tears. “I’ll stop thinking about him. I’m more fortunate than him to be able to see my grandsons get married. If I am luckier, I might even live to see Rowan married too.“However, I want nothing more than to have a great-granddaughter before I die. My husband’s biggest regret before he passed away was not having a daughter or granddaughter.”Rosella consoled her. She said, “You’ll definitely be able to live a long life, Mom. You’ll live till you’re a hundred and twenty years old, see Rowan get married, and carry your great-granddaughter. You have nine grandsons and granddaughters-in-law. Surely one of the pairs will be able to give birth to a daughter.”Actually, Rosella was not too confident about it.After all, the York family had not had a baby girl born into their family for three generations. While there were a few daughters before that, they all passed away at a very young age.
Grandma May was truly the anchor of the York family.Nine of her grandsons were nurtured into talented young men who could hold their own. Even if York Corporation was gone, they could start anew and rise again with their capabilities.Of course, with such capable grandsons, York Corporation would only reach greater heights. It would never fall.Grandma May did not have other wishes aside from hoping she could live to see a daughter being born into the York family and Rowan growing up into an adult.After completing her late husband’s wishes, she could meet him in the afterlife without regrets.Grandma May recalled her marriage with Old Mr. York. She had accompanied him to build an empire when they were young, and they educated their grandchildren after they retired. She thought they could grow old together. Well, they did grow old together, but he passed away before she did.Time flew, and a few years have passed since then.When Old Mr. York passed away, none of the York bro
Imogen knew many powerful people.She had great connections.Upon learning that Dylan had told Grandma May that he could not fall in love with Imogen last year, Rosella complained to her husband that it was Dylan’s loss. How could he give up on an elite daughter and choose a fox instead?Moreover, he still did not know that woman’s name or background even after pursuing her for over half a year.His brothers also refused to help him to obtain any information.Clearly, they wanted Dylan to have a hard time. His elder and younger brothers had listened to their nana. He was the only one who went against her arrangements. It was no surprise that the York brothers did not want to help Dylan.It was only in the new year that Rosella found out Imogen was the Chameleon Fox that Dylan had been pursuing all along and she was also Silver’s student, Sugar.Imogen had even been to Wildridge Manor several times as Sugar. At that time, Rosella could sense that Grandma May was playing matchma
Immediately, someone brought a large cup of water for Dylan. Imogen took the cup and handed it to him, urging him to drink. Dylan accepted the cup and drank it all in one go, which eased the spiciness in his mouth a little. “Imogen, your cousin said I need to finish these peppers, but I haven’t even eaten half yet.” Dylan looked at the basket of peppers and saw that he had not eaten even half of them. He had never eaten this much spice in his life. Right now, his throat felt like it was on fire, and his voice was hoarse. The intense heat was affecting him badly.If this had happened in Wiltspoon where the climate was warmer, after eating so many peppers, his throat would have been terribly inflamed, and he probably would have an upset stomach and a serious case of indigestion. Then, he would be stuck in the toilet for half a day.However, since it was cold in Huntington, eating a little chili every day was not a problem, though not as much as Dylan had just eaten. His stomach
“Did you need me for something, Layla?” Imogen, despite being in a rush to stop Dylan from continuing to eat the chili peppers, asked Layla.“Of course, I came to talk to you about work,” Layla replied.“But the discussion might take a while. Are you going to discuss work with me first, or go downstairs to stop Dylan from eating more peppers first?”Imogen hesitated for a moment but decided to stop Dylan first. Layla guessed that her cousin would choose Dylan and sighed inwardly. Imogen was already wrapped around Dylan's finger. However, Dylan had not entirely escaped Imogen’s influence either. Though he had not fallen in love with Imogen herself, he had fallen for her alter ego, who was still her cousin in the end.Fortunately, the woman Dylan loved was her cousin's alias. If he had chosen another woman, Layla would never have allowed her cousin to take him back. The Doyle ladies did not settle for second place.“Layla, give me about ten minutes.”“Alright, I’ll wait for you
It was already so spicy, there was no way it could get worse. Thus, following his family's advice, he began grabbing huge handfuls of chili peppers and stuffed them into his mouth. The heat made his eyes water, and it felt like his mouth was swelling from the spice. Imogen also saw the comments and watched as Dylan continued to eat the peppers in large mouthfuls. She turned off the livestream, not wanting to keep watching. However, her heart was in such a mess that she could not focus on her work. A few minutes later, she tossed her pen aside, pushed her chair away from the table as she stood up, and walked out quickly. She ran into Layla as soon as she left the office.“Layla,” Imogen called out. “You heading out?” To be honest, Layla knew the answer without asking. “He’s eaten quite a lot of chili peppers already. He doesn’t usually eat spicy food. And eating so much at once will harm his stomach.” Imogen still felt sorry for Dylan. Layla smiled, “If you're worried