“Honey, I want you to wear the jewelry I gave you tonight.”“Doesn’t matter whose gift I wear tonight, as long as I’m wearing the diamond ring you gave me.”Callum pecked Camryn on the lips. “Alright, I’ll let Mom have this round.”Camryn pinched Callum’s cheek in amusement.“Oh, right. That Mrs. Longbottom you and Serenity mentioned before will be attending the dinner tonight too,” Callum suddenly said.At the mention of the young woman who sounded and looked like Carrie figure-wise, Camryn lost her smile.She said calmly, “It’ll be a good time to observe her carefully then. She’ll slip up at some point if it’s a facade.”“I got someone to look into it when I was free. She really is Mrs. Longbottom. Her husband really is a Longbottom.”“Hmm.”Camryn only suspected that Mrs. Longbottom was Carrie and had no evidence to prove it.If Mrs. Longbottom and Carrie were one and the same, then there was a scheme in the works, which also meant that there had to be a schemer manipulati
Austin said to Grandma May, “Didn’t you say you wanted me to spend time with you, Nana?“But the moment we got back, before you’ve even taken a sip of water, you’re already planning to meet up with your old friends and play cards.”Serenity said, “Nana, it’s not easy for the old ladies to save up. You shouldn’t make them lose all their savings to you every time you come back.”Grandma May chortled. “I don’t take their money. Whoever loses gets one stroke drawn on their face to see who gets to become a Sharpie cat in the end.”Everyone was speechless at this.They could not understand the world of these old kids.All they could do was let them be.Soon, Josh and Jasmine arrived too, followed by Josh’s parents.This made the place even more lively.When Grandma May spotted Josh’s father, Wyatt Bucham, she asked, “Hey, Threebie. Has your oldest brother not come back from visiting his in-laws yet?”Wyatt was the third oldest among his cousins.Grandma May had always called him T
“Where are you going, Grandma May?” Josh asked when he saw that she was leaving.“I’ve been away for so long and only just returned, so I want to meet up with my old friends to catch up with all the gossip and play some cards.”She never put on the airs of a rich madam, so she got on particularly well with the employees’ mothers who lived at the foot of the hill.Those old ladies loved gossiping with Grandma May too.“You guys chat! I’m heading out. There’s no need to call me back once you guys start the barbecue party, just get someone to send me and my friends some of the food and I’ll eat with them. There’d better be some steak!”Serenity said, “Nana, you’re getting on in years. You should cut down on red meat.”“Oh, alright. I’ll listen to you. If you tell me not to eat it, I won’t then,” Nana conceded.“When I tell Nana not to eat red meat, she scolds me, but when Seren does it, Nana agrees right away,” Zachary grumbled.Grandma May was a typical example of someone who shu
Rosella only yelled that one sentence before quickly winding the window back up and telling the driver to continue driving.“That old kid really is like a kid,” Rosella muttered.Camryn giggled. “As long as Nana’s happy.”“Oh, she’s very happy every day. She always says that life is short, and this trip to earth is only worth it if we live life happily every day.”Rosella was deeply appreciative of her mother-in-law’s attitude towards life.Her decision to marry into the York family was due to a combination of factors—the strength of her and her husband’s feelings for each other, her in-laws’ characters, as well as the family’s culture that gave her zero reservations about joining the family.Time had proven that she had not married the wrong person.It had been a few decades since she married and she had not suffered a single grievance since. Her in-laws treated their daughters-in-law better than they even treated their sons.They did not even have to worry about their childre
“Thank you, Mrs. House.” Camryn said. Ginny told Rosella, “Your daughter-in-law has a lovely voice. Listening to her soothes me.”“You and your sisters-in-law must be happy to have daughters-in-law already. Meanwhile, I don’t even have a daughter- or son-in-law.”Ginny looked toward her daughter and two sons when she spoke. Her younger son was only in his early twenties, so he could be excused. However, her elder son and daughter were already of marriageable age, yet they had not gotten married yet.Ginny’s daughter, Tasha, was one of Elisa’s best friends. Ginny was an expert in socializing. She did not only get along with Audrey Stone, but she was also close to the York missuses and had never offended any party. Tasha used to be in a relationship while hiding her identity. In the end, her boyfriend left her for another woman for the money. Little did he know, Tasha, whom he had abandoned, was his golden ticket to becoming rich. After the breakup, Elisa often hung out wi
Camryn had learned how to build a wall around her; rumors could not hurt her at all. Her aunts and Carrie had tried various ways to ruin her reputation by going to the York family, yet all their attempts had failed. The only person she cared about, Callum, had chosen to trust her and stay by her side unconditionally. There was nothing that could hurt her anymore. “That’s right. Ignore what others say. Many people used to badmouth Elisa too. They kept criticizing her.“Didn’t you think Elisa was nice after getting to know her? That’s why it’s better not to care about other people’s opinions. They’re just jealous.”Camryn replied, “Yes. They’re just jealous. Elisa was hit the worst out of all of us.”Luckily, Elisa had always had a positive attitude. She continued doing things her way despite the rumors about her. It was obvious that those people were just envious of her courage to pursue Zachary. Zachary was the man of countless women’s dreams when he was single. However, n
Tasha told Camryn apologetically, “I’ll get someone to take you inside. I need to greet Mrs. Longbottom.”Camryn looked forward. Rosella and the rest had already entered the lavish manor with Ginny. She did not know anyone around her, so she said, “Do you mind if I follow you to meet Mrs. Longbottom, Tasha?“I don’t know many people here,” she added. Tasha smiled. “Okay. Let’s go and have a look at what Mrs. Longbottom looks like. I’ve never heard of her.”She did not know anyone with the last name Longbottom among Wiltspoon’s elites. Even the other ladies had not heard of that name. Tasha was curious. “I’ve met her once, but I’m not sure if she’s the same person as the Mrs. Longbottom who’s here tonight.”Tasha was guiding Camryn by holding her hand. She was surprised when she heard Camryn’s words, “You’ve seen her before?”“Yes. I saw Mrs. Longbottom in Serenity’s bookstore a few days ago. She seems to be in her twenties. She looked beautiful and rich. She was looking for
Birth rates started falling as fewer marriages took place. Even newly introduced government policies were unable to incentivize the younger generation to marry and have children. Camryn and Tasha soon arrived at the manor’s entrance while chatting. As most guests were arriving at that hour, the Houses’ outdoor parking lot could not fit that many cars. The employees were directing the guests to park outside the manor or by the roadside, which already had a long row of cars parked. “Ms. Tasha.”One of the maids called Tasha the moment she walked out. Tasha first greeted the guests who had just arrived and got someone to guide them into the manor. After looking around, she could not spot Mrs. Longbottom. She asked, “Where’s Mrs. Longbottom?”“She’s still in her car. It was just parked.”The maid pointed at a luxury car not too far away. In the car, Carrie had spotted Camryn and Tasha. She used to attend banquets often with her mother and had met Tasha several times. How