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
Carrie greeted Tasha sweetly and shook her hand. Next, she looked toward Camryn. Tasha introduced, “This is my friend, Camryn. She’s the Newman family's young lady and also the York family's second missus.”Carrie said to Camryn, “So this is Mrs. York? Have we met before? I think we’ve seen each other at a bookstore.”Camryn’s expression was soft. She smiled. “Yes, we did. I find your voice very familiar.”Carrie felt nervous. As expected, Camryn knew her voice well. ‘Calm down. Don’t expose anything. If Camryn notices something, Mr. Longbottom will be furious. I’ll be in great trouble if he gets angry.‘What is there to be scared of?’Carrie kept telling herself that there was no need to fear Camryn. It had always been her bullying Camryn. “Why do you think so? I believe we’ve only met once.”Carrie pretended to look confused. She said, “We saw each other in a bookstore near Wiltspoon School. I was buying some books for my brother-in-law.”Camryn maintained her expres
Imogen had been really worried that Dylan’s reaction to the chili peppers would leave him suffering for several days.“Okay,” Dylan hoarsely replied.Imogen let him eat the porridge by himself. There was nothing else to go with it, but the porridge had a little bit of salt sprinkled in, giving it some flavor.Dylan was hungry, so he quickly finished the bowl of oatmeal porridge. “Do you want more? There’s another bowl’s worth in the thermos.”Dylan shook his head. It was late, and he did not want to eat too much, afraid of gaining weight and ruining his good physique. He still had not won over his future wife, so he had to take care of his figure and maintain his handsome and charming look.Once Dylan finished the IV fluids and took his medicine, Imogen finally left the hospital around ten o’clock. Having slept twice in the day, Dylan was not able to fall asleep again, and Imogen did not let him accompany her downstairs, so he stood by the window and watched her walk out of th
A few minutes later, Imogen took the thermometer from under Dylan’s arm and looked at it. She said to him, “It’s 100.4. Your fever hasn’t completely gone down yet, but compared to when you were admitted at 103.64, it’s come down quite a bit.“What time did you take your medicine? It should be time for your next dose.”Dylan shook his head, indicating that he did not remember when he had taken the medicine.Imogen thought for a moment and said, “I think it’s about time. Take your medicine first, then sleep for a while. I’ll have dinner brought over for you. In your condition, you can only have something light, maybe some oatmeal porridge.”Considering Dylan’s sore throat, Imogen knew he would not be able to eat much, so she called home and asked the housekeeper to bring over dinner, specifically requesting a bowl of oatmeal porridge for Dylan.Dylan could only nod in response.After giving instructions to her housekeeper, Imogen looked at Dylan, who could only nod, and said, “The
Kade had once been so gentle and kind. Was he really that kind of person?Imogen did not believe so.It was possible that the Butcher elders were simply being too pragmatic. Seeing that Maria’s family was on the verge of decline, they thought that Maria was not worthy of Kade and tried to stop them from being together.But wait—Maria said that Kade had never told her he loved her or anything of the sort. Maria had basically been secretly in love with Kade, waiting for him to confess, but she had waited in vain all this time.Imogen internally sighed. What a mess. She could not understand what was the problem between them. She would just have to wait until Kade came back, and then she would find a chance to get some answers from him. “Imogen…” A hoarse voice called out from within the room. It was not very loud; he could not speak loudly. Though it was better than this morning when all he could get out were moans.He had received several bags of IV fluids, which had had some eff
Imogen did not know that Dylan had woken up. She was still on the phone with Maria outside.Maria felt reassured when Imogen mentioned that the person she liked was a member of the richest family in Wiltspoon. All was good as long as he was not a social climber. Imogen asked, “Maria, when are you coming back? It’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other. Kade will be back soon. Are you really not coming back?“Maria, Kade and I are like siblings. Please don’t misunderstand or overthink it. Actually, you should know this—the person Kade likes is you. You two are the real childhood sweethearts, you grew up together.”Imogen and her mother’s godchildren had known each other since they were young, but the three of them had not actually spent much time together as she had always stayed with her master while she learned the trade, only returning home during the summer and winter holidays.Once the holidays ended, she would leave again. Even her formal education was completed in th
There were so many other possible choices. Why were they so fixated on him?Leticia sighed. “Alright, just pretend I never said that. You youngsters will decide for yourselves anyway, we don’t have a say in it. Remember to fetch Kade from the airport on Saturday.“I’ve already told him and he knows you’re supposed to be picking him up. And remember to get some flowers too. You two haven’t met in ages and you should give flowers at a reunion.” She reminded Imogen.“Mom, I can pick him up, fine, but I’m not giving him flowers. Who said you’re supposed to give flowers at a reunion?” Imogen refused to give Kade flowers when fetching him from the airport. “Oh, Mom, I gotta go. Bye!”Imogen quickly hung up, not allowing her mother the chance to speak further. Then, after a moment of thought, she texted Kade to ask when he was expected to arrive at Huntington Airport.It took a while before Kade replied that he would arrive around eleven in the morning on Saturday.Imogen replied wi
“I know you only view Kade as a brother, but who knows, if you nurture the relationship, those feelings might turn romantic? Jen, before you agree to be with Dylan, give yourself another option.“Make Dylan nervous. He’ll get jealous. He was jealous when he overheard our conversation that day.“You need to make him realize that even without him, you can still marry well. The Butchers like you a lot, and our families have a close relationship. You and Kade have known each other since you were young, so you guys could be considered childhood sweethearts.”Imogen said weakly, “Mom, I’m worried that if I get too close to Kade, not only will Dylan misunderstand, but even Maria might misunderstand. Kade and she are a thing, after all.“I really don’t understand what’s going on with Kade. He and Maria clearly have feelings for each other, they just haven’t made it official yet. Don’t their families see this?”She did not have any romantic feelings for Kade, but both families were trying
Although Leticia was angry over how Dylan had treated her daughter previously, at least he was not two-timing. He made things clear to Imogen right after realizing his feelings and stopped her from loving him. He still had a decent character.Besides, Imogen had also kept secrets from Dylan and she tricked him. Dylan still did not have sufficient evidence to prove that Imogen was the Chameleon Fox he loved. Dylan would start pursuing Imogen again after some time. Leticia heard that it was Serenity who had given Dylan a hint that Sugar was Fox. After that, Dylan sought confirmation from Old Mrs. York but only received a vague answer. However, he decided to continue pursuing Imogen because he believed his nana would not bring him harm.After going in circles, Dylan still ended up returning to Imogen.Actually, Leticia already viewed him as her son-in-law.Since Imogen’s happiness was on the line, she was concerned about her future son-in-law’s condition.“Dylan’s hospitalized.”
“Please look after Dylan, Imogen. Message me when he gets better. I just need to know that he’s alive.”Grandma May knew Dylan would be okay with Imogen by his side.Imogen quickly said, “Don’t hang up yet, Grandma May. Where are you now? Wiltspoon?“If it’s convenient, please get his parents to come and take care of Dylan. I’m busy with work. I can’t stay in the hospital to look after him.”Grandma May replied, “His dad is home, but he doesn’t know how to take care of others. I think Dylan will meet his death quicker under his dad’s care.“My daughters-in-law and I are at the Johnson family’s place in Annenburg. We won’t be back that soon because we just came not long ago. We’ll head back closer to Seren’s due date. That’s why we don’t have time to look after Dylan.“If you’re busy, you can return to work once Dylan’s fever breaks, Imogen. You don’t have to care about him. He can take care of himself. It’s just like a bad cold. He’ll be fine once his fever subsides.”Grandma Ma
Imogen should have gone to stop Dylan earlier than she had. Since Layla was helping Imogen to get revenge, Imogen thought she would let Dylan put on a show to display his sincerity. She could only stop Dylan once Layla was satisfied.After handling the hospitalization procedures, Dylan lay on the bed and received an IV drip. Meanwhile, Imogen brought him water and told him to take his medicine.“Take this medicine for your fever. Your face is red from the heat.”Dylan’s temperature was close to 103 degrees Fahrenheit when they measured it at the hospital. He would cough constantly, and his face was flushed red from the fever. He looked tired and weak as well. Dylan sat up and accepted the glass of water. Imogen handed him the right dosage of medicine according to the doctor’s prescription.“Make sure you’re hydrated.”Imogen refilled his glass and told him to drink more water.“I don’t want to drink water.”Dylan lay back down.Perhaps because he was on an IV drip, his