It was not cold in the whole of Georgia during winter and not just Wiltspoon. Though it was a little colder in the neighboring provinces.“It’s alright. It’s not that cold if I don’t go outside.”There was heating in the hotel, so he did not feel cold.In the hotel room, he only needed to wear a long-sleeve shirt and did not even need a jacket.Meanwhile, at Dunboy Manor, there would be heating everywhere apart from the yard, and would not be cold either.He was applying to be a chef, so he would naturally be working in the kitchen, which was indoors. Even if it were freezing outside, it would be warm inside.Once he got busy, he might even feel hot enough to sweat.“Is it truly not cold in Wiltspoon in the winter?” Dominic asked. “I’ve never been to Georgia. I just know that it’s a very wealthy province and Wiltspoon is a big city.”“It might not be cold for you guys, but to us, it feels cold if the temperature drops even a little. And there are wealthy and poor people everywh
“Remember to send me the menu you’re planning for tomorrow and the list of things you’ll need.” Dominic reminded Austin before leaving.“Okay.” Austin saw him off from the door and headed back in once he was out of sight.The accommodation provided was a one-bedroom apartment with a bedroom, living room, kitchen, bathroom, and balcony. It was around 750 square feet and did not seem big to Austin, who was used to living in a big house. For ordinary people though, these were top-tier accommodations.It was fully equipped with all-new daily necessities too.Austin dug out his phone to take a video of the apartment and sent it to his family group chat before captioning: [This is the apartment the O’Connors provide to their chefs. It’s a pretty nice place to live in.]It could even compare to the starred hotels outside.Tania immediately called Austin.Austin had just walked into his room and was placing his bag on the bed when his phone rang. He sat down before answering his mother’
Serenity could stand up for herself too and was not ashamed of her ordinary family background.As the current head of York missus, Tania felt that Serenity would be qualified for the position in the future too. Of course, she did not want her successor under her wing right now to be bullied by her younger daughter-in-law.Tania could not count the number of times she had internally grumbled about Grandma May by now.Apart from Serenity, the other granddaughters-in-law were each more impressive than the other.This was a lot of pressure on Serenity.Who else besides her was going to dote on her own daughter-in-law? Of course she felt bad for Serenity.“Not yet. Tomorrow’s the second interview. Dominic was worried I’d get sabotaged if I stayed outside, so he picked me up ahead of time and let me stay at the manor for the night. If I pass the interview, this is exactly where I’ll be living.“Mom, it might be a little small, but these are amazing accommodations for any ordinary pers
After a moment of silence, Austin answered, “I can’t do anything about it. I’d just be an employee. I might not be able to spend Christmas at home this year.”Tania scowled fiercely.Her precious baby boy was someone’s employee instead of staying home as a pampered young master.“You’re telling Nana yourself about not coming home for Christmas,” Tania grumbled. “I don’t know what you’re thinking. Why did you go so far when Christmas is around the corner? You don’t even know when you’ll be back.”In Austin’s words, he was going to be an employee and he could not do anything about it.He could not come and go as he wished.“By the way, do the O’Connors only have one chef? If there are more than one, you could at least rotate your leaves for Christmastime. Employees do get personal time off, mind you. All our employees have to do is tell Sam in advance they’re taking leave and he’ll arrange for cover.“Work doesn’t interfere with them spending the holidays with their family at all.
“Both of them, of course. It’s their kid. And you keep saying ‘grandson’. If your mom hears you, she’s going to give you an earful. You know she wants a great-granddaughter.”Liam was speechless for a moment before he retorted, “Does she think it’ll end up that way just because she wants it? I’m willing to bet that the baby’s definitely a boy. Our first grandson! I don’t care if it’s a boy or a girl, though. My first grandchild will be the apple of my eye.“We can just enjoy spending time with our grandchildren at home in the future.“Besides, the psychic said that Zack and Serenity will have a boy and a girl. Que sera sera. We’ll get a granddaughter someday. They can have a son now and work on having another kid in a few years and complete the set then.”Tania did not mind much whether her first grandchild was a boy or a girl.Serenity had only gotten pregnant one year after getting married. The elders had been looking forward to it so much that the baby’s gender did not matter.
Tania had never paid attention to how big Serenity’s company had gotten. All she knew was that the company started turning a profit long ago and partnering with many major hotels, schools, and companies.She knew that Serenity valued the quality of the vegetables the most and used farmyard fertilizer where she could. She bought the fertilizer wherever she found it and used as little pesticides as possible. If she could avoid using them, she would. Every manager she employed to run her farms had more than a decade of relevant experience.Serenity said that she wanted to provide vegetables to school cafeterias because students were the future of the country. For that reason, she would not harm them just for the sake of profits and wanted to ensure they could eat with peace of mind.Whenever she visited one of her farms, she would take some vegetables home to consume.From farm to table, these vegetables are served at her home and the cafeterias at the company and farms. Nobody would
“Of those who have joined the workforce, they’re either helping with the family business or setting up their own. Which one of them isn’t successful? They’re all wealthy enough that they might actually scoff at our assets.”Tania had no comment on that, but finally said, “I’ll leave it all to my grandchildren then.”Just like Grandma May.After her sons got married, she tried giving her sons and daughters-in-law a portion of her assets, but apart from the jewelry she gave her daughters-in-law, they refused anything else.They told her to spend however and as much as she fancied to her heart’s content.How could an old lady spend so much money on her own though?She had many filial grandchildren too. Even then, she could not spend all her money, so she decided to invest it.As the person who raised the outstanding man that Zachary was, she had never made a loss in her investments before. As a result, her personal assets just kept growing.Grandma May then said she was going to l
Elisa teased the secretary, “Do you want to get married, Helen? I can introduce some guys to you. I guarantee you’ll be happy for the rest of your life.”Helen was a young, fresh graduate and was recently hired as Serenity’s secretary.Helen refused politely. “Thank you, Ms. Stone. However, I’ve been dating my boyfriend since I was in uni. We’re in a steady relationship, and I have no thoughts of breaking up.”“Where does your boyfriend work?” Elisa asked. “He recently got a job at a small company. I don’t know if he’ll stay for long. He said his remuneration package isn’t as good as mine.”Upon mentioning her boyfriend’s job, Helen's smiling expression turned into worry. She had a good relationship with him. However, he had not gotten any good job offers but still liked comparing himself with her. He believed that as a man, his salary could not be less than that of his partner. He found it embarrassing. Nevertheless, just like Helen, he was a fresh graduate without much
She did not expect him to be discharged that soon.“Let him in.”Mr. and Mrs. Doyle were not awake yet. They would not stop Dylan from entering. With Imogen’s orders, Wendy quickly called the security booth and told the security to let Dylan in. Imogen stood at her door a few minutes later and watched his car stop before her. “Why are you discharged?” Imogen asked as soon as Dylan got out of the car. He was still coughing.Imogen frowned. His body belonged to himself. Who would love him if he did not know how to care for himself?“I feel much better after spending two days in the hospital on IV drips. The doctor said I could be discharged and gave me three days’ supply of medication. If I’m not fully recovered after finishing the medicines, I can return to get more.“The doctor said I should be fine after this round of medication. He also said I’m generally healthy and that my condition only got that severe because I ate a lot of chili peppers in one sitting.“I have to e
Imogen smiled. “Stop teasing him, Layla. He doesn’t eat spicy food at all. Eating that much chili peppers can be deadly for him.“I’ll be heading back to work today. I can’t take care of him at the hospital every day. I don’t want to let him think that I’ve accepted him just because he ate chili peppers once.”Layla said, “That’s right. You can’t be tricked by his pity play.”“Dylan didn’t torture himself to gain my pity, Layla. He was hospitalized because he ate the chili peppers. His fever, cough, and sore throat are all real. His voice is still hoarse when he speaks.”Imogen could not help but defend Dylan.Layla replied, “Look at you. I only criticize him a little, yet you’re already defending him.“Jen, the person who falls first will always be at a disadvantage.“Listen to me. Don’t dedicate anything to this relationship before Dylan falls in love with you as who you are. Don’t be manipulated by him.“You’re usually sharp and capable, yet you seem to lose all rationality
“Why do you want to see me? Didn’t you see enough of me yesterday? Besides, I’m not your beloved Miss Fox. You said it yourself—no matter how you tried and put in the effort, you couldn’t love me.“I’m just a good friend to your sisters-in-law, and Grandma May specifically called me to ask me to look after you for a day. That’s the only reason I did it.“Dylan, I’m not going back to you.”It was he who said that he did not love her. She had fallen for him, but when he said he did not love her, she hid her feelings.Now, he had realized that she was Chameleon Fox and the person he truly loved had always been her. Imogen had been more or less jealous of her own self all this time.If he had not fallen for Imogen but proceeded to get together with her, then it would feel like he was treating her as a substitute. Fox was Imogen, and Imogen was Fox—but she had still stubbornly distinguished the two.“I know, Imogen,” Dylan said softly.He did not assume he had won her over just bec
The night passed peacefully.The next morning, Dylan woke up. He had been woken by the heat.The room was heated, and he had bundled himself up tightly before going to sleep. By midnight, he had started sweating, but he continued to sleep, so by morning, he was feeling too hot and woke up.“Imogen…” He instinctively called out her name.His voice was still hoarse, but it was much better than yesterday. When he received no answer, he remembered that Imogen had gone home last night. He was alone in the hospital.Late last night, his mother had called him, but only to laugh at him.Now, all alone, in a strange place, and sick, Dylan felt just a tiny bit homesick. It was much more comfortable at Wildridge Manor, after all. When all the York boys were home, it was lively and warm. There was his nana to fuss over him, and even though his parents liked to make jabs at him, they still cared deeply for him.It felt boring at home, but once he left, he realized how warm home really was.
Sasha chimed in, “Exactly. It’s fine to laugh in front of us, but you laughed so loudly on the call too. Dylan is hurt both physically and emotionally, and no one is comforting him.”Rosella responded, “But Imogen is there to take care of him. She’ll comfort him.”Sasha sighed. “It’s so late now. Imogen needs to go back and rest, doesn’t she? Dylan hasn’t even won her over yet, so how could Imogen stay the entire night in the hospital with him?”Grandma May laughed, “You ladies know it’s late too, so why aren’t you three going back to your rooms to rest? Fortunately, the rooms are big enough that we can all chat here without disturbing anyone.“Remember, we’re guests. We mustn’t disturb the rest of the Johnsons just because we’ve come.”The three sisters-in-law glanced at the clock. It was almost midnight.As the eldest sister-in-law, Tania led the way. She stood up and said to Grandma May, “Mom, we’ll head back to rest now. Tomorrow, let’s go out and walk around.”The scenery a
“Mom, I’m your real son!”“If you weren’t, I wouldn’t even bother with you and don’t even want to make this call.”Rosella added, “Alright, now that I know you’re fine, I can relax. Be good to Imogen, she’s a really good girl. I like her a lot. I hope you can get together this year.“Once you’re finally not single anymore, it should be about time for your younger brother to start dating too. Once all three of you are out of the bachelor’s club, all I have to do is wait for my first grandchild to be born.“I’ve saved up a lot of money for both your weddings, though honestly, I don’t think you’ll need it. You all are capable enough to make your own money to get married, so the money I saved for you can go toward my granddaughter instead.“I don’t even know if I’ll be fortunate enough to have a granddaughter.” Rosella sighed. “After seeing little Clo-clo, I finally understand why your nana is so fixated on her and wants to kidnap her. “That kid is so cute. She’s pretty, adorable,
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