Emma had spent all day worrying before she received a call from Barbara. She was already extremely irritated, so she did not feel like answering Barbara’s call. However, Barbara was persistent and kept calling. Emma had to find a quiet place before reluctantly answering the call. As soon as the call connected, Barbara's angry voice echoed through the speaker, causing Emma to flinch in pain."Are you crazy? Why didn’t you answer? What's the matter with you? Do you want to cut ties with me so you pretend you don't know me?" Barbara's accusations poured out of her without a second thought.Emma, not wanting to endure the verbal assault, interrupted her mother bluntly, "Mom, if you have something to say, say it quickly. I'm busy with deliveries.""You're heartless," Barbara said, displeased at being interrupted. "I wanted to ask you if Asher’s kindergarten situation is settled?"Emma instinctively replied, "Not yet.""Hmph, I knew you hadn't settled it. I told you to let your uncl
Emma knew Asher well. Under normal circumstances, he would never leave the suite and would always stay within the range of the camera. That was the unspoken understanding between them.So, there was only one possibility: Landon had entered their suite on his own. She was confident that Asher would not cause trouble for Landon. She could not bring herself to tell her son not to bother Landon. Ash had not done anything wrong, and she certainly could not scold her son without cause. As for asking Ash to keep an eye out for Landon, well, the entire house belonged to Landon. There was no need for Ash to do such a thing.Emma regretted her lack of worldly experience. She felt awkward and had no idea what to say."I've got some free time. Let Ash keep me company," Landon's words alleviated Emma's embarrassment.Emma immediately felt grateful. "Sure…that sounds good.""Ash, Mommy has something to attend to. You and Mr. Landon, look out for each other, okay?" Emma seized the opening
In the afternoon, after completing her errands, Emma went straight home. When she reached, she changed her clothes and washed her hands before looking in on Asher. After exchanging a few words with him, she hurried to the kitchen to cook.Landon heard the commotion and emerged from his suite. He walked to the kitchen door and watched Emma bustling inside. The meat soup in the pot was bubbling enticingly, filling the air with a mouthwatering aroma."Beef soup?" Landon asked curiously.Emma smiled as she covered the pot. "No, it's beef noodles.""I'll take Ash out for a while later. An old friend from out of town is back and invited me for dinner," Emma said, grabbing some noodles from the side and tossing them into the pot."You won't be eating at home tonight?""No," Emma replied. She added some vegetables into the pot. "You can wash your hands and have a seat. The noodles are ready."With a smile on his lips, Landon did as she said.She was not eating at home that evening, yet
In response to Brett's words, Emma just smiled, "You're just teasing me!" Emma never thought of herself as beautiful. She was just an ordinary person. Brett furrowed his brows as she studied Emma's reaction. "It's all because of your mom! She has made you feel so inferior. Emma, you have to be more confident. You're beautiful!""Okay, okay... I'm beautiful, I'm beautiful," Emma conceded, not wanting to argue with Brett. She decided to change the topic, "Don't argue with me over this but this meal’s on me.""Oh my! You invite me out, and you're paying? Don't you know my family runs a restaurant?" Brett said. Emma grinned. "Unfortunately, this restaurant isn't yours. I'm treating you to dinner and that’s final. Or I'll be upset and when you invite me out next, I won’t say yes!”"Alright, alright... it’s your treat then! I'm happy if you're happy. I should take advantage of this," Brett said as she took the menu and flipped through it. "I want to see what's the most expensive mea
"It’s the right thing to do, isn’t it?" Emma said with a cheerful smile, not dwelling on the fact that she had helped Brett in the past. There was no need to bring it up.Moreover, when Emma was struggling with the challenges of childbirth and postpartum stress, Brett was a tremendous help. Emma would never forget Brett’s kindness.Knowing Emma's nature, Brett decided not to pursue the matter any further and instead focused on their current topic. "So, tell me about the person you married. What's his story? What does he do for a living? How old is he? And how are you two managing your life? Do you split your expenses equally or do you have other arrangements?""Don't worry. I'm not foolish enough to sell myself just for the sake of settling down." Emma said with a smile.Emma knew that Brett was genuinely concerned for her, and feared that she had ended up at a disadvantage in the arrangement.Emma chuckled and confessed, "He's four years older than me, and he’s turning thirty thi
Emma carefully explained the situation to Brett. "I applied to two public kindergartens. One rejected the application, and the other one we did not pass the interview."Emma explained what her uncle did and her speculation of his involvement. "I can’t be sure but it’s too coincidental.""I’m sure you’re spot on!" Brett was immediately upset. "Your uncle is petty, and I won’t put it past him to do such things."So now what are you going to do?" Brett asked anxiously. "Have you chosen a kindergarten for Ash?""I've chosen one..." Emma said as she explained her decision to Brett. After chatting for a while, Emma felt that they should head home as it was almost bedtime for Ash.At 8:30 PM, Emma and Brett left the restaurant and headed home separately. After Emma arrived home, while Asher was removing his shoes at the entrance, she made a phone call. "Brett, I'm home now. Don't worry, I know... Sure, don't worry."After ending the call, Emma looked up in surprise: "Mr. Landon?"L
Landon stood there with his brows tightly furrowed. When Emma finished putting Asher to sleep and emerged from the room, she was startled at him still standing outside the door.She looked at Landon and hesitated before asking. "Is there something wrong, Mr. Landon? Why are you still standing here?""In the future, you should maintain some distance with people of the opposite sex, and be cautious in your speech," Landon said solemnly.What was Emma saying on the phone just now? When speaking to her friend, Emma sounded cute. How could she speak with such a sweet and enticing voice? "I hope we won't encounter any other problems during our agreement period," Landon said. Landon's voice had turned cold."I don’t think we will, Mr. Landon," Emma said once she realized it was about their agreement. If she was going to pretend to be Landon's wife, she needed to be mindful of her words and actions. But then again, she did not have any friends of the opposite sex... Then it occurred
"Yes, he is," Emma nodded with a smile. Then she arched her eyebrows as she reminded him, "But..?”“But, besides Mommy, I should not trust anyone else! I should listen to you, and if there's anything I need, I should go to you!" Asher crisply asserted.He had not forgotten what Emma had taught him!"Exactly. Fantastic! I’m so glad that you remember that, Ash. This is our little secret so you can't tell anyone, okay?" Emma said with a smile as she affectionately tousled Asher's head before heading to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.Emma felt that one had to be cautious with people. Many children become victims of people they are familiar with and those who appear friendly are generally anything but. People's hearts are inscrutable so she did not want to take any risks with Asher.A little more caution never hurt anyone.During the day, she took the opportunity between deliveries to visit the reputable kindergarten she had shortlisted to register Asher for an interview. Then sh
“Of course, marriage is about mutual benefit. You treat me well, and I treat you well in return. You help me shoulder life's pressures, and I offer you support. That’s what fosters a stable marriage,” Emma stated matter-of-factly.“It won’t work if one side keeps giving while the other takes without giving anything in return.“And sometimes, it may seem like one side isn’t contributing, but there are always invisible sacrifices being made.“Otherwise, how could any marriage last?” Landon wrapped his arms around Emma and sighed softly. “You know, what I love most about you is your clear understanding of things.“You give me a sense of security,” Landon said candidly. He knew Emma was not the type to overthink things as she was a very reasonable person.“You see, Asher has grown so optimistic and cheerful because of you. Being with you makes me feel incredibly at ease. That’s something money can’t buy.”Emma thought seriously for a moment. “If you need comfort, I feel like ther
Emma froze, her curiosity piqued. “What did you learn?”She was not surprised that Asher had absorbed her lessons as that was her goal in teaching him. But what had Landon learned? “I learned a lot,” Landon replied with a smile. “For example, your attention to detail and patience, your tolerance for others, and your ability to handle situations calmly—”Emma laughed, breaking his train of thought. “Stop, stop, stop! If you keep going, I might start believing I'm some kind of superhero! I’d be even better than you!” “Then I'd really be lacking in self-awareness if I think that,” Landon said as he wrapped his arms around her. “You genuinely possess many admirable qualities—exactly what I need.”“Alright, alright... what you need,” Emma replied casually.Landon gently tapped her shoulder. “Are you brushing me off?”Emma pouted. “You hit me…”Landon hurriedly rubbed her shoulder. “Did it hurt?”He had not even used enough force to swat a fly but hearing Emma say it made him do
People loved to take advantage of a good deal, and after consulting the owner, the manager anticipated such behavior from the customers when he proposed the solution. Besides, both the owner and the manager possessed a broader vision. They understood that they could not let a small financial loss tarnish their restaurant's reputation.The way they handled the incident turned into a great advertising opportunity. Those diners who experienced the situation firsthand became loyal customers. They now had a favorable impression of the restaurant and would be the first to recommend it for future gatherings or family outings. No amount of traditional advertising could rival the power of genuine recommendations from friends and family.Both the restaurant owner and manager knew how to effectively navigate a business crisis. What could have been a damaging situation had transformed into positive publicity due to their prompt action.“Let Daddy explain the specifics of the business
The restaurant manager politely apologized and thanked them before clearing all the food from the table. Emma smiled. "I really like this restaurant."Landon nodded, recognizing that this was a business that understood customer service. Just then, Emma spotted Asher’s confused expression. "Those dishes we had earlier might have been touched by that lady."If someone used a spoon that others had already used to scoop food for me, would you be pleased by that?" Asher shook his head vigorously. "Not at all!""Exactly! So, the food that might have come into contact with that lady's saliva was removed and destroyed by the restaurant staff," Emma continued. Asher looked concerned at Emma’s words. "That's such a waste!" "It is, but there's no other option," Emma sighed lightly. "If someone were to get sick from eating that food, it would be much worse. That was a terrible mistake that the lady made. "So the restaurant staff wants to make sure that the mistake was dealt with the
Asher nodded energetically. “Yes!”“Exactly! So, making mistakes isn’t scary, and not knowing things isn’t scary either. The key is to admit it boldly,” Emma explained.“When we make a mistake, we correct it. If we don’t know something, and it doesn’t affect others, we don’t have to learn it if we don’t want to.“But if it impacts others, we need to learn from it,” she continued.“Just like that lady earlier, she needed to learn not to use shared tongs to serve food. But for something like not wanting to do someone’s makeup, that’s okay, she doesn’t have to learn that.“Shared tongs are necessary for everyone, and they can’t be replaced. If you don’t want to do someone’s makeup, they can find someone else to help. That service can be substituted.”Asher listened intently and nodded his head. “I understand now, Mommy!”Landon watched the entire exchange and silently marveled at Emma’s approach. She had a knack for using examples from Asher’s own experiences to explain things, m
Asher beamed up at Emma, a sense of pride shining on his face.Emma finally gathered her emotions and turned to Asher. “Mommy makes mistakes too, Ash.”Asher’s smile faltered as confusion washed over him. “Huh?”Emma chuckled softly and ruffled his hair. “It’s not just Mommy who makes mistakes, Daddy does too.”“Really?” Asher exclaimed as he turned to look at Landon. His face was filled with disbelief.Landon smiled, though he was unsure where Emma was going with the conversation. Nevertheless, he cooperated without hesitation. “That’s right. Daddy makes mistakes too.”Asher’s mouth hung open in surprise, clearly shocked to learn that his impressive parents could also err.“Not just your parents,” Emma continued with a smile, “even people who are more capable than us make mistakes.”“Why?” Asher asked, furrowing his brows in confusion. “If everyone makes mistakes, then why do we even learn?”“Because we work hard to make fewer mistakes and try our best not to cause trouble
“What disruption? You’re just bullying your customers because your business is big!” The middle-aged woman exploded in anger. “Don’t think I’m easy to push around. I’m calling the police!”The restaurant manager nodded calmly. “Please do. Since your actions have caused damage to our establishment, we will also hold you accountable for those damages.”“Damages? What damages?” the woman shouted, stomping her feet in frustration.Unfazed, the manager responded evenly, “Because of your actions, we now need to remove and replace all the food at the serving stations. You’ll be responsible for covering those losses.“And if any customers request refunds because of this, we’ll refund them in full. If they ask for compensation, we’ll provide that too. All of these expenses will be your responsibility.”The woman nearly exploded at the manager’s words. “You’re deluded!“Come on, son, we’re leaving!” She yanked her son’s arm, pulling him toward the exit.But the restaurant staff was not ab
Since Asher had decided to eat one piece of cake himself, he chose fewer cakes, worried that he would not be able to finish them.‘Look at that! He’s already learning how to make his own choices,’ Emma thought proudly.Emma followed Asher’s lead, picking up the cakes he wanted. Just as they were about to leave, Asher suddenly grabbed her sleeve.Puzzled, Emma looked down and asked, “What is it, sweetie?”“They’re using tongs to feed each other,” Asher said, frowning in displeasure.Emma glanced over and saw a middle-aged woman holding a pair of tongs, about to feed a cake to her son. The boy, around eight or nine, reached out to take the cake with his hand, but the woman pulled the tongs back and scolded him, “Don’t use your hands! Just open your mouth.”Emma felt her face flush in disbelief. ‘What are they thinking?’ she protested quietly.The woman did not want her son to use his hands, claiming it was dirty, yet she was about to feed him with the tongs that everyone used to
Landon smiled. “I like eating too. Our whole family does. But what I enjoy most is eating with all of you.”Asher quickly agreed, “I’m always happy when I eat with Mommy and Daddy.”The family of three arrived at the buffet. Thankfully, Emma had already reserved a spot using her phone while they were still on the road.They headed straight to a small private room, ordered their food through the app, and waited for the server to bring it.“Mommy…” Asher called as he tugged at Emma’s shirt. “I want some cake.”Emma laughed and put on her sunglasses. “Let’s go get some cake.”Asher beamed with excitement. “Okay!” With one hand he held Emma’s hand tightly, while he swung the other one back and forth enthusiastically. He hurried along, and his wide, gleaming eyes searched eagerly for the cake display ahead.“Mommy, over there!” He spotted the table filled with cakes in an instant.Even though he was thrilled to see the cakes, Asher did not let go of Emma’s hand or rush ahead.