Amy was about to cry.Sasha patted her chest and said, "Don't worry, I'll handle this. My grandfather didn't approve of your relationship, but things are different now. You're pregnant with Ted's kid. "Us Holts won't let our children live in the streets. My grandfather is conservative. Even though he looks stern on the outside, he is extremely kind and will take care of things for you."Amy wiped away her tears."Does Ted know about this big news?" Sasha asked. Amy shook her head and replied, "You're the first person to know."Sasah felt honored. "I am the baby's aunt, after all. All right, you have to tell Ted about this big news. Believe me. He'll be so excited."Amy was excited. She imagined Thaddeus' joy at finding out about her pregnancy and felt her unhappiness fade away.Jessamine dared not tell Thaddeus about her pregnancy. Since Sasha didn't know about it either, the Holt family would be kept in the dark about Jessamine's pregnancy. It was clear that Jessamine hadn
Amy looked tired after vomiting so much. However, she couldn't help but feel happy. She finally had a trump card.…Thaddeus brought Jessamine to greet the guests. He was surprised to see a mysterious big shot at his company's celebration dinner.Xander Patton was a well-known real estate tycoon in Hajera. In honesty, he was more famous for his ruthless business methods. When he had taken control of Emerald Grove Real Estate, the company was still a medium-sized company. In just five years, the company had taken the real estate industry in Hajera under his management. No company in Hajera could even match his company in construction and land grabbing. Furthermore, Emerald Grove Real Estate's properties could be seen everywhere in the country, which showed that it had formed a monopoly.Some wealthy people had discussed that Xander and Thaddeus were both big shots that couldn't be provoked.No one knew why a big shot like Xander was in Zenville and on Holt Jewelry's cruise. He
After Xander finished speaking, he looked at Jessamine again.It made Thaddeus very uncomfortable. He shielded her behind him, blocking her from Xander's line of sight. "Mr. Patton, you should take care of your own issues first," he reminded. "Women can go to extreme lengths when they're pushed. Make sure not to push your wife over the edge."Jessamine felt awkward as she stood behind Thaddeus silently. She didn't understand why they were being so hostile, treating each other like scumbags. What had happened for things to go wrong?At this time, Jordan came over with the room card. "Mr. Patton, here's the card for the suite on the second floor. You can call the front desk if you need anything. We promise to give you the best service as soon as possible."Thaddeus took the card before Xander could. He asked sternly, "Mr. Xander is my honored guest. Why didn't you give him the room on the top floor?"Jordan was confused. There were only two suites on the top floor. Thaddeus had
Amy glanced at Jessamine and asked, "Jessie, I have something private to discuss with Ted. Can you give us some space?"Jessamine remained silent and looked up at Thaddeus. Amy wanted to talk to him in private. However, since Thaddeus had already made their marriage public, Jessamine wanted to see how he would respond to Amy's request.In just a few moments, everyone's eyes were on Thaddeus.Then, Thaddeus looked at Jessamine. Although Thaddeus looked calm on the surface, Jessamine could notice the hint of turmoil in his expression. She already knew what he would do before he could even say anything. No matter what, he would always take Amy's side. It was just as natural as breathing to him."Jessie, can you—"Jessamine smiled bitterly and interrupted him. "Go ahead. I'll get something to eat."She turned and left, feeling heartbroken. After taking a few steps, Sasha caught up to her. "Jessamine!" she yelled from behind."What is it?" Jessamine asked without turning to look.
"Did something happen, Mrs. Holt?" Jerome asked.Jessamine frowned. "Why don't you ask Sasha, Mr. Langston? I'm sick of this."Sasha switched gears the moment she saw Jerome. She looked cute and vulnerable, looking miserable as if someone had bullied her. "Jerome, Jessie scolded me. You have no idea how harsh she was. I can't beat her at all." Sasha was about to cry.Jessamine felt disgusted by Sasha using the same tricks as Amy. She immediately left them behind.When Jerome saw Sasha and Jessamine arguing, he heard parts of their conversation, along with Sasha's sharp and harsh words. He felt disgusted at her causing a scene despite being the one at fault.Jerome felt sad as he watched Jessamine leave dejectedly. Once again, he confirmed that there weren't any good people in the Holt family. He was disappointed.He didn't have the mental capacity to deal with Sasha's blubbering. He didn't even like her.After Jessamine left, Jerome also turned to follow her. However, Sasha fo
Jessamine was dejected. Since everyone was just talking and eating for the rest of the party, she decided to go back to her room.When she reached the second floor, she heard two voices arguing at the top of the stairs. One of the voices belonged to Shane, and she was sure the other belonged to Benji.Jessamine climbed up the last two steps and turned the bend. At the end of the corridor, Shane and Benji were arguing about something. Shane frowned in displeasure.When both of them saw Jessamine, Benji shouted, "Fine! We'll let Jessie decide! She's not as unreasonable as you!"Jessamine heard them call her name and slowly approached them. She asked, "Is something the matter?"Benji began complaining when he saw someone who could stand up for him. "His room's air conditioner is broken, so I kindly invited him to use the one in my room. However, he said he was hot and wanted to take away my blanket. He can't just do that, can he?"Shane hugged the blanket to himself. He insisted, "I
Jessamine looked at Thaddeus, who was smoking. She felt something was off about him. It was as if he was conflicted. His current behavior was different from the cold and arrogant man he had already been. "What's wrong?" she asked.Thaddeus stubbed the cigarette in the ashtray. "Let's get a divorce, Jessamine."The news shocked Jessamine. She stood rooted on the spot. This was his second time bringing up a divorce. The first time was because Amy had returned to Crestia. Later, he changed his mind and repeatedly reassured Jessamine that Amy wasn't in the picture at all. He said he didn't love Amy. So, what was his reason for asking for a divorce this time?Jessamine was in turmoil, but she also wanted to know what drove him to make such a heartless decision.It had only been less than a day since he had made their marriage public. He even praised her in front of everyone. Every woman in Zenville envied her, for she was the beautiful and talented wife of Thaddeus Holt. She was
"I can make any request, right?" Jessamine asked.Thaddeus felt indebted to her, so he wanted to make it up to her. "Yeah, as long as it's within my capabilities.""I want five percent of Holt Jewelry's original shares, "Jessamine said without hesitation.As soon as she finished her words, Thaddeus' expression shifted. Holt Jewelry had an annual income of billions of dollars. Even five percent of those shares were worth a lot. Thaddeus only had twenty percent, while Thomas had a bit more than that. Even Noah, Corey, and Heather had a small portion of shares. The rest of them were divided among the shareholders.Jessamine was really bold in asking Thaddeus for a quarter of his shares.Thaddeus asked in surprise, "Are you sure?"Jessamine sneered, "Absolutely."Since he gave her a chance to make any request, Jessamine wouldn't hold back. He owed her two children that much. Asking for five percent of shares was small enough of a request.Although Jessamine had made her request,
Thaddeus was dumbfounded. Why hadn't he considered using blood types to eliminate the possibility first?"My dad has type O blood."Jessamine's stroked his Adam's apple softly and deliberately. "My mom has type B blood, and I have type AB blood. Do you think it's possible that we could be long-lost siblings?"Thaddeus thought for some time and couldn't help but burst out in hearty laughter. It was impossible for someone with type B blood and someone with type O blood to have a child with AB type blood. What was he worrying about?At that moment, he couldn't believe how foolish he'd been. Biology was his best subject in school, yet he didn't think about this until Jessamine reminded him. His biology teacher would be furious if they knew."Why didn't you say so earlier, Jessie?" He regretted not talking to her about it sooner and ended up suffering in prolonged silence by himself.After Jessamine got bored touching his Adam's apple, she started playing with his rough chin. "I just
Jessamine lay still for a long time, aware that Thaddeus was also awake, battling insomnia just like her.This visit to Zenville to solve one mystery ended up bringing her an even bigger one.The gathering took place years ago in the restaurant owned by Benji's family. She had even asked Benji about it. The surveillance footage from over 20 years ago wouldn't be around now, and even the staff had changed several times. The restaurant's manager from back then had left the job many years ago.It wasn't easy to uncover the truth from back then unless they found the people who were directly involved. The closer they got to the truth, the more pressure she felt.By investigating this matter now, she was essentially peeling back the layers that had been hiding a much deeper issue. As she confronted the dark side of human nature, the ultimate victim ended up being her beloved mother.If Jessamine didn't look into this matter, she felt like she would be letting Elizabeth down. She wanted
Thaddeus frowned immensely at his request. "Don't be ridiculous!""I'm serious. You could help me rent one too. You know, the kind that charges by the day. I'll fool my dad first. We'll deal with everything else once he gets better," Benji said.Thaddeus cursed inwardly, "Dude, don't drag me into this, especially with my wife watching. It sounds like you're implying I have ways to get or rent women."Thaddeus glanced back at Jessamine and said, "I don't know about this. You should ask someone else. If you're at your wits end, go ask one of the assistants in your company to help you out."Benji seemed to come to a realization. He said, "It's getting late. You all should go back and rest. There are doctors here. I'll stay and keep watch."Jessamine asked, "Can you handle this on your own, Mr. Moore?""Sure, thank you… all of you," Benji replied.After saying a few more words of comfort, Jessamine and Thaddeus went downstairs to the car. Thaddeus' phone started ringing again."Mr.
Maya also knelt by the bed and started crying."Dad, don't speak for now. Please be okay."Benji zoned out. Seeing Carmen and Maya crying, his mind was in a mess. He realized that he couldn't continue to live aimlessly—his family needed him now."A girlfriend, a girlfriend..." he mumbled, not even sure of what he was saying.The doctor hurried to the room upon hearing the call, checked on Jonathan again, and then sent the family away."The patient needs rest and should avoid additional emotional stress. You all can wait outside for now. There's no need for everyone to be here, one would be enough. The room can be stuffy if there's too many people here, too."They then left the room. Benji was holding the X-ray images of Jonathan's brain, but he couldn't make any sense of it. He felt completely lost.Shane quietly slipped away from the crowd after watching from afar. He went to an empty hallway and called his father. "Dad, are you free to analyze some X-ray images? It's for a fri
Benji had always lived a smooth and pleasant life. It hit him hard after hearing what the doctor said, leaving him in a state of shock and bewilderment."Mom, hasn't Dad always been in good health? How did he suddenly..."Carmen's eyes were red and swollen from crying."He mentioned feeling dizzy a few times recently and said he'd go for a check-up but actually never did. Plus, he's been swamped with work lately and hasn't got any time. Today, he suddenly fainted at the office. His assistant called an ambulance right away and brought him to the hospital. By the time I got the call, he was already being examined inside."Benji's face turned pale. With Jonathan down, the burden of supporting his family fell on him. He had been free from responsibility for the past 20 years, and now, suddenly having to shoulder this heavy load, he felt completely lost.His father had been asking him to get familiar with the company's operations a long time ago. However, he was too lazy to bother abou
Benji never had any grand ambitions. From the day he was born, people always told him that he didn't need to worry about anything since most problems in this world could be solved with money, and his family had plenty of it. He just wanted to drift through life."I don't need to surpass him. As long as I can cover my daily expenses and not have to ask him for money, that's enough," Benji replied.As they were talking, Shane had prepared a table full of dishes. He set out four sets of plates and cutleries before calling everyone over to eat. "It's time to eat."The four of them hadn't seen each other in a long time, so they had to have a drink.Jessamine looked at the beautifully prepared dishes on the table and couldn't help but offer a compliment. "Shane, your cooking skills have gotten so good."Shane opened a bottle of red wine and poured some for everyone. "What can I do? There's a glutton at home."Benji was not happy with Shane's comment. What did he mean by saying there wa
"It's great that you came by today, Jessie. I'll pay you back the money. Friends who are willing to lend money these days are rare, so I want to thank you again," Benji said.He hadn't repaid the money he borrowed last time yet. Coincidentally, he received some money today, so he decided to settle the debt in person. With that, he picked up his phone to make the transfer.Jessamine's phone chimed, indicating that a payment had been received. The amount was a bit more than what she had lent out."Mr. Moore, I'm not here to ask you to settle your debt. You can keep it for now. I won't need the money for the time being," Jessamine said."If one borrows and returns promptly, borrowing again won't be difficult. You're much easier to talk to than Thaddeus. Despite knowing him for so many years, borrowing money from him is such a hassle. You saw it last time yourself. That scoundrel's attitude was terrible!" Benji complained.At this point in the conversation, Thaddeus happened to arrive
Thaddeus tightened his grip on Jessamine's slender waist. "What am I going to do with you, Jessie?"He thought to himself that if things really were just that coincidental, he would rather play the fool and pretend to know nothing at all. He just couldn't leave her.Jessamine asked softly, "How about you ask your dad?"Thaddeus paused for a moment and took out his phone to call Corey. He couldn't calm his mind at all.After a few seconds of hearing the dial tone, the call was answered."Dad," Thaddeus said.On the other end of the phone, Corey was about to go to sleep. He had been adjusting his routine lately, aiming to go to bed early and wake up early."What’s up?" Corey asked."Do you remember the gathering over 20 years ago with Mr. Hardy, Jacob Langston, Leon Lincoln, Paxton Loomis, and a few others?"After that, Thaddeus added, "That night, a beautiful woman came over. She drank some alcohol and was drugged."There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the ph
On the other side, Jessamine and Thaddeus got into the car.Jessamine and Beatrice were quite familiar with each other. However, it was Jessamine's first time meeting Sabastian. Surprisingly, she had a pretty good impression of him."Do the Hardy and Holt families have business dealings with each other?"Thaddeus drove as he answered her question, "We don't have much interaction. We would occasionally invest in small projects and conduct some charity work in Zenville together."Mr. Hardy is an upright and trustworthy person. He has a good relationship with Grandpa. Hayden would often come to my house with him when I was young."Jessamine paused for a moment and asked, "Does he have a wife?""Hayden's mother passed away from an amniotic fluid embolism during childbirth. Since then, Mr. Hardy has remained single and never remarried."Jessamine was deeply moved. In this era, who would remain loyal for a lifetime to their deceased wives? Most men like Sabastian, who had both power a