Celia regretted attending the banquet out of boredom when she heard Lillian's sarcastic remarks. She should leave, then.Alas, Willow and her friends approached them before Celia could say anything. She looked at Celia as if she hadn't just met her in the restroom. Willow smiled. "Madam Lillian, good to see you! And you must be Yardley's fiancée, Celia Stanton, right? Hello, Ms. Stanton. My name is Willow Xanders."At that moment, Willow appeared to be an elegant and graceful noble lady. On the other hand, Celia's complete disregard for her made her appear impolite.Lillian gave Celia a snide look before smiling at Willow. "Willow, don't mind her. She's from the countryside and has no manners.""It's alright, Madam Lillian. By the way, I've heard that Ms. Stanton is very talented. There's a piano on the stage. Why don't we have a little friendly competition?"Celia glanced at Willow when she heard that."Everyone knows I'm a country bumpkin, so how did she hear about my excepti
The three of them exchanged pleasantries. It was widely known that Barnaby and Otto were close friends. Also, their families once dominated the business world. Alas, Barnaby sold his company and retired from the business world many years ago. There had been little news about him since. It was said that he traveled around the world with his granddaughter. Still, the Stanton family's influence remained widespread across the country.Sinclair presented the gifts Barnaby had prepared for the Hughes family. They included a world-renowned painting, a plot of land in the city worth hundreds of millions of dollars, and other equally valuable items. The Stanton family went above and beyond when it came to gift-giving.It pained Celia to watch these extravagant gifts end up in the hands of the Hughes family … At least Sinclair didn't blow her cover. It would no longer be fun if her cover were blown. "Lillian is such a snob. She might not let me leave after three months. Also, Yardley
Celia turned around and noticed Yardley walking toward her. Obviously, he had followed her out."Nobody said I had to notify you when I leave. It's no longer working hours, Yardley Hughes. You're not the boss of me anymore. I am free to do whatever I want." Celia was perplexed by Yardley's attitude.All of sudden, a car pulled up in front of them. The driver got out of the passenger seat and opened the car doors for them. Celia recognized Yardley's car. Yardley looked away. "It's late. It's not safe for you to take a cab by yourself. Let's go back together so you won't hold us responsible if something goes wrong." Celia frowned. "There's no need for you to worry about me demanding compensation. I'm not interested in your family's money."Yardley reached out and grabbed her wrist as she was about to leave. "Get in the car!" His tone left no room for discussion. He met her angry gaze and continued, "I promised Grandpa I'd be with you for three months, so I have to ensure your sa
Yardley raised his hand and tugged at his tie. He felt his anger intensify. He was furious at himself for striking up a conversation with her. He couldn't figure out why he felt the need to start a conversation with her just because he thought the car was too quiet. The more he thought about it, the more he felt irritated he became with himself. Not a word was exchanged between them for the rest of the drive. Yardley stepped out of the car as soon as it arrived at the Hughes residence. Celia, however, got out of the car lazily and strolled inside. Yardley sat on the living room sofa with a glass of water in his hand. Celia didn't even look at him as she walked past him on her way upstairs. The former slammed his glass onto the table, but the latter was unfazed and continued up the stairs. "All this over a joke? He sure is petty! I can't believe someone like him is actually the CEO of Hughes Inc. Isn't he worried about ruining his family business in the future?" she thought.
Celia organized the files and categorized them. Her ability to retain information was exceptional. One could even call it a photographic memory. Celia knew which specific data she needed to work on after grasping the contents of the files in her mind. Then, she got to work. The process was a bit long, but it wasn't difficult for her. She mastered it, and her speed increased as well.The sound of her tapping away on the keyboard drew the attention of her colleagues, who whispered to one another."Woah, she's lightning fast on the keyboard. I thought I was fast enough, but I definitely can't compete with her.""I assumed a country bumpkin like her would be oblivious to these things, but it seems like she's quite good at her job.""Yeah, have you noticed? She was also very efficient at work this morning. She isn't completely useless despite her rural origins. She wouldn't have become Mr. Hughes' fiancée otherwise. I heard Mr. Hughes Senior was the one who chose her. There's no w
Celia was tidying up her belongings when she received a call from Sabrina. "How much more time do you need to finish?""I've already finished.""What? Are you sure you've checked it thoroughly and there are no issues?" Sabrina couldn't believe Celia had completed the task so quickly.Celia patiently replied, "I'm sure. I'm hanging up if there's nothing else you need. I'd like to get off work.""No! You can't leave yet!" Sabrina suddenly raised her voice.Celia stopped in her tracks. "Why?""I just received a call from Mr. Carver. He said that there's another set of data that needs to be included. I'll bring it over to you right now, so stay where you are.""Then you can email me the data. It'll be too late if you come over here.""No can do. The data is quite complex. You haven't worked with it before. It'll be disastrous if you mess it up. Just wait for me. Don't be impatient. I have already reached home, but I still need to rush over to work overtime with you. What do you hav
"It's already 11 pm, and Celia still hasn't returned. I wonder where she went off to."Yardley overheard Quinn's words when he went downstairs to get a glass of water.Lillian added, "As expected of a country bumpkin, she lacks common sense. Her lifestyle is also inappropriate. I can't imagine where she is at this hour!"Yardley found it strange at first. Then, her attitude toward him the day before crossed his mind. The strangeness faded.What she did had nothing to do with him.Lillian raised her voice. "Yardley, Celia's behavior might not be a big deal, but it'll be troublesome if word gets out and tarnishes your reputation. After all, a lot of people have seen her and recognized her as your fiancée. "It would be best for you to annul this engagement as soon as possible. Let her go back to the countryside and leave our house. Who knows what problems she'll cause if we let her stay? You never know with these things. We might be held responsible if something goes wrong.""Gran
"Celia? Celia!" Yardley scooped her up into his arms and gently tapped her cheek. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"Celia's brows were scrunched up, and she muttered, "It's so dark … Don't go … Don't …""Dark? Oh—she's afraid of the dark!" Realization dawned on Yardley. His heart softened as he suddenly recalled the little girl who was also pale with fear in the darkness, huddling close to him. An inexplicable sense of compassion arose in his heart."Don't be scared. Everything's okay now. I'll take you home," he said gently.Celia's trembling visibly lessened after hearing his words, but she continued to mutter under her breath. Yardley couldn't understand a word she was saying, but he was more focused on getting her out of there. "It's okay. Don't be scared. I'm here," he kept comforting her along the way. He sat her in the passenger seat and noticed that she was still clutching onto his clothes. Yardley decided to take off his coat and drape it over her. He couldn't help but f
In fact, Yardley didn't tell anyone. … Meanwhile, Morgan stumbled upon a surprising find. She discovered two healthy, month-old babies at the orphanage. "Director, is it true that no one wants such young babies?" Morgan felt a bit emotional. How could people be so heartless as to abandon their own babies? The director of the orphanage let out a deep sigh. "You don't know the whole story. Our janitor found these babies at the orphanage's entrance. Someone left them there and disappeared. "We've been taking care of them for about half a month now, and their condition has improved significantly." Looking at the adorable babies, Morgan couldn't shake the feeling that they belonged to Celia. "I'm here on behalf of Yardley Hughes else to adopt these children, but..." Morgan expressed her concerns. Morgan anticipated the orphanage director's refusal. To her surprise, he actually agreed. "The opportunity for these two babies to have some good days is preferable to nothing.
"Let's go, Celia. We shouldn't disturb the twins' rest," said Yardley as he supported Celia and got ready to leave. Celia waved her hand and stood in front of the incubator. Even with the glass barrier, she could still discern the condition of her children. She reached out to touch them, as if her touch could make them feel her presence. She resolved to take her children home safely. Celia lingered for a while before finally leaving the hospital. Once they were home, Celia locked herself in her room, disregarding any attempts anyone made to talk to her. Yardley headed to the company to attend to some matters, while the housekeepers remained at home. Meanwhile, Morgan couldn't shake her concern for Celia, so she came to visit her. Upon entering, she heard the housekeepers upstairs calling out, "Mrs. Hughes, are you feeling better? Come out and have some soup!" However, there was no response from inside. "What's going on?" Morgan asked. The housekeepers promptly briefed
Sophie had failed to get Celia's forgiveness. So, she had no choice but to pin all her hopes on Morgan.She took all the supplements to Morgan's apartment. Richard was staying there with her.Ever since the incident with Celia, Sophie's relationship with Richard had become very strained. They barely talked to one another.Sophie knocked on the door for a long time, but no one came out.She could only wait outside. After two hours, she finally saw Morgan and Richard. They came into view, laughing and holding each other's hands.This scene pained Sophie deeply."What are you doing here?" Morgan's cheerful expression faltered the moment she saw Sophie.Sophie could only put on a smile and say, "I brought all these for you. I was wrong to come between your relationship with my son."Richard glanced at the items on the ground. He could tell from a glance that they were meant for postpartum care and immediately understood why Sophie was there."Mom, you should be honest. You got the
Otto didn't back down and insisted on his right to see his grandchildren. However, Yardley paid him no mind. He shook his head and said, "Celia needs rest. Please come back another day."The next second, he instructed the housekeepers to close the door and left Otto standing outside. Otto stomped his walking cane on the ground in frustration but had no choice but to leave.As Yardley made his way back inside the villa, he thought of another troubling matter.Although they had brought their children home, the twins had been weak because they had been born prematurely. They had appointed a family doctor to treat the twins but hadn't seen much improvement in their health. Yardley sanitized himself before he went into the nursery. He felt pained when he heard the twins' weak breaths."Mr. Hughes." The family doctor spoke up with a frown, indicating that the situation was far from ideal."The baby girl has been slowly recovering, but the boy remains very weak. I don't think the n
"Don't worry. She's fine. She's just a bit weak at the moment."Remembering Yardley's words outside the ward, the doctor felt a wave of nervousness. He could tell that Yardley and Celia weren't ordinary people judging by their attire. They were certainly not ones to be trifled with."Did you say that we had twins?" Yardley turned to ask the nurse after learning that Celia was alright."Yes, sir." The nurse chuckled inwardly. She found that, despite Yardley's intimidating appearance, he was a very devoted husband.Soon, Celia was moved out of the operating room and into a VIP ward.Yardley gently wiped the sweat from Celia's face again. He took in her pale complexion; it was a sign of how much she had suffered."How's Celia?"Sounds of hurried footsteps came from outside. Ashley and the others had come over. Yardley turned and signaled them to leave.Celia had just given birth, so she needed a quiet environment to rest. Having too many visitors might affect her recovery.Ever
"How could you hit me because of her? I'm the mother of your child!" Sophie shrieked.She had never suffered such humiliation. She had been showered with love from a young age and wasn't accustomed to such harsh treatment. So, she became agitated and emotional."Isn't it all because of you that things turned out this way? Would such a thing have happened to our company? Would Richard suddenly want to break all ties with us? It's all because of your reckless behavior!" Chester vented years of suppressed grievances and dissatisfaction as if it would make him feel better.Celia watched as Chester and Sophie argued fiercely. She stepped forward to stop them, especially since there were many people outside watching the spectacle."Stop fighting. This isn't the time or the place for arguments!"Sophie went at Chester and started hitting him. Celia tried to break up their fight, but Sophie pushed her. Celia took a few steps back at that. She didn't attempt to intervene anymore."It's
"Mrs. Black, we'd intended to negotiate amicably with you and achieve a satisfactory outcome for both parties. "The decision to move out was mine, and I asked Celia to come over and help me out. If you're unwilling to be decent and compromise, then let's end things between our families here."Morgan felt relieved after expressing her thoughts. It was like a significant weight had been lifted off her shoulders. "What do you mean?" Richard panicked. Just when their relationship had slightly improved, the situation took a turn for the worse again."We're breaking up for good!"Morgan left after saying that. Jessica and Darby left with her, leaving the Blacks behind."This is all your doing! Look what you've done! How many times have I told you not to be so assertive and bossy? Why don't you ever consider my feelings?" Richard punched the couch angrily, his heart filled with bitterness.Sophie hadn't wanted things to turn out this way either, but she had been too angry and spoke
"It's fine. You two can go if you have something else to attend to," Jessica said.Soon, Celia arrived at the Blacks' residence with Jessica and Darby.Sophie opened the door and was surprised to see Celia standing at the doorstep with Jessica and Darby. She couldn't understand what Celia was up to.Once they were inside, Celia didn't beat around the bush and stated her purpose directly. "I think you might be having some misunderstandings about Morgan."Sophie smiled without saying anything."Don't you think you're interfering too much in Morgan's personal life?" Celia questioned.Upon hearing this, Sophie realized why they were there. Having discussed the issue with Chester, Sophie had finally agreed not to interfere in Richard's and Morgan's lives.So, she didn't object to Celia's words. She even agreed with Celia, much to the latter's surprise.Under normal circumstances, Sophie would have argued with her. Why was she being so agreeable this time?"How about you sign a writ
After saying that, Celia hung up.On the other end, Quinn felt very displeased. After all, it was her party, and she had personally called Celia to invite her. Quinn felt that Celia had snubbed her by refusing to attend.Quinn thought about it for a moment. If Celia didn't come, Yardley probably wouldn't either. If both of them didn't show up, it would be embarrassing for Quinn.So, she decided to go and find Celia.…Morgan was taking refuge at Celia's place, so she answered the door when Quinn came over."I'm here to see Celia."Celia had instructed Morgan to turn away anyone she didn't recognize, no matter who it was. Hence, Morgan said, "Celia isn't seeing anyone today. Please come back another time."To Morgan's surprise, her words ignited the anger that Quinn had been suppressing in her heart. The two quickly started arguing.Celia listened to their argument from her room. She regretted asking Morgan to handle Quinn. She had expected that Quinn would come looking for her