Finally, Stefan walked over to Renee with a complicated gaze. "Why didn't you tell me about this? It's a big deal." "A big deal?" Renee sneered. "I'm sorry for my ignorance, but I don't know what you're talking about.""The kids are going to take their graduation photos. As their father, don't you think I should have been informed?" Stefan sounded displeased. He felt that graduating from kindergarten and stepping into elementary school was an important phase in a kid's life, and as a father, he had to be present for it."You were clearly busy, and I didn't even know if you were alive. I didn't want to disturb your precious time with your new sweetheart." Renee sounded jealous. The people around them looked at them curiously. It sounded like Stefan had cheated on Renee and had gone to his mistress while he was missing. No wonder Renee wanted to kick Stefan—it seemed like he deserved it. Stefan put his hands in his pockets, frowning. "You should let me decide what will disturb me
Renee cooperated with Stefan for the sake of saving face. She leaned into Stefan's arms and spoke softly as she smiled up at him. "Since you're here, you should be a responsible father and make their graduation a happy one.""Of course!" Stefan looked down at Rene, returning her smile. "I don't have to act—I'm a good father."Both Adie and Abby shook their heads helplessly. Abby sighed deeply. "Adie, I feel like Daddy and Mommy are getting crazier." Adie muttered, "Yeah, I think so too. I think it's better they don't talk to each other than behave like this."This fake peace was just too strange."Kids, your father and I have talked. We've gathered quite a lot of ingredients, so maybe we should go find the treasures now. What do you think?" Renee asked carefully."Sure!" Abby was the first to give her approval. "Mommy and I nearly found the treasure just now… but I don't know if it's still there."Renee checked the messages in the class' group chat. None of the parents had po
The family of four set off for a cliff on the island based on the map provided by the kindergarten. Stefan carried Abby and placed her on his shoulders while Adie tried searching for the road ahead of them. Renee walked behind them, keeping her distance."Daddy, that cave is very scary. It's dark and deep. I heard that there are dragons that protect the treasures in it… My classmates didn't dare to go in, but Mommy and I did. Aren't we brave?" Abby babbled as she enjoyed the view from Stefan's shoulders, waving her arms joyfully."Oh, that's awesome..." Stefan smiled dotingly and turned around to glance at Renee. Then, he added, "It's no surprise that the children she raised are so amazing.""Daddy, are you saying that Mommy is amazing?" Abby held Stefan's head and asked curiously."Of course." Stefan whispered, "I'm sure you and Adie don't know how amazing your mother is." He was unsure if the children were aware of Renee's glorious past and awesome skills, but he remembered them
"You fought them, but you're saying you didn't do anything wrong?" It was the first time Renee had seen Adie be so rebellious, so naturally, she was furious and worried that he was getting out of her control. After all, Adie had just graduated from kindergarten. It was already difficult to handle him compared to other children, but if he always thought he was right even when he did something wrong, it would be harder to educate him once he became a teenager."Mommy, I know you would be mad if I fought someone, but I still don't think I did anything wrong. If I get into a situation like that again, I would still choose to fight!" Adie put his hands behind his back and lifted his chin stubbornly, refusing to back down."I see how it is. You think you're all grown up now since you're going to elementary school, and you can do whatever you like. Well, I think it's been a while since you've enjoyed a good beating." While talking, Renee started looking around. "Mommy, you can use this."
Adie's stubborn expression didn't change, but finally he turned around and sighed. "Fine then!""Fine, I'll wait for your explanation." Renee tried her best to calm down and put down the branch away, waiting for Adie's explanation."It was because..." Adie swallowed, his eyes watery. "It was because Tubby and his mother were disrespectful. They said..." He trailed off, reluctant to continue."What did they say?" Renee frowned and warned strictly, "If you don't give me a logical explanation, I'll hit you."Her threat just made Adie more upset, and he closed his eyes and stretched his palm out. "Go ahead then! You'll only be happy once you beat me, so there's no point in me explaining!" "What?" Renee had rarely seen Adie acting so unreasonably, and it only infuriated her further. She hit Adie's palm with the branch ruthlessly. The thinness of the branch made the hit excruciatingly painful, and Adie started to cry. Regardless of how mature he was, he was still a child at the end o
"Umm..." Renee was speechless after hearing Adie's explanation. Her anger immediately subsided and she felt guilty and sorry for Adie. She hadn't expected to see Adie face such cruelty at such a young age. She couldn't imagine how Adie must have felt when he heard those words. She thought about how she had violently hit, scolded, and criticized Adie, and felt like dying. "I'm... I'm sorry. I didn't know you had been bullied like this. I sincerely apologize!" Renee took a deep breath, her head hung in shame as she spoke. She didn't expect him to forgive her right now since even adults would hold a grudge when wrongly accused, let alone a child.Although Adie was still tearful and his palm was red and swollen, he was not angry at Renee. He held Renee's hand and said tenderly, "Mommy, you don't have to say sorry to me; I should be saying sorry to you. I wasn't strong enough. When others mocked me, I couldn't suppress my anger. I should have ignored their words and calmed down, but I coul
The more she thought about it, the more Renee realized that she had to accept reality—in the eyes of society, a divorced family could never be a good thing. There would always be prejudice and discrimination towards the children. Luckily, Adie was a strong child, and could stand his ground when others bullied him. If it were a gentle child like Abby, facing that kind of hostility would create lifelong trauma. After much thought, Renee felt the children had to have a father, even if he were just there in name.Stefan held Adie with one hand and Abby with the other, and they soon arrived at the cave. Renee took a deep breath as she watched them, and decided to talk it out with Stefan for the sake of the two children. Besides, many pupils and parents were standing outside the cave, too timid to go in.The cave came with a karst landscape with long and narrow spaces full of stalactites in various strange shapes. It was a good place for adventure and looking for treasure."Mommy, come he
Stefan and Renee walked into the cave silently. The atmosphere was tense and almost suffocating, like there was something threatening to surface. Maybe the oxygen level in the cave was low, or maybe it was the tension between them.Renee held the torchlight and shone it ahead of her. However, she wasn't really checking the cave out or searching for treasures—she was trying to figure out how to talk to Stefan about the children. "You..." Renee started, but gasped as she accidentally stepped into a dark pit. However, before she could fall, Stefan grabbed her and held her, and they both tumbled to the ground together. Renee had fallen on Stefan, and immediately panicked when she realized it. "Are you alright? Did you hurt your head? Can you move?" At first, Stefan was fine, but when Renee pressed down on his body, he winced in discomfort. "Maybe I'd feel better if you weren't crushing me.""Oh, I'm sorry!" Renee immediately tried to stand up, feeling embarrassed when she realized she
Liam was impressed while looking at Justin's calm expression. He had always thought that Justin was cunning and full of schemes. He was even worried that Justin might plot against Renee in the future.However, Justin was quite open and generous. He was considering things from Renee's angle. He could be Renee's haven, but if he stepped down, he could willingly grant Renee's wish to be with the one she loved. It seemed that Justin was selfless, and Liam felt that he was worse than Justin. No wonder Renee would choose to spend the rest of her life with Justin. It seemed like he was a reliable man.Justin pocketed his hands and asked casually, "Is there any other problem now?""Not at the moment." Liam frowned in defeat. Since Justin had made such a big compromise, he would seem like a fool if he was too arrogant and refused to give up. A long sigh escaped him as he let go of Renee's hand, but he was still hopeful. He boasted to Justin, "Wait and see! I'll make Stefan appear.""Go
"Let go of her!" Justin turned cold and grabbed Renee's other hand. He said darkly to Liam, "You don't have the right to take her with you!""Hmph! I don't have the right to take her with me? Well, you don't have the right to marry her. I must take her with me today. Worst comes to worst, I'll fight your family!"Though he was too weak to fight the powerful Baldwin family, Liam was never a coward. He would fight the whole world alone for the sake of Renee's happy and stable life."Calm down…"In comparison, Justin was calmer. He was probably more confident since it was his territory and he could affirm Renee would not leave with Liam. He started mocking Liam. "I'm not the kind of person who will force others to do things they refuse to do. If Ren wants to leave, I'll let her go even if my family disowns me. But I know that she won't leave. At the very least, she won't leave with you.""What do you mean?" Liam could tell that Justin was mocking him, and it annoyed him. "Why are
Liam felt that his situation at the fort was almost the same as Renee's current situation. He had thought that the marriage was just for show. If he was unhappy, he could get a divorce. Even then, things were not that easy when he wanted to get out of that mess. If Amber had not protected him, Benjamin would have long gotten him killed. He knew better than anyone else how unfair it was for the other party when one tolerated and went through with the marriage.Amber was naive and was willing to be treated unfairly, but Justin was no fool. He would not be able to take it if it lasted for a long time. It was easy to imagine what Renee would face when Justin stopped taking her side."Let's go! I'm not afraid. You don't have to be afraid, either." Liam made up his mind to support Renee, who was standing behind him.Renee bit her lips and started to waver; not because she did not want to be with Justin, but simply because she was not confident in herself. She was afraid she would neve
"Liam, what are you doing?" Leia looked at Liam, unable to understand his sudden excitement."I'm going to meet Austin or Justin. I want them to cancel this engagement ceremony." Liam held Renee's wrist and tried to drag her out of the suite.He was certain Renee didn't want to marry Justin, so it was very likely that she would regret it in the future. It would be hard to settle if she regretted it after the engagement party. Liam felt that he had to try his best to put everything under control while he still could. Feeling helpless, Leia complained, "Stop making a scene… This is Ren's marriage. You can't make all this fuss!""You don't know. I'm doing this for her. I want the best for her." Liam knew the consequences of resisting Austin, given the man's position. He was also ready to be punished by them. Even though he would be beaten up vigorously, he would not hesitate as long as he could stop the ceremony and help Renee avoid such risks. "If you want the best for her, just
Leia felt so awkward that she wanted to run away. "Hey, can you stop flattering yourself? You haven't settled your messy romance, so please don't get Ren involved. You shouldn't joke like that!"Similarly, Liam found his joke impudent and admitted to his mistake. "Yeah, I was wrong. Don't take my joke seriously."Both Renee and Leia were amused. It helped relieve their tension. "But have you thought it through? After this ceremony, you'll be a part of the Baldwin family. You can't regret it by then," Liam said; he was worried about Renee. Everyone knew the Baldwin family's style. They had such a grand ceremony today. If anything went wrong, the Everheart family might be ruined for the second time. Although nobody knew who would win the battle, the trouble could be avoided. Liam was clueless as to why Renee wanted to take such a risk."Yes, I have." Renee nodded and added firmly, "I'd thought it through the moment I boarded the plane with Justin to fly here."It was the last c
Renee was done getting ready. As her closest friend, Leia came to North City with Liam immediately.The engagement ceremony was held in a magnificent hall of a top hotel. The guests arrived one by one and chatted among themselves. It was a luxurious and grand scene. "Ren, I'm sorry I'm late!" Leia arrived at the hotel suite where Renee was waiting. She put her hands together to express her apology. "It's Liam's fault! He was out of his mind and insisted on not coming here, but I forced him to and took some time. Please don't be mad at me!""Silly, I won't be mad at you. Plus, this ceremony doesn't carry much meaning. The Baldwin family just needs this as an assurance. It doesn't matter even if you're absent."Renee looked indifferent and was not at all happy and eager like a bride-to-be. The engagement ceremony was held to announce to the world about the relationship between her and Renee. In all honesty, Renee was resistant to it. She did not want her family or friends to at
Margaret decided to be frank since Renee had said so. "I can tell that you don't sincerely love Mr. Baldwin. Your marriage is just a way to avoid reality. Why are you so harsh on yourself if that's the case? Now, you're making such a big fuss about moving here. If you fail to get along with him and have to return to Beach City in the future, many people will gossip about you. They'll say nasty things about you. Why do you have to put yourself in such a condition?""Margaret, you don't understand…" Renee looked at herself in the mirror. She looked very charming, like a bride in ancient paintings. Everyone would be charmed by her—including herself. She knew very well that she was the one taking the lead in her romance with Justin. They could go on forever as long as she didn't end it. She was just afraid she could not hold on and wanted to stop, and the only reason that she wanted to stop was probably because of Stefan. "If I stay in Beach City, I'll come across Stefan. I know t
Time passed by. It was soon the day for the engagement ceremony between Justin and Renee.The Baldwin family held a grand ceremony while adhering to tradition. It was both traditional and romantic.Renee put on a red slim-fit silk gown with intricate black and gold embroidery. Her long hair was delicately pinned up, showing off her fair and slender neck. She looked elegant."How pretty!" Margaret stood in front of the vanity table and looked at Renee, whose face was dolled with exquisite makeup. She looked gratified, as though she were looking at her daughter."If your parents saw how pretty and elegant you were, they would be very happy." Margaret gently placed her hands on Renee's shoulders and commented, "You married Mr. Hunt when I wasn't around. You must have suffered a lot. But things will get better now… I'll stay with you and protect you forever. I'll be your strongest support."Back then, Renee was left alone when her family was ruined. She married Stefan without anyo
Alexander and Francine were already old. It was fine even if others criticized them or took violent revenge on them. But they were worried that the younger generation, especially Adie and Abby, would have a hard time handling it."You're right. I wasn't thinking straight…" Francine became teary and sobbed. "I just wanted to relieve my guilt and failed to consider the kids. We brought this upon ourselves. I'll probably have to suffer this pain for the rest of my life.""Stop thinking about that. It's all over. It's useless to regret or dwell on it." Alexander walked over and hugged her shoulders. He whispered some consoling words, "No one can tell who was right or wrong about that affair. We're already punished. Just act like everything is gone…"Is it? You're just trying to make yourself feel better." Francine leaned against Alexander's shoulders, full of melancholy. "Don't you think the kids are suffering the consequences of our actions? They love and understand each other bu