Renee's instincts told her it was from Stefan since the screen showed that the call was from Beach City. She wanted to ignore it at first, but her phone wouldn't stop ringing.Sophia looked at her fondly and gestured for her to pick it up. Renee did not want to make her suspicious, so she pretended to be calm and answered the call."So, you finally decided to answer the phone!" Stefan's icy voice from the other end of the phone made her shiver. It brought back flashes of her nightmare earlier, but she played dumb and said, "What? An insurance company? I'm sorry, but I don't need insurance. Goodbye!""Renee, don't you dare hang up. You-"Stefan's threat was promptly cut off as she ended the call."Hmm, my phone number must've been leaked. I've been receiving tons of calls from these kinds of companies. It's so annoying!" Renee calmly explained to Sophia while subtly blocking the number.However, another number called soon after, and then another. Every time Renee blocked one num
"Everyone's here now. Ren has slept enough, so let's dig in." Sophia seated Renee at the table and said cheerfully."Good morning, Grandpa Austin, Uncle Jack, and Justin." Renee greeted them politely and smiled broadly at them."Did you sleep well last night?" Austin looked at Renee fondly. The more he looked at her, the more he liked her."I slept very well last night. Thank you for your concern." Renee nodded slowly. She was very experienced in all this, since this was how she survived in the Hunt family for four years. She had emerged unharmed, thanks to all the masks she wore."Really?" Justin suppressed his laughter and asked, "Weren't you walking around in the courtyard in the middle of the night? You even energetically fixed a hole in the wall! I thought you couldn't sleep because you weren't used to the environment."Renee glared at Justin, fighting the urge to reach over and choke him. 'Damn that troublemaker! He should know who I was trying to help and why I was forced t
"What's all this gibberish? Talk properly!" Sophia said sternly.The maid took a deep breath and explained, "There was a new maid last night wearing a uniform of a better quality than ours. She said that she was sent over to keep an eye on Francine, so I brought her to the room and left her there alone… I didn’t expect the new maid and Francine to disappear like that! So the person who helped Francine escape must be her!""How dare she?!" Austin was fuming, feeling like the authority of the Baldwin family had been challenged. He said furiously, "Who is that reckless person? How dare she sneak into the Baldwin mansion and do this right under my nose?! She really does not take us seriously! Start an investigation immediately, and when you find her, break her limbs right away. She has to know that the Baldwins cannot be messed with!" Jack nodded and said to the head of the soldiers stationed around them, "What are you waiting for? Send a team to barricade the whole place and thoroughl
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Sophia glared at him. Given the old man's temper, he would mercilessly impose a harsh punishment on anyone who defied his orders. Was Justin asking for death?Justin replied nonchalantly, "I'm not lying, it was really me who let her go. Think about it—the password is so complicated that only the members of the Baldwins would know it. Ren is just an innocent girl. Even if she wanted to, she'd never be able to figure out the password!" Justin purposely looked at Renee with a faint smile."Haha!" Renee avoided their eyes and laughed awkwardly. She was very grateful to Justin for taking the blame, but he was so cheeky that she wanted to punch him!Justin looked around at his family and explained, "I just think that since we've already snatched Stefan Hunt's wife, it would be overkill to lock his mother up too. We know the power of the Hunts, so we can't just provoke them because we have an army. The Hunts are very wealthy—if we drive them into a co
Renee's unusual reaction stunned everyone in the room, especially Justin. He did not expect that she would react that way at all."Are you sure about having the two families go to war?" He raised his eyebrows and asked mischievously. "Of course!" Renee continued enthusiastically. "My grandfather always hoped that one day I could follow in his footsteps and lead an army into battle myself. If the Baldwin and Hunt families are bound to fight, whether it's in business or war, I want to be the one to lead! Anyway, I also have a deep grudge against the Hunts, and I hate Stefan so much that I long for a life-and-death duel with him!""Fantastic! You really are something, young lady." Austin stroked his beard and laughed heartily. "You are indeed the granddaughter of General Everheart—so confident and strong-willed. You are much better than my unworthy grandson! Justin, you should learn from Ren. If you always give in, how can you protect her in the future? Maybe she'll have to protect yo
Austin was fired up when he heard this and said, "That's right! We have to worship the God of War. Consider it our pledge of allegiance. Let's get to the helicopters, we shall leave at once!""Yes! Let's go right now!" Renee waved her arms and cheered.Inwardly, she finally felt relieved. As expected, Austin was a very impulsive man, even to the point of narcissism. He had actually believed her completely when she asked him to go and worship the God of War.This time, the Baldwin family and Stefan would not meet. Later, she could just find a random reason to stop the two families from fighting. It was perfect!Renee smiled lightly and thought about her plan happily. She really was a genius who could adapt to any situation!At that moment, the butler entered the room with a concerned look on his face. "General Baldwin, sorry to interrupt, but there seems to be someone… a big shot outside asking to meet you!"Austin said coldly, "Don't be such a coward. Who is this big shot you're
Stefan stood in front of everyone and replied slowly and firmly, "I'm here to settle our remarriage, of course."He stepped closer to Renee and pulled her into his arms, then smiled at her. "Darling, you're so disobedient. You ran off with another man, and that's not very nice.""Dar…ling?" Renee met his eyes in bewilderment.'Even if he is acting, he doesn't have to go overboard like this, right?'When she thought about her nightmare last night, the only thing playing in her mind was that Stefan was going to murder her.By this time, the Baldwin family was staring at Stefan like they were a pack of starving wolves and he a juicy steak, but they did not dare to act impulsively because of Stefan's strong aura. Austin even took out the revolver he carried with him and placed it on the table, saying sternly, "It seems like the offspring of the Hunt family is rather daring—he actually came all the way here to snatch something of ours. I heard that you're the only heir left, boy. If
Austin knitted his eyebrows and was immersed in his thoughts for a long time. Then, he fixed his fierce wolf-like eyes on Renee. "So, what you're saying is… you've been using Justin and us this whole time, and you were acting from the very beginning to deceive the Baldwins?" Renee inhaled deeply and nodded guiltily. "I'm very sorry. I was wrong.""Don't-!" Justin wanted to stop her but it was too late. He hit his forehead on the table and groaned. "She can't be saved. Renee, you idiot! It's not worth it!"It was too foolish for her to risk her life for this cheater!Justin knew Austin very well—the old man detested lies and was very stubborn. Once he lost his temper, he could even kill others. How would this end now?"Well, isn't that just great?" Austin had obviously lost control of his emotions. He pointed his revolver at Renee and said icily, "I like you and admire you very much. I would have even used all my resources to nurture you because you are Maurice's granddaughter, bu
Alexander took a deep breath and analyzed logically, "This wasn't Stef's style. If he wanted to snatch her away, he would have done it openly in front of everyone. But this trick was cunning and dishonest!""Yes, you're right, but this is a special case. If he didn't use a trick, his woman would marry someone else. It's normal for him to be restless." Although Francine agreed with Alexander's analysis, she felt that Stefan could do anything if it concerned Renee. Naturally, he would stoop this far. "Regardless, we have to leave," Alexander whispered to Francine, sensing danger. "Austin has always been decisive and cruel. Since Stef humiliated him, I'm sure he wouldn't let Stef off easily. We're in danger too.""Is it that serious?" Francine looked at Austin, who was standing on the stage. He coldly ordered his assistant about something. It seemed like he wasn't that crazy. "I don't care what he'll do. We have to get out of North City right away because this city is controlled b
"What?! She's gone?" Justin's face fell immediately. He grabbed the collar of the person who came to inform them and demanded coldly, "What do you mean?! Why is she gone for no reason?""We… We don't know!" That person looked at Justin while trembling and reported everything. "When we got there, we found no one else in the makeup room except the makeup artist lying on the ground. We didn't see Ms. Everheart, either. We don't know what happened!""Something must have gone wrong with her!" Justin pushed that person away without hesitation and rushed toward the makeup room."Hey, Justin! What are you doing?" Sophia watched Justin disappear in front of everyone. She wanted to pursue him but failed.Everyone below the stage fell into an uproar and discussed among themselves endlessly. "The bride went missing all of a sudden! Did her ex-husband come for her?""It's possible. They were once madly in love with each other. Plus, the Hunt and Baldwin families were in conflict for many yea
On the surface, everyone felt that Justin was passionate and respected the bride well. However, only he knew that he was just terrified. He was afraid that the reality might exceed his anticipation. He was terrified to find that he was betrayed in the end when he had trusted Renee that much and treated her so sincerely."Justin, what's going on with you? How could you talk about that at such a time like this? The most important thing now is to make her come out and have this engagement ceremony. We should do the guests justice. If not, everyone will laugh at us after we've kept our dignity well for so many years!"Sophia couldn't understand his hesitation. They were just going to urge Renee to appear. It had nothing to do with their patience or ability to take good care of Renee.Both Alexander and Francine looked at each other in confusion."Dear, did you do anything?" Alexander asked Francine softly.If Renee suddenly failed to attend the ceremony, it might have been Francin
Renee was furious—he was ridiculous!"You won't allow that?" She snorted and looked at him as if he were crazy. "Who do you think you are? You can't meddle in my life!""I'm nobody, but I know that I don't want you to marry another guy." The man approached Renee, wanting to catch her."Stay away from me, or I'll get somebody! You should know how powerful the Baldwin family is in North City…" Renee spat coldly. She did not want to make things too ghastly, so she wouldn't alert the Baldwin family if she could help it. The man sneered wickedly. "Yes, the Baldwin family is strong. So? Even if they're strong, they can't fight against my cunning means!""What do you mean?" A bad feeling gripped Renee. She wanted to ask more questions, but found herself dizzy. Her surroundings became blurry. "I'm so dizzy! What…did you do?" The next second, she staggered and fainted.He firmly caught her and whispered, "You've suffered a lot, so I'll let you rest a bit.""Ah! You… You…" The make
"You flatter me." Renee smiled, sadness in her eyes. She recalled the day she was about to marry Stefan many years ago. The young female designer responsible for her makeup had praised her the same way. At that time, she had recently lost all her family members and was gripped with excruciating pain. Her waist had been much slimmer. She looked pitiful but bewitching. "Don't worry! Master Hunt is a great man. He'll be nice to you and protect you. You guys are a perfect match."Renee remembered that the makeup artist used a makeup blender to soak her tears and firmly told her that. The artist at that time also felt that Stefan would be her protector for the rest of her life. Renee had a crush on Stefan for many years. He was the ray of light that had saved her from her despair. Although she was strong, she couldn't help but regard him as her savior. At that time, she never imagined spending the rest of her life with someone else other than him. Many years passed since then. Sh
Twenty minutes ago, Renee's gown was accidentally splashed with wine. Hence, she changed into a spare slim-fit strapless gown. The long gown reached to the floor and was full of shining diamonds. It set off her curvy figure and made her appear like a noble princess from a painting. Unfortunately, her waist was too slim, so the gown didn't fit her well.The young woman who was responsible for Renee's makeup patted her chest and said confidently, "It's fine. I'll tighten the waistline a bit. Leave it to me! I'll get it done in ten minutes.""Are you sure?" Justin couldn't hide his amazement as he watched Renee, who had changed into a new gown. He cleared his throat and said, "I think this is already perfect. It's fine even if you don't adjust the waistline."He felt that Renee was the most perfect woman no matter how she appeared. She would always bewitch him, even if she was just wearing slippers and casual coats.If his parents hadn't insisted on getting a renowned designer t
Liam looked certain. "The Baldwin residence is strictly guarded. Plus, Austin owns military power. If the Hunt family wants to take Renee away, they'll have to fight the Baldwins. Things will get very hideous. But if they use a little trick, they don't have to waste any manpower to take her away. Why wouldn't they do that?""So, you're saying that Mr. and Mrs. Hunt fought against Justin's parents to purposely attract others' attention and to cover for Stefan. They wanted to give him the chance to take Ren away secretly.""That's very likely."Liam nodded. Else, he couldn't figure out why the decent Alexander and Francine would do such an indecent thing in front of so many rich and powerful people. After all, the Hunts would be ridiculed for what they had done just now if it got exposed. It was such a great price. They wouldn't have to make such a great sacrifice if not for their son's lifetime happiness."If that was true, the Hunts are just too cunning." Leia shrugged. She fou
The spotlight shone on the entrance as everyone looked forward to the prince and princess' entrance.However, only Justin appeared like a charming prince in front of everyone in his white suit. There was no sign of his princess. Austin's initial confident smile stiffened. He flexed his fingers slightly and held himself back as he waited quietly for Justin to get onto the stage. Justin took calm steps. Smiling, he waved and greeted everyone, looking very much like a future bridegroom. When he got on the stage, Austin pulled him over. While lowering his voice, he interrogated coldly, "Why are you alone? Where is Ren?""Don't worry, Grandpa. Ren is the princess. Of course, she has to come last. We're just people who set off her charms. All we need to do is wait for her patiently."Then, Justin held the microphone and faced all the guests below the stage. He cleared his throat and said, "Please calm down, ladies and gentlemen. My future bride's gown is rather grand and needs more
Austin was telling the truth."Of course, children will always stay with their mothers. Home is wherever their mother is. You'd better ask about Ren's opinion instead of making a scene here."Austin glanced at the gilded ancient clock above the hall, his eyes sharp."The engagement ceremony of my grandson and Ren is about to start in ten minutes. You can ask her opinion when she's here.""Really?"Francine was delightedly surprised. For the first time, she felt that Austin was not as horrible as legend had it. He was reasonable. She tried to reconfirm with him. "So, you're saying that I can ask Ren to come home with me when she's out, and you'll let her go if she says yes?" "No, you're wrong." Austin shook his head. "She came here willingly. Of course, it's not as if you need to ask me to let her go.""It's fine. That's not important as long as you remember what you said." Francine was confident and eager. She then said smugly to Austin and the others, "Wait and see! I have w