"What's the matter?"Renee was still sleepy. She yawned drowsily and leaned against the bed lazily."You're in the news! You’ve gone viral!"Leia pounced on Renee with her phone and excitedly clicked on the viral video.It was a video of Renee on Marine Highway yesterday, bending over to fix her car and kicking the crap out of the creepy man. Renee looked stunning in the video, particularly with her beautiful face, pale skin, and long legs. Her fearless posture exuded sexiness with a formidable charm. The netizens went crazy over Renee and wouldn't stop commenting on the video. Renee's popularity was no less than some A-list celebrity.[Damn! She's like a Charlie's Angel. She's so sassy. I love her!][Female fighters should look at this. That's a heavy blow! That guy must be scared to death!][Ahhh! I'm totally in love! I want to know all about her!]The video was reposted, edited, and made into several funny versions, which left Renee speechless."Hahaha! The netizens are s
The furious Liam nagged Leia nonstop and complained on the phone. "How dare you! Who gave you the guts to do this? Tell me where you are right now if you don't want me to rain hell on you!""I can't tell you, Liam. I promised Ren to keep her return a secret. Only God knows. No one else must know.""Leia! Cut the crap! Do you think I won't do anything to do you?"Liam gritted his teeth. "She's been going viral all morning. Everyone has been talking about it. Anybody online would know that Ren's back in Beach City!"Leia knew it was impossible to keep it a secret anymore and opened her hands helplessly. She told Renee, who was beside her, "See, Ren. That's my brother's usual attitude toward me. His true character is just like a late-stage bipolar person. His gentle, patient, and nice persona in front of you is all a facade…""Who are you talking to? Is Boss right next to you?"Liam instantly tensed up in extreme nervousness. His grumpy voice softened at once. Liam said softly, "Bos
Renee was unperturbed by her recent stint in the trending news. After washing up, Renee wore a black dress and light makeup, ready to visit her parent's gravesite.Today was a special day. It was the ninth anniversary of her parent's death."Do you need my company?" Leia asked thoughtfully."No. I can deal with this myself." Renee was away from Beach City for four years. It was her first time back and the first time she'd be paying her respect to her late parents. She had a lot to speak to them alone.She got into the same red Ferrari from yesterday and sped all the way to the cemetery.It was the height of summer in August, but the gravestones that lay silent among the lush grass in the cemetery were cold and quiet all year round.After parking her car, Renee put on her black sunglasses and headed to her parents' graves with a white daisy bouquet.However, despite arriving early, she was surprised to see that a fancy bouquet had already been left in front of the grave. The bo
“Ren, it really is you! I finally see you again.”The man was none other than Renee's despicable uncle, Elon Barnes.“You again?”Renee snorted. "Leave me alone, you lowlife. Every time I come to visit my parents, you're always here.”“Sigh, you're right, Ren, I am a lowlife. But thank god, I come here to wait for you every year and now I finally get to see you again...”Elon wiped away his tears and said, "You have no idea what I've been through all these years. I missed you so much!”Renee sneered, "Missed me? More like you missed my money.”“Ugh...”Elon rubbed his chin, feeling a bit awkward.“What's the matter? You've already finished the 7 million dollars Stefan gave you four years ago?”“Oh, those? They're long gone!” Elon waved his hand and said regretfully, "I thought I'd use that money to invest in the stock market and make even more money, but luck wasn't on my side... I lost it all in the last two years. I've lost everything.”“Is that so? Well, it's none of my b
“You have Stefan's number? That's surprising.”Renee was indeed surprised.The Stefan she remembered was distant, indifferent, and unfriendly. He would not give others his phone number easily, nor would he arrange work for his friends and relatives.She did not expect him to take special care of his ex-wife's uncle!While waiting for the call to be picked up, Elon said with some pride, "Well, we're family, and I'm his elder after all. He would at the very least show me this much respect.”Unfortunately, reality soon hit Elon in the face.The phone rang for a long time without being picked up. He called again, but this time, it was instantly disconnected.Renee crossed her arms and couldn't help but snort. "Yeah, I can definitely see how much respect he's showing you.”“Ahem!” Elon awkwardly cleared his throat and explained, "My nephew-in-law is a CEO, so he's a busy man. I'll call him again in the afternoon. He usually answers. Even if he doesn't show me respect, he'll show you
Mandy Barnes was Elon's only daughter. When she was a little girl, she followed Renee everywhere. She was very fond of Renee.Unfortunately, when Elon turned on the Everheart family, he forbade Mandy to keep in touch with Renee, or the two of them would have been even closer.Elon's house was located in an ordinary community in the Eastern Third Ring District, It was a house of about 80 square meters that had three bedrooms and a living room. It was an ordinary house, but it was very cozy.When Renee entered the house, her aunt, Hannah Johnson, was cleaning some vegetables in the kitchen, while her cousin, Mandy, was singing in her room.“Guys, look who's here!”Elon shouted with a booming voice and a smile on his face.The mother and daughter came to the living room. When they saw Renee, their eyes almost popped out in surprise.“Ren! It really is you! I've wanted to see you for so long! This is awesome!” Mandy gave Renee a big hug and said excitedly, "Ren, we haven't seen each
The voice that Renee had not heard for four years was still as cold and distant as she remembered it to be.Renee listened quietly, with a calm expression and no inner turmoil.“Umm, M-Mr. Hunt, sorry to bother you...”Elon did not expect Stefan to pick up this fast, so he got nervous and stammered incoherently, "It's like this... My niece, Renee, just got back to Beach City today. It's a real surprise to see her again after she disappeared for so many years. You've taken good care of me in the last few years, so I want to invite you to my house for a meal together with Ren. You...”“There's no need.” Stefan, on the other end of the phone, refused without any hesitation or emotion.After that, without saying anything else, he hung up the phone.“But Mr. Hunt... Mr. Hunt?”Elon called out to him a few more times but the only response he got was the sound of a disconnected call.He tried calling again, but it seemed like Stefan had blocked him.“Ren, don't mind it... Mr. Hunt mu
Now, she had been through storms and hell, and was riddled with wounds and scars. There was no way to go back to those innocent, carefree days now...“Ren, look at you and your mother back then. You're both so beautiful that you glowed. You look completely different from us, as if your genes have mutated.”Mandy had come in at some point. She sighed, looking at the family portrait.“Nonsense. You're beautiful too. As expected of a girl from our Barnes family.” Renee turned around and held Mandy's face, which still had some baby fat, in her hands while praising Mandy from the bottom of her heart.Mandy's facial features were not stunning, but they were very soft and lovely, and they drew people in.It was a face that would do very well in the entertainment industry because it would be popular with the general public. She was blessed!“Hehe, I agree with that. I'm beautiful too. Let me tell you a secret, Ren. I'm actually an influencer that has over two million fans online. My ID
The Baldwin family was so excited that they couldn't sleep. They waited at the exit of the airport eagerly for a long time."Dad, you can't be this fierce. The past is the past. What's important now is Justin has brought Ms. Ren home. He didn't let us down. And don't scare her off again. Just smile!" Sophia boldly reminded Austin, who looked stiff, for the sake of the bigger picture."Why should I smile? I'm born like this. I hate smiling!" Austin retorted stubbornly. His face grew stiffer and he looked more solemn. "Why can't you take my advice? Ms. Ren came to a strange city all alone. I'm sure she's scared, but you're going to be so fierce to her. If you scare her off, you'll make a scene again. It'll be too late if you regret it by then!" Sophia nagged, insistent on explaining the interests at stake."Okay, stop. Dad's always like that. He's a general. No general loves to smile. When did he ever smile? Stop forcing him. We'll do the smiling." Jack dragged Sophia to the side, f
In the past, Renee recalled hurting Justin once. If she chose to get off the plane, she couldn't regret it. For a moment, she was unsure. She wondered if she was ready to make such a huge decision."It's fine. I told you, it's not too late if you don't get off the plane," Justin whispered. Although he looked hurt, he remained gentle and kind. "You have one minute to reconsider.""No, that's unnecessary." After taking a deep breath, Renee finally made up her mind. "I'll go with you."She had made such a decision after much contemplation. Since she was bold enough to board the plane, then she could get off it."Alright!" Justin's eyes brightened. He walked over and interlocked his fingers with hers. "You don't have to be scared. I'll be with you every step of the way. Let's face everything together."They walked side-by-side as they got off the plane.They took an individual pathway to exit the airport since they rode the exclusive plane of the Baldwin family. The Baldwin family ha
"I'm sorry!" Renee blurted—she realized her selfishness."I admit that I took you as a substitute. I wanted to get out of that suffering relationship, and I didn't care about your feelings. I'm so sorry."At first, she wanted to forget Stefan and start a new relationship. And then, Justin risked his life to save her. On top of that, they were compatible in various aspects. She felt that she could spend the rest of her life with him.However, Renee realized that her actions were purely self-serving. She never considered Justin's feelings or asked about his willingness. She merely took him as a convenient tool. "No, you did nothing wrong," Justin said. "You have your choices. Likewise, I have my choices too."He stared at Renee passionately, his teary eyes filled with pain, and held her hand. "I chose you. I want to stay with you while you're trying to forget about him. I want you to be happy with me.""You…" Renee looked into Justin's eyes. His generosity, firmness, and thoug
"Mmph!" Renee was sitting beside the window, watching the floating clouds up in the sky when a sudden pain gripped her heart—as if it was clenched tight. "What's wrong?" Justin asked nervously. Sitting across from her, he could feel something wrong with her. "I'm fine." Renee shook her head and tried to soothe her stuffy chest. "My heart suddenly hurt just now. I guess it's because of the sudden weightlessness when the plane took off."Justin sighed in relief. "I've heard that some people might get dizzy or feel their ears ring because of weightlessness, but I've never heard of hearts aching.""It's fine. It's something rare, I guess. I'll feel better after a while." Renee waved his concerns away, taking a deep breath. She picked up the cup in front of her and sipped some water, and felt better. Perhaps the water had cooled her heart. However, Justin felt a little uneasy. He knew her heart wasn't his though their destination was the same."If you can't forget about him, yo
Stefan got involved with Briar. At the same time, something seemed to be wrong with Renee and she insisted on meeting Justin's parents. In short, they were lying to themselves.Xavier found it ridiculous that they would break up and date someone else, when in truth they loved each other passionately and had gone through so much together. They were just cowards who refused to face their problems head-on."Well said! I agree." For the first time, Leia and Xavier shared the same thoughts on the issues related to love. Aside from Stefan and Renee, there were many similar examples. Leia was convinced Liam was doing the same thing. She couldn't understand why they had to hurt themselves like that. It would be better to make peace.Suddenly, Xavier turned around and looked at Leia passionately, and declared with utmost seriousness, "So, we can't do that!" Having his face so close to hers so suddenly, Leia's heartbeat quickened. She pursed her lips and stood up shyly. "You're nuts
Justin walked over and tapped his wristwatch. "It's almost time. Let's go.""Okay." Renee nodded, then said to Leia, "Just go home and take good care of Liam. Tell my brother and kids that I'm fine. I'll be back at Beach City soon.""Uh…" Leia wanted to stop Renee from going to Beach City, but she couldn't find a reason to make Renee refuse. Of course, Renee had to stop the program which never responded."Fine. Take care. Call me immediately if anything happens!" Leia, enlightened, decided to respect Renee's choices. She hugged Renee and sobbed, "I hope you'll pick happiness no matter who you choose to be with!""Of course. I want you to do the same." Renee hugged Leia firmly.Then, she got into the small private plane bound for North City with Justin."She left…" Xavier muttered. He watched the plane take off for North City as he sat in the lobby, feeling complicated. He felt sorry for Stefan, but at the same time, he felt that Stefan had brought it upon himself. Being on
However, Leia didn't believe that Renee would have given up on Stefan. Based on their night chats a while ago, she could tell from Renee's tone that the latter was still confused about Stefan and couldn't part with him.It wasn't long ago, but now, Renee wanted to marry someone else. It was abnormal."Yes, I did…" Renee coldly looked ahead and added, "I did just now.""What?" Leia's eyes went wide, and she didn't stop questioning Renee. "What happened just now? Nothing happened!""Let me be frank with you." Renee decided to be honest with Leia since Leia insisted on getting to the bottom of it. "Justin told me something the night he saved us. Stefan informed him and asked him to come to our rescue.""I know that. And then?"Leia had heard the same story from Justin. She and Liam kept cursing Stefan for being a dirty coward all night long. It was infuriating. Stefan didn't try to save his beloved woman, but made his rival in love do so instead. It seemed he had given up his belo
"What? You're going to meet his parents?" Leia cried in agitation when she heard that. She glared at Justin, then dragged Renee to the side to interrogate the latter."What's wrong with you, Ren? Why are you marrying someone else just after one night?" Leia pausing, finding her words odd, then corrected herself. "Oh, no! Are you going to remarry?""Justin is a good man. His grandpa was my grandpa's old comrade. Plus, his family is nice to me. And we survived this time because of the army Grandpa Baldwin gave me. I can't be ungrateful," Renee said, her tone calm and cold.Although it was ridiculous, Austin did give Renee that army as a wedding gift. She used that gift at a critical time, which meant she had accepted the Baldwin family. Naturally, she had to take her relationship with Justin to another level. "But…" Leia frowned, feeling that Renee was being impulsive. "But you were forced to use that army under that circumstance. It wasn't because you loved Justin that drove
Liam was an unruly rich heir who loved freedom, while Amber was a pure and ignorant young woman. It seemed they were a perfect match."Why did she suddenly give you a wedding gown? Obviously, she wants to marry you. Are you sure you don't want to say anything to her before leaving?" Xavier teased Liam, trying to sound the latter out.Everyone could tell that Amber liked Liam. Besides, it seemed like Liam also fancied Amber. If they parted ways, they might never see each other again. Their romance might end with a failure. What a pity! "There's nothing to say to her." Liam purposely looked aloof. "All I want is to get the hell out of here. I don't even want to waste another second here."Then, he strode into the airport lobby. Renee quickened her pace and walked alongside him. She looked at him, feeling sorry for him. "Are you sure you're going to leave like this?""I should long be gone." Liam kept his coldness, his tone impassive. "If I don't go now, I can't leave forever.""