Liam was about to give Aiden a huge lecture, but the little one interrupted him."Daddy Liam, I have a question. Is it wrong wanting to protect Mommy?""Of course not. We're men. It's our duty to protect her.""Do you think I'm just a kid stupid enough to be tricked by the bad guys?""No, of course not. Adie is such a smart boy. You're the one who'll be fooling the bad guys.""That's right… I want to protect Mommy and help her. I can keep myself safe. So what did I do wrong?""Uh..." Liam rubbed his chin and instantly agreed with Aiden. Aiden had a good point.Liam backtracked immediately and advised Renee instead, "I think Adie has a point. His punishment was unfair. Well, don't be angry. I think… Maybe you should apologize to Adie.""Liam!" Renee stomped her feet in anger. "He's just a foolish kid. How can you go along with him? Are you trying to piss me off?!""I'm just being honest. Adie isn't an ordinary child. You should respect him and give him the freedom to play. Don'
Renee had led a reclusive life in the past few years and focused on her experiments at Sun Island. She was oblivious to the outside world and naturally did not know about Mr. Q's story.She was a little frightened to hear about the mysterious Mr. Q from Liam and quickly pulled Adie aside to check on him carefully. She asked nervously, "Did that… Demon… Or whatever he’s called hurt you or do anything strange to you?""Nope. Mr. Q was nice to me. He gave me whatever I wanted. I asked him to work for you, and he agreed… But he's a little busy lately. He said he had to go out of town. I'll arrange for you two to meet when he's free."Aiden crossed his arms, looking like a leader with everything under his control. Renee furrowed her brows, still feeling puzzled. "It's so strange. Mr. Q is a powerful man. He even made a deal with Briar. Why didn't he hurt Adie? He even promised Adie to be my follower?!"Liam thought it was not a big deal. He randomly guessed, "What else could it be? H
However, the more Renee behaved this way, the more worrying it was.Liam thought venting negative emotions was necessary. How Renee constantly repressed her emotions might make matters worse in the long run. Therefore, Liam and Leia discussed the need to find a way for Renee to vent.After the discussion, Leia patted her chest and reassured Liam confidently, "Fine. I understand. I'm good at that. Just leave it to me!"Leia finally broke up with William after he was rescued. She had been suffocating anyway and could not wait to vent!At the moment, Renee was sitting in a conference room at Azure Group headquarters. It was an important meeting with the company's executives.Renee was not nominated to hold any position in Azure Group over the past few years. Liam had made all the major decisions as the company president. Even so, the executives knew Renee was the soul of the company.Azure Group was just a small technology company in the industry. Without Renee's effort behind the s
Renee seemed unruffled by Laura's questions. She responded calmly, "The only way for a technology company to last in the long run and avoid being a middleman dealer is to establish major centers for production as well as research and development. Meanwhile, a normal enterprise generally needs three to five years from inception to profitability…""Azure Group has been established for four years. Soon, we'll reach the fifth year. I promise you that this year will be a good year. Everyone here will make a big fortune!"The management unceremoniously disagreed with Renee's ambitious words."You're talking big again… Ms. Everheart, you've been talking big for the past four years. When will we get something real?""The industry is declining now. Our competitors are cutting back costs with layoffs and plant closures. Keeping costs low is the most important right now, while you… How could you increase spending to build more production and R&D centres? That's such a waste of money!""I hea
"We're going to The Blue Inn. I booked the best seats and the strongest alcohol. We won't be going home sober tonight!" Leia sounded like she was already tipsy and excited.The Blue Inn!This bar was very popular as of late. Renee had heard about it a long time ago.The Blue Inn was the place women frequented when they wanted to be entertained.In the current era, women in the city were under a lot of stress. Those who worked, those who had failed relationships, those with children, and those taking exams… Like men, they all needed a way to relax.When this bar was launched, it became very popular right away. That's why Renee hadn't been able to make a reservation there all this time. She had long wanted to go there to experience what it felt like.Without wasting any time, Renee walked out of the office and hailed a taxi to get to The Blue Inn.Although it wasn't even nighttime yet, The Blue Inn was already crowded.All the men who worked there, including the waiters, the bart
The music being played in the bar was excellent, and the lighting was also splendid. Renee and Leia, two women who weren't faring well in their love lives, each held a bottle of alcohol in their hands. They danced fervently to the upbeat music and ignored everything and everyone else."Ren, you're not an emotionless person. I'm sure you feel something about Stefan being gone. I'm certain you're feeling sad right now. You want to cry and let it all out, don't you?" Leia asked."Don't think too much. Just cry to your heart's content. All the women here cry over love, and I'm one of them. Stop pretending to be strong. It's not wrong for women to cry!" Leia shouted amidst the loud chatter around them."Hahaha! I'm not sad. I'm happy. Can't you see?" Renee was smiling from ear to ear. She took a few more large gulps of alcohol. "That guy is like a ticking time bomb. I couldn't even sleep in peace with him around. Now that he's detonated on his own, I'm no longer in danger. If anything, I
The women were very protective of Isaac.In the beginning, Renee didn't take them seriously. However, after watching this male escort dance, she realized he really was gifted for this industry.His full hips, thin lips, and those long fingers… Who could resist?"Isaac, you're so handsome! Isaac! Isaac!"Under the influence of alcohol, Renee was behaving completely unlike her usual self. Like the women around her, she began screaming excitedly at the men on stage.Perhaps, this was when women could truly relax.Leia was a little surprised by how Renee completely let herself go. It turned out this was what Renee liked… If she'd known earlier, she'd have made arrangements sooner!After the show ended, Isaac went off the stage. Everyone was still shouting for an encore.Renee jumped and screamed so hard that she was sweating and out of breath.After she and Leia returned to their seats, Renee immediately quenched her thirst by drinking alcohol. She soon finished drinking another b
Renee felt gravity pulling away from her. She wrapped her arms around Isaac's neck. "Hey, you sure are a professional male escort. You picked me up like a princess right away. Such a good boy!"Renee touched his face.His chin was extremely attractive, and the stubble on it was also a little prickly. His male hormones went through the roof!Isaac carried Renee into a high-class, private room under all the women's gazes.The room had dim lights that created a romantic ambiance. A large, round water bed was in the center of the room. Clearly, it was specifically designed for rich folks. It was hard not to think of inappropriate thoughts when one was inside."Why did you bring me here? You're not offering your body for money, are you? I didn't bring any money with me today. I can't afford you. Put me down!" Renee struggled to set herself free. She was at least sober enough to protect her own reputation. "I have boundaries. Although you are my type, I don't sleep with gigolos. Besides
"What is it, Mommy? You look so serious!" Adie touched his chin and looked at Renee seriously. He tried to make a guess. "I'm sure it's not something good because you don't look fine.""No, it's not something bad, but it might be a little change for you guys. I don't know if my idea is right or wrong." Renee frowned and hesitated. For a moment, she could not bring herself to tell them about it. "Just tell us, Mommy. Let's discuss it together. Then, we'll know if it's right or wrong." Abby blinked and sounded serious, too. Although Abby was not as smart as Adie, she was good at perceiving emotions. She could tell that Renee was unhappy. Moreover, she knew that the decision must be heartbreaking for Renee. It would be best if she and Adie could share the burden for Renee at that moment. "What a good girl you are, Abby!" Renee turned teary. She held Abby's chubby face and kissed the latter dotingly. "You're always my dear baby. And you, Adie…"Similarly, she rubbed Adie's ha
Austin left the tea room after saying that, leaving Renee there alone. She was both free and confined. She was free because no one was controlling her. She could leave at any time. However, she was also confined because the Baldwin family had controlled everyone except her. Austin would probably kill everyone if Renee did anything wrong. It would be more heartbreaking than killing her. She took a deep breath and stopped dwelling on it. She could only act accordingly. She went to The West Chamber, where she had once stayed, to see her children and others.The chamber came with a nice environment. Since it was spring, the plants were growing well in the warm weather. It was quite comfortable. Renee could hear her children talking loudly from afar."Abby, you have to stay here! I need to go away for a bit for something.""Adie, what are you trying to do? I want to go with you no matter where you go!""I'm going to run away to look for Mommy. If you go with me, I have to take
Renee could do nothing else but watch Sabre take Jovan away. "Don't worry. They can't do anything to me. I won't be worried since I'll be staying here. And I'll wait for your good news."Renee flexed her fingers and suddenly regretted everything. She knew Austin would not easily forgive them when Jovan insisted on going to the Baldwin residence with her. But at that moment, she was worried about Justin since he might be in grave danger. She could not accept it either because Jovan was too weak to soldier through any torture. She had no idea what to do if he failed to soldier through. She might never forgive herself."Grandpa Baldwin…" Renee took a deep breath and did not give up trying to beg Austin's mercy."You don't have to say too much," Austin sneered. "You'd better worry about yourself or your family. Did you forget that your brother and kids are still in my hands? Can you worry about too many people?" "Don't hurt them!" Renee almost lost her mind when she heard that.
"Mr. Hunt, please leave." Sabre kept a long face, his tone calm."I just came, but you made me leave. That's inappropriate!" Jovan looked at Sabre and refused to budge. He did not want to stay, but found Austin acting weird. He wondered if Austin wanted to use a more cruel means to torture Renee after driving him away. If he left, he would have escaped, but he could not imagine what Renee might face. Naturally, he refused to leave. "What else do you want?" Austin looked solemn and dangerous. He coldly added, "If you think you need to be punished, I'll grant your wish." He looked at Sabre, who quickly put Jovan under control."No, you got me wrong…!" Jovan did not expect Austin to turn hostile. He wanted to struggle free, but Sabre was one of Austin's rare confidantes and could fight well. He easily stopped Jovan from moving. Anxiety gripped Renee when she saw that. She immediately begged for Austin's mercy. "Grandpa Baldwin! Jovan is a crazy and childish man, like you
Renee's heart was well guarded. No one else could win her over except Stefan. Justin had tried hard and was once hopeful. But in the end, it was still futile. He ended up with endless humiliation. Hence, he learned from Renee and was on guard against others. He merely did not want to get hurt or feel disappointed."That's it. You can be the bold hero yourself."Justin swung off Jovan's hand and left."Damn! He's quite heartless too, just like Stefan!" Jovan was angry for no reason. He found it a pity since Justin had given Renee up, just like what Stefan had done. Those men claimed to love her but did not choose her firmly, and left at the most critical moment. After Justin was gone, the atmosphere in the room became more dangerous and stressful.Austin coldly stared at Renee and asked contemptuously, "My grandson is gone. Can you stop pretending?"It was hard to imagine such a scene. Austin once doted on Renee as if she were his granddaughter. But now, he regarded her as
"Oh, you're quite serious about it." Austin faked a smile, then addressed a subordinate standing beside him. "Since you insisted, I'll grant your wish." In a while, his subordinate came with a tray with dozens of needles in various shapes. Most of the needles were used for treatment. The needle would cause quite a lot of pain with only a slight jab. "Okay, let's stop joking. We're considered famous people. Stop using such a childish trick! It's embarrassing…" Jovan realized how serious the situation was. While teasing, he rebuked Austin's subordinate so the latter would remove the needles. However, the subordinate did not heed Jovan. He did not take Jovan seriously at all. Austin's subordinate politely extended his hand and coldly urged Renee, "Please go ahead, Ms. Everheart." "Okay." Renee flexed her fingers and took a deep breath. She swallowed and adjusted her mouth, ready herself to take a needle."Hey, moron! Are you going to sit there and watch?" Helpless, Jovan tried
Jovan cleared his throat and assumed his usual casual demeanor. "I lost my mind on the day of the engagement ceremony. I knocked Renee out and took her away. This incident has nothing to do with her. You guys can blame me. I should be the one to hang myself, too.""Jovan!" Renee glared at Jovan. "Don't take the blame for me. I won't thank you, either."Jovan turned and started arguing with Renee. "No, I'm not taking the blame for you. I was just telling the truth. I did knock you out and take you away that day. You didn't leave on your own!"He felt guilty toward Renee, especially when he saw her lying in bed and using an iron wire to cut her wrist so she could run away. It was a great shock to him.He realized he had nearly ruined her, body and soul. At that moment, he no longer wanted to compete for her. He felt that he might as well let her go and grant her wish. He just wanted her to be safe and happy, regardless of who she chose to be with.His greatest wish was to see her
Both Renee and Jovan finally arrived at the Baldwin residence under Sabre's escort.Austin was waiting in the tea room since he knew Renee was coming."I'm sorry, Grandpa Baldwin. I'm here to apologize to you." Sabre pushed them into the room.After entering the room, Renee realized that Justin was there too, sitting on Austin's left and pouring tea for Austin. Justin was no longer enthusiastic and close to Renee. Instead, he kept his head low and was busy. He did not even look at her, as if they did not know each other. "You want to apologize to me?" Austin sneered. He raised a cup of tea and sipped it. "Stop flattering me. Plus… You shouldn't be apologizing to me."Justin stopped what he was doing, but he was still unresponsive. He stared absent-mindedly ahead as if he were away from reality. He seemed like a different man. Renee had never seen this side of him, which filled her with sadness and guilt. She blamed herself for turning a carefree and bright youth into a gloo
"Cut the crap!" Sabre was a man who had undergone a lot of things and problems all year round. He abruptly gripped Jovan's chin and said coldly, "You can't keep your head for long. You'd better not waste your energy, and you should watch your tongue.""Well, there's something I should say." Jovan didn't resist as he grabbed the chance to touch Sabre's face. "What's your name, dude? Why are you doing this job at such a young age? How much did Austin pay you every month? I'll give you ten times your salary. Just betray him and work for me.""I'm going to kill you!" Sabre was always a serious man, and got furious because of Jovan's words. He was about to slap Jovan before Renee immediately stopped him."Don't do this, Sabre. Let's talk it out. He's the vice president of Hunt Enterprise, but you wanted to slap him. We should keep peace. Plus, he generally never watches his tongue, and he scolds his family more fiercely. Don't take him seriously." Renee tried her best to calm Sabre dow