The following day, the sun shone brightly. Elijah immediately sent Stefan all the pieces of information he had on Renee. After reading it, Stefan was shocked, and he had a new perception of her. They had been married for four years and were about to get a divorce, and only now did he find out that his wife was the infamous genius that graduated from BC University. She skipped two grades in high school and entered BC University without needing to take the exam. She studied Electronic Communications and Technology, majoring in Electromagnetic Field and Electromagnetic Wave Direction. She became the lecturer's assistant in her second year, and whenever she was in class, it would be full of students. During her second year of postgraduate, she went to Asken as an exchange student and continued to have exceptional grades. However, everything changed when she was in her final year. The Everheart family faced insolvency and declared bankruptcy. Her parents committed suicide because
Renee subconsciously pursed her lips but didn't answer him, thinking to herself, 'You're aware of what I misunderstood. Why are you pretending not to know?'Stefan's dark eyes focused on her, and he said, "I don't care what you misunderstood about me, but I don't want you overthinking things. I'm doing all this to thank you for saving me. Besides that, I have no other intentions." After hearing this, she laughed mockingly at herself. She knew she had read too much into his actions.He had never liked her in the past four years, so it was impossible that he had feelings for her now!"That's good." She relaxed instantly and joked, "After the divorce, we won't see each other anymore."Stefan merely pressed his lips together and didn't say a word. He was thinking of the same thing, but he didn't feel happy when he heard her say it.Renee rolled up her sleeves, pointed at her injury, and said, "See, my injury is healing. I can take care of myself. You can leave now."He looked at
"You?" Shocked was written all over Renee's face. He was an unwelcome guest! "Am I not welcomed here?" Haze asked with his hand shoved inside his pocket. His charming face, hidden under his cap, gave off a mysterious vibe to him. "I don't think we're that familiar with each other," Renee replied coldly. She didn't know why a hacker like him was here, and she was instantly wary and on guard at his presence. "Not familiar?" Haze repeated and laughed sarcastically. "We're a great team in the hacker world. Although we've never met each other, we've worked together online multiple times before. We should be old friends, right, Phoenix?" When Renee heard this, she smiled helplessly. As expected, he purposely let her win that day at Hunt Enterprise cause he had long known her identity. It didn't matter anyway since she wanted to meet him too, and he came on his own today, so it was perfect. "Hi, I'm Phoenix. You can call me Renee," she said, extending her hand to the man.
Renee didn't take Haze's threat seriously, and she threw the card away. She didn't care if he exposed her. After all, she saved Stefan's life. She hoped Stefan wouldn't be cruel to her just because of a little prank.However, she was curious about the problem Haze said about the Hunt family.'Is that why Stefan keeps getting targeted? Who would be bold enough to attack the Hunt family of Beach City publicly?' she thought to herself.At first, she wanted to ask Liam to check it out, but she felt it was unnecessary, seeing as she and Stefan were about to get a divorce soon.She put the thoughts back in her mind and decided to care for herself first. It was a pointless venture anyway, as she had never gotten any gratitude from the Hunt family in the past four years despite all the sacrifices she had made for them.Seeing as the weather was great today and she hadn't gone out to shop in a while, she called Leia. The two decided to meet at three in the afternoon in Paragon Plaza.Thin
Francine snorted and sized Renee from head to toe before mockingly saying, "Stefan won't even touch her, so how can she be pregnant? She's just a waste of our money." Francine's words were so cruel that Renee instantly clenched her fist when she heard them. Just as she was about to say something, Leia stepped forward and insulted Francine. "Hahaha! You're not that capable, either. One of your sons died, and the other had an affair. If I were you, I would reflect on why my sons are useless. Aren't you afraid your grandchildren will get karma because of your nasty remarks?" Before Renee had a divorce, Leia kept quiet and didn't interfere in their family matter. But now that Renee was getting a divorce, she wouldn't stay silent anymore. Francine was furious when she heard that, and she turned pale with anger as she pointed a finger at Leia. "You…" When Briar saw this, she felt that this was an opportunity for her to get on Francine's good side. She instantly stood between Franci
Thinking that an explanation was unnecessary, Renee returned the man's cold stare with a calm one and said, "She was slapped. There's more to say about it." It didn't matter if he considered her unreasonable or disgraceful. There was nothing to explain, and it wasn't necessary. Everything about the Hunt family was nothing important to her from the moment she decided to divorce Stefan. What's more, it was just a mistress and a shrew. Francine, with a shaking voice and an arrogant look, said, "Look, she admitted it. What are you still standing here for, son? Make her get down on her knees and beg for forgiveness!" Having stood by the side watching, Leia started to get irritated again and shouted, "Fuck your forgiveness! I wouldn't have slapped her if your mother and this bitch didn't call Ren a parasite and a barren!" Stefan furrowed his brows deeply when he heard her and turned to look at his mother and Briar. "Is that true?" Briar, feeling guilty, choked on her words
Renee's shopping mood was swept away after the misfortune of meeting Stefan and the two toxic women, so she went straight home after leaving the mall. The following day, she woke up early. After changing into a black dress and tying up her hair, she went to the florist to get a bouquet of daisies and then drove to the graveyard. It was the third of March, the death anniversary of her parents. It had been four whole years since they committed suicide, and she had never visited them. Everyone said she was a cold-blooded, ungrateful wretch who forsook her family to please the Hunts. But only she knew how much she loved her family. She was angry that they were not brave enough to live on, for their cowardice, their choice to leave in such a stupid and stubborn way, and for leaving her alone in the world! She hadn't visited their graves for so many years because she hadn't wanted to face or accept this reality. Yet, it was different now. She had gained the courage to face everyt
Renee returned home after leaving the graveyard. Just as she entered the door, she received a phone call from an unknown number. It was Briar. However, her tome was extremely polite and gentle, unlike her usual domineering tone when facing Renee. "I am sorry to disturb you, Ms. Everheart. I've been cleaning the room recently and found some of your personal belongings. Do you have time to come and get them tonight?" 'Was Briar always so kind?' Renee thought, obviously skeptical about it. What was she up to this time? Despite that, Renee did not hesitate and replied calmly, "Sure, I'll drop by and get them later." She left in haste last time, leaving some important belongings behind. Even if Briar did not call her, she would still find time to return to the villa to pick them up. At around eight in the evening, Renee got a cab and went straight to the Hunt family’s residence. The servants were somewhat distant because the previous mistress was visiting. They did not eve
Stefan remained quiet as he calmly watched Renee. He extended his hand to touch her face but retrieved it before he could.She used to be the woman he was familiar with and the one he had hugged and kissed countless times, but now, he didn't even dare to touch her. "I think she doesn't even want you here. She must hate you so much and is disappointed in you. She'll be even more pressured if you stay here, and it'll push her further from this world. So please, get the hell out of here if you want the best for her!"Justin could not hold himself back from scolding Stefan. If Jovan was telling the truth, Stefan must be aware of the fact that Jovan was holding Renee hostage. Yet, he remained indifferent and feigned ignorance. He didn't even care if Renee was fine. What a cruel bastard! Justin was disappointed in Stefan. He wanted nothing more than to see what was really on Stefan's mind."Take good care of her." Stefan did not want to defend himself. He glanced at Renee, relucta
"What did you do to her?!" Stefan interrogated Jovan coldly, his eyes teary. "She isn't the kind to kill herself! What the hell did you do to her?" "Try to wake her up if you want to know." Jovan was pale. His previous sickness, coupled with his recent blood donation to Renee, made him very weak. Despite that, he refused to stop infuriating others. "Do you think I can't do anything to you? Do you really think that?" Stefan could no longer hold himself back and strangled Jovan. "I'm going to kill you! Repent for the terrible things you've done!"He couldn't imagine the kind of thing that could force the strong and stubborn Renee to resist by using such a desperate means. "You obviously won't go easy on me! I'm sure of that!" Jovan sneered. His pale face turned flushed as he suffocated from Stefan's powerful grip. "But you'd better kill yourself first if you want to avenge her! She ended up like this because of you." "What?" Stefan's face was frosty. He strengthened his grip a
Jovan slowly got up from the ground, looking incredibly weak. He whispered, "She lost too much blood. The doctor claimed she's out of danger, but…she hasn't woken up.""What did you say?" Stefan and Justin were bewildered. They couldn't process his words."So, she was the female college student who tried to kill herself?" Stefan said. He staggered after linking the information he had heard from a nurse with the things that Jovan had said."Stop acting dumb! You're so smart, how could you have missed that?" Jovan glared coldly stared at Stefan, scrutinizing him in disdain. "You were just too scared to face the truth and your woman! You're such a coward! You're an embarrassment to your family!""Agreed!" Justin added; he suddenly found Jovan useful, especially when the latter started insulting Stefan. It felt just right."Although I'm a fallback guy, I'm braver than you. I accept that she doesn't love me, and I'm willing to give it a try with her. And although this guy's a vill
Stefan frowned, doubtful. He looked vigilantly at Jovan, who had collapsed on the ground. "What do you mean by this?"Jovan kept coughing and said nothing. His lips grew pale as he sneered.Justin's eyes were cold, and he held back his urge to beat up Jovan. "Hmph! Obviously, this is a scam!"He demanded condescendingly, "How dare you barge into my territory and take away my woman! Don't you fear my family and me at all?"Jovan, filled with disdain, looked at Justin as if he was a fool. "Stop talking. You don't even have the right to join this battle."To Jovan, only Stefan was qualified and powerful enough to be his enemy."How dare you say that!" Justin was infuriated. He got down on one knee and grabbed Jovan. "Your family always says nasty things! You two are the same. If we start fighting, I'll make sure to cut your tongue first!""Did I say something wrong?" Jovan sized Justin up, ridiculing Justin with mock compassion. "Don't you have any self-awareness? You're just a fal
Stefan frowned and asked solemnly, "Aren't you a top hacker? Hack into this hospital's inpatient system. Then, we'll know where she is.""Yes, you're right." Still, Justin wanted to challenge Stefan. He said indifferently, "But you're Jovan's cousin. It's more convenient for you to make a call instead of me hacking into their system."Yes, Justin could hack into their system, but calling Jovan would be quicker. And what they needed the most was time."He and I…" Stefan sneered, flexing his fingers. "The fact we didn't kill each other is considered peaceful. He's not as obedient as you think.""You'll know by calling him."Justin had heard about the complicated internal fights of the Hunt family, but he felt that Stefan was exaggerating."Jovan is a Hunt no matter what. Plus, he's still working at Hunt Enterprise. Just call him," Justin said. "Fine." Stefan found Justin logical. His private grudges with Jovan were not important because finding Renee immediately was the most impo
Both Stefan and Justin arrived at Grace Hospital quickly. However, Stefan suddenly stopped before he entered the hospital. He looked at Justin curiously."Let's go! It's urgent. Stop standing here!"Justin hurriedly ran. When he turned around, he found that Stefan had not caught up with him. Confused, he asked Stefan, "Something is puzzling me. Don't you want me to stop seeing her? Why did you let me come with you?" Stefan narrowed his eyes and interrogated Justin suspiciously, "Did you lie to me? Or are you plotting something?" "That's nonsense! Don't take me as you. I'm not full of schemes like you!" Justin sounded disdainful. In comparison to Stefan, Justin was not full of schemes. He also looked down upon Stefan since the latter was always vigilant.Justin answered honestly, "Yeah, I don't want you to meet her ever, but I'm sure she wants to see you if she's in danger. Yes, I hate you—but I want her to be happy." He guessed that Renee must be in a serious state since Jov
"Uh…" After some contemplation, Elijah nodded. "I know what to do, Mr. Hunt. It looks like you can see far beyond the current situation. Just leave this to me.""Of course, the most important thing is to have fun."Stefan remained calm; he didn't feel like he had stepped over the line. He merely wanted Justin to learn about the cruelty of the world since Justin was always being protected so well. Whenever he did something wrong, he had to pay a price for it.Besides, Stefan merely did it for his aunt, who had taken the gunshot for nothing. When they reached a consensus, Justin came to meet Stefan. "Hey…" After a pause, he said with dissatisfaction and helplessness, "Would you like to go with me?"Stefan raised his brows in confusion."I mean, do you want to visit Phoenix with me?" Justin sighed. He looked naive, like a college student, as he confessed, "I found Jovan. I don't know why he's so good at countersurveillance. After exiting the emergency room, he transferred her to
"So, what do you want to do?" Stefan asked emotionlessly. He kept watching Nora, who was lying unconscious in the ward."At the very least, we have to teach the Baldwin family a lesson and make the public aware of your family's power as the head of The Great Eight of Beach City. It's not just about venting anger, but more about which side the various great families will take. It concerns the future of your family, too. We can't take it lightly!"Elijah could not hide his indignation. As Stefan's assistant, he was no longer merely an ordinary employee. He was loyal to Stefan and the Hunt family. He couldn't bear to see Stefan suffer any injustice or watch the Hunt family get humiliated. If Stefan hadn't stopped him, he would have gathered all the manpower to fight the Baldwins. Although he had fought Cadmus and Tiger, he had yet to defeat them. He tried to figure out a way to make a counterattack, his face shadowed in gloom.Stefan turned and calmly looked at Elijah. "How shoul
When Justin was willing to send them on an errand again, Cadmus was eager to express his loyalty."No, you don't have to risk your lives for me. That's bloody and horrible. All you need to do is find someone for me." After a pause, Justin added, "Jovan Hunt, Stefan's younger cousin." Cadmus clenched his fists and said fiercely, "It's another Hunt! Old Master Baldwin is right. The Hunt family is full of bad people. If we knew, we shouldn't have dismantled the bombs in Hunt Enterprise. The Hunt family has strengthened their security system now. It's hard to set up bombs there if we want to." Justin felt a headache when he heard Cadmus babbling. He rubbed his temples, and said tiredly, "Stop. We don't have to blow up Hunt Enterprise. I just want to find him. Do you get me? Find him. That's enough!"He stressed his intention of locating Jovan as if he were giving a simple and clear order to robots. Most of the time, Cadmus and Tiger were like AI. Real robots were probably more obedie