Joseph sighed and said, "It wasn't my old comrade who answered the phone, but a young woman. She said my old friend isn't home and asked us to come another day."Timothy frowned but remained silent. That didn't make much sense. Why wouldn't his phone be with him if he wasn't home? It was obvious they weren't very welcome. Joseph's face dimmed slightly—he had a feeling what this meant.Cora, standing nearby, shot him a bitter smile. "Could it be that your friend doesn't want us to visit him, dear?"Joseph smiled wryly. "But I already talked to him about it. He seemed happy to have us over. I didn't expect it to turn out like this—"Before he could finish, the phone rang again. Joseph quickly glanced at it and answered. On the other end came a hearty, strong voice, clearly from an older man."Hey, Joseph! I'm so sorry about earlier. My granddaughter picked up the phone—she knows no better and has no tact. Please don't take any offense! Where are you now? My wife and I have been wait
Timothy raised an eyebrow. After years of training, he could easily read people's personalities at a glance. Though the woman appeared warm and beautiful, he had noticed her quick glance at his family, revealing a hint of disdain. He sensed that she might be the type to look down on the poor and favor the wealthy. Nonetheless, he kept quiet, following his parents silently. The woman was the first to speak, smiling as she greeted them. "You must be Joseph and family?"Joseph smiled nervously. "Yes… that's us.""Come in, come in. Zayn has been waiting for you for a while!"As soon as they stepped inside, a hearty laugh filled the room. A lean elderly man, full of energy and dressed in an army green shirt, strode over with a beaming smile."Joseph!""Zayn!" Joseph, equally excited, grasped the old man's hand tightly.Tears glistened in Zayn's eyes as he held onto Joseph's hand, refusing to let go. "Joseph! It's been ten years since we last saw each other! A whole decade!"Emoti
The atmosphere grew tense as Joseph and Cora exchanged uneasy glances, unsure how to respond.Just then, Zayn frowned and shot an annoyed look at Winnie. "What are you asking about? His job is classified. You can't just ask about it!"He turned back to Joseph, smiling apologetically. "Sorry about that, Joseph. My wife didn't mean anything by it. She was just concerned."Hearing it was classified, Winnie's heart skipped a beat. That had to mean he was some big shot. She quickly smiled. "Yes, Joseph, don't take it the wrong way. If it's inconvenient to talk about, no problem. I tend to speak without thinking sometimes."Joseph gave a forced smile and glanced at Cora. He let out a soft sigh and said, "Zayn, to be honest, I left that job a few years after returning home.""You left?" Zayn was surprised. "Why did you leave? Back then, that position had a lot of potential. I remember when I ventured into business, I was even a bit jealous of you!"Suddenly, Zayn's face lit up as if he
Winnie walked out of the kitchen with a dark expression, her friendly smile from earlier completely gone, replaced by disgust and disdain.Zayn pointed angrily at her and yelled, "Who's in charge here, you or me? Have you lost your mind? This is my former squad leader, what do you think you're doing?"Winnie rolled her eyes and scoffed, saying, "He's your squad leader, not mine! To me, they're just a couple of trash collectors. I've already thrown out the food. If you want to eat, go to a restaurant. I'm not cooking today!""You—ugh!" Zayn was so angry his vision darkened. He turned to Joseph with an apologetic look and said, "Joseph, I'm really sorry. My wife just doesn't know any better. Please don't hold it against her."Joseph looked at Winnie with a bitter smile. "Winnie, I'm sorry for the trouble today.""Hmph, it's no trouble. I didn't even bother to host you."With another dismissive eye roll, Winnie turned and stormed off to her room. Zayn, furious, slammed his hand on t
Zara frowned. "Why does Flynn have to get involved in this? Can't you all handle your own stuff? What a hassle!"Zayn slammed the table, his face flushed with anger. "What are you saying? Timothy is your older brother! Remember that—we're all family! And let me remind you, we even arranged a childhood engagement between you two back in the day. You—""Enough, Zayn!" Winnie interrupted sharply, her face showing displeasure.Zara's face turned red, then white. She shot Timothy a cold, disdainful look and spat out, "Childhood engagement? Hah! I'd rather die than be involved with him!" Then, without waiting for a response, she stormed off, slamming the door behind her.Zayn realized he might have said too much and gave Joseph an apologetic smile.With a sigh, Joseph, full of regret, said, "Zayn, I'm so sorry for causing you all this trouble over my son's job. And as for that childhood engagement, let's just forget about it. It was a drunken joke, nothing more. Timothy isn't worthy o
Zara and Winnie immediately came out of their rooms and went to the door. Standing outside was a young man dressed in a sleek black suit, his hair neatly slicked back and glasses framing his face. He looked handsome and dashing. It was Flynn Cooper.Winnie's face lit up with a broad smile. "Flynn! Come on in, quickly! Oh, look at you, bringing gifts again! You really didn't have to."Zara's face also softened into a happy smile as she looked at Flynn. She felt incredibly proud—her boyfriend was so successful.Flynn smiled politely. "It's my pleasure, Mrs. Lane. I brought some health supplements from overseas. Please accept them."Winnie's smile grew even wider, "Oh, Flynn, you're too generous! Come in, come in!" She took the gifts from his hands, and as she glanced around, her eyes landed on the boxes of fruit that Joseph and Cora had brought earlier. With a mocking smirk, she said, "Some people, even at their age, still don't know basic manners. Look at Flynn here—he knows t
With just one glance, Flynn could tell that Joseph's family was poor and unsophisticated. He felt a surge of disdain and contempt. "This man, my uncle? Please!" he thought to himself. However, since Zayn had already introduced them, Flynn plastered on a polite smile and said, "So this is Mr. Yeager's family. Nice to meet you, Mr. Yeager!"Joseph quickly nodded with a smile. "This must be Zara's boyfriend? What a fine young man!"Zayn laughed heartily. "You're too kind, Mr. Yeager! Now that everyone's here, let's head to a restaurant for dinner."Joseph hurried to his feet, smiling. "Zayn, let my family handle dinner today. We've come to ask for your help, and we'd feel bad making you spend money."Zayn glared at him with mock anger. "Why are you being so formal with me, Joseph? We've practically been sworn brothers for so many years—do you think I care about one meal?"Joseph quickly shook his head. "No, I insist! Zayn, listen to me this time. It's our turn."In a corner, Zar
Zara immediately frowned, her face full of disdain. "No way. I don't want to. I just had my car cleaned, and I don't want it getting dirty!" She glanced at Joseph and Cora's dusty shoes as she spoke.Zayn's face darkened in anger. "Zara! Get the car right now!"Seeing that her father was upset, Zara had no choice but to grumble under her breath and go get her car. Soon, a Mercedes C-Class pulled up. Sitting in the driver's seat, she rolled her eyes at Timothy and snapped, "What are you waiting for? Do you need me to invite you personally?"Cora, trying to appease her, walked carefully to the car, bending down slightly. "Zara, you can go ahead. We'll just take a cab. It's really fine."Zara, clearly irritated, replied, "I said get in, so get in! Stop wasting time."Cora's smile faltered. "Oh… okay!" She opened the door, and she and Joseph helped Tiana into the car.Timothy, however, stood still. Cora called out, "Timothy, come on, get in the car!"He shook his head. "Mom, Dad