"Yes, Master Luke called last night and said he and his family will be coming back for dinner," replied Mr. Griffin with a smile on his face."Alright. Have the kitchen get ready," said Old Master Crawford. This would be the first family dinner after Luca revealed her true identity.Even though Susan, Allison, and Louis and his family were not present, it was still considered a family feast. Old Master Crawford attached great importance to it."Don't worry, the cook and the maids went out early this morning to get the ingredients," assured Mr. Griffin. He knew how much Old Master Crawford prioritized this family gathering, and he had emphasized it to the cook when he informed her.Knowing that Old Master Crawford paid a lot of attention to this, the cook would undoubtedly put in 200% effort to prepare tonight's family dinner."Good. Have the chauffeur prepare the car. I’d like to go to the park for a while," said Old Master Crawford as he rose to his feet."Yes," replied Mr. Grif
After Susan had slightly calmed down, she decided to call Louis. However, she found out after dialing the number that Louis had actually blocked her.Susan had no choice but to contact Yuri instead. Yuri described their current situation vaguely, refusing to disclose where they were currently residing. Intrigued by the secrecy, Susan wanted to investigate further. She learned that the day after another family conflict erupted, Louis and his family did not stay at the Dunn family's place through the butler of the Dunn family.As for where they moved to, even the Dunn family’s butler was clueless. He even asked Susan in astonishment if Louis and his family had not gone back home.Susan was unsure how to respond at that moment. None of them had returned to the residence, and the spacious villa was now occupied only by her and a maid. Therefore, Susan came to the conclusion that Louis' family might be living in Crawford Manor.That was why Susan came over. It was quite ironic t
Susan rolled her eyes in annoyance. "I’m only asking you to make a phone call. What's the big deal?"If she could reach Louis on the phone, she would not have come here."Madam Crawford, Ms. Craw doesn't have Master Louis’ contact information," Aunt Neile explained on behalf of Luca."If she doesn't have it, then you must have it. You make the call," Susan did not care who made the call as long as Louis could be contacted.She wanted to know where he was."Madam Crawford, it might not be appropriate for me to do that... Master Louis probably won't answer my call." Aunt Neile hesitated.The maids would have their employer’s contact information. Aunt Neile was from Crawford Manor, so she should have Louis' contact information. However, they normally would not contact them as they did not want to disturb their employers unless there was something important to inquire about.Aunt Neile knew that there was a conflict between the mother and son. Otherwise, Susan would not have come
”Hmph. I bet you were the one who gave Louis the idea to run away from home with his family. What were you thinking, Luke?” Susan was all riled up with her hands on her hips as she picked a fight with LukeSince she could not care less about her own image, Luke could not be bothered to show her any respect. “I provided Louis and his family the apartment.”Susan pointed at him with a trembling finger. “So, it was you. How could you?”Then, Luke shot her a cold look and said, “If Louis wants to see you, he’ll call you. Otherwise, don’t even bother asking others where he is.”“Okay, fine. If you’re not telling me, I’ll go to your grandfather tomorrow. All of you are turning into rebels!” Susan left quickly after that.If she stayed any longer, she would die from anger because of Luke and Luca.Luca frowned as she watched Susan leave. Just as she was about to say something, she heard Luke tell Aunt Neile, who just walked out of the kitchen, “Follow her and close the door behind her.”
After what he said, Luca got out of the car feeling relieved.Luke took the bag out of the trunk and said, “Let’s go in.”The children were all smiles as they walked in front while Luca, and Luke walked behind.“Are you nervous?” Luke noticed her stiff expression.“I’m worried that Old Master Crawford will be mad at us for being so late.” Luca nodded. Having lived at Crawford Manor for so long, she knew that Old Master Crawford hated tardy people.“He’s looking forward to your return.” Luke held her hand. He led her through the front yard and into the living room.The children were gathered around the old man, talking to him with smiles on their faces.Luca walked in and saw that Old Master Crawford was not upset, so she breathed a sigh of relief before greeting him, “Good evening, Old Master Crawford.”“Haha, good evening, Luca.” Old Master Crawford did not ask Luca to change the way she addressed him, nor did he change the way he addressed her.Luke had reminded him that Luc
Mr. Griffin nodded as he listened. Then, he packed away the herbs together with the maid. Old Master Crawford had just finished the fourth game of chess with Luke. He looked at the chessboard and grumbled, "I give up, I give up. I can't beat you at all."Luke, placing his chess pieces down, replied, "Grandpa, you've been playing chess in the park all this time. Your skills should've improved.""I play with those old guys, but none of them can beat me. They're slow. How can my skills improve? You should come back and play with me whenever you have time. Otherwise, how will my chess skills improve?" complained Old Master Crawford, feeling helpless.Having played chess for decades, he found himself unable to beat his grandson, who had little time for the game. It was quite embarrassing."Alright, you've had your fun, Grandpa. I have something to discuss with you," said Luke as he placed the tidied chessboard aside.Old Master Crawford's custom-made chess board was a cherished posse
"Yes." Luke nodded. He knew Old Master Crawford wanted to see photos of Nyla. He slowly pulled out his phone, "It's a girl, and she looks a lot like Luca.""There must be photos. Show me." Old Master Crawford's eyes sparkled with excitement. To him, having many children was a sign of a flourishing family.Zachary only had two children. Old Master Crawford felt it was a little unfortunate for him. However, Luke and Luca had brought good news now. They had already blessed him with three adorable great-grandkids.After learning about the existence of the fourth child, Old Master Crawford was extremely excited. He had been wanting to ask about the fourth child, but Luke had been busy. That was why he had not seen the photos yet."Yes." Luke opened the photo album and handed his phone to the old master.After Old Master Crawford took the phone from him, he looked at the photos. He felt his vision turn slightly blurry. He picked up the reading glasses beside him and wore them. He coul
"Old Master Mallory, please don't blame yourself. After all, Madam Mallory blessed the Mallory family with two outstanding heirs." Mr. Bennet knew that going on like this would make the old master all gloomy and miserable, so he tried to console him.As the years piled on, it would be best to see things clearly and not overthink. There was no need to dwell on every little thing.Old Master Mallory shook his head in response to Mr. Bennet’s words. "What kind of outstanding heirs are we talking about here? One of them is rebellious and picked the wrong woman to be his wife. The other one, well, let's not talk about him. If he wasn't in the Mallory family, the stuff he pulled would've landed him in hot water ages ago."Mr. Bennet, wanting to say some comforting words, found himself unable to. Percy and Nina were indeed not a good match, but Mr. Bennet did not see it as a significant problem. What was the big deal as long as Nina truly loved Percy?The Mallory family no longer ne
“As long as he stays out of your sight, I won’t make a move,” said Ray.If Gordan were not one of Luke’s pals, he would have been long gone.Anyone who dared to mess with someone Ray cherished would not be let off easily. The only reason Gordan was still breathing was thanks to Luke.“Alright, Ray. Just let it go. I’ve moved on and started a new life. Plus, I’m studying at Capital University. We have mutual friends, so running into him is inevitable. If that happens, we’ll just be strangers. There’s no need to step in for me or act impulsively.” Just as Vivian finished speaking, the doorbell rang.“Is it the clothes delivery?” asked Ray.“No, while you were talking with Mr. Crawford, I asked someone to buy some medicinal cream. The ones here work better than the ones in Russia. A little massage with it should help you heal faster,” Vivian said, grabbing a mask and hat before heading to the door.“Miss, is the boss alright?” asked one of Ray’s subordinates.“He’s fine. Did you ge
When Ray heard that there was a 90% chance of success, he could not help but ask, “Can you walk me through your plan?”“The prison where Kassy is being held actually has an underground passage. I’ve already spoken with the prison officials, and we can use that passage to transport her out. It connects to the sewage system, which leads directly to another detention facility. "The only catch is that this facility’s underground pipes don’t connect to the outside world, so the remaining 10% risk lies in moving Kassy onto the main road and securing her at the new location.“This whole operation can be done without anyone noticing, which is why I’m confident it’ll work.” As Luke explained, he pulled out a detailed map of the sewer system. “Here’s the layout I had someone retrieve. This is the starting point, and this is the destination. If we take this route, we can move Kassy without alerting Abel’s people.”Abel’s men were keeping a constant watch outside the prison now. That was prec
Luke had no idea what kind of mindset the person who poisoned Vivian had. However, he found Gordan’s current behavior quite intriguing.“Luke, what’s with that look?” Gordan felt uneasy under his gaze.“You seem pretty concerned about Vivian,” Luke leaned back on the couch and said thoughtfully.Gordan froze for a moment before laughing it off. “What? No way! Why would I care about her? Come on, Luke, don’t say stuff like that. If she hears it, she might start getting ideas.”Luke could not be bothered to expose his act and got straight to the point. “Why are you here?”“Speaking of that, I almost got sidetracked by that woman.” Gordan quickly pulled out his phone, grimacing. “Man, Ray really didn’t hold back. I need to get some treatment for these bruises later.”Luke took the phone and tried to unlock it. It needed a passcode. He handed it back. “Unlock it.”“All set, boss.” Gordan unlocked the phone and went back to pressing an ice pack against his face.Luke scanned the scr
It was the sound of a body slamming onto the ground.Gordan’s furious curses rang out. “Damn it! You're really going all out, huh? Do you think I'm scared of you?”Another loud thud followed.Vivian frowned. What the hell were they doing? Were they really going to fight until one of them won?Both of them were skilled fighters. If they kept this up, neither would walk away unscathed.“Enough!” shouted Vivian.The two men locked in the fight froze for a moment.“Vivian, stay out of this. I’m beating him to a pulp today,” growled Ray, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. He was not in great shape, but neither was Gordan.“Ray, I don’t want to see him,” said Vivian. She did not want Ray fighting him. It was not to protect Gordan but because she did not want Ray getting hurt.Also, she definitely did not want Gordan to see her like this. She could already picture his smug face, his sarcastic remarks and his gloating.“Fine. If you don’t want to see him, I’ll just beat
After returning to the hotel from the hospital, Vivian felt much better.To her, the fact that Ray had taken her to the hospital meant there was hope for the future, which lifted her spirits. She picked up an apple from the fruit platter the hotel had provided and took a bite.“Ray, this apple is really good. Want to try one?” asked Vivian.Ray shook his head. “You go ahead. By the way, can I take a look at the luggage you brought from Russia?”Vivian nodded. “I only hung up my clothes. Everything else is still in the suitcase. You can just take the things out.”Ray walked into the bedroom, pulled out her suitcase, and opened it. Inside were just books and a few other small items, nothing unusual.“You didn't bring any food with you?” asked Ray.“I haven’t really been in the mood, but the food here is way better than Russian food, so I didn't feel the need to bring anything.” Vivian’s tone was lighthearted now that she was in a better mood.“That's true.” Ray agreed, then asked
Ray's tone turned serious. “Alright, I'll make the arrangements immediately. Dr. Craw, once the toxicology report is out, we’ll still need your help.”“For toxicology cases like this, I recommend combining both modern medicine and traditional herbal medicine. Don’t worry, if I can help, I definitely will,” Luca assured him.“Alright, thank you.” Ray expressed his gratitude and ended the call before updating Luke on the situation.Luke reassured him, saying, “If Vivian was really poisoned, don’t worry. Previously, Luca discovered that her biological mother had been poisoned with a slow-acting toxin. She prescribed herbal medicine and used purely traditional herbal medicine to detoxify her. It didn’t take long for all the toxins to be expelled, and her health fully recovered. So, rest assured. If it’s something she can fix, she’ll do everything she can.“Besides, once we identify the exact problem, the doctors will be able to step in and help, right?”“Yes. Thank you both in advance
Gerald walked over. “Ms. Sanchez, what's wrong?”He was eager to get back upstairs and stash his cigarettes before someone noticed and took them.Hera yanked open his bag, glanced at the cigarette brand, and scoffed. “I thought it was some expensive brand. But it's just this? And you’re acting all deferential to her over this?”Gerald was rendered speechless. “I knew Ms. Craw was going out, so I asked her to bring these back for me. This is the brand I’m used to. Maybe it’s not expensive to you, but for me, it’s what I can afford.”Realizing she had misspoken, Hera felt a bit awkward. She quickly changed the topic. “Still, is a pack of cigarettes really worth you being so grateful to Luca? How much could it have cost?”“It’s not about the money,” replied Gerald. “It's just a nice surprise. I never expected to get anything out of helping Ms. Craw, and this kind of unexpected gift has nothing to do with the price. Besides, I'm not being overly grateful. I'm just happy.”He was ba
Luca’s lips were already swollen and flushed from Luke's kisses.That deep shade of red, reflected in Luke’s eyes, was utterly captivating. It tugged at his nerves, stirring an uncontrollable desire within him.At that moment, he had only one thought, and it was to completely lose himself in her.…The two of them stepped out of the bedroom.Vivian quickly turned her back and greeted Luke when he saw him coming out, “Hello, Mr. Crawford.”“Vivian, don’t worry. Everything will get better,” replied Luke.Vivian simply hummed in response.Ray gave them a grateful nod as Luke took Luca’s hand and led her away.It was only after hearing the door close that Vivian finally turned back around.Ray glanced at her and said, “Vivian, they’re your friends. You don’t have to act this way around them. They won’t judge you.”“I know they won’t…” Vivian let out a soft sigh. “I just feel like I look terrifying right now. I didn’t want to scare them, so I avoided facing them directly. But it’
“I once treated someone who had been slowly poisoned over a long period of time. Their pulse was similar to Vivian’s. Given that your family has good genetics, yet Vivian is different from the rest of you, and her skin improved after leaving her original environment, all of this confirms my suspicion.“Could it be that someone in your family has been poisoning Vivian? That would explain why her skin ended up like this.”“If she really has been poisoned, then would staying away from that environment or identifying the person responsible help her get better?” asked Ray.Luca shook her head.“The poison I’ve encountered before was a slow-acting toxin that kept the victim’s skin dark. I don’t know exactly what it was, but long-term exposure to any poison has an effect on the body. It's just a suspicion now. I need to consult someone I know. And honestly, I can’t be sure what’s really causing Vivian’s condition.“Is her skin deteriorating so quickly because she was poisoned once more a