Old Master Rayne lost two straight games to Luke. He patted Lanie's cheek and said, "But I'm better than your Great-Grandpa!" "Nonsense! I'm the one who taught Luke how to play chess. If you can't beat him, then you're not better than me!" Old Master Crawford was not willing to admit defeat. "And the student surpasses the master. Luke is a better player than you. If you don't believe me, you can stay here for the night, and I'll play you until you're satisfied," Old Master Rayne said. He usually played chess alone, and Old Master Crawford rekindled his interest. "Challenge accepted. After dinner, I'll show you who's the better player!" Old Master Crawford was determined to win. "Let's eat," Luke reminded them. "Right, let's have dinner. We shouldn't let the children starve." Old Master Rayne pushed himself up with the help of the table and his walking stick. His physical condition had declined after the operation, and he could only walk with the help of a walking stick. Bia
Luke was also reluctant to be separated from her for so many days. He hugged her tightly and said, "We'll send the children back to Crawford Manor, and you can come along with me." Bianca knew that the children would be taken care of in Crawford Manor, but there were other reasons she could not leave. She leaned on his chest and said unhappily, "I have to attend to my company. There's St. Heckler's new project, and Nina is in the hospital. I'll have to take over her work." Luke stroked her hair gently, feeling a little sorry for her. She would not have been so busy if he had not supported her decision to start her own company. He could only accept that she was too busy with work to accompany him on a business trip. "I'll be back as soon as I can." "Mm," Bianca replied. She glanced at the suitcase next to them and hugged him even more tightly. Luke held her arm and carefully examined it. The redness had dissipated, but the bruise became even more obvious. He led her out of t
Tommy flopped over, though his eyes remained closed as he mumbled, "I'm not going anywhere today, Mommy. I only want to sleep." Bianca was at a loss of what to do. Her son looked too adorable, and she could not bear to wake him up. Tommy had slept for nine hours since the night before, and he already had slept enough. Bianca opened the closet and took out Tommy's day clothes. Her phone started ringing. Bianca put her son's clothes away and answered the call. "Bea." Luke's voice was heard on the other end of the call. Bianca was surprised; she did not look at the call notification before answering it. "Aren't you flying yet?" "Not yet," Luke replied. "Is Tommy awake?" "He hasn't," Bianca said helplessly. She could not persuade him, but the little boy was too young to be punished. It seemed as though only Luke could deal with Tommy. "Turn on the speaker." Luke had guessed that Tommy did not want to wake up, which was why he made the call. Bianca did what she was told an
Bianca brought the framed five-foot-long cross-stitch into the living room. Queenie quickly went forward and helped her, "That's so heavy! Why didn't you get the caretaker to help you?" After they put the cross-stitch on the couch, Bianca smiled and said, "It's not very heavy, Mom. Where's Dad?" "He knows that Tommy is coming, and he's messing around with something in the study." Queenie bent slightly and patted Tommy's head. "Good morning, Grandma!" Tommy greeted Queenie. "Good morning! You're a good boy, Tommy!" Queenie looked at her grandson lovingly. She grabbed a handful of candy on the coffee table and stuffed them in Tommy's hands. All children loved candy, including Tommy. He held the candy in his hands and said sweetly, "Thank you, Grandma! I love you the most!" "Do you love Grandpa then?" Jack said as he walked down the stairs. He heard what Tommy said earlier. Tommy turned his head to look at Jack and nodded. "I love you too, Grandpa!" Jack was happy as he lo
Bianca did not know what to say when she saw Queenie sigh. She turned around and played with Tommy. If she had known that Leia was bringing Brody home, she would not have come. Jack held Queenie's hand. "We'll see what happens." Queenie nodded, though she remained dejected. "I think we owe Leia a lot, Jack." Leia was already at the suitable age for marriage, but Jack and Queenie did not make arrangements for her. If they had found her a suitable significant other, Old Mrs. Norman would not have introduced her to Brody, and none of that would have happened. Jack rubbed the back of Queenie's hand and was somewhat at a loss. He knew that Queenie was very protective of Leia, and he wondered what she would think if she found out what Leia had done. The living room fell silent. Seeing that her parents were fretting over Leia, Bianca felt bad for them. She was not jealous that Leia received the bigger proportion of their parents' love, but she felt helpless that Leia did not app
Brody was not showered with envious gazes as he would have expected. Leia gently pinched his arm and said with a smile, "Brody, my parents don't like coffee." "Why?" Brody was not embarrassed as he continued to elaborate, "Appreciating coffee is a necessary skill in the upper circles of society. Every party or gathering must have coffee and wine. You'll need to know how to appreciate coffee so that you won't be looked down on. Also, one should prepare some premium coffee beans at home to serve guests." As soon as he finished speaking, the living room fell into an awkward silence. Leia pinched him again. She was getting nervous. Jack hated people who loved to show off, while Brody was very fond of showing off. She thought that he had not done that for some time, so why would his old habits return? It would not have been a problem if he showed off in front of her friends, but they were in front of her parents now… Leia discreetly kicked him to stop him from speaking. Brody
Leia was surprised by what Queenie said. When she divulged everything that day, Queenie felt sorry for her and said that she would not want Leia to suffer anymore. Leia had already treated that as an approval to their relationship. "Mom…" Leia stood up, sat next to Queenie, and refilled her teacup. "Have you forgotten what you said that day?" Queenie sighed. She thought that Leia was more intelligent than that, so why did she behave as though she had been hypnotized? Back then, Queenie did not know Brody's character, but things were different now. She knew of Brody's character after the investigation, and she had changed her mind since then. However, she did not tell Leia about that because she knew that Leia would not want to hear an opposing opinion. Before she could say anything, Brody spoke, "Mrs. Norman, I only want to marry Leia." Bianca, who was playing with Tommy, turned her head together with Queenie and looked at Brody. "Mr. Hilton, we're not a wealthy family. L
Tommy watched all that happened. He thought for a while, then ran upstairs to look for Jack. Jack carried Tommy and walked down the stairs. He saw Leia fall to his knees to beg for forgiveness from her mother. "Please forgive me, Mom. I'm begging you, please don't be angry, alright? I don't want the baby anymore. I'll go and get it induced tomorrow. Don't cry." "Are you crazy? I won't let you do that," Queenie exclaimed in surprise. Jack frowned. "What's going on?" As soon as he spoke, the three people in the living room turned their heads toward the stairs. When Leia noticed him, she stood up and turned her body away. As her adoptive daughter for twenty years, Leia knew her father's temperament. If she remained on her knees, Jack would definitely keep her kneeling as punishment. The floor was hard, and she had a bulging stomach. She would not be able to take it. "Dad." Leia shifted her body to hide the bulging stomach from him. Jack had already noticed her stomach. H