Ch. 571..580
Chapter 571: One Word Leads to the Death of the Scarlet
“So, in this family, even if I get hurt, I deserve it, right?” Cindy Clarke choked out.
“No, no! I didn’t say that!” Joshua Clarke immediately denied.
He dared not look into Cindy’s eyes.
“Christy, what do you think?” Joshua looked at Christy Xenos.
“Don’t look at me; I don’t have any money!” Christy immediately said.
She hadn’t even taken money from Cindy—how could she give money out?
“Forget it.” Cindy suddenly said.
Joshua’s heart eased up, only to hear Cindy say, “It’s because my life is cheap. I almost couldn’t survive and committed suicide after that terrible incident. It would have been so much better if I had died then; there wouldn’t be so many problems now, and you wouldn’t be so troubled.”
“At least I wouldn’t have to see it with my own eyes… my parents… not even willing to give me… this little bit…” Cindy sniveled.
“I even doubt if I am your daughter.” Cindy cried, “Am I really that unworthy?”
Joshua’s face turned red from one sentence after another from Cindy.
Cindy spoke again, “Forget it; sweet words can be spoken, right? Just saying a few nice words can make all the past hurt go away. So that’s how it is… that’s how it is.”
“Christy!” Joshua’s face flushed with shame and immediately shouted, “You owe Cindy!”
Joshua’s eyes almost burst from anger.
“Cindy is right! You owe her! You should give back what you owe! You hold onto that 10 million without a guilty conscience? She’s not even asking for much, just 500,000!” Joshua glared at Christy.
Christy’s heart bled.
She really didn’t take the 10 million that Cindy had exchanged!
“Will you give it or not?” Joshua pointed at Christy.
Anyway, he only had 5,000 pocket money every month; he couldn’t give any more.
But he couldn’t let Cindy poke him in the spine!
He didn’t even dare to look at Cindy.
Especially when he heard Cindy accuse him of only saying nice words but doing nothing when it came to practical action.
Joshua flushed with shame.
He had to prove to Cindy that he wasn’t the kind of person she said he was.
Christy glared viciously at Cindy: “Why didn’t you die earlier? You’re right; it would have been so much better if you had died! That would have settled everything and freed us from being burdened by you!”
“Slap!” Joshua, angered and ashamed, slapped Christy again. “Christy, how can you say such things about someone?”
“Anyway, I don’t have any money to give!” Christy covered her face and said, “Joshua, you really are addicted to hitting! You’re so capable now! You keep slapping me whenever you feel like it!”
“I’m asking you to give money! Can’t you even give 500,000?” Joshua’s momentum weakened again.
Cindy, impatient, said, “It’s just 500,000. I promise you, this will be one-time only. As long as you give me this 500,000, I won’t ask for money from the family ever again.”
“No!” Christy said.
Seeing Joshua’s hand raised again.
Christy’s ears were still buzzing and hurt from the previous slap, and she was a bit scared now.
Although she was tough-talking, once Joshua was really angered and acted on her,
Christy knew she was no match for him.
Christy quickly said, “Where do I get 500,000 in cash? Who has 500,000 just sitting around doing nothing? Of course, it’s invested.”
“Our family’s earnings are all with Wendy right now. Even if I wanted to give, I wouldn’t have any available,” Christy explained.
“What about our retirement money?” Joshua asked again.
“What are you talking about?” Christy looked at Joshua in shock.
“I’m talking about our retirement money,” Joshua said it again, “When we were poor, you always saved money for our retirement. Later, when our family became wealthy, you said you’d leave that money alone and treat it as our retirement fund.”
“Anyway, we don’t need that money for our daily expenses now that Wendy’s covering them,” Joshua said.
“Isn’t that money idle?” Joshua asked.
“You… what do you want to do?” Christy suddenly had a bad feeling.
“Give that money to Cindy first,” Joshua said.
“Anyway, we’re not in a hurry to use it, and Wendy can replace it for us later,” Joshua said.
Christy was so mad her blood rushed to her head, “Why? Why should we give our retirement money to her and let Wendy fill the gap for us?”
“Joshua, where is your conscience? Wendy has been supporting us all these years. Even now, you want Wendy to pay? We give our retirement money to Cindy and let Wendy fill the gap. What’s the difference between this and directly asking Wendy to give money to Cindy?”
“How much has Wendy contributed to the family over the years? She’s given us so much, and supporting us has already been more than enough. Do you want her to support her sister too?” Christy yelled.
“Cindy, don’t you have any shame?” Christy furiously scolded.
Cindy wasn’t afraid; she retorted, “But… that money was exchanged by selling me.”
“Out of the 10 million, I only want 500,000. Is that too much? If you say so, the money Wendy uses to support you is also mine. If we really want to be clear about it, then I’m the one supporting you,” Cindy said, her face full of frustration and a pitiful expression.
“So, can’t I even use my own money?” Cindy asked back.
Her innocent look almost made Christy vomit blood.
“That 10 million… that 10 million isn’t yours!” Christy was on the verge of tears.
She finally experienced the frustration of not being able to argue her point.
She had never lost in an argument before.
It was all thanks to her being thick-skinned and making a mess out of everything.
Even without reason, she’d stir up a fight.
Anyone who met someone like Christy would find it hard to argue clearly.
But now, Christy finally experienced that feeling too.
Joshua was now afraid of being poked in the spine by Cindy.
She accused him of only saying nice things but not making up for it at all.
Being told off by Cindy, Joshua felt utterly ashamed.
“You still say that!” Joshua angrily told Christy, “That money was originally Cindy’s; even if we gave it all to her, there wouldn’t be any problem!”
“You wronged Cindy, spent her money, and you still have the right to say anything?” Joshua shouted angrily.
Cindy sneered in her heart, as if Joshua’s words had nothing to do with him.
Of course, they didn’t spend a single penny of their own.
So, Cindy felt no pressure at all.
She intended to take as much as she could.
Even if she took it, she didn’t plan to spend it herself.
She wanted to donate the money.
She was unwilling to spend the money obtained from the Clarke Family.
Chapter 572: Sell Me Again
“Cindy, do you have any conscience!” Christy Xenos exclaimed, “That money isn’t yours, and you know it.”
“I don’t know that, all I know is that you sold me for 10 million. If that money isn’t mine, whose is it?” Cindy retorted with a cold chuckle.
Fortunately, to confirm whether she was the person from five years ago, Adrian Zhekova had Sheldon Rowland investigate her.
And incidentally, Wendy Clarke’s background was also investigated.
That had revealed Wendy’s situation to her.
Now, Cindy could use this matter to keep Christy in check, and silence her.
“You’ve never contributed a single dime to this family, and now you want money from us! Have you no shame?” Christy angrily pointed at Cindy, “You’ve wasted your education, and are still freeloading off us!”
“What does it matter if your living conditions in Belfard are poor? Before you met with us, couldn’t you still survive? You lived just fine for five years, so why now, seeing us living well, do you suddenly want money?”
“You’re such a bloodsucker!” Christy cursed, “Go ask anyone: who at your age would still be demanding money from their parents and relying on them for support?”
“You’re not afraid of people poking at your own spine when you say that!” Christy continued to curse.
Cindy simply replied, “Then give me back that 10 million.”
“Bah!” Christy was furious, “What 10 million?! There’s none! I told you it’s not yours, so it’s not yours!”
“Dad.” Cindy called out again, “Look at Mom’s attitude. If you don’t want to give me anything, don’t. Why pass the buck to her?”
“As you well know, she never spent money on me since I was a child.” Cindy laughed.
“Never mind, I won’t give you a hard time.” Cindy sighed.
“That’s not it!” Joshua Clarke immediately denied.
“Christy Xenos! Have you had enough?!” Joshua glared at her.
Christy’s momentum weakened for a moment, saying, “Where can we come up with 500,000?”
“You know perfectly well what our situation was. We only managed to save around 300,000.” Christy continued, “Later, our family had…”
Christy dared not say the word ‘money,’ and simply said, “Our situation got a little better. I left that money in the bank without touching it. Although I never touched it, I never added to it.”
“Since Wendy took care of our daily expenses, we didn’t need to get any more money out of our savings. I thought it would be enough to let the bank account generate interest; even if we didn’t save any more, the interest would be enough for the two of us to live on in retirement, not to mention we still have Wendy. She wouldn’t leave us hanging, right?”
“So I put the money in a five-year term deposit.” Christy explained, “I kept rolling over the deposit every five years. As soon as the term was up, I renewed it again.”
“I just renewed it right before this year, which means there’re still four years to go before it matures.” Christy unwillingly glanced at Cindy, “Even if I wanted to give her money now, I couldn’t withdraw it.”
“If we withdraw the money midway, then the interest will be wasted.” Christy said, “We can’t just waste so much interest.”
“And besides, even if we took it out, we’d still be 200,000 short.” Christy surreptitiously glanced at Cindy’s reaction.
Cindy covered her face and started sobbing, “Before I never said anything because I didn’t want to pressure the family, but now that the family has money, am I not even worthy of sharing a bit of the fortune?”
She dared not remove her hand.
Otherwise, they would find out she was only pretending to cry.
So she kept her face buried in her palm, “500,000, and I won’t bother you for the rest of my life.”
“What are you talking about?” Joshua immediately spoke up, “How could we possibly not care about you? And besides, don’t you count yourself as part of the Clarke Family for the rest of your life?”
“It’s just that we can’t get the money now, and making you wait for three years simply isn’t feasible.” Joshua explained.
Christy glanced around and said, “Since you’re living such a difficult life in Belfard, why don’t you come back to Nork City with us?”
“Anyway, your job doesn’t require you to work in an office; it’s just cooking and making videos. So it’s all the same wherever you are.” Christy continued, “Come back with us, and it won’t affect your work. It’s better than living in such a shabby, rundown place here, struggling to make ends meet, isn’t it?”
“You don’t want to suffer anymore, do you? Come home with us.” Christy said, “You won’t have to pay rent if you live at home, which will save you a great deal of money.”
Christy thought she was exceptionally clever.
Since Cindy claimed she had no money,
Why not return home with them?
Back in Nork City, she could keep a close eye on Cindy.
And see just how much money she could make as a blogger.
Even though living costs are higher in Belfard, her earnings would be barely enough after accounting for basic living expenses.
But Nork City is different.
She might take the opportunity to claim all the money that Cindy earns!
After all, Cindy would have to contribute living expenses if she lives at home, right?
After listening to Christy speak for so long, Joshua found her suggestion the most reasonable.
He quickly advised Cindy, “Yes, why don’t you come home with us.”
Cindy wiped her face and said mournfully, “Once I go back, I’ll be constantly reminded of how I was schemed against and sold in the past. And then still have to be on guard against being schemed against and sold again?”
Cindy looked at Christy, “Mom, when you asked me to return home, were you plotting to get the money I’ve earned?”
Joshua tensed up and suddenly looked at Christy suspiciously.
Christy immediately snapped back, “How could I scheme against you?”
Cindy’s eyes sparkled, “So if I return home, do you promise not to take a single penny from me?”
“How can you not pay for living expenses when you’re staying and eating at home?” Christy immediately retorted.
“Dad, look, Mom still wants to take money from me. Perhaps she wants to take all the money I earn, and then sell me again.” Cindy shrugged her shoulders, “I don’t dare return home. I would rather suffer in Belfard than go back.”
“Dad, do you know why I’ve lived in such hardship in Belfard and never returned home? Why did I even leave in the first place?”
“Wasn’t it because I was worried that I would have no future at home? I was lucky to be able to escape once, but can I rely on good luck to escape every time? Living in constant fear and suspicion of my own family members, what’s the point?”
“I would rather suffer a bit in life and eat a bit of suffering, but at least my spirit is relaxed!” Cindy candidly stated.
“Stop talking about it, don’t say anything more.” Joshua couldn’t bear to hear this, “I understand.”
“I… I make 5,000 a month, and I don’t spend much. In that case, I can save 2,000 a month.” Joshua said, “I’ll transfer you 2,000 a month.”
“Although 2,000 may not be much, it can alleviate some of the pressure of your rent.” Joshua said.
“How much is your current rent? Add 2,000 to that and go find a better place to live.” Joshua advised.
Chapter 573: Don’t Know How Long I’ve Waited
Seeing Cindy hesitate, Joshua thought she was too embarrassed to ask him for money.
After all, he had to save 2,000 out of his 5,000 monthly allowance to give to her.
It didn’t seem easy.
Quietly, Joshua breathed a sigh of relief.
But before he could even exhale, Cindy hesitated to ask, “But… how long will it take to accumulate 500,000 at this rate?”
“At 2,000 a month, it would be 24,000 a year. It would take 20 years to reach 480,000. That is to say, almost 21 years to reach 500,000,” Cindy said.
“That… that’s too slow,” Cindy said.
Joshua was almost out of breath and choked himself.
“Listen, listen to what she’s saying!” Christy pointed at Cindy.
“She’s not satisfied with the money we give her! And she’s not even happy with what she’s getting!” Christy yelled angrily, “You ungrateful daughter!”
“Do you think you are the only one like this?”
Joshua sighed and said, “This is only temporary. You can take this money for now. When our savings mature and we withdraw it, we’ll give it to you.”
Cindy didn’t believe she would ever get the money.
But it wasn’t really about the money for her.
She just wanted to make them afraid!
As long as they saw her, she would mention money.
Until they didn’t dare to see her or want to see her anymore.
Only then would Cindy’s goal be achieved.
Finally, Cindy reluctantly nodded, “Alright then. But Dad, you have to keep your promise.”
“Don’t worry,” Joshua assured her.
Cindy took a piece of paper from her pocket: “My bank account number is written here.”
She had prepared it in advance.
Joshua: “…”
Joshua silently accepted it, knowing that Cindy had prepared just for this.
He sighed but couldn’t blame her.
Because it was their family who had first hurt her.
That’s why she was always on guard.
It showed just how deep her wounds were.
“Okay.” Joshua took the paper, unfolded it, and glanced at it.
Then he put it away.
“So, how much longer do you plan to stay here?” Cindy asked.
Upon hearing this, Christy knew Cindy was planning to stay in the hotel.
Immediately Christy said, “We’re packing our bags, and I’m booking the flight right now. As soon as we’re done packing, we’ll head back to Nork City! Today!”
“We’re not staying here, so don’t get any ideas!” Christy quickly added.
Cindy let out a disappointed “Oh.”
She wasn’t in a hurry to leave, so she sat on the sofa and watched Christy pack her luggage.
“Do you have anything else to do?” Christy saw Cindy still sitting there and was very unwelcoming.
Cindy laughed, “This place is so nice, I want to stay here a bit longer. If I go back to my small room, it would be too cramped, right?”
Christy: “…”
How did this girl become so difficult!
Seeing Cindy’s watchful gaze, Christy packed quickly, fearing that she would be caught by Cindy if she stayed too long.
Cindy stayed just to make sure that Christy wouldn’t feel relaxed and change her mind about leaving when she wasn’t around.
Now, before Christy could have second thoughts, Cindy urged her to hurry up and leave.
Christy quickly finished packing and rushed with Joshua to the airport.
Cindy, not trusting them, followed.
“Why are you following us!” Christy protested angrily.
“Do you know how to buy plane tickets online? If not, I can help you purchase them,” Cindy said with a smiling face.
Christy sneered, seeing through Cindy’s intentions, “Trying to be like Zoe Silverstone and earn a commission? Dream on!”
Christy was actually able to use an app to buy plane tickets herself.
Once she bought it in the car, they arrived at the airport and went to check in their luggage with Joshua.
Cindy followed them closely and only left after making sure they had gone through security.
She waited outside.
It wasn’t until Joshua and Christy’s flight took off on time and they didn’t come out that Cindy finally left.
Just as she walked out of gate 5, there were many vehicles there to pick up passengers.
Before her gaze could return, she caught a glimpse of a striking figure among the many people waiting for passengers on the side of the road.
She saw Adrian standing in front of a car, not knowing how long he had been waiting.
Looking at her.
He discovered her earlier than she did, but when he saw her, he didn’t make a sound.
He stood at a distance of more than ten meters away, separated by the passing passengers, and quietly watched her.
Having just sent off Joshua and Christy.
Although Cindy’s mind was clear, she never softened, and frightened them away during their conversation.
But now, seeing Adrian, Cindy knew that she was still sad.
How she wished that Joshua, when he saw her, would ask her how she’s been these years, whether she’s been suffering or not.
If only Joshua and Christy could at least show some pure concern for her.
Instead of mentioning money as soon as they met.
When facing both of them, Cindy could only place herself in the position of an outsider.
Now, seeing Adrian, even though she wasn’t by his side and there was still some distance between them,
Cindy felt a sense of belonging. Her once silent heart became lively and began to beat wildly once more.
Cindy immediately ran towards Adrian.
Adrian had been watching her the whole time, seeing her before she even realized he was there.
His eyes never left her.
Seeing Cindy running over, Adrian smiled faintly.
He held out his hands and opened his arms slightly.
Upon seeing this, as she ran to him, Cindy threw herself into his arms.
She jumped, plunged in.
All of a sudden, Cindy seemed to have become much younger, not much older than Morgan.
Adrian laughed softly and firmly caught her.
Adopting the same position as if he was holding Morgan, he didn’t let her down again.
This time, it was Cindy who was embarrassed.
And there were so many people at the airport!
“Put me down first,” Cindy whispered, her face red.
She sneakily glanced around and saw people snickering.
Some young girls blushed and couldn’t bear to look any longer as they walked away.
Cindy felt embarrassed.
“I won’t let go,” Adrian said, “I need to see if you’re okay.”
Seeing Cindy’s red eyes, Adrian frowned, “Have you been crying?”
“Was it Joshua or Christy?” Adrian asked in a deep voice.
Under normal circumstances, he would have used the terms “Father-in-law and Mother-in-law” to address them.
But Adrian was so angry that he wasn’t even willing to call them “your parents.”
They didn’t deserve it!
Even if it upset Cindy, he wouldn’t say it!
However, Cindy wasn’t upset either.
“It’s not that bad, really. I didn’t feel sad. It’s just that when the conversation reached a certain point, my emotions came up, and it was inevitable,” Cindy said, “It’s just shedding a few tears. It didn’t really affect my mood.”
Chapter 574: Hating You for One Second
Adrian Zhekova stared at her for a while before asking, “Really?”
“Really.” Cindy Clarke nodded hastily and pushed his shoulder, “And, aren’t you tired holding me like this?”
“If I said I’m tired, would you lose weight?” Adrian asked with a smile.
Cindy was startled, “Am I really that heavy?”
“Just kidding, just kidding.” Adrian quickly responded.
But Cindy was genuinely a little nervous.
She touched the flesh on her arm and then her face, “No, I need to weigh myself when I get home.”
She hadn’t weighed herself in a long time.
Although she didn’t love exercising,
She had to take care of Morgan Zhekova and work by herself.
Because she was so busy, being busy also meant a lot of physical activity.
So even without deliberate exercise, her weight was well controlled, and she didn’t even need to control her diet.
However, since she got together with Adrian, not only was Morgan taken care of, but she was too.
The only thing she had to do every day was prepare for the competition.
Constantly researching cuisine and tasting her new studies.
That meant eating without exercising.
Cindy was really afraid that she would gain weight like this.
“You haven’t gained weight.” Adrian said, “Do you believe I can do squats with you on one hand?”
“If you don’t believe me, I’ll show you.” Adrian immediately let go of one hand, and with one arm held Cindy, preparing to squat on the spot.
Cindy was frightened and quickly said, “I believe it, I believe it! Don’t do it, please!”
Did he want to make headlines with so many people around?
Adrian regretfully said, “Really don’t need it? I can really do it.”
“Really don’t need.” Cindy shook her head frantically.
But Adrian was still persistent, “How about I do it for you when we get home?”
“…” Cindy could only stall him, “We’ll… talk about it at home.”
So Adrian carried Cindy directly into the car, and then went back to the driver’s seat.
By the time Adrian got in the car, Cindy had already fastened her seatbelt.
As Adrian buckled his seatbelt, Cindy asked, “How did you come here?”
Even now, she still found it a pleasant surprise.
“Cleave Roland has been following you until you came to the airport to see them off, then I came.” Adrian said, “I didn’t expect you to handle it so quickly.”
Cindy laughed at herself, “When they heard I wanted to ask them for money, they hurried off.”
“I don’t know how long I can scare them this time.” Cindy said, “Anyway, let’s scare them away first and let me focus on the competition.”
Adrian, feeling distressed, reached out and held her hand.
If there was no regard for family ties, Adrian had a hundred ways to make sure they wouldn’t bother Cindy ever again.
Although Cindy could calmly deal with the three members of the Clarke family,
They were still, after all, her parents; she couldn’t be completely heartless.
And that’s why the current situation exists.
She could only cope with it but couldn’t be resolute.
“Let’s not talk about them.” Cindy didn’t want to mention the awkward situation that affected her mood, “Now that you’re out, you don’t have to work anymore?”
“It’s the same if I go back in the afternoon, I’ll only be out for an hour or two, it doesn’t matter.” Adrian explained.
“It’s just noon now, so it doesn’t matter even more.” Adrian said.
“What about lunch? Should we go home, and I’ll cook for you?” Cindy proposed with a smile.
“Sure.” Adrian quickly nodded.
Cindy’s cooking was definitely better than any random work lunch he could order.
On the way, she thought about what to make for Adrian’s lunch.
Upon returning home, Cindy changed her slippers and was about to go to the kitchen to prepare lunch.
But she was blocked by Adrian.
He was tall, and his chest was broad.
Once he stood in front of Cindy’s line of sight, she couldn’t see anything else but Adrian’s chest.
“What are you doing?” Cindy poked him.
“Didn’t you say when we got home you’d let me hold you and squat?” Adrian still remembered this.
Cindy: “…”
She didn’t!
However, before she could refuse, Adrian had already picked her up without waiting for an answer
This time, he directly put her on his shoulder.
So Cindy sat on his right shoulder.
“Ah!” Cindy screamed in fright, hastily reaching for Adrian’s hand.
Fortunately, Adrian quickly reached out to hold her hand.
He could also feel Cindy wobbling nervously, gripping his hand tightly, her palm sweating.
Sitting on Adrian’s shoulder, Cindy was afraid she would fall off.
Although she had been to higher places, this feeling was very different.
Cindy felt like she was almost touching the ceiling.
“Adrian Zhekova!” Cindy screamed in fright.
“I’m holding you.” Adrian held Cindy’s left hand with his left hand, while his right hand firmly held her slender ankle.
“I know, I know, I’m not fat.” Cindy hastily said, “You don’t need to squat now.”
Just this alone scared her,
If he started squatting, Cindy would be scared to death.
Seeing her genuine fear, Adrian put her down.
“Look how I lift you, effortlessly.” Adrian put Cindy down, “That means you’re not heavy at all.”
Cindy finally felt grounded, taking a deep breath of relief.
She clenched her teeth and glared at Adrian, but she couldn’t do anything to him.
She could only step on his foot in annoyance.
But then she was worried about hurting him, so she didn’t dare step on him with her slippers on.
Instead, she took off her slippers and lightly stepped on him: “Humph!”
This one “humph” softened Adrian’s heart.
How could Cindy be so cute!
She was clearly angry but couldn’t bear to do anything to him.
This “humph” wasn’t sure who it was directed at.
It could be that she was angry at herself after all.
Adrian couldn’t resist laughing and held her face to kiss her.
“Annoying!” Cindy complained.
“Who’s annoying? Am I annoying?” Adrian held her face and brought his smiling face closer, shamelessly asking, “Is it me who’s annoying?”
“Ah, I have to cook.” Cindy didn’t want to deal with him anymore.
Adrian kissed her heavily again: “Anyway, even if you think I’m annoying, I still love you.”
Cindy: “…”
Caught off guard by his sudden confession, her face turned red.
Seeing her reaction, Adrian laughed proudly before finally letting her go.
Cindy quickly escaped from Adrian’s embrace.
After entering the kitchen, she peeked her head out and said to Adrian, “I’ll be annoyed with you for one second and love you for a lifetime.”
Adrian’s heart raced as he took a step forward, but Cindy quickly said, “Don’t come and mess around!”
This little girl really understood him.
He had barely taken a step and hadn’t said anything, yet she already knew what he wanted to do.
Chapter 575: Did you go find your mistress?
Adrian Zhekova could only helplessly smile, “Alright, alright. I’ll listen to you.”
Only then did Cindy Clarke withdraw her head and pat her flushed face.
She went to take out the rice.
Cindy washed the rice and put it in the pot to steam.
After that, she took out the Pork Loin to defrost.
Taking advantage of the defrosting time, she cut the cabbage into thin shreds and soaked it with salted water.
This was to remove residual pesticides from the cabbage.
Even if it was organic, Cindy still didn’t feel reassured.
After soaking, she drained the water and put the cabbage into a colander, covering it with a layer of kitchen paper.
This absorbed the remaining moisture while preventing the cabbage’s water content from drying out.
Once covered, she put the basket of cabbage directly into the Refrigerator to chill, making it crispier than if eaten straight away.
She took out beef bones, cleaned the blood and water, added cold water to the pot, along with chunks of radish, red dates, and ginger to simmer.
While simmering the soup, she used a small pot to cook the curry paste on the side.
She also made a green bean dish with oyster sauce.
Next, she took out two slices of Toast, placed them into a food processor and crushed them into breadcrumbs.
After that, she took the defrosted Pork Loin and used the tip of a knife to cut any membranous areas so that the meat would not deform while frying, remaining flat and even.
She seasoned it with salt and pepper, then coated it with flour, egg wash, and breadcrumbs in sequence.
Once the meat was fully coated, she fried it until golden brown, took it out of the pot, cut it into strips, and placed it on a plate.
She also took out the pre-cut cabbage from the fridge and placed it next to the pork.
She then filled a small dipping cup with curry paste for easier dipping with the pork.
By this time, the soup was almost cooked.
Cindy ladled out the soup.
When she opened the door, Adrian Zhekova knew that Cindy had lunch ready and came to help her carry the dishes out.
With the food all set on the table, Cindy said, “Let’s eat while it’s hot.”
“Wait a moment,” Adrian Zhekova didn’t start eating immediately, instead taking out his mobile phone.
Cindy saw him taking a picture with his phone.
“Are you going to post it on IG stories?” She asked, surprised.
The dishes for today’s lunch were not particularly elaborate.
Cindy thought that since it was just the two of them eating, and Adrian Zhekova needed to go to the Company in the afternoon, their lunch break was very limited.
That’s why she made a simple, quick lunch.
“No, I’m not posting it on IG stories. I usually post a lot, and I need to keep some freshness,” Adrian Zhekova said as he sent the photo.
“Who are you sending it to?” Cindy asked.
“To Morgan Zhekova,” Adrian Zhekova said.
Cindy: “…”
What is he sending it to Morgan for?
“He can only eat the lunch made by the Nursery kitchen. It can’t be as good as the one you made,” Adrian Zhekova said, “It’s a pity for the child. Although he can’t eat it, I’ll show him the picture at least.”
Cindy: “…”
Are you sure you’re not intentionally teasing him?
“Alright, let’s eat,” Adrian Zhekova said contentedly.
Adrian Zhekova picked up a piece of pork chop, without dipping it into the curry paste first.
He wanted to taste the original flavor.
As he bit into it, the crispy crust of the pork chop emitted a “crackling” sound.
The crunchy breadcrumbs mixed with the crispy crust, blending with the pork chop in one bite.
There was even meat juice bursting into his mouth, permeating the inner and outer layers of the crust.
Carrying a faint taste of pepper.
“It’s not dry at all, and when you bite down, the meat juice comes out.” Adrian Zhekova said.
“I didn’t marinate the pork chops, I just sprinkled them with salt and pepper. But the salt draws out the moisture from the pork. So before the salt drew out the moisture, I quickly coated the pork chop with breading to lock in the moisture.”
“Then I immediately fried it in the pan. That way, the oil and breading could keep the meat juice locked in.” Cindy Clarke explained.
For the second piece, Adrian dipped it into curry paste.
The spiciness of the curry paste neutralized any greasiness from the pork chop.
When eaten with shredded cabbage, the crunchy and refreshing texture mixed with the tender, juicy meat created a whole different taste sensation.
After taking a sip of the beef bone soup, Adrian felt satisfied for the rest of the afternoon.
As he was eating, Adrian’s mobile phone sounded a Whatsapp notification.
Adrian opened it, and, as expected, it was an audio message from his son, Morgan Zhekova.
Adrian played the message, and a devastated voice came through the phone, “Dad, did you secretly go to someone else’s house? Are you with your mistress?”
Adrian Zhekova: “…”
Cindy Clarke: “…”
Adrian was furious!
He just wanted to show off to his son.
Who knew that his kid would have such wild imagination!
It broke his boasting mood in an instant!
Seeing Adrian’s darkened face, Cindy couldn’t help but laugh.
Adrian’s losses usually came from Morgan, eight out of ten times.
Of the remaining two, one came from the Old Madam, and the other from Victoria Wheeler.
In any case, it was now Morgan’s nap time.
Adrian decided to just send a video call to Morgan.
It didn’t take long before the call was connected on Morgan’s side.
“Daddy!” the little guy exclaimed immediately.
Adrian said in frustration, “Don’t you know what our dining table looks like?”
“What does it look like? I forgot.” The little guy acted clueless.
Without a word, Adrian turned the camera and included Cindy in the shot.
“I’m with Cindy, I didn’t go to someone else’s house, we’re both at home.” Adrian said, “What mistress? Nonsense!”
Morgan: “…”
“How on Earth did you learn such a messy term as ‘mistress’!” Adrian quickly picked up on the main point.
Morgan: “…”
“It’s from those TV dramas.” Morgan explained, “Why are you wearing the apron from that show?”
Adrian: “…”
What on earth was this kid watching such morally questionable TV dramas for?
“Don’t you usually watch Pokemon?” Adrian asked in surprise, when did he start watching such dog-blooded moral dramas?
“Dad!” Morgan cried helplessly, “There’s only one short episode of Pokemon every week, I have plenty of time to watch other things.”
“And you chose to watch that? You understand it?” Adrian was astonished.
“Of course, I’m so smart!” Morgan replied, nodding eagerly.
“…” Adrian decided that later on, he would look for some good cartoons for Morgan to watch.
He needed to have him watch fewer revenge dramas like that.
Only four years old and already watching things like that, it was too early!
Adrian suddenly remembered what he was supposed to do, but Morgan’s tangent made him forget.
“I wanted to show you what Cindy and I were having for lunch.” Adrian remembered the main point.
Morgan: “…”
“Why are you showing me if I can’t eat it?” Morgan puffed out his cheeks in frustration, finally dropping the act.
“It’s because you can’t eat it, so I wanted you to see it, maybe it would satisfy your craving.” Adrian believed he was a considerate and loving father.
Chapter 576: Biological Father or Stepfather, They’re All Fathers
“Think about your nursery, even though the lunch is good, it’s still incomparable to what Cindy makes. Every time I enjoy such a good meal at home, I think of you.” Adrian Zhekova explained with the tenderness of a loving father.
“My heart aches!” Adrian sighed, “So I thought, if you can’t eat it, at least you can see it.”
Morgan Zhekova: “…”
Cindy Clarke: “…”
“Cindy! Look at Dad!” Morgan expressed doubt from the depths of his soul, “Is he really my biological father?”
“Of course I am. Otherwise, would I put up with him?” Adrian immediately replied.
“Alright, alright.” Cindy saw that the little guy was getting anxious and annoyed.
Although Adrian usually loses to Morgan, it must be said that Morgan is only 4 years old.
How could he be a match for Adrian in a war of words?
“What do you want to eat tonight?” Cindy asked Morgan hurriedly, “I’ll prepare it in the afternoon.”
“I want to eat Fried Pork Cutlet!” Morgan puffed up his cheeks and said.
And let Adrian eat it for two consecutive meals, let him be fed up with it!
“Okay.” Cindy thought, she would find another way to cook it.
She couldn’t let Adrian get tired of it.
She saw that Adrian’s face turned a little green when he heard what Morgan said.
After all, this man was very picky.
It’s not easy to satisfy his stomach and taste.
Letting him eat the same food in a row is really difficult for him.
Cindy wanted to take back what she said before about Morgan not being a match for Adrian in terms of verbal sparring.
Even if she didn’t step in, the father and son would probably have a fifty-fifty chance at winning.
Since Morgan couldn’t think of anything else at the moment.
Cindy suggested, “How about barbecue seafood tonight? What seafood do you want to eat?”
“Shrimp! Clams! Garlic Vermicelli Scallops! Garlic Oysters! Clam soup! Grilled squid!” Morgan’s appetite was immediately aroused, and he salivated uncontrollably as he talked, “I want to eat the kind where you grill and eat at the same time.”
“Alright!” Cindy quickly agreed, “Grilling seafood is quite simple. Just clean the seafood and that’s it. I have nothing to do in the afternoon anyway, so how about I also make you a red velvet cake?”
“Great!” Morgan couldn’t stop drooling now.
So, he was finally appeased.
Morgan happily hung up the phone.
But as soon as he turned around, he saw Headmaster Woods’ big face pressed up behind him.
Morgan was startled.
He nearly fell off the chair in fright.
Headmaster Woods didn’t dare to let this little ancestor get hurt, so he quickly helped him to steady himself.
“Morgan.” Headmaster Woods smiled with a face full of wrinkles.
But the little guy felt the headmaster had ill intentions: “What’s up?”
“Is Master Adrian your stepfather?” Headmaster Woods asked quietly.
He had just come over to check on the little fellow.
Now, Headmaster Woods highly valued Morgan.
During outdoor activities, the headmaster would secretly watch from a hidden place to ensure that Morgan didn’t bump or hurt himself.
Every day during nap time, the headmaster would also come and check on whether Morgan was sleeping well.
Morgan himself didn’t know about this.
It just showed that Cindy’s considerations were very thorough.
In the whole nursery, Adrian Zhekova was a person who couldn’t be provoked by Morgan’s family.
Headmaster Woods truly put all his heart and efforts into Morgan.
Fortunately, Morgan wasn’t like Arthur Woods, who would bully others with his status.
He maintained the same relationship with his friends as before.
Today, as usual, the headmaster came to check on him.
He meant to look through the window to see if Morgan was satisfied with his lunch.
Who knew that he overheard Morgan talking to Adrian on the phone?
It even involved such sensitive topics as biological and stepfathers.
Headmaster Woods couldn’t resist his gossiping heart and followed Morgan in.
Of course, even if Adrian was Morgan’s stepfather, Headmaster Woods would still treat Morgan extremely well.
“Of course he’s my real father!” When Morgan realized what was going on, he said, “Headmaster, how could you eavesdrop on my phone call? And you didn’t even understand what you were eavesdropping on!”
“No, no.” Headmaster Woods hurriedly waved his hands and explained, “I just accidentally overheard it.”
“That’s why I came to you for confirmation so as not to misunderstand anything,” Headmaster Woods explained.
Morgan’s eyes darted around, then he asked, “If he were my stepfather, would your attitude towards me change?”
“Of course not!” Headmaster Woods knew that Morgan was a smart kid.
He couldn’t use the same explanation for children on Morgan.
It was better to be clear as with adults.
So, the headmaster honestly said, “Biological or stepfather, they are both fathers!”
Morgan grumbled in his heart before saying, “Well, he’s my real father, so don’t guess wildly!”
“This is just how we banter in our daily lives.” Morgan added an explanation.
“Alright, alright.” Headmaster Woods nodded his head quickly to show that he understood.
“Headmaster, you shouldn’t eavesdrop on people’s phone calls! That’s wrong!” Morgan protested again.
And he made a mental note to be more cautious about eavesdropping when talking on the phone in the future.
This headmaster was really out of line.
“I really didn’t do it on purpose. I promise I won’t eavesdrop again in the future.” Headmaster Woods hurriedly said.
After Adrian Zhekova finished talking to Morgan,
Cindy didn’t know what to say about him anymore.
When it was time for Adrian to go to the company, Cindy prepared Cheese Sticks for him.
She baked them fresh after finishing lunch and had Adrian take them to the company.
“But, you can’t send pictures to Morgan again!” Cindy said, and then added, “Video calls and phone calls are also not allowed.”
Adrian Zhekova: “…”
The trust between him and Cindy had completely crumbled.
“Alright.” Adrian Zhekova could only nod in agreement.
Even if he couldn’t call Morgan, send videos, or send pictures in the afternoon, he could still tell Morgan personally when he came home at night.
Cindy didn’t know Adrian’s plan and sent him out with confidence after seeing him agree.
With her being alone at home, she started making the cake.
In the afternoon, at about four o’clock, Morgan came back from nursery.
As soon as he entered the door, Morgan said eagerly, “Cindy, can I also come home for lunch from now on?”
Cindy: “…”
Was this little guy pondering about this matter all afternoon?
“Dad only came home today because he happened to be passing by, he won’t be coming back every day.” Cindy said, “It’s too tiring for you to go back and forth from nursery every day at noon.”
Morgan immediately pouted his lips, “Even if Dad only occasionally comes back, I still feel I’m at a disadvantage.”
Cindy: “…”
Cindy had a bright idea and said, “Think about it, before we met Dad, you had been eating the food and snacks I made for a long time, but he had never tasted them.”
“Even if he occasionally comes home for lunch, it would take several years for him to catch up with you.” Cindy said.
Unexpectedly, such thoughts existed. Morgan didn’t think about this.
Chapter 577: Really? What a coincidence.
When Cindy gave a clear explanation, Morgan agreed that it made a lot of sense.
“Alright then.” Morgan found her reasoning quite solid, so he nodded in agreement.
“Cindy, where’s the red velvet cake you made for me?” asked Morgan immediately.
“There you go.” Cindy pointed to the cake on the table. “The cake just came out of the oven. It’s still hot. We need to wait for it to cool down before we can add the cream. Otherwise, the cream would melt. That’s why I haven’t whipped it yet.”
“After dinner, I’ll whip the cream. Once it’s spread on and topped with fruits, it will be ready to eat,” said Cindy with a smile.
With that, Morgan’s dream of having his dessert early was shattered.
However, Cindy did prepare some cheese sticks for him to snack on.
Because even on a normal workday, Adrian wouldn’t be home until around 7.
And by that time, Morgan would be hungry.
So she wanted to give him something to tide him over.
It wasn’t until shortly after 7 o’clock that Adrian came home.
As soon as he heard the sound, Morgan jumped off the couch, clutching the box of cheese sticks Cindy had given him. He nibbled on one as he headed for the door.
“Daddy, you’re back!” With a mouthful of cheese stick, he said, “Cindy was afraid I’d be hungry, so she gave me cheese sticks to tide me over.”
Morgan held up the half-eaten cheese stick for Adrian to see.
But to his surprise, he looked up to see Adrian doing exactly the same — holding a box in his left hand, a cheese stick in his right, and munching on it.
“Really? What a coincidence,” said Adrian. “Cindy made a delicious lunch, but she was still worried that I’d be hungry at work and prepared cheese sticks for me.”
“I got hungry while coming up in the elevator.” Adrian took another bite, “Never thought you’d be eating too. Such a coincidence.”
Morgan: “…”
Cindy thought that if it was a child who was not strong enough emotionally, he would now be crying out in front of Adrian!
“The two of you are not allowed to eat anymore.” Hearing their bickering, Cindy rushed out of the kitchen.
Seeing both the big and the small, holding boxes in their left hands, cheese in their right.
Even their movements were surprisingly similar.
At her words, both of them turned to look at her in unison.
Cindy sighed helplessly, “We’re about to have dinner. You can’t snack anymore.”
“Also, you were insisting on eating Fried Pork Cutlet and roasted seafood at noon. If you can’t eat dinner because you’ve had too many snacks, I’m not going to listen to you anymore,” Cindy warned Morgan.
The little guy hurriedly shoved the remaining half of the cheese stick into his mouth.
He had a small mouth on a small face.
As soon as the half of the cheese stick went in, his cheeks puffed up instantly, his little face stuffed to the brim.
Adrian also quickly put the remaining half into his mouth.
But, Adrian was a lot more relaxed than Morgan.
Looking at this father-son pair’s identical reactions, Cindy found it irresistibly cute and adorable in her helplessness.
The two were arguing in haste, but their actions were eerily identical.
The deep-rooted genetic link between father and son truly can’t be erased.
Without Cindy having to tell them, Adrian went off to change his clothes while Morgan went to wash his hands.
Cindy then took out the baking tray and moved it onto the dining table.
She arranged the neatly cleaned seafood around the baking tray.
The oysters and scallops had their shells pried open, leaving behind one half of the shell and the meat on it.
She stir-fried minced garlic in oyster sauce and layered it onto the oysters and scallops.
For the remaining oysters and scallops, she sprinkled them with mozzarella cheese crumbs.
Just as she finished the preparations, Adrian was all cleaned up and came over comfortably.
“Hold on, I have prepared the pork cutlets, they just need to be deep-fried. I was afraid that if I fried them too early and they cools down, the taste wouldn’t be good. “, Cindy said.
“Sure.” Adrian Zhekova nodded, glanced at the abundance of seafood on the table, and asked Cindy Clarke, “Fancy some white wine?”
White wine and seafood compliment each other perfectly.
“Sure.” Cindy replied with a nod.
So, Adrian went to get the wine.
When he came back with the wine, he casually asked Morgan Zhekova, “What would you like to drink? But you can forget about the wine.”
Surprisingly, the little guy was intrigued and keen to have a taste.
Upon hearing this, he pouted, “When will I be allowed to drink, then?”
Adrian pondered for a moment before responding, “I’m not insisting you have to be an adult to have a drink.”
That would be too harsh.
He himself hadn’t been patient enough to wait until adulthood.
“But you have to at least wait until high school.” That’s not too far off from adulthood, anyway.
The little one began to count on his fingers, “I’m four this year, I’ll start primary school at six, so that’s two more years. Primary school lasts for six years, so that’s eight years from now. Then there’s three years of middle school, so that leaves eight years, nine years, ten years, eleven years.”
Morgan: “…”
That’s a long time!
“Stop counting now.” Adrian said, noting that the poor boy was about to start counting on his toes.
“You can have some grape juice tonight.” Adrian suggested, “It’s made from grapes too, just non-alcoholic.”
Morgan thought for a moment before reluctantly nodding in agreement, “That’ll do.”
Adrian then went to the refrigerator to get some grape juice for Morgan.
Cindy came out with the freshly fried pork cutlets.
This time, she replaced the curry paste with fruit vinegar sauce and soy sauce, along with an orange compote seasoned with some chili pepper.
The citrusy fragrance of the orange compote cut through the grease of the pork cutlet, while the mild spiciness of the chili pepper neutralized the bitter taste of the orange. Coupled with the fruit vinegar sauce and soy sauce, it made for an excellent accompaniment.
Even though it’s the same fried pork cutlet, the change in sauce gave it a different flavor.
“It’ll take some time for the seafood to grill. Have the hot pork cutlet first while it’s still fresh.” Cindy told Morgan.
Morgan quickly picked up a piece of pork cutlet and took a bite, although it was still hot.
Even though Cindy told him to slow down, he couldn’t resist.
“This is so delicious, it tastes best when hot!” Morgan exclaimed.
Even though Adrian had already had this for lunch, having it again now felt like eating an altogether different dish. The flavour was completely different from lunch.
Adrian too, ended up eating quite a bit.
On the grill, the squid gradually turned purple-red, with the flesh in the Middle becoming firm and white.
The clams opened up on their own, revealing juicy broth that had been steamed within their shell.
Adrian picked up a clam, which was still steaming hot.
He first savored the juice that was steamed out from the clam.
With no seasoning added, the clam had a naturally delectable taste.
It was refreshingly sweet with a subtle hint of seafood.
The clam meat was smooth, delicate, yet pleasantly chewy.
Not much later, the minced garlic on the oysters and scallops had been roasted to a deep fragrance.
Soon as the oil on the minced garlic began to bubble, Adrian served Cindy and Morgan a Garlic Oyster and scallop each.
Scallop meat can be a bit rich, but when eaten with the roasted minced garlic, it’s exceptionally flavorful.
Chapter 578: You’ve Been Fooled!
The remaining garlic paste was mixed with the vermicelli lying at the bottom, making it slippery.
As for the oysters that were sprinkled with mozzarella cheese, when the oyster meat was picked up, long, stretchy strings of cheese came along with it.
It took Cindy Clarke a few attempts to finally cut the strings of cheese.
“Surprisingly, it’s not greasy at all.” Adrian Zhekova marveled, “There’s even a garlic flavor.”
At first, he thought it was the flavor of the Garlic Oysters next to him that overlapped.
But the taste was not the same when he tried it.
Adrian Zhekova moved all the cheese aside, only to find a layer of garlic paste hidden underneath.
“So it’s the garlic paste that balances out the greasiness of the cheese” Adrian Zhekova figured it out.
Morgan Zhekova couldn’t pay attention to the conversation, he was busy enjoying the food, making munching sounds.
Around halfway through, he also took a sip of grape juice.
Just like how people would do after sipping white wine on TV, he even let out a hearty “Ha!”
“…” Adrian Zhekova didn’t know what to say.
“Right, Walter Wells sent me the wedding invitation today.” Adrian Zhekova said.
Walter Wells and Charlotte York had informed them of the wedding date about a month ago.
They were advised to keep their schedules open for the wedding day.
But back then, it was just a verbal notification and the formal invitation hadn’t been sent out yet.
What delivered today was the formal wedding invitation.
The wedding of Walter Wells and Charlotte York has been scheduled for this Saturday.
While Cindy Clarke and Adrian Zhekova were cheerfully having dinner with Morgan, Joshua Clarke and Christy Xenos had already returned home.
They had actually returned to Nork City in the afternoon.
After disembarking the plane, they went straight home.
They haven’t told Wendy Clarke.
Meanwhile, Wendy Clarke was busy with the restaurant business during the day and wasn’t at home.
When she returned at night and got out of the car, she noticed that the lights in the house were still on.
She wasn’t at home, and the housekeepers had already finished their shift. Why were the lights still on?
Wendy Clarke frowned. Her first reaction was that their home has been broken into.
She held her mobile phone in hand, ready to call the police at any time.
At the same time, she cautiously approached the front door.
She found that the fingerprint lock was intact, with no signs of forced entry.
Wendy Clarke remembered that she had connected the house’s surveillance device to her mobile phone.
It could capture everyone who passed by the front door daily.
If anyone stayed at the front door, the surveillance camera would automatically record and upload it to the App.
As a result, Wendy Clarke opened the App installed on her mobile phone to check the records of the day.
To her surprise, the people caught on camera were Joshua Clarke and Christy Xenos!
Shouldn’t they be in Belford?
Why did they return?
Wendy Clarke went straight in as soon as she opened the door.
As soon as she entered, she heard Christy Xenos’s voice, ranting in the living room: “She can’t expect us to give her money.”
“Let me tell you, don’t even think about asking Wendy for money!” Christy Xenos said, “Cindy Clarke isn’t ambitious enough to ask for it. There’s no reason why Wendy should foot the bill for her!”
“I don’t lack sympathy for her.” Christy Xenos continued talking to Joshua Clarke in a grave voice, “You know I talked to her, if the situation gets too tough, she could come back. By living and dining at home, she could save a lot of money.”
“She would not need to worry about living expenses anymore and just focus on earning money.” Christy Xenos added, “She just didn’t understand this goodness and refused to return.”
The more Wendy Clarke eavesdropped, the more baffled she felt. Christy Xenos was getting heated up with her rant, unaware that Wendy had come home and was listening.
Wendy Clarke went straight in: “Dad, mom, when did you guys come back?”
“It’s all because of that Cindy.” Christy Xenos was in the mood to vent her anger.
“Right, wasn’t Cindy supposed to meet you guys today? Why did you return since you have already seen her? Where’s Cindy?” Wendy Clarke looked around and asked, “Did Cindy come back with you?”
How else would they have returned?
“No, Cindy didn’t come back.” Christy Xenos was still puzzled.
“You have no idea, we were lucky to scoot off quickly. She even dared to ask us for money, a staggering 500,000 at that! Is she insane?” Christy Xenos raised her voice, “I don’t know if she’s insane, but I’m definitely not.”
“I would never give her 500,000, so we immediately returned with your dad.”
“Moreover, that Zoe Silverstone is a fraud! Cindy Clarke doesn’t have any money at all! She lives in a terribly shabby place, in an attic, where the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom are all crammed into one room, which is unfit for human habitation.” Having accustomed to living in a villa, Christy Xenos couldn’t bear even the sight of those ordinary houses.
However, these words made Joshua Clarke feel quite uncomfortable.
After some thought, indeed, the conditions in which Cindy Clarke lives are harsh and adverse.
Knowing this, Christy Xenos even stated that it was not a place for humans to live in.
She knew that Cindy Clarke wasn’t living comfortably.
But why wasn’t she considering to help Cindy Clarke?
“Not only does she not have any money, she expects us to give her some.” Christy Xenos scoffed, “Thinks we’re easy to take advantage of, huh?”
“Hold on.” Wendy Clarke interrupted Christy Xenos, “I feel I am being overwhelmed with disorder.”
“Mom, don’t keep beating around the bush. Start from the beginning.” Wendy Clarke feared that Christy Xenos would go off on a tangent, “Start from the moment you arrived in Belford. Tell me everything in detail, in chronological order. What happened, tell me everything in detail.”
“Oh, okay.” So Christy Xenos started from the beginning.
Because in between, she frequently digressed and ranted about Cindy Clarke.
It nearly took four long hours for her to finish.
Good thing Wendy Clarke anticipated it. The moment she noticed that Christy Xenos was about to berate Cindy Clarke, she quickly interrupted her and prompted her to get back on track.
Otherwise, given Christy Xenos’s pace, who knows when it would end.
Finally, Christy Xenos finished her narration.
Wendy Clarke slapped the couch: “You’ve been deceived!”
“Cindy must have tricked you!” Wendy Clarke stated, “She was just trying to scare you off!”
“Impossible!” Christy Xenos retorted confidently, “One thing she said was quite reasonable.”
“Just look at Zoe Silverstone, even though she is as popular as her, she looks as if she hardly has two pennies to rub together. She even makes us pay for her entrance tickets. If she truly were that rich, would she bother to even do this?”
“She was quick to assert that Cindy Clarke was wealthy, but what about herself? She is on par with Cindy Clarke. If Cindy Clarke is so well-off, why does she herself appear so poor?” Christy Xenos felt that her analysis was quite reasonable.
“True poverty isn’t something you can pretend to have, just like real wealth can’t be faked.” Christy Xenos said, “Look at Zoe Silverstone, does she look rich to you?”
Wendy Clarke frowned in thought for quite a while.
No doubt that the behavior of Zoe Silverstone was indeed suspicious.
But little did Wendy Clarke know that Zoe Silverstone was suppressed by Adrian Zhekova which was the reason for her dire straits.
From Wendy Clarke’ perspective, Zoe Silverstone had only offended Cindy Clarke.
Even if Adrian Zhekova wanted to teach Zoe Silverstone a lesson, it wouldn’t be so relentless.
After all, who is Adrian Zhekova?
Did he really have all the time in the world to focus on Zoe Silverstone?
And Wendy Clarke was unaware of the relationship between Adrian Zhekova and Cindy Clarke.
Chapter 579: Suffering in Silence
Of course, Wendy couldn’t imagine that Adrian Zhekova would really target Zoe Silverstone just for Cindy Clarke.
In Wendy’s view, Cindy didn’t have the ability to do so herself.
So now, Wendy wasn’t quite sure herself.
“She didn’t have to come back so soon. She has been in Belfard for so many years, doesn’t she have any savings?” Wendy said, “Besides, with the way she’s going, she might actually win the Cooking Competition.”
“And there will be a prize of 1 million at that time!” Wendy reminded.
“What do you mean?” Joshua Clarke suddenly said in a low voice, “Are you still counting on your sister’s money?”
“No.” Wendy accidentally let it show, and quickly tried to make up for it, “Isn’t it because of the restaurant’s compensation? I can’t come up with the money right now. I just thought that if things work out with Cindy, she could help out for now.”
“Besides, for these five years, she hasn’t been involved in the family at all. I bought the house, and she never contributed to the restaurant,” Wendy said, “So if we do ask her for money to compensate, Dad, I don’t think my request is excessive.”
That’s what Wendy had said before.
And Joshua seemed to agree with her at the time.
So, Wendy still said the same thing now.
Wendy didn’t notice that Christy Xenos was desperately giving her signals when she heard her say so.
Wendy was looking at Joshua, but who would have thought that his face suddenly changed at this moment.
Joshua stood up abruptly.
He pointed at Wendy and yelled, “You have the nerve to bring that up!”
“Dad, what… what’s wrong with you?” It was rare for Joshua to get angry.
Joshua’s sudden outburst caught Wendy off guard.
“Cindy told me everything, and your mother admitted it!” Joshua yelled, “Don’t play dumb with me!”
Although Christy Xenos had been stubborn at first.
But later, when Christy Xenos no longer denied the truth, what else was there for Joshua not to know?
It was an admission by Christy Xenos!
“Admitted what?” Wendy was genuinely confused at this point.
Burdened with the restaurant affairs, her mind could not catch up for the moment.
“It was you and your mother who schemed against Cindy and sold her!” Joshua said.
Wendy took a deep breath.
She instinctively turned her head to look at Christy Xenos.
Why hadn’t Christy told her about something so important!
“Don’t look at your mother, she’s already admitted it!” Joshua snapped.
Seeing Wendy in shock, her first reaction was not to deny it but to ask Christy for confirmation.
This only further solidified the truth of what Cindy had said.
“You’ve already exchanged her for 10 million and brought this life to our family, how can you still have the nerve to ask Cindy for money?” Joshua questioned.
“How can you have the nerve to say that the living expenses were paid by you, and that you bought the house? These were clearly paid for by Cindy!” Joshua said.
“What?” Wendy stood up abruptly, “How did it become her money?”
“I paid for all this money!” Wendy exclaimed.
“Do you think that once the money is in your hands, it is yours?” Joshua said, “These are all things you got in exchange for Cindy. To put it bluntly, they all belong to Cindy!”
“So, don’t bring up the idea of having her pay for the restaurant’s compensation anymore!” Joshua said, “Whether Cindy has money or not, you shouldn’t be thinking about taking advantage of her!”
Wendy’s face turned pale.
This was the first time she had tasted the bitterness of being robbed of credit and being unable to speak since she was born.
It was clear that she had sacrificed and paid the price, but in the end, everything she had given had become Cindy’s!
And now, she couldn’t even reveal the truth!
She would never reveal that she had accompanied Mr. Lopez and had a child with him!
It had to be kept a secret!
After all, she still needed to marry a wealthy trust-fund baby with a good family background.
She couldn’t let her past have any stains.
Wendy looked at Christy Xenos.
Seeing Christy shaking her head at her.
It seemed that Christy had been keeping the secret and had not said anything.
Surprisingly, Christy turned out to be quite reliable in a critical moment.
But, Wendy still felt unprecedented resentment.
Her contributions to the family over these five years, her sacrifices, had all been denied.
Vanishing into thin air.
Wendy didn’t argue any further about it.
Since she couldn’t reveal the truth, she had to swallow the bitter pill.
Ha!
Wendy sneered, this was her first time swallowing such bitterness.
And the first time she swallowed it, it was such a big one!
“It’s so late, you guys should rest first.” Wendy said softly, “We can talk about anything else tomorrow.”
Since they were all back, there was no way to drive them back to Belfard.
For now, Wendy really didn’t feel like saying anything else.
Without looking at Joshua and Christy, she went back to her room first.
Once the door was closed, Wendy was so angry that she wanted to smash things.
“Cindy!” Wendy shouted angrily, gritting her teeth.
This time, she was actually played by Cindy.
Although she knew that what Cindy said was not true, she couldn’t refute it.
For the first time, she suffered such a big loss at the hands of Cindy!
“Haha!” Who would have thought that after five years in Belfard, Cindy would have changed so much!
Did Cindy think that scaring Joshua and Christy back would be enough?
Now she was busy with the restaurant issue, so she couldn’t focus on Cindy’s side.
Once she had settled everything over here, she would definitely go to Belfard herself to meet Cindy personally.
She could never let Cindy off so easily!
Wendy was still trembling with anger that her own contribution had been taken away by Cindy.
What a robber!
What a thief!
“Knock knock knock!” There was a sudden knock on the door outside.
“Wendy, it’s me,” Christy Xenos’s voice echoed from outside the door.
Wendy took a deep breath and opened the door with a cold face.
Christy Xenos hurriedly rushed in and closed the door.
“Wendy, are you okay?” Christy asked with concern.
“Cindy, I won’t let her off the hook!” Wendy said through gritted teeth.
“I didn’t expect that dead girl Cindy to have become so difficult to deal with now,” Christy said, her teeth itching with hatred.
“After all, she came from crawling and rolling around in Capital City. Those internet celebrity circles are chaotic and highly competitive. If she had no brains, she wouldn’t have been able to achieve her current fame,” Wendy said coldly.
“By the way, how exactly did Cindy describe what happened back then,” Wendy said, “Tell me the details. Try to reproduce her words as much as possible, don’t add anything yourself, and don’t omit anything.”
Christy thought for a moment, then sat down on the small sofa in Wendy’s room and began telling her what happened.
“It’s been five years, even if she says whatever she wants, there’s no use without evidence. Moreover, who would trace back to five years ago for the truth after all this time? Even if someone really wanted to find evidence from back then, it’s been five years already, where would they even begin to look?”
Chapter 580: Guess
“Who knew, Cindy somehow obtained the hotel’s surveillance footage from back then. It clearly shows the two of us carrying her over.” Christy Xenos said, “It also matches the time.”
“Even if we firmly deny it, the surveillance footage doesn’t prove that we were taking her to Mr. Lopez. But the key point is that your dad believes it. This isn’t a police investigation where they value evidence.”
“Your dad just believed it after seeing it.” Christy said.
As long as there was a connection that could link the events together, it didn’t need to be like a police investigation with concrete evidence for every single point.
As long as Joshua Clarke believed it, that was sufficient.
“Because of this, Cindy insisted that our current life and money were all acquired by using her. Because we sold her in exchange for 10 million.”
“So, whether I ask her to pay us alimony or to give us back the money spent on raising her for the past 19 years, or even the half of the cost of the house you bought for us, she refuses. She just insists that all of it was obtained in exchange for her.”
“As soon as I mention it, she claims that she already paid the 10 million, and all of this money already came from her share.” Christy’s eyes teared up with anger, “She’s basically denying all your hard work and acting pitifully at the same time!”
“But in reality, she escaped five years ago! She ran away, and Mr. Lopez didn’t give us any money at all!”
“Your father doesn’t even think about the fact that she ran away back then. Mr. Lopez isn’t a fool, why would he give us money.” Christy was seething with anger.
“Did she say how she escaped five years ago?” Wendy asked.
“She did.” Christy recounted what Cindy had said to Wendy.
“Ha! I don’t believe it.” Wendy scoffed coldly, “If Mr. Lopez saw her, how could she escape from his grasp?”
“I don’t believe it either.” Christy thought about it for a moment and analyzed, “Moreover, she didn’t describe the process that happened at the time.”
“She just said that she escaped, but she didn’t go into detail about how she got away from Mr. Lopez.” Christy, reminded by Wendy, said.
“What exactly happened to her back then?” Wendy was extremely puzzled, “Did Mr. Lopez actually touch her?”
“Mr. Lopez firmly claimed that Cindy wasn’t there, and he didn’t even see her.” Wendy said, “But according to Cindy, she met Mr. Lopez.”
“So, one of these two people is lying.” Wendy spoke coldly.
“If Mr. Lopez is lying, it would be fine if he really didn’t touch Cindy. But if he has already touched her and is still seeking you out, then he…” Christy suddenly stopped.
That would mean Mr. Lopez did it deliberately!
This implies that Wendy could have avoided all the abuse.
She was deceived by Mr. Lopez!
Not only was she deceived by Mr. Lopez, but she also ended up giving birth to his son!
Mr. Lopez took advantage of both sisters, yet only paid for one!
Seeing Wendy’s face turning livid and murderous, Christy dared not speak further.
A while later, she tried to comfort Wendy: “Actually, I think it’s more likely that Cindy is lying.”
“She may have never even met Mr. Lopez. Maybe something unexpected happened at the time, and that’s why Cindy wasn’t in Mr. Lopez’s room.” Christy said.
But Wendy felt that this was even more unbelievable.
This was not as reliable as the first guess.
Although the first guess made Wendy feel disgusted.
That meant she sacrificed herself for nothing.
But at least, Cindy couldn’t have avoided it either.
If they were going to get dirty, they would all get dirty together.
Thinking like that, at least it would make Wendy feel a little better.
“She can’t have not been there.” Wendy said, “Don’t forget, we were the ones who personally sent Cindy in. Unless, she woke up before Mr. Lopez arrived.”
“But the drug was so strong; how could she possibly wake up so early?” Wendy didn’t believe it.
“I don’t believe a single word Cindy says. She must be lying, just like how she tricked you guys into coming back. She couldn’t have escaped!” Wendy declared confidently.
“That’s right. If Mr. Lopez really didn’t see her, then how would Cindy know about the 10 million?” Christy wondered.
“Either Cindy met Mr. Lopez, and genuinely heard it from him, or she was just really lucky and managed to escape.” Wendy said.
“I believe more in the first possibility.” Wendy said.
“But our family’s money has absolutely nothing to do with Cindy!” Wendy declared.
“Yes!” Christy nodded, “That much is certain.”
Wendy squinted her eyes and continuously tapped her knee with her fingers: “If Cindy is lying, she was still touched by Mr. Lopez, and moreover, she got nothing in return.”
Christy snorted coldly, “That useless thing, she’s so easily taken advantage of and doesn’t even know to get some benefits from it, just gets used for nothing.”
Wendy ignored Christy’s words and continued, “I don’t believe that there isn’t a single trace left that could expose Cindy’s past.”
“She is now, at least, a well-known figure. As a web celebrity who participated in the Cooking Competition, she is being recognized by more and more people through her live streams.” Wendy said, “If we could find out what happened to her five years ago. It would be best if we had evidence in our hands.”
“As long as she doesn’t want her past scandals exposed, she has to behave obediently.” Wendy spoke coldly.
“Yes!” Christy nodded.
“I have to check Cindy’s information again. I had only looked through it briefly before. I only watched the videos she uploaded recently.” Wendy said, “I thought that the more recent the video, the better it would reflect her current situation.”
“I wanted to learn about her current situation through the videos.” Wendy explained.
“What can you learn from the videos?” Christy couldn’t figure it out.
“You can tell from the background decoration and items she uses in the videos. Besides, she’s cooking, so there will be many close-up shots of her hands. We need to see how her hands look like.” Wendy said.
“I noticed before that her fingers have delicate skin, not like someone living in difficulty as you described. If she lived a difficult life, constantly working and doing housework, where would she have the extra time and money to take care of her hands?”
“That’s why I didn’t believe her when she told you she didn’t have any money.”
“Not to mention, the background, kitchenware, and cabinets in the videos all seem high-quality.” Although it was difficult to determine the size of Cindy’s kitchen from the videos since she mostly filmed partial shots.
“But she showed us already. Those cabinets are actually papered with wallpaper.” Christy said, “It’s truly remarkable that the actual items look so shabby, and the wallpaper even has small air bubbles.”