Sophia was getting increasingly annoyed by Jessica’s behavior. She stared seriously at her mother and said, “Mom, Leo is now my husband and your son-in-law. Please don’t insult him by calling him useless all the time! Also, if you want to live in the Cloud Dream Mountain villa, don’t provoke Leo. Otherwise, he might not let you move in, and I won’t be able to do anything about it. Now, I’m going upstairs to rest.”
With that, Sophia turned and went upstairs.
Back on the couch, Jessica’s eyes darted around as she pondered for a moment. She turned to Martin and said, “I never expected Leo to be this wealthy. He actually bought the Cloud Dream Mountain villa. We can’t just let it go; we must find out exactly how much money he has.”
Martin, however, didn’t agree with Jessica’s idea. He cautioned, “You should relax a bit. The fact that Leo agreed to let us live in the Cloud Dream Mountain villa means he cares about us. You should stop being confrontational with him.”
Jessica scoffed, “Hmph, he’s my son-in-law. How could he buy such a big villa and not let his parents in-law live there? As long as he and Sophia are a married couple, everything Leo has is ours, the Henley family’s. But, on the other hand, from what I’ve observed lately, our daughter’s husband seems to have changed. I can’t quite figure him out anymore.”
Martin whispered, “In any case, just listen to Sophia. Leo is now even daring to challenge my Mom. It’s better not to provoke him.”
Jessica eventually gave up her thoughts, saying, “Forget it, I won’t think about it too much. Now that we’ve bought the Cloud Dream Mountain villa, we have to tell our relatives about it and invite them over to see it.”
Martin understood what she was thinking and straightened up. He said, “We definitely need to invite our relatives to show them how capable our Sophia is.”
Jessica lost interest in watching TV and began to plan in her mind. She wanted the whole world to know that she, Jessica, was living in the Cloud Dream Mountain villa area.
In Sophia’s bedroom, Leo had already filled the bathtub with water and adjusted it to the perfect temperature. He came out of the bathroom and found Sophia sitting on the bed lost in thought.
“Sophia, what are you thinking about? You seem so deep in thought,” Leo approached her with a slight smile.
Sophia’s face also lit up with a smile as she looked up at Leo. “Leo, I suddenly feel so happy, like I’m dreaming. This isn’t a dream, right?”
Leo couldn’t help but reach out and gently pinch her pretty cheek. “Do you feel that?”
Sophia nodded.
“Then you’re not dreaming,” Leo chuckled. “I’ve already prepared a bath for you. Go ahead and take your shower.”
As Sophia walked into the bathroom, Leo’s gaze fell on a photo frame on the bedside table. Inside the frame was Leo and Sophia’s wedding photo.
Leo reached for the frame and looked at Sophia’s unhappy expression in the photo. He smiled wryly.
This wedding photo was the same one that hung on the wall in their Cloud Dream Mountain villa bedroom; it had just been enlarged.
The appearance of this photo frame indicated that Sophia had just recently placed it there.
The reason why Sophia wore a bitter expression in the wedding photo was that her marriage to Leo was not by choice. In her eyes, the wedding four years ago seemed more like a joke, a source of shame, and a stain on her life.
Especially three years ago, when Leo became mute, it further turned Sophia into the biggest laughingstock within the family.
During many quiet nights, whenever Sophia thought about marrying a mute and seemingly useless man, tears would involuntarily well up in her eyes.
However, Sophia was fundamentally a kind-hearted person. Despite feeling wronged, she never pursued a divorce because she understood that Leo was also a victim in this marriage, and he was innocent.
Sophia had one firm boundary: she would not share a bed with Leo.
Leo was well aware of Sophia’s grievances, so over these four years, he never forced her.
As he touched the picture of Sophia’s bitter expression, Leo couldn’t help but smile a little.
The appearance of this photo frame indicated that Sophia had accepted and acknowledged him.
Thinking about the plan to take new wedding photos they had when they returned from Cloud Dream Mountain, Leo was filled with joy and anticipation. He could already imagine how incredibly beautiful Sophia would look in a white wedding gown, with a radiant smile on her face.
Leo knew that in this world, Sophia was the only person he cared about, especially after the passing of his grandmother and the disappearance of his parents. To provide Sophia with the most solid support, Leo had to improve himself, both in terms of his abilities and his financial strength.
To take control of his own destiny and protect the person he loved the most, Leo had to become someone who stood at the pinnacle of society.
“Oh, stop looking at that wedding photo. I look so ugly in it!” Sophia, in her pajamas, walked out of the bathroom, saw Leo gazing at the photo frame, and blushed a little. She playfully scolded him.
Leo placed the photo frame back on the bedside table and smiled as he said, “In my heart, you will always be the most beautiful.”
Leo’s compliment brought a sweet feeling to Sophia’s heart, and she teased, “Did you put honey on your lips? Your words are so sweet.”
Leo got up from the bed and moved closer to Sophia with a mischievous grin, saying, “I just applied some fresh honey on my lips. How about you taste it yourself?”
“Cut it out. Go take a shower and get some sleep!” Sophia pushed him playfully with a smile.
Two days later, outside Jeffrey’s villa, Jeffrey and Martin’s classmates had gathered there.
“What is Martin up to? Why are we waiting here like this?” one of them wondered.
“His so-called luxurious villa couldn’t possibly be in the same neighborhood as Jeffrey’s, could it?” another speculated.
“Can’t rule out the possibility. Otherwise, why would he ask us to wait here?” someone else chimed in.
Listening to his old classmates’ discussions, Jeffrey felt quite uncomfortable. He thought, “This Martin is really something. Even if your family is wealthy, there’s no need to buy a place here. Isn’t this just embarrassing me?”
However, after pondering for a moment, Jeffrey considered it unlikely. Even if Martin was receiving dividends from being a shareholder and his daughter was the general manager of a cosmetics company, buying a villa here would require selling their current one.
“This Martin is definitely playing mind games,” Jeffrey thought with a smirk.
Jeffrey’s son, Michael, overheard the conversation and proudly said to his father, “Dad, if Sophia’s family really bought a villa here, I’ll let you live in the Cloud Dream Mountain villa. The Hewlett family won’t share the same neighborhood with people of lower status.”
Michael’s words made Jeffrey feel quite pleased. He proudly responded, “Michael, you’re getting married soon. You shouldn’t spend money extravagantly, even though you’re earning a high annual salary.”