“Why should I when it does not affect me at all?”
Henry finally picked up his chopsticks. Elena could not refute his statement.
The restaurant’s boss and Henry did not know each other, and they probably would not interact again in the future. It would not have mattered if the boss misunderstood the situation. Even though his words were not wrong, there was no warmth in it at all.
Elena peeked at the man again. He might have been good-looking, but he was not as attractive as Eldest Young Master Williams. They belonged in the same world, and only such people could befriend each other. She knew that they were out of her league; there was a massive gap between them.
“What’s on your mind?” Henry put down his chopsticks and asked in concern.
“Nothing. My tongue hurts.” Elena lowered her head to hide the rare feeling of disappointment in her eyes.
“Eat up. We shall part ways after this. I still have classes in the afternoon.”
Elena kept her words; she wanted to leave immediately after the meal. Nothing could stop her then; not even a carriage pulled by ten horses could keep her there. She was gone as soon as they got out of the restaurant. She did not even turn to look at him. Henry watched her back as she walked further and further away as his gaze became quizzical in deep thoughts……
Three days later, Old Madam Williams made miraculous progress under everyone’s care and concern.
The sky was clear that day, so the maid pushed the old madam in her wheelchair in the backyard. The old madam accidentally spotted a familiar figure; a girl had stood amongst the flowers. Her plain white dress looked refreshing with a sense of retro-ness. There was a strange but familiar sense that moved that old madam’s heart.
” Talia…” The old madam thought that her eyesight had failed her.
The view of her back, her hairstyle, her dress… looked exactly the same as Talia in the photo. Why were they so similar? The girl finally turned around. Her face appeared clean and bright under the sun. She was so beautiful that her complexion glowed even without any powder and makeup.
“Really beautiful…” The old madam wanted to go over to have a closer look subconsciously.
The maid asked, “Old madam, do you want to go over there?”
The old lady nodded, so the maid wheeled her over. Before they could approach the girl, she had turned around and noticed the old madam. She seemed surprised to see them and hurried to greet the old madam.
“Hello, Old Madam Williams.”
“You are…” Perhaps it was a little too bright that day, but the old lady felt as if her vision was a bit blurred.
She could not identify the girl’s face, but her skirt seemed familiar. It was… It was the same as the dress that Talia had worn in the photo. How could the same dress appear on that girl?
“My name is Ava Garcia, I… am Elena’s sister.” Ava smiled sweetly at the old madam.
Her smile, so docile and well-behaved, and coupled with her soft temperament and elegance, any elder would easily accept her presence, especially when she looked so sweet and gentle. The old madam immediately felt a sense of familiarity when she knew that the girl was Elena’s sister.
“So you are Elena’s sister, you look so beautiful!”
She was gorgeous! She did not have any makeup on, so her face was clean and bright, and the old madam absolutely loved it. However, the old madam’s attention was on her dress. There was an inexplicable feeling deep down in her heart when she saw the girl in that dress.
“Your dress…”
“Do you like this skirt too?” Ava spun around in front of the old madam. Ava smiled shyly when she stopped and looked at the old lady. “I don’t know why, but I have liked these dresses since I was a kid. It was probably because… someone around me had worn the same ones during my childhood.”
“Someone around you?” The old lady was shocked when she heard that.
“I can’t remember it clearly, but I vaguely remember that when I was very young, there was a woman around me who liked these dresses as well.”
Ava tilted her head to one side like she was trying hard to recall her memory, but then she shook her head in despair.
“The memory was too blurred for me to confirm the woman’s identity, but I knew that she was very good to me. She was gone before I could remember her that well.”
“Why was she gone?” The old lady looked a little anxious.
“I don’t know.” Ava shook her head with a confused look. “Anyway, after she was gone, I was all by myself.”
“What about your mother?” If she was Elena’s older sister, then, was she the eldest sister or the second sister?
She looked close to Elena’s age, so she must have been the second sister.
The girl was Second Young Miss Garcia, and her mother was the daughter of the wealthy Ye family. Even though the old madam had forgotten her name, she could still roughly remember the situation.
“Why wasn’t your mother by your side? Why were you alone?”
“My mother…”
Ava bit her lower lip. Trace of grievances gleamed through her eyes as she hung her head low and whispered while she played with her fingers, “My mother never liked me since I was a child. She liked Elena better and spent almost all her time with Elena.”
The old lady was puzzled. She did not investigate the matter so thoroughly. However, Madam GarciaGarcia’s daughter was Ava and not Elena. Why did she remain by Elena’s side? Why would a mother abandon her biological daughter and choose to be with someone else’s child instead?
“I don’t understand it as well. I thought that perhaps my mother was not my mother after all. Maybe she was actually Elena’s mother.”
Ava smiled awkwardly to feign that she did not care. Her voice was soft, just like the wind, which sounded so soothing to one’s ear.
“Maybe I was not as good as Elena when I was younger, so my mother prefers Elena to me.”
She laughed bitterly. It was heart-wrenching to watch. However, she was mentally strong. Even then, she still kept her smile before the old madam.
“I have been working hard. I believe that as long as I try harder, my mother will love me one day.”
“Silly girl…” The old madam sighed. She did not expect that the beautiful girl would have gone through such a hard time.
The old madam should be happy because Elena was loved. However, she had a weird feeling in her heart when she heard Ava’s words.
“By the way, my mother is also here today. She must be nearby.”
Ava seemed to respect her mother, and she looked quite anxious.
“My mother would be angry if she could not find me. Grandmother, I’ll go to my mom now and come back to greet you another time.”
Ava turned to leave after she said goodbye to the old madam. She was anxious and meticulous as if she was afraid that her mother would scold her if she did something wrong.
How could she endure such hardship and live so cautiously? Did her mother mistreat her?
“I have heard about this Second Young Miss Garcia before.” The maid wheeled the old madam around the garden.
“Oh?” The old madam turned to look at her. “What kind of a girl is she?”
“A very good girl. I heard that she was crowned Bentson’s Number One Enchantress because of her outstanding character and accomplishments.”
“Bentson’s Number One Enchantress?” What high praise, indeed!
“Yeah, Second Young Miss Garcia was very well-learned from an early age. She is different from the third young miss, who has quite a bad reputation.”
The maid continued to push the old madam forward. They stopped at the corner of the flower bed when they heard someone was on the phone.
The woman was hiding behind the flower patch. Her voice was very soft, but the old madam could still hear the entire conversation clearly.
“Yes, don’t contact Old Madam Williams again in the future. If she found out that you have taken Ava’s blood sample instead of Elena’s blood sample for the parentage test with her, both of us would be doomed in Bentson, do you understand?”