"April gave birth to a son and thinks she can use him as leverage to force a divorce. I would never agree to that, of course, so I had to pay her off. Don't worry, once she's recovered from childbirth, I'll send her and the boy abroad. They'll never come back to bother you again."

After a long talk, Vincent finally managed to persuade Mrs. Walker.

Mrs. Walker had only mentioned divorce in a fit of anger; she had no real intention of leaving Vincent.

They had been through thick and thin for over thirty years, their lives and interests too deeply intertwined to make a split possible.

And now that April's child was born, it wasn't like he could be stuffed back in. Mrs. Walker had no choice but to grit her teeth and accept it.

"In one month, that woman and her wretched child must be out of the country, and they are never to return. As for what you gave her, I can't be bothered to argue about it. But the rest of the Walker family's assets must belong to Yolanda."

Mrs. Walker had stated her terms, making a compromise.

"Of course. Yolanda is our daughter, the apple of my eye. How could I not think of her best interests?" Vincent promised.

But a man's promises are often just words, not to be taken seriously.

Now that April had given him a healthy son, Yolanda, his flawed daughter, had already been cast aside in Vincent's heart.

If Mrs. Walker had been smart, she would have seized control of the remaining Walker family assets instead of trusting her husband's empty words.

...

Yvonne and Bennett's wedding was set for a bright, sunny day in late September.

The day before, Yvonne was to return to the James family estate to await the groom's arrival.

Yvonne felt little connection to the James family, but blood ties could never be completely severed. Even the law didn't recognize the renunciation of a parent-child relationship.

As long as Yvonne inhabited this body and Teresa James was alive, she would always be Yvonne's mother.

For Yvonne to be married from the Jones family estate was an almost impossible dream.

Because Yvonne was pregnant, Bennett was worried and personally drove her to the James estate.

Along the way, he kept fussing over her.

"You're coming to pick me up

tomorrow morning. I'm only staying

at the fames estate for one

night-less

night less than ten hours in total.

What could possibly happen?"

Yvonne said with a helpless laugh.

"As long as the elder Mr. James isn't a complete fool, he won't let anything happen

to you at his estate," Bennett said calmly, his hands on the steering wheel.

Yvonne was now the

daughter-in-law of the Thompson family, carrying a Thompson heir. The entire family, from Mr. Thompson Sr. down to Frank

Thompson and his wife, trenet

this child. If so much as a single hair on Yvonne's head were harmed at the James estate, the whole family would have to answer for it.

"The elder Mr. James has been so incredibly cooperative with the wedding. Did you give him something?" Yvonne asked.

"Dad gave the James family a project," Bennett answered honestly, not hiding anything.

The elder Mr. James had been very accommodating lately, not only backing. Yvonne but also preparing a large dowry for her, ensuring the wedding was a lavish affair that spared absolutely no expense.

The Thompson family naturally returned the favor. A project worth hundreds of millions of dollars was nothing to them.

"Now that the James family has had a taste of the benefits, they'll just keep clinging to the Thompsons. I have no intention of being their cash cow," Yvonne said after hearing his reply.

Even if she did feel a deep connection to the James family—which she didn't—she would never let them bleed her dry the way Karina's family did.

"Don't worry, Dad knows what he's doing. We don't need to concern ourselves with it," Bennett replied with a smile.

Frank had been practically invincible in the business world for years. If he entrusted a project to the James family, he certainly wouldn't allow anything to go wrong with

it.