Chapter 421-430
At the same time, Harriet realized that Hayley’s face seemed to have changed. Though she still looked
beautiful, it seemed that she had done something to her appearance.
To be frank, Harriet rejected the behavior of pursuing beauty through surgery. Since her body had been
given to her by her parents, she should cherish them.
“I’m sorry foring uninvited to your banquet, Grandma. It’s just that I’ve missed you so much.” The
look in Hayley’s eyes didn’t seem sincere at all.
However, Harriet reassured her, “No worries. I forgot to inform you about it. Since it’s usually the same
old rtivesing every year, I’m happy that you’vee too.” After saying that, she instructed one
of the maids, “Escort Miss Seymour to the garden for some tea.”
Hayley was overjoyed upon hearing that. Sure enough, Harriet didn’t drive her away, so she happily
followed the maid to the garden.
As soon as Hayley left, Harriet let out a sigh of relief. She was aware of Hayley’s intentions, but the
Presgrave Family could only ept one daughter-inw. Therefore, no matter what Hayley did, it
would be useless.
“From whom did Miss Seymour hear the news?” One of the female housekeepers on the side
questioned in surprise. She was the one who had sent out the invitations, but she didn’t recall sending
an invite to Hayley.
“Don’t worry about it. Let’s just serve her since she’s already here!” said Harriet with a wave of a hand.
However, the housekeeper med herself. After all, she knew what Hayley’s identity was; she was
merely a woman whom Young Master Elliot couldn’t get rid of.
“Should I inform Young Master Elliot?”
When Harriet recalled that Elliot would be bringing Anastasia to visit today, she was certain that
Anastasia wouldn’te if she knew that Hayley was here. She couldn’t help but shake her head and
replied, “Forget it. Let’s tell them when they arrive!”
One of them was someone Harriet didn’t wee, while the other was someone Harriet desperately
wanted her to be here.
Between Hayley and Anastasia, it was obvious who had the upper hand.
Soon, Harriet’s daughter, son-inw, as well as Nigel arrived.
Some rtives and friends had also arrived earlier, so the whole yard was packed with luxury cars. All
the rtives of the Presgrave Family had gained a firm foothold in the political and business circles
with the support of the Presgrave Family. The Presgraves were like a big tree, and there was an
intricatework of rtionships under the protection of said tree. Even Harriet’s brother was able to
soar high in the political circle due to the family’s influence.
While sitting in the tea house in the garden, Hayley couldn’t help but feel a little nervous when she
heard the lively atmosphere in the main hall. However, it wasn’t going to make her flinch or retreat.
Looking down at the box of drugs in her bag, she smirked cynically.
Anastasia was going to lose her pride today in front of all the rtives of the Presgrave Family.
After picking up the cup of tea, she took a few sips. It tasted pretty nd although she had already
taken some medication to revive her taste buds.
The doctors said that the surgery might cause long-term side effects, but for her beauty, Hayley could
only endure it.
At that moment, a ck Rolls-Royce entered the front yard. The man who came out of the car was
Elliot while the woman that came out of the car was Anastasia.
He extended his hand to hold her, but she hid her hand shyly. “Let’s not hold hands.”
His deep gaze locked on her for a few seconds before realizing that she was just shy and didn’t want to
show too much affection in front of her rtives.
“Let’s go, then!” Elliot understood her feelings.
As they walked past the front garden and into the hall, they saw three banquet tables in the living hall.
All of the guests had arrived.
Once they entered the hall, Elliot started greeting the guests. As the most honorable child of the
Presgrave Family, Elliot had been polite and thoughtful since young. Therefore, everyone adored him.
While Anastasia followed him around, she listened to him exchanging customary greetings with his
rtives. It was also the first time she had seen him behaving like a well-mannered junior. Usually, he
was aloof and unapproachable, making everyone surrender to him!
“Elliot, why don’t you introduce us to this beautifuldy beside you?” one of his aunts urged.
“This is Anastasia Tillman, my girlfriend,” Elliot introduced her naturally.
Anastasia couldn’t help but feel her cheeks heat up when she heard that. She had thought about this
question beforeing, but she still couldn’t avoid revealing her identity.
“What a beauty! Elliot has a good eye!”
“Of course, he does! Elliot has always been the most good-looking child to us. Naturally, he should go
out with a beautiful woman.”
“I don’t agree!” Suddenly, a male voice sounded behind thedy.
Turning around, thedy couldn’t help butugh out loud at the sight of Nigel. Nigel raised his chin and
questioned, “Which part of me doesn’t win over Elliot? I was obviously the best looking when we were
young.”
“You’re right. You’re the most handsome!” Thedy quickly changed her words, eliciting someughter
among the crowd.
Even Anastasia was amused by their interaction. Based on Nigel’s looks, he was indeed not inferior to
Elliot. However, in terms of his stance, Elliot was more domineering than he was.
“Anastasia, you should be the judge. Who is more good-looking between Elliot and me?”
Initially, Anastasia was just a spectator watching them. Now that Nigel had thrown the question at her,
she could only cough awkwardly as she replied, “You.”
After saying that, Anastasia sensed a pair of eyes filled with resentment staring at her.
“Anastasia has good taste.” With that, Nigel reached out his hand to Anastasia, suggesting, “Come on,
let’s go over there. I have something to tell you.”
However, the moment he finished his sentence, Elliot shot daggers at him. Nigel immediately sensed
the deathly stare and realized that he couldn’t treat Anastasia casually anymore. He couldn’t even get
involved with her personal affairs now that she belonged to someone else.
“What is it that you cannot talk in front of me?” Elliot red at Nigel to prove his presence.
Anastasia covered her mouth while chuckling, but Nigel huffed while saying, “You petty man. Can’t I
talk to your girlfriend for a little while?”
“No!” rejected Elliot coldly.
“Be the judge, Anastasia. He was the one who interrupted us when I tried to pursue you. I was kind
enough to let you go, but look at how he’s treating me now!” Nigel started whining.
Anastasiaughed out loud at his antics. “I’m not meddling in your fight. You should solve it between
yourselves.”
“Let’s go and greet Grandma.” Uponnding an arm on her waist, Elliot dragged Anastasia away from
Nigel.
Since he was left without a choice, Nigel tagged along because he was bored. Everyone who attended
the banquet today was mostly the seniors, and all the juniors didn’t manage to attend.
Currently, Harriet was sitting in the hall chatting away with the other old madams. When she saw Elliot
and Anastasia walking up to her, her eyes were instantly filled with tenderness and affection.
“Come here, Anastasia. Take a seat,” she invited gently.
With that, Anastasia took the seat next to her. Harriet looked at her with guilt and apology. “Didn’t you
bring Jared with you?”
“Jared went to my father’s ce.”
“Oh! I quite like that child. He’s so adorable.” Whenever Harriet thought of the child, she immediately
saw young Elliot in him.
Just then, the housekeeper requested to talk to Elliot outside.
“Young Master Elliot, I have something to tell you. Miss Hayley is here.”
Elliot’s face immediately darkened. “Who let her in?”
“Miss Hayley was the earliest to arrive, but I don’t know who informed her,” the housekeeper uttered
helplessly.
There was a hint of coolness that shed in Elliot’s eyes. Who was the one who obtained the
information and ryed it to Hayley? There was only one person who knew about it, and that was his
personal assistant, Daniel.
It seemed that Hayley even had the means to buy information from people around him.
“Where is she?” Elliot questioned indifferently.
“She’s at the tea house in the garden and hasn’t been invited to the hall yet. Do you want to see her?”
After ncing at Anastasia, who was busy chatting with his grandmother, he walked toward the tea
house in the garden.
On this side, Hayley had been waiting to be invited to the main hall. However, it was Elliot who greeted
her instead with a long face.
Hayley was in utter shock. Flustered, she almost broke the teacup in her hand. “How did you know I
was here, Elliot?”
Ever since he knew that Hayley was the cause of Anastasia’s misery back then, he didn’t have any
feelings for her anymore.
“This is my family’s gathering. There’s no reason for you to attend.” Elliot stared at her coldly.
Hayley’s eyes immediately reddened. “Why can’t Ie when Anastasia is here? You’re being too
biased, Elliot.”
Elliot frowned slightly and retorted somewhat coldly, “To me, you’re iparable to Anastasia. I have
always wanted to make up to you only in the material aspect, and you should know that.”
Hayley sensed that Elliot had changed, and his attitude toward her had be extraordinarily cold.
Did Anastasia tell him something?
“Elliot, why are you doing this to me? Did I do something wrong?” Hayley bit her red lips and showed a
pitiful look.
“Is it your fault that Anastasia was harassed five years ago?” Elliot interrogated.
Hearing that, Hayley quivered. She shook her head fervently and denied, “It wasn’t me; it wasn’t me,
Elliot. It was her stepsister who did it. When I wanted to stop her, it was toote. I regret it so much
now, and I deserve Anastasia’s hatred.”
Hayley appeared to be helpless on the surface, but in reality, she hated Anastasia to her bones. Sure
enough, Anastasia exposed what happened back then just to win Elliot’s heart.
Staring at Hayley’s face, Elliot could only see how ugly her cry was after she underwent stic surgery.
It made him extremely ufortable, and he didn’t believe in a single word she uttered.
Hayley knew that she looked beautiful when smiling, but she didn’t know how hideous she looked when
crying.
“Do not step into the hall, but you may have lunch here before leaving,” Elliot warned in a low voice. He
didn’t want Anastasia to know that she was here.
Hayley understood his intentions, so she panicked and said, “Elliot, you can’t do this to me.”
This time, Elliot was already at the door. He turned back and shot her a cold gaze, uttering, “From now
on, I don’t want to see you again.”
This sentence was undoubtedly like a sharp sword stabbing into Hayley’s chest. She underwent
surgery to look like the woman he liked, but instead, he told her that he didn’t want to see her again.
“Elliot…” Hayley stood up and chased after him, but she was stopped by two maids. “Please stay here,
Miss Seymour.”
Hayley’s heart fell into an abyss at this moment. Elliot’s attitude showed her that no matter what she
did, he only loved Anastasia.
In order to make Anastasia happy, he didn’t allow her to enter the hall even if she had alreadye all
the way to Presgrave Residence. Anastasia would be the protagonist tonight, while she was going to
suffer from humiliation all alone.
When she returned to the sofa, a strong feeling of resentment shed in Hayley’s eyes. Anastasia
being alive was her greatest pain.
In the main hall, Anastasia did not know that Hayley was also there. Harriet took her to a quiet lounge
and exined the truth about how Elliot had been saved back then without holding back.
Back then, the situation wasplicated, and it definitely gave her mother pressure to save the
hostage. In Elliot’s case, however, she sacrificed herself and pounced on him to save him. That was
her duty as a police officer, and she wasn’t forced by anyone.
“Anastasia, you may me me if you’re upset, but don’t me Elliot, okay? He was depressed and
completely lost when he came back that day. He loves you very much, and he doesn’t want to lose
you.”
Anastasia was moved to hear Harriet’s words. Hearing others tell her that Elliot loved her seemed to
give her a sense of certainty as if he loved her wholeheartedly.
“Grandma, I’m sorry for believing in Riley’s words and misunderstanding you,” Anastasia apologized.
Harriet didn’t have any morements about her stepson. All she wanted was for the younger
generation to not be harmed by him again.
Elliot instructed the housekeeper to serve Hayley in the tea house and made sure that she left after
having lunch.
Upon moving to the quiet lounge, he immediately softened when he saw the woman sitting on the sofa
with his grandmother. There was now a touch of warmth in between his brows, and the coldness
toward Hayley just now hadpletely disappeared.
Anastasia looked up at the man who was approaching, and a blush of shyness crept up her cheeks.
Harriet couldn’t help but smile upon seeing them. “Well, it’s time for me to go out and greet the guests
now. I’ll let Elliot keep youpany in here.”
After speaking, Harriet left the room. Elliot sat beside her naturally, staring at her as if he could never
have enough of the woman.
Anastasia suddenlyughed, “Can you stop staring?”
“Didn’t you say that Nigel’s more handsome than me?” Elliot wanted to settle this matter with her
privately.
Seeing him like that, Anastasia burst outughing. “What? Are you jealous?”
As sheughed, Elliot’s long arms stretched out and wrapped around her waist, pulling her down with
him until they were both lying on the sofa. Anastasia was on top of him, staring down at his face that
was too close forfort.
A perfectly wless face was reflected in her eyes.
“Take a good look. Is my face not up to your standards?” Elliot intentionally described himself pitifully.
In response, Anastasia pursed her lips and smiled. Why was he sopetitive? Why did he insist on
comparing himself to Nigel in terms of appearance?
He was definitely more childish than her son.
“You’re handsome. In fact, you’re the most handsome guy to me.” Anastasia used the same trick she
had coaxed her son on him.
Fortunately, it seemed that the trick worked even better on him. Elliot curved his thin lips, asking,
“Really?”
“Yeah! It’s true. In terms of appearance, my sones first, you are second, and Nigel is in third
ce,” Anastasia answered him in all seriousness. He should be satisfied with her answer by now!
Elliot knew that it was too difficult to win over Jared and take down the first ce, so he was satisfied
with the final oue.
Only then did Anastasia realize that she was still lying in his arms, and she could feel the heat radiating
from him through his clothes. The warmth of his skin felt a little too hot for her to bear, so she
immediately struggled to get up.
However, Elliot’s long arms werezily draped around her waist, and a malicious smile crept on his
face.
“Elliot, let me go,” Anastasiained softly.
“If you don’t show me your love, I won’t let go,” said Elliot with a smirk.
“What do you mean? You’re really unreasonable sometimes.” Anastasia had enough of him. How could
he just say things like that out of in air?
“It’s either you kiss me, or I kiss you. Pick one.”
Did it make a difference? Wasn’t she going to be kissed in the end? What a canny businessman he
was.
“Neither. I want to go out to eat something delicious.” After Anastasia finished speaking, she got up
forcibly.
Elliot sat up with her, but in the next second, the two fell on the sofa once again. This time, Anastasia
was below Elliot.
“You…” Anastasia thought Elliot was a nasty man.
“I won’t give up until I achieve my goal,” said Elliot before kissing her red lips.
All of sudden, Anastasia felt as if a current was running through her body. It felt like she was going
crazy. Elliot really liked to mess around with her regardless of the asion.
However, there was no doubt that the kiss was exciting and sweet. As the sunlight shone onto the sofa,
Anastasia was surrounded by his breath, indulging in his gentle and delicate kiss. Elliot had a special
ability; whenever he looked at Anastasia or kissed her, it was as if his eyes were dripping with honey.
He looked at her as if she meant the world to him.
Upon hearing footstepsing from outside the window, Anastasia shoved him hard, causing him to
fall to the ground.
With a loud thud, Elliot’s head hit the ground harshly.
“Oh, dear! Elliot, are you alright?” Anastasia sat up. She felt bad for Elliot, who was currently lying on
the ground.
How hard did she push him just now? How bad did it hurt when his head hit the ground?
Although there was ayer of carpet, there was indeed a loud thud just now.
Elliot’s eyes were full of grievances. “Are you trying to murder your husband?”
Seeing that he was lying on the floor and unable to get up, she reached out to pull him while
apologizing, “Sorry. I thought your Grandma woulde in and see us.”
Elliot now knew what would happen to him if he angered her after marriage. He would face the fate of
being kicked down from the bed.
Borrowing the strength of her pull, Elliot pushed her onto the sofa once again. “I won’t forgive you if you
don’t kiss me first.”
Anastasia took the initiative now and kissed him on the cheek. “Happy?”
“On the lips,” Elliot reminded.
Anastasia rolled her eyes and muttered, “You’re so bossy.”
“Don’t roll your eyes at me. That’s rude,” reminded Elliot once again.
Defying him, Anastasia rolled her eyes before uttering proudly, “We’re not officially in a rtionship yet,
anyway. You still have a chance to turn back.”
Elliot didn’t know what to do with her. Just then, Anastasia hugged his neck and nted a kiss on his
thin lips. “All peachy? I’ll go eat now.”
With that, she smoothed her clothes and went out.
Behind her, the man still looked majestic despite sitting on the carpet, and there was a hint of mischief
on his handsome face.
In another tea room at the end of the corridor, even though Hayley enjoyed the treatment as a guest
and had a table full of foodid out before her, she was suffering inside.
Her existence here was like a joke. The servants looked like they respected her on the outside, but she
knew that they wereughing at her behind her back!
She hated Elliot for treating her like that, but she hated Anastasia even more; Anastasia must have
whispered horrible things about her in Elliot’s ears, turning her into a vicious woman.
Hayley took a deep breath, the hatred apparent in her eyes as a sneer crept onto her lips. She got up
and walked out of the room, but a servant immediately reached out and stopped her. “Miss Seymour,
Young Master Elliot insists that you have your meal here.”
“Can’t I go to the bathroom?” Hayley red coldly at her, then strode toward a certain ce. When she
was herest time, she had the opportunity to tour the Presgrave Residence.
She remembered faintly that Harriet’s medicine was kept in a specialized room on the first floor. She
thought that since the Presgrave Residence housed such arge family, they probably wouldn’t install
CCTVs inside their house. This would make her operation much easier.
Just as expected, she didn’t spot any CCTVs around her. When she passed by the garden, she heard
laughtering from the main hall. It filled her heart with envy, for Anastasia was probably there as
well.
Hayley noticed that the servant was following her. Annoyance shed across the depths of her eyes as
she instantly walked further into the garden. The servant called after her, “Miss Seymour, please don’t
run around. That’s not where the bathroom is.”
Soon, Hayley managed to throw off the servant and emerged from another corridor. Now, all the
servants were gathered at the main hall to serve the guests, so the huge Presgrave Residence looked
especially empty.
A vicious feeling rose up in Hayley’s heart. Even if Harriet had no ill intentions toward her, she still
hated that old woman. She hated how Harriet favored Anastasia over her without helping her get
together with Elliot.
As such, Hayley wouldn’t mind Harriet dying. She just wanted Anastasia to take the me.
Finally, Hayley found the storeroom on the first floor. As expected, she walked briskly over and found
that it was unlocked. She opened the door and saw a few freezers inside, in addition to a row of
shelves. However, Harriet’s usual medication was ced on a table, and a few medicine bottles were
ced separately in a small basket. Hayley poured them out and studied them briefly before putting
two simr types of pills inside.
The pills were sleeping medications and also heart medications withplicated ingredients. If
consumed over a long period of time, a person of Harriet’s age would experience problems soon
enough.
After swapping out the pills, Hayley immediately left the scene.
Hayley passed by the garden once again, and when she saw the bustling on the other side, she
suddenly felt the urge to go over as well. Didn’t Elliot ban her from meeting Anastasia?
In that case, it was all the more reason for her to let Anastasia know that she was here.
Hayley went closer to the main hall on purpose. When she saw two well-dresseddies in front of her,
she suddenly put a hand her forehead and fell onto the floor.
“Oh! Are you alright, miss?” Just as expected, one of thedies rushed over to her.
Hayley fainted right away, and she heard anotherdy say, “I’ll go get help.”
At the table, Anastasia was sampling the desserts when she heard ady rush in, saying, “Come quick!
Someone just fainted. Hurry up and send her to the hospital!”
Elliot had just excused himself to answer a call, and Anastasia was sitting next to Nigel. When they
heard the shouts, Nigel was the first to get up. Anastasia followed him out.
Nigel looked at Hayley and asked, a little stunned, “Who even is she?!”
“Just ignore that and send her to the hospital right away,” Nigel’s mother urged.
When Anastasia saw Hayley lying on the floor, she was instantly shocked. She didn’t expect that
Hayley would be here as well. Just then, someone shouted, “She’s waking up.”
Hayley, who was in Nigel’s arms at the time, suddenly opened her eyes. Nigel immediately put her
down. Just then, a servant hastily walked over. “Miss Seymour, why are you here? I’ve been looking all
over for you.”
“What’s the matter with this Miss Seymour?” Brenda asked.
“Y-Young Master Elliot told us to let Miss Seymour dine in the side hall,” the servant replied.
Anastasia’s gaze met Hayley’s, and the hatred in Hayley’s eyes was directed right at her. Anastasia
understood right away that Hayley had attended as well, but Elliot had arranged a separate dining area
for her.
Hayley definitely didn’te on official invitation; she hade of her own ord.
“You—” Nigel looked at Hayley, then back at Anastasia. He felt as if he had just met the bootleg version
of Anastasia, and traces of Hayley’s stic surgery were visible in the sunlight.
“Miss Seymour, I’ll get a car ready to send you back after the meal.” The housekeeper appeared and
gestured toward Hayley. “This way, please.”
“I’ll inform Old Madam Presgrave first,” Hayley told the housekeeper.
“Sorry, but Young Master Elliot has asked me to take you home right away.” The housekeeper didn’t
want Hayley to affect the other guests.
Hayley was a little reluctant, but at that moment, the female guests who gathered around her were all
examining her in surprise. She could only say, “Fine, I’ll leave. However, can I have a word with my
friend first?”
With that, she pointed at Anastasia.
Anastasia instantly declined in disdain. “There’s nothing to say between us.”
“Anastasia, when you were assaulted five years ago, you said that I was the one who did it. Why did
you tell Elliot that I was the one behind it? Since when did I order a host to sleep with you, causing you
to give birth to a son as a result?” Hayley said loudly.
At the side, Nigel was so furious that he wanted to cover her mouth. Simrly, Anastasia turned red in
the face out of anger. Hayley was mentioning this incident in front of all the guests on purpose.
“Hayley, that’s enough messing around.” Just then, Elliot walked over to them from somewhere, his
expression dark.
Startled, Hayley trembled slightly, but she raised her voice to retort, “Did I say anything wrong? Elliot, I
don’t want you to misunderstand. I really didn’t harm her.”
Anastasia clenched her fists tightly as she shivered in fury. Even up until now, Hayley kept crossing the
line.
How could someone twist the truth to this extent?
Elliot’s expression was unimaginably dark. Hayley was taking the opportunity to tell all the Presgraves’
rtives about that incident, and she clearly wanted to ruin Anastasia’s reputation.
“Shut up, Hayley.” Elliot gave her a warning re.
Hayley’s eyes immediately went red, and she used in tears, “Elliot, I gave you my first time five
years ago to cure you, and you bullied me to no end. I even miscarried once for you. Is this how you
should treat me?”
Everyone present stared at Elliot in shock, for they couldn’t believe he did something like that. They
had no idea if they should me this most noble young master of the Presgraves.
Anastasia’s face turned pale in an instant as she looked at Hayley. She actually miscarried once for
Elliot’s sake?
Harriet had just arrived on the scene and managed to catch Hayley’s act. She said to Hayley, “Miss
Seymour, I know that Elliot had mistreated you before, and he alsomitted some mistakes.
However, Elliot has been looking for you for the past five years so he could make it up to you. Now,
we’re doing our best topensate you for the incident five years ago. Ever since we found you, have
the Presgraves ever mistreated you?”
Hayley’s true desire wasn’t any material object, for she actually wanted to be Elliot’s wife. Gritting her
teeth, she said, “Grandma, I can’t even find a man to marry now. I want to be Elliot’s wife. I want to
marry him.”
Hayley exposed her ambitions without restraint. She looked toward Elliot with a meaningful gaze.
“Elliot, I don’t me you for what you did to me that night. I just want to stay by your side and be with
you.”
“You can’t force love, Hayley. I will never take you as my wife,” Elliot rejected coldly.
“Miss Seymour, I know Elliot has mistreated you before, but he alsopensated you in every way he
could. You should know where the line is drawn.” Brenda stepped forward, not wishing for her mother
to be troubled and intending to protect her own nephew.
Hayley looked at the well-dresseddy, whose eyes red in warning toward her. She had done and
said everything she nned to do and say today, and she didn’t want it to spiral into chaos either. She
pitifully nodded. “I understand. I’m sorry, Grandma. I shouldn’t have disturbed your banquet. I’m so
sorry, and I’ll be leaving now.”
The housekeeper immediately sent for someone to take Hayley home. Hayley kept looking back at
Elliot as she left, her love and adoration obvious to all.
However, under the sunlight, Elliot’s entire body emanated a chill. No matter how loving Hayley’s gaze
was, it could not remove the coldness in him.
While no one was looking, Anastasia quietly left the crowd. She walked toward a deserted garden, her
thoughts upied with the notion that Hayley had undergone abortion for Elliot’s sake.
This was further proof of the incident between Elliot and Hayley that night. It reminded her again of this,
and she felt unbearably sad.
Brenda helped her mother back inside to rest. The other rtives and friends also understood the
Presgraves’ situation, so they didn’t make anyments on it. The Presgrave Family was powerful
exactly because its members were united.
Just then, Harriet felt some difort in her chest. She told the housekeeper, “Jodie, fetch my
medicine.”
“Please calm down, Old Madam Presgrave. Do not heed to Miss Seymour’s words.”
“She miscarried a child for Elliot’s sake! A child of the Presgraves!” Harriet said regretfully.
“Mom, don’t think like that. It’d be real trouble if Elliot had a child with that girl.” Brenda was aware.
After all, someone with a personality like Hayley’s did not deserve to marry into the Presgrave Family.
Just then, the housekeeper brought the medicine. She also gave Harriet some water to take the pills
with. After Harriet had taken the medicine, she sighed. “No matter what, the right wife for Elliot can only
be Anastasia.”
“Yes! I also hope Miss Tillman will marry Elliot.” Brenda actually preferred Anastasia too. Anastasia had
saved her son’s life, after all.
When Elliot found Anastasia, she was sitting on a swing in the garden. She was in a daze as she sat
on the swing, and when the wind lifted her hair, it was as if her hair was also glowing under the
sunlight. She looked like a princess heavy with worry.
Elliot strode over in light steps and walked up to her. Then, he began pushing the swing into motion.
Anastasia let him continue pushing before she asked, “When did you find out that Hayley miscarried for
you before?”
“Last time, when she sent you a photo,” Elliot answered truthfully.
He hadn’t declined when Hayley clung onto him and asked him for a photo!
“Why didn’t you let her into the main hall to eat today?” Anastasia asked.
“I didn’t want you to see her and upset your mood,” he replied.
“I’ve shamed you in front of your family, though,” Anastasia said bitterly. After all, she was assuming the
role of his girlfriend today.
Elliot let the swing stop, then bent down and looked at her in all earnestness. “Anastasia, I don’t care
what other people think of you. I only know that in my heart, you have always been perfect.”
Anastasia looked at him, her heart aching for him,
“Do you regret that incident with Hayley five years ago?” Anastasia asked.
Elliot nodded. He couldn’t find any words to express the regret in his heart.
Just then, a servant came rushing along the garden path. “Young Master Elliot,e quick. Old
Madam Pregrave has fainted.”
Elliot and Anastasia instantly got to their feet in shock. They exchanged nces and strode hurriedly
toward the main hall.
Nigel had carried Harriet back to her room and ced her down. Harriet’s face was pale, and her eyes
were tightly closed. She was barely conscious.
“Why did Grandma faint all of a sudden?” Elliot hastily walked into the room.
“She said she was feeling ufortable in her chest, and she asked for some medicine to ease the
difort. Within ten minutes of her taking the pills, she suddenly fainted on the floor.” The
housekeeper was extremely anxious as well.
“Are those pills the ones Grandma usually takes?”
“Yes! They’re the heart pills she always takes.”
“Elliot, hurry up and send her to the hospital.” Brenda was so anxious that her eyes were turning red.
Anastasia was deeply worried too. Elliot carried the unconscious Harriet and walked out the door,
whereas Brenda and Jonathan left along with him. Nigel helped Anastasia up and said, “You can go in
my car.”
In a private hospital which Presgrave Group had invested in, Harriet was immediately sent to the
emergency unit.
In the car, Nigel was anxious as well. “My grandmother’s health has always been in the pink, so how
could she just faint like that? Was it too shocking for her? Also, who’s that Hayley person just now?”
After Anastasia told him about Hayley and Elliot, Nigel was stunned. He never thought that something
like that had happened to his cousin five years ago.
“There’s definitely more to this Hayley person.” Nigel hated that sort of woman at first nce.
“Hayley wants to be Mrs. Presgrave.”
“She had stic surgery too, didn’t she? She’s trying to look like you.” Nigel disliked her even more.
Anastasia nodded. Any mention of Hayley was like a heavy rock upon her heart.
By the time Anastasia and Nigel arrived at the hospital, Harriet had been in the emergency unit for
more than ten minutes.
Anastasia saw Elliot standing in the corridor, his expression tense and his eyes filled with worry. At the
side, Brenda also leaned against her husband with her fists clenched tightly.
“Dad, Mom, did the doctor say anything?”
“No, not yet.” Jonathan shook his head.
Anastasia walked over to Elliot. She wanted tofort him, but she didn’t know what to say. Harriet
didn’t look too good just now. What would he do if something happened to Harriet?
“I’m fine,” said Elliot,forting her instead.
Anastasia patted him on the shoulder and apanied him as they waited for the results.
Suddenly, the door opened, and the doctor emerged while asking, “Young Master Elliot, we found Old
Madam Presgrave’s heartbeat unusual just now, and it seemed as though she had taken the wrong
medication. Are you sure that she had taken heart pills that are easy on her?”
“What’s the situation with my grandma?”
“We cleansed her stomach just now, and we’re trying to lower her blood pressure. However, this may
be an arduous experience for her.”
Hearing that, everyone present felt their heart ache for her. Anastasia noticed Elliot’s tightly-clenched
fists, and she pitied him as well.
“We’ll do our best so that she can regain consciousness. Young Master Elliot, can you bring me the
pills Old Madam Presgrave usually takes at home? I want to examine them.”
Elliot nodded. When the doctor closed the door again, Elliot called up the housekeeper and asked her
to deliver the medicine.
“Mom is at an old age now, but she still has to suffer like this. I feel so sorry for her,” Brenda said as
she clutched at her chest.
“Even normal people can’t bear all this suffering. Was there something wrong with the medication?”
Jonathan frowned.
Anastasia intuitively thought of someone. Hayley had appeared at the Presgrave Residence today, and
she was an evil and scheming woman. Could she be involved in this?
Nheless, Anastasia kept this guess to herself. After all, she couldn’t say anything without proof.
After more than two hours in the emergency unit, Harriet was moved to the ward. Within half a day, she
seemed to have gained a few more years, and she looked considerably weaker.
Just then, the housekeeper had also brought the medication, which was promptly sent to the doctor for
examination.
Anastasia looked at the time and found that it was almost 4.00PM. She called up her father and asked
him to take her son back to her home and stay the night there, and she would go back as soon as
Harriet woke up.
Francis told her not to worry, and she could wait as long as she wanted at the hospital until Harriet
regained consciousness.
Meanwhile, Elliot stationed himself in the doctor’s office as he watched the doctor study every bottle of
medicine. He wanted to know the main reason his grandmother had fainted.
Just as the doctor poured out a bottle of pills, he looked at the shape and size of the pills on the paper,
and he could immediately spot the problem.
“This isn’t heart medication. Has there been a mix-up?”
The housekeeper, who was standing at the side, also came closer to look. She eximed, “When did
the pills get sorge? Even the marks don’t look like the pills Old Madam Presgrave usually takes.”
“I don’t think these are heart pills either. I’ll have someone run a thorough analysis to determine its
ingredients.”
Elliot looked at the housekeeper. “Jodie, what’s going on?”
“I don’t know either, Young Master Elliot. The pills I gave Old Madam Presgrave yesterday were still the
normal size, but how did they turn bigger today?” The housekeeper also had no idea what was going
on.
“Someone probably swapped the contents.” With that, the doctor took another bottle and poured the
pills onto a piece of paper to examine them. “These are sleeping pills, but there’s something wrong with
them too. Even though they look more or less alike, these pills contain 6 times the contents of the pills I
usually prescribe to Old Madam Presgrave. If she takes these pills, her life would be at risk.”
Elliot’s expression changed. It was obvious that someone had swapped his grandma’s pills, but who
would do such a vicious thing?
The housekeeper was also shocked to the core. “Oh my goodness! Who’s trying to kill her? How dare
they meddle with her usual medication!”
“You’d better find out as soon as possible.” The doctor looked at Elliot. “Young Master Elliot, with Old
Madam Presgrave’s age, her medications must not have the slightest bit of error.”
Rage was already obvious on Elliot’s face, and there was a cold murderous look in his eyes.
Who dared to meddle with his grandma’s medication?
No matter who it was, when the culprit was uncovered, he would make them pay dearly.
“Fortunately, she has quite a strong resistance to medicine, and it caused such a reaction. This is how
we were able to determine early on that someone had meddled with her medication.”
“Young Master Elliot, I really can’t figure out who would do such a thing. All the servants in the
Presgrave Residence love and respect Old Madam Presgrave. She’s usually very caring toward us,
and we are all grateful to her. Who would plot against her?”
“When did you think the pills were swapped? Were the pills normal yesterday?”
The housekeeper nodded. “Yes, the pills were still normal yesterday, and they were fine this morning.
The pills only seemed different this afternoon.”
The housekeeper was only a little more than 40 years old. She had no problems with her eyesight, and
her memory was quite decent as well.
If none of the servants in the Presgrave Residence would do such a thing, then someone outside of the
house might have done it. Even though many rtives and friends visited today, they were all people
the Pregraves were on good terms with.
“Could it be Miss Seymour? She might hate you for not letting her dine in the main hall, and that may
be why she plotted against Old Madam Presgrave,” the housekeeper reminded.
A cold light instantly gleamed in Elliot’s eyes. Indeed, Hayley was the most probable culprit.
“I asked you to send people to keep an eye on her, didn’t I?”
“It was lunch time, and we were short staffed. I only sent one person to watch her, but she probably
couldn’t be tracked throughout the entire process. She must have found an opportunity to slip into the
medicine room.”
“The CCTV! Young Master Elliot, we have CCTV in the medicine room.” The housekeeper suddenly
remembered. A cat had sneaked into the medicine roomst time, but she thought that a new servant
had broken something instead. In the end, when they found out the truth, Harriet even scolded her for
it, so she installed CCTV in the medicine room after that.
“In order to keep better watch over the medicine room, I installed the CCTV there of my own ord. I
feared that something was wrong with the medicine.” With that, the housekeeper took out her phone.
The CCTV was linked to an app on her phone.
“Show me the recording,” Elliot ordered through gritted teeth. He was already extremely furious at this
point.
The housekeeper navigated the app and found the folder where the recordings were stored. They were
saved in chunks, so she had to look through the recordings chronologically. Soon, she found the time
when Hayley entered the room. Then, Elliot took her phone and sat on a couch nearby, ying the
video in fast forward. Finally, sounds could be heard in the quiet medicine room at 12.45PM.
It was the sound of a door opening. Immediately after that, a figure walked in. Who else could it be but
Hayley?
She looked around her for a while, then got to work swapping the contents of the medicine bottles. Her
evil act was caught right on camera.
“Just as expected, it’s Hayley. I can’t believe she could get so evil at such a young age. Hasn’t Old
Madam Presgrave treated her well enough?” The housekeeper had never seen such a vicious woman.
Elliot watched the entire process of her swapping out the medicine, whichsted a few minutes. His
handsome face was tense, and a fearsome and chilly aura emanated from him.
He already thought that she was incredibly evil when she first harmed Anastasia all those years ago.
He didn’t expect her to endanger his grandma’s life as well.
Hayley had no idea that her every action was being recorded. When she turned around, she even
looked at the medicine with a vicious smile on her face. She smiled gleefully for a few seconds before
finally leaving.
The housekeeper was almost driven mad by her anger. Hayley obviously had the intention of harming
people, and she couldn’t believe that Hayley’s heart could be so ugly beneath the pretty exterior.
“Send me a copy of the video.” Elliot passed the phone back to the housekeeper, then asked the
doctor, “How’s my grandma’s condition right now?”
“She’s doing well, and her blood pressure has been regted. She can stay in the hospital, and we’ll
check on her for a while. Fortunately, the medicine wasn’tpletely absorbed into her body.”
Elliot nodded, then said to the housekeeper, “Don’t tell my grandma about this yet. I don’t want her to
be affected.”
“Understood, Young Master Elliot. Please don’t let Hayley off the hook. She’s too evil.” The
housekeeper was extremely furious as well. If Hayley wasn’t found out, she might be the one to take
the me. She couldn’t imagine what would happen to her then.
Also, Harriet was such a kind person, so if the old woman passed away just like that, she would live all
the days of her life in regret.
“I won’t let her off so easily,” Elliot said through gritted teeth. Hayley’s good days were over.
Elliot didn’t get back at Hayley right away. For now, he just wanted to wait until Harriet woke up, and he
would deal with this matter when her condition had stabilized.
However, he still had one more person to deal with. He reached out and dialed Rey’s number. “Get
Daniel to take care of Hayley tonight, and keep a close eye on him throughout the whole process. I
want to know his rtionship with Hayley.”
“Understood!” Rey sensed that something was about to happen, so he did exactly as he was told.
Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org.
Meanwhile, Hayley didn’t know anything about Harriet being hospitalized. After she was sent back to
the vi, she had a round of drinks and gotpletely drunk. After her drinking session, she received a
call from Daniel.
“President Presgrave has asked me toe and take care of you. Are you okay, Miss Seymour?”
Daniel asked over the phone.
“Come here, Danny. I need you.” At that moment, Hayley only wanted a man to depend on.
“I’ll be right there.” Since it was Elliot’s orders, Daniel had a valid reason toe and take care of
Hayley.
Daniel arrived after a short while. When he saw Hayley lying in the pile of wine bottles, he went over
and helped her up. “Miss Seymour, you’re drunk.”
“Danny, am I really that bad-looking? Am I really inferior to Anastasia?”
Daniel could only coax her as he said, “No, you’re very beautiful too.”
“Howe Elliot only has eyes for Anastasia, though? What about me? I put in so much effort to look
like her, but Elliot didn’t even spare me a look. He had no idea how scared I was when I was on the
operating table. Even my sense of taste has gone wrong, but he still doesn’t like me.” Hayley sobbed
into Daniel’s arms.
This scene was caught on a camera not far away, for Rey had sent people to keep an eye on them.
Hayley and Daniel were unaware of all this as they talked in the room.
“Danny, carry me upstairs.” Hayley’s eyes were filled with a pleading look. She needed a man right
now.
Daniel looked at Hayley. Even though Hayley had altered her appearance, Daniel still loved her. After
all, they had been intimate on a few asions before.
Daniel carried Hayley upstairs, and all this was recorded and sent to Elliot’s phone. As Elliot watched
Hayley mingle with his assistant, there was only disgust in his heart.
Elliot was now sitting on a couch in the lounge. Anastasia had fetched a ss of water for him, so Elliot
turned off his phone and epted it.
Anastasia could see that Elliot wasn’t in a good mood. He seemed worried, and he was also terribly
furious.