Chapter 604 Not The First Time


    Despite admitting that she was not a saint, Christina had no intention of resorting to such vile tactics


    against others.


    Unfazed by Ze’s provocation, Christina red at her and responded with a smirk, “If your intention is


    to employ such extreme and despicable tactics topel Gabrielle to reveal herself, spare your efforts.


    She’s not interested in being part of a love triangle, she, too, is a victim. If you feel ufortable, go


    seek out Julian and vent your frustrations to him. Ze, don’t attempt to test my patience or Gabrielle’s.


    The Langford family may hold influence, but it won’t always serve as a refuge for you after the turmoil


    you’ve caused.”


    It was Nathaniel who gave Christina the courage to confront Ze.


    As the dignified wife of the prestigious Hadley family, she carried the reputation of the entire family on


    her shoulders. Now that she carried the title of Mrs. Hadley, she was resolved to no longer allow herself


    to be pushed over by others. D


    Ze red at Christina with intense frustration, her face contorted in anger. “What are you


    insinuating? Are you dering war against me?”


    “If that’s how you choose to interpret it, so be it,” Christina responded calmly, her demeanor icy. “But let


    me remind you, the damages caused to Gabrielle’s property as a result of the vandalism orchestrated


    by your people will requirepensation. Mywyer will be in touch.” D


    Ze gritted her teeth, and her anger was evident as she observed Christina’s dismissive demeanor.


    Christina’s eyes gleamed with a hint of danger, and a cunning smile yed on her lips. “Ms. Langford,


    I’m certain you wouldn’t want all the embarrassing things you’ve done to be front-page news for


    the entire world to witness, would you?”


    Ze’s eyes flickered with panic, her face turning pale as she clenched her teeth and uttered,


    “Christina, you’re truly despicable and shameless!”


    Christina responded with a cold smile, “It takes one to know one. I don’t like to waste time, so I hope to


    receive favorable news from you tonight, Ms. Langford.”


    Just as Christina was about to leave, a silver sports car pulled up in front of her. The doors on both the


    driver’s and passenger’s sides swung open simultaneously, revealing Julian and Anthea standing


    before everyone.


    “Ze, are you all right?” Anthea hurriedly approached Ze and whispered, “I received your distress


    message and came to find you right away.”


    Ze caught the probing gaze from Julian and looked away, a mix of resentment and frustration evident


    in her expression. “Couldn’t youe alone? Why did you have to bring Julian along?”


    Feeling aggrieved, Anthea replied, “I thought Gabrielle would be here. I just want her to see who Mr.


    Forrester truly cares about.”


    Since Anthea disliked Christina, the former contemted the idea of letting Ze deal with Gabrielle to


    teach Christina a lesson indirectly.


    Unaware of theplex history between Anthea and Christina, Ze naively believed that Anthea had


    a genuine concern for her well-being. That provided her with a semnce of relief, but deep down, her


    heart still harbored doubts and uncertainty.


    With Anthea’s support, Ze approached Julian weakly, tears welling in her eyes. “Julian, my hand


    hurts”


    Christina raised her brows and stopped in her tracks to watch Ze put on an act


    She wanted to see how Ze wouldin about her in front of Julian


    Julian’s face remained cold and devoid of any emotion, treating the woman before him as if she were a


    mere stranger seeking help, rather than his own fiancee. “If you’re not feeling well, have Anthea


    apany you to the hospital for a check-up. I have some urgent matters to attend to.”


    Christina burst into haughtyughter,pletely disregarding Ze’s feelings.


    That mockingughter felt like a p across Ze’s face, leaving her stunned and hurt.


    Anthea, who was even more hot-tempered than Ze, red at Christina and eximed, “Christina,


    why are youughing?”


    In an innocent voice, Christina replied, “Iughed because I found something amusing. Do I need your


    permission, Ms. Campbell?” (D)


    Anthea’s face flushed with anger. “You’re just as shameless as that vixen, Gabrielle!”


    Julian’s expression grew grim, and he bellowed, “Anthea, enough!”


    Taken aback by his sudden outburst, Anthea stumbled backward and sought refuge behind Ze,


    trembling with fear.


    Ze’s face contorted with displeasure, but she restrained herself from causing a scene in public. She


    could not risk tarnishing the image of elegance and virtue she had carefully built in his presence.


    Ze came to Anthea’s defense, pretending to be kind. “Julian, Anthea was simply speaking her mind.


    She didn’t mean any harm.”


    Christina could not help but admire Ze’s ability to brazenly tell lies. These two cousins are truly cut


    from the same cloth.


    Seizing the opportunity to cause further turmoil, Christina interjected, “Mr. Forrester, you see, this isn’t


    the first time your fiancée made a mistake. Now that you’re here, you should take a careful look at the


    trouble your fiancée has brought upon my friend.”


    Julian turned his head to nce at the smoke-filled vi, his eyes filled with anger. “I apologize for my


    negligence in not fully resolving the issue. I’llpensate for all the losses incurred.”


    Christina scoffed, “Every crime has its perpetrator, and every debt has its debtor. You’re not the one


    responsible for causing trouble, but of course, if you want to take up the rightful responsibility on behalf


    of Ms. Langford, that’s your prerogative. However, whether or not you’re allowed to do so is not for me


    alone to decide. We’ll have to ask the owner of this vi


    Julian was surprisingly conciliatory and responded, “You’re right, Mrs. Hadley. I’ll listen to her.”


    Anthea impulsively interjected, “Julian, Gabrielle was the one at fault in the first ce. Why don’t you


    hear Ze’s side of the story first?”


    The way she questioned Julian sounded like she was reprimanding him. Ze desperately wished she


    could silence Anthea, but unfortunately, Anthea remained oblivious, believing she was defending


    Ze’s interests.


    “If every mistress could be absolved of their misdeeds, how is it fair to the wife?” Anthea eximed.


    “How will this reflect on the Langford family? How will youpensate for the suffering Ze has


    endured?”


    Ze shifted her gaze to Julian.


    Julian’s deep voice resonated as he made a decisive statement. “I’ll arrange a meeting with the


    Langford family elders to call off the wedding and discuss with them the necessarypensation for


    the damages incurred.”


    The expressions on Anthea’s and Ze’s changed drastically.


    Ze’s emotions overcame her, and she shook her head vigorously while sobbing. “Julian, you can’t be


    so cruel to me. I don’t want the wedding to be called off!”


    Julian remained unfazed. “This is inevitable, but I assure you, the cancetion of the wedding will not


    have any detrimental impact on you or the Langford family.”


    Ze stretched out her hand to grab Julian, but thetter deftly evaded her, leaving her hand


    suspended awkwardly in mid-air.


    “I’m prepared to face the consequences of my actions. I can even apologize to Gabrielle and will not


    hold your past with her against you. Julian, we can’t call off the wedding.”


    Anthea was acutely aware of the trouble her words had caused Ze. She stood anxiously in ce,


    watching Ze plead with Julian humbly.


    Meanwhile, Christina remained disinterested in their drama. Her sole focus was on resolving the


    problem swiftly so that she could return home and get some sleep. “Mr. Forrester, Bailey entrusted me


    with the task of taking care of the house. Once you have a viable solution to address this issue, please


    contact me immediately.”


    After saying that, Christina left with her bodyguards.


    Upon returning to Scenic Garden Manor, she went straight to the bedroom to sleep, not at all worried


    that Julian would pull a fast one on her.


    If he were not utterly callous, there might be room for him to salvage his rtionship with Bailey after


    he had seeded in calling off his engagement with Ze:


    Besides, her observation of him revealed that he was seemingly not a womanizer. He had no feelings


    toward Ze, and the only thing that could shackle him was the Forrester family.


    Just when she woke up from her nap, she happened to receive a call from Julian himself.


    “Mrs. Hadley, the Langford family willpensate Bailey tenfold for the loss of her property in apology.”


    A brief pause ensued before Julian ventured, “I can’t get in touch with Bailey. Can you please tell me


    where she went?”


    Lying on the soft bed on her back, Christina stared at the ivory-white ceiling and chuckled. “She has


    gone on a vacation to clear her mind. Mr. Forrester, the best apology to her would be dealing with the


    troubles Ze kicked up fairly and strictly. She’ll never see you again, so neither do you need to go and


    bother her anymore.”


    At that, the other end of the phone plunged into an awkward silence.


    Christina broke the silence, murmuring, “If there’s nothing else, Mr. Forrester, I’ll be hanging up first..


    Please inform me when the renovation of the mansion ispleted. I’ll go and check things over.”


    Out of the blue, Julian implored, “Bailey blocked all my contacts. Can you please give me the number


    she’s currently using? I won’t bother her. I merely want to apologize to her personally.”


    “Sorry, but I can’t get in touch with her either. You’re on your own, Mr. Forrester,” Christina enunciated.


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    When she hung up the phone, worry about Bailey’s present state niggled at her. She promptly tried


    callin thetter, but still, she could not get through to her.


    At that exact moment, Nathaniel pushed open the door and stepped in. Glimpsing the fretful look on


    her face, he frowned. “You’ve run into trouble?”


    Tossing his suit jacket aside, he loosened his tie and plopped down on the edge of the bed in a swift


    motion.


    Christina threw herself in his arms. She buried her nose in his neck and took a sniff. “Did you drink


    alcohol?”


    “Yeah. There was a socializing event this afternoon. It was a cocktail party organized by Winston.”


    Then, Nathaniel continued, “You still haven’t answered my question.”


    Ever since Christina got pregnant, her sense of smell became exceedingly sensitive. Averse to the


    stench on him, she pulled away from him.


    “It’s not anything major.” She briefly told the man about the matter that had transpired between Ze


    and Julian that day before urging. “Go and shower first. You reek too strongly of cigarette smoke and


    alcohol


    Resisting his impulse to kiss her out of habit, Nathaniel stood up and headed to the bathroom.