Chapter 1048
Sophia had always thought of her mother as nothing but a kind and beautiful woman simr to those
dumb blondes that sessfully tamed the heart of a domineering president in most modern romance
stories. However, it turned out that her mother was a strong and independent woman. No wonder so
many of her photos were hanging in Crimson House.
As a result, the image of Annabel in Sophia’s heart changed again and again—so much so that she
herself didn’t know which one to believe anymore… Perhaps, there was a story hidden behind what
happened back then. If Annabel had truly appeared before Cooper with a malicious purpose, Cooper
would have noticed it. It was Cooper after all; how could he fail to see through such tricks?
If not for love, why would she be so determined to give birth to their child despite the rumors swirling
around her? All of a sudden, Sophia felt extremely guilty. I shouldn’t have doubted Annabel. After all, she
is my mother! Besides, 30 years had passed. Stories about her mother had turned into myths. Who else
would remember a pitiful young woman that had died at a young age, aside from Cooper, Sophia, and
those few who cared about her?
If not for Sophia making a name for herself over the years; if not for Michael, who was such an amazing
husband; if not for Cooper, who returned to recognize Sophia as part of his family, Annabel would still be
considered a slut that returned home pregnant after failing to be the mistress of a bigshot. Simrly,
Sophia would still be an illegitimate child without a father.
Besides, nobody could even clearly recall the exact date Annabel had dropped out of school. Some
imed that she was never educated; others imed that she dropped out of primary school; some
imed she was illiterate; and others imed that she was a top student that received a schrship
and was only forced to drop out of junior high school. Perhaps stories of that hooked-nosed man that
drove the BMW were stories of other people that the vigers had tacked onto her name. It had been
30 years after all!
One wouldn’t even be able to recall how many trees were nted in front of their house after 30 years;
how could they possibly recall how old somebody else’s daughter was when she dropped out of school?
However, the Annabel that Cooper knew was the closest to the truth. That was because he truly cared
about her—so much so that even if 30 years had passed, he could still remember everything about her
clearly…
At that thought, Sophia breathed a sigh of relief, and the gloominess that shrouded over her for the past
few days dissipated. I’m still the product of love between my parents. I’m so d.
The father and daughter pair sat at the park until midnight before they got up to return home.
“Dad, let’s get some barbecue!”
The father and daughter pair walked under the street lights. The streets near the park were still very
lively. Many people came out for a jog or to walk their dogs in the coolness of the night, and the stalls
along the streets were operating in full swing. Cooper felt slightly repulsed by the sight of the street stalls.
Even so, he saw that Sophia was very excited. Thus, he went over, found a ce to sit, and took out his
phone to deal with some business matters. asionally, they talked to each other too.
Sophia took out her phone and tried to call Michael again. Unfortunately, the results were the same as
before—the line kept breaking up. Out of 10 calls, only one would connect. Moreover, the call would only
last for several seconds before it disconnected again. Still, she felt satisfied even though she only
managed to exchange a few words with Michael and happily wolfed down her barbecue after ending the
call.
Looking at the way she was immersed in love, he couldn’t help but think that she was very simr to how
he was in the past.
Then, she suddenly asked, “Dad, if I really faked a marriage with Uncle Linus, will it be awkward in the
future?”
He replied, “It’ll be fine. It’s just a piece of paper. With this marriage certificate, Linus will officially be
entered into the Michel Family’s genealogy record book.”
This matter was giving him a huge headache. The Michel Group was advancing with the times because
it had to constantly be innovative to remain at the forefront of the times. It was the only way to maintain
its dominant position in the market.
However, the Michel Family remained stubbornly conservative. Despite the era they were in, it was still
implementing rules from hundreds of years ago. He once tried to initiate a change in the past, but the
resistance was too strong. This family that had been passed down for hundreds of years was very
sensitive to change. It would never ept any changes easily. Even if he was the head of the family,
even if he controlled the Michel Group, many people still stood out to oppose any changes that were
proposed.
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As they ate, they chatted.
“Master Sam told me that he bought the first Crimson House for my mother—”
“How could you believe what Sam says?! He was a jerk at the time! He had nothing but money.
Everything from big to small matters was dealt with by your mother! She was the one who managed his
restaurant and created a turnover of several hundred thousand for him. Yet, he only paid her a sry of
800 each month. How dare he try to woo her after doing that?! He must be dreaming!”
“The barbecue at this stall is delicious. I’m going to buy some to bring home. I wonder if Uncle Linus will
eat it.”
“Yeah, he will. I always see himing out for barbecued meat while walking the dog alone in the middle
of the night.”
“What?! How could he eat such delicious food behind my back?!”
…
After they finished eating, Sophia tried to take out her wallet to pay only to discover that she… did not
have her wallet with her. All she had on her was a fiver. Thus, she said to the shopkeeper, “I didn’t bring
any money. Can I pay by Venmo?”
The shopkeeper was extremely busy and simply said, “The totales up to 98. The QR code is on the
table.”
Wiping her mouth, she took out her phone and scanned the QR code on the table. With a soft ‘beep’, she
sessfully scanned the code and keyed in ‘98’, which was the amount that was to be transferred. Just
as she was about to press on the ‘confirm’ button, her hand suddenly froze mid-motion and she stared
nkly at the screen…
Cooper noticed that something was amiss and nced at her phone. After scanning the QR code to
make the payment, the name of the receiving party was disyed on her phone—Annabel Johnson. The
profile picture was that of a middle-aged woman. She had her hair tied up delicately and wore a white
apron. That person looked almost identical to Sophia, except that she was slightly older, had wrinkles,
and her eyes were more rxed than Sophia’s.
When both father and daughter saw the profile picture, they werepletely taken aback.
Then, the shopkeeper walked over and asked, “Was your payment sessful? The Venmo ount
belongs to the owner, so I can’t see the notification from my side. Please show me your receipt of
payment…”
Cooper had taken Sophia’s phone out of her hands and stared at it with an expression of disbelief. It was
as if he couldn’t recognize the words ‘Annabel Johnson’!
Noticing that they had yet to pay and were just staring at the owner’s ount, the shopkeeper
immediately felt angry. He was about to speak out when he saw a woman approaching on an electric
bike. The bike stopped by the side of the barbecue stall, and the woman walked over with a satchel. Her
hair was tied up high, and she looked slightly aged. Her skin was rxed and wrinkled, but she still had a
noble air around her. She did not seem like the owner of a barbecue stall by the roadside at all.
“Heath, how is business tonight?” The middle-aged woman spoke with a foreign ent.
Upon hearing that voice, Cooper felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He stood up nkly and
stared at the woman in a daze.
Walking over, the woman talked to the shopkeeper for a bit. Then, the shopkeeper pointed toward them,
and the woman nced over. As soon as she saw Cooper, her expression changed drastically. The calm
smile on her face stiffened, then it was slowly reced by a dumbstruck look before bing one of
shock and disbelief. All of a sudden, her eyes were filled with great joy as she eximed in non-standard
Cethosian, “Coop, is that you?!”