Deanna listened and asked Lance to wait in the living room while she went to the kitchen to prepare two bowls of clear soup noodles.
The sounds of pots and pans clanging from the kitchen didn't bother Lance; instead, they added a sense of liveliness. Watching Deanna's busy figure in the kitchen, he felt a warm, homely atmosphere.
Soon, two steaming bowls of clear soup noodles were ready. Deanna carefully carried the bowls out and called, "Mr. Mercer, it's ready."
"Alright, I'm coming," Lance responded and walked over.
Deanna looked at him, a bit embarrassed. "The ingredients are limited, so I made clear soup noodles. I hope you don't mind, Mr. Mercer."
"It's fine," Lance shook his head, indicating he didn't mind.
They sat facing each other and began eating. Despite its simplicity, the noodles had an indescribable deliciousness. Lance savored it slowly and soon finished his bowl.
Deanna naturally cleaned up the dishes and placed them in the kitchen sink, planning to wash them the next morning. Meanwhile, Lance finally mentioned leaving.
As he walked out of the complex, Xavier had already parked the car at the entrance. After getting into the car, Lance couldn't help but glance back at Deanna's apartment with a tender expression.
After a moment, he turned to Xavier and instructed, "Buy some dolls for Chloe, the fluffy kind."
"Got it," Xavier replied with a smile.
The next morning, the two little ones woke up, still remembering last night's events. They excitedly ran to Deanna's master bedroom.
"Mommy, did Uncle come last night?" they asked eagerly.
Deanna was woken up by their noise and found their question both amusing. She replied, "Yes, your uncle came over."
Hearing this, the two little ones immediately wailed in regret.
"Oh no, Uncle really came! I was so sleepy; if I had known, I would have stayed awake to talk to him more."
"Yeah, I regret it so much."
Seeing their frustrated expressions, Deanna couldn't help but laugh. She then comforted them, "Alright, there will be more chances in the future. Now go wash your face and brush your teeth; you have to go to school later."
The two little ones agreed that there would be more opportunities in the future and stopped feeling down. Hand in hand, they went to wash up.
Later that morning, after a warm family breakfast, Deanna took the two little ones to school and then went to check on the medicinal herbs in the field. Old Ashley stayed at home.
Meanwhile, outside the detention center, Emily walked out looking haggard. She was wearing the clothes she had on when she went in, now wrinkled and disheveled.
As soon as she stepped out, she saw her parents and Raphael waiting by the street. Feeling aggrieved, she ran to her mother.
"Mom-" she choked out and hugged Mia tightly.
Mia hugged her back and immediately noticed how much weight her daughter had lost. Her heart ached. "Emily, you've suffered so much!"
Garrett watched from the side, feeling equally distressed. Raphael's emotions were also complicated.
After a moment, Emily calmed down and stepped back from her mother's embrace. With red-rimmed eyes, she looked at Raphael expectantly.
Raphael understood what she was thinking and gently hugged her. "I'm sorry you had to go through this. I'll make it up to you."
Hearing this, Emily broke down again. She clung tightly to Raphael's clothes before finally calming down. Shaking her head, she asked, "I'm fine. But what about the Howard family? And our company? Are they alright?" She directed these questions at her parents.
She hadn't forgotten that both families' businesses were affected when she got into trouble.
However, Raphael and Garrett didn't want to discuss it further. Raphael reassured her, "Don't worry; it's all in the past now. Let's go home."
Emily understood they didn't want to talk about it and didn't press further as they left. Before leaving, she cast one last look at the detention center with hatred in her eyes.
She would never let this go!
This incident was a lifelong humiliation for her!
Perhaps sensing Emily's intense hatred, Raphael warned her after they got home. "I know you resent Deanna deeply, but it's best not to trouble her again!"
Raphael meant well, but Emily flared up upon hearing this.
"Why shouldn't I? She caused my detention and left an indelible stain on my record! Do you expect me to just accept it?" Emily shouted angrily.
Suddenly remembering something, she rushed forward and grabbed Raphael's clothes. "Tell me, do you still love that bitch Deanna? Is that why you don't want me to trouble her?"
Raphael found her behavior unreasonable and pushed her away forcefully.
"Emily, stop being irrational! Do you know who Deanna's backers are now? If you don't want to get yourself into trouble, you'd better restrain yourself!"
Whether it was the Mercer family, the Hughes family, or the Wright family, they were all forces they couldn't afford to provoke!