Upon hearing her mother's words, Bella finally showed a satisfied expression.
She affectionately took Kelly's arm and said coquettishly, "Mommy always has a way."
"Of course, I've been through more than you have."
Kelly raised an eyebrow proudly, then as if she remembered something, she tapped Bella's forehead and advised, "In the future, for things like this, consult with me first before taking action. Otherwise, if the plan isn't well thought out, you'll end up worse off, like this time."
Bella felt a bit indignant, "I had planned everything meticulously; I just didn't expect Lance to go to such lengths for that woman."
"True, if Lance hadn't investigated deeply this time, you wouldn't have been exposed."
Kelly nodded in agreement but then changed her tone to a more serious one, "Right now, there's something important you need to do. You must find a way to mend your relationship with Lance. Even if we persuade Samantha and Logan to arrange a marriage for you two, if Lance disagrees, the marriage won't happen."
Hearing this, Bella pursed her lips in frustration, "I know all that, but Lance already despises me. I can't even see him now; it's very difficult to repair our relationship."
Seeing her daughter so upset, Kelly felt a pang of heartache.
Although she valued the alliance with the Mercer family, she didn't want to send her daughter to be humiliated.
After some thought, she came up with an idea.
"Since Lance is angry with you, give it some time. Let things cool down first. Once this matter blows over, I'll help you mend your relationship with him."
"That's great. With Mommy's help, it'll be much easier," Bella said as she nestled into Kelly's embrace.
In the following days, Deanna seemed to return to her peaceful life.
Every couple of days, she would visit the hilltop estate to check on the growth of precious herbs and then tend to the herb garden left by her master.
Most of the time, however, she stayed home to see patients.
Life was simple but fulfilling.
Meanwhile, Samantha and Logan, after several days of thorough research, were finally ready to visit their beloved grandchildren at kindergarten.
Since the school the children attended was an investment by the Mercer Group, Logan used the pretext of inspecting the property to take Samantha to the kindergarten.
The principal was stunned by the sudden notice.
She hurriedly went out with her assistant to greet them and saw Logan and Samantha already walking through the school gates. She quickly approached them with a smile.
"Mr. and Mrs. Mercer, what brings you here?"
"We're just here to take a look," Logan said calmly.
As soon as he finished speaking, the bell rang for recess on the playground.
Soon, a group of adorable children came running out of the school building.
Seeing the principal and others standing nearby, they cheerfully greeted them.
"Hello, Principal! Hello, Uncle and Auntie!"
"Hello."
Seeing these lively children softened Samantha's heart.
However, she was disappointed not to see her much-anticipated grandchildren among them.
But this did not deter her.
She turned to the principal and smiled, "Since we're here, why don't you show us around the classrooms?"
"Of course, Mrs. Mercer."
The principal naturally couldn't refuse and led them into the school building.
Some curious children followed behind them as they walked away.
Logan and Samantha observed their surroundings while quietly conversing.
"The environment here is quite nice."
"It certainly is. It seems the company's money was well spent."
Logan nodded in agreement.
Hearing this, the principal couldn't help but feel relieved.
Fortunately, she hadn't embezzled any of the funds allocated by the company.
At the same time, her curiosity deepened.
Why had the Mercers suddenly decided to inspect their kindergarten?
Unable to figure it out, she didn't dwell on it.
As they reached a classroom, she dutifully introduced it to them: "This is one of our middle-level classes; we have nine classes in total..."
While she was speaking, Logan and Samantha suddenly stopped in their tracks, their faces showing excitement.
The reason was simple: they had finally seen who they had been longing for.
The principal didn't know this.
Seeing them stop, she walked over in confusion.
"Mr. and Mrs. Mercer, is something wrong?"
"No, we're just looking."
Despite saying that, Logan and Samantha couldn't take their eyes off the classroom window.
Inside the classroom, Chloe and Gregory were sitting obediently at their desks, writing something.
Other children were playing in small groups around them, paying no attention to the two.
Logan and Samantha misunderstood this scene and their expressions darkened.
They had heard about cases of bullying in schools from news reports and couldn't believe their grandchildren were experiencing it!