Mrs Hale, I Surrender

Chapter 14: 014 Showing Off, Wife’s Call Chapter 14: 014 Showing Off, Wife’s Call The entire Hale Family was in an uproar, but out of respect for Old Sir Hale, no one dared to speak out.

Time passed, and still no one said a word.

William Hale texted again: “Grandpa, are you still there?”

Old Sir Hale: “Marriage? You must be joking with me, son!”

“I’m serious.”

“Come back home right now!”

“Weren’t you the one who said there’s no place for me in this home? I’ll take my passport card and leave. I won’t delay any longer than necessary, so I won’t be an eyesore or bother you. If you really don’t want to see me, you might choose to mail it.”

“William Hale, you scoundrel—”

“…”

Zoe Bell had no idea what her husband had done.

In the afternoon, as overcast skies blocked the sunlight and a sudden downpour fell, Zoe Bell took a short nap and woke up at dusk.

Nanny Parker was cooking, and since Zoe had nothing else to do, she helped out while learning about the members of the Hale family from Nanny Parker.

Old Sir Hale and his wife were still alive, having three sons. Except for the youngest son who was unmarried, the rest were all settled and had started their careers. William Hale’s father was the eldest, and he was also first among the Hale grandchildren.

“His younger uncle is still not married?”

Zoe was surprised, considering his uncle should be quite old by now.

“It’s driving Old Sir Hale and his wife crazy, but there’s no use worrying about it. They even say he sets a bad example for the younger ones.”

“There are some rumors about him in the Capital City …”

Nanny Parker swallowed her words just as she was about to divulge more.

“Anyway, there’s constant urging to marry within the family, and my husband always uses his younger uncle as a shield.”

Zoe was no fool; her husband’s younger uncle likely had a story.

Nanny Parker avoided discussing the master’s family scandals, so she quickly changed the topic, “Did you hear that Mr. Hale also has a brother?”

Zoe also knew a bit about the general situation of the Hale Family from the Bell Family and Brandon Stone.

“Yes, his biological mother passed away early on, leaving only him as her son, so the two are half-brothers,” explained Nanny Parker.

Zoe understood.

According to what she had learned from Brandon Stone, William Hale’s biological mother had died under mysterious circumstances.

He was not on good terms with his stepmother, and worried about mistreatment, he had grown up with his grandparents and was generally distant from his father.

He had reportedly used many ruthless methods to get where he was today.

Maybe that was why he was disillusioned with marriage and had thought about casually finding someone to marry just to appease his family?

It seemed William Hale’s life had not been easy.

“Probably because his biological mother passed away early, your husband’s personality is always somewhat subdued. Fortunately, now he has you. Hereafter, if you have children, the house will be lively,” laughed Nanny Parker.

Children…

Children!

Only then did Zoe suddenly realize a problem:

She and William Hale had agreed to marry, she got benefits from it, and naturally, she also had to pretend to be affectionate in front of his family.

But to what extent must this affection go?

If William Hale had physical needs and wanted a child, what should she do?

Zoe just felt a headache coming on.

Last night, in her confusion, she had overlooked too many things, and now it was too late to turn back.

“Actually, I’ve always just been responsible for taking care of your husband’s daily life; I don’t know much about the specific details of the Hale family…” As they spoke, Zoe’s phone vibrated, and Nanny Parker stopped talking.

It was a call from Brandon Stone.

Nanny Parker glanced at Zoe, “Madam, your phone. Aren’t you going to answer it?”

“Telemarketer.”

As they spoke, Zoe hung up the phone.

When the phone rang again, she blocked the number, then blocked two other unknown numbers that also called.

Zoe thought about her past interactions with Brandon Stone, always feeling a bit sentimental; she wasn’t a machine that could just let go and delete everything cleanly.

But now that she was married to William Hale, she should strive to let go of the past.

William Hale was right,

She wanted to control her own life!

Nanny Parker, seeing her lost in thought, casually mentioned, “I wonder if the master has arrived home at this time?”

“He should have arrived by now,” Zoe glanced outside. Night had completely enveloped the city.

“Madam,” Nanny Parker looked at her, “maybe… you should call and check.”

“Me?”

“Yeah, as a servant asking about the master’s whereabouts, it’s inappropriate.”

“But…” Zoe Bell paused, she and William Hale had a marriage of convenience with no emotional attachment, and she was worried that disturbing him might displease him, “I don’t have his contact information.”

She made an excuse to refuse.

However, Nanny Parker smiled and took out her phone, “I have it.”

“…”

**

Capital City, a high-end club

A rare gathering of people were playing mahjong around a table, exchanging glances with each other, yet their eyes were all on William Hale who was not far away. He had his laptop open with an ongoing video conference, which made everyone reluctant to speak loudly.

It wasn’t until his phone vibrated that he glanced at it out of the corner of his eye.

The crowd was astonished, as he greatly disliked being disturbed while working, fearing that the caller would be in trouble.

Yet unexpectedly, he looked at the screen and said, “The meeting is temporarily over.”

He closed the laptop and quickly picked up the phone with a “hello.”

“It’s Zoe Bell.”

William Hale hummed indifferently.

“I hope I’m not disturbing you,” her voice sounded tentative, polite yet unfamiliar with her use of “you.”

“Not at all, what is it?”

That tone was something others might not understand, but those familiar with him could tell it was definitely gentle.

Normally he would just say “What is it?” But this time he even added “What?”

The people nearby perked up their ears, but they were too far away to hear clearly.

“I just wanted to ask if you’ve arrived in Capital City?”

“I have—”

William Hale had just started speaking when the door to the private room opened, accompanied by clear laughter:

“Everyone, big news, did you hear Old Sir Hale got kicked out of the house by Grandpa Hale? Grandpa Hale even called my grandfather, calling him a scoundrel and saying he’d remove him from the family tree, which I found hilarious. This good-for-nothing Hale finally got his comeuppance…”

The person didn’t finish speaking as he was silenced by William Hale’s stern gaze.

He clearly hadn’t expected the person concerned to be there.

His face turned white with fright.

Because his voice was loud and clear, Zoe Bell heard it too and momentarily froze.

Was he kicked out?

Could it be because of her?

“Mr. Hale, you…”

“I have safely arrived in Capital City. Is there anything else?”

“No, nothing else. You can attend to your business first.”

After hanging up, Zoe Bell no longer felt like eating.

Many things might have been too simplistic in her thoughts; how could the Hale Family ever allow someone like her to marry into their family so casually?

Meanwhile, inside the private room, the man who had been shouting earlier was pressing his lips together, smiling ingratiatingly at William Hale, “Old Hale, I didn’t realize you were here, just now I…”

William Hale stood up and walked toward him, his nerves shot, worried about the possibility of being physically harmed!

He looked to the others for help, but they only kept their heads down, hiding their smirks.

“Just now what?” William Hale asked, facing him.

“Nothing, nothing, it’s been a long time since I saw you. I’ll treat tonight, just say whatever you want to eat or drink,” he deliberately attempted to change the subject.

“Aren’t you curious why I was driven out?”

“No! I’m not curious.”

“You are curious.”

“…”

“Ask me, who just called me.”

The man speechless, faced with such an approach and the “kind” glare, he could only bite the bullet and ask, “Who just called you?”

“My wife.”

He said it, and his lips slightly curled.

The others hadn’t snapped back to reality when they heard William Hale continue, “Tonight, I’m treating, to celebrate my marriage.”

The friends: “?”

The next second, they all widened their eyes in shock.

William Hale swept over them with an indifferent look, “What? Is my getting married that surprising to you?”

Getting married, and you could be any more nonchalant about it?