CHAPTER 42: CHAPTER 42: RIGHT ON TARGET

In the evening, when my father-in-law returned from his social gathering, he saw I was there and chatted with me pleasantly for a few moments, then got to the point.

"Zoe, have you considered working at the company?" my father-in-law asked.

I was a bit taken aback, and he immediately explained his thoughts.

It turns out that the chemical plant was urged to start work quickly by my father-in-law. He heard that Henry Preston was recently pursuing a girl and came up with a way to make Henry a bit busier.

The demolition and development of the chemical plant is a big project that also requires cooperation with government departments. Once construction begins, Henry would definitely not have much time to develop an extramarital affair.

But that was not enough. My parents-in-law agreed that I should also be brought to work at Preston Company, at the headquarters, working alongside Henry, to deter those women with ulterior motives.

In fact, the one with ulterior motives is Henry, and I have no work experience. My current dream is to be a cellist.

In my previous life, my in-laws were indeed fair and just with correct values, but they had never been so biased in my favor. The pair of violet bracelets and the jade pendant I gifted them seemed to be quite effective.

"Zoe, we all know you’re not interested in business, otherwise your family also has a company, and there’s no necessity to have to join The Preston Group. It’s just that your father and I hope you young couple can grow old together, not let some external factors ruin this marriage. You can think it over carefully, no rush to answer." My mother-in-law spoke softly.

I was deeply touched, truly worried that in the end, it would not be that I couldn’t bear to leave Henry, but that I couldn’t bear to leave my in-laws.

"Okay, Dad, Mom, I will carefully consider it and give you an answer later." I nodded.

After chatting for a while, it was getting late, so I went back to my room to rest.

This is Henry’s room, which became our bedroom after we got married, but we rarely come back together, let alone sleep together.

Henry’s room is big, with an en-suite bathroom, closet, balcony, and even a game room. It contains some of his stuff from school days, including a photo album filled with photos of him and his friends, with Ivan Underwood appearing the most.

I flipped through it for a while, then, feeling a bit wistful, put the album back. Anyway, Henry, who’s been handsome since young, wouldn’t end up being mine, so the more I looked at it, the more annoyed I became.

With my in-laws’ enthusiasm and my own intention to draw closer to them, this time I stayed at The Preston Family for four days before returning to City A.

Before leaving, my mother-in-law stuffed the trunk full of free-range chickens and ducks, plus vegetables and fruits she grew herself. She had cultivated a patch in her backyard, tending to it neatly, and raised chickens, ducks, and geese, and whenever I visited, I took a lot back.

"Lane, drive safely. Zoe, text me when you get home," my mother-in-law instructed.

"Okay, Mom, I’ll be heading back now." I nodded.

"Don’t worry!" Lane vowed earnestly, "I will drive safely!"

Under my mother-in-law’s watchful eyes, Lane started the car. We should arrive home by noon in time for lunch. I just didn’t know if Laura Lawson had prepared anything since she didn’t know when I’d be back.

After a nap, I awoke to Lane calling me, "Ma’am, we’ve arrived."

I rubbed my eyes and stretched, instructing, "Bring all the stuff from the trunk inside."

After that, I got out of the car first. Several servants were trimming the garden’s floral plants, and upon seeing me, they greeted me. Laura was among them and hastily came over, "Ma’am, you’re back. I’ll go make lunch now!"

"Wait a moment," I called out to Laura, "My mother-in-law gave me some free-range chicken, go stew one of them, and store the other items in the fridge."

"Yes, Ma’am." Laura took a chicken from Lane’s hands to prepare it.

Looking at the remaining two chickens and two ducks, I was a bit troubled, so I assigned someone to tidy up the back garden and partition a space for these four distinguished guests, making sure not to waste my mother-in-law’s intentions.

Laura used top-notch matsutake mushrooms to stew the chicken, and in the white porcelain bowl floated a thin layer of golden chicken oil atop the yellow broth. The moderately-sized chicken pieces mixed with dried white mushrooms, exuding an aromatic blend of rich chicken and the subtle fragrance of matsutake, extremely enticing.

"Auntie Lawson, it’s delicious! With your skills, your daughter must have grown up rosy and plump!" I served myself a bowl of chicken soup, blowing on the steam before sipping a bit, sincerely complimenting.

"My daughter has been picky since childhood. I’ve put a lot of effort into getting her to eat more, but she stays thin. Girls love beauty, so she doesn’t eat much and can’t gain weight." Speaking of her daughter, Laura’s eyes were full of affection.

Azure Vaughn is indeed relatively thin, but much better than me.

I curled my lips slightly, "Thin is good; a girl looks prettier when thin, no worries about finding a boyfriend."

As we were chatting, Henry’s figure appeared in the living room. Seeing I was back, he seemed a bit surprised, then came over and sat down. "Did you have fun?"

Even though I hadn’t informed Henry of my plans, Crystal Dawson always posted on her social media daily with location tags, so Henry definitely saw it.

While sipping my soup leisurely, I replied, "It was okay, had fun, ate well and slept well, my mood’s been great all around."

"Hmm." Henry emitted a barely audible cold hum. He rolled up his sleeves, revealing sturdy and well-formed forearms, and then served himself some soup. After tasting it, his brow smoothed out a bit.

I asked softly, "Is it good?"

"Yes." Henry replied.

I added, "It’s the free-range chicken your mom brought us, she raised it herself, the taste is indeed very fresh."

Only then did Henry look at me, with a hint of doubt in his eyes, "My mom came by?"

I shook my head, "No, I went to your parents’ place, stayed for a few days and just returned today. She stuffed a trunk full with chicken, ducks, and vegetables for me. Some are now being raised in the garden."

Henry’s expression instantly turned complex, a trace of ridicule appearing, "Why the sudden thought to visit them?"

"I must have been bored." I lowered my head to continue drinking my soup, ensuring Henry didn’t see my little calculations. In my previous life, I loved him so much that I lost my mind, made him the center of my universe, and neglected the important people around him.

"Trying to turn 5% into 7% or 10% in the future?" Henry hit the nail on the head.

I indeed was startled, and the chicken soup went down the wrong tube, causing me to cough violently. Laura returned to the dining room upon hearing the commotion and patted my back.

My actual aim was to set obstacles on Henry’s road to pursuing Azure. In the future, if I wanted a divorce, I’d surely face stronger opposition from my in-laws. If he wanted me to initiate the divorce or agree to one, I could take the opportunity to make some demands, to which he’d most likely comply.

But this objective was not a must-achieve, such a casual little target being guessed by Henry so easily did indeed leave me flustered.