CHAPTER 110: CHAPTER 110: ADRIAN JENNINGS CAUGHT IN A SCANDAL WITH A STARLET

In the evening, Talia received a call from her best friend Yvonne Coleman.

"Hey love, there are only a few days left until New Year’s Eve. Do you have any plans?"

At Yvonne’s words, Talia instinctively glanced at her phone’s calendar. It was December 28th.

"No."

Having cried for a long time in the afternoon, Talia’s voice was somewhat hoarse.

Yvonne was surprised, "What’s wrong, babe? Why does your voice sound like this?"

"I’m fine, just a little cold."

"Oh, oh." Yvonne seemed not to suspect anything, "So how are you planning to spend New Year’s Eve? Are you spending it with your brother Adrian, or with me and Winter?"

At the mention of Adrian Jennings, Talia couldn’t help but feel like crying again.

"Me and him..."

"Hmm? What’s up with you and him?"

The room was as bright as daylight, and snowflakes fell outside the window, quietly and silently.

Talia sat on the bed, holding her phone to make the call, gaze lowered, looking at her toes. "I... I had a misunderstanding with him..."

She didn’t want to say they broke up.

In her heart, she and Adrian Jennings just had a misunderstanding.

Yvonne replied, "Oh, I wondered what happened. Turns out it’s just a misunderstanding, no worries. Which couple doesn’t have misunderstandings? I’ll get my brother to ask Adrian out for New Year’s Eve; we’ll meet up and create a chance for you two to be alone. There’s no misunderstanding that can’t be solved with a hug or kiss."

Yvonne paused, then said playfully with a mischievous grin, "If there is, then do it—do it big, and all misunderstandings will be resolved, hehehe."

Yvonne was always so bold, speaking with so much flair and irreverence. Although Talia knew this was her unrestrained personality, she still blushed at Yvonne’s cheeky words.

Talia: "..."

"Don’t be embarrassed, Talia. Let me tell you, men love this. You can’t reason with them; they like things straightforward and direct."

Talia awkwardly listened to Yvonne’s love strategies for over ten minutes, but after hanging up, her mind was filled with indescribable images.

Indeed, she shouldn’t have mentioned her and Adrian Jennings’s matters to Yvonne.

...

That night, Talia couldn’t sleep.

She lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.

Talia chose to carefully organize the recent happenings in her mind.

She concluded that Adrian Jennings must have suggested breaking up out of concern for The Rhodes Family possibly being harmed by Vincent Fletcher again.

Talia thought that once Adrian Jennings handled Vincent Fletcher’s matters, they should reconcile.

She could pretend to be unaware of this matter; in public, she would act as if not familiar with Adrian Jennings, but they could still connect privately.

Talia initially wanted to call Adrian Jennings to chat.

She really missed him.

Wanted to hear his voice.

But upon looking at the time, it was already two thirty in the morning.

She thought better of it, considering Adrian Jennings had been very busy and tired lately. She shouldn’t disturb his rest.

She’d call tomorrow instead.

Thinking of this, Talia sent a message to Yvonne on WeChat.

[Yvonne, don’t invite Adrian for New Year’s. Things between us are a bit complicated. I’ll explain next time we meet; we can’t meet up right now.]

Early the next morning, Adrian Jennings told the old man of the Jennings Family about his breakup. The old man arranged for gifts and called Ian Jennings, Melinda Lynch, and Adrian Jennings to go to the hospital to apologize to Shawn Rhodes.

Inside Shawn Rhodes’s hospital room.

The Jennings Family’s servants arranged the expensive gifts, supplements, and fruits they brought in a neat order before quietly leaving the room.

A crowd gathered around Shawn Rhodes’s sickbed.

Except for Mrs. Jennings, who couldn’t go out due to catching a cold, everyone from the Jennings Family was present.

The old man of the Jennings Family spoke first, "Shawn, I heard you got hurt. I applied for a return to Oakhaven just to come visit you and wish you a speedy recovery."

The old man held a high position in Kenton. Even a city leader of Oakhaven had to show him due respect.

As the elder and a figure of authority, the old man was humble and courteous towards Shawn Rhodes, without any hint of condescension, and it caught Shawn Rhodes by surprise.

He propped himself up against the bed, leaning back against the headboard with a slightly apprehensive look on his face, "You honor me, sir. It’s nothing serious; sorry to trouble you with a visit."

Ian Jennings spoke up, "In-law, these are just tokens from our family. We hope you accept them."

With the old man leading the way, even if Shawn Rhodes harbored grievances against the Jennings Family, he couldn’t lash out at this moment. He accepted the card with a smile, "Thank you, then. I’ll accept it."

Ian replied, "You’re welcome."

"Shawn," the old man said again once Shawn Rhodes had accepted the money, "Actually, my return to Oakhaven has another purpose."

Shawn Rhodes roughly guessed what the old man wanted to say, and he composed himself to listen quietly.

"The injury you suffered wasn’t an accident. I’m sure you know already, Adrian must have told you about Ian’s..."

The old man paused; he initially intended to say "illegitimate child" but stopped, feeling it too harsh.

After a slight pause, the old man continued, "Mentioned Ian’s other son, Vincent Fletcher?"

Shawn Rhodes’s expression slightly darkened, and he nodded.

"Vincent Fletcher’s target was our Jennings Family. You got entangled only because Talia and our Adrian had a marriage arrangement, so after careful consideration, we’ve decided to call off the engagement."

Lillian Young stood by, slightly surprised at this.

Shawn Rhodes had talked to her last night about wanting to call off the engagement with the Jennings Family but felt powerless to broach the topic due to the old man’s influential status.

Unexpectedly, the old man voluntarily brought his family around to suggest breaking off the engagement today.

This was a matter best left for the Jennings Family to initiate, and indeed it was good.

When the old man of the Jennings Family walked in with his family, Shawn Rhodes was mentally prepared, so hearing the old man’s words, Shawn Rhodes wasn’t particularly shocked.

He nodded slightly, "Alright, since you’ve brought it up, I’ll be honest. Actually, I’ve been thinking about this too. Please don’t blame me, but so far, The Rhodes Family has paid a heavy price for this engagement."

The old man looked apologetic, "I understand."

Ian Jennings concurred, "In-law, it’s our Jennings Family’s fault toward The Rhodes Family. You can announce the breakup; we’ll handle the press release, and the Jennings Family will take full responsibility."

Melinda Lynch took out a document and handed it to Shawn Rhodes, "In-law, this is the breakup statement we’ve prepared. Please let us know if there’s anything to add."

"Alright," Shawn Rhodes accepted the document and began to look through it.

After a moment, he closed the document, "Nothing needs to be added; this will do."

Melinda Lynch replied, "Alright, please do send this out. Dragging this out is a risk for your Rhodes Family."

Shawn Rhodes nodded and then glanced profoundly at Adrian Jennings, "Adrian, did you tell Talia about this?"

"I did." Adrian Jennings’s Adam’s apple bobbed, "Uncle, to make Talia give up, I told her I fell out of love. I would appreciate your cooperation in not letting her know the truth."

Shawn Rhodes responded in a steady voice.

"Shawn, take care. We won’t bother you anymore," the old man said.

"Alright, take care." Shawn Rhodes looked at Lillian Young, "Lillian, go see them out."

Lillian: "Okay."

...

Talia didn’t sleep well last night, and took a nap in the afternoon.

Not long after she snoozed, the phone kept ringing continuously.

Tiredly, Talia opened her eyes, picked up the phone to answer it, "Hello?"

Yvonne Clarke was excited and startled, "Oh my gosh! Talia, have you checked Weibo? Adrian Jennings is involved in a scandal with a celebrity! It’s trending!"