CHAPTER 5: CHAPTER 5: SHOULD I MAKE ROOM FOR YOUR SISTER?

Juliana felt the bracelet in her hand was scalding hot.

After a moment, she lowered her eyes, suppressing her repressed emotions, and said, "Please tell Grandma Dawson that I... thank her."

Peter Dawson smiled and bowed his head slightly.

...

Evan Grant had some work piled up. After bringing Juliana to the hospital room and making arrangements for her, he was about to go back to the company to work overtime.

"I’ve asked the doctor, and in four or five days, your wound will be fine. Be good, and I’ll come to keep you company after work tomorrow."

Just as he finished speaking, his phone rang with a different ringtone than usual.

Juliana, sharp-eyed, saw Stella’s name flash on the screen just before it went dark.

In the four years she’d been Mrs. Grant, she never had her own ringtone on his phone, but Stella did.

She found it ironic.

"So your ringtones have different levels of importance too."

Evan put his phone down, "It’s just a note, don’t overthink it."

Juliana curled her lips, "Don’t overthink? Should I wait until your sister waves a pregnancy test in my face to show her smugness?"

Evan restrained his emotions, "You’re talking nonsense again. I don’t have any business trips planned; I’ll spend some time with you."

Juliana sneered, "She’s the legitimate wife, and I’m the mistress. You spending time with me is just her charity?"

"Juliana! Mrs. Grant is not a madwoman. I don’t want to argue with you. Think clearly about where you’re wrong when your head is clear!"

Evan left with a cold expression.

Juliana’s nose tingled; she wanted to cry.

Does not wanting to share your husband with someone else make you crazy?

She had loved him wholeheartedly for four years, yet he trampled on her sincerity.

Juliana remembered there was an agreement between them before they got married.

The agreement clearly detailed the treatment she would receive from the Grant Family but didn’t mention a single word about pre-marital assets.

It seemed this marriage was destined from the beginning never to reach the stage of dividing assets.

Juliana once asked Evan why he agreed to marry her.

Back then, they had just finished their wedding ceremony and hadn’t shared a room yet; they got along like friends who had good conversations.

When Evan heard her question, a rare look of satisfaction appeared in his eyes.

"Carrying the burden of the Grant Family, I thought an arranged marriage was an inescapable fate. I didn’t expect Grandma to find you. It’s exhausting enough to deal with various pressures outside. If my marriage were also a battlefield, I would truly have no place to breathe."

Juliana understood.

She had no parents and no complicated family ties—she was the least worrisome marriage prospect.

"Grandma said I should support you. If there’s anything I’m not doing well, please guide me."

Back then, Evan had laughed and pinched her cheek.

"You’re doing great; I’m very satisfied with you."

Others said Evan was like a block of ice that couldn’t be warmed.

But in four years of marriage, he provided her with a stable home. He would rush back to watch her take cold medicine when she had a cold and bring back peach crisps, she liked after social events.

She thought this block of ice had finally melted.

It wasn’t until she heard Stella’s exclusive ringtone that she realized she had been warming not a block of ice for four years, but a lock for which she never had the key.

"Ma’am, Mr. Grant has already left. You have an infusion in the morning tomorrow, so get some rest early."

Juliana snapped back to reality, "And you are...?"

The new housekeeper was a bit shy, "Aunt Lu hurt her back, so the elderly lady sent me to replace her. You can call me Mrs. Young."

Turns out she was someone from the old residence.

Surely an eyeline of the old lady, Juliana nodded and asked nothing more.

...

Evan Grant got into the car with a blank expression, and Ethan Carter quickly reported.

"Mr. Grant, Miss Grant has woken up. The first thing she wanted to do was speak with you, but when she couldn’t reach you, she called me instead..."

He paused, considering his boss’s face in the rearview mirror.

"Do you want to call her back? She might feel at ease and focus better on her recovery."

Evan massaged his temples, remained silent for a few seconds, then suddenly said, "Go to the old street in Solara tomorrow and buy some peach crisps. Mrs. Grant is picky; she only likes them freshly baked."

Ethan was taken aback. Did the boss not hear what he just said?

"Yes, sir."

...

However, the next day, Juliana waited until twilight, but Evan Grant, who promised to come and keep her company, never showed.

Instead, Lily Windsor arrived. Even with her new short haircut, she couldn’t shed her shrewish demeanor, cursing and swearing to cause trouble for Juliana.

Mrs. Young happened to be away, leaving Juliana to deal with her alone in the hospital room.

"You bitch, who do you think you are to cut off Stella’s monthly fifty thousand US dollars living expenses? Her villa, luxury cars, and housekeepers in Aldoria, everything costs money. Now that you’ve stopped her allowance, how is she supposed to live?"

This was the first time Juliana learned that the Grant Family gave Stella such good care and so much money.

The absurd part was that the Grant Family gave her a million dollars a month, expecting her to perform like a well-kept pet as Evan’s perfect wife and to be grateful for it.

Juliana slowly sat up from the hospital bed, her voice icy, "She’s not begging on the streets, is she?"

"You..."

Lily thought of something, and her tone suddenly changed.

"You’re just jealous, aren’t you? Don’t think just because the old lady speaks for you, she actually likes you. She’s merely using you as a tool for childbirth. If she truly wanted great-grandchildren, Stella could have them too."

Juliana couldn’t help but laugh, "How could the Grant Family raise pigs as if they were people?"

Lily was angered again, "Last night, you chopped off my hair, and I haven’t settled that score with you. Today, you’ll pay!"

With that, she was about to hit Juliana.

At this moment, Mrs. Young returned.

She hurried over and placed herself between the two women.

"Ma’am, kneeling in the ancestral hall for a night wasn’t enough for you, and now you come to stir trouble? Aren’t you afraid the old lady will make you kneel until your knees break?"

Lily looked Mrs. Young up and down and sneered, "Oh, it’s you, the seductress. I wondered why this hospital room smelled so bad; turns out it’s because of two fox spirits..."

"Mrs. Young, step aside!"

At Juliana’s command, Mrs. Young moved aside.

The next moment, a steaming pot of water splashed towards Lily’s face.

Lily screamed from the hot water.

"What’s going on?"

Evan Grant appeared at the door with Ethan Carter.

Lily ran over to him as if she saw her savior.

"Evan, Juliana stopped Stella’s allowance. I came to reason with her, and she and this wicked servant poured hot water on me!"

Upon hearing this, Evan quickly rushed to the bedside and grabbed Juliana’s hand.

Lily smiled; she knew the things Evan said last night were just to appease the old lady.

Evan still loved her daughter.