CHAPTER 183: CHAPTER 183: DON’T FORGET TO GO TO THE CIVIL AFFAIRS BUREAU TOMORROW

Vincent Hawthorne finished signing his name and threw the pen coldly to the side.

"Satisfied?" He raised an eyebrow and looked at Tanya, those usually gentle and affectionate eyes now filled with cold sarcasm and a hint of disgust.

Satisfied?

Ha, this is just the beginning.

Tanya calmly put the agreement away.

The more indifferent she was, the angrier Vincent became.

"You’ve endured so many years, just to make a calculated move against me during the divorce... Tanya Sinclair, you’re really something."

Old Lady Hawthorne frowned deeply and was about to open her mouth to scold.

But Tanya’s cold laugh was heard first.

"Ha."

She finally raised her eyes to Vincent Hawthorne, the man she had spent half her life loving.

In the past, just looking at Vincent’s face would soften her heart and make her feel happy.

But now, even though it’s the same face, it disgusted her to the core.

Maybe he was never an extraordinary being, it was just her love that gilded Vincent Hawthorne.

The emotions in her gaze were too heavy, and it made Vincent feel uneasy.

He frowned, "What are you laughing at?"

Tanya’s smile widened, she supported her chin and looked at him more intently.

"I’m laughing because I never realized before you’re actually quite ordinary, just very narcissistic."

Vincent’s eyes flashed with irritation, "Tanya Sinclair!"

"Vincent Hawthorne, ask yourself sincerely, am I worth your scheming for fifteen years of your life?" Tanya’s tone was lazy, even more contemptuous, "Without your background, your personal abilities are quite average, dragging down my genes. And though the Hawthorne Family is wealthy and powerful, it’s not really a top-notch family."

She watched Vincent’s face grow darker and her smile became even brighter.

"Don’t worry, Mr. Hawthorne, if I hadn’t been so irrational back then, I definitely wouldn’t have chosen you if I wanted to marry rich."

"..." Vincent got up abruptly, the chair was pushed back half a meter, "Tanya Sinclair, you’ve got nerve!"

"Vincent!" Old Lady Hawthorne frowned.

Vincent suppressed his anger and turned to leave.

"Mr. Hawthorne." Tanya called after him, reminding him, "The agreement clearly states, transfer all assets belonging to me to my name within seven working days. Otherwise, I’ll apply for a forced execution. To save your time, let’s meet at the civil affairs bureau entrance at 9 AM tomorrow to get the certificate."

’Bang——’

The door to the tea room was slammed shut by Vincent with a loud noise.

Tanya picked up the tea in front of her and took a calm sip.

Old Lady Hawthorne sighed.

How did it come to this...

Tanya gave the supermarket address and locker code to Old Lady Hawthorne, who immediately arranged for someone to retrieve the camera inside.

Old Lady Hawthorne hesitated, "Tanya..."

Tanya understood the old lady’s thoughts.

"Rest assured, I don’t have any backups. Using such despicable means to deal with Yvonne Hawthorne, I was forced to use her own methods against her."

Old Lady Hawthorne felt mortified.

"I failed to educate them properly, it’s my fault, old as I am, that I wronged you..." Old Lady Hawthorne touched her moist eyes, "I also failed your grandfather."

Mentioning her grandfather, Horace Sinclair, brought a slight change to Tanya’s expression.

"Old lady, I’m here today to ask you something." Tanya looked at Old Lady Hawthorne and said solemnly, "Before my grandfather left, the last person he saw was you. You must know where he went."

Seven years ago, after attending her wedding, her grandfather Horace Sinclair left.

He only left her a letter.

In the letter, he said he wanted to find a quiet place to complete his last medical book and that she shouldn’t look for him.

Her grandfather disagreed with her marrying Vincent Hawthorne back then but didn’t stop her.

"You’re as stubborn as your mother, grandfather can’t stop you, your life, whether it be bitter or sweet, you must be responsible for it in the future."

Tanya did not regret it; when she loved, she gave everything, but this relationship was truly too painful.

Tanya suppressed her nostrils’ acid and pleaded with Old Lady Hawthorne, "Please, if you know my grandfather’s whereabouts, tell me. I wish to see him one more time."

Old Lady Hawthorne struggled for a long time, recalling the first time she met Tanya, who was twelve, a lively and clever little girl with bright eyes who wasn’t afraid of her and ran up to say, ’Grandma, you look just like a Bodhisattva.’

Old Lady Hawthorne sighed long with her eyes closed, "Fine, let it be that I break a promise this time. But Tanya, be prepared mentally..."

Tanya felt a pinch in her heart, not daring to ask more, only saying, "Okay."

Old Lady Hawthorne then wrote an address and handed it to Tanya.

"That place only allows visitation on Sundays."

Tanya Sinclair went over the address in her mind twice, carefully stored it away, and got up to bid farewell to Old Lady Hawthorne.

"Madam, I’m leaving. Please take care of your health."

"Tanya!" Old Lady Hawthorne chased after her, unable to resist taking her hand. Her old eyes were brimming with tears as she touched Tanya’s face, "Good child, you’ve been through so much over the years. Take good care of yourself. I... I have wronged you, and The Hawthorne Family has wronged you."

Tanya Sinclair bent down to gently embrace the old lady.

"You’ve treated me very well," she said softly, "There’s nothing wrong in being protective of the Hawthornes."

She understood the old lady’s motives.

No matter how much the old lady loved her, she was ultimately the matriarch of The Hawthorne Family.

Old Lady Hawthorne trembled violently all over.

Tanya understood everything, and felt too guilty to meet her eyes.

"Take care, Madam." Tanya patted her gently on the back and left without any reluctance.

In a pavilion not far from the old lady’s courtyard by the lake, Vincent Hawthorne’s silhouette was hidden in the shadows, silently watching Tanya’s figure walk away, disappearing out of sight.

He held a cigarette between his fingers, the orange ember flickering in the night breeze.

Vincent took a deep drag, exhaling an amorphous white smoke, his hawk-like eyes cold and harsh beyond the mist.

Several cigarette butts were already scattered by his feet.

Jonah Rivers called in at that moment.

"President Hawthorne, I urgently looked into it; there are no extra shares under Silas Hawthorne’s name. Mr. Haw...." Jonah bit his tongue and corrected himself, "Ms. Sinclair wasn’t lying, she hasn’t sold any shares. It’s probably another one of Silas’s boastful claims outside, trying to mislead some shareholders to gain some benefits at the shareholders’ meeting the day after tomorrow."

Vincent Hawthorne relaxed completely after hearing this.

"Thank you," he released the cigarette from his long fingers, dropping it to the ground.

Just as Vincent was about to hang up, he heard Jonah’s cautious voice.

"President Hawthorne, did you...really get a divorce?"

Vincent stomped out the cigarette butt forcefully, his voice frosty with a hint of irritable malcontent, "What? Do I need to report to you before getting a divorce?"

"No, no... it was out of line," Jonah quickly said, "Then I’ll hang up now, please rest early."

"Jonah." Vincent stopped him, nudging his cheek, his tone gloomy, "Have the driver come to the villa at eight tomorrow morning to take me to the Civil Affairs Bureau."

...

As Tanya made her way out, she glanced indifferently behind her—it was a bodyguard arranged by Old Lady Hawthorne, escorting her from a respectful distance.

When passing by the main building, it was brightly lit over there.

Tanya heard Yvonne Hawthorne’s hysterical screams coming from the second-floor bedroom, accompanied by the loud sounds of things being smashed.

"Get out, all of you! I’m not going abroad!"

Yvonne, with disheveled hair, rushed onto the balcony, "If anyone comes near, I’ll jump off!"

Mother Hawthorne was heartbroken.

"Yvonne, don’t do this. Your father wants you to go abroad to escape the limelight for your own good! Stay there for six months, then come back when it’s all blown over!"

Yvonne screamed, "Why should I go away? What have I got to be ashamed of? Those people didn’t do anything to me!"

"That... that needs to be believed by others too!" Mother Hawthorne was at her wit’s end, "Initially, several prominent families wanted to be tied with us through marriage, but now they’re avoiding you like the plague; your father’s reputation has been ruined!"

Mother Hawthorne tried her best to persuade her daughter, "Yvonne, be reasonable. With all the information on the internet, if you just stay abroad for a while, people will soon forget about it."

Yvonne was about to lose her mind.

"I said I wasn’t raped! The one whose reputation should have been ruined is that Tanya Sinclair bitch! She’s the one who ruined my life..." Yvonne screamed and shouted, suddenly noticing a familiar shadow passing downstairs out of the corner of her eye.

Yvonne’s eyes widened with rage, gritting her teeth, "Tanya Sinclair! How dare you come back!"

She shoved past her mother trying to restrain her, nearly frenziedly rushing out, grabbing a pair of scissors from the table as she dashed downstairs straight towards Tanya.

"Tanya Sinclair, how dare you show up in front of me!" Yvonne shrieked at Tanya, "I’m going to kill you!"

However, before she could even touch the hem of Tanya’s clothes, she was grabbed by the arms from both sides by two bodyguards appearing out of nowhere, lifted like a chick.

"Let me go!" Yvonne cursed angrily, "You’re The Hawthorne Family’s dogs, how dare you protect Tanya Sinclair, that bitch! Believe me, I’ll have my grandmother fire you tomorrow!"

The two bodyguards frowned but didn’t otherwise respond; their hold on Yvonne’s arms tightened noticeably.

Yvonne screamed in pain, the scissors in her hand clattering to the ground.

Tanya stepped forward, picked up the scissors, and toyed with them in her hand.

Mother Hawthorne, who had rushed over, was so frightened by the scene that her legs went soft.

"Tanya, please don’t hurt Yvonne, I’m begging you. I’ll kneel if I have to, alright?"

She knew these two bodyguards were Old Lady Hawthorne’s people, and now Old Lady Hawthorne intended to protect Tanya; tonight in The Hawthorne Gardens, no one could lay a hand on her.

If Tanya were to stab Yvonne with those scissors, as long as it wasn’t fatal, Old Lady Hawthorne wouldn’t intervene.

Seeing Tanya approaching Yvonne with the scissors, Mother Hawthorne was so anxious she burst into tears and really knelt, kowtowing to Tanya.

"Tanya, it’s my fault entirely. Please don’t harm Yvonne, she’s just a child, she doesn’t understand anything!"

Just a child?

Such familiar words; Vincent had once said the same thing, saying Yvonne was just a child...