Free Web NovelChapter 59: Chapter 59: Who Sent You?
"!!!" Sonia Quincy’s eyes flew wide in shock.
"I already took a bite of that one."
Felix Preston played dumb. "It really is delicious."
Only then did he take the bun Sonia had offered him.
"..."
Sonia gave him a look that screamed, ’You’re insane.’
He gave his glasses a genteel push, trying his best to ignore her stare.
He didn’t mean anything by it, really. He just thought Sonia’s half of the bun looked tastier.
Sonia looked away and down at the spot where Felix had taken a bite. After a moment’s hesitation, she bit into it anyway.
’It’s fine...’ she thought to herself. ’We’re husband and wife. It’s perfectly normal for a married couple to share food like this.’
’Besides, I’ve already... helped him with my hand. Felix taking a bite of my bun is hardly a big deal in comparison.’
"THUD..."
The half-peeled egg in Mrs. Preston’s hand suddenly dropped onto the table.
Sonia’s head snapped up reflexively, only to see Mrs. Preston staring at her, her eyes twinkling with a mix of gossip and excitement.
"..."
Silence spoke volumes. Sonia hadn’t thought anything of it, but under Mrs. Preston’s gaze, she suddenly felt like a high schooler caught dating on the sly. Her cheeks instantly flushed crimson.
"Wow, this ceiling is... very ceiling-like," she mumbled, tilting her head back and letting her eyes dart around guiltily.
Mrs. Preston then turned to look at Felix.
"..." Standing on the balcony, Felix had, with great foresight, already hidden his face.
After breakfast, it was time for Felix to get ready for work.
He moved Sonia’s little chair to the doorway, brought over a small wooden table, and even placed some snacks on it for her.
"Here, have a seat." He led Sonia over to the little chair and tucked her favorite snacks into her lap.
"Be good, and call me if you need anything."
Sonia glanced at Ms. Armstrong, who was squatting by the door with her protest banner, and nodded nonchalantly. "I know. Go on to work."
Felix squeezed her cheek, then straightened up, his eyes cutting sideways to the woman by his feet.
"My wife is pregnant. If your antics cause any harm to her or our child, I will sue you for everything you’re worth."
"..." Ms. Armstrong rolled her eyes, a flicker of guilt in her expression. "I didn’t touch her."
Felix: "You dare?"
"..." Ms. Armstrong fell silent.
Felix was in a hurry to get to work, so he didn’t waste any more words on her. He pulled out his phone and, while replying to a work message from Renee Sinclair, strode out the door.
The weather was beautiful today, and warm sunlight streamed into the hallway. Sonia basked in it leisurely, phone in her left hand and snacks in her right. Life was good.
Ms. Armstrong squatted nearby with a sullen face, staying there so long her legs went numb.
"Heh heh..." Seeing her awkwardly massaging her legs, Sonia let out a smug chuckle.
"What are you laughing at?" Ms. Armstrong shot her a glare, snapping irritably.
"Mom, could you grab my tablet?" Sonia couldn’t be bothered to engage with her. Having had her fill of her phone, she remembered she had illustrations to work on.
Mrs. Preston called back from the kitchen, "I’ll bring it right over!"
"No rush," Sonia said, spreading her hands, her eyes gleaming with smug satisfaction.
"Here you go."
Less than a minute later, Mrs. Preston came over with the tablet. She placed it in Sonia’s hand, then used the chopsticks in her other hand to offer a fragrant piece of beef to Sonia’s lips.
"I made some beef and potato stew. Try the beef, see if it’s tender enough."
"Ah..." Sonia obediently opened her mouth, took the beef, and then chewed with exaggerated enthusiasm.
"Mmm! It’s super tender! And it smells amazing. Your cooking is the best, Mom!"
Mrs. Preston knew she was putting on a show and played along. "I’m glad you like it. There’s some ham in the fridge. Should I make you some ham fried rice, too?"
Sonia: "Yes, please! Thank you, Mom!"
Mrs. Preston stroked her head. "You just keep enjoying the sun. I’ll bring you a bowl once the rice is ready."
Sonia: "Okay!"
"..." Ms. Armstrong quietly swallowed.
Sonia opened her tablet and worked on her illustration for a while. After touching up the final details, she sent it to Mina Jennings. Then, she opened the file for the unfinished Wind Language Necklace and got back to work.
After about an hour, she turned off her tablet and called out to Ms. Armstrong.
"Hey."
Ms. Armstrong was now sitting right on the floor.
"What do you want?"
Sonia: "It’s already noon. Aren’t you going to eat lunch?"
Ms. Armstrong shot her a glare. "What’s it to you?"
"Sigh..." Sonia propped her chin on her hand, her expression full of deep pity. "I don’t want to meddle, but I just think you’re kind of pathetic like this."
"You really don’t have to go this far. It’s not like we’re refusing to pay compensation. Why torture yourself like this?"
"Hmph," Ms. Armstrong sneered. "Not refusing to pay? Then pay up! I’ve been camped out here for a week and I haven’t seen a single penny."
Sonia said, "I’ve told you, we’ll pay as soon as the lawyers determine liability. This has dragged on for so long because you refuse to cooperate."
"You cause a scene here every day, and you reject every solution I propose. Your husband’s the same. My lawyer tried to reach him for five days straight, and he wouldn’t say a single word. At this point, I’m starting to doubt whether you even want compensation."
Ms. Armstrong’s gaze shifted away, her voice losing its conviction. "Of course. Of course we want compensation."
"Alright then." Sonia opened her phone, pretending to read from the Spudster app as she started spinning a tale. "Just now, our lawyer sent over a preliminary liability assessment. It says that for your husband’s injury, we are fifty percent liable."
"Your husband was in the hospital for five days, costing about ten thousand yuan. Your wedding was delayed because of this, so we’ll estimate the damages for that at another ten thousand. That’s a total of twenty thousand. Based on our liability, we should compensate you ten thousand yuan."
"No way!"
Ms. Armstrong rejected it the moment the words left Sonia’s mouth.
Sonia immediately followed up, "If ten thousand isn’t enough, how about twenty thousand? We cover the whole amount?"
"No!" Ms. Armstrong’s answer was the same. "You think you can get rid of me for twenty thousand yuan? It’s not that easy!"
"...Hmph." Sonia suddenly smirked.
"Just as I thought. You’re not here for the money. So tell me, Ms. Armstrong, who sent you to cause trouble for us?"
"I..."
The question was so direct that it caught Ms. Armstrong completely off guard. She turned to stare at Sonia, her mouth hanging slightly open, utterly speechless.
Sonia raised an eyebrow, a mocking smile playing on her lips. "Are you going to keep up the act?"
"..." Ms. Armstrong was rendered speechless.
But just then, the faint sound of voices drifted from the end of the hallway.
"Mr. Lockwood, the apartment we’re here to see is just on the right side of the hall. It has the best natural light and layout in the entire complex!"
"The renovations are excellent, too! The owner took great care of this place, so you could move in right away."
"Hmm, if the lighting in the hallway is this good, I can only imagine what it’s like inside. Cecilia, what do you think?"
