Chapter 197: Chapter 197: Double Happiness

In the living room, Lily Adler expressionlessly wiped the saliva from her face with a wet wipe and said to the nanny beside her, "The young miss hasn’t eaten tonight. Prepare a dinner... as soon as the master gets back, send it up to her. Don’t let her go hungry."

The nanny nodded repeatedly. She complimented Lily Adler, "Lily, you’re just too kind. Even after the young miss treated you that way, you’re still so good to her..."

Lily Adler just smiled gently at her words, said nothing more, and went back to her room.

Before long, Hector Hayes and Raymond Hayes returned home from the banquet with Sylvia Lancaster.

As soon as they entered the living room, Raymond Hayes comforted Sylvia Lancaster with a guilty look. "Sylvia, you were wronged today... That girl Clara has been spoiled by the family. She never thinks about the consequences of her actions."

Sylvia Lancaster shook her head, her innocent eyes wide, and replied, "It’s alright, Brother. My sister was just angry for a moment. I can understand. As long as she’s happy, I don’t mind being wronged a little."

Hearing this, Hector Hayes, who was sitting on the sofa, said with relief, "Sylvia is still the sensible one. You’re as gentle and considerate as your mother... If only that girl Clara were half as well-behaved as you."

Sylvia Lancaster lowered her head and gave a shy smile. "I’m already content just to be back home. Dad, Brother, don’t worry. I’ll do my best to get my sister to accept me."

Seeing how sensible Sylvia Lancaster was, Hector Hayes nodded in satisfaction. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

Raymond Hayes watched Sylvia Lancaster, his gentle gaze filled with complex emotions.

As the heir to the Hayes Family, Raymond Hayes was extremely sensitive about illegitimate children—he would not allow anyone else to take a slice of the Hayes Family’s pie.

So when he learned that Hector Hayes had brought Lily Adler’s illegitimate daughter home, his plan was to "take care of" Sylvia Lancaster without anyone knowing.

But after meeting Sylvia Lancaster, he was shocked to discover—Sylvia’s eyes and brows bore a slight resemblance to his deceased ex-wife. More than that, there was a red birthmark on the nape of her neck that was nearly identical to the one his ex-wife had!

Raymond Hayes was utterly stunned! He couldn’t believe it—’Could such a coincidence really exist in this world?’

Because of these two coincidences, Raymond Hayes just couldn’t bring himself to harm Sylvia Lancaster...

In his early years, his ruthless methods and habit of dog-eat-dog tactics had made him many enemies, and he had driven many of his rivals to desperation.

One of those rivals, with nowhere left to turn, had resorted to kidnapping his wife and child, determined to take them down with him.

His marriage wasn’t a typical business alliance; they were genuinely in love.

The death of his wife and child had been a devastating blow to him.

For all these years, he had never remarried. In the dead of night, he would think of his deceased wife and child and sit alone until dawn.

Now, a "sister" who bore a striking resemblance to his wife had appeared. Raymond Hayes thought he was going mad. He had the ridiculous thought: ’Did heaven take pity on me and send my wife back?’

After spending a few days with her, Raymond Hayes discovered that besides the birthmark, Sylvia Lancaster’s tone and mannerisms were also very similar to his late wife’s...

Unconsciously, Raymond Hayes found himself wanting to lavish upon Sylvia Lancaster all the longing and guilt he felt for his wife...

Raymond Hayes was lost in memories of his wife when he heard Hector Hayes say, "That temper of hers needs to be dealt with. Let her stay in the Buddhist hall for a day to reflect!"

But Sylvia Lancaster spoke up, "Dad, my sister hasn’t eaten all evening. How can she bear being locked in the Buddhist hall for a whole day? It’s all my fault. Please don’t punish her, okay?"

Looking at Sylvia Lancaster’s earnest and sincere expression, Raymond Hayes’s heart stirred—Sylvia’s soft-heartedness was also just like his wife’s.

Hector Hayes, however, just snorted coldly. "That temper of hers... Sigh..."

Despite his words, Hector Hayes visibly softened. He decided to have Clara Hayes stay in the Buddhist hall for one night and let her out first thing in the morning.

The nanny, seeing Hector Hayes and the others return, quickly followed Lily Adler’s instructions and carried a tray of food to the Buddhist hall.

The nanny unlocked the door to the Buddhist hall with a key, offered the tray to Clara Hayes, and tried to persuade her, "Young Miss, Lily had this specially made for you. Please don’t be angry with her. She genuinely cares for you..."

Clara Hayes’s eyes flew open. She shot to her feet and swatted the tray to the floor!

Amid the sound of the tray hitting the floor and porcelain shattering, Clara Hayes roared in fury, "Get out! Get the hell out! Who wants her fake kindness! You’re all birds of a feather! Get out! All of you, get out!"

Startled by her sudden outburst, the nanny didn’t bother cleaning up the mess on the floor and quickly fled the Buddhist hall.

The crash of the tray and Clara Hayes’s curses echoed through the villa. Hector Hayes’s anger, which had just subsided, flared up again in an instant!

’Clara dares to curse and throw things while she’s in the Buddhist hall? Isn’t this a slap in my face?!’

Hector Hayes slammed his hand on the table in anger. With a dark expression, he ordered a nearby servant, "If she won’t eat, then let her starve! Make her kneel in the Buddhist hall for three days. During these three days, she’s only allowed water, no food!"

Lily Adler leaned casually against a doorway, her jade-like wrist lifting to gently twirl a lock of hair by her ear.

Hearing Hector Hayes’s words, she once again revealed a gentle smile.

******

After telling Sylvia Lancaster to go to her room and rest, Raymond Hayes got up and went to the study with Hector Hayes.

In the study, Hector Hayes asked with a grim expression, "Is the intel reliable? Is Kenneth Adler really dead?"

Raymond Hayes nodded and replied, "It’s absolutely certain. Our mole in the police department says Kenneth Adler ran into trouble at The Metropolis Residences."

Hector Hayes nodded, satisfied. "Good... We were planning to take him out on the road, but I didn’t expect him to get himself killed... This is perfect. Now everything can be pinned on the Adler Family!"

Raymond Hayes also nodded and continued, "Tonight’s attack also went smoothly. Those people from The Advent Sect used the guns and bombs we provided to attack three residential complexes in the city. The police have their hands full now, so they won’t have time for us for a while."

Hearing this, Hector Hayes scoffed, shook his head, and said, "That bunch from The Advent Sect, they’re truly brainwashed fanatics. It’s amazing how none of them fear death."

Raymond Hayes also chuckled in agreement. "It’s good that they don’t fear death... Every one of them went in expecting to die, so we don’t have to worry about loose ends."

The Advent Sect was an organization from the neighboring province.

They took advantage of natural disasters to preach the coming of a true god, attracting a group of followers. They carried out terrorist attacks everywhere, even hitting a government building.

The neighboring province mobilized its armed police for an all-out crackdown, wiping out the entire group in one fell swoop.

However, a small number of them—fish that slipped through the net—managed to escape.

They fled to this province and made contact with Hector Hayes, a local underworld figure.

The Advent Sect wanted to carry out a terrorist attack, and the Hayes Family wanted to muddy the waters and divert police attention away from the incident at The Crestview Hotel. The two groups hit it off immediately and planned tonight’s terrorist attack.

Raymond Hayes continued, "I hear Roman Rhodes was also injured in tonight’s attack. He took two bullets. I doubt he’ll make it."

At this, Hector Hayes nodded, even more pleased. ’This is a double blessing.’ Roman Rhodes took two bullets; his chances of survival are minuscule.

Real life isn’t like a TV show. The cavitation effect from a bullet can churn a person’s flesh and bone into a pulp, like a vortex. Not even a god could save him!

Hector Hayes said with a cold smile, "Once Roman Rhodes is dead, no one will be investigating The Crestview Hotel incident for a while, and it won’t be traced back to us."

Raymond Hayes frowned again and said, "What do we do about our business now? Those clients in the West are getting pickier. They keep complaining that the people from Southeast Archanea are drug users or malnourished, with unhealthy organs. They insist on domestic ones..."

Hector Hayes took a drag from his cigarette, his expression grave. He said in a low voice, "Let’s lie low for now. We’ll decide what to do after we confirm Roman Rhodes is dead..."