CHAPTER 79: BRUCE DOESN’T SLEEP AROUND, RIGHT?

The cocks crowed in the countryside. It was the first time Hilla had woken up so early. Therefore, she lied in the warm quilt and was unwilling to get up.

Hilla’s eyes were peeping out from under the quilt, and then she looked at Halle who was tying back her hair with a ribbon. Halle was dressed plainly and wore no makeup today, so Hilla laughed, "Halle, you are so beautiful!"

Although Halle was dressed very much like the people here, Halle had a remarkable temperament.

Halle smiled, and then her head was peeping out from under the quilt. She lied there and was still unwilling to get up.

"Didn’t you say that you want to go to the fair with me last night? What time is it? Hurry up and get up. Otherwise, the fair will be over."

"Halle, although you are dressed plainly and wear no makeup, you are the most beautiful here. Aren’t you afraid of being in danger in the fair?"

Halle smiled, "Do you think that the people here are all perverts? No, they are simple and honest. And they only look at you if you are beautiful. Do you think they will rob me home?"

Although this was a rural area, it was not desolate or backward but it had beautiful scenery. Hilla had seen the people here the day when she came, and they were indeed very enthusiastic.

Last night, it was also thanks to their neighbors that Hilla and Halle were able to clean up the house and receive a lot of food from them.

Hilla believed Halle but she still didn’t want to get up.

"Hurry up and get up. Although the fair is a bit more outdated, it is very interesting. If you don’t get up quickly, the fair will be over."

"Well, I was so tired and slept so late last night. I thought I will not wake up until noon today, but I didn’t expect to wake up so early. Halle, am I not acclimatized?"

As Hilla said, she got up.

The temperature in the quilt and the room did have a difference. As soon as she got out of bed, she shivered with cold.

"Halle, it’s too cold!"

Halle wanted to burrow into the bed again, but Halle quickly stopped her and smiled, "It won’t be cold after you put on your clothes. Remember to wear more clothes."

"I’m so pathetic!"

Ever since Hilla was young and when her parents were alive, she was allowed to get up as late as she could, so she had never felt much of anything for her bed.

However, she never thought the bed would be the happiest place for her in the countryside.

"If we don’t go to the fair quickly, we will be even more pathetic for not having enough food."

Although there was a small shop in the countryside, there were very few vegetables.

Therefore, they should go to the fair to buy many basic goods.

Halle and Hilla got a quick bite and then went out. Looking at the fogs in the mountain, Hilla exclaimed in surprise, "Halle, this place is as beautiful as a fairyland."

They stepped on the solid and smooth flagstones. The surrounding trees did not wither completely, and the flagstones were scattered with thick leaves.

The air was cool and fresh, unlike the smog in the city.

Hilla and Halle went to the fair by bus. As soon as Hilla got out of the car, she was attracted by the flowers and other goods.

"Halle, there are so many goods here!"

Unlike the mall in the city, there were lots of people and goods everywhere which were right next to each other. Although they were outdated, Hilla didn’t feel they were dirty.

People came and went, and everyone was prepared for the upcoming festival.

Halle followed closely behind Hilla. One of her hands was protecting her belly, while the other hand was clenching Hilla’s sleeve.

"You can buy whatever you like. Anyway, we need to buy lots of things for Christmas."

The next fair would be after festival, and it wouldn’t go bad even if they bought that now.

"Halle, I regret not driving here."

Hilla only wanted to stay away from the Andersons for a while, so she didn’t take anything that the Andersons gave to her besides what she took to the Anderson’s at the beginning.

Although they were in the countryside, they still needed transport.

Halle chuckled, "Forget it. Your car is so eye-catching that people here will be scared."

Although one had never seen the Maserati before in the ordinary countryside, they could tell that Hilla’s car was valuable in the information age.

When the time came, they would get into trouble.

"You’re right. Let’s buy a cheap one in a few days. I still have some money."

Although the card was given by the Andersons, there was not too much money. Hilla took Halle’s pregnancy into consideration and took the card just in case. Anyway, she could return the money in the future.

Halle didn’t mind, "There’s no hurry. We can buy one after the factory starts working."

They bought a lot of goods, and Hilla bought a few lively red carps.

"Halle, six carps for two dollars! They are so beautiful!"

Hilla had never spent so little money to buy something that she liked so much. Therefore, she smiled at the small fish in the bag as if she had never been dispirited yesterday.

Halle also breathed a sigh of relief when she found Hilla was so happy. Although only Hilla and Halle celebrated the holidays together this year, they bought lots of peanuts and candies. Moreover, Hilla also specially bought a lot of ornaments.

"There’s a thief! Catch the thief!"

Someone in the crowd shouted. After Halle was hit from behind, Hilla supported her and shouted, "You hit someone."

"Hilla..."

Halle wanted to hold her back, but Hilla reacted quickly, raised her leg, and tripped the skinny man. After that, someone rushed up, found the wallet he stole, and then took him to the nearby Public Security Bureau.

"Hilla, you freaked me out just now. You have acted rashly! I heard that there might be a group of thieves. What if those people take revenge on you? You can’t..."

"Well, Halle, you are right. Because he hit you just now, I was afraid something would happen to you."

Hilla hurriedly touched Halle’s belly nervously and said with a smile, "Fortunately, he is fine."

Halle wanted to blame her, but she was amused by Hilla’s words, "You are even more difficult."

"No, not only can I protect myself, but I can also protect you two. Tonight, I’ll cook delicious food for you."

"Forget it. You haven’t even entered the kitchen. Don’t waste my ingredients. In a few months, I’ll give Lilian some money and ask her to help cook."

As they spoke, they have returned to the small courtyard.

It was at noon. Wisps of smoke rose continuously from the nearby chimneys. Hilla was carrying the goods. Before she entered, she saw the black car parked before their house.

Hilla instantly thought it was someone from the Andersons!

...

The people in the car found Hilla and Halle who had just returned from the fair. The car door then opened, and William got out of the car first.

As soon as Orlenna and Margaret got out of the car, they went close to Hilla. "Hilla, you have had a tough day."

Looking at the heavy goods in Hilla’s hand and Hilla’s dusty face, Orlenna felt even more guilty.

If she hadn’t said the wrong thing in a hurry, Hilla wouldn’t have been here.

If Hilla couldn’t meet Bruce, wouldn’t it be even more difficult for her to have a grandson in the future?

"Mother, why are you here?"

Hilla was a little nervous and guilty, so she didn’t know how to deal with Orlenna.

The matter of her "fake pregnancy" really devastated Orlenna. As a daughter-in-law, it was kind of her fault. Because although she had a conflict with Bruce, she should not lie to Orlenna or fake her pregnancy. Last time, she had made things perfectly clear.

"It’s cold outside. Let’s go back to the house first!"

Halle found both Hilla and Orlenna tried to say something more, but the words wouldn’t come out. It seemed that they couldn’t clear the air for a while.

It was better to return home, sit down, and then harsh this out.

Margaret was curious about the natural lifestyle, while Orlenna felt sorry for Hilla when she saw everything here.

The house was clean and bright. There were five rooms except for two utility rooms, and there were some household appliances.

Three rooms were occupied by Hilla and Halle, and two were empty. For Hilla and Halle, the house was too spacious. However, it was too crude when compared to the gorgeous villa of the Andersons.

The rims of Orlenna’s eyes turned red in an instant. She knew that even if the Holts went bankrupt, Hilla had not experienced many unpleasant things. But Hilla came here because Hilla was angry with her.

Halle poured Orlenna a cup of coffee, while Margaret was curiously strolling around the courtyard and had no intention of coming in.

Hilla sat on the bed awkwardly, while Orlenna took the lead and said, "I’m sorry for letting you down. I should not act in haste yesterday. Although you aren’t pregnant, you are young. You and Bruce will have children in the future. Therefore, I won’t compel you to take any tonics again. Don’t be angry. Come back with me, okay?"

Tomorrow was the last day of this year when the Andersons were supposed to

gather together.

Hilla didn’t expect that Orlenna would say such words to her in earnest. After that, Hilla felt she was so petulant to break Orlenna’s heart.

"Mother, I..."

"Hilla, come back with me. I’m superstitious and believe the fact that you and Bruce don’t celebrate the holidays together in the first year of your marriage will bring bad luck. Besides, it will be the best to clear the air instead of being angry, right?"

Orlenna found Hilla was looking out of the window, thinking that Hilla was blaming Bruce for not coming today. Therefore, she quickly said, "Bruce didn’t come today because something happened to our overseas branch, and he flew there last night. If he was at home, he would come to pick you up."

Bruce had been on a business trip!

Hilla was surprised, but she also felt an overwhelming sense of loss.

After the annual meeting, Bruce did not explain to her, nor did he take the initiative to speak to her, nor did he apologize to her... For him, she was a nonentity, so he never cared about her.

Hilla pursed her lips and shook her head, "Sorry, I can’t go back with you. I want to spend the holidays with Halle. The factory will start working soon after the festival, so I can’t leave her alone."

Moreover, Halle was pregnant.

Orlenna didn’t expect Hilla to reject her, so she said nervously, "Hilla, are you still blaming me?"

"No, I don’t blame you. It’s my fault because I shouldn’t lie to you. But I don’t want to go back, which has nothing to do with you."

"Are you worried about Halle? Didn’t we agree that we will bring her home to celebrate the holidays together?"

Orlenna took the opportunity to look at Halle. Halle knew what Orlenna meant but she could only look down and pretend to not understand.

It was up to Hilla whether she wanted to go back or not. As long as Hilla didn’t get hurt, Halle wouldn’t interfere too much.

"Halle is in poor health. And it’s not good for her to have a trip back and forth. Moreover, tomorrow is the last day of this year, and Halle and I do have a lot of things to do after our factory starts working."

Orlenna could tell that Hilla was still angry, but she couldn’t figure out what exactly she was angry with.

Bruce’s legs had recovered suddenly. Although his recovery had reassured those people of the Anderson Group in the annual meeting and many shareholders started to support them again, the Design Department and the Finance Department, the two most important departments of the Anderson Group, were still in the hands of Lucas.

Orlenna was worried about the company, but she could do nothing. And she wanted to have a grandson as soon as possible, but she had gone too far. Not only did she make Hilla unhappy, but Hilla was separated from Bruce.

"But this factory won’t be built in a day or two. Hilla, are you going to be here all the time?"

After the factory was built, they needed to employ workers, produce goods, and then look for clients for sale. Therefore, Hilla could live here for a year or two.

Did Hilla have to be separated from Bruce for a year or two?

Orlenna seemed to suddenly wake up, feeling that it was too terrifying. Therefore, she was determined to persuade Hilla!

"Mother, you don’t have to persuade me. I won’t leave Halle alone. Besides, there is something that Bruce and I haven’t made clear yet. I’m afraid he won’t make it clear for a while."

Hilla pursed her lips. She suddenly felt aggrieved and miserable, and her eyes clouded with tears.

But she could only gulp back her tears in front of Orlenna.

Hilla was determined, so Orlenna could only return to the Anderson’s with Margaret. The more she thought about it on the way, the more she felt that something was wrong. Therefore, she turned to look at Margaret who did not make any trouble this time and asked, "Did Bruce do anything that I don’t know?"

"He has done so many things that you almost don’t know!"

Orlenna frowned, "What about his private life? He doesn’t sleep around in the company, does he?"

Margaret shook her head, "He is principled, so he doesn’t sleep around in the company but get mixed up with Riya again."