CHAPTER 216: CHAPTER 216: FATE IS BEYOND EXPLANATION

It must have been me seeing things.

Florence Sinclair walked anxiously and, unexpectedly, bumped into Juliana Jacobs’s arm.

She frowned at Juliana, "Why did you bump into me?"

With a sarcastic turn, Juliana raised an eyebrow, "Testing whether you have eyes."

Florence was a distinguished guest of the Langley Family and couldn’t be offended.

Jared Langley quickly tried to defuse the situation, "It wasn’t intentional; it’s the Mid-Autumn Festival, let’s all be happy."

Juliana looked at him, "You’re more adept at smoothing things over than you used to be."

Jared’s mouth twitched, "It’s a day of reunion, and since Second Miss Sinclair is tied up with work and can’t return home, we should host her properly, making her feel warm and welcome here too."

Juliana scoffed lightly, lazily glancing over Jared, "Right, I neglected your guest; I shouldn’t be here in the first place."

Jared frowned, "That’s not what I meant, you are, of course, the most important in my heart."

Before his words fell, Elias Langley shouted, "Don’t move."

The three of them froze.

Following his line of sight, they saw a black snake, a meter away, rising up towards them.

"Where... did this snake come from?" Florence said in a lowered voice.

"Let’s move away slowly, try not to startle it."

However, just as Jared’s words had fallen, the snake suddenly lunged at them.

In a flash, Jared instinctively hugged Florence and stepped back several steps, leaving Juliana exposed to the snake.

But at the same time, a cold light swept past Juliana.

The snake’s head fell at Juliana’s feet.

A silver dinner knife used for cutting mooncake flew through the air and chopped the snake in two.

It’s noteworthy that the silver dinner knife is not sharp; what astonishing wrist strength and precision that took to slice the snake mid-air?

The crowd was still in shock, their eyes unanimously turned to Elias Langley.

The man remained leisurely in place, not even letting go of the wine glass in his hand, with a calm demeanor as if he had just brushed away a speck of dust.

Victor Langley was the first to react, stood up, then said, "The lawn is not safe, everyone leave quickly."

Leona Sheridan was already scared out of her wits; she rushed to Jared’s side and looked him up and down.

"Son! Are you hurt? Let’s go quickly."

Jared released Florence, a trace of unease crossing his face.

"I don’t know if there’s another snake, we shouldn’t stay here long."

As he spoke, he reached out to take Juliana’s hand.

Juliana calmly moved her hand away, leaving him grasping at air.

Jared’s heart skipped a beat.

Before he could react further, Juliana turned away and left on her own.

And she didn’t forget to take the two unfinished mooncakes with her.

Everyone left the lawn, Victor immediately instructed the bodyguards, "Search carefully, see if there are any other traces of snakes. It’s strange, how could there be a snake here?"

Florence looked at Elias Langley, patting her chest, "That scared me to death."

Elias Langley coldly replied, "I hope it wasn’t deliberate."

Florence stiffened for a moment.

What does he mean by that?

Does he suspect she planted the snake?

Just as she was about to ask further, Elias Langley already turned and walked upstairs, leaving her standing there alone.

This Mid-Autumn moon-watching feast ended so abruptly.

Juliana carried the plate of mooncakes back to her room.

Facing those people really affects the mood for tasting delicious food; it’s better to enjoy it alone in her room.

Just as she walked up the stairs, Jared caught up from behind.

"Juliana... I didn’t leave you alone just now."

Juliana paused and looked back at him, her gaze as calm as if nothing had happened.

"Your instinctive choice, just like the normal Jared, I wasn’t upset."

Jared stopped short, struggling to speak.

Juliana continued to her room.

Juliana closed the door, completely isolating herself from the outside commotion, and focused on savoring the mooncake in her hand.

"Just eating like that?"

Jared Langley unknowingly stood behind her.

The second mooncake in Juliana’s hand was still partially unfinished.

She turned to look at him, mooncake crumbs on her mouth.

"For delicious food, when tasting, you can’t mix it with other flavors."

Elias Langley placed a box of digestive pills by her side, a faint smile in his eyes: "Do you like it a lot?"

Juliana Jacobs nodded, eating while she spoke: "I used to eat mooncakes during festivals too, but this time... it’s different."

"Different how?" he looked at her and asked.

She pondered for a moment, her voice very soft: "When I eat it, I don’t feel lonely."

Elias Langley took out a tissue and gently wiped the cookie crumbs from the corner of her mouth, "If you like it, I’ll buy you some every Mid-Autumn Festival."

Juliana looked at him, her clear and bright gaze directly meeting his eyes.

"Elias Langley, we haven’t known each other for very long. Why are you treating me so well? Is it because I don’t have many years left to live?"

Elias Langley frowned, gently tapping her lips with his finger.

"What do you mean, ’not many years left’? Don’t talk nonsense!"

Juliana pressed her lips together but continued to look at him seriously.

Elias Langley could only smile faintly, his thumb gently stroking her cheek, "Fate is inexplicable."

Juliana’s eyes flickered slightly, "The matter with Evan Grant is resolved, but someone still wants my life. I really can’t figure out why."

"Hmm, this matter indeed deserves a good investigation."

Elias Langley’s eyes were calm, revealing little emotion.

Juliana realized that he probably knew something but couldn’t let her know.

She smiled knowingly, not pressing for more, and just playfully tapped his chest with her fingertip.

"If it’s because of you... then I might be able to guess who it is."

She emphasized the word "if."

Elias Langley pretended not to understand her underlying message and scooped her up horizontally.

"We’ve had mooncakes, shared a conversation, and on this Mid-Autumn reunion night... shouldn’t we have a good ’reunion’ in bed as well?"

...

On this end, time flows peacefully, but Victor Langley is restless.

Because of the inexplicable appearance of a poisonous snake in the yard, he had another argument with Leona Sheridan.

That woman was unreasonable, and he left the Langley Residence angrily, finding himself at Celestial Vista without realizing.

Adrian Langley happened to be walking to the entrance of the neighborhood.

Seeing him, he was startled. He approached proactively, saying anxiously, "Dad, I... I don’t want Mom to spend the festival alone, I’ll go back right now."

Victor Langley stood next to the car, looking at the tall buildings in the neighborhood, "Which building and floor does she live in?"

Adrian Langley, "..."

Rosalind Linton was tidying up the coffee table when she heard the doorbell ring, assuming her son had returned, she immediately went to open the door.

"Didn’t I record your fingerprint? Why still..."

Seeing Victor Langley, her eyes were full of surprise.

"Can I come in and have a glass of water?" Victor Langley asked.

Rosalind Linton tucked her hair behind her ear and moved aside to let him in.

The apartment was spacious, but the furnishings were very simple.

Though she had received this house as compensation, it was evident she didn’t have the means to make it more luxurious.

But even so, the house exuded a warmth that the Langley Residence lacked.

Victor Langley stood in the middle of the living room, looking at the woman pouring water for him, feeling inexplicably agitated inside.

"All these years, you must have hated me, right?" he asked.

Rosalind Linton put the water down and calmly said, "Hating someone doesn’t bring happiness to oneself. It’s all in the past; having a filial son is my greatest joy."

Her contentment with her circumstances moved Victor Langley even more.

He remembered her from over twenty years ago, naive, gentle, and now, though in her forties, the tranquility in her eyes still struck that part of Victor Langley’s heart that longed for warmth.

He restrained himself, "If you had come to me with the child back then..."

"Don’t say anymore," Rosalind Linton interrupted him, her eyes clouding over, "What I wanted, you couldn’t give."

"Rosalind..."

Victor Langley could no longer hold back and stepped forward to tightly embrace her...

That night, some people found happiness under the full moon, while others relived old dreams.

However, the tranquility of five in the morning was broken by a phone call.

Florence Sinclair was bitten by a snake.

Victor Langley had to leave the tender embrace, his face still full of anger when he arrived at the hospital.

"Didn’t I order the entire Langley Residence to be inspected? How could a snake still appear in the room?"

Jared Langley hurried to explain, "Um... I’m not sure either. It was more than half an hour after Miss Sinclair was bitten before she was found..."

As they were speaking, Juliana Jacobs also rushed to the hospital.

Jared Langley was the one who called her to come.

Leona Sheridan quickly pointed at her and said, "She’s the one who brought in the snake."