Bright put on a proud smile when he spoke of his daughter.
"Well, your family has good genes." Rose knew that for Bright, even if Doris became ordinary after
growing up, she would still be his most precious daughter.
"Of course. But a wife as beautiful as you is vital." Bright praised Rose, not forgetting her credit.
"Slick talker." Rose said, but felt sweet inside.
At the noon, the family all came to the dining room. Hallie said she would be there in a few minutes.
When everyone was seated, Hallie came over, holding Zoe, who hadn't appeared for a long time.
Bright wasn't surprised by Zoe's appearance and didn't look at her.
Rose was surprised and didn't expect Zoe to have returned to the Lee family.
But now, Zoe seemed to be more cowardly than she used to be.
The fact that she had returned to the Lee family meant that Bright had cooled down.
Hallie smiled and said to Zoe, "Zoe, come on. Say hello to everyone. Bright, Rose, and your little niece
Doris are home today."
As Zoe turned to Bright, she hid fearfully behind Hallie and grabbed her arm tightly.
Her eyes were full of fear. She was trembling lightly, not daring to look up at Bright.
"Zoe, Bright is your brother. Don't be afraid." Hallie reached out and gently patted the back of Zoe's
hand, "Come on, let's sit down and eat."
Hallie pulled Zoe forward. But Zoe refused to move toward the table.
She became more and more frightened, "No ... no. I don't want to go there. I ... I'm scared..."
Zoe was afraid of Bright. At the time, Bright didn't show any affection to his father and stepmother, and
had driven Zoe out of the Lee family to suffer.
Zoe had suffered a lot and had been transformed from an arrogant and unreasonable young lady into a
submissive person. Her drive was greatly lessened. It seemed to be really effective.
She was fearful as soon as she saw Bright.
It could be said that how much she once liked Bright, how much she feared him now.
"Don't be afraid. Bright won't hurt you." Hallie comforted Zoe in a warm voice.
"No, no, no..." Zoe shook her head fiercely, "I'll just eat in my room."
Francis was a little upset when he looked at Zoe like this.
When they found Zoe back then, they saw that she was just like the women in the refugee camps, with
thin cheeks, yellow skin and a petite figure. Her silky black hair had lost its luster and was stained with
dust and mud. Her face was so dirty and stained and only her eyes were bright.
Hallie didn't recognize Zoe as her own daughter. Once she did, she hugged her and cried. Tears
poured down her face and she felt heartbroken.
Zoe repulsed at first. But after recognizing Hallie, she bit her lip and cried loudly.
Francis didn't say anything, just urged Hallie to take Zoe home quickly.
After returning home, Hallie cleaned Zoe and restored her to her beautiful appearance.
But she still lived carefully and did not speak for a long time. A short time ago, she began to
communicate with Hallie and could say a few words.
In fact, Hallie must have hated Bright for what he had done to Zoe. But she also knew that it was
because Zoe crossed the line.
It was a punishment that Zoe deserved. But Hallie still felt distressed for her daughter.
"You're being too harsh on Zoe." Francis whispered to Bright on his left, "She only spoke a while ago."
"The price of growth is inevitable." Bright glanced lightly at Zoe, "I think it's fine now."
Rose got up at this point and walked to Zoe, "Zoe, sit down here."
"You ... Don't come over here." Zoe turned pale as she saw Rose walking towards her and backed
away, "Please..."
She dropped to the floor in fear, shrunk, and clenched her hands. Her eyes were filled with tears and
she was as pitiful as an abandoned kitten.
"Zoe, we are a family. Don't be afraid. I am your sister-in-law." Rose squatted in front of Zoe.
Zoe did not dare to look at Rose. She just looked down at her toes and bit her lips, not daring to say a
word.
"Zoe, the past is the past. Let's forget it." Rose didn't want to think too much about it after seeing that
Zoe had gotten the punishment she deserved.
Zoe did not answer her. Rose reached out to help Zoe while Zoe instinctively avoided her touch.
Seeing Rose's hand frozen in mid-air, Bright got up and stepped over.
Seeing Bright approaching, Zoe turned paler and was so careful that she even held her breath.
Bright took Rose's hand, helped her, and said to Zoe, "Get up. Sit in the dining room, and eat."
Zoe didn't dare to move or speak.
"Don't you hear me?" Bright saw that Zoe was still sitting on the floor, "Then I have plenty of ways for
you to sit over. Do you want to try? Three seconds for you to think about it."
"No, no!" Zoe begged, shaking her head.
"Then do as you're told and sit down to eat." With that, Bright led Rose back to her seat.
"You'll scare her like that. She can't stand fright in her condition right now." Rose felt Zoe was a little
pitiful. But there must be something hateful about pitiful people.
"But it works quickly." Bright had caught a glimpse of Zoe immediately getting up and sitting obediently
at the table, next to Stefan.
She was still terrified of Bright and resisted to be so close to him.
But she didn't want to be thrown back to that place where she could only resign herself to her fate
without food or warm clothes or good sleep.
She didn't want to go through that again. It was her nightmare for the rest of her life.
"Let's eat." Francis said, "Doris, try this."
He took a piece of sweet and sour pork for Doris, golden in color and sprinkled with white sesame
seeds, tempting and lovely.
Doris had a sweet tooth, and sweet and sour pork was her favorite.
"Thank you, Grandpa." Doris happily ate.
"Help yourself." Francis looked at the sauce on the corners of Doris' lips and said.
After eating, Bright played chess with Francis, while Stefan watched the game from the side.
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