After Stella had shooed Clarence away, she held Noah in her arms, and as she had coaxed him for a
while, Noah became sleepy. He barely opened his eyes a few times before falling asleep in Stella's
arms.
Stella gently put him to bed and tucked him in.
She opened the bedroom door and looked in, not finding Clarence.
Another wave of sleepiness hit her.
Stella yawned and took her clothes into the bathroom, with the door ajar.
She was just halfway through when the bathroom door was pushed open.
Clarence's voice came, "Is he asleep?"
Stella nodded, "You believe me now."
Clarence smiled and pushed open the glass door to the shower.
Stella was speechless.
She quickly pushed the door back again, "You lecher!"
Clarence stood outside and looked at the figure behind the blurred glass as he leaned against the wall.
He folded his arms around his chest and said calmly, "How am I a lecher for looking at my wife?"
Stella didn't bother with him. She just wanted to wash the bubbles off her head and get out.
Clarence added, "We've been here two days. Are you getting used to it?"
With water flowing, Stella slurred, "There's nothing to 'get used to'. It's not like I've never been here
before ..."
Clarence spoke slowly, "Now that you're used to it, isn't it time you changed the way of addressing
people?"
Stella turned off the water, grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her body, then pulled open the door
to the bathroom, "Change what?"
Clarence reached out, pulled her into his arms, and lowered his voice, "What do you think?"
"Wh-what?"
Stella put her hands against his chest and kept her distance from him, "I just took a shower. Don't you
..."
"Then take another shower with me."
With that, Stella was pulled into the bathroom by him again.
She gently pounded on his chest and whispered, "Stop it. Ms. Anderson is right next door."
Clarence nibbled on her ear, and his voice was hoarse, "You still call her Ms. Anderson?"
Stella felt her ears tingling, which were reddened already.
She knew what Clarence had just meant by that.
Stella stammered but could find no other excuse.
It was a long time before she blushed and said, "I've gotten used to calling her Ms. Anderson. I... have
to take a little time to change. There's no rush!"
With those words, Stella tried to run out of the bathroom and was yanked back by Clarence.
He said slowly, "You should know that her last name wasn't originally Anderson either, so anyways you
would have to call her in another way. Better start doing it now."
Stella was at a loss for words.
She had forgotten about that.
Clarence added, "I can get her to pay you for changing the way you address her, if you feel too
embarrassed to do it."
"...Don't you dare!"
Clarence leaned closer to her and raised an eyebrow slightly, "So you agreed?"
His gaze was too intense, and after two seconds of silence, Stella lifted her hand and pushed his face
aside, "Wait for me ... to get used to it."
Clarence took her hand, and said with a smile, "Okay."
Stella said, "Okay, you take a shower. I'm going out in case Noah wakes up."
With that, she grabbed the pajamas next to her and took the opportunity to run out of the bathroom.
In the bedroom, Noah was lying on the bed and sleeping soundly.
Stella gently rolled him over and re-covered him with the quilt.
At that moment, the sound of a mobile phone vibrating came from the sofa.
Stella went over and picked it up and looked at it. It was Clarence's phone. She walked over to the
bathroom and said in a hushed voice, "Someone’s calling you."
Clarence said, "You answer it."
"Okay."
To avoid disturbing Noah, Stella walked out onto the balcony.
After a few minutes, Clarence came out of the bathroom and walked behind her. He propped his hands
on the railing, "Who's calling?"
Stella turned back, "It was the James family, saying that Elaine had returned safely. And..."
"And what else?"
"The boat Caesar was on exploded when he left. By the extent of the damage to the ship, Caesar could
not have survived if he was on board at that time, but they did not find his body. It's possible that he
jumped overboard before the explosion occurred, or that his body was washed away ..."
Hearing these words, Clarence looked nonchalant and did not speak.
Stella said, "Did Darnell plan this explosion?"
"No." Clarence looked to the river in the distance, "Darnell would have killed him at the cemetery if he
wanted to."
"But didn't he hold Elaine hostage at that time?"
Clarence said, "Hijacking is one thing, and Darnell keeping him alive is another."
Stella was silent before saying again, "So who could have done this?"
"Probably someone who didn't want him to get out of Riverside City alive."
'Yeah, like I can't figure this out.' Stella let out a silent sigh.
After a moment, she suddenly said, "By the way, during the night at the James family, Hilbert only
talked about Caesar's past, not why they set this up."
Clarence said, "The reason is simple. I can tell you."
"What is it?"
Clarence looked at her and raised an eyebrow, "Beg me."
Stella was speechless.
She hesitated for a moment before standing on her tiptoes and kissing him gently on his thin lips.
Clarence was just about to say something when Stella lowered her voice, "Don't go too far, or you'll be
sleeping out tonight."
Clarence smiled and took her into his arms, "Caesar said today that there are many people who feel
that Darnell is too young to take on the responsibility and are not happy with him being the current
head of the James family."
Stella nodded, "I remember that."
Clarence continued, "The James family has been rooted in Riverside City for hundreds of years and
has prospered ever since, with many branches, each with their own schemes and purposes. The
position of head of the James family has never been a secure one."
"Darnell's character and methods were very different from those of his predecessors. As soon as he
came to power, he made those who feared and scorned him feel a crisis at the same time. He wants to
change the rules of the James family, and that means pulling a large number of people out of their
comfort zone."
Stella said, "So Darnell compromised their interests?"
The only thing in this world that could turn families into enemies was interest.
Clarence said, "Yes, a large part of the people present at the funeral today, although not like those who
work with Caesar, have been complaining and making a lot of moves in private. There's only one way
to get them to be completely quiet."
Stella's eyes widened and she looked up at Clarence, "Is this actually a setup against everyone in the
James family? Is Caesar just the beginning? Or maybe he was just the trigger?"
Stella finally understood why Hilbert had faked his death! So they were trying to lure Caesar back to
finish the trick!
"Darnell's character and methods were very different from those of his predecessors. As soon as he
came to power, he made those who feared and scorned him feel a crisis at the same time. He wants to
change the rules of the James family, and that means pulling a large number of people out of their
comfort zone."
Stella said, "So Darnell compromised their interests?"
The only thing in this world that could turn families into enemies was interest.
Clarence said, "Yes, a large part of the people present at the funeral today, although not like those who
work with Caesar, have been complaining and making a lot of moves in private. There's only one way
to get them to be completely quiet."
Stella's eyes widened and she looked up at Clarence, "Is this actually a setup against everyone in the
James family? Is Caesar just the beginning? Or maybe he was just the trigger?"
Stella finally understood why Hilbert had faked his death! So they were trying to lure Caesar back to
finish the trick!
62fb1bb41dcb31934bd49bda