Winnie inadvertent question unexpectedly got two answers, which surprised Winnie.
Then Rufus stood up unhurriedly, with a slight friendly smile on his face, he said calmly.
"Yes, we met last time I came to pick up the kids."
Rufus had to correct it because he saw the panic on Isobel's face.
"Yes, I'd forgotten."
Isobel answered in embarrassment and panic. She was a compose person, but Rufus’ sudden
appearance made her unprepared.
"I will give you a formal introduction. Aunt, this is grandpa of Luke and Megan."
Winnie continued and her doubts was gone because of Rufus's explanation.
Isobel was very unnatural but had to introduce herself, for fear that Winnie and Vanessa saw
something wrong.
"Hello, I'm Isobel."
"Hello, I am Rufus."
Rufus' self-introduction was also very brief. He thought they were familiar, but he had to make
introduction, as to hide the fact from the children.
"Have a seat, I go cook."
Isobel found an excuse to leave. At this time Winnie said to her.
"Aunt, Rufus is having dinner at our house. Cook more food."
"Ok......ok."
Isobel was to break down, but she could not refuse and could not drive him away. It seemed that she
had to face Rufus during the whole mean. How should she swallow the food?
"Rufus, have some tea."
Vanessa brought the tea over and put it in front of Rufus.
"Vanessa, stay and chat with Rufus, I go to the kitchen to help aunt cook."
With that, Winnie went to the kitchen to help.
There were only two children and two adults left in the living room.
"Vanessa, are you happy to celebrate the New Year with your relatives in A City?"
Rufus deliberately found a topic to chat with Vanessa.
"Yes, but it isn't my home, and I was stiff. Next year, no matter what my aunt said, my sister and I will
not go out. We will celebrate the New Year in our own home. It's at ease at home."
This was Vanessa’ real thought about the New Year.
No matter where she was, it could not make her at ease than being at home.
"Spend the next New Year in my home. There are many people in my family and it will be lively."
Hearing Vanessa's words, Rufus felt sour in heart.
If she really was his daughter, how could he face her with guilty?
"Thank you, Rufus. If aunt agrees, we'll definitely be there. My aunt is God. Whatever she says, my
sister and I obey her unconditionally."
Winnie said jokingly, in fact, her aunt never interfered with their freedom, as long as it was within the
scope of principle.
"You two are obedient, and your aunt is happy to have you both."
Rufus said and looked at the direction of the kitchen. It seemed that everyone in this home was not
easy to live.
"We are happy to have my aunt. Without her, my sister and I would not have been able to survive. My
sister and I have been grateful for her for this life, so we never make her angry."
Vanessa had many inexplicable words, which she never said to outsiders. Today, she felt that Rufus
was very kind, just like a family member, so she said a few more words.
"You and your sister are sensible, and I should thank your aunt."
Rufus said emotionally, but Vanessa was confused.
"You need not thank her."
Vanessa gave an awkward smile and had no idea why Rufus thanked her aunt.
"Of course I should. It was your aunt who helped Megan --"
At this, Rufus suddenly stopped. He realized he seemed to have said the wrong thing and Vanessa
might not know the identity of Megan had been made public.
He paused for a moment before he explained.
"Your aunt help take care of Luke, I sure thank her."
"Oh, this is trifle, Luke is a kid of our family. We should take care of him, you don’t need to thank."
Only then did Vanessa understand what Rufus was saying.
"Vanessa, you had been through hard time these years, right?"
Rufus wanted to know more about Vanessa, so he couldn't help but keep asking.
Hearing that, Vanessa gave a bitter smile.
"I was miserable when I was ill, and I might have been a sick man by now, but thanks to the good care
of my sister and aunt, I recovered, and put all energy on study. I hope I can help my sister and aunt out
of trouble. Studying is tiring, boring and it needs patience to stick to it. But in a family like ours, there is
no reason I don’t insist, and I have to do more than others."
"Study is not the only thing in life, but I think it is a shortcut to change life. I did have a bit of a rough
time compared to other people at my age, but it was more difficult for my sisters and aunts, so I can't
complain."
Vanessa said. These words had been buried in her heart and she had never told her aunt and sister,
for fear to bring them unnecessary troubles.
"Good girl, you are a good girl. Your aunt and sister have always been very proud of you, and you are
sure to have a bright future."
Rufus' sadness could be seen eyes. The more he listened to her, they guiltier he felt to Isobel and
Vanessa.
If in those days he could get rid of the bondage of his father, handle the triangle relationship well, the
Chambers family might not end up like this.
"If I don't study harder, my aunt and sister will lose all hope. I'm just doing my best to help them, and it's
them had a hard time. Without them, I might be with my parents in the heaven now."
Vanessa was sad, and Rufus hurried to comfort her.
"Well, it is a good day, don't mention your parents. When you have the ability, you are take good care of
your aunt."
Rufus ended the sad dialogue, for fear that Vanessa would break down and Isobel blamed him.
After the two chatted casually for a while, dinner began.
Rufus and Isobel sit face to face, which made Isobel uncomfortable. Plus Vanessa sat beside Rufus,
the two similar faces made her more uncomfortable.
"Let's eat, Rufus."
Winnie said warmly, and then Rufus began to eat up.
When he took the first bite, he was emotional. It was the same which he had been missing for 20 years.
When he and Isobel were together, he never went out to eat, it was Isobel cooked for him. But he never
thought that he had not eaten it again in twenty years.
"Yummy, your aunt's cooking skill is very good."
Rufus consciously praised. Now felt the happiness for the food like back to many years ago.
"Rufus, how do you know it was my aunt made it? It could be my sister made it.”
Vanessa doubted.
"Well..."
Rufus was stunned by Vanessa’s question and then he explained.
"I have eaten the dishes your sister cook, but it is different from this. I think only an old chef could cook
such a delicious, colorful dish."
Rufus said jokingly, alleviating his embarrassment and did not want Isobel to be nervous.
"You are eloquent, Rufus. My aunt did make them."
Vanessa's doubts were solved again, although she thought Rufus was not calm and composed as
usual, he might be nervous in the first time to see her aunt, which was understandable.
The meal was, to put it mildly, perhaps the most delicious and memorable one Rufus had had in many
years. Although he knew Isobel was nervous and cautious, he felt happiness however.
After Rufus left, Winnie asked two children to back to room to review their lessons, she and her aunt
and Vanessa talked about Megan in the living room.
"You mean Brian's grandfather wants to give back custody of the two children?"
Before Winnie could finish her words, Vanessa could not calm down. She angrily asked Winnie.
"He doesn’t allow the children to come here now. What you have seen was fought by Rufus. In spite of
his father's objections, he took the children out and sent them back every night and picked them up
when I had to work during the day."
Winnie explained the current situation, which was the reason she had been grateful to Rufus.
"Brian's grandfather is too dogmatic. He's over ninety. How can he even control his great-
grandchildren? We really can't provoke people like that."
Vanessa suddenly hated Brian's grandfather. She thought he should not be as autocratic as a tyrant.
"He is domineering and assertive. If anything doesn't go his way, he'll ruin it rather than bring it
through."
Winnie knew Felix. It was not because she made investigation or had been through a lot, but from the
way he controlled the Bennet family for a long time, and the way Brian was obedient to her, she knew
he was domineering
"This is horrible. You'd better stay away from Brian, sister, don't die in their hands."
Vanessa felt it terrible. Such a family was really not suitable for their common people. All the joys and
sorrows of a large family were in the hands of a person who had a generation gap with the society. It
was inconceivable, so it was better to stay away from it.
However, for everything of the Bennet family and Felix's tyrannical dictatorship, Isobel had known it, but
she did not expect that Winnie would have something to do with it.
"I'd like to keep my distance from the family, but we have two children."
Winnie was helplessness, heaved a sigh and then continued.
"If I could go back in time, I would not have chosen to be a surrogate for Brian. I should not have come
back if I had known that things would become so difficult to solve now."
But it was just a talk, who can go back to the past?
"It's meant for you to experience, you can't get away with it. If you had no surrogacy, you could not
afford to pay your mother's hospital fees, and Vanessa's disease could not get timely treatment. If you
didn't come back, how could you meet Luke? How could you rescue Luke from suffering? If you didn't
come back, Luke would be tortured to death."
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