Mrs Hale, I Surrender
Chapter 212 Dramatic Change in Attitude of Junior President Payne vs Young Uncle

Chapter 212: 212 Dramatic Change in Attitude of Junior President Payne vs Young Uncle

The night was deep, and Assistant Law sent Junior President Payne back to his residence, which was enveloped in darkness. The windows were open, letting in chilly breezes that made him shiver with cold.

Junior President Payne’s residence didn’t feel like a home; it was cold and seemed more like a studio.

People on the outside always said the Payne Family was reclusive and aloof.

Indeed, this was the case.

Even on important holidays like Mid-Autumn Festival and New Year’s, the Payne Family rarely festooned their residence with lights and decorations; most of the time, they just gathered for a meal.

The large house, with its white walls and black tiles, hadn’t been refurbished for a while, appearing like...

A beast ready to devour.

Silently gaping with a gaping maw.

As an assistant, he didn’t dare to overtly criticize his boss’s family affairs but privately guessed that perhaps the Payne Family members lacked warmth toward each other.

Now it seemed there was probably a reason for that.

"Junior President Payne, please rest well. I have already made the arrangements, and the samples for the test will be sent out right away," Assistant Law told him.

It was surprising that the man favored ice water, yet he poured himself some hot water.

With a faint smile on his lips.

Before he left, he added a reminder, "You are not to divulge a whisper about this to anyone in our family... and that includes my parents."

Assistant Law nodded seriously.

If the test turned out to be a false alarm, then so be it.

But if there was indeed a blood relationship, then the entire Payne family would be turned upside down.

Zoe Bell’s surgery was scheduled for 8:30 in the morning. When Assistant Law came to pick his boss up, he found that he hadn’t slept all night and had simply taken a quick shower before heading to the hospital.

It was understandable.

"Junior President Payne, there’s no direct flight to Greenland as the private plane route hasn’t been approved yet. Maybe you should go tomorrow..."

"We’ll drive there."

Assistant Law was stunned.

After all, he would be the one driving.

"When will the test results be available?"

"Today."

"The earliest?"

"Afternoon, or possibly in the evening, but we’ll definitely have them today."

Normally, agencies require a review, signatures, and a formal process that could take three to five days. They got around this by pulling strings and paying extra for expedited service.

Junior President Payne nodded, more anxious than anyone else.

——

In the hospital

The surgery was imminent, and the medical staff was methodically preparing. Zoe Bell had been fasting from the night before, her nervousness far surpassing her hunger.

William Hale simply chatted with Old Sir Lewis for a bit and, when he returned, hadn’t even entered the ward before hearing his younger brother chattering away.

"Sister-in-law, don’t be scared. Grandpa Lewis is amazing. For him, this is just a minor operation."

"I guarantee that once you’ve recovered, you’ll be hopping around."

"By then, I should almost be on winter break. We can go traveling together."

...

It wasn’t until William Hale appeared at the door that his brother fell silent and stood quietly to the side.

"Aunt Lott," William Hale courteously greeted Lily Lott, then glanced at his father who was talking with his cousin. Apart from them, other members of the Hale family hadn’t shown up.

They mentioned that traffic was jammed and they might not arrive for a while.

"You were quite talkative just now, keep going," William Hale said to his brother.

"I..." Wyatt Hale hesitated, "Am I allowed to continue?"

"Keep your voice down, don’t disturb the other patients."

Probably due to the stress of the upcoming surgery and a previous kidnapping ordeal, Zoe hadn’t slept well all night.

Wyatt Hale wasn’t particularly good at many things.

But when it came to cheering someone up, he could still do it.

Upon receiving permission, Wyatt Hale immediately sprang to Zoe Bell’s bedside, "Sis, don’t worry, I’ll take good care of your online shop while you’re hospitalized."

"You’ll take care of it?"

"Do I not deserve to?"

Wyatt Hale figured that since his sister-in-law was the boss and he had always been helping her out with the shop, not to mention he was her brother-in-law, he at least counted as a half-boss, right?

Now was definitely the time to support her through thick and thin!

"It’s not that you don’t deserve to; I’m just afraid that by the time I’m out of surgery, I won’t have a shop anymore."

"..."

Once, she asked Wyatt Hale to reply to a customer’s message, and he almost got into a battle with them. Luckily, the person had a good temper and didn’t file a complaint against him.

"As for the shop, I’ll feel more at ease leaving it to Joy," Zoe Bell concluded, causing Wyatt Hale’s spirits to instantly deflate.

It’s over,

I actually lost the fight for favor.

With Wyatt Hale around, Zoe Bell’s emotions relaxed greatly, but just before entering the operating room, she felt apprehensive and clasped William Hale’s hand tightly.

"Don’t be afraid, I’ll be here the whole time," William Hale bowed his head and kissed her forehead.

"Sister-in-law, good luck!"

Not until Zoe Bell entered the operating room did William Hale glance at his younger brother, who then finally closed his mouth.

"Wyatt, I’ve brought you something to eat. You should go back to the ward to have something first," Lily Lott knew he hadn’t eaten since dinner, and the surgery was expected to not finish until noon.

William Hale didn’t have much appetite, but when he turned around, he found to his surprise that Junior President Payne had actually come.

He seemed to be...

Overly concerned about his wife.

Noticing the change in his son’s expression, Brock Hale turned his head with a slight pause, "This..."

"Hello, we’ve met before. I am Tim Payne," Junior President Payne greeted Brock Hale proactively.

"It’s been many years since we last met, the last time I saw you, you were studying design with our third son," Brock Hale said with a smile, sizing him up, "What brings you here?"

"I have met Miss Bell a few times, and knowing that she had surgery today, I intended to come and visit, but I didn’t make it on time."

Brock Hale smiled without responding.

He always felt this kid was different from before.

Before, no one called him Junior President Payne, but because he won a competition against his own younger brother, Brock Hale had a deep impression of him – winning the contest didn’t seem to make him very happy.

There was a maturity beyond his years in him, and even...

A sense of lifelessness.

Such an expression should not appear on a child’s face.

Seeing him today, his eyes were bright, which was a pleasant surprise.

William Hale also felt that today’s Junior President Payne was especially different, but couldn’t describe it.

As they talked, the Old Sir Hale and the Old Lady from the Hale Family also arrived.

In fact, the old couple and other people all came, including Finn Hale. Principally, a large crowd was crammed into the ward, which was estimated to make Zoe even more nervous, so they didn’t show up.

Finn Hale saw his nemesis there too, and a hint of color swept through his eyes.

Earlier, when he heard from his nephew, he thought his attitude towards his niece-in-law was abnormal, but he hadn’t expected...

It to be this abnormal.

"Old Sir Hale, Old Lady..." Junior President Payne greeted the Hale’s elderly couple one by one. His gaze brushed past Finn Hale with only a brief, "Hello."

Finn Hale, to him, was just one of "them."

"Long time no see, when you’re free, come and visit us at home," Old Sir Hale invited him proactively, Zoe Bell got out of her predicament quickly, and he had a hand in it. This favor had to be repaid.

This Junior President Payne rarely socialized with others, and with Hale family...

He had no interaction at all.

Especially with Finn Hale being there.

Unexpectedly, today he actually nodded, "Another day, I will definitely make a visit."

Hearing this, the Hale’s elderly couple was naturally pleased.

Finn Hale: "?!"

He was perplexed, even glancing back at Assistant Law behind him, that look clearly asking:

Has your boss gone crazy recently?

Assistant Law, helplessly:

I know, but I can’t say!

In the moment their gazes met, Finn Hale’s eyes were full of scrutiny, and unexpectedly, the usually blunt Junior President Payne broke into a smile at him.

Finn Hale frowned:

What is he planning now?

Nowadays, the two of them were involved in different fields, so seldom did they come across opportunities to intersect.

But that didn’t justify such a drastic change in his temperament.

It inexplicably felt a bit eerie.

Part of the reason Finn Hale disliked him was:

Despite winning against him, he still had a deadpan face, as if not happy about getting the first place, which made his own second place all the more suffocating.

However, he did not linger too long outside the operating room, "I was actually planning to visit Miss Bell before going to work. Now that she has entered the operating room, I’ll be leaving first."

In fact, he didn’t leave, but sat in the car, waiting until the surgery was over.

He received the notification:

Zoe Bell’s surgery was successfully completed.

Only then did he have Assistant Law drive straight to Greenland.