Mrs Hale, I Surrender
Chapter 436: Uncle Reminder 435: Chase your bride early; two updates

Chapter 436: Uncle Reminder 435: Chase your bride early; two updates

He was thinking about how to reply when he saw his uncle laughing beside him, "My young friend is really nice, even remembered to send me blessings and said he saved some potted plants for me to give after the new year."

"I received a message too. She mentioned that while cleaning out the Jones Family’s stuff, she found a book that seemed to be an ancient fragrance formula and said she would send it to me some other day," Zoe chuckled.

Tim Payne’s phone vibrated again, a message from Assistant Law, first a screenshot, then the message: [Junior President Payne, I didn’t expect Miss Jones to send me holiday blessings. Did you get it?]

The screenshot from his assistant was exactly the same as the message he received.

Tim Payne glanced at his uncle’s phone out of the corner of his eye.

His breath sank.

Turns out, what he received was a mass-sent blessing.

The messages his uncle and sister received were obviously different from his.

Just a few minutes ago he thought he was special.

Turns out...

He was just one of the mass.

Cressida Jones, you really are...

Well done!

In an instant, his mood plummeted to the bottom of the valley.

Finn Hale was sitting on the other side of him, noticing the change in his expression and chuckling lowly, "What’s the matter? Your mood suddenly dropped."

"Just feeling like I got to know an ungrateful wretch."

"A woman?"

"..."

Hearing this, Tim Payne’s heart skipped a beat, he turned his head towards Finn Hale, their eyes met, both sly as old foxes, having been rivals for so many years, Finn Hale probably knew him better than anyone present.

He pressed his voice and asked, "Tell me, who is it?"

"You’re overthinking it."

"The word ’little’ carries emotional connotations. If it’s someone insignificant, you’d just call them an ungrateful wretch without more, but you added ’little,’ and it even affected your mood. My instinct tells me it’s a girl."

"Splitting hairs," Tim Payne maintained an inscrutable expression, "You’re overanalyzing. It’s just, my assistant."

"Your assistant’s a man, should be in his thirties too, right?"

"Yes."

"To call a thirty-something man a ’little’ ungrateful wretch, feels like there’s something off with your relationship."

"..."

Tim Payne was totally spun around by Finn Hale.

Indeed, he had his reasons for disliking Finn Hale since they were young.

"Junior President Payne, if you really encounter someone you have feelings for, just be a bit more bold. Opportunities slip away in an instant. Don’t be like me, missing out on years with Sussie," Finn Hale reminded in a low voice.

"If you want to pursue someone, just be more direct, take the initiative."

"And one more thing..."

"Be shameless."

Tim Payne just smiled, "Just worry about your own affairs with my junior sister, don’t fret over me."

"Then tell me, which girl caught your eye? Do I know her?" Finn Hale was simply too curious, but it was difficult to guess since Tim Payne usually worked and interacted with many women.

"There’s none, don’t try to pry."

"Tough until the end."

Sooner or later, Finn Hale was going to be the death of Tim Payne, but he took in what he said.

Finn Hale took a sip of his drink, "Being so stubborn, you will eventually—"

——

After dinner on New Year’s Eve, they made plans to stay up and welcome the new year.

But Zoe, being pregnant, was forced to bed by ten o’clock. William Hale did stay with his in-laws for a while longer. When he went back to the room, he tread lightly, afraid to wake her.

But...

His wife was sitting on the bed playing with her phone.

"Are you not sleeping? What are you doing?"

"Give out red envelopes to the staff."

"You don’t want to sleep, then don’t." After William Hale finished speaking, he began to take off his coat, unbuttoning his shirt, causing Zoe’s complexion to slightly change.

"William Hale, I’m pregnant, what are you trying to do? You can’t mess around."

William Hale chuckled, "Don’t worry, I won’t mess around too badly. There are ways to tease you without going too far, want to give it a try?"

"I’m sleepy!"

Zoe turned off her phone screen and immediately burrowed into bed, "Right, my mom is going to the temple to offer the first incense tomorrow, remember to wake me up."

William Hale nodded in agreement.

After her daughter’s disappearance and "passing," Julia Yates often prayed to Buddha, and it became a custom for her to offer the first incense at the temple every New Year.

To get the first incense offering, many people would queue up before dawn.

So as soon as it grew light on New Year’s Day, Julia started out, accompanied by her husband, with Tim Payne responsible for driving.

By the time Zoe woke up, her mother had already vanished without a trace.

The queue for offering incense was long, and it was feared that the crowd would be bad for her health.

In previous years, Julia had prayed for her daughter to return to her side soon, but this year her wish was for her family’s health and well-being, for everything to go smoothly, and also for her son to find a good match soon.

"I saw a fortune-teller for you, and he said your marriage is on its way," Julia said with a smile while looking at her son.

"Mom, you believe that?"

"I believe. Don’t talk nonsense in the temple, otherwise, Buddha might hear you and not bless you."

"..."

Tim Payne felt helpless.

After offering incense, the parents also donated money for the temple’s candle oil.

He had never believed in these practices, feeling that praying to Buddha with one’s mind and spirit was not as good as working hard on one’s own.

Tim Payne then found a quiet spot to wait for them, as the temple offered activities like ringing the bell for blessings, distributing the character ’fortune’, and selling various bracelets that had supposedly been consecrated, attracting many young people.

As the sun rose, more and more people came to offer incense.

Tim Payne glanced at his wristwatch and when he looked up again, amidst the crowded flow of people, he unexpectedly saw a familiar figure.

He frowned, thinking he had seen wrong.

Only when she turned around did he confirm...

It really was Cressida Jones.

Her usual style of dress was intellectual and elegant, but today was a rarity; she was wearing a red down jacket and a red hat, exceptionally festive, making her complexion appear even more fair and transparent.

The sunlight streaming through the marriage tree decorated with red strings in the distance fell on her, as if covering her with a layer of faint golden light.

Cressida Jones had heard from the flower shop staff that this temple was very effective.

Wishing to pray for her grandmother’s safety, she came to offer incense.

Her grandmother laughed at her: "Birth, aging, sickness, and death are the normal state of human beings, there’s no need to pray to gods."

"I want to go myself."

"As a young girl, what are you preparing to pray for in the temple?"

"Praying for a romantic match."

Upon hearing this, her grandmother instantly laughed, "Then you should hurry and go."

Her grandmother was clear on her health condition; even if the surgery was successful, it would only prolong her life by a few years—not enough to accompany her granddaughter for too long. She still hoped her granddaughter would soon find someone who truly cherished her.

When she heard that her granddaughter was praying for a romantic match, she kept exclaiming: "Our Cressida has really grown up, finally starting to worry about her own lifelong affairs."

Cressida Jones just gave a wry smile; to appease her grandmother, she also bought a red string for praying for a romantic match, took a photo, and sent it to her grandmother.

After finishing, she prepared to hang it on a tree designated for romantic matches on the side.

But there were too many people praying for romantic matches, and the lower parts of the tree were almost completely covered; she tiptoed, trying to hang the string higher; however, due to her height, she couldn’t reach.

Just as she tiptoed, attempting another effort, suddenly, a hand reached out from behind...

Grasping the red string in her hand.

Her breath hitched, she hadn’t turned around yet, when she heard a familiar voice behind her, "Let me help you."

Surrounded by the clamor of the crowd, in that moment, it was as though all other voices had been filtered out, leaving only his voice, so clear and real.

The sunlight slanted, shining through a tree full of red strings, making her face appear extremely red.