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Chapter 234: Julia Visited Juju’s Grave
Looking at Julia’s dazed expression, Jared felt a sense of guilt coursing through him. This was the first time he had rejected her, and for a moment, he didn’t know what to do.
Julia was surprised. She was used to having her way, and Jared’s rejection was quite a blow to her. As silence ensued, the tense atmosphere in the living room was palpable. However, the most uncomfortable person in this situation wasn’t Julia or Jared; it was Joseph, caught in the middle. Gulping, Joseph wordlessly took a step back as his gaze darted between Jared and Julia.
After a moment of silence, Jared gently brushed the hair from Julia’s cheek and tucked it behind her ear.
Meanwhile, Julia stared intently at him, not moving an inch and without saying anything. “I’m picking up Mom this time.” Jared felt even more guilty as he looked at her. Sighing, he explained, “You might not know this, but in my mother’s eyes, Juju is her only daughter–in–law. She doesn’t particularly like you, mostly out of overprotectiveness towards me. Today is Juju’s death anniversary, so if you come with me, I’m afraid you will only feel uncomfortable.”
That was his only concern, so he rejected her. He didn’t want Julia’s relationship with his mother to become even more strained, so it would be best if they seldom met.
“Oh, alright. I understand. You go ahead.” Julia smiled and patted his shoulder, assuring him. Hearing her words, Jared let out a relieved sigh and nodded. He turned on his heel and left while Joseph followed him out.
As Julia stared at their departing figures, a profound glint flitted into her eyes. She wouldn’t come with Jared, but she would follow him. She had already made up her mind even though she didn’t know what she would see in the cemetery.
She just inexplicably felt the need to visit Juju’s grave as though there was a force compelling her to go.
As soon as Jared’s car left, Julia hailed a taxi and trailed behind him until they reached the cemetery.
“We’ve arrived, Miss,” the driver said.
“No rush. I’ll sit here for a while.” Julia handed the taxi driver a hundred bucks, then took out her binoculars and began to scan the area.
Shortly after, she saw Jared and Yannie standing before the tombstones. The two tombstones were quite close, and Julia didn’t need to rack her brain to guess that it was Juju and her parent’s grave. Yannie’s tears streamed down her face as she spoke to the tombstone. “Juju… My precious Juju. I remember how cute and sweet–mouthed you were back then. You always wanted me to hug you. Every time I give you candy, you laugh happily. Your laughter was as sweet as sugar.”
She took a deep breath and smiled bitterly, “You have no idea how much I cherished you and -hoped you would become my daughter–in–law, but I never expected that…”
Her voice trailed off as Yannie choked on her words. Jared reached out and comfortingly patted her on the back.
“Hey,” Yannie sighed deeply, then turned to Jared, her eyes filled with concern. “Son, when are you going to divorce Julia? That woman is definitely not as innocent as she appears on the surface. And what about Little Jade Statue? Did she return it?”
Nodding, Jared retrieved the Little Jade Statue from his pocket and showed it to Yannie as he
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Chapter 234: Julia Visited Juju’s Grave
explained, “I promised to lend it to her for a year, so she returned it.”
When she heard him, Yannie couldn’t help but exclaim, “You’re really good at making me angry!”
She took a deep breath and patted her chest to calm herself. Jared had been responsible since childhood. When his father passed away, he took care of everything independently. She had always been proud of him and unconditionally supported him in every decision he made. But the only exception was when he married Julia. Yannie didn’t like her no matter what she did. Jared sighed and glanced at the sky, and he suggested, “It looks like it’s going to rain soon. Let’s head back, shall we?”
He didn’t want to continue talking about Julia because they would only argue.
Looking at his solemn expression, Yannie felt a headache coming on. She knew him very well. Once he made up his mind, changing it was nearly impossible.
She had also thought it through. Even though she wanted Jared and Julia to split up, insisting on that matter verbally might strain his good relationship with her son.
In that case, she might as well send someone to investigate Julia and find concrete evidence to prove that she was a cunning woman and that she approached Jared with ulterior motives. When the time came, she would show her son Julia’s true color, and by then, Jared would undoubtedly leave that woman.
On the other hand, Julia waited for Jared and Yannie to leave before getting out of the cab and going to Juju’s grave.
As she stared at the tombstone, she couldn’t help but frown. “Just what the hell is our relationship, Juju?”
She remembered all the strange dreams she had before. It was like a memory fragment that belonged to someone else, which she shouldn’t have known, but for some reason, she had been dreaming of it, and everything was so clear as though she had experienced it herself.
She used to believe they were mere hallucinations, attributing them to her day–to–day thoughts and nightly dreams about Juju. However, these experiences felt undeniably real to her, blurring the lines between reality and illusion.
It wasn’t until a few days ago when she surreptitiously entered Watson’s villa, and suddenly, she thought of the mechanism hidden beneath the sofa that she saw in her dreams.
When she pressed the button, there was a hidden place underneath the sofa. That discovery reshaped her understanding of her past dreams and occasional ‘hallucinations.”
As the gentle wind gusted, Julia snapped out of her thoughts. She heaved a deep breath and stared intently at the tombstone.
These were the tombstones of the Watson family. In her dreams, their silhouettes had appeared repeatedly, though never clearly visible. Despite that, she could sense their warmth and affection toward her.
-As these thoughts consumed her, tears welled up in Julia’s eyes, and she was overwhelmed by
sorrow and a deep, stifling pain.
“Julia?” Suddenly, a deep voice sounded behind her.
Not far from where Julia was standing, Randel was looking at her in surprise as he wondered, ‘Is it Julia? Why is she here?‘
‘Was she paying homage to her parents?‘ A dark glint flashed across his eyes as he stared at her
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Chapter 234: Julia Visited Juju’s Grave
lonely figure. Frowning, he strode toward her, and his frown deepened when he heard her sobs as he got closer.
He looked at the tombstones, and his pupils dilated when he saw the names on them. A sense of doubt thrummed in his veins. ‘Did Julia know them? Otherwise, why was she crying so hard?‘ His gaze was so intense that it almost bore a hole in Julia’s back. Hearing his footsteps, Julia turned in surprise and blurted, “Oh, it’s you!”
When Randel saw the tears streaming down her face, he scowled. “Why are you…”
Before he could finish his words, Julia hurriedly wiped her tears.
Looking at her, he narrowed his eyes and asked sharply, “Do you know them?”
Julia’s lips parted–seemingly didn’t know what to say. ‘Should I say I don’t know them? But he will surely ask why I’m crying this hard. For sure, he will think I’m crazy or deliberately lying.’
Clearing her throat, she smiled wryly and explained, “I met them by chance when I was young, and they were very nice to me.”
In her dream, the Watson couple treated her warmly, so her words were not entirely false. “That’s it?” Randel cocked his brows. He sized her up, but Julia didn’t seem to be lying. However, there was still a trace of doubt in his heart.
Suddenly, it began to drizzle. He glanced at the gray sky, then immediately placed the flowers on the tombstones and turned to Julia.
“I’ll take
you back,” he offered.
Julia’s mind spun. If Randel sent her back home, she was afraid Jared might misunderstand something, so she said, “I’d better go directly to your place and treat you, by the way.”
“Alright.” Randel nodded.
Just as they were about to leave, they heard the faint whimpering of a puppy.
She whipped around her head and uttered, “Wait. I’ll check it out.”
She followed the sound and discovered a cardboard box behind a tree, and inside was an injured and bleeding puppy. Shocked, Julia exclaimed, “Who could do such a cruel thing?”
It was heart–wrenching to see the puppy discarded and harmed like this.
“Let’s take it back with us,” Randel suggested.
Carrying the puppy with her, Julia followed him to his car. They boarded the car, and Randel revved up the engine and sped away.
Not long after, they arrived at Randel’s villa. Julia promptly tended to the injured puppy, cleaning and bandaging its wounds. The dog displayed a remarkable sense of gratitude, snuggling up to her, wagging its tail, and even giving her a couple of affectionate licks.
“This dog is incredibly adorable! I’ve decided to keep it,” Julia crooned.
Randel, who had just brewed his coffee, heard her then remarked, “Then give it a name.”
After pondering for a moment, Julia replied, “Well, since its fur is yellow, let’s call it Egg Yolk Pie.”
As soon as her words fell, a crisp sound of broken glass echoed through the room as the cup in Randei’s hand slipped from his fingers and shattered on the floor.
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