Pursuing Her

Meanwhile, Jennifer, knowing that Tristan was not going to give her a chance to speak no matter what, went straight to the Lombard residence.

Tristan may not be willing to meet me, but I bet Old Mr. Lombard will!

As expected, the Lombard residence's housekeeper brought her to the living room and asked her to wait there for William's return.

When Jennifer thought of William's reaction after she presented the pictures to him, she felt exhilarated.

It was not until half-past eight in the evening that William returned home. He had a meal with a few officials of Chanaea earlier.

It was because they wanted to thank him for handing over the national treasure to the country.

As soon as he entered the house, he found Jennifer waiting for him. The fact that she was around at such an hour only served to displease him.

“Why are you here, Jennifer?” His attitude toward her seemed to have become much colder than before. “You should've informed me of your visit beforehand. You must've waited here for a very long time!”

“My purpose for visiting you today is to talk about Sophie with you. I don't think she's a simple, innocent woman, Old Mr. Lombard. I'm genuinely worried she would hurt Mr. Tristan,” Jennifer responded.

“I know you've always liked Tristan, Jennifer. However, you already saw how much Tristan loves Sophie. Nothing can change his mind on the matter, so I think you should just give up.”

Since nothing she does can change the situation, she should learn to accept reality.

Jennifer certainly did not expect him to say that.

However, she continued with her plan. “I only have Tristan's best interest in mind, Old Mr. Lombard. You'll understand once you see this.”

Without delay, she placed the stack of photos in front of William.

Those photos showed Nicholas' attempt at asking Sophie for her hand in marriage.

While William had no idea who Nicholas was, he could recognize Sophie in the pictures.

His expression turned a little grim. Can't she behave herself now that she's dating Tristan?

Noticing the change in his countenance, Jennifer became gleeful.

She said, “To be honest, I was originally going to give up, Old Mr. Lombard. However, when I saw her behavior, I felt that I couldn't give up. Mr. Tristan is an excellent man. He doesn't deserve to be toyed around by a woman like her. I'm sure you don't want to see Tristan like this too. The Lombard family is a prominent and respected family in Jipsdale. You can't have a woman like her destroy your family's reputation, can you?”

Every single word she uttered was her attempt to paint herself as being genuinely concerned with the Lombard family's well-being.

Not a hint of her ulterior motive was mentioned.

“I hear you, Jennifer. You can go back now.” William did not express a clear stance on the matter because he knew just how much Tristan loved Sophie.

If he tried to break the couple apart, it would only make things worse.

Jennifer spoke. “Old Mr. Lombard, I—”

William promptly cut her off. “All right, that's enough, Jennifer. I'm tired. You should go home now!”

Despite her reluctance, she had no choice but to leave. “I'll come to visit you another day, Old Mr. Lombard. Take care.”

When Sarah returned, she bumped into Jennifer.

Jennifer still treated Sarah very politely, greeting her by saying, “You're back, Sarah.”

Her appearance at the Lombard residence flummoxed Sarah. This is odd. It's been a while since she last visited the Lombard residence. Why is she here today?

After exchanging a few words with Jennifer, Sarah entered the house.

When she saw William sitting on the couch with a somber expression, she put down the item in her hand and sat next to him.

“What's the matter? Did Ms. Whitley come over to tell tales again?” By then, Sarah was certain that Jennifer was the cause of her father's bad mood.

Jennifer really doesn't know how to give up! Sure, there's nothing wrong with liking someone, but when that person tells you clearly he doesn't like you and already has a girlfriend, what's the point in clinging to him?

“Sarah, do you think Tristan will listen to me if I ask him to break up with Sophie?” William inquired seriously.

A brief silence ensued as Sarah wondered why her father was thinking about breaking up the couple again. Why the sudden change of tune? I thought his opinion of Sophie had changed rather substantially recently.

“What exactly did Jennifer say to you, Dad?” Sarah asked. Jennifer's undoubtedly the root cause of the problem.

William sighed. “While Sophie did help me find the national treasure I've been looking for, I still don't think she's worthy of being with Tristan. After all, she was born into the Tanner family, and there were many rumors about her in the past!”

Of course, he had heard of the rumors about Sophie before.

He was a man who cared deeply about the Lombard family's reputation, which was why he used to hope Jennifer could replace Sophie.

At the very least, Jennifer's reputation was untainted.

“Frankly, I think you're biased against Sophie, Dad. If you're willing to spend time getting to know her, you'll realize just how wonderful she is,” Sarah coaxed.

It was not just her younger brother. Even she herself was deeply enamored of Sophie.