Silly Bride

Chapter 160

was still standing beside them in the office. Winnie did not think he would be affected by her grandmother’s words until she brought up the last bit about cutting ties with Xavier. She worried that it would agitate him.The medication he was on tended to amplify every emotion he felt. It was all well and good if he was feeling positive emotions, but any hint of negative emotions could potentially spiral out of control and spur Xavier to harm others or even himself.Sadly, though Xavier’s mind was affected, his hearing clearly was not.He had heard every single word of Jacinta’s rant, and his expression darkened instantly.Sadness and disbelief warred in his heart as he asked, “Dumbo, is your granny telling the truth?”Winnie struggled to muster a reply. Eventually, she said, “Granny, things have become quite complicated. It’s hard to explain everything in a few words. Why don’t I talk to you somewhere else?”“Somewhere else?” Jacinta’s grip tightened on her granddaughter’s wrist as though fearing Winnie’s escape. “Where do you want to go?”Winnie furrowed her brows before shooting Louis a subtle glance. “Mr. Tanser, help me prepare an empty guest room.”“Sure!”“Wait!” Jacinta frowned at her granddaughter and questioned, “Why can’t we talk about this at home? Why do it on someone else’s turf? I came here to bring you back. You’re following me home right now!”“But Granny, I can’t leave now.” Winnie lowered her voice cajolingly. Sometimes, the elderly and children were equally clingy and difficult to persuade.Jacinta insisted, “Why can’t you leave? Those are your legs, not his. You can leave as and when you please.”“Granny, if you want to know the true reason, let’s talk somewhere else.”“Stay right there!” Xavier stepped forward and blocked Winnie’s path once he noticed she was leading Jacinta out of the office.He demanded, “You still haven’t answered my question. Was your granny telling the truth?”“Of course I am!” Jacinta answered instead. She pulled Winnie behind her like a protective mother hen before continuing, “Why would I lie about such a thing? Tell him, Winnie!”Winnie had voiced the possibility of divorce and splitting up with him before, and as long as Xavier had not forgotten that part of his memory, he would not have been surprised by Jacinta’s words.It had pained him back when Winnie first suggested breaking up.Now that he had lost part of his memories, hearing the suggestion again would undoubtedly hurt Xavier again, even if those words were uttered by another person.Xavier stared at Winnie and insisted, “Answer me. Now.”She sighed heavily despite having a reply ready in her mind.Regardless of how she answered, someone would be hurt.Still, she refused to be indecisive or lie to Xavier and Jacinta.Finally, as she tightly knitted her brows, Winnie replied somberly, “Xavier, I admit that I’ve said those words before, but that was in the past. People change, and I’m formally retracting my old statement. On that note, I never meant to lie to my granny either, and I have to explain to her why things have changed for me. Please trust me. I’ll be away now for some time. I’m not asking for your permission; I’m merely informing you of my wish. Even if you’re petty and refuse to let me go, I have to leave today. Do you understand?”She conveyed her words with both sincerity and conviction.Xavier’s mind was a mess. He had no idea how he had fallen so hard for a woman nicknamed Dumbo, yet it felt like the most natural thing in the world.He furrowed his brows and responded, “I won’t stop you from leaving. Here, let me see you out.”“No, thank you!” Jacinta planted herself between the couple and declared, “We know the way out.”Then, she dragged Winnie with her and uttered, “You’ve really let me down, Winnie.” Her hand was shaking with rage.Winnie frowned lightly and coaxed, “Let’s go, Granny. We’ll talk about this at home.”As they left the office, Winnie attempted to break the tense silence between her and Jacinta.Alas, her grandmother huffed pettily and turned away from her olive branch.They stepped out of Fairchild Corporation, and Winnie prepared to hail a taxi. Suddenly, Jacinta spoke up.“We don’t need a taxi. Someone’s here to fetch us. It’s the black car over there.” She pointed into the distance. Winnie followed the direction of her finger and unwittingly frowned.Her grandmother had pointed at a luxury vehicle with a car plate she did not recognize.Why is Granny riding around in some stranger’s expensive car? Who’s the owner?“Why are you daydreaming? Let’s go.” Jacinta tugged on Winnie’s arm and asked disbelievingly, “Are you regretting your decision already?”“Granny, whose car is that?”Jacinta did not answer her question and replied vaguely, “Well, you’ll find out when you get in.”Winnie was about to say something else when she was suddenly swarmed by a group of people.They were clearly reporters, judging by the camera or microphone in each person’s outstretched hand.“W-What’s going on?” The flashing cameras flustered Jacinta to no end.Spying her grandmother’s discomfort, Winnie hurriedly pulled Jacinta behind her and demanded, “What are you doing?”“Ms. Garland, I’m a reporter from Orange News. Is it true that you’re actually from Yartran and not a Chanaean?”Frowning, Winnie asked, “Who told you that?”“So it is true? You