Our Love Story: Hard to Guard Against the Sudden Love Strike-Chapter 268 - 265: Twenty-Nine Years Ago

At this moment, Quentin Thorne also realized that his tone was too harsh, seemingly having frightened Sienna Thornton, who had not yet become familiar with him.

He softened his stern expression, his voice also becoming gentler, and smiled, "Everything has two sides. The full awakening of female consciousness depends on the perspective from which you view this issue. On certain levels, men and women belong to two conflicting and opposing groups. Just like in ’Howards End,’ Forster juxtaposes the contradictions between men and women with those between city and countryside, ideal and reality, presenting the various contradictions that abound in modern society. As it stands, even in the most democratic Western countries, female consciousness and rights cannot compete with male power, let alone in our traditional environment. I know you have the ability to fully promote female consciousness, but once you do, you become a pioneer. You might disrupt some balance, or you could encounter some factors that are detrimental to you. So, whether or not you choose a political path in the future, I do not recommend you proceed this way."

Sienna Thornton suddenly felt that Quentin Thorne at this moment was quite unfamiliar. She couldn’t imagine such words coming from Quentin Thorne. Even though she understood Quentin Thorne was doing it for her good, speaking such unfair things so openly always made her feel uncomfortable.

She pressed her lips together, refraining from making any comments because she understood that no matter what, she could not argue with Quentin Thorne. It wasn’t that she was lacking in knowledge, but rather that Quentin Thorne had seen more of the world than she had.

The atmosphere suddenly turned awkward.

Reaching this point in conversation, no one had any appetite left.

After a moment of silence, Sienna Thornton put down the teacup and said apologetically, "Excuse me, I need to go to the restroom." With that, she got up to leave her seat.

Simon Forrester seized her arm, slightly raising his chin to look at her, "Do you want me to go with you?"

"No need, I’ll be back soon," Sienna Thornton gently pulled her hand away, "you stay here with Dean Thorne."

Simon Forrester cast a sideways glance at Quentin Thorne, the smile on his face diminishing slightly. When he looked back at Sienna, his smile reemerged, "Then go ahead, be careful."

"Alright."

Sienna Thornton left, closing the old-style six-paneled door behind her.

Simon Forrester shifted his gaze towards Quentin Thorne, with the smile completely gone from his face.

He picked up the teapot, stood up, and poured Quentin Thorne a cup, then sneered, "If you were speaking these words today as her father, there’s a great chance she would comply. Unfortunately, you are not, so she will listen, but whether she acts is a different matter."

Quentin Thorne naturally understood the implication behind Simon Forrester’s words.

At first, he said nothing, contemplating for a moment, then spoke in a lowered voice, "When you came to me that day, I was too shocked, trying all along to control my emotions, so I didn’t tell you the reason I can’t acknowledge her yet."

Simon Forrester sat back in his seat, one eyebrow raised, leisurely looking at the middle-aged man opposite him, who was still suave in demeanor.

Quentin Thorne’s voice was low and quick, seemingly afraid that Sienna Thornton might suddenly return from outside.

He said, "Mina’s Mom has been suspicious and paranoid ever since I had a quarrel about breaking off our engagement before marriage, constantly suspecting I have someone outside, and because she only gave birth to Mina, she suspected I had outside children. You are not unaware of the power the Grant Family holds. In such circumstances, if I hastily acknowledge Annie, and if Mina’s Mom and the Grant Family find out, Annie will be ruined!"

Simon Forrester laughed, his tone mocking, "You have a hundred ways to keep the Grant Family from knowing!"

"Then wouldn’t Annie become an illegitimate child in the dark?" Quentin Thorne countered, "Do you think that’s a good thing for Annie? She has a father, but can only sneak around? Is that better than her not finding her father?"

Simon Forrester was momentarily speechless.

Quentin Thorne glanced at the doorway again, then said, "I will definitely allow Annie to return with honor to the Thorne Family! Don’t worry about that! I know what to do!"

These words made Simon Forrester feel slightly better, but before he could speak, Quentin Thorne shook his head again and said, "Annie is still too frail now, destroying her would be too easy! An anonymous report to the bar association accusing her of instigating witnesses to perjure nearly made it impossible for her to stand in the legal world! So do you still think acknowledging her now is a good idea?"

Simon Forrester was shocked, "The bar association dropped the charges against her, was it you...?"

Quentin Thorne nodded.

Simon Forrester took a while to recover; back then, he and Sienna Thornton pondered for a long time but could not figure out the reason. It turned out Quentin Thorne had acted behind the scenes. In disbelief, he said, "That was more than three months ago, did you know that Candy was your daughter so early on?"

"Yes, around the time of the New Year, shortly after you brought her to the Grant Family, I knew." Quentin Thorne said, "I first sought out her files from the bar association, which is how I learned she was facing charges from the bar association at that time."

On New Year’s Day, Simon Forrester brought Sienna Thornton to the Grant Family. Quentin Thorne, meeting Sienna Thornton face to face for the first time, noticed not only the resemblance to his daughter but also traces of Melinda Linton in her. The wonders of genetics often manifest in children, where one can see the father’s likeness and the mother’s traces, or vice versa.

Quentin Thorne initially comforted himself, believing it was just a coincidental resemblance. But in reality, he knew Melinda Linton had once been pregnant with his child, only he didn’t know whether Melinda Linton and that child had survived in the end.

Twenty-nine years ago, he returned to the city, stirring up issues to annul his engagement with Ian Grant, only to be jointly detained by the Thorne family and the Grant Family in confinement for half a year. Afterward, he returned to Linton Village to find Melinda Linton, only to learn that two months earlier, Melinda had been driven away by her own family for being pregnant out of wedlock.

He went to Melinda Linton’s house to ask her parents about her whereabouts, but instead of finding any news, he got beaten up by The Linton Family along with many relatives, leaving him covered in injuries.

Later, he madly searched Wrayhaven for several days without finding Melinda Linton, only to be taken away by the Thorne and Grant families who came looking for him, continuing his confinement. At that time, he deeply understood that with his current minimal strength, finding Melinda Linton and their daughter was impossible, and even if found, survival for the three of them was unfeasible. So he succumbed and held a wedding with Ian Grant.

More than a month after the wedding, Ian Grant became pregnant, and he regained his freedom, outwardly continuing his postgraduate studies while secretly searching for the heavily pregnant Melinda Linton who was nearing delivery. But in that era, with no internet and underdeveloped communication technologies, coupled with the Grant Family keeping a tight lid on him, how could an insignificant student, who dared not make a fuss and relied solely on his own strength, find a woman who had disappeared into the vast ocean of people?

All these years, he has never ceased searching, even though he did not know whether Melinda Linton and their daughter were dead or alive. As long as he couldn’t find them, he told himself they were still alive.