Third day of the New Year. Relatives came over to pay New Year visits, and Talia sat in the living room entertaining guests, chatting with the elders. While chatting, suddenly an aunt with permed hair asked Shawn Rhodes, "Brother, why was the engagement between your family and the Jennings Family canceled?" Talia lowered her eyelashes, sighing in her heart. As expected, what’s bound to come cannot be avoided. Shawn Rhodes remained calm, "The kids from both families didn’t get along well, so it was called off." Another uncle chimed in, "I heard that boy from the Jennings Family got involved with some actress, is it true?" Talia inwardly retorted: How can a man be so gossipy? Shawn Rhodes replied, "I don’t know. He and Talia already broke off the engagement, so it’s none of our business how he wants to live his life." That permed aunt spoke again, "Did that boy from the Jennings Family cheat while he was with Talia? Those privileged brats from influential families, quite a few of them fool around with celebrities and models." Lillian Young laughingly changed the subject, "Your bag looks really nice. I saw it in a magazine before; isn’t it a New Year limited edition?" The permed aunt, with a smiling face, turned her attention to the bag beside her, "Yes, I fell in love at first sight, isn’t it beautiful?" Lillian Young laughed, "Yes, it’s beautiful. I wanted to buy it too." "I think it’s out of stock domestically, I just got it yesterday. If you like it, I can ask for you." Lillian Young smiled, "That would be great, thank you." The topic was about to shift, but who knew that permed aunt was so gossipy, she forcibly steered the conversation back. "What were we talking about just now?" The permed aunt eagerly asked, "Was it because the boy from the Jennings Family was fooling around outside and Talia found out, so you called off the engagement?" Lillian Young was about to speak, but Talia spoke up first, "It’s not like that, aunt. My relationship with him had just run its course. He found someone else after we broke up, it’s not fooling around." This answer was obviously not what aunt wanted to hear. Breaking up because feelings ran their course and then finding someone new isn’t as exciting as cheating. Aunt continued her gossiping inquiries, "How did your relationship just run its course? Didn’t you have an engagement party not long ago? I remember last time the engagement party got canceled due to an accident, and I thought I heard your dad say not too long ago that the two of you were going to redo the engagement party after the New Year. How did it suddenly just end?" The uncle quickly followed up, "Yeah, what a good marriage it would’ve been. After all, it’s with the Jennings Family, many people can only dream of such a match. To me, this engagement shouldn’t have been canceled. Men fool around outside as a matter of course, just an actress. Families like the Jennings wouldn’t allow a celebrity to marry in. Once he’s bored, he’ll come back to marry you, just endure for a while." After hearing these words, Talia furrowed her brows. Those words completely came from a male perspective, weighing pros and cons, not a word was what she wanted to hear. Talia had just opened her mouth, ready to say something in retort, when Shawn Rhodes couldn’t take it anymore. "I don’t like what you’re saying." Shawn Rhodes’s face darkened, "Yes, the Jennings are powerful, others may be eager to ingratiate themselves, but we, The Rhodes, don’t care. My Talia is my treasure, I won’t let her be wronged." Lillian Young chimed in, "Exactly, our girl doesn’t care about climbing up to the Jennings Family." The permed aunt looked at Talia, "Talia, last time at the estate party, I saw the two of you were so affectionate. You even had an argument with the adopted daughter and the old lady from the Jennings Family, and Adrian Jennings stood by your side, arguing with his grandmother, even saying that he’d always side with his wife. He seemed to love you a lot. How did it all end so quickly?" "Oh, these kinds of things with feelings, who can really say for sure?" Lillian Young said, smiling, and waved at the little boy playing with Jasmine not far away, "Little Chen, come here to auntie." Little Chen put down the building blocks in his hand and ran to Lillian Young’s side. Lillian Young smiled as she scooped up a handful of candies from the fruit platter to give to Little Chen, asking gently, "Little Chen, how were your final exam results? What rank did you get in class?" Little Chen is the youngest son of the permed aunt, in sixth grade, a little monkey-like troublemaker, with poor grades and always getting into mischief, often making the teacher call his parents. When the permed aunt heard Lillian Young asking about her child’s grades, her previously nonstop chattering mouth instantly shut up, and her expression turned awkward. Little Chen didn’t care about his grades being bad. When asked by the adults, he honestly replied, "Auntie, I got forty-five in math, thirty-six in Chinese, fifty-one in English, and ranked in the class..." "Alright stop talking, you might not be ashamed but I am." The permed aunt cut him off. "Why should I be ashamed? I even improved." Little Chen protested, "Last semester’s final exams had me third last in class, this semester I improved to fifth last." Follow current novels on novel·fıre·net "Hahahahahaha..." Several relatives laughed in unison. "Kids say the funniest things." The permed aunt pulled Little Chen to her side and glared at him, scolding in a whisper, "I told you to play with Jasmine, why did you come here and embarrass yourself? Fifth last and you dare even mention it." Lillian Young smiled but said nothing, finally silencing her. Shawn Rhodes looked at Talia with concern, Talia smiled and shook her head, indicating she was fine. After dinner, Talia went to a nearby garden for a walk, unexpectedly encountering Adrian Jennings who was also out for a walk. The cold wind howled past, it felt like her blood was freezing. The two stood face to face in the cold wind, silent and speechless. Talia averted her gaze and spoke first, "What a coincidence." "Happy New Year." This was the first thing Adrian Jennings had said to her in so long. Almost instantly, Talia’s eyes welled up with tears. She lowered her wet eyelashes, her gaze wandering, inadvertently catching sight of the watch on Adrian Jennings’s wrist, and her breath caught. "You..." Talia wanted to ask why he was still wearing the watch she had given him, but couldn’t bring herself to ask. Even her tone had a slight sobbing quality. Adrian Jennings followed her gaze to the watch on his wrist, feeling a sudden pang in his heart. This watch was the first gift Talia had given him. Not very expensive to him, just over six hundred thousand, but he always wore it, even after they broke up, he never took it off. In places where Talia was present, he would hide the watch so she wouldn’t see it. He did that on New Year’s Eve, at the Sutherlyn golf course too. But he hadn’t expected to bump into Talia on a walk just now in the garden. The watch thus lay exposed to Talia’s gaze. He knew what she wanted to ask. He wanted so badly to tell her he missed her and couldn’t bear to take off the watch she gave him. Struggling through the bitterness in his heart, Adrian Jennings awkwardly said, "Oh, I forgot to take it off."