The Jennings Family Old Manor. First floor living room. Melinda Lynch heard that Jasmine Rhodes had returned safely and finally showed a long-missing smile, "It’s good she’s back, it’s good she’s back." Ian Jennings relaxed his brows and asked, "What did The Rhodes Family say?" Adrian Jennings’ expression remained unchanged, his tone calm, "Didn’t say much." Melinda Lynch was stunned, "I’ll go to The Rhodes Family tomorrow to see Jasmine and buy some decent gifts to apologize to Shawn Rhodes and his wife. After all, Jasmine was kidnapped because of our family." Mrs. Jennings heard this and snorted coldly, pouting in displeasure, "No need for that; the girl returned just fine, didn’t she? Nothing happened, so why lower yourself ? Melinda, you are the lady of The Jennings Family, and your status is obvious. You must remember that your every word and action represents The Jennings Family. Don’t do things that lower our status." Melinda Lynch frowned, "Mom, how can this be seen as lowering our status? If we don’t address the situation after such an incident, that would be inappropriate." Adrian Jennings said, "Grandma, the kidnapping caused significant psychological trauma to Jasmine; her mental state is currently very poor." The implication was that Jasmine Rhodes did not return "fine" at all, and The Jennings Family is responsible for this. "Haha." Mrs. Jennings showed displeasure in her eyes, "She was just frightened. Kids getting scared is normal, it’ll pass in a few days. Don’t make a fuss over it." Melinda Lynch frowned, glancing between Mrs. Jennings and Adrian Jennings, looking unsure whether to speak. Adrian Jennings remained indifferent, seemingly unaffected by Mrs. Jennings’ sarcastic comments, and turned to say to Melinda Lynch, "If you want to visit Jasmine, you should inform Uncle Rhodes or Aunt Yang first and seek their opinion. Jasmine is currently receiving psychological treatment at home; she may not be able to see visitors." Melinda Lynch nodded, "Alright." Seeing herself ignored, Mrs. Jennings’ face darkened, saying displeased, "Adrian, are you contradicting Grandma?" Adrian Jennings slightly parted his lips, "How could I? If you, out of pride, don’t wish to visit The Rhodes Family, that’s your decision. I cannot influence you, right?" "Do you really not understand what I’m saying or are you pretending not to? I forbid you from going to The Rhodes Family." Mrs. Jennings turned to her daughter-in-law Melinda Lynch and said, "You are forbidden too!" "Mom..." Melinda Lynch looked troubled. "Brother, don’t argue with Grandma..." Selina Hughes said softly. Adrian Jennings didn’t even glance at Selina Hughes and stood up, saying, "I have something to do, I’ll leave first." He turned around and left after speaking. "Brother—" Selina Hughes called out to Adrian Jennings’ back. Follow current novᴇls on novel•fire.net "Look at his behavior now!" Mrs. Jennings was furious. "Mom, then I’ll leave as well." Melinda Lynch looked at Mrs. Jennings’ expression and softened her tone, speaking gently, "Please calm down." Mrs. Jennings looked coldly at Melinda Lynch, "Calm down? If you hadn’t upset me, would I need to calm down?" Melinda Lynch was at a loss for words and sighed silently. "Grandma, try the tea Selina made, pre-rain Longjing, your favorite." Selina Hughes handed a teacup to Mrs. Jennings, "See if my tea skills have improved." Mrs. Jennings took a sip of the tea, her expression softened a bit, "Still, Selina is considerate." Melinda Lynch glanced at Selina Hughes, said nothing, and turned to leave. Ian Jennings had little say in this house, and this time, the culprit was his illegitimate child, so he had even less face to speak. Ian Jennings pretended to be deaf and mute, acting as if he hadn’t heard the tensions between Mrs. Jennings and Adrian. He sipped some tea, said a few symbolic words, and also left. During the meeting at the law firm, Talia was somewhat distracted. After the meeting, she returned to the office to organize materials. Soon, there was a knock on the door. The next second, the door opened, and Samuel Langdon appeared at the door, "Lawyer Rhodes, may I come in?" Talia nodded, "Please, come in." Samuel Langdon walked in. Talia asked, "Are you here to discuss the Solara case? I was just about to find you; that case is quite challenging. I’d like to hear your thoughts." Solara is a biotech company, of which Shawn Rhodes has been a long-time friend of the CEO, and soon after Talia’s law firm opened, Solara entrusted her with several cases. Among them was a case with very complex legal relations and insufficient evidence, making it very risky to go to court. Samuel Langdon shook his head, saying, "I didn’t come to talk about the Solara case." Talia raised her eyes, her gaze filled with confusion, and asked him, "Then, why?" "Do you have something on your mind lately?" Talia paused, "You noticed?" "Yes." Samuel Langdon smiled, "You’re often distracted, you might as well have the words ’I have something on my mind’ written on your forehead." Talia pursed her lips, "Is it really that obvious?" "Alright." Talia lowered her eyelids, somewhat sullen, "There’s been some trouble at home lately." Samuel Langdon’s gaze deepened, asking with concern, "Do you mind telling me what happened?" Talia thought for a moment and said, "My sister had some trouble; her mental state is really poor, and I’m very worried about her." "I know the most authoritative and professional psychologist in the country." Samuel Langdon said, "Maybe they can help." "Not for now." Talia shook her head, "We already have a psychologist providing in-home treatment. Let’s see how it goes for a while. If it doesn’t work, I’ll contact you. Thank you, Lawyer Langdon." Samuel Langdon’s gaze softened, "No need to be so polite with me." "After all, I’m one of the partners and essentially the owner of the law firm." Samuel Langdon joked, "If your state affects work and we lose a case and can’t retrieve the final payment, I’ll suffer the loss too." Talia knew he was joking and smiled, "Don’t worry, Boss Langdon, I won’t let you suffer. Despite my worries, my professional capability is unquestionable." Talia picked up a judgment document and waved it towards Samuel Langdon, "Look, I just received another winning judgment, the court supported all our claims, and the fifteen thousand attorney fees just arrived." Samuel Langdon squinted happily, "No wonder you’re Lawyer Rhodes." Talia felt a bit better and joked, "Don’t worry, working with me won’t leave you in the cold." Samuel Langdon’s eyes were filled with humor, his tone gentle, "Alright." Soon, it was time to clock off. The people from the law firm gradually left. Talia finished organizing the case materials, turned off the lights in her office, and walked out of the law firm. "Lawyer Rhodes." Samuel Langdon called her. Talia looked back, "What’s up?" Samuel Langdon came over, his long eyes beneath the gold-rimmed glasses carrying a smile, "Weren’t you going to discuss the Solara case with me? A new Western restaurant opened nearby, my friends said it’s pretty good; how about discussing it over a meal?" Talia paused, "Okay." Even though the workday had ended, Talia didn’t mind discussing work with Samuel Langdon after hours. After all, she’s not working for someone else; it’s her own law firm, and the Solara case is one she is personally handling. It’s rare for Samuel Langdon to sacrifice his leisure time to discuss the case with her, which she appreciated. Talia smiled and said, "Let me treat you to this meal, Lawyer Langdon, as a thank you for helping me analyze the case." "Sure." Samuel Langdon agreed readily. Talia pressed the elevator button, with Samuel Langdon standing quietly beside her waiting for the elevator.