Chapter 488
“Come eat after you wash your hands!” Tristan called out. He didn’t even ask where Sophie went.
Tristan thought she ought to have some time to herself. After all, it was indeed boring to stay in the hospital all day long.
Sophie went to the bathroom and washed her hands.
Her lips curled into a smile at the sight of the scrumptious lunch laid out on the table.
“Sarah, you’re amazing. You know how to make so many delicious dishes,” Sophie complimented. Given that Sarah came from an affluent family, it was surprising that she could cook so well.
Sarah chuckled in response.
“You flatter me. I made this mushroom soup alone. Our personal chef helped me with all the other dishes,” she replied.
“Sarah, you’re too humble. One of these days, you should really prepare a whole table of dishes on your own,” Tristan chimed in.
Sarah smiled.
“Sure! After you’re discharged, I’m going to personally prepare a table of dishes for both of you.” Sarah was usually too busy to cook. Nevertheless, she enjoyed cooking.
She relished the process of preparing the ingredients.
The serenity she felt while preparing the ingredients was unparalleled, and it always made her feel grounded and calm.
“Great. We’ll look forward to it.” Sophie beamed with delight while thinking that Sarah was quite likable.
Sarah was pleased to see Sophie and Tristan enjoy their lunch. However, the couple’s sweet moments suddenly reminded her of her own bleak marriage prospects.
In spite of that fact, she really wanted a child.
“Oh, right! When are the two of you having a baby?” Sarah asked out of the blue.
After she popped the unexpected question, there was a fairly long stretch of silence.
Sophie was stumped.
Why is she suddenly asking about this?
Tristan squeezed Sophie’s hand when he noticed her startled expression.
“Sarah, why are you asking about this all of a sudden? Sophie is still young. Why would we rush to have kids now?” Tristan replied.
Do you think having kids is as easy as earning money?
“Oh. I just wanted to ask whether you guys could let me adopt one of your babies,” Sarah said. Being all alone sometimes made her feel lonely.
Perhaps having a child around could make it all better.
Again, Sophie was rendered speechless.
How could she even think of asking us to give her a child?
“Definitely not! Give birth to your own baby if you want one. Why do we have to give you our baby? That’s ridiculous!” Tristan scowled at her.
Sarah clenched her fists.
“Tristan, how could you say that? I’ve been good to you since we were young. What’s so wrong about asking you to give me a baby?”
“Well, I can give you anything, but a child is out of the question because the child would be Sophie’s baby too!” Tristan refuted.
The baby hadn’t even existed yet, but the siblings were already quarreling over the matter.
It was a really baffling sight.
“Sophie, talk some sense into him! He’s so aggravating. I’m just asking for a child. Why is he refusing to give me one?” Sarah grumbled.
“Ahem.” Sophie was feeling a little awkward. “Actually, you two should calm down. I don’t think I want a child anytime soon,” Sophie added.
After all, she still thought of herself as a child.
“Sophie, don’t worry. I’m going to raise the child on your behalf. You just need to give birth to one,” Sarah said. She really wanted a baby to keep her company.
“Sarah, don’t be ridiculous! I’m not going to let you off the hook if you scare my girl away,” Tristan warned.
“How could you be so rude, Tristan? I’m talking to Sophie right now. Back off,” Sarah rebuked.
How dare he threaten me? Does he have a death wish?
“Sarah, I don’t plan on giving my baby away either,” Sophie said in a determined tone.
Sarah was at a loss for words this time.
“Exactly, give birth to your own baby if you want one. What gives you the right to think that people will just give away their baby to you?”
It was the paradox of life that one would have to risk one’s own life to bring another into the world.
Childbearing was a precarious process.
Tristan was terrified just from thinking about it.
He did not wish to put his girl through that kind of suffering at all.
The notion of putting Sophie through the pain of labor multiple times was inconceivable.
“All right. Forget about it then,” Sarah grumbled. She was dejected, but there was nothing she could do about it.
After all, she was asking for a child. All jokes aside, she knew the gravity of her demand.
Sophie felt sorry for Sarah.
“Sarah, you can still have your own baby,” Sophie said. She’s still young. Why is she giving it all up now?
“Sophie, you don’t understand.”
What’s the point of having a baby for someone I don’t even have feelings for?
After staying at the ward for some time, Sarah went back to her office.
There were still a lot of things she had to attend to, so she didn’t linger.
“Tristan, it seems like Sarah really wants a baby.”
“Sophie, you know I usually listen to you, but I’m afraid I can’t compromise on this matter. You should know the risks involved in having a baby,” Tristan reasoned.
That was why, even if they eventually decided to have a child, one was more than enough.
He did not wish to put her life on the line so many times.
“Okay.”
Sophie hadn’t given the topic much thought.
She reckoned that advancements in medical technology had significantly reduced pregnancy and labor risks.
Still, there were still risks.
“Don’t worry. I’m a doctor myself,” Sophie said.
She was a student at the University of Medicine, after all.
Tristan held her hand. “Sarah is just in a rut right now. I believe that she will find her Mr. Right someday.”
Sarah would not have become like this if not for Juan.
Juan had given Sarah an obstacle in life, and no one knew how long Sarah would take to overcome it.
At present, Sophie had already taken the initiative before Charles and Sean made their move. Zales Corporation had descended into anarchy in the span of a single day.
They had encountered problems with their finances. Though the top management was in the midst of an investigation, Ernest had already given up.
He didn’t think that there was a way out after offending Tristan.
Hence, he already saw it coming.
Nevertheless, Ernest was still surprised when the police were at his place to arrest him. Being arrested one day was something he had never even thought about.
“What are you guys doing? What has my father done? On what grounds are you arresting my father?” Clayton’s elder brother was still making a last-ditch attempt to save their father.
Now that Clayton was already in jail, the whole Zales family had turned to Ernest for support.
They didn’t know what to do if something were to happen to Ernest as well.
“Please give way and do not obstruct the execution of official duties. I believe Old Mr. Zales knows what he has done,” an officer said.
They wouldn’t have come all the way here to arrest Ernest if they didn’t have any concrete evidence in hand.
The fact that the police were there to arrest Ernest meant that they had incriminating evidence against him.
The vigorous man seemed to have aged decades in a single day. He was but a ghost of his past self. Ernest sat there in silence, saying nothing.
“Old Mr. Zales, you’d better follow us and give your cooperation in—”
Before the officer could finish his sentence, black blood dribbled from the corner of Ernest’s mouth.
“Oh no! He swallowed poison to take his own life!”
An officer rushed forward to pry open his mouth, but it was too late.
“Dad, what’s the matter with you? What’s happening to our family?” Clayton’s elder brother was on the brink of a breakdown. Unlike Clayton or Ernest, he was a pliant and weak-minded man.
At the sight of his own father dying, his mind went blank. He didn’t know what to do.
“Sir, what do we do now?” an officer asked.
“What can we do? The man’s dead!” a higher-ranked officer replied. He knew that the upper echelons of their society all had blood on their hands. What he didn’t expect was that the Zales family would even stoop so low as to poison their own father.
