Evelyn heard Alexander whistling while he peed.
She had been feeling down for a long time. She had to turn her back. She wanted to slap him and send him flying a thousand miles away.
That evening, Evelyn held the baby and cooed to him. Alexander strutted around, showing off. Then he teased the baby constantly. He said the baby's mother was beautiful, gentle, and lovely. He said the baby looked like his father, but actually looked more beautiful like his mother. He said the baby wouldn't have good genes, and so on.
"Can you just shut up?" Evelyn couldn't take it anymore and scolded him in a low voice.
Alexander finally shut up.
That was his strategy. He used different tactics to coax Evelyn.
When she was angry, he would smile and soothe her. When she was amused by him, he would move closer to her.
In the end, Evelyn couldn't do anything about him. She couldn't see him, so she couldn't help it.
Because Iris Hart was there!
That night, the temperature dropped. Evelyn was worried about Iris, so she wanted to check on her.
She went to the guest room and knocked on the door. There was no answer. Evelyn had to open the door herself.
Iris was holding a photograph, completely absorbed in it.
"Iris—"
"Oh, Evelyn!" Iris was startled for a moment before turning around.
She tried to put the photo away, but in her fluster, she bumped the table. The photo fell to the floor.
Evelyn helped pick it up. When she saw the person in the photo, she froze.
"Iris..." Evelyn looked up at Iris, whose expression was embarrassed.
The person in the photo was none other than Grace O'Sullivan.
"Evelyn, please close the door for me!" Iris said softly, taking back the photo. She tucked it into an old-looking book.
Evelyn had to turn and close the door.
"Evelyn, sit down!" Iris asked her to sit.
Evelyn sat down. She felt like Iris had something to say to her. She had even forgotten why she came.
After putting everything away, Iris came over and sat beside Evelyn.
"The girl in that picture is my daughter," Iris explained.
"What?" Evelyn stared at Iris in shock. She thought her eyes had played tricks on her.
"You're right. Grace is my daughter. She's been lost for over twenty years," Iris continued.
Evelyn felt her brain couldn't process this.
"It all started the year Grace was lost. Back then, she wasn't called Grace. She was Chunxiao. We used to call her Xiaoxiao. Since my husband and I both worked for the family and helped the servants, Xiaoxiao often stayed with us. When we had things to do, we would let her play alone. Then one day, after finishing our work, my husband and I wanted to go home, but we couldn't find Xiaoxiao. We searched the Sterling house, but we couldn't find her. For days after that, we searched everywhere for her. The Sterling family also sent people to help, but we couldn't find her. It was like she had vanished. We had saved a little money from working, so we took leave to find her. We went to many places. Even when we had clues, we never found her. Later, because of this, my husband fell seriously ill. He passed away soon after. I was the only one left at home. The Sterling family felt sorry for me, so they let me continue working as a servant. Also, I had taken care of Alexander before, and he was close to me, so I kept looking after him. Alexander was very sick back then. He went to the hospital every two or three days. Even the doctors said he wouldn't make it. Later, the old lady heard from a fortune teller that Alexander couldn't stay with his family. He had to be given away. At the same time, I wanted to go back to Misty Isle. So I suggested to the old lady that Alexander go back with me. The old lady had no other choice, so she agreed to let me take him back to Misty Isle. Alexander spent his childhood on Misty Isle. I took care of him like my own child. I hoped someone would take care of my child the same way. I never gave up looking for Xiaoxiao. But every time, I was disappointed. Later, I gradually lost hope. One year, Alexander wrote me a letter. It had this picture in it. He told me she was his girlfriend. He planned to bring her to visit me on Misty Isle after the New Year. I was so happy. When I saw this picture, I thought of my Xiaoxiao. I felt a connection. I told Alexander to marry her soon and treat her well. That way, I could help them with their children. Later, not long after, the Sterling family went through a crisis. Then the old lady sent someone to bring me some things. Among them was information about Grace. The old lady told me that the Xiaoxiao who was lost all those years ago had been found. She was now Grace O'Sullivan. She had already met Xiaoxiao and told her about her past. As for whether she would want to acknowledge me as her mother, that was up to her. The old lady said she had no right to interfere. At that time, I wanted to see Grace immediately. I wanted to tell her I was her mother. I had been looking for her for years. So I asked the old lady for her phone number. I planned to call her and then go see her. Grace told me on the phone that I was not her mother. She said she would never acknowledge me as her mother. She told me not to disturb her life!"
Iris said this, tears streaming down her face.
"Why doesn't Grace want to acknowledge you?" Evelyn asked, confused.
"Because her father sold her back then. Her childhood was very hard. She didn't meet her adoptive parents, who were university professors, until later. So she probably thinks her father and I didn't want her. She thinks we sold her. Now that she's grown up, she doesn't want to acknowledge us."
Evelyn couldn't believe what Iris was saying.
"Then... why did Iris's father sell his daughter?"
"Back then, he was depressed and unsuccessful. He learned to gamble and owed a lot of money. Later, he lost his mind and listened to others. He took Xiaoxiao to a family for adoption. But that family didn't want to adopt her at all. Instead, they sold her to a farming family in a remote place to be a child bride. When my husband found out, there was no way to change it. He didn't dare tell me the truth. He fell ill soon after," Iris said.
"Don't worry, Iris. It's not hopeless. A lot of people who worked for the family back then knew about it. Some of them are still working there. They can testify for you. We can also help explain things to Grace. We can make her believe you!" Evelyn comforted Iris.