Chapter 8  : Stop Belittling Yourself

Jeanne walked upstairs silently.

Jasmine and Jenifer stared at her as she brought George upstairs.

The subtle scoff that she made when she walked past them entered their ears clearly.

Vexed, Jasmine asked, “Did she just scoff at me?”

Jenifer was not surprised. “It’s a tale of the fox and the grapes, and she’s the fox. If it wasn’t for you, she’d be the one enjoying all this.”

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Jasmine felt better with her mother’s consolation.

Compared to her own wedding, Jeanne’s wedding was the biggest joke in South Hampton and it was indeed the fact.

On the second day, when the press released the news of Jeanne and Thedus’ wedding, it stirred up a whirlwind of rumors in the city.

The news surprised everyone because no one thought she would agree to marry Thedus. She was once the princess of the Lawrence family and despite her decline, she was still a well-known name in the city.

She was known as the most beautiful girl in high society back then and her pursuers could surround the earth twice.

Even if she had fallen off her throne, she should not have agreed to marry such a man.

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Jeanne was brushing her teeth when she received the news and it was Monica who informed her.

Monica sounded agitated on the other end of the phone. She shouted at Jeanne, “What are you thinking?! How the hell did you agree to marry that b*stard Thedus? Don’t you know he got into prison before?

“The press didn’t make him the headlines because the Locke family has spent a fortune to cover up the news and they told the public it was an accident! That b*stard Thedus tortured that prostitute to death that night and yet he’s able to come out unscathed! He should thank his dear daddy and his family’s wealth, or else he’d have been given the death sentence!”

Jeanne clamped the phone to her ear with her shoulder as she continued to brush her teeth.

“And you! You’re going to marry a murderer? Jeanne, you should’ve stayed away and not come back to belittle yourself like this,” Monica said. There was an obvious sob in her tone.

Jeanne wiped her face and said, “I’m fine, Monica.”

“Fine your *ss! You said you were fine when your father whipped you half to death! Can you love yourself more? Can you just walk away from all those sh*t from your family? Can you just not follow them for once? It’s not worth it!”

“Yeah, it’s not worth it,” Jeanne said in agreement.

“Then? What’s the meaning of all this?”

“Don’t worry. I’m not going to marry that guy.” Jeanne believed no one else except Monica.

Monica used her own life to threaten Alexander back then just so she could carry Jeanne away from this hellhole and deliver her to the hospital.

“How are you going to turn down the wedding now that the press got the news? If you don’t marry that b*stard, your father will beat you to death again!” The thought reminded Monica of that ominous night seven years ago.

Back when Jeanne and Eden were called the golden couple, everyone in high society was jealous of the lovebirds. Eden listened to everything Jeanne said and Monica strongly believed Jeanne was the last one Eden would cheat on.

Unfortunately, Eden cheated on her with Jasmine, her stepsister two years younger than her.

When the news got out, everyone put the blame on Eden and Jasmine.

Jeanne’s feisty temper drove her to the Swan family and asked Eden for an explanation in front of his family. She wanted Eden to acknowledge that he cheated on her with her sister.

The Swan family could not afford her to embarrass them, so they tried to talk her out of it and told her to calm down.

Jeanne, however, was not an easy-going person. The news snowballed into something huge that went out of control. In the end, Jasmine had to acknowledge her affair with Eden publicly.

She said Eden and her were truly in love and they could not help but betray Jeanne.

Eden also told the press that he could not tolerate Jeanne’s temper and fell for the kinder Jasmine. He did not break up with Jeanne earlier because he cared about her feelings.

Their fact-bending explanations turned the tip to Jeanne, making her the mistress in this relationship. She was labeled as a jealous vixen who ruined people’s happiness.

The Lawrence family was on the lower end of the deal in the wedding with the Swan family, so when they realized Jasmine was with Eden instead, they did not plan to ease Jeanne’s grievance.

Instead, they forced Jeanne to accept the fact and stay quiet. She was only 18 and yet she had to go through so much pain and grief because her family chose profit over her.

In the end, Jeanne tried to fight back but ended up being beaten by her father.

Not only that but her family also announced to the public that Jeanne’s feisty temper was due to not having a mother by her side since she was young. So, it was understandable that Eden chose Jasmine over her. Jeanne was the one who should reflect on her actions and not complain.

That move made Jeanne lose her reputation in high society and her image was ruined. She was cheated on, and hurt and accused by her own family. No one offered her a helping hand and instead, she was being stepped on during her darkest days.

Fortunately, she was able to escape alive.

It was her absence that put the case to rest.

Now with her return, would everything repeat itself?

The thought left Monica restless. She said, “Jeanne, I’ll buy you air tickets, please bring George and leave.”

Jeanne chuckled. She grew up with Monica and was only three months older than her friend, which made them peers.

When Jeanne’s mother passed away, they were both eight years old. Monica promised that she would take care of Jeanne like a mother. She kept her promise and showed her friend a lot of warmth, despite her thoughts and actions being a lot more childish compared to Jeanne.

Jeanne was grateful for Monica’s warmth because it was the only thing that kept her hope for humanity alive.

“I won’t get hurt anymore,” Jeanne said.

Not only that but she also swore that she would take revenge on those who tried to step on her during her darkest days. An eye for an eye!

“Don’t lie to me,” Monica said.

“I won’t.”

“Don’t keep everything to yourself.”

“I’m not.”

“Okay, I believe you, but you don’t push yourself too far.” Monica compromised. Since they were young, she always followed Jeanne’s opinion and was her friend’s best supporter.

“Mhmm.”

“Why don’t…” Monica suddenly sounded serious.

Jeanne came out of the bathroom with her phone.

“Why don’t you try to go for Fourth Master Swan, like try to get in his pants?”