Twists of Fate

Yvonne picked up the white porcelain bowl. The pungent smell of Chinese herbs wafted from it. Pinching her nose and holding her breath, she poured the contents of the bowl into a flower pot. She then used a prepared shovel to cover the medicine-soaked soil with some dry earth from the side of the pot. After completing this routine, she smiled smugly and lay back on the wicker chair on the balcony, swinging her feet. A knock came from outside. Startled like a frightened rabbit, she wiped the smile off her face and got up to answer the door. "Madam, have you taken your medicine?" Helena's face was expressionless as she looked at Yvonne levelly. Yvonne handed her the empty white porcelain bowl, saying obediently, "I've finished it." Helena's face darkened slightly as she looked at Yvonne. "Madam, open your mouth and exhale." If she had actually drunk the medicine, there would certainly be a taste in her mouth. She hadn't drunk it, so opening her mouth would definitely give her away. Yvonne kept her mouth tightly shut and shook her head, resolutely refusing to open it. "Madam, I'm only doing this for your own good. Don't waste my efforts. This medicine will help you conceive more easily. Also, the master will be home tonight. Do you remember everything I told you to do, Madam?" Helena's face remained stern, her words coming out like statements, devoid of any emotion, her voice steady and unwavering. Yvonne nodded, responding, "I remember everything." "Then please repeat it back to me, Madam." "Starting at 10 PM tonight, I should try to be on top as much as possible. We should aim for three times. Afterwards, I need to take a bath, and the water should be quite cold." Her face showed obedient compliance, but inwardly she was cursing. All for the sake of getting pregnant, a mere servant was controlling her like this. Even the timing and positions for bedroom activities had been dictated by Helena. Talking about such things as if they were just routine tasks, so methodically and without any reservation! Helena nodded slightly in satisfaction, her face still cold. She turned to the maid behind her, Daisy, and commanded, "There's more medicine in the kitchen. Go fetch another bowl." Daisy went downstairs to the kitchen to get the medicine. In this house, although Yvonne was supposedly the mistress, everyone, including herself, had to obey Helena. She had never seen such an bizarre household before, where the servants gave orders to the master. It was truly frustrating. When Daisy returned with the medicine, Helena took it personally and handed it to Yvonne. "Madam, surely I don't need to feed you myself?" In this situation, Helena wouldn't let her off the hook unless she saw her take the medicine with her own eyes. With no other choice – surely one bowl of medicine wouldn't kill her – Yvonne closed her eyes, held her breath, and drank it all in one go. "Madam, if you cooperate obediently, it will save us servants trouble, and you'll have less to worry about. Don't you agree, Madam?" Helena said as she took away the empty bowl. After drinking the medicine, the bitterness sent Yvonne rushing to the bathroom to brush her teeth. With a toothbrush in her mouth, full of foam, she looked at herself in the mirror and started complaining internally again: Who knew that being married for three years would be like living as a widow? He wouldn't touch her, so how was she supposed to have a child on her own? They insisted on making her take this medicine. If they pushed her too far, she might lose her temper and refuse to continue. Let someone else be Mrs. Thornton if they wanted! All for the sake of having a child, Helena made her take medicine every day. With today's advanced technology, i*********e wasn't even necessary to have a child. She had tried in-vitro fertilization, but before today, it had already failed nine times. How much longer would it take before she could be free? After brushing her teeth three times, the taste in her mouth finally dissipated. Yvonne glanced at the time and nearly panicked. Alexander was always punctual, so she rushed downstairs to greet him. Hurrying down in her slippers, taking two steps at a time, she approached Alexander. Looking up at him, she admired his chiseled features. His eyes were her favorite - beautiful phoenix eyes that always seemed to have a hint of allure, making him somewhat unapproachable. Part of the reason she married him was because she was attracted to his face. "Mrs. Thornton, please walk slowly. Don't be so reckless," Helena gently reminded her with a light cough. Standing before Alexander, Yvonne realized he was a head taller than her. With his towering figure, she lowered her head, as if apologizing for her earlier haste. Alexander frowned and walked straight to the dining table. "Let's eat." "Mm," Yvonne replied, taking slow, deliberate steps - the proper etiquette expected of a lady from a good family. The key was to move slowly. It wasn't easy being Mrs. Thornton! She had to suppress her true nature and put on a façade just to deal with the formidable Mr. Thornton. Alexander's parents, already seated at the table, wore politely fearful expressions. They only picked up their chopsticks after Alexander did, eating with bowed heads and only taking food from the dishes directly in front of them. There was no family quite as peculiar as the Thorntons - the masters controlled by the servants, the parents afraid of their son. Yvonne stole a glance at them and sighed inwardly. Just as she picked up her chopsticks, she remembered she'd be sharing a bed with Alexander tonight. The thought made her uneasy again. Although her husband only came home once every week or two and never did anything to her, just lying in the same bed and the accidental physical contact made her heart race. Alexander placed some food in her bowl. "Eat more." It was a large meatball. She didn't particularly like meat, but would he be angry if she didn't eat it? Helena, standing nearby, reminded her, "Mrs. Thornton, you should eat more. Being too thin isn't good for bearing children." Yvonne lowered her head and ate the meatball. She truly admired Helena's ability to constantly remind her of her duty to produce an heir. Alexander ladled some soup for her, watching her. "Eat slowly." "You should eat more too. You've lost weight recently," she smiled gently, playing the role of a dutiful wife, and placed a carrot in his bowl. This way, even if they weren't affectionate, at least they appeared respectful towards each other. Helena frowned and reminded her, "Mrs. Thornton, the master doesn't eat carrots." But before she finished speaking, Alexander had already eaten the carrot. Yvonne caught a glimpse of Helena's dark expression from the corner of her eye. Alexander gave Helena a cool glance. "You can go rest for a while." Helena left without a word. Yvonne breathed a sigh of relief. She felt oppressed when Helena was around, as if the air became thin. Her whole body relaxed, and her movements became more natural. She pulled the dish of carrot and beef stew closer, her eyes narrowing into slits. "If you don't like carrots, I'll eat all the carrots from the dish." With that, she began eating. Alexander watched her, the corners of his mouth turning up slightly. She was just like a lively little rabbit. Dinner was finally over, and she rushed back to her room. This was the time she needed to call for help. "Kitty, what should I do now?" she asked. On the other end of the phone, Kitty Evans chuckled, "Darling, what do you mean 'what should I do'? I just don't understand you. How can you not fall for such a high-quality man? It's been three years and you still haven't pounced on him. Be careful, he might find another woman outside due to physical needs, and that would be bad enough. But what if he even has a child? You'd be finished. Without your sugar daddy, how would you survive?" Kitty wasn't wrong. Alexander Thornton was a big sugar daddy, and she had to rely on him. Otherwise, she wouldn't have suppressed her true nature to willingly play the role of a good wife and mother. Yvonne hesitated, "You're right about everything, but..." "There are no buts. Try it out and then tell me how many times the great Alexander can go, and if he's fierce." Kitty laughed suggestively. Yvonne irritably scratched her short hair, soon leaving it looking like a bird's nest. She shouted, "No need to try! Even my little toe knows he must be incompetent. Otherwise, why would he not touch his beautiful wife?" "Maybe he doesn't like dried vegetables." That was definitely mocking her! Yvonne unconsciously raised her voice even more, "Kitty, don't slander me! I wear a C-cup bra! It's Alexander who's incompetent!" As soon as she finished speaking, his towering figure entered her sight. She was shocked as their eyes met. Heavens! She wanted to dig a hole and crawl in. Had he heard everything? Yvonne fell silent, burying her head low. Her cheeks flushed red, and she felt somewhat guilty. After pretending for so long, her true nature was exposed. One misstep leads to eternal regret! On the other end of the phone, Kitty was still talking, "Darling, I feel like you're just feeling guilty. It's not that Alexander is incompetent, is it? Do you have issues with your s****l orientation? Have you been secretly in love with me all this time..." The voice was clearly audible. Yvonne hurriedly hung up the phone and tossed the hot potato onto the bed. What a terrible friend Kitty was! "Um..." Yvonne didn't have the courage to look up at him anymore. She couldn't find any words to explain, completely unable to organize her thoughts. "I always thought I had married a ragdoll," Alexander said with a slight smile. Was he saying he preferred this kind of personality from her? Yvonne looked at him suspiciously, wondering if he would feel cheated after discovering her true nature, and if Yvonne Enterprises would suffer as a result. Anyway, things had come to this point, so she had nothing left to hide. She spread her hands in a gesture of resignation, "This is who I am. Even if you want to return the goods, it's impossible. We've been married for three years. Think about these three years - I've listened and done everything you all said, and I've been living like a widow after marriage. If it were anyone else, they couldn't have done better than me in playing the role of Mrs. Thornton." "Mm, you've done very well. Keep it up, the position of Mrs. Thornton will always be yours," Alexander said with a light laugh, though the smile didn't reach his eyes. His tone was one of praise. Yvonne was stunned. "Won't you regret it?" "There's nothing to regret. At least your bra size is C-cup," he replied blandly, his gaze seeming to fall on her chest. "..." Had he heard everything? His tone was clearly mocking!