Bankrupt Tycoon? No Problem – This Villainess Will Make Him Rich Again

Chapter 165: Chapter 168: Mom Believes in You

"..."

Sonia Quincy blinked blankly, raising a hand to gently pat Mrs. Preston’s back in confusion.

"Mom, what’s wrong?"

Mrs. Preston let her go, her eyes already red and moist.

"Sonia, are you okay?"

Sonia Quincy shook her head. "I’m fine. I’m doing great."

"...That’s good, then. That’s good." Mrs. Preston only repeated this phrase, saying nothing more.

Sonia Quincy saw her secretly wiping away tears and knew she must have seen the news.

Although the incident was fabricated, the rumor itself was still disgraceful. Mrs. Preston had probably heard a lot of gossip about Sonia Quincy on her way back.

Sonia Quincy bit her lip, feeling that she should offer some kind of explanation.

But Mrs. Preston looked as if she had no intention of asking about it.

"Come sit down. Mom bought you some milk tea." She took Sonia Quincy by the wrist, led her to the sofa to sit, then stuck a straw in the freshly bought milk tea and personally held it to Sonia Quincy’s lips.

Sonia Quincy froze for a moment, then took a big sip of the warm milk tea through the straw.

"It’s good," she said with a smile.

Mrs. Preston set the milk tea down and started chatting casually as if nothing was wrong. "The milk tea shop at the entrance to our complex is having some kind of autumn event. They said if you buy one of their designated drinks, you get one free. I figured you hadn’t had milk tea in a while, so I grabbed one for you."

"And since Lynn is getting off work early today, she can have the free one. That’ll stop her from complaining that I never buy her things anymore."

Sonia Quincy said, "Mm, thank you, Mom."

Mrs. Preston stroked her head, the affection in her eyes unchanged.

"You haven’t had lunch yet, have you? How about Mom makes you a bowl of noodles?"

Sonia Quincy nodded. "Okay! I want Mom’s beef noodles—the kind with lots of extra beef!"

Mrs. Preston immediately stood up from the sofa. "Just wait here. Mom will go make it for you right now."

Sonia Quincy: "Thanks, Mom!"

"FSHHH—"

The kitchen faucet was turned on. Mrs. Preston, having put on an apron, began to bustle about inside.

Sonia Quincy took a few more sips of her milk tea, but in the end, she couldn’t resist and shuffled into the kitchen.

"What are you doing in here?" Mrs. Preston glanced at her when she had a moment, her tone gentle.

She thought for a moment, then decided to ask tactfully.

"Mom, is there... nothing you want to ask me?"

At her words, Mrs. Preston’s hand, which was slicing beef, paused for an instant—but only for an instant.

"There’s nothing to ask." She knew what Sonia Quincy meant, so she didn’t feign ignorance or beat around the bush.

"Lynn already told me about that incident. We all believe you."

Sonia Quincy: "But you haven’t asked me yourself, and I haven’t explained anything to you."

"You don’t need to explain anything to me." Mrs. Preston smiled as she continued slicing the beef. "We’re a family. If a family member says it didn’t happen, then it didn’t happen."

"Mom..." Sonia Quincy had prepared so many explanations, but now Mrs. Preston’s words had left her speechless.

Mrs. Preston shooed her away. "Go on, go sit back down. Mom will be done soon."

Sonia Quincy didn’t move, just stood dazedly behind her. "Mom, why do you trust me so much? I’ve... I’ve made so many mistakes in the past."

Mrs. Preston focused on slicing the beef, as if Sonia Quincy’s question was as mundane as "What should we eat later?"

"The past is the past. It’s already over. Past events are just smoke and dust; we can’t judge a person’s present based on their past."

"To me, the Sonia Quincy of today is a wonderful girl, and she is worthy of my trust."

With that, Mrs. Preston glanced back at Sonia Quincy one more time. "Now, go sit down and drink your milk tea. Mom will have the noodles ready soon."

"..."

Sonia Quincy stared at her, stunned, feeling as if she had lost the ability to speak.

Every time she was faced with such sincere and ardent affection, she could never find the words to express her feelings.

She had received so little love growing up that she was always at a loss when confronted with it.

She touched her stomach, shuffled out of the kitchen again, and obediently sat on the sofa to wait for her noodles.

Lynn Preston was delayed for quite a while and arrived home just as the beef noodles were ready.

"Lynn," Mrs. Preston called from the kitchen.

She first gave Sonia Quincy a reassuring gesture before answering, "Coming!"

Mrs. Preston: "Come get the noodles. Mom is going to take a shower."

"Coming now!" Lynn Preston turned and walked to the kitchen.

Mrs. Preston had already eaten lunch at work, so after she finished making the noodles, she went straight into the bathroom to shower.

Suddenly, only Sonia Quincy and Lynn Preston were left in the living room.

The two of them sat at the dining table, eating their noodles. For the first minute, neither spoke; the only sound in the air was the soft slurping of noodles.

But after a minute, Lynn Preston was the first to speak.

"Don’t worry, sis. My brother went to the studio to take care of something. Evan Yates just messaged me and said he picked him up. He’s safe."

"Okay." Sonia Quincy nodded, the corners of her mouth lifting into a small smile.

Lynn Preston glanced at her and asked cautiously, "Sis, what exactly happened between you and my brother? Why the sudden fight?"

Sonia Quincy: "...It wasn’t a fight. I was hiding something from him, and he got angry."

"Hiding something from him?" Lynn Preston sensed a bit of gossip and immediately put down her chopsticks. "What was it? Can you tell me?"

Sonia Quincy’s tone was firm. "I can’t."

"Aww..." Lynn Preston grabbed her arm and shook it playfully. "Why not? You’re even going to keep it from me?"

Sonia Quincy: "Yes. For now, I have to keep it from you, too."

"...Alright, then." Lynn Preston could see that Sonia Quincy really didn’t want to say, so she didn’t press her further.

Instead, it was Sonia Quincy who, after a moment of thought, turned the question back on her. "Lynn, I just refused to tell you my secret. Does that make you angry?"

Lynn Preston frowned in thought. "No, not at all. Everyone has their own secrets. If you don’t want to say, then don’t. Besides, you just emphasized that you’re only keeping it from me *temporarily*, not forever. It’s fine if I find out later."

Sonia Quincy put down her chopsticks, looking vexed. "Then why did your brother get so angry? Angry enough to just walk out?"

Lynn Preston smiled. "Because my brother’s different. I’m just your sister-in-law, but he’s your husband. A husband is the person you’ll spend the rest of your life with. Of course he’d hope to be the first one to share in your secrets."

"But this kind of sharing is different from just gossiping... Ugh, I’ve never been married, so I don’t really know how to describe the feeling. Anyway, from my perspective, I think being able to share secrets with your significant other would create a strong sense of security."

"A sense of security..." Sonia Quincy mulled over the words, a powerful wave of guilt creeping over her heart without her even realizing it.