Chapter 656: Hope’s Counterattack
Chapter 656: Chapter 656: Hope’s Counterattack
Windswept Whimsy clenched his fists in anger, nails digging into his palms. His voice was tight with rage. "She’s threatening my little brother with suicide!"
"Ethan, you should start by gathering evidence that Maeve Sloan is cheating," Renee said, her voice softening. "Show the proof to your brother. After that, find an opportunity to corner Maeve Sloan, and remember to record your conversation with her."
She paused, frowning slightly before adding, "To be on the safe side, you should consult a reliable lawyer first. What Maeve Sloan is doing could potentially be a criminal offense."
"Okay." Windswept Whimsy nodded emphatically, his voice thick with gratitude. "Host Jennings, thank you so, so much. You’ve helped me learn the truth about my father’s death and see Maeve Sloan for who she really is."
"If it wasn’t for you, she might have kept fooling us forever... Oh, by the way, Host Jennings, can I send you the consultation fee directly via private message?"
Renee shook her head, a gentle smile in her voice. "There’s no fee. It was fate that we met, and I’m happy I could help you. Lucky is a wonderful dog. I hope you’ll always take good care of him."
"I will, I promise." Windswept Whimsy’s expression turned serious. "Lucky was my dad’s favorite dog. I’ll love him for my dad. As far as I’m concerned, Lucky is already part of the family."
Renee heard Lucky barking, and her smile widened. "Lucky loves you all, too."
The video call ended.
As someone with a clueless younger brother herself, Michelle Fuller couldn’t help but worry. "Is Hank going to end up with a horrible girlfriend like Maeve Sloan someday?"
Renee pressed her lips together. Recalling Sean Fuller’s several disastrous attempts at dating, she didn’t quite know how to reassure her.
Michelle turned to look at her. "Renee, why are you so quiet?"
Renee answered honestly, "Because I think it’s entirely possible."
Michelle instantly looked like she was about to cry. "Then what am I supposed to do?"
Renee thought for a few seconds, then shook her head. "There doesn’t seem to be a good solution."
This time, Michelle was truly panicked and worried.
She wracked her brain for a moment, then slapped her thigh. "I’ve got it! What if I get Mom and Dad to kick him out and disown him ahead of time?"
Renee: "..."
’What kind of solution is that?’
Seeing her silence, Michelle pouted. "Is that not a good idea?"
Renee nodded. "I think your earlier idea of setting him up with a girlfriend is a little more reliable."
"That makes sense." Michelle nodded, then suddenly grabbed Renee’s arm. "Renee, did you ever ask Sawyer for me like I asked you to last time?"
Renee replied, "I did. She’s not interested in dating right now."
Michelle sighed at the news. "Well, that’s a real shame!"
"What about you?" Renee tilted her head, a hint of curiosity in her eyes. "Are you interested in dating?"
"Me?" Michelle’s eyes widened slightly as she pointed to herself, then shook her head. "What’s so great about dating? I’m not interested. Only a big dope like Sean Fuller dreams about being in a relationship."
Renee didn’t press the matter further.
’Looks like Zachary Conway has a long road ahead of him.’
**
「The next day.」
Renee and her group had breakfast at the hotel. After checking out, they headed to Little Critters Zoo.
She didn’t plan on contacting Director Gomez today; she just wanted to briefly check on Hope.
No matter the time of day, the Panda Pavilion was always packed with people.
Renee could hear the excited chatter of visitors before she even got close.
"Whoa, Hope looks so energetic today! This is great!"
"What was the name of that expert they brought in yesterday? She’s amazing, I’m going to follow her right now!"
"Quick, look! Hope is on a kiddy ride! How adorable~"
"Hahaha, that’s just too adorable!"
Renee looked over from a distance and saw Hope sitting on the kiddy ride like a curious toddler, its paws patting this and that.
The breeder on duty today was Fletcher. He’d already heard from his senior colleagues the real reason Hope had been so down lately, refusing to eat or drink. ’To think it was all because of a single, offhand comment I’d made!’
He apologized to Hope as soon as he started his shift and made a silent vow never to speak so carelessly around the animals again.
While Hope was on the kiddy ride, he stood nearby to operate it for the cub.
Breeder Fletcher pointed to the small screen on the ride, which was playing cartoons. "Look, Hope, there are lots of different cartoons on here. Which one do you want to watch?"
"This is Peppa Pig and her little brother George."
"’Not pretty!’" Hope grunted, swatting the screen with its paw.
"’You don’t like this one, huh? Okay, I’ll put on something else.’ Although Breeder Fletcher couldn’t understand the words, he had spent enough time with the pandas to interpret their intentions from their actions."
"This is PAW Patrol. They’re a team of very heroic pups."
Hope swatted the screen again. "No watch! No watch!"
"’Another one it is.’ Breeder Fletcher pressed the red button again. ’How about we watch the cat and mouse cartoon?’"
This time, Hope didn’t swat the screen. Instead, it copied Fletcher’s earlier motion and pressed the red button itself.
"Hope, you’re so smart! You learned how to change the cartoon all by yourself!" Breeder Fletcher marveled.
Hope shot him a sidelong glance and huffed. "Hmph! Me am smart!"
This time, the screen played *Frozen*. Princess Elsa was singing.
"’Wow!’ Hope’s furry head immediately leaned in close, its eyes lighting up. It baaed happily. ’Pretty lady! Singing sounds sooooo good!’"
Seeing the cub staring transfixed at Princess Elsa, Breeder Fletcher found it amusing. "Hope, that’s Princess Elsa. So you like princesses, huh?"
"’Princess lady, so pretty! I love it!’ Hope declared, then turned its full attention to watching Princess Elsa sing."
Felicity and Joy, who had been practicing their somersaults, were drawn by the music and toddled over to watch Princess Elsa sing.
After a moment, Joy decided that Hope looked like it was having too much fun on the kiddy ride and tried to shove the cub away. "Hey, get down! My turn to play!"
"’No!’ Hope huffed. ’This is my kiddy ride! The nice lady gave it to me!’"
Felicity was also curious about the ride. Being older than her two little brothers, she simply climbed up and tried to shove Hope aside with her big bottom.
Hope got angry and swatted at Felicity with its paw.
"Hahahaha, they’re fighting!"
"Panda cubs are just like human kids. They have this inexplicable love for kiddy rides."
"This is just too adorable!"
"They need to get these kids two more rides! One isn’t enough to go around!"
Seeing Hope fight back, Breeder Fletcher was so moved that his eyes welled up with tears.
Just a short while ago, whenever Hope was bullied by its older siblings, it would just lie there motionlessly, with a listless ’go on, do whatever you want, I don’t care if I die’ kind of attitude.