Return of the Crowned Heiress

Chapter 155

Shawn immediately stuck around like an insistent piece of gum, utterly shameless. "What kind of fortune did our village strike? Is there a demolition? A payout? Why wasn't I notified?"

Charles was furious, almost toppling over as he snapped back, "There were no renovations or payouts! The people in our village work hard and earn their living honestly, unlike your family, who just got lucky and picked up a stray daughter. You contributed nothing yet still managed to extort a huge sum!"

He was referring to how the family had picked up Felicia.

The villagers only learned about Felicia's background after she returned to her biological family. Before that, they had already discussed how she must have been adopted, given the treatment she received.

As a result, their feelings towards Shawn's family were hardly positive. They openly scolded them for their ingratitude.

Shawn scoffed, "We only received 50 million dollars. It's nothing close to a huge sum. That's not even enough to spend."

His implication was clear-he would extort even more if given the chance.

Charles didn't quite hear what he said. "What did you say?"

"N-Nothing."

Shawn wasn't foolish enough to reveal his plans. After all, he had already made a deal with Kayla. Once he got rid of Felicia, the wealth of the Fuller family would naturally fall to her. Being her brother meant he'd have access to all of it.

He chuckled to himself, envisioning a time when these villagers who looked down on him would beg for his favor.

Shawn was smug and pleased with himself. Meanwhile, the others in the village were unwilling to deal with such a scoundrel. They quickly left the scene.

As Charles headed home, he cast one last wary glance at Shawn. Feeling uneasy, he immediately called for his grandson and instructed, "Lucas, go find Felicia. Tell her Shawn is back in the village and making a scene. She should be careful. That brat probably has something up his sleeve!"

"Got it!"

Lucas West, a little boy, quickly abandoned his toy car and sprinted toward Macey's house.

The Fuller family had an old, dilapidated house in Alverton that had long been abandoned. Since Felicia had cut ties with them due to her traumatic childhood memories,

she had been living with Macey.

When Lucas arrived, Felicia had just pulled a few sweet potatoes from the still-warm hearth. These were left over from breakfast, and Macey had tossed them in, knowing Felicia loved them.

The surface of the sweet potatoes was darkened from the heat, but once peeled, they released steam and smelled wonderfully sweet. "Felicia!" Lucas blinked, drooling.

Though he often got to eat sweet potatoes, he still felt hungry when he saw them in the hands of someone else.

Felicia couldn't help but laugh as she handed one to him. "Here, this is for you. Be careful, it's hot. I'll peel another one." "Thank you, Felicia!"

Lucas joyfully accepted it, blowing on it to cool it down. After taking a few bites, he remembered his grandfather's instructions and reported, "Felicia, my grandpa sent me to tell you that Shawn is back and making a fuss. He said to be careful!"

"What else did your grandpa say?"

Lucas nodded, his cheeks full, "Grandpa also said that brat hasn't figured out what to do!"

Felicia couldn't help but chuckle.

But thinking it through, he was being chased for debts and had already lost a couple of fingers. He was likely desperate, clinging to Kayla and trying everything to extort her.

She started to wonder why Shawn would return now.

Chapter 154

Fifteen minutes later, the road leading to Alverton echoed with the loud roar of a sports car. At first, the villagers were puzzled, thinking another outsider had arrived. However, when the car door swung open and a flamboyant figure stepped out, the onlookers exchanged glances and promptly turned to leave as if trying to avoid something filthy. The figure was Shawn.

When the Fuller family still lived in Alverton, Shawn had a notorious reputation for petty theft and mischief. He was caught harassing young ladies and married women by the river multiple times, often leading to confrontations. Yet Howell and Tabitha, his parents, were utterly shameless. They not only failed to get any justice but were also experts at turning the tables and blaming others.

Over time, his name became synonymous with disgrace. Naturally, the villagers preferred to keep their distance whenever he appeared.

Seeing him now, they were quick to steer clear.

Shawn returned to the village in a high-profile manner, flaunting a rented sports car to show off his former wealth. He believed that his status had risen above that of the villagers, whom he looked down upon as mere ants. But the villagers didn't buy his act. They turned and walked away, leaving him with no one to impress.

Fuming, Shawn grabbed the nearest villager, ready to boast. But before he could say a word, the villager scoffed. "Make sure to take good care of that rented car. Otherwise, you might not get your deposit back!" Laughter erupted around him.

Shawn's face flushed with rage.

Yes, the car was indeed rented.

After receiving the huge sum of 50 million dollars from the Fuller family, he bought a sports car, but Lance seized it to cover his debts. So, he was left with no choice but to rent this car.

en

Shawn would never admit to his disgrace. Instead, he sneered, "You group of frogs in a well, you dare to look down on me? Do you even know what my status is now?"

The villager he had grabbed, who was actually Cody, shot him a cold glance and retorted, "What status? What's the status of a debtor with missing fingers? That sounds rather pathetic."

The villagers observed with keen interest as Shawn's hand was wrapped in thick bandages. Two of his fingers were missing.

Infuriated by this remark, Shawn's face twisted with rage. "Did Felicia tell you about it?"

No one responded to him.

But in Shawn's mind, that was the only possibility. His expression darkened further as he spat out, "That little brat thinks she's untouchable, but I'll deal with her sooner or later!"

Cody, who was standing closest to him, overheard that. Though he was typically kind-hearted, he wasted no time before slapping Shawn across the face. "You bastard! Just start behaving like a decent person already, would you?"

Shawn staggered from the slap, his eyes glinting with malice. Just as he was about to retaliate, other villagers rushed in to pull him away.

Even Charles West, the village chief, looked furious. His expression was a mix of anger and disappointment. "Get lost! You're not welcome here!"

Shawn was ready to explode, but he

I.ne

suddenly noticed how much had changed in the village. Behind the village lay fields abundant with. crops and further ahead were fows of vegetable greenhouses that stretched out of sight.

The villagers' spirits seemed to have lifted, and every household had repaired their homes. There were even numerous construction projects underway, depicting a scene of vibrant prosperity. Shawn stood there, dumbfounded. Was this still the impoverished village he remembered?

Chapter 153

Kayla's eyes turned red, and she dug her nails deep into her palms as she suppressed the almost frenzied and twisted emotions threatening to erupt. She managed to hold back her anger, though just barely. "Arnie, my foot hurts. Can you carry me over there?" she asked, her voice laced with vulnerability.

The car had broken down, and the driver needed to stay behind to arrange repairs. Moreover, Kayla had traveled such a long way to get here; it was impossible for her to be sent away now. For this reason, Kayla would have to stay in Alverton by Arnold's side for a while.

Arnold felt a sense of helplessness but ultimately did not refuse. He examined her foot and found nothing wrong with it, yet Kayla insisted that she had injured it in the accident and couldn't walk. "Arnie, I really can't walk anymore..." she whined.

Having already cried once and after being terrified all night, her face was pale and pitiful. It made it hard for Arnold to turn her down.

He bent down, offering, "Get on my back. I'll carry you."

"You're the best, Arnie!" Kayla beamed, her joy evident as she jumped onto his back. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck.

Amidst numerous gazes, Arnold carried Kayla back to Alverton.

deal for the villagers since they didn't know them, but the students participating in the training program couldn't help but make

head find another family for Kayla to stay with. However, with all the other families' houses already full and Kayla stubbornly refusing to be separated from him, he had no choice but to take her back to

only one empty room

Arnold said after the college doctor checked Kayla's foot and confirmed it wasn't serious. Feeling relieved, he placed her on the

en

his arm, "Arnie, where are you going? Are you really going to leave me here alone? I'm not familiar with this place, and I'm scared..." Arnold had been planning to find a separate place to stay. After all, it would be scandalous for them to share

presenting a pitiful facade as her shoulders trembled

some rest. I'll be in the living room.

to a burgeoning anger that threatened to explode! "Felicia!" she hissed through gritted teeth, her

the thorn in her side,

haven't you arrived yet?

end as if he were driving. "It's all set! I'll be at Alverton in

Kayla felt a sense

the money she had invested was considerable. As

Chapter 152

an end, and Felicia didn't bother to find out who would tow the Fuller family's car away after

night before. Clinging tightly to Arnold's waist, she looked up at him with teary eyes and said, "Arnie,

say, "This slope isn't high; it's not as dangerous as you think." However, the words were caught in his throat, and he ultimately swallowed them.

scared Kayla terribly-just like when he first arrived at the scene panic-stricken. It was only after Felicia scolded him that he realized his concern was causing him to lose focus. The terrain looked frightening, but

too late to

Arnold, fearing that if she let go, he would disappear. Her pitiful appearance made it difficult for

of students who had heard about the incident rushed over to see the commotion and caught sight of Arnold and Kayla in

she? She must have rushed over

She had only gotten wind of the situation because her good friend, Olivia, had informed her to come quickly to assert her claim and

Although she felt some resentment toward Kayla after yesterday's events,

could make Felicia's life miserable was

forward without hesitation and said, "Kayla, what terrible duck you had, getting into

He

began to pick up

over the past few days. Otherwise, he wouldn't

gaze and was taken aback to find that he

me these past few days. You even hung up on me yesterday. Do

Arnold seemed to tune her out

"Arnie, who are you thinking about? Is

denied it, his voice filled with resistance as he replied, "Don't talk nonsense.

initially wanted to laugh, the smile slowly faded from her

woman, even if he verbally claimed not to like her,

Chapter 151

asked, "Ruben, what caused the

Fuller family's dedicated drivers. He was always on standby and had years of driving experience, so it was unusual

Alverton. I wasn't familiar with the road and mistakenly followed the wrong route according

been upset, but she had also taken out her frustration on him by kicking

all day, he lost focus for just a moment, causing the car to veer off the road and get stuck on the edge of the slope. From their perspective inside the vehicle, it felt like they were hanging over a precipice, so they didn't dare to move. Even when their phone fell at their feet, they hesitated to pick it up, fearing that bending down would make the car sway dangerously. It wasn't until

became. If it hadn't been for Kayla distracting him, the accident wouldn't

many hurtful things. She declared that he wasn't fit to be a driver for the Fuller

his reason, he would have wanted

this, he tightened his grip on the memory

Kayla pushed him too far,

Felicia didn't pry further.

Kayla saved, the villagers felt

tried to leave but was stopped by Felicia. "Mr. Gibbs, wait

She walked

to Arnold and saw

up to

he was tightly embracing

crying. He comforted

they had just endured

separation. Unable to hold back, she

released Kayla and turned his attention to

tone was cold as she stated,

bit awkward and gently tugged at Felicia's sleeve.

she

Felicia stood her ground.

a daughter around Felicia's age who was studying in another city. Any daughter would be upset if she found out her father had been treated this

just an apology; it wasn't like she was asking for a piece of Arnold's flesh. An apology was absolutely

regained his composure. Regardless of the

sorry, Mr. Gibbs. I was out of line earlier." Cody flashed

Felicia turned

onto the little truck as it started moving toward

Chapter 150

familiar license plate of the black luxury car that was

trapped inside was none

that thought crossed her mind, she heard Kayla's terrified voice

in a

news that Kayla had come to Alverton, and he felt an overwhelming sense

increasingly frustrated with Kayla's nearly suffocating presence. She

shown a hint of indifference and impatience during their phone call. Kayla, emotional as

irritated by her cries, Arnold ended the call

hadn't received any updates from Kayla, he asked around, but no one

shocked by the news that she had been

rescue team and urged them to come as

yet effective solution. First, they'd move

instinctively felt this approach wouldn't work and furrowed his brows in concern. He feared that the villagers' methods, while well-meaning, could be foolish and might endanger Kayla's life

plan, saying, "Can you guarantee the safety of the people in the car? Can you assure me that this method has no risks? If not, we should wait for the rescue

an older

and willingness to help others, felt embarrassed and flustered under Arnold's harsh words. His face reddened

forward with a cold laugh. "Arnold, where did

glance. He usually softened his tone in the face of her provocation, but

Todd, grab a couple of small rocks and brace them under the front of

Romeo immediately complied.

furious and nearly exploded, angrily accusing Felicia, "Kayla is a member of the Fuller

inside the car, "Don't come over! Don't move! You all,

a little but quickly steadied again

of disbelief and annoyance. She tilted her head and sarcastically said, "Do you see that,

the dense trees below would act as a buffer even if the

fact, it wasn't a cliff at all-just a gentle slope common in

car door and yanked

was

her, gently patting her back to

Kayla was

driver, emerged

filled with a mix of emotions that included

Chapter 149

"Yes, Mr. Russell."