The Night I Left, He Turned Grey

Sarah enjoyed the food, praising it between bites. "Leila, this is amazing. No wonder Sean always speaks so highly of your cooking. It’s every bit as good as what you’d get at a five-star restaurant. It actually puts my mind at ease knowing you’re taking care of Sean. Cheers to you."

She lifted her glass of juice, her eyes bright with genuine satisfaction. "Thank you for looking after Sean all these years. I knew about his stomach issues, but I was abroad—well, let’s not dwell on that. In short, thank you."

With that, she drank it all down.

Leila looked at her and asked, "So that’s it? Just a toast?"

Sarah’s expression flickered for a brief moment before she recovered with a smile. "Then what are you suggesting? How exactly should I thank you?"

Sean frowned, his smile fading. "Leila, what do you mean by that? We’re husband and wife. Isn’t it natural for a wife to take care of her husband? Sarah, don’t take her nonsense to heart. She doesn’t know any better."

Then he also raised his glass and lightly clinked it against Sarah’s.

Seeing Leila’s expression darken, Sarah offered a gentle smile. "It’s fine. I just didn’t expect a husband and wife to keep score like this." Her words made Sean’s expression sink again.

He shot Leila a sidelong glance. "Can’t you smile for once? You’re always walking around with a long face."

"I’m not naturally a cheerful person. Are you only noticing that now?" Leila stood up. "I’m done eating."

"Leila!" Sean snapped, looking up. "What is it with that attitude?"

"Sean, stop it." Sarah gave him a look. "You shouldn’t be so harsh with a girl. I’ve told you that before."

Sean forced himself to rein in his temper. "Ever since I asked her to quit her job and stay at home, she’s been giving me this attitude at every turn. What’s so special about that job anyway? Can it really be more important than me?"

The more he spoke, the more dissatisfied he became with Leila’s unwillingness to comply. It made him feel that he should move forward with their plans to have a child. A child would tie Leila down. She was soft-hearted. She would come around.

"Of course, nothing is more important than you," Sarah said softly, placing a piece of honey-glazed pork into his plate.

Sean suddenly added, "But you insisted on going abroad back then, too."

Sarah paused mid-motion.

Sean immediately realized his slip and corrected himself. "Sarah, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it as a criticism."

Sarah smiled faintly. "It’s fine."

Sean picked up the piece of honey-glazed pork and took a few bites. Almost immediately, his brows drew together. He had always preferred a light diet—avoiding spice, not fond of sweets. Whenever Leila cooked, she carefully adjusted the seasoning to suit him: less oil, less salt, less sugar.

Sarah noticed his reaction. "What’s wrong? Not good?"

"It’s too sweet."

"It isn’t. This is the normal level of sweetness. Leila got it right."

Sean looked down at the half-eaten piece in his plate, then toward the closed door of the master bedroom. His expression turned complicated.

...

At the Cole Manor

A three-story garden villa from the early 1900s, carefully preserved and regularly restored. Though only around 3,000 square feet, it had housed generations of the Cole family.

Nathaniel Cole had just stepped out of the car when he heard his sister—who was six years younger than him—shouting from the second floor.

"Nath! Come up here! I’ve hit a snag!"

Without responding, he walked straight inside to greet his grandparents and parents first.

"Nath! Nath! Nath!" Cherry Cole came rushing down from upstairs. She grabbed his arm, trying to drag him along, but he didn’t budge.

"Nathaniel!"

"What’s with all the noise? Are you trying to lay an egg?"

"It’s serious! My son has a problem! I can’t figure it out at all. If I don’t solve it soon, I’ll have to take him apart."

Nathaniel remained expressionless.

"The issue with your bionic robot is the chip."

Cherry deflated instantly. "But this is already the best chip I could get."

"Wait," Nathaniel said.

"Wait for what? A chip?" Her eyes lit up. "Did someone at the Cole Group develop a new one?"

"No."

"Oh..." she muttered. "What a useless brother I have."

"You’re asking for a beating," Nathaniel said coolly.

Cherry yelped, ducked away, and ran to their parents, pretending to cry dramatically in their arms.

Roger Cole and Cathlene Walton could only laugh from the side. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Your brother is rarely home. Don’t bicker with him."

"I’m not bickering! He’s showing up out of nowhere like this... he must be up to something." Cherry narrowed her eyes. "Did you get into trouble? Spill it."

Nathaniel smiled slightly. "Do you still want to continue with your robot?"

"My dearest brother! You’re the best brother in the world! I knew you came home because you missed Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa!" Cherry instantly changed her tune.

Nathaniel scanned the room. "Where’s Aunt Helen?"

There were two paternal aunts and one uncle in total, and their father was the third-born. The eldest aunt had married into City B, while the second aunt, Helen, remained at the estate, spending her free time listening to audiobooks. The fourth uncle and aunt lived abroad for their child’s education.

They all seemed easygoing on the surface, but each of them had strong opinions whenever shareholder meetings rolled around.

"The tailor is with her, taking measurements for a new dress," Cherry said. "Why?"

"I need to ask her something."

As if on cue, Helen Cole appeared, already dressed neatly in a dress with her hair arranged in a traditional updo.

"Aunt Helen," Nathaniel greeted with a slight nod. "One of my employees suddenly resigned. You were the one who helped arrange her hiring, so I wanted to ask if she mentioned anything about leaving to you."

Everyone paused.

The family knew Nathaniel had been tightening control over family relationships in the company. For an employee placed through a family connection to suddenly resign was definitely going to raise questions.

Helen thought for a moment, then shook her head. "I don’t remember who you mean."

Nathaniel prompted, "Leila Jennings."

"Leila Jennings?" Helen repeated the name before saying, "Oh, that’s Rhea Warren’s student. Yes, I do remember now. It was Rhea who asked me to help find her a job. I only passed it to HR. Is she in trouble? Rhea said she just needed something simple to get by."

"Rhea Warren?" Nathaniel repeated, vaguely familiar with the name but unable to place it.

Roger explained, "Professor Warren. She retired from University A. Her husband was the late Professor Thorne."

"What?" Cherry’s eyes lit up excitedly. "The Professor Thorne who led the Self-Developed Chip project?"

Roger nodded.

Cathlene sighed. "Such a pity that he passed away, and the project was shut down. Rhea was left all alone—they never had children. Luckily, she still has that student, Leila. Why would she suddenly resign?"

Nathaniel could tell she genuinely didn’t know anything about it. Still, something didn’t add up.

"If Leila is Professor Warren’s student, she shouldn’t need a job just to get by."

"I don’t know the details. It seemed like something unfortunate had happened, which is why Rhea asked me for help. We’ve known each other for decades. It was the first time she ever asked me for anything, and I couldn’t refuse, so I arranged the job personally. Is she in trouble?"

"She’s just asking for a resignation," Nathaniel replied and decided to let it go for now.

But later that night, the more he thought about it, the more it bothered him.

Leila Jennings was strange all around—she didn’t fit any of the explanations he’d heard.

In the middle of the night, Nathaniel called his assistant and said, "Bring me information on Leila Jennings’s marriage."

"What?" Zachary was stunned. Did President Cole start picking up some hobbies like other heads of big companies?

In the meantime, Renee also received a call.

"Tell Leila Jennings to check in at my office tomorrow morning."