A Warm Marriage After Rebirth

Zoe Jennings’s expression remained unchanged. "Whatever. I know for a fact that Seraphina Sterling is the reason my mom lost the vice-principal position. She refused to listen to my mom’s opinion because she was worried my mom would hold a grudge over it. But she didn’t even stop to think—my mom’s an educator. She’s far too broad-minded. Would she really stoop to that level?"

The living room immediately fell silent, and the atmosphere grew strange.

They say you shouldn’t air your dirty laundry in public, but Zoe Jennings paid that no mind. It was as if she wanted Elias Jennings and his family to know every single thing Seraphina Sterling had done, like she was pouring out her grievances to him, seeking his support and validation.

Kimberly Jennings was seething. "Zoe Jennings, it doesn’t matter if your grades are poor, and it doesn’t matter if you’re not brilliant. But you must be honest! How have you become such a compulsive liar? Why do you love sowing discord so much? In this world, good grades aren’t the only path forward! More often than not, it’s your character and integrity that count! With an attitude like yours, if you don’t change, you’ll never amount to much in this world, even if you do get into a top university!"

The expressions on Zoe Jennings’s and Ivy Cheney’s faces turned sour. Every single word from Kimberly Jennings was like the harshest punishment for Zoe.

Ivy Cheney couldn’t let this stand. She had been hoping Zoe could leverage her good grades to get closer to Elias and Leo Jennings. That way, if they ever needed anything, they could pull some strings or at least benefit from the connection. It would be a useful contact to have. But after what Kimberly Jennings said, what would Elias think of Zoe now? ’She can’t let them get the impression that Zoe is dishonest!’

"What do you mean her grades are poor? What do you mean she’s not a good student? My Zoe places first in her grade every single time! If that’s not considered good enough, then what on earth do you consider good grades?"

"You’re right, Zoe does always place first in her grade. But that’s only with Seraphina out of the picture! Senior year is about to start, and once Seraphina is a senior too, I’m afraid Zoe’s so-called ’first place every time’ won’t be so secure! In my book, good grades mean getting a perfect score on every exam—just like Seraphina!"

Kimberly Jennings’s face was filled with pride. Normally, she rarely spoke of Seraphina Sterling’s academic achievements, worried it would pressure the other children in the family and negatively affect their mindset toward school. That was why every time exam results were released, she would simply acknowledge them with a nod and not offer any extra praise.

However, she had never imagined that even without her openly praising Seraphina Sterling’s achievements, Zoe Jennings would still feel so threatened and become this radical. Since the damage was already done, there was no longer any point in being discreet!

"If Zoe had just come out and said she was worried Seraphina would take her number-one spot and that’s why she didn’t want her to skip to senior year, I wouldn’t have been angry. In fact, I would have thought she was being very honest! But the way she’s acting now just shows me she’s someone who’s afraid of a challenge, afraid to face adversity! The more she twists the facts and sows discord, the more she seems like a sore loser who simply can’t handle the thought of losing to Seraphina!"

With every sentence Kimberly Jennings uttered, Zoe Jennings’s face grew a shade paler. Kimberly had seen right through her petty scheming, guessing everything without missing a single detail! Her analysis was not only logical and reasonable but also piercingly sharp, leaving Zoe with no room to rebut.

Seeing the eyes of Elias Jennings, Leo Jennings, and even Quinn Jennings all fixed on her, Zoe Jennings swallowed hard. She did her best to act nonchalant, desperately trying to ignore their probing stares as she struggled to maintain her composure.