Female Novel
Chapter 507
In the bar, Chandler and Patrick were talking about Mark's accidental death. They all understood that
Chandler was suffering huge pressure. They knocked one drink after another.
At this moment, in the Stephenson family, Crystal was tossing and turning in bed. Then she suddenly
received a call from a stranger.
Crystal nervously looked at the ringing phone on the table and didn't know what to do.
The screen clearly showed unknown numbers.
Crystal had a good memory. She remembered that this number belonged to Erica.
Erica suddenly called her, but she was afraid to answer.
The woman on the other end of the phone was very bigoted. It was ringing over and over again as if
she had to keep it until Crystal answered the phone.
"Hello?"
Crystal kept her voice was as calm as possible lest it revealed any nervousness.
"Are you afraid to answer my calls?"
Erica's clear voice straightforwardly came to her guilt.
"No."
Crystal retorted too fast, making her even more diffident.
But she didn't want to show Erica that she had no confidence, even she had to pretend.
Erica went straight to the point, "Do you have time? Come out for a moment. I want to make some
things clear to you in person."
"It's late now. I don't want to..."
Erica interrupted in a forceful tone, "It's only 9: 30 pm. Crystal, don't be so timid. I really hate your
cowardice. I ask you out is not for eating you. Don't worry!" Her arrogant voice was full of disdain and
ridicule.
Crystal felt as if she had been stabbed in the heart. She was indeed timid and cowardly. Even she
despised herself.
"There is a Starbucks on the third lane behind the Stephenson family, don't keep me waiting too long."
Erica was used to the control the situation and quickly said a location.
Before Crystal could agree, Erica hung up the phone.
Crystal was holding her phone. She hadn't been sleeping well recently. So she was mentally weak, and
even her face looked pale. Erica's words echoed in her mind, which was like a frozen computer and it
took her a long time to react.
Her first thought was to call Chandler, but she remembered that Chandler had said that he had to work
tonight, so she didn't want to disturb him.
She should ignore his ex-wife's sudden visit, but she couldn't.
Crystal grew up in an environment where she was used to being scolded. Living in other's family, she
was seen as a maid by her stepfather and stepbrother, while her mother ignored all of this. She knew
life was not easy from a very young age and learned to be obedient and compliant.
Because being obedient meant to be less pained.
Crystal stroked her baby bump. For the sake of the child, she didn't want to be an coward anymore.
Starbucks was very close to the Stephenson family, just 800 meters in walking distance.
"What would you like to drink, Miss?"
The waiter couldn't help but ask Crystal when he saw that she hadn't ordered for a long time.
"The white coffee here is delicious. Do you want to try it?" The waiter warmly recommended her with anovelbin
smile.
Crystal looked around and found that Erica hadn't arrived yet.
She heaved a sigh of relief in her heart, looked up at the waiter, and shook her head, "Sorry, I can't
have coffee now. May I have a cup of hot milk?"
Crystal always remembered that she was pregnant. She would subconsciously be vigilant about food
that she couldn't eat during pregnancy. It seemed to be her nature.
A clear voice sounded behind her. "Irish coffee, tea latte, and a blueberry cheesecake, please."
Crystal stood nervously. The waiter glanced at Erica, who was so bright and dazzling, he immediately
smiled and nodded, "Okay, please wait a moment."
"When I was pregnant, I ate everything, even drank and smoked..."
Erica glanced at Crystal's abdomen, but there was not much emotion in her eyes. She said calmly, "At
that time, the Stephenson family were extremely nervous. Chandler was so angry that he quarreled
with me every day. Of course, he apologized to me in the end."
Erica's tone sounded like she was talking about the past, not provocation. But when Crystal heard it,
she was filled with sadness and bitterness.
Her pale face looked weak and sickly under the fluorescent light.
Erica looked at her and immediately said, "Take a seat over there, don't stand here dumbly. Crystal, I'm
not as bad as you think."
Crystal could not answer such direct words. She looked at Erica, who was so neat as if everything she
had done was aboveboard. However, she was so coy and made people annoying.
The waiter served them hot milk, coffee, and cake.
Erica didn't follow those socialites' routines to be elegant and calm. She picked up the coffee and took
a big gulp. Then she put a big piece of cake in her mouth. Crystal looked at her warily, not even daring
to drink the hot milk at her hand.
"I heard that after Chandler knew you were pregnant, you ran away from home after arguing with him.
Then Christina made a scene in the Stephenson family..."
Erica said as if no one else was around, "Your friend is really bossy. She slapped Chandler in public."
Hearing this, Crystal's mood was fluctuating, and her expression was a little uneasy.
She immediately retorted, "Christina was just impulsive. She didn't mean to be like that..."
"Don't be so nervous. I didn't say anything about her. How dare I do anything to the granddaughter-in-
law of the Hopkins family?"
Erica picked up a napkin and wiped the cream off the corner of her mouth. She looked up at Crystal
and said, "It's also your fortune to have Christina back your up."
"I've been married to Chandl for five or six years. I know the Stephenson family and Chandler better
than you. Crystal, let me be honest with you. I don't see you as a potential enemy."
Erica said in an imperturbable tone, not as combative as Crystal had imagined.
It made Crystal even less confident. She didn't know how to deal with it.
"I'm Chandler's wife now."
Crystal whispered as if it was a showdown.
Erica didn't seem to care at all, "So what? You can get divorced even if you get married, just like what I
used to do with him."
Crystal clenched her fists under the table, trying to say something to correct her. She was Mrs.
Stephenson now, but not Erica, who was an ex-wife.
"Crystal, I still want to emphasize that you don't have to be so jittery as you are now. I find it a little
funny when I look at you."
It was impossible for Erica to take a rival like Crystal to heart.
"I asked you out today is for talking about your pregnancy."
"When I divorced Chandler, he personally promised me..."
Erica looked at her sharply, enunciating each word clearly, "Chandler promised that he would not have
children with other women in the future. Geoffrey is the only child, the only inheritor to the Stephenson
family."
Crystal's body was trembling, and her face froze.
"I know, as a woman, you'd be worried about losing him," Erica sympathized with Crystal, who was just
a plain woman.
"We all know that Chandler is under a lot of pressure. I've been with him for too long. He was tired of
the marriage and wanted to live a comfortable life when he met you, but his heart always belongs to
me."
Erica's words were full of confidence.
"You did your best to take care of the Stephenson family. In fact, I am also grateful to you. These days,
I have also reflected on myself. I quit smoking and drinking, and I am trying to learn how to cook and
take care of the family. My relationship with the Stephenson family has eased a lot. Maybe I used to act
too extreme, but now they accept me..."
Crystal's face turned pale. She didn't want to hear more. "Erica, what are you trying to say?" She
hurriedly broke Erica's illusions.
Erica raised her chin and slowed down, "Then I'll tell you directly."
"Everyone knows that your marriage with Chandler will not last long. You married into the Stephenson
family and tried to play a good role of daughter-in-law, trying to please the elder and Geoffrey, but it's
useless for you to do this."
Erica looked at her with a look of contempt, "Even if you try every means to get yourself pregnant by
accident now, Chandler won't let you give birth to the child. Geoffrey is the only son of the Stephenson
family, and he will be the inheritor in the future. Don't think about giving birth to a child to contend with
Geoffrey..."
Crystal stood up excitedly, "I never thought of fighting you for anything!"
Because of her sudden shout, everyone around her turned to look at them and whispered.
Erica felt embarrassed and waved her hand, "Crystal, I didn't ask you out to quarrel with you. Please
don't be so emotional, okay? Even if your family has never taught you dining etiquette, you'd better be
polite. No wonder Chandler didn't take you out."
Erica was not like those scheming women, but her frank words were always like a blunt knife stabbing
into the heart.
Crystal's heart was full of scars, and her expression was confused. She could not say a word.
She stumbled out of the coffee shop with shaky steps.
Erica frowned and shouted at her angrily, "Crystal!"
"Did you hear what I said just now... I've been entangled with Chandler for so many years, and a plain
woman like you can never interfere with our relationship at all. You'd better figure it out earlier. Don't
think that pregnancy can change anything..."
Erica's angry voice came from behind her. She dumbly walked out of the coffee shop, the door closed
automatically, which held those harsh words inside the shop.
They thought that being pregnant was her conspiracy.
They thought that she wanted to fight for the identity of the Stephenson family's daughter-in-law in the
way of being pregnant.
They thought that she gave birth to a child was for competing with Geoffrey for the favor.
The night was dim. These back alleys were deserted. The disrepair street lights were flashing, which
made the environment even more desolate.
The cold night wind was blowing her face. Tears slowly slid down uncontrollably. She lowered her head
and did not reach out to wipe her tears. She trudged step by step in dazed, staying unfocused.
"Why did I marry into the Stephenson family?"
"Why did I humiliate myself to be a stepmother?"
"Why did I get involved in their relationship? Why am I so stupid..."
She sobbed to herself. She suddenly realized how ignorant and stupid she was.