Chapter 1637 The First Round

Chapter 1637 The First Round

The next day, at the cemetery.

The weather was particularly fitting. It was a chilly spring morning.

It was gloomy and drizzling, the stone steps were washed clean by the

rainwater. Along the path, the bamboo was shrouded in the misty rain,

appearing hazy green, the edges indistinct.

Joyce, Luther and Anderson arrived at the cemetery by car.

She wore a black blouse, a black skirt, and a black hat, with black veil

hanging from the brim.

Luther also wore a black suit and tie, looking solemn and respectful.

Cecelia and Ralph were already there.

Anderson also wore a little black suit, his small body holding a big

bouquet of lilies.

Dewey stood to the side, offering a funeral wreath.

Cecelia's confidante Frank held umbrellas for them.

The gravestone was washed clean by the rainwater, the names Xia

Zhenhai and Mia stood out clearly.

Anderson walked up and placed the lilies in front of the gravestone.

Then he returned to Joyce's side.

Joyce put her arm around Anderson's small shoulders, her expression

grave.

Cecelia gazed at the gravestone. "Dad, I finally have the face to see

you. Look, these are the descendants of our Heath family, they are all

outstanding. I finally found my own daughter back. Back then you

discovered the truth but unfortunately lost your life. You must have left

this world with regrets. Now you can finally rest in peace.”

She looked at Mia's gravestone as well.

It had only recently been moved here from the Cole family's private

cemetery. Mia passed away early, and the Cole family thought Xia

Zhenhai would remarry, so they insisted on burying Mia in their family

cemetery. Later when the two families became estranged and ceased

contact, there wasn't even a photo on Mia's gravestone.

After finding out the truth, Cecelia discussed with Leng Qiong to move

Mia's grave from the Cole family cemetery here, to be buried together

with Xia Zhenhai, and they added a photo of Mia from when she was

young to the gravestone. It was one of the few treasured photos found

in the old Cole family manor.

"Mom and dad, you are finally buried together. Your wishes have been

fulfilled.” Cecelia also walked up and placed a bouquet. “May you be

together for eternity, never to part again.”

Ralph looked at the photo on the gravestone, then glanced at Joyce.

He sighed, "Mother, we were able to find my sister back thanks to you.

Joyce looks almost exactly like you when you were young."

Luther said coldly, "Charlotte tried everything, destroyed all evidence,

and even murdered Dr. Bird. She thought she could get away with it,

but in the end she was defeated by blood ties. What's real cannot be

faked, what's fake cannot be made real.”

Anderson also marveled, "Wow, mommy really does look just like

grandma.”

Joyce smiled slightly, taking a deep breath of the fresh mountain air, the

scent permeating her heart.

Cecelia gently patted Anderson on the head.

The family stood together at the cemetery, exchanging smiles.

The rain stopped and the skies gradually cleared. It was all in the past

now.

In the Capital, at Peninsula Bank.

A man came to the counter to access his private safe deposit box.

"Hello, I've come to retrieve some items from my private safe deposit

box."

His voice was magnetic and low, very pleasant to listen to.

The bank clerk looked up, stunned by his looks. What a handsome

man. His features weren't very defined, yet his face had a sculpted

look. His eyes weren't big yet were very expressive. He wore gold

rimmed glasses, looking scholarly. The only odd thing was his long hair,

simply tied in a ponytail, contrasting sharply with his scholarly aura.

"Alright, do you have an appointment?”

The bank clerk was captivated, her voice trembling slightly.

Cloud smiled faintly, his eyes glinting seductively, "Can I make an

appointment now? Box number 0578."

"O-okay..." The bank clerk was disarmed, quickly lowering her gaze.

After Cloud received the access tag to the private vault, his eyes turned

cold as he got up to leave.

Ever since the last time, when Joyce shot down the Blackhawk

helicopter, he escaped by diving into the sea with Athena. After getting

rescued, Athena had been running a high fever due to her gunshot

wound. He settled Athena down and took care of her for a while, and

once she stabilized he came to the Capital in Pascaylia.

Following the security guard, he entered the private vault.

In front of safe deposit box number 0578, he inputted the password

Otis had given him. The box opened as promised.

Inside was a bottle of medicine, the blue antidote, with five pills total.

Otis had not lied, this was the real deal.

Cloud took the antidote, then briskly walked out of Peninsula Bank. He

had to get back to Rohomes as soon as possible to give Athena the

antidote he had obtained.

He was in a hurry and unexpectedly bumped into a woman just as he

pushed open the glass door of Peninsula Bank.

That afternoon, Joyce had gone to Peninsula Bank to set up associated

accounts. She needed to link the temporary account QR Technology

had opened in the Capital to the main account, to transfer funds back to

Khebury.

She was holding a latte, and talking on her bluetooth headset to Kane

to discuss work matters, so she wasn't watching where she was going.

As a result, when she opened the door she accidentally collided with

someone coming out from inside.

"Ah!" She exclaimed softly, losing her balance from the impact.

Since it was a man she had bumped into, she reflexively moved back to

avoid him. Her hand slipped and the latte went flying. Her body tilted

backwards and she was about to fall.

Acting on instinct, Cloud reached out and clasped her in his arm,

bending one knee to the ground. His left hand shot out swiftly, catching

the latte steadily just before it hit the ground.

Luckily the coffee had a lid, though some of the coffee splashed out

from the air hole as the cup wobbled.

Time seemed to freeze in that moment.

Joyce looked up at this man, her beautiful eyes wide, shocked.

What amazing reflexes and speed, to be able to firmly catch her and

the flying coffee cup within one or two seconds. He was clearly no

ordinary man.

“I'm so sorry, I wasn't looking.” Joyce murmured, still stunned.

When Cloud saw Joyce, his pupils contracted violently.

It was her?! What was she doing at Peninsula Bank? Did she find out

something? But she didn't seem to recognize him.

This was the first time Cloud had seen Joyce up close.

She was too beautiful, with an unmatched elegance. Seeing her in

person was much more impactful than in photos or from afar. He was

quite experienced with women, yet he could barely connect this

bewitching, gentle woman with the cold, valiant sniper he had glimpsed

days ago. He was so mesmerized that he forgot to breathe for a

moment.

It wasn't until Joyce lightly pushed against him, "Can you let me get up

now?" that Cloud snapped back to reality.

“It's fine, just be more careful next time."

He helped her to her feet and handed back her coffee.