It was precisely because of this that, after Charles Bennett ran to the back garden, he immediately began frantically searching for Grace in the garden, especially focusing on places that were relatively ‘dangerous’ like the pond and the bushes. In the end, he had searched almost the entire garden before finally finding her on the swing behind several rock formations. At this moment, however, Grace was lying on the swing, quietly sobbing, completely unaware of Charles Bennett’s arrival.

Seeing his sister, who was both familiar and yet somehow unfamiliar, Charles Bennett, panting heavily, felt a deep ache in his heart. The previous Charles Bennett had been a bookworm; in his mind, nothing was worth his attention except studying, so he naturally didn’t care much about his two younger sisters, which made the sibling relationship rather distant.

However, when Charles Bennett first woke up from his coma, the first thing he saw was Grace’s tear-streaked face. In fact, when Charles Bennett realized he had transmigrated, he even thought for a while that Grace was his maid or child bride, only to later discover it was all wishful thinking.

In his previous life, Charles Bennett’s parents had died early, and there were no other relatives at home, which made him especially yearn for familial affection. Therefore, after transmigrating, Charles Bennett cherished these family members around him all the more, especially his two adorable sisters, to the point of doting on them. Although this drastic change in Charles Bennett puzzled the people of the Zhou household, at least in Grace’s eyes, her current brother was much better than the cold and distant one from before. So, in just a few days, Charles Bennett had reestablished his place as an elder brother in Grace’s heart, and the bond between the siblings naturally became much closer.

Charles Bennett finally managed to calm his heavy breathing, then walked over gently and deliberately used a joking tone: “Oh~ Why is our Miss Zhou crying again? Last time when I was sick, who was it that promised me she would never cry again?”

Although the relationship between Charles Bennett and Grace had been distant before, they were still deeply bonded as siblings. When Charles Bennett was gravely ill and unconscious, Grace would burst into tears every time she saw him. Later, after Charles Bennett regained consciousness, the distance between them lessened considerably, and Charles Bennett even made a bet with Grace: as long as she didn’t cry anymore, his illness would get better. At first, Grace didn’t believe it, but to make her brother happy, she agreed. The next time she saw him, she forced herself not to cry, and unexpectedly, Charles Bennett’s health really did improve. This both surprised and delighted Grace, and she swore never to cry again.

But clearly, Grace’s vow didn’t last. Not long after Charles Bennett’s recovery, first their father Zhou Hai met with misfortune, and now there was the matter of the Song family breaking off the engagement. How could Grace not be heartbroken and in tears?

Hearing Charles Bennett’s voice while she was crying, Grace not only didn’t stop, but cried even harder. This puzzled Charles Bennett, so he stepped forward to support Grace’s shoulders, but to his surprise, Grace shook him off in a fit of pique.

Now Charles Bennett was truly confused, because from her actions, he could sense that Grace’s anger seemed to be directed at him. Unable to figure it out, he could only ask again, “What’s wrong? Did your big brother offend our Grace somehow? How about I apologize to you, would that be okay?”

At these words, Grace, who had been lying on the swing, finally reacted. She lifted her tear-stained little face and glared at Charles Bennett, then wiped her tears with her fair little hand and, full of grievance, said, “How could my brother be at fault? As the saying goes, the eldest brother is like a father. Ever since father passed away, you’ve been the head of our Zhou family. Even if you sold Grace for two hundred taels of silver, I wouldn’t complain, let alone over just a marriage?”

Hearing Grace’s words of complaint, Charles Bennett finally realized what was going on. He thought to himself that men and women really do think differently—Grace was actually angry at him because of this. But putting himself in her shoes, Charles Bennett could understand how Grace felt.

Thinking this, Charles Bennett squatted down so he was eye-level with Grace on the swing, then spoke seriously: “Grace, your big brother apologizes to you for this! But you’ve seen for yourself what kind of people the Song father and son are. Our family just ran into a bit of trouble, and they immediately turned their backs on us. How could such petty people be worthy of our Grace? So even if they hadn’t broken off the engagement today, your big brother would have done it for you another day. But I promise you here and now, after our three years of mourning are over, I will restore the Zhou family’s prestige. By then, the line of outstanding young men wanting to marry our Grace will probably stretch from Songjiang all the way to Jinling!”

Grace was mature for her age and quite sensible. She actually knew that Charles Bennett was breaking off the engagement for her own good; she just couldn’t get over the fact that he had used her marriage contract to pay off a two hundred tael debt.

But now, hearing Charles Bennett apologize in person and knowing he did it for her sake, most of Grace’s resentment faded. Then, hearing her brother’s ambition to restore the Zhou family’s honor, Grace couldn’t help but feel happy. But when she heard Charles Bennett say that the suitors would line up all the way to Nanjing’s Jinling, she felt both shy and annoyed, couldn’t help but spit at Charles Bennett, turned her blushing face away, but the corners of her mouth revealed a bashful smile.