Chapter 403: Chapter 403: Origins
Although it has been more than twenty years, Uncle Redding still remembers that woman very clearly.
That woman, like Owen Sinclair, also studied acting.
Only, that woman was an extra, while at the time, Owen had already starred in several blockbuster dramas.
When they first got together, the Sinclair Family parents didn’t know; it was uncovered by entertainment reporters.
The Sinclair Family parents found out about their relationship through the newspaper.
Initially, the Sinclair Family parents didn’t think much of it. Even though that woman was more beautiful than the most popular actresses back then, she had no foundation, no significant acting skills, and lacked a respectable family background.
Moreover, both were still very young, and they thought the two would break up sooner or later, so even after discovering the woman’s ordinary family background, they didn’t interfere.
However, as the relationship lasted longer, and Owen brought that woman back to the Sinclair Family home, they finally sounded the alarm, realizing Owen was serious.
This was alarming; the parents used almost all the tricks from TV dramas to separate the main couple, but Owen refused to let go.
In the end, they resorted to a tactic even they found dishonorable: threatening that woman’s safety to force Owen to break up.
Owen initially disagreed, until the Sinclair Family parents arranged a small yet alarming car accident for the woman.
The car accident was not fatal, but it put the woman in the hospital for a month.
After that, Owen finally became afraid.
But he didn’t want the woman to know the truth, because since they couldn’t be together, he hoped she could forget him and find happiness elsewhere.
Therefore, he didn’t break up abruptly, but first resorted to giving her the cold shoulder, then slowly got involved in ambiguous rumors with a blind date—who would later become his ex-wife.
Ultimately, the woman became disheartened with Owen, took the initiative to break up, and left the entertainment industry for good.
As for Owen, under the pressure of the Sinclair Family parents, he had no choice but to marry his now ex-wife.
They have had no contact since then.
Reminiscing about these past events, Uncle Redding couldn’t help but feel a sense of lament.
If only the master and madam had approved of the two of them back then, everything wouldn’t be like this now.
They thought marrying that woman would bring peace to the family, little did they know harmony doesn’t depend on family but on the person.
Now, the woman had indeed been married into the family, but they maintained only surface-level harmony for years, which led to the recent affair, causing the Sinclair Family to lose face.
The Sinclair Family parents were filled with regret because of this incident.
Yet no one dared to bring up that woman from back then.
Who would have thought, that woman... turned out to have a child.
And this child, seemed to be the young master’s? And it appears the young master has just found out too? Otherwise, why bring him back now?
Owen’s low voice was heard: "This child doesn’t know his background yet, don’t scare him."
Mr. Zane confirmed his thoughts; the child was indeed just found by Owen Sinclair, and he wasn’t ready to acknowledge him yet.
At that moment, his heart was filled with mixed emotions, yet he dared not show it too overtly. He hurriedly nodded and, following Owen’s instructions, went upstairs to lock the door.
Ashley Shaw hadn’t noticed this side; her attention was divided because of Warren Prescott, so much so that when Owen called her, she then looked over at him.
"Why aren’t you playing anymore?"
Ashley Shaw came back to her senses, and, not wanting to say she wasn’t in the mood to play, simply said, "Ariana is playing with them, and I’m just idling, so I thought I’d see if there’s anything I can help with."
Ashley had already offered to help for the second time, and Owen saw she wasn’t just being polite; she genuinely wanted to help, so he gladly agreed.
"Alright! Then you come and give me a hand!"
"Sure," Ashley nodded, turning to assist the servant in bringing the groceries from the supermarket to the kitchen.
Although the servant didn’t know Ashley’s relationship with Owen, after years of working with Owen, she understood that these two young girls were the highest of "honored guests," so how could she let Ashley help carry anything?
Ashley’s hand hadn’t even touched the plastic bags before the servant snatched them away and took them to the kitchen.
Ashley was left awkwardly touching her nose.
She wasn’t sure if it was just her imagination, but she always felt that the Sinclair Family’s servants were particularly enthusiastic and diligent.
Anyway, this small interlude quickly passed.
Father and daughter rarely had time to spend alone together, something Owen cherished greatly.
He "chased" everyone out of the kitchen, saying that since he was cooking, no chef help was needed.
Ashley was assigned the easiest task—washing vegetables.
"These lettuce heads, used for salad. Since Ariana wants to lose weight, let’s start with some salad before the meal."
Ashley nodded and did as Owen said.
Meanwhile, Owen began the first dish: broad bean cakes.
Ashley prided herself on having good cooking skills and had tried many creative dishes, but she had never seen broad beans mixed with flour, and watched curiously from the side.
Owen’s hands were also quite attractive; when he kneaded the flour, it looked less like he was making dough and more like he was crafting art.
She thought to herself: No wonder Owen could become a lasting star in the entertainment industry; even his hands are so beautiful, it’s no wonder her mother’s generation saw him as a heartthrob.
But then Ashley remembered, it seemed her mother never chased stars or paid much attention to entertainment news.
She couldn’t help but think, if her mother did follow celebrities, Owen surely would have been her mom’s idol.
The broad bean cakes soon went into the steamer, and he began the second dish.
"Help me pick these long beans, I’ll step out and get some pickled vegetables I made myself."
"You even made your own pickled veggies?"
"Yeah, the pickled ones outside never taste quite right to me."
Ashley gave a thumbs up: "That’s the dedication of a master chef."
Owen chuckled.
"If you like it, I can pack some for you—well, maybe not since it’s inconvenient at school; if I have time, I’ll make lunch boxes for you and send them over."
Ashley didn’t think much of it, assuming Owen was just being polite.
Owen soon left the kitchen, heading for the backyard pickle jar to get his pickled vegetables when his sidelong glance caught Ariana Grant playing with two dogs in the living room, reminded of something, he walked over.
Ariana was happily playing, turned around to see Owen approaching, and quickly stood up, a bit embarrassed, saying, "Sir, my cooking skills are lacking, so I won’t disrupt what you and Ashley are doing."
Owen smiled and said, "I invited you here to enjoy, Ashley insisted on helping... Please, don’t feel obliged to help, or I’ll be embarrassed to say tonight’s dinner was my cooking."
Then, changing the subject, Owen lowered his voice and asked, "Ariana, Uncle wants to ask you something."
Ariana nodded: "Please ask! I’ll tell you everything I know!"
Owen glanced back at the kitchen; from his angle, he could just see Ashley still busy inside.
Retracting his gaze, he lowered his voice even further.
"What did you want to say when you were in the car?"