Susan couldn’t help but complain as soon as she heard Miranda’s words, “The apartment building you’re living in is in such poor condition. There’s dirty and smelly garbage everywhere. It’s so unkempt. Doesn’t anyone clean this building? Look at these walls; they’ve turned black with mold. Look at the railing; it’s covered in dust. It probably hasn’t been wiped in ages.”

Miranda glanced at the time. She would be late if she stayed any longer. After seeing that Susan was fine, she couldn’t be bothered to listen to her complaints and quickly walked away.

Susan watched Miranda’s retreating figure in surprise before pursing her lips. Her feeling of being ignored grew even stronger.

She looked up and realized that there were still several more floors and flights of worn-down stairs to climb.

Taking a deep breath, she gritted her teeth. Feeling resigned, she climbed the stairs in her high heels. As she went up, she muttered under her breath, “Leaving a perfectly nice penthouse just to rent this old, rundown place… I can’t believe this nuisance…”

After she arrived at the seventh floor with much difficulty, Susan pulled out a spare key and opened the door. Paul wasn’t home. At this time, he was likely at the lab.

She took a look around the place. The living room was very tidy, and there were only personal items for one person.

Susan even checked the floor. There wasn’t a single strand of long hair around.

She felt puzzled. Had she really been overthinking this?

Susan headed to the kitchen to take the lunchbox she had brought over that day. Suddenly, she froze in her tracks, her body stiffening.

There was only one lunchbox on the kitchen counter! Just one! The other one had mysteriously disappeared.

Paul had definitely given it to someone else. Something was clearly off!

Susan didn’t stay long after making this discovery. She quickly headed home to the Jefferson manor. “See, see! I knew I was right!”

Felix raised an eyebrow. “Did you catch him in the act?”

“Pfft! What do you mean by catching him in the act? It’s not like he’s committing a crime!”

“Since you know it’s not a crime, then why are you so worked up?”

Susan was lost in her thoughts and didn’t listen to a word he said. “Paul’s personality is just as you said. He wouldn’t spare any young ladies a glance even if they were around him.

“And now he’s bringing someone food? He’s always been a loner, so it is definitely not his friend. It must be that he has a girlfriend!”

Susan was still doubtful at first, but she became more convinced the more she analyzed the situation.

Holding his teacup, Felix had an exasperated expression on his face. “You went out of your way to check up on our son just for this? You must be really bored. Why don’t you focus on Alex’s and Yale’s marriages? Why keep worrying about our youngest?”

Susan retorted firmly, “Alex has always been opinionated. He doesn’t listen to me, and I can’t control him. As for Yale, he’s been a playboy since he was young and stirs up rumors everywhere he goes. He does need me to worry about him! Paul is not young anymore, and yet he spends all day at the lab.

“As his mother, shouldn’t I be more concerned about him? My son is such an exceptional man. I don’t expect my daughter-in-law to be super impressive, but at least she has to be someone with a good family background for me to feel at ease, right?”

Felix rubbed his forehead helplessly. “If Alex knows his own mind, do you think Paul doesn’t have an opinion? We have no control over them even if something is going on with our sons. It’s better to let things take their natural course and let him handle things himself.”

Susan rolled her eyes. “You don’t understand.”

Felix didn’t understand a mother’s worries, let alone her concerns about her future daughter-in-law…

After a whole day of classes, Miranda had dinner and headed to the library. The sky was already dark by the time she left.

As she walked home, the streetlights on both sides of the street shone brightly. She didn’t feel scared in the least.

Miranda ran into Paul at the foot of the stairs. He had just finished his evening run.

Paul was dressed in black athletic wear. His forehead appeared sweaty, but his expression was calm and his breathing steady. He didn’t look like he had just been exercising.