Seeing this, Arthur rushed over and acted as if he was teaching Stefan a lesson, asking him, �What are you doing, Stefan? Is this how you speak to your aunt?�

�I�m only counting to three. Both of you will apologize to my wife�� Stefan had a savage expression on his face, and his eyes looked bone-chillingly cold as he counted, �One, two��

Before he could say �three,� Arthur and Sheila were already putting their hands up in defeat.

�We�re sorry! We�re sorry!� Arthur had a false smile on his face as he turned to Renee and said, �My wife and I were only joking, but we definitely crossed the line and offended you and Stefan. We both deeply apologize to you and hope you won�t take what we said to heart. From now on, we�ll make sure to choose our words more carefully.�

Sheila was naturally still furious, but she considered the possible consequences of offending and angering Stefan and how it would surely bring terrible repercussions to their family, especially their son Jovan, so she could only begrudgingly say, �I�m sorry. I said some things without thinking just now.�

�It�s fine!� replied Renee, trying to turn the whole thing into a small matter so she could get this over with as soon as possible. �We�re the ones who should be apologizing! It�s our fault that we couldn�t take a joke and made the whole atmosphere strained and awkward.� Renee could not imagine what the rest of the Hunt family would think of her from now on.

Stefan�s aunt and uncle had just been forced to apologize to her, so they must think of her as an unruly, lazy, and wicked woman!

By now, Stefan�s expression finally warmed up a bit, and he sneered, �The truth is, I have a lot of respect for you, Uncle Arthur, and Aunt Sheila. You raised Jovan into a very capable man who managed to do a great job with H Group�s branch overseas, raking in huge profits for our company. I�m aware of all this��

�So,� he added, �as long as you stay loyal to us and refrain from cooking up sinister plots behind me, I will make sure that you are rewarded handsomely. But if I find out that you have impure intentions against me, or if you�re unable to do something so basic as respecting my wife, then don�t blame me for being merciless to the elders.�

Arthur was no fool, perfectly understanding the warning in Stefan�s words, so he hurriedly replied, �Don�t worry, Stefan! Jovan had always been steadfastly loyal to H Group. It wouldn�t be an exaggeration to say that he devoted his life to the company. As for your wife, he had nothing but respect for her! In fact, he kept reminding us to congratulate you both!�

Stefan nodded in satisfaction and said, �Uncle Arthur, Aunt Sheila, I know you�re both smart people, and I know that Jovan is an intelligent man as well. I trust that you will never let me down��

He then turned to face the rest of the family. He was younger than the rest, but he carried an undeniable air of definite authority when he declared, �I�m sure you�ve all heard what I said, aunts and uncles! I don�t care what you think of her, but Renee is my wife. She is the woman I love the most, so if you dare to criticize her, it means that you dare to criticize me. If you dare to disrespect her, it means that you dare to disrespect me. If I find out about it, don�t blame me for being disrespectful to the elders and for being unkind to the members of my own family!�

As soon as he uttered those words, the women who had been wagging their tongues and gossiping about Renee held their breaths right away, fearful that Stefan�s terrifying gaze would fall on them.

None of them ever expected that the down-and-out woman who they used to humiliate and bully would soar to such an elevated position in the family, so spoiled and doted on by Stefan even after marrying into the Hunt family for the second time!

It was almost unbelievable! None of them would be so stupid as to provoke or offend Renee from now on!

After Stefan had given his warning, the party then went on quite harmoniously, and the jeering and sneering were gone as well.

Renee used to occupy an even lower status than stray dogs in the Hunt family, but she had risen to the pinnacle as if she was the main star of the show. Elders who used to hold her in contempt now surrounded her and praised her incessantly.

This helped her understand a certain truth�how popular and respected you were with your in-laws had nothing at all to do with how friendly and sociable you were or how good you were at your career because, at the end of the day, it all depended on how your husband treated you.

When your husband doted on you, it did not matter how lazy or unruly you were. When all had been said and done, you would be his one in a million, an irreplaceable wife and a remarkable daughter-in-law.

But when your husband neglected you, it did not matter how much you abided by the rules or even if you were completely perfect. In the end, you would still be the most pitiful one who deserved absolutely no respect from anyone! JrNovels.com