HLM -Chapter 1292 The Net Spreads Out

Sydney, Australia. Inside an apartment.

Daphne was an ordinary housewife. She had previously worked as a secretary at a foreign trade company, but because she had several children and her husband earned a very good income, she quit her job and became a full-time homemaker.

That morning, she sent her eldest son and second daughter off to school, then lay on the sofa with the remaining two children, playing with building blocks.

These two were both around two or three years old and were already able to play on their own. She stayed with them for a short while, but before long the children pushed her away, wanting to play by themselves.

“Don’t you want to share the fun with Mommy?” she asked with a smile.

Her youngest son shook his head and said in a childish voice, “My sister and I are building a castle. Mommy can’t join—this is a kids’ castle!”

Seeing the serious looks on their faces, she couldn’t help laughing. She kissed each of them on the forehead, then picked up her phone and lounged on the sofa.

As a housewife, she liked binge-watching TV shows and browsing her friends’ social feeds. Since her social circle had become rather small, she cherished her old friends all the more.

In her friends’ feed, three consecutive posts were all about searching for a child who had disappeared thirty years ago.

Curious, she tapped into the topic, and the first thing that appeared was a large close-up photo of a child.

When she saw the child’s photo, she subconsciously looked at her youngest son. The boy, who was fiddling with his blocks, grinned happily at her.

In that instant, she was stunned—the smile on her youngest son’s face looked astonishingly similar to the one in the photo!

“Maybe it’s just a coincidence,” she told herself silently.

She scrolled further down and saw more photos—some of the child alone, others with a tall young man.

In one of the group photos, the young man had the child perched on his shoulders, smiling brightly at the camera. Faintly, Daphne saw the shadow of her husband from when they first met.

“Oh my God…” She covered her mouth with her hand. Below, the narrative continued. Elizabeth’s writing was excellent—she used concise language to recount the story and vividly portrayed the image of a resolute father who had persisted in searching for his child for thirty years.

Putting down her phone, she pulled her youngest son over and examined him carefully. The boy immediately became unhappy, pushing her hand away and shouting, “Mommy, my castle! My castle!”

After confirming her suspicions again, Daphne picked up her phone and called her husband.

The call connected quickly, and a gentle voice came through. “Hi, honey. I’m in a morning meeting—if it’s something, we can talk later…”

Daphne cut him off. “Jimmy, you’ve always disliked talking to me about your parents. I want to know why.”

The man on the other end asked, “Why did you suddenly think of this? It’s complicated, and I don’t really want to talk about it. Another time… another time when there’s a chance…”

“No, no ‘another time,’” Daphne interrupted again. “In Sunset Town, New Zealand, there’s an old man searching for his thirty-two-year-old child. That child was separated from him at the age of two, and he’s been searching for thirty years!”

Jimmy exclaimed in shock, “What? What are you talking about?”

“I’ll send you something. There are some photos. I think once you see them, you’ll understand what I mean. In any case, I don’t think your morning meeting is that important right now.”

Half an hour later, the apartment door was pushed open. A tall blond man rushed in. As soon as he entered, he took off his suit jacket and tossed it onto the sofa, then sat down in a daze.

Daphne thoughtfully went over, took his hand, and said, “As far as I know, Jimmy, both of your parents are alive. So what’s going on? Is that you in the photos?”

Jimmy looked at her blankly and said, “You know, when I was little, I had meningitis. There are a lot of things I don’t remember clearly. I think the guy in those photos… might be me.”

“Take it slow. I’ll help you analyze it,” Daphne said. “First of all, your relationship with your parents isn’t very good. Why is that?”

Jimmy gave a bitter smile. “You know I have two younger brothers—Thompson and Mikel. Ever since I was little, my parents treated me poorly but treated the two of them very well. I started working part-time in middle school to earn my tuition and living expenses. And them? Even now, they’re still being supported by our parents.”

“I’ve thought about it before—whether I might not be their biological son. But that was just a thought. My childhood memories are of them. In my memories, it’s always been them.”

Daphne squeezed his hand tightly and said, “I’ll ask Debbie to look after the kids. Let’s go to Sunset Town. I think you should meet that old man.”

At the mention of the old man in the photos, Jimmy grew restless. He stood up and began pacing, saying, “Meet him? In what capacity? I don’t think things like this can really happen. Am I supposed to be a New Zealander or something?”

Daphne said, “The identity is simple. Even if it’s just as a fan who admires his perseverance. Your own father hasn’t treated you well, has he? And this father devoted his entire life to his child. Isn’t that something worthy of admiration?”

Jimmy hesitated for a long while, then finally made up his mind. “I’m going to call Fred again. I need to ask him what’s going on!”

Daphne, being a considerate wife, immediately dialed the number and handed the phone to her husband.

The phone rang for a bit before finally connecting. “Hello, Jimmy. What is it? Make it quick—I’m watching TV.”

Jimmy said stiffly, “Fred, I want to ask you—damn it, can you turn off your TV? You’re talking to your eldest son!”

“Then you’d better watch your damn tone too! You know you’re talking to your father, you bastard, right? You know that!”

Jimmy shouted, “You’re my father? Are you really my father? My biological father?!”

There was a noticeable pause on the other end of the line. “What are you talking about? What do you mean? Who told you to say things like that?”

As if realizing he had misspoken, he hurriedly added, “Of course I’m your father. I raised you from a little brat, step by step. Of course I’m your father.”

Jimmy said, “All right, I understand. I have something very important to deal with right now. Goodbye, Fred. Enjoy your movie.”

He hung up the phone in turmoil and looked at his wife.

Daphne soothingly patted the back of his hand and said, “Fred’s reaction wasn’t quite right. If our little Jimmy asked you the same question right now, how would you answer?”

Jimmy said instinctively, “I’d beat him up first and see if he was pretending to be crazy!”

“Exactly. Normally, he should have just cursed at you and hung up the phone. There wouldn’t have been any explanations at all,” Daphne said calmly.

Jimmy swallowed and said, “Right. You’re right. Damn it… how could this be happening? Book the tickets—we’re going to New Zealand. Now!”