A Man with Nerves of Steel (Joseph Hart) novel Chapter 556

Chapter 556

Gemma felt something brush against the back of her neck. Knowing exactly what it was left her feeling incredibly awkward.

“Once you join the medical sect, I can take you to our library,” she said, shifting slightly. “It holds all kinds of records and materials, including quite a few obscure medical texts that are passed down strictly internally.”

Joseph thought about the Zahn family’s history, stretching back over a century to Owen’s era. There must have been countless formidable figures within the family throughout that time.

The foundation the Zahn family had built-whether accumulated through generations or seized from others- was truly astonishing.

Gemma continued, “The Zahn family is deeply traditional and immensely powerful. They require a vast number of loyal descendants and followers. So, for us women…”

She paused, a flicker of pain flashing through her eyes. Women in prominent families were never truly free to make their own choices.

She glanced at Joseph from the corner of her eye. With his appearance, he had even fewer choices than she did.

She continued, “Women have to serve the Zahn family, too.To prove our loyalty, even if a woman from the medical sect falls in love with an outsider, she is expected to save her virginity for the men of the Zahn family.”

Joseph’s expression darkened. “Wait, are you saying that when Jenna went to Emerald Mountain, one of the Zahn men slept with her?”

The thought genuinely shocked him. He didn’t particularly care who Jenna slept with, as their relationship was built on mutual interests. Neither of them was obligated to police the other’s private life.

But Jenna had gone to Emerald Mountain because of him. She hadn’t betrayed him; instead, she had been willing to sleep with a Zahn man just to secure their trust.

This realization made Joseph feel as though he had pushed her into it. He owed her.

“What are you talking about?” Gemma interrupted. “She didn’t. Jenna didn’t sleep with any of the Zahns…”

Joseph’s eyes widened. “So she slept with an outsider?”

Gemma sighed. “Henry, answer me this. If Jenna had slept with another man, would you abandon her?”

“Abandon her?” Joseph scoffed softly. “Do I even have that choice? I’d love to have a pure, innocent woman as my wife, but look at me. Do you really think I’m in any position to make demands? I’ll consider myself lucky if Jenna doesn’t abandon me down the road.”

Joseph spoke calmly, though his heart was racing wildly.

How could fate treat him like this?

Cora had slept with another man and even had three children with him.

Grace had been such a wonderful woman, but she had died young in a tragic car accident.

And now, Jenna had supposedly lost her innocence because of him. Alive, she belonged to the Zahn family; dead, she belonged to the medical sect.

Fate really wasn’t willing to give him even a scrap of happiness.

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Then, his mind snapped back to the topic at hand. “What about Jenna? Does she really have feelings for this man From the Zahn family?”

“Now you’re finally getting to the point,” Gemma replied.

Joseph’s eyes widened further. “What? Does Jenna like him enough to marry him? No, that can’t be right. After she came back, she never once brought up breaking up with me. She’s been so caring.

“Could it be? Is she only treating me so well because she wants me to accept the fact that she isn’t a virgin anymore? Or even to accept that she has other men on the side? She wouldn’t do that to me, would she? That’s just too cruel.”

Gemma rolled her eyes. “Henry, you don’t have to finish every thought for me. Let me get a word in edgewise. Just look at you. With a face like that, couldn’t you at least keep quiet and pretend to be a handsome, brooding gentleman for once?”

She pinched the fat around his waist, forcing him to shut up.

Deflating as though all the strength had been drained from his body, Joseph slumped back onto the couch. “Go ahead, Gemma. I’ll accept whatever the truth is. I’m prepared. I love Jenna. Even if she has another man’s child- even if that child isn’t mine—I’d still accept her. That’s just my lot in life.”

As he spoke, he thought of everything Cora had done to hint over the years. A sudden wave of grief overwhelmed him, and tears began to spill from his eyes.

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