“Yes,” Yohan affirmed. “He’s the God of the sea and can swim. Can Iron Man defeat him if they battle underwater?”
Cristofer nodded thoughtfully and replied, “Possibly, because Iron Man has a talent for inventing equipment to handle any situation.”
Yohan chuckled, saying, “Haha. I knew it! Back at school, my friend Bob and I always debated this. He believes Poseidon is stronger, but I’ve always thought Iron Man has the upper hand. I promised I’d ask you, the superhero expert, and I’ll tell him I was right when I return to Europe.”
Cristofer inquired, “You want to go back to Europe?”
Yohan paused for a moment, then shook his head. “Not really. I want to stay with you, Mom, Yvonne, and Grandma. I want to be wherever you are,” he declared.
Estelle remained speechless, touched by her son’s words.
“But you’ve always been so busy. You’d been away for just a few days in the past, but this time, you were gone for over three years. When I told my classmates that you’re a superhero, they all thought I was bragging and that I didn’t have a father at all,” Yohan said, a hint of sadness in his eyes.
Cristofer held Yohan close, reassuring him, “You can invite them here. I’ll introduce myself to them.”
“Really?”
“Really. I will never lie to you.”
“Yeah!”
The more the two of them talked, the happier they became.
Cristofer asked Yohan about his life abroad, wanting to know more about Yohan’s life and habits. And Yohan told him everything about his life abroad in detail.
Later, Estelle felt sleepy and slowly closed her eyes. In drowsiness, she heard Cristofer’s phone vibrating.
Seeing the caller ID, Cristofer ended the conversation with Yohan and walked to the balcony with his phone.
Then, the bedroom became quiet again.
Yohan, after their lengthy conversation, yawned sleepily and quickly drifted off to sleep, cuddled up against Estelle.
Cristofer stepped out onto the balcony, gazing back at Estelle and Yohan, who was peacefully asleep, before lighting a cigarette and answering his phone.
“Hello, Uncle Nelson. What’s the reason for calling me at this late hour?” Cristofer inquired.
Nelson responded, “You’re not working at the company anymore, right? I’ve called you at this hour many times before, but you’ve never uttered such words.”
Cristofer took a long drag from his cigarette and exhaled a cloud of smoke.
“I’m not at the company. I’m a little tired tonight.”
“Where are you now?” Nelson asked.
“At the hotel.”
“With Miss Wilson?”
Cristofer replied firmly, “No, Uncle Nelson. I’ve ended my relationship with Miss Wilson, and I’m not the type of person who enjoys getting involved with women.”
He continued to smoke his cigarette, exhaling slowly.
Nelson seemed content with Cristofer’s response. “Cristofer, it’s good to see you’re being rational in this regard. I want to remind you, though, that getting married is merely a means to secure our cooperation with the gem supplier in Africa. Don’t allow yourself to become emotionally attached to any woman. Our ultimate objective is the monopoly of all African gem resources.”
“I understand,” Cristofer assured him.
“Now that you’ve ended things with Miss Wilson, what’s your plan regarding the cooperation case? It appears the gem supplier won’t cooperate unless you’re married,” Nelson inquired.
“I’ll find an alternative solution,” Cristofer responded. “Uncle Nelson, please rest assured. You’ve entrusted me with all your assets and placed great trust in me. I won’t let you down.”
Sighing with emotion, Nelson added, “I’m pleased to hear that, Cristofer. You know, I spent many years searching for the right heir, and I finally chose you. You are the ideal successor I’ve been looking for. Don’t lose sight of that because of any woman, especially Estelle. She…”
While anticipating Nelson’s next words, Cristofer let out a deep breath and grew impatient.
Sensing Cristofer’s restlessness, Nelson smiled and stated, “I won’t dwell on it further. I trust you to handle it.”
“Uncle Nelson, I’ll uphold all my commitments and won’t disappoint you. You can enjoy your life without concerns.”
“Very well.”
“But in matters unrelated to work, I’d like to make decisions on my own.”
Nelson paused and asked in a serious tone, “Cristofer, what do you mean?”
“I mean, I will develop my career, manage the company, and expand the business according to your expectations. But I’ll make my own choices in terms of my relationships. I promise you that I won’t let my emotional life affect my career.”
Nelson sensed something wrong and said with a sneer, “What on earth do you want to say? Estelle has just come back a few days ago, and you canceled the wedding with Miss Wilson. So, you broke up with Miss Wilson because of her?”
“No, it has nothing to do with Estelle.”
“Then what do you mean by saying these words to me?!” Nelson questioned angrily.
Feeling helpless, Cristofer took a deep breath, gazed up at the starry sky, and spoke earnestly, “Uncle Nelson, I… I want to take good care of her and my children.”
“You want to remarry her?”
“I understand that she no longer loves me, and she’s found love with another man, so I don’t have the extravagant hope of making her love me again. I just want to provide for her and our children. In other words, I owe her a lot, and I want to make amends.”
“I disagree,” Nelson replied.
Cristofer frowned. “Why?”
“Cristofer, you can marry anyone except Estelle.”
“Uncle Nelson, I don’t understand what you mean.”
“Estelle is a curse! She will only make you lose yourself and make you change into another person! And she will destroy the career you have painstakingly developed and your bright future!”
Thinking that Nelson’s words were ridiculous, Cristofer smiled helplessly and said, “Uncle Nelson, Estelle is just an ordinary woman. She doesn’t have the ability to destroy me.”
“Then let me ask you a question. If one day she asks you to give up everything you have and leave here with her, what will you do?”
“I…” Cristofer hesitated for a moment and suddenly remembered the phone call he had with Tim earlier today.
When Tim asked him if he was willing to give up all his fortunes for Estelle, he blurted out that he was willing to do that.
He would choose Estelle without hesitation if he had to choose between his career and Estelle.
The success in his business could only give him temporary happiness. Most of the time, he was still tortured by extreme depression and pain.
He was irritable, suspicious, and always in a bad mood. He was the only one who knew how much effort he had to make to suppress his anger every day.