Originally, she thought she was about to step into a wealthy family wearing a wedding dress, but reality gave her a heavy slap and woke her up from her beautiful dream.
For some time now, Fanny had been pondering one question: who is the dowry for!?
After excluding every female member of the Henley family, she couldn’t find an answer.
If Sophia hadn’t gotten married, Fanny had no doubt that the dowry was for Sophia. But since Sophia got married, it definitely wouldn’t be for her.
Now that Sophia and Leo were divorced, how could a wealthy family like theirs take interest in a divorced woman? So the dowry was even less likely to be for Sophia.
In Fanny’s opinion, whether using elimination or example reasoning methods, the dowry should have been given to herself. But why did the man who sent it come to retrieve it?
He even explicitly stated that it wasn’t meant for her!
This didn’t make sense!
Could it be that the Browne family’s only purpose was to play a joke on the Henley family?
Although Bruno helped raise enough money for the dowry already, Fanny still felt unwilling.
“Bruno,” Fanny asked again. “Who do you think the Browne family’s dowry is really meant for?”
Bruno had heard this question so many times that his ears were calloused over with impatience as he replied, “Fanny, can you please stop asking this? It’s meaningless.”
“Bruno,” said Fanny persistently. “This issue not only concerns my happiness but also our future development. Don’t you really want to know what’s going on?”
Bruno frowned and retorted, “Hmph! Even if we knew what’s going on, we wouldn’t get anything out of it because truthfully speaking – it isn’t meant for us.”
Just as Bruno finished speaking, the man who brought in their dowry walked in.
“Bruno,” said he coldly while casting an arrogant glance at him. “I’ve come here to retrieve our dowry.”
Fanny stepped forward two steps and politely asked him, “Sir, may I ask you something?”
“What?” His eyes showed disgust when looking at Fanny.
“Can you tell me who exactly this dowry is intended for?” She asked weakly while feeling nervous under his gaze.
The man sneered, “You have no self-awareness at all. It doesn’t matter who the dowry is given to, it has nothing to do with you and you’re not worthy of knowing.”
His cold words made Fanny feel like crying without tears.
“No! Why isn’t it me? I’m the only one in the entire family who’s qualified to receive this dowry!”
Perhaps due to the huge mental blow, Fanny’s face became a bit crazy.
The man chuckled, “I really don’t know where your confidence comes from. Since you’re so persistent, I’ll let you completely give up. The dowry is for…”
He deliberately dragged out the last syllable.
“Who!?” Fanny stared at his lips intently.
“Sophia,” said the man calmly.
When this name entered Fanny’s ears, it was like a thunderbolt exploding next to her ear. She opened her mouth wide and her face was full of disbelief as she petrified completely.
Bruno was also stunned; he never expected that Sophia would be receiving the dowry instead of them.
After a long time, Fanny murmured incredulously, “It’s impossible… Sophia has already married a useless husband…”
Ignoring Fanny now, the man looked at Bruno and commanded in an authoritative tone, “Don’t waste my time; hand over the dowry quickly!”
Bruno took a deep breath and steadied himself before questioning skeptically, “Sir, what you just said is true? The last time you sent us a dowry gift was really for Sophia?”
“I don’t want to repeat myself; hand over the dowry quickly or else the Browne family will make sure that your family disappears completely from Langstel!” His voice exuded immense confidence and power.
These words shook Bruno’s heart deeply. He immediately turned towards his butler outside and shouted loudly, “Bring in the gift right away!”
For families like the Henley family, who were second-rate nobility, they were no match for the Browne family. Bruno was well aware of this. The dowry was a small matter, but the family’s reputation was at stake. They couldn’t afford to offend the man sent by the Browne family.
Soon, the butler and servants brought in the dowry.
Bruno pointed at the dowry and politely said, “Sir, this is the dowry you sent last time, returned in its original condition. Please verify it.”
“No need. Load it onto the carriage. If there’s anything missing, whether it’s a piece of jewelry or a single penny, you’ll bear the consequences!” The man said and turned to walk towards the door.
As the man left, the dowry disappeared from Fanny’s sight, and she suddenly felt drained of all energy, sitting down on the ground.
“How is it possible… How could it be Sophia…” Fanny muttered to herself, as if she had gone insane.
Bruno also seemed to lose his strength all of a sudden, slumping in the chair with a vacant look in his eyes.
…
Blue Moon Grand Hotel.
Yuriko brought Jessica in front of Maniwa.
Seeing Maniwa sitting on the sofa with a gloomy expression, Jessica’s heart pounded nervously.
Leo and Sophia had already divorced, and she didn’t understand why this Orientian woman had called her here again.
Seeing Maniwa remain silent, Jessica tentatively broke the silence, “Miss Koken, do you have any orders for me?”
*Smack!*
A crisp sound of a slap echoed.
Maniwa slapped Jessica’s face.
Jessica held her stinging cheek, bewildered.
This Orientian woman must be sick. Why did she keep hitting people so easily?
*Smack!*
Another crisp sound of a slap followed as Maniwa backhanded Jessica’s other cheek.
Jessica covered her cheeks with both hands, feeling the burning pain.
Even so, Jessica, who was accustomed to being unruly, didn’t dare to complain in the face of Maniwa.
“Jessica, do you think you deserve to stand and speak to me?” Maniwa spoke with a cold and heartless tone.
Jessica trembled in fear, her knees weak, and she knelt directly in front of Maniwa, begging, “Miss Koken, I’m sorry.”
“You fulfilled the task I assigned to you earlier, and that’s good. I called you here today because there’s another task I want you to handle.”
Maniwa looked at Jessica as if she were looking at a dog.
“Miss Koken, please give me your orders. I will do my best to carry them out,” Jessica’s attitude towards Maniwa was like that of a faithful dog.
Maniwa despised women like Jessica, who were both powerless and lacked integrity. If it weren’t for Jessica’s remaining usefulness, Maniwa wouldn’t even spare her a second glance.