Fox waited until past 10 before Chloe was finally sent out.
As soon as she got in the car, she angrily asked, “Why did you turn off the monitor and the earpiece?”
“Because I didn’t want Auntie to see or hear.”
“What?” Fox frowned, staring at her in confusion.
Chloe raised her eyes. “Auntie, Lillian didn’t mean any harm to Uncle. You’re the one who wanted to watch how they interact, right? Why bother?”
“Do you even know what you’re saying?”
“I do. Auntie likes Uncle, always has. And I’m just something for Auntie to get closer to him. Auntie suspects that Lillian has ulterior motives. Isn’t Auntie the same?”
Fox was trembling with anger. “Have you lost your mind? I’m your aunt! How long have you been with that woman? Did she put a spell on you?”
“I’ve grown up. I’m not a kid anymore. What’s most important is that Uncle likes who he likes. I also want Auntie to find a man who loves you. If Uncle truly liked Auntie, why would he only meet you when I’m around? Let it go, Auntie. Even if you hear it or see it, it will only hurt more, won’t it? Uncle is different in front of Lillian. That’s the side of him that only comes out when he truly loves someone.”
At that moment, Conrad was no longer scary. He didn’t have that distant, unapproachable aura.
He was even cute, wagging his tail, asking for head rubs.
Fox’s tears came pouring out in an instant. “Do you think I don’t want to let go? I’ve loved him for so many years, and now even you’ve betrayed me! I’ve wasted all my love for you!”
Chloe grabbed her hand. “Auntie, you still have me, and you still have Python. As long as you don’t go after Lillian, they’ll be your support. Uncle will always see you as his sister and protect you. Don’t keep making mistakes, okay?”
“You make it sound so easy, but you don’t understand love. You don’t know how it feels to love someone and not get it in return. If it were easy to let go, I’d wish I could just let go that simply. She’s already engaged. She’s about to get married and still comes to interfere with Conrad. You’re probably the only ones who think she’s innocent.”
“So what? When two people love each other, no one else can fit in between them. She’s been gone for five years. What has changed for you by being with Uncle? You’re only growing further apart. It’s better to just wish them well.”
Fox looked at the lights of Hillside Villa, a place she would never be able to enter. She wiped away her tears, started the car, and drove her back home.
******
The group went to Boyd Town to pay their respects to Lillian’s father and grandmother. They had just returned from the hillside cemetery.
“That guy just now is infamous in our town for being a thief, and you actually let him into the Brown Family Group’s factory. You were the one who hired him, so if something goes wrong, who would dare to fire him? I don’t want you wasting money feeding a rotten rat.”
Conrad raised an eyebrow. “Are you worried about my money?”
Lillian choked on her words. “I’m afraid you’ll squander it, and Jasmine will end up living a hard life with you.”
Conrad smiled with a slight grin. “That won’t happen. Our daughter has a family fund, and she owns more shares in the Brown Family Group than I do. I’m the one working for you guys.”
Lillian didn’t quite understand. Jasmine often said that her dad was poor and didn’t have money, and while she could understand Jasmine holding onto her shares, after all, she was their only daughter, what did that have to do with her?
The market wasn’t crowded at this time, and the vendors were mostly napping. Lillian told Jasmine and the others not to run around, then, as she picked out vegetables, she asked, “Where’s your money?”
Conrad was still trying to figure out how to respond when Jasmine looked up and said, “Dad doesn’t have money. He only gets a salary every month, and it’s tight. I want to buy more toys, but I can’t.”
Lillian was puzzled. The standard of living at Hillside Villa didn’t look that bad.
“Is Brown Family Group…?”
Afraid Lillian might misunderstand, Conrad cleared his throat. “The shares have been transferred. It’s not like we’re completely broke. I still get a bonus every year. If we save, we can get by. And now, there aren’t many social events. It’s enough for us. You still have the film crew and other things going on. Is the financing enough?”
Lillian frowned, with a lot of questions on her mind, but it wasn’t good to ask them in front of the kids, especially with Jasmine, who loved to repeat everything she heard.
After they bought the vegetables and returned, Conrad had just put them in the kitchen when Lillian called him over.
Jasmine and Quincy wanted to help, so she got them two little stools to sit on while they picked the vegetables by the door.
Once the small courtyard door was closed, no one came to disturb them except for the noisy big white goose.
“Have you encountered some financial trouble recently?”
In the five years she’d been gone, she had never searched for any news about him or about the Brown Family Group. Abroad, unless you really looked for it, no news ever reached her.
So, she was already preparing for the worst-case scenario in her mind.
“No, we’re fine. The money’s enough,” Conrad replied, looking at her.
“Then what did Jasmine mean when she said you were working for someone? Isn’t Brown Family Group yours?”
Before she left, Conrad was the largest shareholder of Brown Family Group.
Did Kenneth take his shares away?
Seeing that he wouldn’t answer, Lillian’s face darkened. “Looks like you’ve encountered something you don’t want to tell me. Well, I won’t push it. Let’s leave it at that.”
She turned to walk away, but Conrad instinctively grabbed her arm. “I’ll tell you, but you have to promise not to get angry.”
Lillian stopped and looked at him, arms crossed, her posture firm. “Go ahead.”
“Five years ago, I made a will. One of the provisions was that all the assets under my name, including the shares of Brown Family Group, would be voluntarily given to you.”
Lillian stood frozen, unsure if she had heard him correctly. “Did your family approve of this? Did your grandmother agree?”
“I didn’t care about all that. Besides, with a new CEO, their interests are only slightly affected. I can’t even take care of myself, so how could I care about them? My grandmother has plenty of money, and so many relatives and descendants-she doesn’t need me.”
He continued, “But you’re all alone out there, unfamiliar with the place, no relatives or friends. What if you need money? What if you need just this little bit from me?”
“I just didn’t expect that, after all these years, you still haven’t noticed what’s been added to your account, because you’ve completely abandoned City N.”
Even though Lillian had anticipated something, she never expected him to give her everything.
“You’re not afraid I’ll run off with the money?”
“If you were willing to use just a little bit, I would’ve found you by now,” Conrad said with a wry smile. “At that time, even if I gave you everything, you probably wouldn’t have turned back. Lillian, I’ve hurt you so deeply before.”
Even if he had to offer up everything, he would do it if it meant she would return to him.
But feelings in this world are the most fragile. The hardest part is when you finally realize you want to cherish someone, only to find it’s too late.
Lillian pursed her lips, remaining silent.
Conrad looked at her. “Are you angry?”
She still didn’t speak. Conrad reached out and tugged at her sleeve, leaning in closer. “Are you really angry? Didn’t we agree not to get angry?”
Lillian, irritated by his behavior, slapped his forehead.
It was probably the first time she had ever done something like that. Afterward, both of them froze for a moment.
She awkwardly said, “You’re going to get cheated out of everything if you keep acting like this. I’m not going to give the money back to you.”
He nodded. “Don’t give it back. Keep it for yourself. I’ve earned a lot these past few years, and the Brown Family Group is doing well, and very stable. You can shoot whatever you want.”
Lillian wanted to say, Is that the point? “You never thought, if I died, and you didn’t touch this money, it would just be wasted, and someone else would benefit from it? Or, if I lived, and took this money, married someone else-after all, you voluntarily gave it to me, so I’m not obligated to return it.”
“If you die, I’ll go with you. The money won’t matter.”
His long lashes lowered, casting a shadow over his eyes. “But if you live, and need this money, it’ll be your dowry.”
Lillian opened her mouth. “You really like me that much?”
Conrad looked at her. “If what the world calls ‘liking’ is what you mean, then I would call it ‘liking’ even more than love. I used to chase fame and wealth, but now, I only want to put Lillian first. You will be my entire belief.”
Jasmine was peeling beans and secretly watching them several times. Every time she looked away, she would shake her head and nod a few times.
Quincy, curious, asked, “Why are you shaking your head?”
“Because I’m happy, but you’ll be unhappy soon.”
“Why?”
“Look, my mom and dad get along so well. They’re probably going to get married soon, and you’ll be without a mom again.”
Quincy quickly peeled the beans. “Yesterday, I video-called my mom. She and my dad were getting along pretty well too.”
“Well, then it’s settled. Your dad will go marry your mom, and my mom will have to come back to me. That’s only fair!”
Quincy scratched his head, feeling like something didn’t quite add up, but he couldn’t figure out what.