“You’re back.” Lillian asked, “Is it the same old brand?”
“Yeah.” Short and to the point. Conrad clearly wasn’t happy.
Lillian exchanged a glance with Ethan, shook her head helplessly, and got up to head to the kitchen.
Ethan stayed seated, and Conrad plopped down in the spot where Lillian had been sitting. “Looking at the bowl while eating from the pot… I’m really worried my godson will turn out just as shameless as you.”
Ethan took a sip of water, confused. “Setting aside my character, may I ask, who exactly is your godson, Mr. Conrad?”
“Quincy.”
“Huh? How did I not know my son became your godson while I was away for just a few days?”
“I know you’re surprised and happy, but you don’t need to get so worked up. Quincy’s a good kid. If he learns your bad habits of being fickle, indecisive, and not loyal, it wouldn’t be good, right?”
“…” Ethan was so annoyed he couldn’t help but laugh.
This man… He didn’t even know he sounded like a high schooler. So childish.
“Mr. Conrad, you had fair share of rumors in the past. A quick search could bring up several, especially the longstanding cooperation between Miss Pandora and Brown Family Group. People still talked about it with great interest. Mr. Conrad, are you only able to see other people’s flaws, but not your own?”
Conrad shrugged. “That was just joint publicity. You’ve already had kids with someone else, and you still have the time to question me? You lost the moment you left those few days.”
Conrad grinned smugly, as if success was already certain.
“Then let me remind you, Mr. Conrad, Lillian is a very outstanding girl. Even without me, there would be others who would love her. When it comes to stealing someone’s partner, age doesn’t matter.”
Conrad’s smile froze on his face, and he stared hard at Ethan.
Ethan made a comeback. “I still have to thank Mr. Conrad for taking care of Quincy during this time.”
“What did Lillian tell you earlier?”
“Mr. Conrad, are you done pretending? Just now, you were so calm and collected.”
“Are you going to answer me or not?”
“On what basis are you asking me? If you’re just a business partner, then this is a private matter, and I don’t need to share it with you. If you’re a rival in love, then I certainly have no reason to tell you.”
Conrad slightly raised his eyes. “You just called me a rival in love, and now I can’t even ask? You’ve got quite the temper.”
“…” Ethan, who had always been so patient, almost ground his teeth in frustration.
With one more person around, Lillian reheated the food from earlier and also made a dish of fish and soup. She finally asked Conrad to help serve the food.
“Did you hear that? I’m the one who is told to serve the food. I’m the host, you’re the guest.”
Ethan sipped his coffee. “Well, Mr. Conrad, you should make sure you sit comfortably in that seat, or you might find yourself pushed out later.”
Malicious! Vile! Conrad thought to himself that Ethan was really irritating. How could someone so annoying have such an adorable son?
Because Ethan had arrived, Quincy eagerly grabbed him to go see the geese.
By evening, the yard was still pretty warm.
Jasmine and Quincy were standing in front of the only electric fan, blowing air everywhere. Jasmine even tried to lift her skirt to catch the breeze, but Quincy quickly covered it.
“You can’t do that. A girl’s skirt shouldn’t be lifted.”
Not wanting Jasmine to get too hot, he went and found a big fan to cool her down.
Conrad thought the kid was pretty well-mannered.
As he brought the food out, he saw Ethan lighting incense. “Let’s make a deal. How about you let your son stay at my place?”
Ethan blew on the incense. “Mr. Conrad, you’ve already stolen my fiancee, and now you want my son too? Is it that you can’t have your own?”
See? The fox’s tail is showing! The moment he opens his mouth, he’s cursing people for not being able to have kids.
He knew Ethan had bad intentions.
Conrad silently sentenced Ethan to death in his mind. “Does Lillian know your true nature?”
“She only needs to know about your true nature, Mr. Conrad,” Ethan said with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile. “You’re so petty.”
Conrad grumbled. “If I were petty, you’d never get that plane to land.”
Ethan placed the incense down. “By the way, none of the other rooms in this house have air conditioning-only one room does. I’m sure Mr. Conrad won’t want to just slip in there for the night, right?”
Conrad turned sharply and gave Ethan a look.
“Oh, you’re silent? That means it’s true. Luckily, when I arrived, I also booked a room for you, Mr. Conrad. Lillian is already so tired; she might as well sleep well. What do you think, Mr. Conrad?”
Conrad ground his teeth. “You’re still so polite.”
“I’ve got enough money for this. It’s not a problem.”
Lillian looked out from the kitchen and noticed that the two men were getting along well, though she had no idea what they were talking about.
Ethan had finished washing the dishes and came out, only to see Lillian trying to calm down a large dog.
He lowered his head with a helpless smile and sat down next to Quincy.
“Dad, where are you staying tonight?”
“Dad is going to the hotel with Mr. Conrad. Do you want to come with me?”
“What about Jasmine?”
“I’ll stay with Mom. Mom, why isn’t Dad staying with us?” Jasmine asked.
Conrad wore an expectant look, wishing Lillian would immediately let him stay so that Ethan would know his place and leave right away.
However, Lillian said, “The house doesn’t have air conditioning, so Dad would get too hot staying here. Ethan and Quincy went up the mountain today, and Ethan got bitten by mosquitoes on his arm. You should check if there are any blisters later. The mosquitoes up there are really bad.”
“Okay, I got it.” Jasmine replied.
The cartoon on the TV was still playing, and Conrad glared at Lillian with resentment.
Jasmine jumped off the couch and climbed up his leg.
Conrad scooped his daughter into his arms.
Jasmine whispered in his ear, “Dad, what are we going to do now? Queen Ethan has returned, and you can’t take the throne anymore.”
Conrad, now very sensitive, replied, “What queen? I’ve been the queen for years; it’s not his turn.”
“Wrong. What queen? Your mom only has one man, me.”
She couldn’t set up a harem.
He, Conrad, ruled the harem with authority, and no one dared to covet the emperor.
If anyone tried, he’d eliminate them.
Ethan wasn’t in a hurry to go to the hotel, and neither was Conrad. The five of them ended up watching TV together at home.
At this time, the news broadcast was on.
They could also hear the sound of someone scolding children from the next yard.
There was no shortage of activity.
“This policy is actually pretty good for helping farmers,” Ethan suddenly said.
Conrad responded, “But now there’s a bottleneck. The shipping costs haven’t gone down.”
The two men, speaking in business terms, were quite familiar with local policies and welfare.
Lillian sighed quietly, hoping the harmonious atmosphere would last until evening.
As time passed, by 9 PM, after watching a melodramatic soap opera, Lillian couldn’t hold back anymore and started trying to get everyone to leave.
Conrad wore a resentful look, but to prevent Ethan from staying, he made sure to watch him leave no matter what.
Before heading out, Jasmine happily ran upstairs to bathe with her mom.
Conrad looked at his daughter, who had already disappeared upstairs, and fell silent.
Lillian prepared to close the door, walking him to the entrance.
Conrad’s hand was still on the door, “Make sure all the doors and windows are closed. If anything happens, just call for me. Andrew and the others are next door.”
“I know.”
“Did you turn off the gas? If Jasmine cries tonight, just pat her on the back.”
“I understand.”
“When you wake up tomorrow, call me. I’ll come right over.”
“I will.”
Conrad glanced at Ethan, “Don’t sneak off to see him.”
Lillian glared at him. “Are you leaving or not?”
“Fine, I’ll go.”
He didn’t want to be here anymore.
Conrad gritted his teeth, thought for a moment, then stuck his foot in the door to stop her from closing it.
Ethan had already picked up Quincy and was walking ahead.
Quincy looked back. “Dad, isn’t Mr. Conrad coming with us?”
“He’s busy showing off his feathers.”
“Aren’t peacocks supposed to display their feathers only during mating season?”
“Yeah, well, he’s showing off his feathers now.”