The old lady also noticed that Elena acted abnormally, and so she gently nudged her. “Elena, do you know Henry?”
Elena was stunned, but it did not take long for her to snap back to reality. Before she could answer, Henry replied blatantly, “I don’t know her.”
His resistance toward Elena was apparent. Like Eldest Young Master Williams, Third Young Master Williamsalso kept a distance from ladies. Thus, it was normal for him to resist her stares when she gawked at him.
Old Master Williams snorted, and his tone was a bit cold. “It’s almost time.” Then, he stood up.
Except for Old Madam Williams, who was in a wheelchair, everyone else followed suit and stood up.
Elena knew that she had committed a faux pas, but she could not help it. She was so happy, but perhaps no one could fathom her excitement and joy.
“Elena, come and push my wheelchair.” Old Madam Williams did not hesitate before she said that. She liked to spend time with Elena whenever she stopped by the mansion. She would even neglect Henry, who had only just returned home.
Elena immediately got behind the old madam’s wheelchair and pushed her forward. Old Master Mu took the lead, then followed by Elena, who pushed Old madam Williams in her wheelchair. Michael and Henry went last.
“She is your fiancée?” Henry stared at the slender figure in front of her, and his gaze got even colder.
“Hmm.” Michael responded without any further explanation of Elena’s identity.
“Do you really intend to marry her?” Henry asked again.
Instead of an answer, Michael asked, “Will you be staying this time?”
Big Brother avoided the topic. It seemed like he had not decided on whether he would marry Elena in two years.
With that assuring thought, Henry appeared to look slightly better.
“I am not going away anymore. I’ll be back here, working with you.”
“Not staying at the Williams Group?” Michael smiled faintly. His smile would occasionally be revealed in front of his younger brother. “The old man will skin you alive.”
“Is your skin not still intact to your body?” Henry’s thin lips curved slightly. “If he were to do that, I still have you in front of me.”
Michael said nothing, and a few moments later, they arrived at the banquet hall. It had long been filled with people from the extended Williams family. It was easy to judge the size of the family with just one look at the occupants in the hall.
There were many guests at the back, and those were mostly friends of the younger family members. The rest of the ten tables in front were fully-occupied by people with the Williams surname.
Half of the guests in the hall were women. The men sat at the front tables, and the five tables at the back were reserved for the women. Naturally, Old Madam Williams was seated with Old Master Williams. The Mu family’s several masters and sons of the eldest master sat at the same table.
Some of the family members did not attend the dinner. Only the Williams family’s Eldest Master, Second Master, and Third Master, along with Michael, Dylan, and Henry, were present. The fifth young master, Porter Williams, was said to have gone abroad and could not return in time.
As for the next table, it was occupied by sons of the Williams family’s second and third masters. The first table at the side of the main table was occupied by the sons and grandchildren of the old master’s siblings.
Each table and every seat represented a different status and identity. In the world of the wealthy, status and hierarchy were clearly and rigorously distinguished. Even if there were not enough people to fill a table, it was not possible to combine the seats with other random family members. That was the one strict rule of a formal family feast.
The men’s tables seemed a bit deserted, but the women’s tables were very lively. There were so many women in the Williams family that one could be easily dazzled by the sight of them in such a congregation.
A maid led Elena to the first table reserved for the Williams family’s female members. The guests at that table included Eldest Master’s wife, SarahSarah, and his two daughters, the fourth young miss, Tabby, and the sixth young miss, Snowy.
Then there were also Second Master’s two daughters and Third Master’s youngest daughter. There was also a person there that Elena had known very well. She was none other than Rosy, whom she had met earlier that evening.
Elena was arranged to sit next to Sarah. Her seat meant that her status came immediately after Sarah’s.
It was obvious that the two young misses in the family shared the same status that Elena had back home. She was only the eldest young master’s fiancée, and yet she had a higher position than the rest of them even before she was officially married into the family.
The women at the other tables were upset with where she sat, let alone the women at her table. She already enjoyed such a good position even before her marriage was official. Based on the status of Eldest Young Master Williams in the family, Sarah would have to give up her seat in favor of Elena in the future.
It seemed that Sarah was not bothered by that at all. She smiled softly at Elena when she was Elena headed toward their table. “Elena, come and have a look at the menu tonight.” She took the menu from the maid and handed it to Elena.
“If there is anything here that you don’t like, I’ll have it changed immediately.”
To show respect, Elena studied the menu momentarily before she shook her head. “I like all of them.”
“That’s good.” Sarah returned the menu to the maid before she turned to look at every one. “This is Michael’s fiancée, Second Young Miss GarciaGarcia, Elena.”
None of them responded to her. They were careful not to offend their big brother, but they could not believe that he would marry Elena for real. How could those ladies be willing to flatter a person that their big brother did not favor?
Rosy was relieved when she noticed everyone’s cold attitude toward Elena. It seemed like Elena had no favorable status in the family. Everyone was polite toward her because of Eldest Young Master Williams. She also got to sit in that position because of his title and status.
Rosy had offended Eldest Young Master Williams that day. It was not because he really cared for Elena, but it was entirely Vanessa’s fault. Vanessa claimed that the man behind that ugly woman was a sorry old man. How could Eldest Young Master Williams stomach that insult?
She wanted to see how long that ugly duckling could pretend to put on airs. Eldest Young Master Williams would abandon her eventually. At that time, I would crush her!
Sarah noticed everyone’s hostility toward Elena, so she took the initiative to turn to Tabby and Snowy and said, “Tabby, Snowy, greet your eldest sister-in-law.”
“Aunt Sarah, should we really call her that?” Snowy pouted her lips. “She hasn’t officially married into our family yet. How can I greet her that way?”
Tabby was two years older than her sister, but she was not as vocal as Snowy. She turned her face away and pretended that the conversation was inaudible to her. She started to chat with Rosy.
Sarah was a little embarrassed. None of them was her biological daughter. Hence, she could not tell them off. Elena realized that the Williams family’s Eldest madam had no real status in front of those children. It was not easy to be a stepmother, especially in such a big family.
Elena did not want to place Sarah in an awkward position, so she took the initiative to greet them. “Tabby, Snowy, right? Hi, my name is Elena Garcia.”
Tabby decided to practice selective hearing and kept her attention on her chat with Rosy. The latter smiled so brilliantly as she was so happy. Snowy shrugged nonchalantly as she gave Elena the same ‘I can’t hear you’ attitude.
That was like a slap to the face. The women around the tables covered their mouths to hide their laughter. However, some giggling sounds still escaped.
Everyone had turned a cold-shoulder to the ugly duckling. The Williams family’s two young misses were extremely mean. They had downright refused to acknowledge Elena publicly. How could the ugly duckling survive in such an awkward atmosphere?