The day of Mr. Jones’s birthday arrived. Every strutted into Valeria’s house, proudly bringing along her daughter Selah and son-in-law Sammy.As soon as she entered, Every greeted them smugly: “We’re here to pick you all up. Selah and Sammy each brought a car, so it’ll be easy to drive everyone over.”Bragging about her son-in-law was Every’s main reason for coming.She had been holding onto her grudge since Eleanor had humiliated her before, and today was her chance to gloat.Valeria forced a polite smile despite her sou
Selah walked up to the entrance of the Jones family’s house and laughed: “Second Young Master Lucas Jones of elder uncle’s house, Steve Jones from third uncle’s house, and Reese Jones from third uncle’s family—why don’t I see Elder Young Master Vernon Jones of elder uncle’s house? Don’t tell me he’s playing the role of the heir again!”Sammy Rhodes standing beside Selah, chuckled and said: “We juniors should head over there too. Shouldn’t we help with greeting some guests as well?”It was Mr. Jones’s seventieth birthday celebration, and relatives, friends, and many guests from near and far were arriving to pay their respects. As Mr. Jones’s grandchildren, it was only right for them to help receive the guests.However, since Selah and Eleanor were granddaughters from the maternal side, they weren’t strictly required to greet guests. Selah, aware that Lucas and Steve both looked down on Alexander, seemed eager to witness someone mock him.“Eleanor, why don’t we go together? It’s our gra
Eleanor sighed softly as she glanced at Mr. Jones, her lips moved, but she couldn’t find the words to defend Alexander. Though defending him now would be easy, angering the elder uncle would be far more serious. She found herself torn, bowing her head in awkward silence.Lucas pointed at Alexander, sneering with disdain: "This useless guy, look at how you’ve enraged our grandfather. This is his seventieth birthday celebration, and you still have the nerve to show up and ruin it. For heaven’s sake, you’re an absolute disgrace.""If he had any ability at all, he wouldn’t be a worthless man living off a woman. If I were him, I’d hang myself out of shame. How can he even show his face here? What a shameless waste of space."Hearing Lucas and Steve’s harsh words, Eleanor’s delicate body trembled slightly, unable to hold back any longer."You shouldn’t talk about Alexander that way. Even though… even though he's just working a normal job right now, that doesn’t mean he’s useless. I never ex
Eleanor and Alexander found a spot in the open area. Alexander noticed Eleanor's downcast face and the redness in her eyes, knowing how upset she felt."Eleanor, don’t be angry. Why should you care what they think? They don’t understand you.” Alexander said, holding her hand gently.Eleanor forced a smile: “It’s okay, just don’t take it to heart. Their words were harsh, but I’ll manage.""Eleanor, you’re here! I’ll sit with you." Reese came over and pulled up a chair next to them.Alexander was surprised. He hadn’t expected Reese to not only defend them but also come over to sit with them."Reese, why did you come here? Grandpa adores you. You should go back inside. We’re fine, really.” Eleanor said.Reese shook her head, pouting: “I think they're all being too much. I support you, Eleanor. This is me showing my support with actions." Eleanor smiled at Reese’s stubbornness, knowing there was no convincing her otherwise. So, she changed the subject to lighter conversation."I heard you
The joyous harmony in the hall was instantly shattered by Steve’s words, and everyone turned to look at Lucas. He gritted his teeth, tears welling up in his eyes, and lowered the hand covering his face, revealing a swollen cheek. The sight of Lucas' swollen cheek caused the guests to exchange glances with a variety of expressions.Even though they didn’t know who Alexander was, the fact that he dared to hit the second young master of the Jones family on such a day left them with a peculiar feeling. Either Alexander had a strong background and wasn’t afraid of the Jones family, or he was reckless and willing to take on the Jones family head-on.Either way, none of the guests were eager to get involved. They remained silent, quietly observing.The veins on Mr. Jones' forehead bulged as his anger spiked, nearly triggering his heart condition."Grandfather, Father, you have to stand up for me! I went to call Reese back, and when I saw that useless Alexander, I said a few words to him. But
Seeing Alexander take the beating, Lucas smiled smugly, itching to grab the cane and hit Alexander himself. Valeria and Rodger stood at the back of the group with their heads down, feeling like each blow Mr. Jones dealt to Alexander was a slap to their faces. They were utterly humiliated."Look at how mad our dad is. Everyone should take this as a warning—having a useless son-in-law is bad enough, but one who’s both useless and stupid? That’s the real problem.” Every added venomously.After several hits, Mr. Jones was panting heavily, his rage unabated: “You worthless piece of trash, kneel and apologize to my grandson right now! Today, I’ll teach you what it means to have honor and shame! Kneel!"
Eleanor let out a bitter laugh, helplessly following Alexander back. They returned to their seats in the lower hall, both glancing toward the main hall.Guests had already emerged from the back hall, filing into the main hall and taking their seats. Then Melvin and Jesus helped Mr. Jones into the main hall, with Every and Valeria following in order behind them.After Mr. Jones, the guest of honor, and the rest of the Jones family entered the main hall, the announcement was made that the birthday celebration had officially begun."The celebration has started, and soon it'll be time to present gifts. But we haven’t prepared anything.” Eleanor whispered."Don’t worry, it’s been taken care of.” Alexander replied gently.In the main hall, Mr. Jones sat at the head of the room, and Melvin presented his gift, saying a few words of blessing.After Melvin’s generation had given their birthday wishes, they sat beside Mr. Jones, and it was the turn of Lucas and the younger generation to present
"That useless Alexander might be excused, but Eleanor, you’re Grandfather’s own granddaughter. He doted on you so much, and now you’ve forgotten to prepare a gift for him. There’s really nothing more to say." Steve added fuel to the fire.Lucas wanted to humiliate Alexander and Eleanor, while Steve aimed to divert attention away from his father Marvin, ensuring he wouldn’t make a scene again.Though their motives were different, both men targeted Alexander and Eleanor.Selah let out a mocking laugh, looking at Eleanor with disdain: “Eleanor, we’re both Grandfather’s grandchildren. In the past, he always gave the best things to you first. You got to eat and play before me, so logically, your birthday gift should be much grander than mine. But instead, you didn’t even bother to bring one.""Some people are just ungrateful. I bet these two planned to stir up trouble at Grandfather’s birthday party. Otherwise, who would act so shamelessly?" Sammy chimed in.Every frowned deeply: “This beh