The woman with a sharp and intimidating gaze spoke in a condescending tone to Adam, "Are you serious? Our grandmother is too precious to receive something that has fallen to the ground. Isn't that right?" She asked her husband and other brother.
The second son-in-law nodded in agreement and said, "That's right. Adam, buy a new gift. Something equivalent to what we bought for Grandma. That's what it means to be an McLauren family son-in-law!" Marry chimed in again, speaking in a demeaning tone, "Moreover, a cheap vase as a birthday gift is too simple. Are you intentionally insulting Grandma in front of so many people?" Insulting? The price of that vase was actually very expensive! I almost used up all my savings! Seeing her husband cornered, Anna stepped forward and spoke firmly, "Enough! Are you insulting my husband just because of a gift? Isn't sincerity the most important thing? Just so you know, Adam bought that vase with all the money he had. He really wanted to give the best gift to Grandma!" Marry, Anna's sister, scoffed and looked at her sister cynically, then said, "That's because he's poor! He can't even afford something more expensive than a vase! Come on, Anna. Stop always defending Adam. He won't make you happy." Marry's husband also spoke, joining in the belittlement of Adam, "Your sister is right. Adam is a pathetic man. You'd be better off being in a relationship with my cousin. He's the CEO of Xplor Group." The second son-in-law chimed in, "That's right. Patrick is a wealthy and established man. You'll surely be happy if you marry him." Anna was disgusted to hear this, not the first time her family had asked her to get close to another man, starting to open her heart again and even considering divorcing Adam. With anger, she spoke in a pressured voice, "I am married! And my husband is here! Stop promoting your male relatives to me!" With a dark face due to anger, Marry shouted at her younger sister, "Anna! Please maintain your manners when speaking to my husband; he means well. He wants you to have a decent life." Anna snorted in annoyance, responding to her sister's words with a louder and firmer voice, "He should be the one to watch his mouth. He offered me a man in front of my husband! Doesn't he have any shame?" Hearing this, Marry lost her temper. Anna was almost slapped by her older sister, but Adam quickly caught the wicked woman's hand before it landed on his wife's cheek. Adam, starting to get annoyed, pulled his wife away and spoke to his sister-in-law, "Marry, please control your emotions. Anna is your younger sister." Marry, easily provoked to anger, instead pushed Adam in a fit of rage. She cursed harshly, "How dare you, jerk! This is all because of you! You pathetic poor man, you have no right to speak to me!" Marry's husband worsened the situation by pulling Adam and provoking him to fight. He sarcastically said, "Look at yourself, you scoundrel! You have ruined my sister-in-law's life, and now you dare to offend my wife! Who do you think you are other than a homeless man picked up from the shit streets!" Tension rose, with people around watching the wealthy sons-in-law quarrel. Meanwhile, they gossiped excitedly. "Oh my, they are fighting." "Look! The useless son-in-law is making his sister angry." "I knew it, a man with unclear origins like him will bring bad luck to the family." As the situation became more chaotic, Anna pulled her husband aside, then said fearfully, "Don't engage with them, Adam. You could get hurt." The second son-in-law cursed, insulting Adam, "What? Besides being poor and pathetic, are you also a coward? Are you hiding behind your wife's skirt, Adam? How disgusting." Adam wanted to hit his two brothers-in-law's faces out of frustration, but he saw his worried wife. So, Adam controlled his emotions and chose to pull Anna's hand to move away from there. Everything finally ended when Adam took Anna away. He didn't want the grandmother's birthday celebration to turn into a family fight arena. Anna looked at her husband with guilt; once again, she failed to bring Adam closer to her family, even though Adam was a good man despite not being wealthy. He spoke softly and somberly, "I'm sorry, my family behaved that way towards you again." Adam shook his head and looked at his wife, speaking calmly, "It's not your fault. I just don't meet the standards to be your family's son-in-law." Anna shook her head and held her husband's hand, "No, Adam. You are the best husband in the world." Adam smiled and then gave a brief kiss on his wife's cheek, murmuring, "No, Anna. You are the most perfect life partner in the world." he said. Anna smiled in response. In the evening, Adam went to his store. He had a dinner appointment with his friend Edwin to discuss their business. However, upon arrival, he was immediately faced with an unpleasant sight. A customer was seen angrily scolding one of his female employees loudly, causing a scene. Everyone there gathered around, whispering to each other. Curious, Adam approached and asked his female employee named Adele with a curious tone, "What's happening here?" Seeing her boss coming, the female employee was surprised and immediately bowed to apologize. She became flustered and could only bow down without daring to make eye contact with her boss. Then, she spoke with a trembling and stuttering voice, "Mr. Adam, forgive me. This man is demanding compensation for the item he bought yesterday. He claims that the item we sold is fake." Adam furrowed his brow, looking quite surprised to hear that, then he asked, "How could it be, Adele? That's impossible."The chubby man who lodged the complaint spoke up in annoyance, "You are trying to deceive me. I can take legal action if you refuse to compensate me for the full amount."Adam turned to the man and said politely, "Sir, please calm down. We will examine it first."The man with a fierce expression looked at Adam as if recalling something, then spoke spontaneously, "Aren't you that poor son-in-law of the McLauren family? Oh my, haha." Suddenly, he laughed.Adam furrowed his brow in confusion. "What's so funny about that?"The chubby man continued his words after he stopped laughing, mockingly, "You know? I know some people who work at the mansion of that wealthy family. And they can't stop gossiping about you. The pathetic man living off the youngest granddaughter. If I were you, I would be so ashamed and wouldn't have the courage to show my face in public. You are truly a useless low-life. Tell me, what's the charm you use to win the heart of a rich girl? I want to try it."Adam couldn'
Everyone there was shocked and watching, those who knew about Adam started to gossip about him."Fraud, he say? That's a criminal act!""He looks so handsome, but I never expected him to do something shameful.""Isn't the money from his wife enough? He's the son-in-law of a wealthy and renowned family, how could he stoop so low?""Don't you know? He comes from the streets, no wonder his true nature shows."Feeling encouraged by the surroundings, the chubby man started to provoke Adam again. He spoke in a condescending manner, "You're just embarrassing your wife's family. You fraudster! Isn't it enough that you're milking the McLauren fortune? Now you're deceiving people for money? How pathetic!"Adam clenched his fists in anger. He was on the verge of hitting the man and finishing him off. But he held back. He knew that violence wouldn't solve anything.So, cleverly, he called one of his employees and said, "Bring the CCTV footage when this man came to the store. Also, bring our inspe
Edwin nodded slightly, saying, "I've contacted her, but I didn't mention your injury. I told her the store was a mess, and you stayed overnight to clean it up."Adam looked relieved, recalling the events from the party yesterday. "Anna has had enough trouble because of me. This shouldn't bother her."Edwin patted his friend's shoulder gently, saying, "I understand, buddy."Adam sighed, staring at his palm, feeling something odd. About the strange stone, Adam couldn't stop thinking about it. He then spoke to Edwin, "I feel like something is bothering me right now."Edwin looked at him curiously, asking, "What is it? Is it about the scam scheme?"Adam looked back at his friend, then replied, "No, it's about the jade statue I broke. I remember there was a large piece stuck here," he pointed to his empty palm.Edwin remembered something, then reached into his pocket. He handed a small object to Adam, "This stone? You've been holding onto it all the time. I thought it was valuable, so I ke
His spirits instantly dampened, with a weary expression and a weak sigh, Edwin looked at his friend and said despairingly, "Well, I guess we'll just watch. It's impossible to get anything with him here."Adam simply nodded quietly, responding in the same despondent tone, "You're right."Meanwhile, Anna gazed at the two gloomy men with confusion. She asked her husband curiously, "What's wrong?"Adam shook his head, smiled, and calmly replied, "It's nothing. Isn't this your first time in a place like this? You'll see crazy people throwing their money away for something old." He playfully pinched his wife's cheek.Anna's fair face blushed with embarrassment. A hint of red spread to her ears. She gently punched Adam's chest, covering her embarrassment, and said, "Stop it. You're one of those crazy people too, Adam." The beautiful woman then laughed.The footsteps of the elderly man stopped next to Anna. He turned and greeted the granddaughter of the McLauren family in a flirtatious voice,
Adam looked hesitant, remembering that he had used most of his savings to buy a gift for his grandmother's birthday yesterday. But if he borrowed money from Edwin, it should be enough.So, he turned to his friend and said, "I want to get this one, please lend me some money."Edwin looked surprised to hear that, and he said anxiously, "Are you serious? That's a lot of money, Adam! Are you sure?"Adam nodded confidently.Suddenly, the old Louis raised his number and bid high, "Two million dollars."Adam felt a bit nervous, but he still couldn't bid any higher. He raised his number and bid, "Two million one hundred thousand."People looked towards him, as did Louis. So far, no one had dared to challenge the old collector, because when he made a bid, it meant he wouldn't let go of the item for anyone, no matter the price he had to pay.Louis bid again, his voice loud, "Two million five hundred thousand."All attendees were surprised, doubting if Adam could bid higher than the elderly seni
Adam sighed wearily. He had just lost a precious hope, which could have been a bridge to winning his grandmother's heart.Gently, Anna embraced her husband and gave him strength, knowing that Adam had tried his best. She spoke softly and attentively, "It's okay, darling. We will find something better than that statue."Adam nodded lightly and began to gather his spirits again. He smiled at his wife and said firmly, "You know I never stop trying. Next time, I will definitely find something better than that statue for grandma."His friend Edwin also offered support, patting Adam on the shoulder and encouraging him, "Come on, there are plenty of good things in this world. Don't be sad just because of one statue."The onlookers rose from their seats and looked towards Adam, some grinned and others chuckled softly as if mocking Adam for losing in the competition.Including Louis, the old man with a sturdy and arrogant physique, stood up and approached Adam with a satisfied expression. He g
Louis shouted angrily, feeling slightly humiliated, "Check your machine, fool! It's impossible that all my cards are not working!"The staff sighed and tried to remain patient, then politely said, "I apologize, Sir. But our machine is working fine. Would you like to proceed with the payment transaction using another method?"Louis rubbed his face roughly, with Adam still watching him in front of him. If this continued, he would surely be embarrassed. So, he protested again to the staff in anger, "Do you think I'm crazy to carry that much cash in my wallet?"Adam tried to offer a solution, he said to Louis, "If you don't mind, I can help you withdraw cash from the nearest bank. But if you prefer not to, you can borrow money from me, Sir."Louis looked at him cynically, seeing Adam's kind offer as an insult. Besides, how could Adam lend him money when he himself couldn't bet earlier. Louis scoffed cynically, then said, "You? Lend me money? Am I hearing wrong? How much do you have, anywa
Alex laughed upon hearing that.So, Adam foolishly offered help with Anna's money? That's ridiculous! But, it's good because I don't have to help that old man. Adam, you've given me a brilliant idea!Anna, who was not pleased with her husband's kind offer being insulted like that, finally spoke firmly, "Mr. Louis, it's okay if you don't accept our help. But, don't insult my husband. He sincerely offered to help you."Alex interrupted Anna's words and spoke as if siding with Adam. In reality, he just didn't want Louis to ask him for help, so he said, "My sister is right, Mr. Louis. Adam has been kind. Why don't you just accept it?"Adam and Anna, hearing Alex's words, were shocked and confused. Why was Alex suddenly speaking in their favor?Not only that, Louis was also surprised, not understanding why Alex seemed to be siding with Adam when he knew that accepting help from Adam would lower his self-worth. Flustered and nervous, Louis said to Alex, "Mr. Bown, what do you mean? The mone