Chapter 121
“Come home right this instant, Emmanuel! Granddad and the others are
here!”
Sure enough, Roselynn was calling him to ask for help.
“All right; I’ll head home right away!” Emmanuel replied and hung up the
phone without any further questions.
Having dealt with Hermann and those from his household, Emmanuel
knew just how unreasonable they could be.
Fearing that Alessandra and Roselynn wouldn’t be able to handle them, he
decided to head back immediately.
“I need to go home urgently, Ms. Quillen. I’m afraid I may not be coming
back later in the afternoon,” Emmanuel told Mackenzie before leaving.
Mackenzie nodded. “All right. Just give me a call if you need anything.”
Despite her casual attitude, her words filled Emmanuel’s heart with a
warm sensation.
Meanwhile, things were starting to get out of hand at the Lowe residence.
Hermann, his wife, and their two grandchildren had been causing a ruckus
since early in the morning.
“Well? Say something, Alessandra! Don’t forget that Emerson is your
brother!” Hermann yelled while jabbing a finger at Alessandra.
Back then, it was the norm for people to get married and have kids at a
young age. Hermann had Alessandra when he was eighteen, so he was
only seventy–five years old at the moment. Not only was he still in decent
shape, but he was also a lot healthier than Alessandra.
2/5
“I know Emerson is my brother, Dad! I want him to come back alive too, but
we really don’t have that much money!” Alessandra exclaimed with a
helpless look on her face.
As though they were faced with a powerful enemy, Roselynn stood behind
Alessandra to back her up. They were determined not to pay Hermann the
eighty thousand no matter what.
Why should we pay money to help Uncle Emerson? He only comes to us
whenever he needs money, and he has never helped our family out even
once! Why should we save him when he’s the one who got himself into
trouble?
“Hmph! Even if you don’t have the money, your children probably do! Why
don’t you ask them for the money?” Hermann asked, getting straight to
the point.
His wife, Olivia Lachner, played along and added softly, “Alessandra, I had
a really hard time giving birth to your brother, you know? Our family will be
done for if anything happens to him!”
Alessandra’s eyes teared up when she heard that.
Emerson may be a total bum, but he is still my brother!
“Roselynn, could you and Manny maybe help out a little?”
Alessandra had no other choice but to ask Roselynn for help.
“Help? What for?” Roselynn was no longer the naïve and innocent girl she
used to be. “We lent him tens of thousands to pay off his gambling debt
three years ago, and he hasn’t paid us back! That’s our hard–earned
money!”
“What are you trying to say, Roselynn? Are you going to just sit by and do
nothing?” a chubby guy shouted and gave Roselynn a hard shove.
That guy was Emerson’s son, Jamison Cadigan.
He had just turned eighteen that year, but he had gotten really tall and
strong over the past three years. One push from him was enough to knock
Roselynn to the floor.
“Hey! What are you doing, Jamison? How could you hit Roselynn like that?”
said Henrietta Cadigan.
She was Emerson’s eldest daughter and had turned twenty–two that year.
She hardly spoke much due to her inferiority complex, but she was close
with Roselynn and wanted to help her up.
Jamison, too, used to be bullied as a kid. That resulted in him being a
coward when dealing with outsiders. When he was at home, however, he
had a tendency to do as he pleased because Hermann doted on him.
Being the physically strongest person in the house, he had no reason to
fear any repercussions. “So what if I hit her? Dad is her uncle! A heartless
woman like her deserves to be hit!”
“Well done! You need to hit women every now and then, or they’ll forget
their place!” Hermann complimented him.
Chapter 122
He then shoved Henrietta aside and jabbed a finger at Roselynen ge he
continued. “Men have been the head of families for thousands of years:
young woman like you has no right to say such things: Now that your
father is no longer around, you need to treat your uncie like your own
father: Refusing to help him makes you an unfilial child!”
Roselynn was so mad at them that she nearly exploded with anger
What year are these two living in Why would anyone still think like this? 8
is precisely because of this mindset that uncle Emerson ended up the way
he did Granddad has always treated Mom as a source of money for
Uncle Emerson, but he ignored all of uncle timersions misdeeds. This
patriarchal nonsense is the root cause of at these problemgr
“Alessandra, you’d better have your children hand over the eighty
thousand as soon as possible! Your brother can’t wait much longer
really don’t have the money, then sell your house or something”
pressed on
yöu
He had raised his son for forty–four years, so he absolutely refused to let
his son die.
As such, he was determined to get the money through any means
necessary.
“Exactly! Men are the ones who call the shots at home! Hurry up and pay
us the money so we can save my dad!” Jamison added with his hands on
his hips.
Because he had been bullied a lot out there, nobody took him seriously. As
such, the feeling of being in power at home felt amazing, and he took
great pride in being a man.
Alessandra quickly bent over to help Roselynn up.
The latter was so mad that she wanted to call the police on them.
“Women are incredibly capable too! Who says men are the only ones who
call the shots at home? If that’s the case, then I’m the man of this house!”
someone shouted angrily from outside the door.
“Manny!”
Alessandra breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Emmanuel’s voice.
Roselynn, too, regained her confidence when she saw that Emmanuel had
returned. As domineering as she might be, she was still at a disadvantage
if things were to get physical.
With Emmanuel by their side, however, things would be very different.
Sure enough, Jamison, who was acting all smug just a moment ago,
quickly stepped aside the moment he saw Emmanuel. “Hi, Emmanuel!”
Although Jamison was much larger in size, the aura he exuded was far
weaker than that of Emmanuel’s. After all, Emmanuel was a former soldier
who had survived the battlefield.
When faced with someone more powerful than he was, Jamison couldn’t
help but expose his cowardly nature for all to see.
“You dare lay your filthy hands on my sister?” Emmanuel asked.
His icy–cold gaze alone was enough to make Jamison tremble in fear.
“I-I–I didn’t! Hear me out, Emmanuel! I just got a little agitated, that’s all! I
didn’t mean to hurt Roselynn!” Jamison stammered nervously, but
Emmanuel ignored him and stepped forward.
Jamison was so scared that he tripped while backing away and fell to the
floor. ~
Hermann stepped forward and yelled angrily, “What are you doing,
Emmanuel? Are you trying to bully Jamison, huh? You want to fight, tough
guy? Come on, then! Hit me!”
Of course, Emmanuel wasn’t about to hit an old man like Hermann.
“Calm down, Manny! Let’s just focus on resolving this problem! Your uncle
says he needs the money within three days, or they’ll…”
Alessandra was panicking so much that she couldn’t bring herself to
complete that sentence.
Emerson may be a total loser, but he is still my brother!
“Relax, Mom! I’m not going to hit anyone. I came back to help solve the
problem,” Emmanuel reassured her before turning to face Hermann.
Chapter 123
“You want to solve the problem? Then hurry up and give us eighty
thousand! They’re demanding one hundred and sixty thousand. Your
granny and I dug into our life savings, and we now have a total of eighty
thousand. Emerson is your mother’s brother, so it’s only fair that she helps
pay for the remaining eighty thousand!” Hermann said in the most
matter–of–factly tone possible.
Alessandra didn’t dare protest even though she had no money.
Roselynn, on the other hand, was on the verge of exploding with anger.
Uncle Emerson is nothing but a sc*mbag who indulges in vices like
drinking, gambling, and fooling around! I wouldn’t even pay one dollar for
him, let alone one hundred and sixty thousand! He got a woman pregnant
at the age of twenty–one and married her as a result. After she gave birth
to Henrietta and Jamison, however, he divorced her with the excuse of her
gaining weight. He never even bothered to look after his kids after the
divorce. All he did was leave them with Granddad and Granny while he
enjoyed his life of vice outside. He even took things to a whole new level by
trying to make a fortune overseas, only to end up failing and getting
himself in trouble with the gangsters over there! Serves him right! A
person like him shouldn’t even be allowed to come back! His mere
presence is going to pollute the environment here!
Although Emmanuel felt the same way about Emerson, he had to take his
mother’s feelings into account as well. “We don’t have any money,
Granddad. I only make eighty thousand a year, and we’re often strapped
for cash. Mom wasn’t working before, but she took up a cleaning job to
help cover some of the expenses. Even then, it still isn’t enough. There
really is nothing we can do to help.”
Anyone with a decent amount of self–respect would have backed off by
then, but Hermann was not one of them.
“I don’t care! He is your brother, Alessandra! You have to give us eighty
thousand, or I will disown you! If you don’t have the money, then get it from
your kids! Roselynn is an adult with no financial commitments, so she
should have no issues paying eighty thousand!”
Hermann had set his sights on Roselynn the moment he walked through
that door.
While Roselynn did save up quite a lot of money when trying to find
Emmanuel a wife, she did not feel like handing it over to them.
Had Emerson not been such a despicable parasite who kept taking from
them, she probably would have reluctantly agreed to pay up.
However, that was clearly not the case here.
“Just think of it as lending us money in our time of need, Roselynn.”
Hermann only came over because he knew Roselynn could afford to pay
them.
He decided to use lending money as an excuse so Roselynn would have
no reason to refuse him.
Roselynn’s face burned bright red with frustration. She knew all too well
that she would surely not get the money back if she lent it to them.
Seeing as Roselynn was struggling to come up with a response,
Emmanuel took over and said, “Lending money, huh? Do you know how it’s
good practice to pay back the money that you owe? Well, you borrowed
thirty thousand from Mom three years ago to pay off Uncle Emerson’s
gambling debts. I don’t think you’ve paid Mom back, Granddad!”
Everyone fell silent after hearing that.
The truth was, Hermann and his family never intended to pay them back
at all.
Even Alessandra didn’t think to ask them for the money, so she was
surprised to hear Emmanuel bring that up.
“Just lend us eighty thousand, and I’ll have Emerson pay it all back later!”
Hermann replied with a nonchalant wave.
Emmanuel and Roselynn exchanged glances when they heard that. They
knew with absolute certainty that it would be near impossible to get that
money back from Emerson.
“Just lend your granddad some money, Roselynn!”
Alessandra couldn’t help but chime in as well. Although Emerson and
Hermann had treated her poorly over the years, she couldn’t bring herself
to be so heartless toward them.
She would never forgive herself if Emerson died because she refused to
help.
Roselynn was on the verge of breaking down in tears at that point. Her job
didn’t pay her all that much, and she was planning to use her meager
savings for her own future.
N
Life was short, and she absolutely refused to waste ten years‘ worth of
savings on that sc*mbag uncle of hers.
Chapter 124
However, she didn’t want her mother to worry about Emerson’s safety
either.
“We’re family here, Roselynn. You wouldn’t sit by and do nothing, would
you?” Jamison added with a smug grin.
He was determined to take full advantage of Roselynn’s dilemma.
“Roselynn does not have eighty thousand, so you can forget about asking
her for money! We still have three days, so let’s try to come up with an
alternative solution that doesn’t involve money. Maybe we can make a
police report or something!” Emmanuel suggested.
“You…”
Hermann had assumed that his plan would work for sure, but Emmanuel
foiled it completely.
“If you want Uncle Emerson to make it home safely, then tell us everything
that you know, Granddad. There’s no guarantee that they’ll let him go even
if we pay them the money. In fact, they might even hold on to him and
demand more money!”
Emmanuel made such a good point that Hermann couldn’t argue with
him at all.
“Fine! I’ll tell you everything, but I will never forgive you all if he ends up
dying because we don’t pay them!” Hermann threatened before giving
them a brief summary of the situation.
Alessandra had wanted to have them stay for lunch, but Hermann refused
and stormed out of there with the others.
“What should we do, Manny?” Alessandra asked helplessly.
I can’t force Roselynn to pay up, so selling this house might just be the only
option…
Emmanuel knew what she was thinking, so he quickly reassured her, “I’ll
take care of this, so you don’t have to do anything on your end. We don’t
owe Uncle Emerson anything, so we are not responsible for the
consequences of his own actions. He has only himself to blame for what
happens to him.”
Roselynn felt the same way about the situation. “That’s right! Uncle
Emerson is forty–four years old, Mom! It’s not like he’s an underage teen
who doesn’t know what he’s doing! We didn’t put him in that situation! He
did it to himself!”
4
Of course, Alessandra understood all of that very well. She was simply too
soft–hearted to sit by and do nothing.
It was almost noon at the time. Mackenzie had her driver take her to a
restaurant for lunch.
Not only did she summon Beatrix to join her for lunch, but she also had Lexi
come over.
“It’s a Saturday, Mackenzie. Shouldn’t you be staying home with Manuel
instead? Why would you ask us out for lunch?” Beatrix protested.
She had been very busy lately after taking over some projects at work, so
Saturday was her only chance to sleep in a little.
It’s only eleven in the morning! I can’t believe Mackenzie would drag me
out of bed just to have lunch with her!
“That man went home early in the morning. What’s wrong with me asking
you out for lunch? Why are you complaining so much?” Mackenzie
snapped at her coldly.
Beatrix and Lexi shot each other glances and chuckled in amusement.
“Oh… So, you only asked us out because Manuel is busy, huh?” Beatrix
teased her.
Mackenzie shot Beatrix an icy–cold glare, prompting the latter to shut up
instantly.
Unlike Emmanuel, she did not have the freedom to speak her mind without
consequences.
“If you don’t want to eat lunch with me, then get back to work. You’ve got
your hands full at the moment, right? I don’t mind giving you more work if
you’d like!”
“Please don’t! It is an honor for me to have lunch with you, Mackenzie!”
Beatrix said while sticking her tongue out.
Honestly, how does Manuel even put up with Mackenzie? They’ve been
living together for about two weeks now, right? I would’ve moved out long
ago if I were him!
Chapter 125
During the meal, Mackenzie’s phone rang.
Beatrix and Lexi lowered their heads before glimpsing at her.
They didn’t have the nerve to play with their phones while eating with
Mackenzie. If their phones were the ones ringing, they’d need to ask her for
permission to answer it.
Of course, Mackenzie usually never answered calls while eating. However,
that one was an exception because she accepted it after seeing the
caller.
After the person on the other side spoke for a while, she coldly replied,
“Mhm. I understand.” Then, she put the phone away.
Beatrix’s head was still lowered as she mouthed a few words at Lexi. “It’s
Manuel.”
Lexi grinned in secret. It seems that man is always granted special
privileges by Ms. Quillen.
When Mackenzie swept her gaze past them, they swiftly pretended to
focus on their meals.
(
“Help me look into something, Lexi,” ordered Mackenzie abruptly.
It was why she asked Lexi out for a meal.
There were three reasons Lexi successfully became the personal assistant
to Mackenzie.
Firstly, she also graduated with MBA. Thus, she was knowledgeable and
capable.
Secondly, she was the daughter of a prominent family. While her family
wasn’t as influential as the Quillen family, they were still distinguished.
Thirdly, she was a hacker with a unique source of intel.
“Say the word, Ms. Quillen.” Lexi revered Mackenzie. In addition to how she
admired Mackenzie’s success and her relationship with the latter, she
genuinely respected and looked up to her employer.
“I want you to locate Emerson and see if he’s imprisoned in northern
Manchernius,” requested Mackenzie.
Promptly, Lexi replied, “Roger!” This is a piece of cake for me. Since more
than twenty years ago, plenty of people have illegally traveled to another
country to perform activities deemed criminal by local law. It had gotten
particularly bad in the past few years. Although, there’re only a few
methods one could utilize to leave the country in that manner. With
Terence Group’s resources and my personal intelligence network, it’s not
difficult for me to locate who had left the country through those secret
channels recently.
A thought struck Mackenzie’s mind before she relayed another order.
“Also, send someone to investigate Emmanuel’s granddad.”
Beatrix was stunned and couldn’t help but tease, “Have you started
getting curious about Manuel’s background? Are you learning more about
him because you plan to live the rest of your life with him?”
Without delay, Mackenzie shot a glance at her. “It seems like you’re quite
free, considering you have so much to say.”
“Not at all! I’m busy, actually!” Beatrix zipped her mouth immediately. I
don’t know if the same applies to someone else, but if I speak any further,
she’ll definitely increase my workload. I’m not Manuel, so I don’t have
special privileges!
“Understood, Ms. Quillen.” Lexi nodded.
Meanwhile, Emmanuel called many people to save Emerson. He even
visited numerous locations for that purpose, including the police station.
However, the police explained that they would need to cooperate with
northern Manchernius‘ officers to rescue Emerson, and there was no
guarantee they would succeed.
Emmanuel wasn’t worried about Emerson’s safety. However, he feared his
uncle’s death would cause his mother to feel bad and his grandfather’s
family to harass his family.
It wasn’t until ten in the night that Emmanuel returned home, exhausted.
When he saw Mackenzie doing something on the balcony, he approached
her, intrigued.
Chapter 126
Emmanuel didn’t know how many hobbies Mackenzie had. However, on
the rare occasion when she was free, she would engage in idyllic
activities, such as tending to potted plants or drawing.
At that moment, she seemed tranquil and divine, much like the first time
Emmanuel met her.
It’s truly a blessing that I can return to a wife like her at home. In an instant,
he felt his weariness had vanished.
“You’re back?” asked Mackenzie without turning her head.
“Yeah. Have you eaten yet, Ms. Quillen?”
Emmanuel always assumed Mackenzie was just an executive instead of
the daughter of a rich family with housekeepers serving her. Hence, he
couldn’t help but worry that she would starve when she was alone for not
knowing how to cook.
“I did. I bought food for you too. It’s sitting in the microwave. If you’re full,
you can throw it away.” The moment Mackenzie finished her sentence,
Emmanuel headed into the kitchen.
He hadn’t eaten anything yet. It was nine at night when he left the police
station, so he thought about having instant noodles at home for dinner.
Thus, he was surprised she bought something for him.
As Mackenzie watched him devour the takeout she bought in the living
starvation. How unsightly.
Manchernius thirty–four days ago. He’s part of an online scam, baiting
innocents into an online casino.”
Emmanuel was stunned before he turned to Mackenzie in shock.
like him, dreaming of getting rich quickly. Among the eleven of them,
seven have successfully returned to the country. The ransom was only
thirty thousand. The one hundred and sixty thousand was just something
countenance.
observing his expression. “Naturally. I don’t like lying, after all.”
Upon ending her sentence, she felt guilty. Despite what I said, I still haven’t
Emmanuel didn’t notice her micro–expressions and tightened his fists. This
man, he wouldn’t have raised my uncle to be equally horrendous, too.
“There’s one more thing. My friend working at a private university in
Yeringham noticed something odd about a new student applying for
name is the same as your uncle’s!” As Mackenzie spoke, she sent
In response, Emmanuel gandered at it. Yeah, he’s definitely my cousin,
Meanwhile, Mackenzie wasn’t sure if he connected all the dots, so she
Manchernius. If he wished to return, he needed to pay the ransom of thirty
planning to use it to help your cousin enter a university!”
Emmanuel nodded. No wonder Jamison seems so impatient today and
pushed Roselynn. He’s not doing it for his irresponsible father but for
Swiftly, Emmanuel replied, “How can it not be difficult? If not for you, I
To shift his attention, she asked, “What do you plan to do now?” I’m unsure
Fortunately for her, Emmanuel wasn’t a suspicious man. Expeditiously, he
“Emerson may be a b*stard, but I still need to save him. He’s family, after
A grin formed on Mackenzie’s countenance when she heard that. I knew
this idiot wasn’t heartless, despite his attempt at pretending he was. “Do
you have the money? Should I lend it to you?”
“Thank you, Ms. Quillen. However, I’ve borrowed over two hundred
“Suit yourself. Let me know if you can’t do it.” With that, Mackenzie returned
Mom will feel remorseful if Uncle Emerson dies in another country. Guess I’ll
transferred twenty thousand to Roselynn so she could hand it to
Of course, Roselynn was furious upon learning the truth and didn’t want to
give a single cent to their grandfather,
money to his mother. She can decide whether she wants to hand the
money over to Granddad or not. It’s not like I’m doing this to save my awful
to and from the company. If I’m transferred to headquarters, I don’t need
to go back and forth for my part–time job in the future. In fact, I can return
realized his goal of returning home with her together.
arrangement in front of Mackenzie. “It’s all thanks to Ms. Beatrix. Otherwise,
I can only pick you up from the headquarters after I wrap up my part–time
job at the branch company every day. It can be a pain in the butt to
arrange sometimes.”
Mackenzie was amused. He doesn’t know I’m the one behind this
arrangement or that Beatrix is my sister! I rarely play games, but after
learn the truth about me.
“Ms. Beatrix is currently in a banquet at a hotel, Ms. Quillen. She asked me
Mackenzie frowned. What the heck is that brat doing? Why is she asking
my husband to pick her up when our family has so many bodyguards and
drivers?
“Can I go, Ms. Quillen?” inquired Emmanuel.
“Sure.” Mackenzie only agreed because Beatrix was her sister, so she didn’t
“Thank you, Ms. Quillen!”
prepared to drive her Maserati out.
you can leave.”
She didn’t even need to guess why her little sister borrowed her husband,
Concurrently, a banquet for university students was held in a large
luxurious room within Draco City Hotel.
All attendees were dressed attractively and exuded a vibe of
Jonathan’s status was, of course, incomparable to Gautier’s, who was the
Thus, the only men invited to the banquet were those with distinguished
backgrounds. As for the women, they were either descendants of eminent
At that moment, Beatrix had left the dance floor and sat alone on a bench.
Her best friend, Elizabeth Lenoir, hastily met up with her after spotting her.
“Are you returning already, Beatrix? ”
Elizabeth was Claudette’s twenty–one–year–old little sister. Like Beatrix,
she was a fourth–year student at Yeringham University. In six months, she
could either choose to further her studies overseas or join her family’s
“It’s about time, anyway. I’ve already asked someone to pick me up,”
“Is it your family’s driver? You’d rather have them drive you home than
After all, not only was Jonathan a scion, but he was also a famous figure in
“He’s not my boyfriend. Why do I want him to take me home?” Like her
older sister, Beatrix disliked the Verkade family’s sons. They’re all either
hypocrites, douchebags, or rakish. I ask Emmanuel to pick me up because
there’s a chance a random driver won’t be enough to dissuade Jonathan
At that moment, the door to the hall was pushed open. An elegantly
“Is he here for the banquet, too? Why don’t I recognize him?”
A group of women promptly chatted about him.
That person was, of course, Emmanuel. “I’m here, Ms. Beatrix! Are you
ready to leave?”
Beatrix was stunned after turning toward him. No wonder Claudette and
Mackenzie took a fancy to him! He’s incredibly handsome after dressing
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: A Whirlwind Marriage with the Beautiful CEO