Chapter 96 Daphne, My Woman
Daphne was very meticulous. She had prepared a room for her to stay in and took her out to buy some new clothes. By the time they finished running these errands, it was already past five.
Had it not been for Rex's call, Daphne would have almost forgotten about the evening's gathering at the family estate. She left Daisy with some instructions and hurried over.
It was already past seven when she arrived.
"You're young, but you act high and mighty, expecting so many of us to wait for just you. Is that appropriate?" a man bearing some resemblance to Hayden spoke up.
Daphne knew him; he was Charles' Uncle Thomas.
The Lancelot family estate was buzzing that night. Grandpa, her parents, Uncle Thomas, Aunt Susan, Uncle Jack, Aunt Kathy, and their children — nearly everyone was there. Indeed, she was late and could only offer a brief apology to everyone. "I'm sorry."
"Anyone can apologize. However, in the Lancelot family, don't think that just because you've clung onto Charles, you can disregard your elders," Uncle Thomas continued. He disapproved of someone with no family background marrying into the Lancelot family.
Grandpa couldn't stand anyone criticizing Daphne. Before he could rebuke, a deep voice tinged with an edge of coolness suddenly filled the room, exerting immense pressure, "Maybe that advice is better suited for you, Uncle."
"What do you mean?" Dylan, Thomas's son, got defensive.
"Daphne is my partner," Charles simply replied.
Daphne's face was a mix of shock and disbelief.
Pleasure showed in Grandpa's eyes, along with Hayden and Laura's. It was clear they were quite satisfied with Charles's actions tonight.
"Dad, just look at what Charles has become," Dylan complained, oblivious to Grandpa's fondness for Daphne. "He's upsetting his elders over a woman who's only good at social climbing. It's obvious my brother and sister-in-law haven't raised him right."
Hayden glanced at Charles with casual indifference, "Indeed, we surely don't teach our children as well as you do, little brother."
The room fell silent.
Everyone knew that Dylan's kids were troublemakers Failing in business and slacking in studies. They knew nothing but seek pleasure, never doing anything worthwhile.
There was an awkward vibe in the hall for a moment.
Charles led Daphne by the hand to sit beside Grandpa, looked at Dylan, and said, "If you could keep Caleb from causing trouble, Daphne and I wouldn't have been so late."
"What's the matter?" Grandpa chimed in, playing along.
Caleb ended up in the police station after a fight, claiming the CEO of Lancelot Group was his brother. Charles spoke with thin lips slightly parted, and slowly said, "If I hadn't been tied up cleaning his mess, it wouldn't have taken so long."
Grandpa cleared his throat lightly. “That kid Charles’ was lying through his teeth. Did he really think Grandpa didn’t know he had parked outside the family estate, waiting for Daphne for over an hour?”
Dylan's face turned red, and even Dakota was struggling to maintain composure.
Rex loved to stir the pot. "Getting into brawls and landing in jail, Uncle and Auntie are doing a great job raising their kid."
"Come on, Rex, that's a bit harsh, isn't it?" piped up a girl around seventeen, the daughter of his third uncle. "You mean to tell me you and Charles never fought? Daphne never threw a punch?"
"Actually, no," Rex said earnestly.
The adults never interfered in the kids' fights. Ever since Grandpa handed over the Lancelot Group to Charles, it caused resentment from Dylan and Felix who felt like he was playing favorites.
"Maybe we should all take a look at this." Hannah pulled up a video on her phone, raising it for all to see. "Captured this at the bar yesterday. I must admit, I had no idea Sister-in-law Daphne was such a fierce fighter."
As the video started, it showed Daphne in an altercation at the bar. The background was noisy, it was hard to make out the words that sparked the brawl.
You could just see Daphne's swift and unapologetic moves as she fought without holding back until the very end.
The threat that Daphne made crystal clear to her opponent was, "Say one more word and your other arm will be useless too."
The atmosphere in the grand hall became awkward.
Grandpa, Hayden, Laura, and everyone else had their eyes glued to Daphne. Shocked by the event.
‘Daphne was that skilled?’ That was Grandpa's first reaction, followed by an increasing fondness for her.
"Daphne, you're like my hero," Rex admitted in admiration. He couldn’t imitate her slick moves even if he wanted to. ‘How did Daphne, a girl, manage that?’
Hayden and Laura exchanged a glance: their son's path to wooing his wife just got tougher.
"You criticize Caleb for fighting, but what about Daphne?" Hannah didn't appreciate Rex's comment, her gaze shifting to Charles and Grandpa, "What do you call this?"
She was certain that Grandpa would surely disapprove of Daphne after this.
He always disliked those who were simple-minded and were brawns with no brains. Daphne's behavior was a disgrace to the Lancelot’s!
"Restoring order by force," Charles commented, his voice steady and deliberate.
Grandpa agreed, "Exactly."
Hayden and Laura added a thoughtful, "Hmm."
Everyone else was confused.
Hannah couldn't help her frustration, "Grandpa, don't you think you're being unfairly partial? When Jaden gets into a fight, it's a mess, but when Daphne does it, it's 'restoring order by force'?"
"If those girls hadn't stepped in and stopped her, she would've ended up in a hotel room upstairs with those guys!" she burst out, more impassioned as she spoke.
She couldn't stand Daphne. It was bad enough that Grandpa showed a clear preference for Uncle Robert's family, but why did Daphne also enjoy Grandpa's favor?
She was Grandpa's real granddaughter, after all!
"Say that one more time," Charles interrupted suddenly, an icy chill emanating from his presence, his gaze as cold as the winter's frost.
Felix quickly tugged at his daughter, aware of the potential consequences of angering Charles.
"If you're blind, seek treatment," Charles's eyes sliced through the room, showing no leniency even to his sister, "Daphne is not someone you can slander."
With that simple sentence, everyone understood Daphne's place in this family.
The brief Thanksgiving encounters painted a vague picture of Daphne, making her mysterious to Charles' family. No wonder they struggled to understand his choice of a wife.
"Enough," Grandpa commanded, adopting a stern tone to conclude the debate. "You've turned a fine family dinner into a circus with all your squabbling. Can't you be more like Daphne, calm and collected?"
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
