Chapter 636 Misunderstanding and Truth
Shock registered on every face—including Ryder's and Sarah's. The surprise wasn't from the request itself, but that it had come from Rex of all people.
Barbara stared at him, bewildered. "Idiot, what are you saying?"
Rex, lounging on the sofa despite his injured legs, pointed at himself. "You need to take responsibility for me!"
The Johnson family stood dumbfounded. Sandra's face registered particular shock.
Barbara hesitated visibly. "But I..."
Her ambiguous response gave the Johnsons an entirely different impression than she intended.
Anthony laughed heartily. "This is wonderful news! Young love is perfectly natural." His tone turned gently reproachful. "But Barbara, you're in the wrong here—getting involved with Rex and then trying to leave without taking responsibility? That's not how a Johnson behaves!"
In Anthony's mind, a relationship between Barbara and Rex could be advantageous. After all, Rex was Ryder's most valued subordinate.
Sandra's eyes flashed with anger, though her voice remained pleasant. "Barbara, dear, this isn't right. How could you get involved with Rex? Such a close relationship—think of how your children might suffer!"
Clearly, Sandra disapproved. In her mind, a country-raised man like Rex could never be worthy of her internationally-educated daughter. He lacked sophistication and worldliness.
Sandra still hoped her beautiful daughter would marry into true wealth and luxury.
Barbara pressed her palm against her forehead, exasperated by her family's assumptions. "Grandpa, Mom! You've misunderstood completely!"
Rex, his ears reddening, quickly clarified, "That's right! I meant that I rescued her, but both my legs were shot. I can't take care of myself right now, so I need Barbara as a caretaker!"
He hastily added, "Barbara and I are blood relatives! You're thinking too much!"
"Oh." Everyone relaxed as understanding dawned.
Barbara sighed with relief. But now that Rex had explained, she could hardly refuse to stay and care for him.
So Barbara remained at Ryder's home while the rest of the Johnson family departed.
Sarah accompanied Barbara upstairs to freshen up, leaving Ryder and Rex alone.
Ryder studied Rex thoughtfully from across the coffee table.
Rex grew uncomfortable under his scrutiny. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
Ryder shook his head. "No! No! No! Rex, what's going on with you?"
"What?" Rex's face filled with alarm. "Ryder, are you hiding something? Will I never walk again? No! I'll definitely stand up! I can still protect you!"
Rex suddenly leapt to his feet, ignoring his injured legs.
Ryder panicked, rushing to stop him. "No! That's not what I meant! Don't get excited! Your legs are fine! They'll heal completely in a couple of weeks!"
"Really? Don't take advantage of my honesty, Ryder."
Ryder nodded solemnly. "I was talking about Barbara!"
"Oh, that!" Rex's relief was palpable. "You scared me! I thought I'd never be able to follow you on adventures again!"
Ryder felt touched by Rex's loyalty. "Don't worry. You'll always be my trusted right-hand man. We'll make our mark on this world together!"
"Good!" Rex responded enthusiastically.
After this heartfelt exchange, Ryder gave Rex a teasing look. "So, do you actually like Barbara? The way I like Sarah?"
With Rex, directness worked best—subtlety would only create confusion.
Rex shook his head emphatically. "You're overthinking this! I just think Barbara's mother is a bad person. Barbara shouldn't stay with someone harmful—she'd suffer!"
"That's all?" Ryder clearly didn't believe him.
"Really! Why don't you believe me?" Rex grew agitated.
"I believe you!" Ryder nodded, while thinking: 'I don't believe you for a second!'
Rex had always been slow regarding emotional matters. This would take time.
Originally, Ryder had planned to rent Barbara a separate apartment with a caretaker—his obligation fulfilled.
After all, Barbara had shown inappropriate interest in Sarah! Now, for the sake of Rex's potential romance, he was inviting potential trouble into his home.
Whatever happened, Rex needed to win Barbara over. Otherwise, Ryder's sacrifice would be wasted! And it would solve his own problem by redirecting Barbara's affections appropriately.
Barbara settled into life at Ryder's home, diligently caring for Rex to repay her life debt.
Watching their interactions, both Ryder and Sarah exchanged knowing smiles.
With the Young family situation resolved, everyone enjoyed a few days of well-deserved rest.
Soon, Sarah became increasingly busy establishing SR Group in Aurora City.
After his week-long vacation, Ryder prepared to return to his courier position at Passion Logistics Management Company. But first, he visited Brent at Maple Group.
Since the Young family's bankruptcy and Maple Group's acquisition of Young Group, Brent had managed everything with impressive efficiency.
Every Young Group asset had been thoroughly absorbed, leaving the fallen family no chance to recover.
However, fully integrating these businesses would take time.
"Given the circumstances," Ryder told Brent, "you don't need to work as a courier anymore. I'm assigning you a more challenging task."
"While the Young Group assets are substantial, they suffer from rigid management systems and other serious problems. Completely integrating these properties will be arduous. I want you to focus all your energy on this."
"Understood! I won't let you down, Chairman!"
Ryder appreciated Brent's enthusiastic attitude.
Patting Brent's shoulder, Ryder continued more casually, "Now, let's talk about non-work matters. I heard you visited Constantine in prison yesterday?"
Brent nodded, smiling bitterly. "I did. He's aged considerably. For a moment, I questioned whether what we did was right."
"Oh?"
Brent began to explain. "At the wedding, Constantine said something true about me—" He stopped abruptly.
Ryder understood his hesitation. "It's alright. We're colleagues now. Sometimes sharing your troubles can relieve pressure. I may not be able to help, but I can listen."
Brent sighed. "It's almost laughable. In this long feud between the Young and Wallace families, I've become unsure who was right or wrong. Initially, I believed the Young family killed my father and bankrupted the Wallaces."
"But when I visited my parents' graves to announce our revenge, the caretaker—our former butler—said the Wallace family actually wronged the Youngs. So I went to the prison to learn the truth from Constantine himself."
After hearing Brent's account, Ryder was deeply moved by the tragic history.
It turned out that Brent's father, Lester, had indeed had an affair with Constantine's wife.
When Constantine discovered his wife's infidelity, he imprisoned her. She later died in childbirth.
The baby hadn't survived either, but Constantine—drugging himself to cope with reality—had taken a child from an orphanage, convincing himself it was his own flesh and blood, naming him Tyler.
But the dead remained dead.
Day after day, year after year, Constantine's hatred for Lester grew.
Eventually, Constantine snapped and killed Lester, sinking his body in the river.
Afterward, Brent had dedicated his life to avenging his father against the Young family.
He had succeeded—but understanding the full story brought no joy in his revenge.
"Don't dwell on it too much," Ryder advised. "What's done is done. Let it go."
Brent nodded. "I suppose that's all I can do." Changing the subject, he continued, "Actually, I just remembered some work matters I wanted to ask you about."
Ryder made an OK gesture. "No problem. Ask away! After I answer your questions, I need to get to my courier job for some exercise!"
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