Chapter 63 Edward Turns the Tables
No way!
Tiffany and Debra were utterly stunned. One forgot to be angry, while the other forgot to cry.
"Edward! You're not listening to me!" Patrick's blood pressure soared with anger.
Throughout childhood and into adulthood, Edward, who had never been favored, rarely opposed Patrick's ideas. However, now that he had become the CEO with increased power, he dared to say 'no' to Patrick.
When Edward came to his senses, he didn't expect himself to resist Patrick so directly.
"What are you thinking?!" Patrick spat. "It was you who said you wanted to divorce Lily in the first place and insisted on marrying Nicole! Now you’re refusing when I’m asking you to divorce Lily immediately? Are you indecisive about marriage? How did I raise such a good-for-nothing son like you?!"
"Good-for-nothing? That's right." Edward was suddenly ignited, squinting his eyes mockingly. " Since we are father and son, shouldn't a son be like his father?"
"Edward!" Patrick, like a powder keg exploding, rushed over and fiercely slapped Edward!
The slap was so loud that it even startled Debra.
Edward's pale cheek instantly bore the imprint of the slap.
"Patrick! Don't resort to violence against Edward! Edward is young, it's normal that he may be irritable in speech. By the way, it's not worth it to harm the father-son relationship physically, it hurts both emotionally and physically!"
Tiffany hurried over to support Patrick, but inwardly she sneered, feeling a release of pent-up malice.
"Tiffany! I know you are a kind mother, who has treated Edward as your son since he was young, but you have pampered Edward too much. You didn’t dare to scold or discipline him. Look at him now! He has been spoiled by you to the point of disrespecting his father!" Patrick's palm tingled; his face even redder than Edward's.
"In my eyes, Edward will always be a child, and besides, I am not Edward's biological mother, so Edward was never that easy to accept me. If I don't treat Edward well, wouldn't it create a rift between us? I just want to be a good mother, that's all," Tiffany said, tears welling up, looking very pitiful.
Each word she spoke appeared to convey vulnerability, but in reality, each one was deteriorating the relationship between Tiffany and Edward.
Edward chuckled mockingly. He had witnessed this tactic of excessive praise since childhood, understanding its implications, but never voiced it. Edward knew that Patrick never truly cared about him. If Caleb hadn't been chronically ill in Mythorica, he would never have ascended to the position of president.
Just because a crying baby didn't always get candy, and tears wouldn't make an unpopular child more liked.
"A child? Edward is thirty! Stop making excuses for him!" Patrick pointed at Edward's face angrily. "Tomorrow, you will take care of those two things! The first one is getting a divorce from Lily Brown right away! And make her apologize to Debra in person! The second is to suppress the negative trending on Twitter about Debra and calm this storm!"
Edward smirked, his expression dark and daunting. "Dad, when you negotiate in the business world, do you start by slapping people before establishing conditions?"
"What did you say?" Patrick was taken aback.
"Even in a father-son relationship, we should keep accounts clear, especially when it comes to the interests of the group. I won't compromise on that level." Edward's gaze was cold and determined.
"I can't divorce Lily Brown yet because I promised grandpa to wait until after Mr. Wellington's 80th birthday party before officially divorcing. I can't break that promise. As for the negative online news, my only solution is to have Debra publicly apologize. Besides that, I won't be doing anything else," Edward said indifferently.
"Edward! You!" Patrick's eyes reddened, raising his hand high, but before the slap landed, Edward grabbed it firmly.
"Dad, I'm thirty now. Do you think you can still hit me?" Edward's eyes were filled with cold determination.
Patrick felt a faint pain in his wrist.
"No! I won't apologize! I won't apologize no matter what you say!" Debra started crying and protesting again.
"Bart, come in." Edward's magnetic voice rang out, and Bart, who was waiting outside, knocked on the door and entered the study, bowing respectfully.
"Bring out the documents for Patrick to review," Edward ordered.
"Yes, Mr. Wellington." Bart's eyes flickered slightly, but he still handed the prepared materials to Patrick.
"What is this?" Patrick questioned.
"These are the financial reports for the EV boutique jointly operated by Aunt Tiffany and Debra for this year and last year." Edward's face remained expressionless, his voice low.
Tiffany and Debra were tense, their faces stiffening.
"It shows that the boutique has been running at a loss for nearly ten million each year since its establishment three years ago, and all operating expenses each year were drawn from the group's funds. The boutique was originally signed by Aunt Tiffany to be responsible for its own profits and losses. Since the group cannot benefit from its profits, there is no reason for the group to bear the losses for Tiffany and Debra."
After speaking, Edward lowered his eyes. "If Debra doesn't apologize, then I will exercise my authority as the president and shut down the boutique that is running at a loss for Tiffany and Debra."
'What? Shut down the boutique?!' Debra was shocked, and Tiffany's eyes were filled with hatred and redness.
A flicker of fierceness flashed in her eyes, then disappeared. Tiffany suddenly hugged Patrick's arm and cried, "Patrick! The boutique was a birthday gift you gave me three years ago! How can you shut it down?!"
Patrick's jaw tightened, looking at the evidence before him. Even Patrick couldn't refute Edward at that moment.
"I can overlook this matter for your sake, pretending not to know. But the condition is that Debra must publicly apologize, and Aunt Tiffany must make up for the three years of misappropriation of group funds by the boutique. Otherwise, I will announce this at the group meeting the day after tomorrow, and by then, no one's reputation will be spared." Edward's eyes were merciless.
Tiffany looked at Edward with eyes full of hatred.
The boutique couldn't be shut down! Tiffany had a plan that depends on it!
"Debra, you will hold a press conference tomorrow night, following Edward's instructions." Patrick's eyebrows furrowed deeply.
Debra acquiesced, looking dejected and without any retort.
Tiffany, seeing Patrick's increasingly dark expression, knew she had lost this round completely. She could only replan, her eyes filled with hatred as if she wanted to kill Edward!
As soon as Edward and Bart left the study, sounds of Patrick throwing things and Tiffany and Debra crying could be heard from inside.
Bart scratched his head in confusion and tentatively asked, "Mr. Wellington, didn't you decide to stand firm against Ms. Tiffany? Why the sudden change of heart?"
"My affairs are none of your concern," Edward replied.
Evelyn's beautiful eyes and the fragrance of her breath when she was close to Edward suddenly appeared in his mind. In his calm eyes, a hint of panic flickered.
Edward tried to convince himself that he changed his mind temporarily because he watched the surveillance video and heard Debra's audacious remarks, but the truth was different.
Why did Edward react so strongly when Tiffany and Debra accused Evelyn, or when Patrick pressured him to divorce? There wasn't a shred of selfishness in his reactions.
"Mr. Wellington, we've worked hard to gather this evidence, and now we're just releasing it to make Debra apologize. Isn't that a bit unfair?" Bart pursed his lips, still somewhat dissatisfied.
"It doesn't matter. Even if I expose this, Patrick has ways to cover up for Tiffany. Patrick and Tiffany have a deep bond." Edward sneered, clearing Evelyn's beautiful face from his mind, his gaze deep. "I just chose an outcome that Lily and I can both accept. After all, I owe Lily for what happened at the auction last time."
Edward sighed, feeling a bit uneasy. "This time, I'll consider it as repaying Lily. I don't want to owe her anything."
