Chapter 792 Moral Kidnapping
Eleanor's mom, upon hearing Chicago's words, wasn't as pleased anymore. But she still had a smile on her face.
"It's like this..." the woman lowered her eyelids, her expression turning sad, "Chicago, you may not know, but our family situation is very difficult. Eleanor was admitted to this exclusive school as a sponsored student."
Chicago was shocked. She glanced around subconsciously. Even though the school bell had just rung, some students had already rushed into the cafeteria.
Chicago inadvertently learned that the school often selected students with difficult family situations but good academic performance, subsidized their tuition and living expenses, and brought them to study at the school.
Out of respect for the students' dignity, the school did not disclose the names of these students.
Chicago was surprised that Eleanor's mom had directly revealed this in front of her. She was afraid other students might overhear.
"Auntie, you don't need to beat around the bush; just say it directly!" Chicago didn't appreciate the auntie's behavior and lost some of her earlier politeness.
The woman didn't care about the child's emotions and continued, "Although there is sponsorship in elementary school, as you know, she won't be able to maintain it if she can't rank first in junior high and high school. So, she needs some other help with her resume, like being the lead singer in the art performance."
Fiona and Darwin unanimously chose this prestigious school primarily because the school board and principal were very ethical.
For example, when Chicago's class was selected for the big choir performance, only one student could lead the whole choir. With so many students, who would be chosen? It was based on merit. Whoever sang the best would be selected!
Chicago could handle every vocal part skillfully, so the vocal teacher chose her as the lead singer.
As for Eleanor, Chicago remembered that the students behind her were not Eleanor. This at least indicated that Eleanor couldn't be the lead singer.
"Auntie, I understand what you mean," Chicago spoke up. "The teachers select the lead singer of the choir, so if you want to change the lead singer, you shouldn't come to me; you should talk to the teachers."
The woman's smile stiffened a bit. During the parent-teacher meeting, she had heard praises about how easy it was to talk to Chicago, but now she was reluctant to give up a spot for the lead singer.
"I've already talked to the teachers, but they said it couldn't be changed. So, I wanted to come directly to you. If you go to the teachers and say you don't want to be the lead singer and ask them to change it to Eleanor, no teacher would dare not listen to you!" There was a hint of flattery in the woman's smile.
This statement immediately darkened the faces of the adults at the table, especially Darwin's.
When he frowned, he looked somewhat intimidating.
"What do you mean no teacher would dare not listen to my daughter? Who told you that?" Darwin asked in a deep voice.
The woman instinctively shrank her neck, afraid to look at Darwin.
Chicago's small hand landed on Darwin's hand, and she said in a soft voice, "Dad, Mom said I should handle my affairs."
Darwin furrowed his brow and then looked at Janna, who nodded in agreement.
In this household, Fiona's rules prevailed.
No matter how angry Darwin was, he could only nod in agreement.
Seeing this, the woman's face lit up again. "Chicago, you really have a mind of your own, unlike our Eleanor, who asks me and her dad about everything!"
Chicago made no bones about it. "Is that so? I guess my good upbringing by my mom plays a role in that."
The woman's smile froze once more.
Chicago's words implied clearly that Eleanor lacked independence because her mother didn't raise her well.
"Just now, you said I should go to the teachers and tell them I don't want to be the lead singer..."
"Yes!" The woman eagerly nodded as the conversation circled back.
Next, Chicago firmly shook her head. "My mom says children shouldn't lie. I really want to be the lead singer, and I've put in a lot of effort for it."
Upon hearing this, the woman interrupted without hesitation. "Chicago, for you, being the lead singer is like a toy you can easily obtain, but for our Eleanor, it's a rare opportunity to enhance her resume. Can you help her?"
"No." Chicago refused without hesitation. "The qualification for the lead singer was earned through a competition among all the students in our class. I won it fair and square; I don't intend to give it to anyone."
Chicago was young, but when she got serious, she exuded confidence. Her dedication pleased her father and grandmother.
At this point, anyone with a sense of decency would have backed off. However, Eleanor's mother was not one to give up easily.
She raised the stakes. "Chicago, you said you won it in a competition, but we're all known that if weren't Solomon's daughter, could you have won it?"
The mention of Solomon's daughter was unfamiliar to Chicago. She had rarely been addressed that way before.
"You're Solomon's daughter, with diamond hairpins at your disposal. Eleanor isn't as fortunate as you. If you were to give up the opportunity to be her lead singer, it wouldn't mean much to you, but it could change Eleanor's life. You two are good classmates. Are you really not willing to help her?" The woman resorted to moral manipulation.
"You know well that your daughter's struggles are partly due to having a mother like you, right?" Janna interjected calmly. "But why should your responsibilities be imposed on my granddaughter, Chicago? Do we owe you anything?"
The woman looked at Janna, who had given birth to Eleanor during college and had been a full-time mother since graduation. She didn't recognize Janna.
"Grandma, what you're talking about isn't charity, right?" the woman said with a straight face.
"We don't need to rely on this to do charity. My granddaughter, Chicago, earns money by selling her paintings. She has done a lot of good deeds with the pocket money. She's been lucky." Janna raised her hand, regretting letting this crazy woman disrupt Chicago's good mood for no reason.
Seeing this, the bodyguard immediately stepped forward, gesturing for the woman to leave.
The situation had taken a turn the woman hadn't expected.
She thought a few kind words about Chicago, a bit of self-pity, and a touch of moral manipulation would surely make Chicago agree to her reasonable request.
"Fine, I've heard teachers and other parents praise you as a good child, thinking you're helpful. I didn't expect you to be so selfish!" the woman suddenly raised her voice. "Indeed, you're a capitalist's daughter, unable to empathize with us, commoners!"
By now, the cafeteria had filled up. Chicago had never experienced moral manipulation before.
Janna, on the other hand, had dealt with it many times. She replied, "My granddaughter, Chicago, of course, is a good child. If you're in need and worried about your child losing sponsorship and not being able to continue at a good, prestigious school, it's okay. You can come to me, come to Chicago's dad. As long as your child is good, we're willing to help. But acting like a crazy person, rushing to Chicago and making impolite demands, resorting to moral manipulation, who in their right mind would want to deal with you?"
"That's right, what's wrong with being a capitalist? Should capitalists be morally manipulated by you?" Stuart's fists were clenched!
Stuart looked at Chicago with disdain. "Miss, in the future, when we encounter such people, we should stay away!"
Chicago still didn't understand why a capitalist's daughter had to yield to Eleanor. Why should she be publicly insulted if she didn't yield to this woman?
The woman's face turned very ugly. At that moment...
"Mom!" A panicked voice came from not far away.
Chicago looked over to see Eleanor running over, sweating profusely. She immediately furrowed her brow.
"Mom, why are you coming here?" Eleanor ran to her mother, trying to pull her away. "Let's go!"
"Smack!"
The next moment, the woman's thin hand landed directly on Eleanor's face.
The bustling cafeteria, already drawn to Eleanor's mother's earlier outburst, fell silent. After that slap, the cafeteria quieted down immediately.
Eleanor held her cheek, which turned red within seconds. She looked embarrassed and ashamed.
"It's all your fault, you useless fool. You got a sponsored spot, but you can't even rank first in your grade. If you were a bit more capable, I wouldn't have to come to beg Chicago to give up the lead singer position for you!"
Chicago had grown up in a loving environment, but no one had ever spoken to her like this.
Just hearing Eleanor's mother's words made Chicago feel suffocated.
She watched Eleanor with concern. Eleanor's face went from red to pale.
"Tell her you go and ask her quickly!" Eleanor's mother, oblivious to the deep hurt she had caused her child in public. She desperately pulled Eleanor's arm and pushed her toward Chicago.
Chicago and Eleanor locked eyes.
Eleanor's face turned red, tears uncontrollably filling her eyes.
Seeing this, Eleanor's pupils trembled violently, overwhelmed by a profound sense of shame in an instant.
"I'm sorry." Eleanor apologized and immediately pulled away from her mother's hand, turning to run out.
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