Chapter 678 What Was the Truth Behind the Kidnapping Back Then?
"The Hamilton family used to be a prestigious family in Frostgate, far surpassing the status of any business tycoon. In Frostgate, having money doesn't necessarily mean having power, but those with power can make the wealthy go bankrupt in an instant," Ben said, somewhat puzzled, as he handed the information about the Hamilton family to Jasmine in Douglas Group.
"Celeste, who is Ethan's mother, is the sole heir of this generation of the Hamilton family and Wesley's cherished daughter. Wesley and William had some interactions, and it was only because of William that Wesley agreed to let Celeste marry Howard. At that time, Wesley was at the peak of his power, and the Hamilton family had the capability to help the Douglas Group soar to new heights."
It was clear that the reason Celeste held more shares than Howard was because half of the Douglas Group belonged to the Hamilton family.
Wesley poured all his connections, resources, and efforts into helping the Douglas Group break through the encirclement of business associations like the Hawthorne family and achieve great success.
"The Hamilton family." Jasmine mused. "I've lived with the Wilson family for twenty-one years and have seen many wealthy heiresses and socialites. But I have no impression of the Hamilton family at all."
This indicated that the Hamilton family had already begun to decline by the time Jasmine could remember.
"From the time Celeste married Howard and gave birth to Ethan, the Hamilton family started to decline. First, Wesley died suddenly of a stroke, and then the Hamilton family split up, with several branches moving abroad. Only Juniper stayed with Celeste in San Fransisco. The once-renowned Hamilton family of Frostgate gradually faded away," Ben said, looking at Jasmine.
It was evident that the decline of the Hamilton family was not a coincidence.
The Hamilton family, Ethan's kidnapping, the rise of the Douglas family—someone was orchestrating events behind the scenes.
Each event seemed unrelated, but upon closer inspection, they were all connected.
Juniper Hamilton sat on the Whites family couch with a serious expression. "Tom said something happened to Ethan. Do you know anything about this?"
Desmond, flipping through the newspaper, replied, "Your son's words are not reliable."
Juniper threw a cushion at her husband's head. "Your son, your son! Your son's words are not reliable."
Desmond sighed, used to this routine, and quickly tried to appease her. "Fine, my son's words are not reliable. Is that okay?"
Juniper snorted, her face filled with worry. "Ethan is a poor child. Celeste died young, Wesley died suddenly, and his kidnapping when he was little is still an unsolved case. Over the years, living with Howard, he must have suffered a lot."
As she spoke, Juniper began to cry.
Desmond quickly put down the newspaper. "Don't cry. Your next sentence is going to be about how I'm useless. I'll go out and find out, okay?"
Sure enough, Juniper said, "If it weren't for your incompetence, how could we not even protect a child?"
The year Celeste passed away, Juniper fought for Ethan's custody but was harshly mocked by Howard.
Since then, Juniper and Howard had no contact. Moreover, Juniper would seize any opportunity to curse Howard, leading to a long period where Juniper was known as the crazy woman in Howard's eyes.
Howard strictly forbade Ethan from having any contact with the crazy woman.
Afraid of being implicated, Desmond sighed and quickly ran off.
"Ma'am." The butler walked in just as Desmond left. "There's a visitor claiming to be Ethan's wife."
Jasmine had arrived.
Juniper was stunned for a moment and then quickly stood up. "Who?"
"She says she's Ethan's wife."
Juniper, wearing slippers, walked out.
She had heard Ethan mention that he married and his wife was shy, planning to introduce her to the family at the wedding.
Juniper had secretly seen Jasmine a few times at socialite parties. She was an extremely sweet and beautiful girl, and Juniper liked her very much.
"I'm very sorry to intrude on you like this. I originally planned to visit you after the wedding with Ethan. So this is a bit abrupt," Jasmine said, bringing gifts, unsure if Juniper would like them.
In fact, Jasmine had met Juniper back in high school.
At that time, Tom was openly pursuing her.
She was afraid of Tom and ran away from him, falling down the stairs.
Later, the grade level coordinator called the parents, and Tom's mother came in and immediately pulled Tom's ear and gave him a beating.
Jasmine had a deep impression of her. She looked fierce but was the first to arrive when the teacher called for her.
Jasmine, on the other hand, waited at school for a long time, but Karen and Benjamin never came. Eventually, Evan, who was still in college, came and warned Tom.
"Jasmine, I've heard Ethan and Tom mention you. I didn't know you were coming, come in quickly, it's cold outside," Juniper said excitedly, pulling Jasmine's hand and bringing her inside, overjoyed.
"You're so gorgeous. When Ethan was little, I used to joke with Celeste about what kind of bride Ethan would marry in the future. It's a pity." Juniper paused, quickly changing the subject to ease the sadness.
It's a pity that Celeste could no longer see her son's life after marriage.
Jasmine could feel Juniper's sadness and lowered her head apologetically, not knowing what to say.
"Why did you come over suddenly today? Ethan..." Juniper was a bit scared, afraid that the rumors online might be true.
"Ethan got a bit injured and is still in the hospital. It's not convenient for him to come over, and it's not convenient for visits either. But don't worry." Jasmine reassured Juniper.
Juniper, nervous and wanting to ask more, fell silent when Jasmine said it wasn't convenient for visits.
"Sorry for coming to see you today. It's because I want to understand my husband better," Jasmine said with a bitter smile. She had to learn about Ethan through others.
Jasmine knew very well that Ethan would never show his scars and negative emotions to her. Ethan wanted her to always be happy and not be affected by anyone, including him.
Ethan always showed Jasmine his best side, hiding his scars. To understand him, she needed to start with his family. Besides his aunt Juniper, few elders remained. The Hamilton family had mysteriously declined, almost disappearing.
The once top family in Frostgate, the Hamilton family, wouldn't have disappeared so completely just because Wesley had few children. Celeste had pulled the Douglas Group out of the abyss and steadily improved it, proving that she, though a woman, was fully capable of taking over the family.
The Hamilton family shouldn't have ended up like this.
"I want to know why the members of the Hamilton family were so eager to emigrate and leave Frostgate after Wesley's sudden death."
This gave the impression that the Hamilton family had collapsed overnight.
There were many speculations about the "disappearance" of the Hamilton family back then, but the truth remained unknown.
"And the truth about Ethan's kidnapping when he was six," Jasmine said nervously, clasping her fingers and looking at Juniper.
She guessed that Juniper might know something.
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