Chapter 111
The entire duke’s estate felt shrouded in a heavy gloom, the atmosphere so oppressive it was hard to breathe.
Even before the court had ended, Herry returned home with a stormy expression on his face. Burning with rage, he headed straight to Emerald House.
The door flew open with a loud crash as he kicked it in, starting both Eloise and Willow, who screamed and jumped to their feet.
Henry strode up to Eloise and, without a word, slapped her hard across the face.
Eloise cried out, clutching her cheek as she collapsed to the ground.
Still luming, he moved to strike her again, but Willow dropped to her knees in front of him, crying bitterly and calling out, “Father, don’t hit Mother! Hit me! It’s all my fault!”
The word “Father” pierced Henry’s heart like a needle.
Looking at his
this daughter’s delicate, tear–streaked face, his anger softened somewhat.
Willow had been raised by his own hand. Ever since she was a child, whenever she made a mistake, she would softly call out “Father” until his fury
melted away.
But the mistake Eloise had made this time nearly dragged the entire family into ruin, it threatened to destroy the legacy he had spent years building.
His fists clenched, his face still twisted in fury, but his voice to Willow was unexpectedly gentle: “Willow, get up.”
“No! I won’t! It was my ideal Just punish me…” Willow sobbed, her voice trembling. Her cries seemed to exhaust Henry. He exhaled deeply and collapsed into a chair
Seeing that Henry no longer intended to strike Eloise, Willow quickly helped her up. “Mother, please get up
Floise cried until she had no tears left. That slap had frozen her heart. After over twenty years of marriage, her husband had actually laid hand her.
She sat silently, full of grievance.
Seeing her like that only lanned Henry’s anger. “You’re foolish! How could you do something so immoral? Our family is a noble household with a hundred–year legacy of scholarly virtue. How can you taint it with the stench of money?”
He added, “What you’ve done is not different from those crooked merchants!”
In their society, merchants ranked the lowest among the four social classes: scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants
Eloise kept her head bowed, eyes red–rimmed, and said nothing
Eloise had been keeping her head down and eyes red, silent. But when she heard Henry call her a “crooked merchant“, she suddenlyfaised her head and roared back, “Henry!”
She shouted his name, nearly hysterical. The sudden outburst stunned both Henry and Willow.
Eloise stood trembling, pointing finger at him in fury. “You pride yourself on your scholarly background. You think you’re so noble, so above the Bithy world of commerce. But don’t forget. The only reason you’ve gotten to where you are today is because of your greed!”
Her words left Henry speechless. His face flushed with rage and shame.
When Eloisa married into the duke’s estate, the household was already on the brink of frandal ruin
It was her dowry, and the money from Margaret’s shops kept the family afloat for years
12.41 381, 28 Jun |
76%
Chapter 111
If it weren’t for Eloise’s careful management, the duke’s estate might’ve collapsed long ago
“Everything you eat, wear, and use is bought with silver to you really think your meager official salary could support this mansion?” She was take a different person, yelling at Henry with wild abandon, stomping on his dignity
Eloise quickly composed herself. When she turned around, her tears were gone, though her eyes were still red. She asked with forced calm, “What did you find out?”
Nicolas leaned back wearily into a chair, Willow hurried over to pour him some water. He took a sip and finally said. “The matter is… tricky.”
“What do you mean? With our connections, this shouldn’t be too hard to handle. We have money.” Henry was confused. Many court officials ran gambling dens secretly. Everyone knew, but no one said anything publicly.
Verify captcha to read the content
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: The Rise Of The Unwanted Girl (Athena)