Chapter 20
“Pfft!” Harrison scoffed, “A couple billion is just chump change to us.”
“But don’t forget, we’re businessmen.”
“All of a businessman’s investments are to make money.”
“I’m not gonna pour money into a losing venture,”
“Sure, Roxanne is technically my wife, but I can only help her with small stuff. If you’re asking me to sink billions or even tens of billions into her, that’s not happening.”
Vincent was so mad he could pop, “You really won’t help?”
Harrison snorted, “I’m no fool to make a blunder like that.”
“Fine.” Vincent decided, “If you’re not investing, I will. Can’t I, as a chairman, make a small investment?”
Harrison chuckled, “But don’t forget, when you stepped down, you promised me and the board in writing not to interfere with my decisions. That was the condition for me to take over the family business. Without my signature, your decisions as chairman are vold.” “You…” Vincent was livid, “Well, what if I buy out the property Roxanne bought with my own money and rebuild it, how’s that?” Harrison confidently said, “Sure, most developers that run off with the money end up overseas. You need to find the original developer and go through all kinds of procedures before you can start building. That’s gonna take at least a year or two. If you have the energy, be my guest”
“Don’t you see how Roxanne hasn’t been eating and she’s down in the dumps these days? Don’t you feel bad for her?”
Harrison noticed Roxanne’s mood, too, and this was why? Harrison didn’t want Roxanne to be upset over this, but he still insisted on being rational, “I don’t dislike her, and I appreciate her character. But she’s not that important to me.”
“Your rationality is terrifying.”
“As a businessman, shouldn’t I be rational? You want me to be emotional?” Harrison countered.
Vincent suddenly realized that what he taught his son wasn’t all right. Especially after his wife suddenly passed away seven years ago, he understood that the most important thing in life was to have someone who truly loved you.
Name, fame, and power were all illusions. Everyone left this world in the end. Only love can warm the heart.
But his son now, wasn’t he the one who raised him? What right did he have to blame him?
“Fine.” Vincent said helplessly, “I won’t pressure you. I can’t expect you to instantly fall for Anne.”
He sighed and said, “Just wait.”
He believed in Roxanne. She could certainly attract Harrison, it was just a matter of time.
Thinking about it this way, Vincent didn’t feel so bad, “I need to go home and make soup for my daughter-in-law. You should come home early too.”
“Dad.” Harrison called after Vincent who was about to leave.
Vincent turned around, and Harrison said, “Don’t you feel cramped living in Roxanne’s rental?”
“Not at all.” Vincent looked quite happy. “I find it lively and homely. I’ll have you know, when I first started out, your mother and I lived in a place smaller than this, but it was very cozy. And let me tell you.”
Vincent excitedly talked on and on. Harrison didn’t interrupt him.
Seeing Vincent’s excitement, Harrison was sure that if asked him to go back to his mansion, he would refuse.
Harrison gave up on persuading him to go back.
Vincent asked, “Don’t you find the mansion empty and lifeless? Doesn’t Roxanne’s apartment feel more like home?”
Harrison didn’t dare agree and smiled, “If you’re happy, that’s all that matters.”
Thinking about something. Harrison asked, “But have you considered how Roxanne feels about you living there? What if she doesn’t like
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“How do I not consider other people’s feelings?” Vincent came back to Harrison, “Do you think I don’t care about others?”
Harrison: “I think you should be aware of the consequences of your actions”
“Hmph!” Vincent frowned, “You’re still speaking in riddles. Even if you think I don’t care about others’ feelings, my daughter-in-law wouldn’t think so.”
“Not necessarily.” Harrison said, “Maybe she let you stay out of politeness.”
in
Vincent was firm, “You don’t understand Roxanne. She desperately needs the warmth of a family. She’s definitely very happy with me living there.”
Harrison scoffed, “You take her polite words to heart.”
Vincent: “It’s not me, it’s that Roxanne really needs the warmth of a family. When she was four, her parents divorced, and they both saw her as a burden, didn’t want her.”
Harrison frowned, “Really?”
Vincent: “Let me finish,”
Harrison listened quietly.
Vincent: “When her parents were divorcing, she clung to her mother’s leg begging her to take her with her. Guess what happened?” Harrison shook his head. He couldn’t guess.
Vincent continued, “Her mother heartlessly pushed her away, saying how could she remarry with a burden like her?”
Harrison was curious about Roxanne’s past. He quickly asked, “What about her father?”
“He’s even worse. He took out all his frustrations on her, beating and scolding her. Then he moved away, married a new wife, and wanted even less to do with her.”
Thinking about it, Vincent felt very sad.
He wished he could travel back in time, to when Roxanne was four, to help her escape from her hardship.
The more Vincent thought about it, the more his heart ached until tears started to slip down his face.
Even the usually aloof Harrison could feel a suffocating atmosphere, like an invisible hand was squeezing his heart until it was hard to breathe, “They do not deserve to be parents.”
Such parents only incited Harrison’s anger. He asked again, “If her parents didn’t care for her, how did she grow up?”
“Her grandmother took care of her, but she didn’t really care for her either. Vincent said angrily, “Roxanne told me that when her grandmother fed her, it was as if she was feeding a cow, just going through the motions. How could they do this to such a sweet, well-behaved girl?”
With that, Vincent choked up a little, “If Roxanne and I hadn’t encountered a wild wolf in Marientown, almost losing our lives, she probably would never have told me these things. It’s a shadow over her life, something she might never bring up in front of others.” Vincent gently patted Harrison on the shoulder and added, “Roxanne longs for a family, she sees me as her father, and she genuinely cares for both you and me. You can have your doubts, but please don’t show it in front of Roxanne, it would hurt her.”
Harrison was left in thoughtful silence. He finally understood why on the second night after moving into Roxanne’s rented room, she had woken up crying from a dream. Her background was truly pitiful.
The image of her waking up crying from a dream, her shoulders trembling, her voice hoarse and choked up but trying to appear strong, echoed in his mind.
That night, he should have given her a comforting hug….
