Chapter 97 One Hundred Thousand After a brief silence, Donald shook his head. It was evident to anyone with eyes how poorly Georgeâs family treated Angela.
Donaldâs expression turned colder as he stubbed out the halfâsmoked cigarette in his hand, his tone harsh, âGeorgeâs family has hearts as hard as stones. Whether they are aware or not is irrelevant. If they ignore the grievances Angela suffers in her husbandâs home, I will step in. I will bring her back to our home.â
Whenever Angela suffered grievances, even if she was bullied in school, Donald and Scarlet showed no concern. Instead, they would blame her for causing trouble and ask her to reflect on herself.
Hecate sighed. Donald has a point. They only ever care about their adopted daughter.
âStill, Angelaâs prospective inâlaws gave a ton of betrothal gifts. If they find out that youâve intervened as the overseer, Iâm worried Donald and Scarlet will cause a scene,â she said.
Donald snorted and replied coldly, âThey can come at me all they want. All those betrothal gifts were given to Angela. We didnât take a penny. I have a clear conscience!â
Hecate nodded in agreement. Donaldâs right. We have no intention of coveting Angelaâs betrothal money. If George and his family were any better to Angela, she would have no need for us to step in at all!
Neither of them spoke again, and the room fell into silence until the door opening echoed from the entrance, followed by the doorknob turning.
Queenie quietly entered the house silently with puffy eyes, clearly having just finished crying.
Her situation startled Donald and Hecate, and they quickly approached her.
âQueenie, what happened?â Hecate couldnât help but feel heartbroken, and then she had a suspicion in her mind, causing her expression to suddenly change. âDid your husbandâs family hit you? Queenie, you must not hide this from me and. your dad!â
A lump immediately formed in Queenieâs throat. Her voice became hoarse, and she forced back her tears as she said, âNo, Mom, no one hit me.â
Under Donald and Hecateâs persistent questioning, she finally revealed the truth.
âMom, Dad, I need money...â As if finding it difficult to utter these words, Queenie choked for 1/4 a while before finally managing to speak up with difficulty, then covered her bloodshot eyes and sobbed.
âHoraceâs mother is seriously ill, and the surgery and medical expenses require a large sum of money. Horace and I donât have much savings, and what we can gather is far from enough...â
She didnât want to ask her parents for money, but her husbandâs family used both gentle and forceful tactics, pressuring her to come up with the money.
Because Horace wanted her to be a fullâtime housewife, she hasnât had a job since graduation. Horace gave her a monthly allowance for living expenses, and that was the only money she had. But... it was all used for living expenses, and with her motherâinâlaw watching over her, any surplus would be taken away by her motherâinâlaw. How could she possibly have any money?!
She had hoped that Horace would stand by her more, but he said, âQueenie, my motherâs illness canât be delayed any longer.
Think of a solution. If itâs not possible, go back home and ask your parents for some money.
âBesides, your uncleâs family is so wealthy, and theyâre also related to Jonathan. This amount of money is nothing to them, but for us, itâs lifeâsaving money!â
With no other alternatives, Queenie had to return home.
Donald felt sympathy for his daughter and couldnât possibly deny her the money. He didnât say anything, just let out a deep sigh, âSince our Queenieâs motherâinâlaw is ill, we should. offer assistance. Family should assist each other in times of need.â
He had initially planned to give Angela a generous dowry when she got married. The groomâs family was wealthy, and although they were an ordinary family, they couldnât compromise their dignity and manners.
But now, he was faced with a dilemma.
âHow much do you need?â Hecate quickly made her daughter sit down and then poured her a cup of warm water.
Queenie pursed her lips and reluctantly said, âWe need a hundred thousand.â
Hecate widened her eyes in shock and was stunned for a few seconds. âA hundred thousand?! What kind of illness does your motherâinâlaw have that requires so much money?â
âItâs kidney failure. She needs dialysis and a kidney transplant. Horace said that a kidney is expensive, and heâs also trying to raise money from everywhere,â Queenie explained with a 2/4 weary look on her delicate face.
She had been taking care of her motherâinâlaw these past few days, and it had already worn her out mentally. Her motherâinâ
law never liked her, and now that she was sick, she was event harder to deal with. She would say all sorts of harsh things to Queenie, accusing her of wishing her motherâinâlaw dead.
Horaceâs bad attitude didnât help either. He said that marrying her didnât help him at all.
Donald turned grimly but showed no emotions.
After a long pause, he said, âLeave the money to your brother and me. Donât worry. You stay here tonight, and Iâll give you ten thousand dollars before you leave. Use it to fill the gaps.
first.â
âIâm useless, Dad. Youâre already so old, yet Iâm still asking for your support, causing you trouble.â Queenie felt deeply sorry.
Her father was a teacher, and her mother worked in a textile factory. Their combined monthly income was only a few thousand, and it took them a whole year of scrimping and saving to accumulate ten thousand dollars. Asking her parents for so much money all at once, Queenie couldnât bring herself to do it.
Hecate looked at the dark circles under her daughterâs eyes. Her face had become much thinner than the last time she saw her.
She felt a pang of sadness and could only imagine how Horaceâs wicked mother tormented Queenie using her illness.
Hecate got up and fetched a set of her own pajamas for Queenie. âNow, arenât you just making your dad and me sad?! Are you hungry? Iâll go and make you something to eat. Look at you; youâre iceâcold. Go and take a shower while I make your favorite.â
A lump formed in Queenieâs throat again as she listened to her parentsâ caring words, and she held it back until she reached the bathroom and closed the door before bursting into tears.
In the kitchen, Hecate and Donald cooked up Queenie something to eat.
âTheyâre still short a large sum of money. Letâs not forget about Angelaâs dowry, too. Quincy has only been working for a few years. He definitely wonât have much savings. How are you going to come up with the remaining money?â Hecate asked, feeling frustrated.
As Donald cooked the noodles, he contemplated. âIâll go to the hospital tomorrow and talk to the doctor first.â
Hecate nodded. She was just an ordinary illiterate housewife who had no better ideas.
3/4 Springgate Estates, Lawson Residence.
Angela woke up the next morning, bathed in the bright and warm sunlight.
Opening her eyes, she saw unfamiliar white curtains surrounding the bed, and for a moment, she couldnât quite comprehend her whereabouts.
After obtaining their marriage certificate last afternoon, Jonathan returned to work at the company while she returned to the villa in Springgate Estates and spent the afternoon reading.
In the evening, Jonathan was too busy to come home for dinner, so she ate Mayâs cooking alone and then went upstairs to study for another two hours before going to sleep.
Although she and Jonathan had obtained their marriage certificate, their current interaction pattern remained the same, and it made Angela feel particularly reassured.
After lying in bed for a few seconds, Angela threw off the covers and quickly got up, then washed up and went downstairs.
In the dining room, Jonathan was dressed in a gray turtleneck sweater, complemented by goldârimmed glasses. He seemed to radiate a touch more warmth than before.
He was emotionlessly flipping through some documents at the table until he heard her coming down. He took a gander at her and put the papers in his hands down.
âItâs 7:35 a.m. now,â he reminded plainly. âYouâre about to be late.â