After Cooper was done making the call, he then said to Sophia, âVacate a basement level for my workroom.â
At this, Michael was a moment away from biting off his own tongue. This young-looking father-in-law of mine is acting far too familiar! Heâd just spent a fortune to renovate his place in Riverdale, yet heâs now moving in here! Doesnât he find it wasteful? As he ate, he dourly remarked, âWe actually have quite a big family, so it seems that I should be taking some time to build two more floors. Otherwise, we wonât all fit in here.â At the same time, he threw Cooper a glare. He said âa married daughter is like spilled water,â
promising not to interfere in Sophiaâs affairs henceforth, but itâs only been a few days now, and heâs moving in!
Unexpectedly, Sophia instantly countered, âItâs not that many of us. There are four floors here including the attic besides the few basement levels, so thereâs space even if Linus were to move in, let alone Dad!â
Michael was so vexed by his beautiful yet dopey wife that he almost burst a blood vessel.
Linus, on the other hand, was very much amused by the furtive antagonism between Michael and Cooper. âDonât worry. Iâve still got some space at my place, so Dad can store some of his things there if you run out of space here,â he offered.
At the side, Celine, who was still in her confinement period, clapped her hands and exclaimed with a beaming smile, âGreat, great! A family should be together!â
Justin merely smiled without saying anything, while Nathan had a profound look on his face, and Carmenâs eyes were darting around. Michael, however, was about to go ballistic.
After dinner, Sophia fed the cats. The guards from the ancient Imperial Palace deliberately timed their trip, only coming over leisurely to collect their cat when sheâd probably fed it. This time, they also brought her harp back.
At the sight of her harp, Sophia grew so enraged that she was gripped by the urge to smash something. When they took it away, they treated it with great reverence, having six or seven people moving it into a sedan with gloves as though sending off a bride who was getting married, the only exception being the setting off of firecrackers. Itâs only been two days, yet theyâre now sending it back on a cat stroller without any sedan or even gloves!
âThereâs this family known as the Yard Family. Are you familiar with the Yard Family? Itâs the former royal family during the previous dynasty. This time, they donated quite a number of cultural artifacts to the ancient Imperial Palace, including three Phoenix Harps. So, weâre returning this harp of yours!â a guard from the ancient Imperial Palace drawled.
Humph! So, they already have three âmistressesâ over there, huh? No wonder theyâre no longer interested in my harp. Sophia then put away the harp even as she thought, Judging from this action by the Yards, they seem to be angling for a full conciliation with Cethos. So, Ronney Group is probably going to enter Cethos on a large scale. Well, drastic changes are on the horizon for Cethos.
Meanwhile, in the basement, Michael showed Cooper around. He tried his best to put himself in Cooperâs shoes and consider things from his perspective. If Carmen gets married one day, Iâll definitely be even clingier than him! At this thought, he felt much better. âFeel free to look around, Dad. We can use any one of the basement levels you like for your workroom.â
These few basement levels in his house were constructed with reference to the secret tunnels during the previous dynasty. In those years, the price of land and real estate was still very low, so all real estate developers switched over to coal mining. Thus, he seized the opportunity to secure the development rights for this place. Basement level one housed the wine cellar and storeroom, thus frequented by many. However, access to further basement levels were restricted to the secret tunnels and hidden elevators. To that effect, some of his secret activities were conducted in the basement.
He was in the same boat with Cooper now, so Michael magnanimously took him down to the basement to check things out. There were lots of innovations by Justin in the basement, such as the corpse of an assassin under the Phantom Wolf. Heâd been studying the miraculous stimulant used by Phantom Wolf, and his only sample was Kaylaâs dead body that had been preserved all this while. Also, there were some bizarre collections he was reluctant to part with. For instance⦠Cooperâs coffin that was dug out furtively.
Cooper was rendered speechless at this, so he hastily changed the subject after faltering briefly. âNext, weâll be seeing the corpse of a young woman whoâd once been injected with a miraculous stimulant that can give someone a temporary burst of energy with infinite strength besides a rapid increase in muscles.
The side effects are minimal. Itâs still in the research stage, but the efficacy is extremely miraculous.
Justin has been studying the molecular formula of such a stimulant all these years to replicate and further improve it.â
âGet a sample, Linus. Weâll study it as well,â Cooper instantly declared. âJustin, give Linus a copy of your research data.â
Michael rolled his eyes. This young-looking father-in-law of mine is truly skilled at taking advantage of other peopleâs efforts! Weâve been researching this for years, yet heâs just butting in midway. What gives?
But there hasnât been much progress even after Justin spent so many years researching this stimulantâs molecular formula, and Quinton Clark refused to say anything even to death. I myself hadnât researched it thoroughly either, so perhaps Cooper will have a breakthrough considering the professional resources he has. Weâre all in the same boat, so sharing is just the norm.
Since he was giving Cooper and Linus a tour of his secret den, it was tantamount to him having attained a deep strategic partnership with his young-looking father-in-law. Henceforth, there wouldnât be any chasm or distinction between them.
When the tour was over, a portion of Cooperâs daily necessities and work supplies had been transported over from Riverdale. It was all very much efficient. Michael then started vacating a basement level for him. After all, a family should be together. As the son-in-law, he couldnât be indignant. Instead, he even had to help out and contribute physically. When they were done, he suddenly blurted, âMy grandfather asked me to make a trip back to Fletcher Residence tomorrow, saying that heâs having guests over. He specifically phoned and requested that I go back just because of that. He even insisted that you go and visit him with Linus, Dad.â
Busy putting away his things, Cooper nodded in acquiescence. At times, he felt that this son-in-law was objectionable in every aspect, but whenever they truly interacted together, he found him exceedingly agreeable in all ways.
Sure enough, the Mitchell Family phoned to lambast Cooper since Sophia pinned Sandra to the ground today. The admonishment went from his sonâs sexual orientation to the fact that his daughter hit Sandra.
To summarize, it was basically this: âCooper, youâre a shame to the Mitchell Family! Youâre not worthy of being a Mitchell, so donât ever dream that youâll be listed in the Mitchellsâ family records! Iâm going to dig out your coffin from the Mitchell Familyâs ancestral grave!â The other person was an elderly man in his 80s, so it was truly a feat for him to be tearing into someone at the top of his voice. Without listening until the very end, Cooper snorted and hung up.
I donât care if I donât get listed in the Mitchellsâ family records. After all, Iâm still a Mitchell wherever I go.
Nor do I care if my coffin is dug out from the ancestral grave. In fact, my âgoodâ son-in-law has already done it!
The next day, Cooperâs luggage was steadily transported over. While his workroom was located in the basement of Villa No. 2, he lived at Villa No. 8. Despite feeling a tad resentful about it, Michael still helped to settle him in.
The day after, they all set out for Fletcher Residence. This time, Linus was finally going to step foot into Fletcher Residence in person. When they arrived, Michael and Cooper went in search of Mark.
Meanwhile, Sophia and Linus took Carmen to Lorelei who was recently attending school in the military compound with the other children in the Fletcher Family, eager to know how she was doing in school, her progress in learning the Cethosian language, and whether she was getting along well with the other children.
Upon learning that they were coming over today, Stanley also came back very early. âOh, youâre here, Aunt!â
Seizing the opportunity, Sophia asked, âWhoâs the venerable guest whoâs coming to visit Grandpa today that he even requested your uncleâs presence, Stan?â
Stanley had no idea either, and he scratched his head. âIâve got no idea. Iâve just come back, and heâs been keeping it on the down-low. My brother and father are still angry at me because of the incident back then, so they refused to tell me a single word. Well, youâll know when you go over for a look later!â
They all then made their way to visit Lorelei, but the moment Sophia turned a corner, she caught sight of someone entirely unexpected. âWhy are you here, Anne Osborne?â