"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, Young Master Aisen..."
This should have been a proud and moving scene. After all, an entire street was enthusiastically chanting your name, offering their most heartfelt birthday wishes.
Yet Mr. Aisen's face was as dark and grim as stagnant water.
He remembered Richard bragging to him once that on a certain street lined with pastry shops, just shouting the name "Young Master Aisen" was enough to put purchases on credit.
Because of that boast, after returning home, Richard had received a vicious beating and spent several days in a wheelchair.
Mr. Aisen had let the matter drop after that.
He never expected that coming here today, his son would manage to deliver this sort of "pleasant surprise"!
Not only had he borrowed his father's name, but he had even filled in all his personal details down to the letter.
In the past, before knowing Karen's true identity, Mr. Aisen had exercised some restraint whenever the urge to compare his son with Karen welled up inside him. He had felt such comparisons were unfair to his son, and he had even found it inexplicable why the thought crossed his mind so frequently.
Now that he knew Karen was his nephew, Mr. Aisen could finally compare his son to Karen openly and without shame—and the more he compared them, the angrier he became!
He and Karen's mother were brother and sister, which meant both Richard and Karen carried the blood of the Guman family. Yet his son was getting completely outclassed by Karen. Didn't that suggest a massive gap had been caused by the paternal bloodline?
Reflecting once more on Karen's dignified poise when dealing with people and affairs, and contrasting it with the preposterous spectacle his son had cooked up before his eyes...
Mr. Aisen slowly clenched his fists, took a deep breath, and slowly released them.
Mrs. Kaixi had been stunned at first, followed immediately by fury.
Any wife standing here, hearing the women from an entire street of pastry shops loudly chanting her husband's name, would instinctively flare with rage.
No wonder her husband had been disappearing for months on end and never staying home—so this was where he had been enjoying himself?
Before long, however, Mrs. Kaixi regained her senses.
First, she knew her husband was capable of losing his mind, but not of being unfaithful.
Second, while these women were excitedly shouting "Happy Birthday, Young Master Aisen," when the real Mr. Aisen stood right before them, their eyes did not linger on her husband in the slightest.
Most importantly... she had come here looking for her son.
Thus, an unmistakable chain of clues lay clearly before her.
Still, she found it hard to believe. She couldn't believe her son could be so "depraved."
However, the "truth" soon stepped out on its own.
Flanked by Lisa and Ronise, Richard walked out of the shop and stood by the curb, waving with a smile to the ladies on both sides, looking very much like a politician campaigning before a crowd of adoring voters.
Standing behind Richard with hands clasped over their chests, Lisa and Ronise said earnestly:
"May the Goddess bless you, Young Master Aisen."
Richard chuckled and returned the gesture. "May the Light of Order protect you all."
Then Richard resumed waving and greeting everyone, doing his best to acknowledge the aunties in front of every pastry shop celebrating "his" birthday.
That was, until he faced a certain direction—where a rather familiar car was parked, and beside it stood two very familiar figures.
Richard instantly understood the meaning of a bolt from the blue. It was as if he were skipping happily down the street under a clear blue sky holding a lollipop, when a sudden lightning strike ran straight down the lollipop and blasted into his body.
Mrs. Kaixi took a deep breath, intending to stride forward and tie her son up to drag him back. But her husband turned around immediately and sat back in the car.
Seeing this, Mrs. Kaixi had no choice but to swallow her rage and get back into the car as well.
Mr. Aisen started the engine, showing no intention of waiting for Richard.
Richard immediately turned to Lisa and said, "Uh, my family's servants are here to pick me up. Give my car keys to my friend inside and tell him he can drive himself back."
"Right away, Young Master Aisen."
When it came to being a friend, Richard was beyond reproach; even at a time like this, he still had the presence of mind to worry about Leon getting home comfortably.
Immediately after, Richard kept waving to both sides while jogging backward toward his parents' car.
By the time he opened the car door, the car was already rolling forward. Richard hurriedly leaned in and threw himself into the seat. Before shutting the door, he blew several kisses behind him, provoking a flurry of squeals and screams.
Finally, Richard pulled the door shut. In an instant, the outside world was cut off. All the prior warmth and clamor vanished, replaced by suffocating silence.
Sitting in the backseat, Richard pressed his lips together and forced an awkward smile.
"Dad, happy birthday!"
Mr. Aisen said nothing, but his foot pressed heavier on the accelerator. The car accelerated sharply so they could reach home sooner.
In the passenger seat, Mrs. Kaixi kept her eyes closed, her breathing heavy. Every inhale and exhale sounded like she was forcefully suppressing something.
"Oh, dearest Mother, how long has it been since you and Father came together to pick me up? The last time must have been when I was in primary school, right?"
No reply.
Richard refused to give up, continuing his bid for survival:
"It's been so long since our family sat in the car together like this. It really warms my heart."
As he spoke, tears began to trickle down his cheeks. While wiping them away, he carefully gauged his parents' reactions in the front seats.
Still nothing.
Richard fell into despair.
"Dad, Mom, I just remembered there are still some documents at the department that haven't been processed. The Captain and the others should be returning soon, so I really ought to wrap up those tasks before they get back..."
Mrs. Kaixi said icily:
"If you utter one more word of nonsense, by the time your Captain and the others return, they can go straight to attending your memorial service."
Richard: "..."
***
"My dear Xili, your culinary skills are truly exquisite."
"It's all thanks to the Young Master's guidance. I learned everything from him."
Madame Tangli stood behind her, watching the maid, Xili, busy cooking at the counter.
Since Karen wasn't home, she had called the funeral parlor and asked Karen's maid to come over so they could explore recipes together and prepare a family banquet for her son's birthday.
"You really didn't need to bring so many ingredients yourself, though. I have everything here."
"Miss Purr told me to bring some from home to make things easier. Mostly because certain ingredients are prepared and cured in advance. For example, look at this lard—I've always found that stir-frying shiitake mushrooms and greens with lard is much more fragrant than using olive oil."
"Miss Purr?"
"Ah, yes, haha."
Xili laughed it off. She didn't dare introduce this kindly old lady to the fact that there was a talking cat lady in her household, afraid of giving the old woman a fright.
It had been Purr who answered Madame Tangli's call. Purr naturally agreed to Madame Tangli's request and instructed the household maid to head over with ingredients—after all, it was just keeping Karen's grandmother entertained.
Madame Tangli reached out and gave the maid's backside two pats.
Blushing, the maid looked back at Madame Tangli, then lowered her head to continue cooking.
"That build of yours is well suited for childbearing. My hips were quite perky when I was young, but not as full as yours."
"Madame..."
"Still, I bore three children. I think you could easily bear seven or eight, maybe even ten."
Oftentimes, elderly ladies speaking vulgarities could be far more uninhibited than drunken bachelors.
Xili didn't mind the old lady's teasing at all. She genuinely thought the old woman was very kind, and judging from the residence, the family's background was clearly extraordinary.
Earlier, when borrowing the washroom, she had seen black clerical robes neatly folded on the counter. Her young master and his subordinates all wore clothes like that.
Xili wasn't part of the church circle; that "world" was very unfamiliar to her. But that bloody night had shown her how terrifying Mr. Alfred was, which indirectly proved how formidable the Young Master was. This old lady's family had to be of the same sort.
"Having that many sounds like too much to support," Xili said. "Our family already struggles to put just one younger brother through school. With my monthly wages, I could only provide for five at most."
"Hehehehe."
Madame Tangli was amused. The little girl was actually counting on her fingers.
"No matter how many you have, Karen can afford to support them. Go on, have as many as you like!"
Although no newspaper had ever conducted statistical surveys, Madame Tangli knew well that the vast majority of young masters from prestigious families gave their first time to their own maids.
Young men had intense urges to begin with, and with an attractive maid bustling about right before their eyes, it was hard to exercise restraint. Moreover, maids rarely put up much resistance, and might even be a little proactive.
In this regard, Madame Tangli did not hold Karen to exceptionally rigid moral standards.
One's stance was decided by whose side one was on. She kept her own husband on a tight leash—if he ever dared to stray outside, she, Tangli, would personally break his legs.
For her grandson, however, she couldn't wait for Karen to have more women around him and sire heirs early, so that she could hold great-grandchildren sooner.
Hearing this, Xili felt she needed to explain on behalf of her young master, lest an outsider misunderstand his uprightness and purity:
"Madame, the Young Master only has eyes for his fiancée."
"He hasn't touched you?"
"Never. The Young Master would never do such a thing."
"Then keeping you around is just for eye candy?"
"Ah, the Young Master is a true gentleman!"
Although early on, Alfred had instructed her to wear only jeans while working;
And later during their interactions, especially when bumping into the Young Master in the mornings, his gaze did seem to linger on her for a fleeting moment;
Yet she welcomed it, and would sometimes deliberately bend over or crouch with her back to him. When his gaze fell on her, her heart felt sweet.
Still, such things were not meant to be shared with outsiders. She wasn't foolish.
"Sigh."
Madame Tangli shook her head in slight disappointment.
She knew her grandson had once had a thing with the princess of Dark Moon Island. It wasn't mere idle gossip; Richard had recounted Karen's interactions with the princess on Dark Moon Island back at home.
Richard had been so animated when describing it that anyone listening might have thought it was Richard himself strolling under the moonlight with the Dark Moon Princess instead of Karen.
When listening to Richard's account, the rest of the family felt that if Karen could end up with that princess, he would be gaining quite an advantage and hitting a stroke of fortune.
Only she, while knitting a sweater, sneered inwardly. If a grandson of the Guman family married the princess of Dark Moon Island, it would indeed be marrying up. But if Diss's direct grandson married her, Dark Moon Island would be the one marrying up, while Karen would be getting the short end of the stick.
For the direct grandson of a current Elder of the Temple of Order, was there any girl of his generation from any great family he couldn't marry? Marriages born of free romance between prominent families were the rarest of the rare.
It was only because of her husband's personal experiences that he was open-minded about such matters. Aside from helping make introductions for their second son when he was somewhat introverted in his youth, their eldest daughter and youngest daughter had both chosen their own partners.
Because of that, Madame Tangli sometimes felt the old man deserved the silent frustration he harbored toward his youngest son-in-law.
Tsk, what a shame. Diss had arranged a marriage for Karen, and the Allen family showed no sign of looking down on Karen.
From Madame Tangli's perspective, how wonderful it would have been if the Allen family had looked down on him! If the engagement were broken off early, she could happily pick out girls for her grandson herself.
Often, elders matchmaking for the younger generation wasn't solely about ensuring family bliss; it was like breeding a pig one had raised with one's own hands—it gave an innate sense of satisfaction, achievement, and amusement.
Yet now it appeared her grandson had inherited his grandfather's character: when it came to romance, he was quite responsible and devoted.
"You keep busy. I'll go fix you a glass of fruit juice outside."
"Thank you, Madame."
Madame Tangli left the kitchen. Crossing the dining room, she saw her husband walking in.
Old Delon said rather nervously, "Our grandson has been tied up and dragged home."
"Tied up and dragged home?"
"Yes, by Aisen."
"Isn't that normal?"
"It's different this time. Kaixi and Aisen dragged Richard back together. They're in the living room now. Looks like both of them are going to lay into him this time."
"Kaixi is joining in too?" Madame Tangli felt no grief over the brutal ordeal awaiting her own grandson; instead, she chuckled. "Is she here to repay that overdue maternal love?"
"I listened in for a bit. They caught Richard at a pastry shop."
"Hmm?" Madame Tangli frowned. "Really?"
"It seems so. That's why Kaixi is so furious this time."
"Sigh, that boy, how could he do such a thing?"
She had just been musing over Karen's moral integrity when dealing with the Dark Moon Princess and the maid at home, only to learn the next moment that her own grandson had gone gallivanting at a pastry shop and been hauled home by his parents.
One grandson through a daughter, one through a son—how could the disparity between them be so vast?
Madame Tangli looked at her husband and thought: Could it be the bloodline?
Yet looking at her husband and her sons, they were devoted when it came to romance.
Old Delon immediately chimed in, "I told you before, the Felscher family might not have a great reputation, but their girl is a respectable young woman after all. I actually think she suits our grandson quite well."
"You're bringing that up again?"
"Am I wrong?"
Madame Tangli reminded him, "That girl has quite a temper. Your grandson won't be able to handle her."
"We need a granddaughter-in-law who can handle him! Let's see if he dares go to places like that again."
Madame Tangli: "..."
"If he ends up with a gentler girl, wouldn't that just be ruining her life?"
"Delon, you're Richard's grandfather."
"Only a real grandfather can talk like this."
"You're pushing your grandson into a fire pit. He might not even have any thoughts in that direction right now, but if we elders start egging him on from behind, he might actually start getting ideas."
"What's wrong with a fire pit? As long as he's happy."
"You old codger, what's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing, nothing at all."
Just then, the telephone rang.
"I'll get it. Aisen and the others probably don't have time."
Madame Tangli skirted the edge of the living room. Aisen and Kaixi both nodded to her, and she nodded back.
It was rare to see the couple so united; they finally looked like husband and wife.
As for her grandson Richard, he had already been strung up.
Madame Tangli deliberately looked away from him, headed upstairs, and picked up the receiver.
"Hello, Guman residence."
"Grandmother."
Karen's voice came from the other end of the line.
"Oh, Karen! How are your injuries?"
"All healed. Thank you for your concern, Grandmother. Is it Mr. Aisen's birthday today? Grandmother, please pass along my birthday wishes to him."
Karen had just spoken with the funeral parlor over the phone, and Purr had told him that today was his uncle Mr. Aisen's birthday, so he had made a special call to wish him a happy birthday.
"Since you know it's his birthday, why haven't you come over for a family dinner?"
The relationship between Madame Tangli and Karen was one where both understood the truth tacitly without spelling it out.
"Grandmother, I'm currently waiting for the teleportation array. It will be another hour before I can teleport back to the York City Region. There isn't enough time."
"There's plenty of time. I'll have Aisen drive to the Church Affairs Building to pick you up in a bit."
"There's no need to trouble him, Grandmother. I'll come visit you tomorrow."
"No, tonight."
"But things are really somewhat inconvenient for me here..."
"There's nothing inconvenient about it. If you don't come tonight, you might not see Richard alive tomorrow. His parents caught him red-handed outside a pastry shop, and right now he's strung up, ready for a beating. If you don't believe me, listen..."
Saying that, Madame Tangli pointed the receiver toward the living room, silently wishing they would hit him even harder.
"Aaaah!" "Aaaah!" "Aaaah!"
Richard's shrieks drifted up incessantly, exceptionally sharp and frantic this time—after all, this was his first time enduring a mixed doubles thrashing from both father and mother.
"All right, Grandmother. I'll head over as soon as I teleport back to the Church Affairs Building."
"Mm, that's more like it."
Hanging up the phone, Madame Tangli grabbed a handful of dried fruit, chewing on it as she walked over to the top of the stairs, watching her grandson below basking in his parents' tender love and care.
While screaming under the alternating infusions of paternal and maternal love, Richard strained his eyes toward his grandmother, begging for rescue.
Madame Tangli spoke up: "Aisen, an hour from now, drive over to the Church Affairs Building to pick up Karen. He's coming over to celebrate your birthday. I told him he didn't need to make the trip since it's quite a hassle, but he insisted on coming—he simply wouldn't take no for an answer."
Hearing this, Richard let out a massive sigh of relief: Grandmother really does love me after all.
Mr. Aisen paused what he was doing. His nephew was coming to celebrate his birthday? How wonderful.
Madame Tangli urged him:
"Why did you stop? Hurry up and finish beating him so you can go pick Karen up."
Richard: "..."
Chapter 562