Chapter 541
Chapter 541 The Real Reason
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“What do you mean?” Toby narrowed his eyes. What did my father go through back in the day? What did
she mean by that?
It was as if life drained out of Jean as soon as she brought up Homer. There was sadness in her eyes as
she held onto the armrest of the sofa and sat down. She looked hollow, no longer as frigid as she always
had been, and if it weren’t for the trace of guilt that highlighted her expression, one might think she was
at peace with the world.
“When your father and I got married over ten years ago, we didn’t receive your run-of-the-mill blessings,
and what we got instead were merciless teasing and snide remarks, but I won’t go into that. All you need
to know is that I was not wee in the circle, and your father became the butt of the joke because he
married me, a woman who was neither of good breeding or culture. I was basically good at nothing.”
As Jean said this, she worried at the band on her ring finger like it would give herfort. The ring was
made of white gold, but it was dull and unpolished. It looked ancient, and at first nce, one could tell
that she had not taken it off for years, not even to get it cleaned at the jeweler’s.
The band also looked a little tight on her ring finger, which swelled up around the band like it was
constricted instead of decorated.
Even so, she didn’t appear to have taken the band off over the years, and it was obvious that the band
meant a lot to her.
Presently, she gazed down at the wedding band on her ring finger—the very one Homer had given to her
when they exchanged their vows—and mused sorrowfully, “Your father was once the greatest man in the
circle, the very same circle that shunned him and cast him out when he married me. They thought your
father was a fool for bringing me into the upper-ss society, iming that my lowly status would hurt the
image of the elite. So they mocked him for it, and they set me up to fail on many asions in order to
humiliate your father.”
Having said all this, Jean clenched her plump fist, and her smooth expression began to twist into a
grimace. Her eyes grew red as she went on to say, “But those weren’t the worst of it. The nightmare
came when those vicious women in the circle took advantage of my being a philistine and decided to
gang up on me. They sweet-talked me into giving them several important contracts that Fuller Group was
working on so that they could let their husbands take a look and coborate with thepany afterward.
They told me it was a way to let Fuller Group expand its horizons.”
“And you did what they asked you to?” Toby asked, raising his brows.
She nodded numbly. “Of course I did. I knew nothing back then, but I only wanted to help your father and
be one of those corporate wives who helped their husbands with their business. Little did I know
that I would end up jeopardizing instead of helping your father and Fuller Group; your father lost
important contracts, and thepany went through unimaginable turmoil that year.”
“I’ve heard about this,” Tom interjected as he adjusted his spectacles. “Fuller Group took a heavy blow
that year, and if Old Mrs. Fuller hadn’t stepped in and lent her aid, then that could have been the end of
the business. I heard that Old Mrs. Fuller even fired Mr. Fuller from his position as the president.”
Toby parted his lips and added, “Father lost those important contracts and caused thepany to go
into turmoil. Grandma had to fire him, or she’d have a hard time dealing with the shareholders.”
Riddled with self-me, Jean said mournfully, “That’s right, so for a long time, your father spiraled into
depression. He started to get into drinking, and eventually, even your grandmother couldn’t stand it any
longer and suggested that your father go on a business trip abroad. She said something about
negotiating for a deal with some international tycoon, which, if the deal was concluded, would make the
shareholders change their minds about your father. That way, she could reinstate him as the president of
thepany again. But…”
She buried her face in her hands, finally losing herposure as she broke down sobbing.
At the sight of this, Toby clenched his fists and said hoarsely, “But no one expected Father to die at the
hotel he was staying at while abroad.”
Unable to form coherent words, Jean could only sob and nod to confirm what Toby had said.
Signaling Tom to wheel him closer to the coffee table, Toby then took out a few tissues and handed them
to Jean, saying, “I understand now why you think Sonia isn’t meant to be part of our family. The Reed
Family has fallen from grace and, by extension, out of rank with the other elite families. You think that
Sonia would only drag me and Fuller Group down, that she wouldn’t be able to offer any real help; you’re
afraid that I would end up like Father and be theughingstock of the industry.”
“Yes,” Jean mumbled in a wobbling voice as she looked up to meet his gaze. “That’s exactly what I
meant to tell you. I practically walked your father into his death, Toby, and I don’t want you to go down
the same path he did.”
That was the real reason why she had not treated Tina with the same hostility as she had Sonia. Unlike
the Reed Family, the Gray Family was still within the elite circle, and with Titus backing Tina up, she
would make a much better contender than Sonia.
More importantly, Tina had been the only daughter in the Gray Family, which meant she stood to inherit
every penny of the family fortune once Titus passed on. When that happened, Toby would have ess
to the same fortune, and Fuller Group could once again expand its growth. Jean had seen this as the
only way to ease her own guilt and for her to shake off her past.
However, Jean hadn’t expected Tina to turn out to be more trouble than she was worth.
“Mom, thank you for worrying about me and being so considerate of me,” Toby said now, his expression
gentle as he shoved tissues into her hand.
Regardless of all that had happened, Jean’s enmity toward Sonia and her objections against Toby and
Sonia’s rtionship had all been for his best interests.
He could not deny her good intentions, but that didn’t mean he could ept her stance, either. As such,
he gazed upon her steadily and said with utmost seriousness, “But I will still choose to be together with
Sonia.”
“What?” Jean’s eyes widened as she demanded, “How could you say that even after all that I’ve told
you?” She had given him insight on all her reasons, and she even brought up the devastating past she
had kept hidden for so long in hopes that she might change his mind about Sonia. s, she failed in
persuading him to give up on the idea of remarrying Sonia and only seemed to have spurred him on. Did
I tell him all that for nothing?
“Yes,” Toby answered firmly now. “Sonia and I will never go through what you and Father did because
Sonia is different from you.”
“How is she any different from me?” Jean sputtered cynically. Admittedly, Sonia was born into a much
better family than hers, but the Reed Family was no longer part of the elite circle, even though Paradigm
Co. still stood as proof of their glory days.
That being said, even Jean could tell that Paradigm Co. was not profiting, and she didn’t need a
business degree to know that at the end of the day, Sonia was as good as broke.
That just means that Sonia is no more different from I was in the past!
“She’s entirely different.” Toby shoved his hand into his pocket and felt for the Ocean’s Heart, then
borated, “Sonia might not have anything now, but she is ambitious and talented in running a business.
With her in charge, Paradigm Co. will eventually find sess, so it’ll only be a matter of time before the
Reed Family rejoins the elite. Also—”
He paused, and a small smile yed on his lips as he thought of something. “If others dare to even say a
single snide remark to her face or mock her, she would fight back instead of taking the abuse in silence.
She has always known how to stand up for herself, and on that point alone, she’s much stronger than
you were, Mom. If you had defended yourself back in the day, then maybe you and Father wouldn’t have
ended up in such a sorry state. Moreover, I’d like to think I’ve done a superb job in expanding Fuller
Group, and it’s a much more powerfulpany than when Father ran it. As things stand, our family
doesn’t need an arranged marriage to strengthen our alliances or our standing in the industry. My
prowess is the reason why Fuller Group has its sess and glory now.”
“Doesn’t need…” she mumbled in confusion. Why wouldn’t we need an arranged marriage? Throughout
these years, all she knew was that blue-blood families relied on arranged marriages to strengthen their
ties and social standing.
He kept his gaze on her and exined, “Yes, our family doesn’t need an arranged marriage to maintain a
certain social standing. Something like that is only done by those who aren’t strong enough in the first
ce. Mom, our family isn’t how it used to be. I want you to think about it, and I hope you’ll really change
your mind about Sonia. I don’t want to have to choose between you and her, but if I’m forced to, then you
should know that I definitely won’t give her up.”
Upon hearing this, Jean stiffened. She felt as if someone had thrown a bucket of ice water over her. If he
won’t give Sonia up, then that means I’ll be the one he leaves behind in the end!
At that moment, she froze in her seat, and all the color drained out of her face.