Chapter 75 A Favor


    "Yulia, you should shut up." Jonas red at her. "I don''t want to hear anyone talking about this,


    especially if it''sing from you."


    Jonas could not possibly believe that Melinda was capable of doing such a thing to his face. He had no


    ns on keeping the child in the first ce. He suspected that the person who was responsible for this


    was Holley.


    It never crossed his mind, not even once, that Holley would do such a terrible thing when she was


    caught in a tight situation.


    "She has killed two children but you still defend her!" Yulia growled at her brother. Eyes wide in anger,


    she then turned to Melinda. "How were you able to trick both my brother and grandfather to protect you


    no matter what?"


    Yulia stared in surprise at Jonas. She thought he would get furious at Melinda yet it was theplete


    opposite. In fact, he continued to defend the woman.


    Melinda was at a loss for words as she turned to face Jonas. She did not expect him to believe her.


    This made her feelings for him even moreplicated all of a sudden.


    Just when she thought that she was all alone and that the whole world doubted her, someone suddenly


    stood by her side and firmly defended her.


    Ever since Melinda realized what it really meant to be in love, she knew a fact that she felt it for this


    man who was currently standing in front of her. Tears soon welled up from her eyes and started to roll


    down her cheeks.


    She snuffled and hastily tried to wipe the tears from her face with the back of her hand. Finally deciding


    to say something since the ident happened, she slowly opened her mouth to speak.


    "I didn''t do it. It wasn''t me," she sobbed.


    "I believe you," Jonas answered back. His eyes turned soft as he looked at her.


    Suddenly, he hesitantly stretched out his hand to hold her, worried at the same time that Melinda would


    reject him. He seemed to be thinking twice on what he was about to do but finally mustered up the


    courage to grab her hand. When Melinda held his hand in return and did not try to break free from his


    grip, the corners of his mouth lifted up to a small smile as he softly breathed a sigh of relief.


    "I believe you as well," Nelson said. "Mellie is a kind girl. I could not imagine her doing such a thing."


    Eyes filled with pity for Melinda, the old man went downstairs along with Gavin. His demeanor suddenly


    shifted as he turned to Yulia with piercing cold eyes.


    He was definitely disappointed with his granddaughter''s actions.


    "Yulia," he addressed her in an authoritative voice, "I don''t mind sending you abroad for a few years so


    you could learn some proper etiquette."


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    Nelson''s words seemed to be effective since it apparently made Yulia shut up. She did not utter a


    single word after. Melinda felt a little guilty as she nced over to Nelson. She was aware that he had


    always been eager to have a great-grandchild.


    "What''s the matter? Why do you look so sad?" the old man asked.


    As soon as Nelson reached out to her and ced a hand gently on top of her head, Melinda wasn''t


    able to fight the tears that once again fought toe out. She looked back at the old man with watery


    eyes.


    "Grandpa," she wept.


    Melinda suddenly missed her grandparents. Back home, everything was simple. There were no


    usations or heartbreaks to deal with. All her grandparents did was spoil her like a little princess.


    Even when she arrogantly made some mistakes or got into trouble, her grandfather was always there


    to clean up the mess for her.


    Then he would use his own method to educate her. Leonard was a soldier. His kindness and integrity


    had a great deal of influence in Melinda.


    "Don''t cry, Grandpa is here," Nelson told her in a soothing voice. "If Leonard sees you like this he''ll


    definitely get angry at me for making his granddaughter sad. I am already old and not as strong as I


    was, so help me."


    Nelson''s words made Melinda homesick but she quickly dried her tears. Her grandfather always told


    her that it was no use to let others see you cry.


    "Your tears will only cause distress to your family," he always said.


    Seeing Melinda in this state made Jonas feel lost. He stood there helplessly as he watched Nelson


    trying tofort her.


    "Come on, let me show you some photos of me and your grandfather back from when we joined the


    army," Nelson said in an attempt to cheer her up.


    Melinda decided to forget everything that just happened and quietly followed the old man to his study.


    Jonas was instructed by his grandfather to return to the vi. Nelson also temporarily took away all of


    Yulia''s electronic devices, which caused her to throw a fit inside her room.


    While showing the pictures to Melinda, Nelson smiled fondly as he remembered the old times. It was


    evident that he treasured the memories he had with her grandfather during the days when they were in


    the army.


    "Grandpa," Melinda said and then suddenly hesitated.


    "You do not need to hold back, say want you want to say," the old man urged. "If someone mistreats


    you, don''t think twice about telling me. I will deal with it."


    Nelson noticed the hesitance in Melinda''s voice as a sign of grievance. Melinda''s silence made him


    wish that she could act more of a child who did not hesitate to tell grownups anything.


    "Grandpa, is the only reason why you treat me so well all the time because you and my grandfather are


    good friends?" Melinda finally asked. "You have many otherrades just like my grandfather and


    many of them have granddaughters who are much better than me," she continued.


    Nelson was surprised for a moment by Melinda''s words as she revealed all of her doubts. After a


    moment, he started tough.


    It was true that he had a lot ofrades in the army, but there was only one person who had devoted


    his self to him and helped him a lot. The rest of them only wanted to be close to him so that they could


    gain some benefit.


    "Your grandfather is a person worthy of respect. I owe him my life," he told her.


    Nelson then began to reminisce about the old days with sadness evident in his eyes. The memory of


    the events during that year was still freshly etched on his mind. Both of them were excellent soldiers,


    but Leonard was the best at everything he did.


    Ever since they were young, they alwayspeted among one another. Although they had be


    rivals, they still respected each other. However, when Leonard saved Nelson''s life, their rtionship


    changed entirely.


    "There was one time that your grandfather and I were deployed on the same mission. I was suddenly


    caught in the limelight and was discovered by the enemy that almost took my life. I thought that I was


    going to die in the field, but your grandfather risked his life to save me. After that, we became very


    good friends," Nelson said.


    The old man continued, "As time passed, I didn''t know anymore who owed who, but what I know is that


    I owed your grandfather. Not only did he save my life back then, but he also sacrificed his future to let


    me have the opportunity to be able to study and go to college. I would not have been able to own


    Soaring Group now if that hadn''t happened."


    Melinda silently pondered on the old man''s revtion. She did not know about this piece of news and it


    was the first time she learned about it. Now she finally understood why Nelson treated her so well and


    wanted to give her a good life.


    For Nelson, everything he had right now was all because of Leonard. If Leonard hadn''t risked his life


    and given up his own future for him, Nelson wouldn''t be who he was today.


    "My grandfather didn''t tell me anything." Melinda continued to look at the old pictures in realization.


    "How could he have told you? I doubt that your grandmother knew about it either."


    Melinda knew that her grandfather wasn''t concerned with fighting for neither power nor victory. Instead,


    he was a man of principle. If anyone ever dared to hurt his precious granddaughter, he would


    absolutely show no mercy.


    "Grandma must have known," she said.


    "Not necessarily," Nelson replied.


    Melinda felt that her grandfather loved her grandmother so much that they never kept secrets between


    them. Nelson, however, thought that with how he knew Leonard, he would have definitely kept it to


    himself until hisst breath.


    The both of them continued to converse with each other with a lot of things. They were so deep in their


    discussion that they didn''t notice someone standing by the door of the study, who heard every single


    word of their conversation.


    Jonas stood there still hidden, silently pondering to himself with what he just heard. He knew that


    Leonard was Nelson''srade, but what he did not know was that the rtionship between them went


    more beyond that.


    He now understood why his grandfather insisted on him marrying Melinda. Whenever he and Melinda


    got into a fight, Nelson would always take her side and demanded him to take good care of her. He


    didn''t understand why Nelson would have gone far as threatening him with his inheritance but now it all


    made sense.


    Back then, Jonas believed that Melinda had been tricking his grandfather into taking her side. Now, he


    realized that Nelson''s actions were his own way of repaying his old friend for everything that he had


    done for him.


    His face was etched with guilt. He had been wrong all this time. Melinda had never deceived anyone. In


    fact, she was the one who had no idea the whole time.


    Melinda''s chat with Nelson left her in a better mood. Finally, Nelson couldn''t help but say a few nice


    things for Jonas.


    Dinner was soon served at the main vi. Melinda gazed at all the food served on the table with


    eagerness as she picked up one of each dish in front of her. All of them were her favorite. As she


    started to grab a bite, another pair of chopsticks suddenly reached into her bowl with the shrimps she


    always loved to eat.


    Melinda looked up to Jonas, a bit confused by the sudden action. She noticed him suddenly feeling


    embarrassed when he quickly averted his gaze and picked up another shrimp to taste for himself.


    Unbeknown to the two, Nelson saw everything that had transpired. He remained silent as a small smile


    formed on his face while he enjoyed the scene in front of him.


    Melinda stared at the piece of shrimp that was ced in her bowl. This was the first time that Jonas


    picked up food for her. She hesitated for a moment, but ended up picking it up anyway. She wasn''t


    aware that she had been unconsciously smiling the whole time as she happily munched on it.


    Since Jonas did not receive anyin from Melinda, he continued to pick up several dishes that he


    knew she liked to eat and ced it in her bowl. Melinda silently ate all the food given to her until Jonas


    had ced too much that she couldn''t help but helplessly look up at him.


    "I can''t see the rice anymore."


    He ended up cing too many dishes in her bowl that it covered up all the rice.


    Jonas quickly grabbed some of the food from her bowl and ced it in his, leaving space for Melinda to


    be able to eat some rice.


    "Why don''t you two go out for a walk together, Jonas?" Nelson suddenly suggested.


    Melinda didn''t like to waste food. Since Jonas had added too much food for her today, she had no


    choice but to eat all of it. Feeling a bit fuller than the usual, she rubbed her belly from time to time.


    Upon hearing his grandfather, Jonas quietly obeyed. He stood up from his seat and grabbed Melinda''s


    hand. She wanted to break out of his hold but she changed her mind as soon as she saw the expectant


    look on Nelson''s face. Excusing herself, she obediently followed Jonas out of the hall.


    While holding each other''s hand, Jonas and Melinda strolled around the whole mansion. As Melinda


    looked all around, she realized that the Gu''s mansion was indeed a huge ce. There were a lot of


    small vis in the area and it took quite a while for both of them to go around the whole area.


    There were a lot of people whom Melinda rarely saw. Seeing how Jonas took care of her and held her


    hand while they passed by gave these people a hint of the current situation


    Now that Jonas had personally protected Melinda and defended her, those who had thought ill of her


    should change the biased opinions they had of her.


    Melinda did not want the warm feeling she had with Jonas a while ago to end when the two finally


    returned to their own vi. She found her feet unconsciously having a mind of their own as she slowly


    felt herself approaching him.


    "Jonas, why are you not ming me?" she asked.


    Jonas nced at her, his expression turning soft. "I know that you were not responsible for what


    happened. Holly was the one who orchestrated all of this to frame you."


    Even though he knew that Holley was narrow-minded, he didn''t expect that she would involve Melinda


    in it.


    "You''re acting weird today." Melinda quietly chuckled.


    Jonas acted different from the usual. She stared at him curiously, noticing how his eyes were full of


    affection as he looked at her. Melinda realized that she liked it and blushed at the thought.