Chapter 5 Sedition

• José frowned. “That’s her problem then. Since she chose to do this, if the Moores don’t like her, then that’s her problem, not mine.”
• Amanda took a quick glance at Yvonne. “Yes, but she is your daughter, after all. The public will mention us as well when they talk about her. It’s going to dent our reputation.”
• She looked up at her husband, who was listening intently. “Besides, Isabella isn’t my own daughter, so I don’t have the right to lecture her. You know she doesn’t talk to us either. No matter what we tell her, she will retort and do things her own way. You saw what happened today. She humiliated all of us in front of all the guests, especially you. It’s really sad when I think about it. I don’t mind her disrespecting me, but I didn’t expect her to do the same thing to you.” She sighed. “I’m not her mother after all, so no matter how well I treat her, all she cares about is her mother. She only thinks that we owe her the world.”
• Amanda teared up and continued, “I know what you’re planning. If we have a marriage of convenience with the Moore family, it will help the company. But if Isabella doesn’t cooperate with you, then...” She didn’t finish her sentence, but Amanda made her message clear.
• Yvonne’s eyes gleamed, and she applauded her mother deep down. ‘Yeah, Dad, you can’t waste this chance. Even if Isabella married Jonas, she might not help you with your business either. Your collaboration with Mr. Westwood was attributed to your friendship with him, not Isabella.”
• José suddenly understood the reason for the unease he felt earlier. Isabella’s disobedience today shocked him. He needed a daughter who would listen to his every command, not an opinionated one.
• He looked at the mother-daughter duo and sipped some tea. “What do you suggest I do?”
• Amanda and Yvonne exchanged glances before the former said gently, “Honey, we can’t do anything to Isabella, but we still have Yvonne. She is our own daughter.”
• José looked at Yvonne who felt embarrassed. “Mom, we’re talking about Isabella here, so why involve me in this?”
• Amanda looked at her sharply. “Yvonne, we’re talking about a serious matter here. You’re our daughter, so you can’t just enjoy all the fruits of labor your father has worked for. It’s time you help him settle some problems. Did I make myself clear?”
• Yvonne sat up and raised her right hand while smiling mischievously. “Yes, Mom. Crystal. If Dad needs me in anything, I will do my best to help.”
• That delighted José, so he nodded. “You’ve been raising Yvonne well, Amanda. On the other hand, Isabella is a rowdy one. She’s disappointing.”
• Amanda smiled. “I am not her mother, after all. If I were to interfere too much, she might suspect me of something.”
• “Hmph! She’s an ungrateful one.” José snorted, then he frowned. “Are you saying that I should marry Yvonne off to the Moore family?”
• Amanda nodded. “We can rest easy if it’s Yvonne. She cares about us the most.”
• “But she’s only twenty.” José had always adored his youngest daughter, so marrying her off so early hadn’t crossed his mind.
• Amanda knew he was wavering, so she smiled. “It’s fine. We can ask for an engagement for now, and Yvonne can marry once she graduates. It’s still the same thing.”
• José had a pensive look on his face.
• “Dad, I don’t mind if I can help the family. I’ll do the best I can for us. Trust me,” Yvonne bit her lip and said resolutely.
• José looked at his beautiful daughter and nodded in the end. Upon seeing that, Yvonne beamed.
• Amanda said casually, “But honey, we don’t know Mr. Moore, so we might need Isabella to introduce us to him.”
• Yvonne was surprised to hear that, but she quickly objected, “Why are you letting her do it? She just came up with the idea on the spot. Mr. Moore agreed to it the moment she asked, so we can just go to Mr. Moore if we want.”
• Yvonne thought she was better than Isabella in every aspect. I’m way hotter than that bumpkin. Why should a piece of trash like her get to marry someone like Mr. Moore? I should be the one who marries him. If he can agree to Isabella’s ‘proposal,’ he can say yes to me too.
• José thought she had a point, so he mused about it. “Why don’t we go to RS International tomorrow?”
• After Saber parked his car outside the Shaw residence, he looked quietly at the sleeping Isabella in the passenger seat.
• It was her engagement ceremony today, so she was wearing a white knee-length dress. Her neatly-tied hair was already in a mess where strands of her hair were dangling out of place. All the color seemed to have drained from her face.
• Her appearance hadn’t changed much since childhood.
• The pain and resolve in her eyes after she leaped down from the stage earlier pained him.
• Has she been well all these years? No, I don’t think so.
• Saber pushed her hair back gently.
• Isabella woke up at his touch and was stunned momentarily when she saw him.
• “You’re awake,” Saber said.
• Isabella blinked for a moment. When the memory of what happened earlier came flooding back to her, she took a deep breath to calm her agonizing soul.
• As she looked at the villa before her, all Isabella could feel was despair. This was her home, but since twelve years ago, she had been a redundant member of the household.
• Even though she lost her grandfather and mother, at least she still had Jonas, or so she thought. However, that was all in the past, as Isabella was truly alone now. Moreover, that crimson door seemed like a ravenous maw that would devour her and her family’s fruits of labor if given half a chance.
• Noticing that Isabella was spacing out at the villa, Saber asked softly, “Do you want me to come with you?”
• Isabella shook her head.
• Then she looked ahead while telling Saber in an almost robotic voice, “Mr. Moore, why don’t we make a deal? I need to get out of this place right now, but they will never allow me to rent a place on my own. Besides, my campus is undergoing construction right now, and all the senior year students will have to go for internships after the semester reopens. So they will no longer provide accommodation for us. The only way out for me right now is through marriage. If I get married, I can leave this place right away.”
• Saber tightened his grip on the steering wheel.
• “I want to marry you and move to your place. Don’t worry, just take me as a tenant. I can pay you the rent, and if I don’t have enough to pay, I’ll write an IOU. If you have been listening, I will come into an inheritance when I reach twenty-five years of age. When that time comes, I’ll clear all my debts, and then we can get divorced. Then I’ll split my inheritance in half. You can take half of it as payment for marrying me.”