CHAPTER 343

Split up…

His second aunt actually wanted to split up the family!

His grandfather was a very old-fashioned and traditional parent who placed utmost importance in the unity and prosperity of the family. If his grandfather knew that his aunt grew cold toward the eldest son's family and wanted to split away from them because of him and his sister, his grandfather would have a fit.

Even though they were the eldest son's family, his father's capabilities were average at most. He committed a mistake at his previous job, and he had to resign because of it. He was forced to leave the system and take to maritime trading.

As for his uncle Brandon, he was smart, capable, and talented. In fact, he achieved a high status at a very young age.

Moreover, his aunt Jennifer was a professional who the country greatly values. She was respected by all and had an extremely high reputation.

Aunt Jennifert's entire family consisted of learned people. They were highly educated in all sorts of fields.

Meanwhile, the Penham Family sprouted from military success. His grandfather wasn't very educated, so he respected educated people the most. His grandfather had always been proud of his Uncle Brandon for actually marrying Aunt Jennifer, who came from an educated family.

All in all, even though their family was the eldest in the Penham Family, they were at a slight disadvantage.

They had to lean against a strong tree before they could let their guard down.

The company that belonged to the eldest son's family developed smoothly and climbed to the top of Dusktown's social pyramid within twenty years only because they had support from his grandfather and Uncle Brandon.

His grandfather was advanced in age. In crude terms, once his grandfather passed away, if the company belonging to the eldest son's family were to maintain its glory, it could only depend on the second son's family.

He wasn't belittling himself. Instead, he knew very well how much he was worth. His father, him, and his younger siblings were not geniuses, and they only won in terms of diligence. In the business field, being diligent wouldn't amount to anything much other than keeping guard. However, the battles on the business field were fierce, and the only way other than up was down.

If they didn't have strong support, the company's glory wouldn't last long with diligence only.

Also, putting benefits aside, he was very respectful of his uncle Brandon and his aunt Jennifer. He also adored his cousins, who were younger than him.

He hoped that they could blissfully live together forever.

But now, Aunt Jennifer wanted to split the family up!

Without waiting for Uncle Brandon to speak, he said hastily, "Aunt Jennifer, I know that Ava and I are at fault. When Luna wakes up, Ava and I will apologize to her together! I swear that something like this won't happen again in the future!"

"You swear? On what?" Jennifer, who was usually gentle, now acted coldly. "Austin, don't you know what your mother and your sister are like? Your sister doesn't like Luna and treats her like a thorn in the flesh. She would mock Luna all the time and cause trouble for her. If Luna argues with her in the slightest, your mom would step in and shield your sister, saying that Luna is a foul-mouthed and disrespectful girl! I was foolish before and didn't want to get to their level, but I now realize that I've been wrong! I was too vulnerable, and they were so used to bullying me that they dared to bully my daughter as well!"

The more Jennifer said, the angrier she got. She was so pissed that she was shaking all over. "Your sister actually dared to come to our house and kill Luna's cat. If she didn't regard us with disdain, how would she dare to be so arrogant? Luna wasn't home at the time, so the one to die was Luna's cat. If Luna were home, would she have gone for Luna instead?"

Shame was written all over his face from the reprimand, and Austin had no words to say.

He parted his lips, but not a word escaped his mouth.

Ava, you wretch! How dare you visit Uncle Brandon's home and kill Luna's cat? His second aunt was right—she was simply too arrogant.

She had run to someone's home and killed the cat they had lived with for almost ten years. She really looked down on them.

If someone dared to enter his home and kill his cat, he might be even more furious than his aunt Jennifer.

He wasn't good with his words, and he knew he was the one at fault here, so he couldn't utter a sentence.

Jennifer didn't hate him. Instead, she had a high opinion of him.

Austin was an honest person, and he carried himself very much like an elder brother should. Even though her daughter was just Austin's cousin, Austin still adored her daughter greatly.

She was reluctant to vent the hatred and anger she had for Ava onto Austin. After taking a few deep breaths, she looked at Brandon. "Brandon, I'm serious about this. I want to announce publicly that we would be cutting off ties with the eldest son's family. Do you agree?"

She looked into Brandon's eyes, her gaze firm. There was no room for regrets.

She hoped her husband would support her.

If her husband didn't agree to it… There was a sudden twinge of pain in her heart as she refused to think further.

She loved her husband, and she didn't want to be separated from him.

However, she loved her children as well.

It was her compliance and weakness that caused her daughter to be bullied to this extent.

"You swear? On what?" Jennifer, who was usually gentle, now acted coldly. "Austin, don't you know what your mother and your sister are like? Your sister doesn't like Luna and treats her like a thorn in the flesh. She would mock Luna all the time and cause trouble for her. If Luna argues with her in the slightest, your mom would step in and shield your sister, saying that Luna is a foul-mouthed and disrespectful girl! I was foolish before and didn't want to get to their level, but I now realize that I've been wrong! I was too vulnerable, and they were so used to bullying me that they dared to bully my daughter as well!"

All these years, she had been ladylike with excellent upbringing. She refused to get down to the eldest son's family's level, and she had also taught her daughter to be patient instead of taking it up to the eldest son's family.

However, even with all the patience, they were rewarded with catastrophe instead of peace.

Her daughter had almost lost her life, and she couldn't endure it any longer!

If… If her husband didn't agree to it, she could only take her children with her as she returned to the Clark Family.

She didn't want to file a divorce. Copyright Nôv/el/Dra/ma.Org.

She really didn't…

Brandon hesitated for a moment.

Naturally, he didn't want to split up, especially not with how his wife wanted to announce it publicly.

However, he and his wife had been together and in love for more than twenty years, and he knew his wife all too well.

He knew the determination in his wife's eyes.

If he said no, even if his wife didn't divorce him, she would still take their children with her as she left him.

When that happened, their family of four would dwindle down to his lonesome self… He couldn't accept that.

He didn't hesitate for long before he nodded in agreement. "Alright, let's split up from them! After all, it is my fault for not being able to protect you properly, causing you to be bullied."

When Ava dared to go into their home to kill his daughter's cat, she wasn't just bullying his daughter; she was also disrespecting him as the head of his family.

Ava dared to be this arrogant because she didn't think much of him. If not, she wouldn't have dared to do so.

Austin was completely dumbfounded, for he thought that Uncle Brandon wouldn't agree to it.

His second uncle treated his grandfather well and also respected his father greatly.

Just like him, his second uncle probably knew how important the family's unity was to his grandfather.

His second uncle must know that his grandfather wouldn't want to see the families of his eldest and second sons becoming enemies.

He hoped that his second uncle would convince his second aunt, but he hadn't expected his second uncle to agree right away.

He panicked.

This wasn't something he could resolve anymore.

With his phone in hand, he hastily walked to a desolate place and dialed his father's number. "Dad, I have bad news…"

He was stuttering as he panicked, and he relayed the entire matter in a confusing order.

When Bryson heard all that, he was so pissed that he almost threw his phone. "Where is Ava? How did I raise such an ungrateful wretch?!"