The Great Ethan Lee

Chapter 20

Lauren's mind was spinning!

'The bride is the master's wife?! How can that be?! Who is the master?'

Suddenly, it all clicked for Lauren. His eyes locked on Ethan's calm face. Despair washed over him: 'This man is the master. What have I done?! I dared to snatch the master's wife!'

Bang!

Lauren collapsed on the ground in front of Ethan, his two-hundred-pound body shaking uncontrollably.

He cried, "Mr. Lee, please... please forgive me! I didn't know it was you! It was all Silvia, that b***h, who led me on!"

Lauren, consumed by anger, suddenly grabbed Silvia by the hair, forced her to the ground, and slapped her with fury "B***h! You b***h! You tried to get me killed! How dare you offend Mrs. Lee! I'll kill you!"

Ethan's calm voice cut through the chaos. "Enough..."

Lauren shivered, quickly putting on a groveling smile, "Mr. Lee, I was misled. Please forgive me! From now on, I'll change and be a good person!"

Ethan's face showed tremendous anger. "From the moment you insulted my wife, your life was no longer yours!"

Lauren panicked, trying to reason with Ethan. "No! Please, you can't do this! I'm from the Duncan family in Crownspire. With your status, you must know what Duncan means, right?"

Charles stepped in, his expression serious. "Ethan, calm down! Lauren has significant background and has been promoted five levels within a year. He's rumored to be assigned a key position in the Department of Defense! Maybe we should let this go..."

Hearing this, Lauren gained confidence and said, "Mr. Lee, I admit my fault today. For the sake of the Duncan family, can't we just let this end? Our family is willing to befriend you!"

Ethan sneered, looking at him with contempt. "Befriend me? The Duncan family isn't worthy!"

Seeing Ethan unmoved, Lauren turned to Jackson. "General Trump, as the commander of the Northern Legion, you know what the name Duncan represents. Don’t let yourself be used as a tool for a worthless friendship..."

Facing Lauren's threat, General Trump sneered, lifting the two-hundred-pound Lauren with one hand, whispering coldly in his ear, "The Duncan family of Crownspire may be powerful, but if you've offended the master, even the president wouldn't be spared!"

With that, before Lauren could react, General Trump threw him into the Green River!

Lauren screamed, "Ah! No! Save me, I don't want to die, I..." His desperate struggles ended as he sank to the bottom of the river, his voice fading away.

The guests felt deep awe toward Ethan!

Charles, looking at his bloodied, collapsed daughter Silvia, was heartbroken, "Silvia, why... why did you do this?"

Silvia laughed bitterly. "Why? Ha ha... you really ask why?"

Years of pent-up emotion exploded: "We are both your daughters. Why are you always biased toward Sophia? You always held her as kids. How many times did you hold me? Every time you bought something, it was for her first. I had to play with her leftovers, wear her old clothes. Why?! Why did she get all your love while I got nothing?! I hate her! I want to humiliate her, take everything from her, and crush her under my feet!"

Charles, shocked by the reason, laughed bitterly. "So that's it. You want to know why? Fine! I'll tell you why!"

His face turned cold as he looked at her. "Silvia, why would I love you over my own daughter, Sophia? Should I love a bastard, instead?"

The crowd was stunned, even Sophia was left gaping!

Silvia was bewildered. "What... what do you mean?"

Charles replied coldly, "What do I mean? Let me tell you! When Sophia was three, I met your mother, Vivian, on a business trip. She told me she was kidnapped and starved for three days. I pitied her and brought her back to the Harris family. Sophia had lost her mother, and Vivian grew close to her, so I kept her around."

He continued, "For Sophia, I didn't let Vivian leave. One night, I came home drunk, and the next morning, I found her in my bed. After that incident, and seeing how much Sophia liked her, I went with it and married her as my second wife!"

Vivian turned pale and almost fainted upon hearing this.

Charles went on mercilessly, "On our wedding night, I was shocked to discover that she was pregnant. Through her tears, she confessed that she had been r***d by human traffickers and had no idea about it until then. At that time, I didn't pursue the matter any further. Ten months later, you were born. You were just an innocent child, so I named you Silvia and raised you as my own."

The guests nodded, impressed by his kindness.

Charles's anger grew. "But my kindness was not repaid! As my business grew, I rarely came home. I thought with Vivian's care and a sister to accompany her, Sophia would be happy even without me. But I never expected to have raised two ungrateful women who almost killed my daughter!"

Pointing at Silvia, he said, "You ask why the different treatment? You and your mother would be dead if not for me! You have your current luxury because of Sophia. Without her, you're nothing! So, what right do you have to compete with her?! She is the true owner of this family, while you two are just servants surviving because of her!"

Silvia was stunned. She turned to Vivian, "Mom, Dad is lying, right? He's just mad and trying to trick me, right?"