The Leicester Heir

Ray Thane swiftly ran through the crowd of pedestrians in Emberhaven metropolis, determined to arrive early for his Grandmother-in-law's 80th birthday celebration. "The traffic is unbearable. Taking a cab or bus will only lead to further delays. I suppose it's unnecessary," Ray contemplated aloud, loosening the collar of his suit to at least give him some breathing space. He immediately ran as the small package in his dangling from side to side. Ray Thane, was an orphan who lost his parents in an accident, he was taken care of by his grandmother. However, he had developed a habit of spending a lot in an attempt to tarnish his grandmother’s reputation as a result of some grievances he held against her. In an effort to impart a valuable lesson, his grandmother orchestrated his marriage into the Jenson family. Ray, who found himself stripped of his former spending lifestyle, then became a live-in son-in-law for the Jensons. Initially, he resisted the idea, but without any means of income, he had no other authority. In the midst of his haste, Ray noticed an incoming call from his wife, Ava Jenson. He knew what was coming next, he braced himself and answered the phone. "Ray! Where are you? I told you to wake up earlier, if you had done that you would have been here by now.” Ava barked in her scolding tone. "I apologize... I'm on my way. There was an intense traffic jam, but I'm already in the vicinity. I'll be there soon, Please, give me a little time" Ray panted, drenched in sweat, determined not to disappoint Ava as he held his phone. “Please, hurry up?” Ava told him. Despite Ray's initial spendrift attitude, it was Ava who was the one that changed his attitude towards money. He held her in high regard, appreciating her support despite them having their differences at first. Meanwhile Ray, who was running, suddenly found himself blocked by a middle-aged man wearing a suit and white gloves. "Young Master, madam wants you back. She said that I shouldn't return without you," Ray's butler said as he confronted him. Ray's grandmother wanted him home because she had noticed a positive change in him, and a terminal sickness that was not improving. "Tell Grandma that I enjoy being a loser, so she shouldn't bother me about coming back home." He declared as he was boiling in rag. He pushed the butler's hands away and moved on. "Young Master! Young Master... Please, she is dying!" the butler desperately shouted, maybe it might stare up some emotions in him. Ray stopped a bit on hearing that, but he continued forward not minding the bad news. After an intense twenty-minute sprint, Ray finally arrived at the grand Jenson mansion. He hastily ran towards the mansion and upon reaching he pushed open the enormous twenty-foot-tall door. To his surprise, all eyes were fixed on him, and whispers spread through the crowd. "The live-in son-in-law has finally come," murmured the onlookers. "Look at him, sweating, It's a shame that a beautiful girl like Ava ended up with someone like him. What a pity," various gossip circulated among the gathering. The Jenson family felt a bit embarrassed to see Ray, and the disappointed looks could be seen on their faces. Ava who was also standing close to her family, crossed her arms and stared at him with disappointment for coming late. "Ava, next time your live-in husband comes, you should at least tell him to dress properly," Ava's sister Sarah laughed at Ava, playfully resting her hands on her husband's chest while looking at Ava. Ray had no means to clean his sweaty face, but Ava approached him with a towel and gently wiped his face. Ray looked at her in surprise as she took his hand and led him to the dining area. As they approached the dining section, he held the bag with the gift he had bought for Ava's grandmother. Ava's grandmother made her entrance, slowly descending the stairs with the guidance of Ava's father and leaning on a walking stick. She was quite elderly, celebrating her eightieth birthday. She slowly made her way to the dining table and took a seat. Upon seeing Ray, a look of disgust appeared on her face. Ava's sister decided to make things even more difficult for Ray. She said to him, "Is that the gift you got for Grandma?" as she looked at the small package. "Yes, it's quite expensive," Ray replied, answering her question. "Oh! I can see that you bought a cheap gift for Grandma. You should have gotten something better, like my husband did," Sarah said, pointing to the numerous gifts they had brought. "And I bought something that you could never afford in your life," Sarah added, standing up and opening one of the gifts. She then turned to her grandmother. "Mom! This is a Chinese bowl called Feng Wei, and it has been around for a thousand years," Sarah said, smiling at her husband. "And Grandmother... Arthur bought it for $300,000, an amount Ray could never afford in his life," Sarah continued, going over to Ray and snatching the bag from his hands to inspect its contents. Ray wanted to protest, but he decided to let it go. "Sarah, how could you do something like that to my husband?" Ava stood up from her seat, her voice filled with anger. "This good-for-nothing is not worthy of being called a husband. I've told you that you should have divorced him by now," Sarah said, unfazed, and went straight to opening the bag. To her disappointment, she found it contained a tea bag. "Hahaha! This is just ordinary tea... I suppose you consider this a gift," Sarah taunted as she approached her grandmother and presented her with the tea bag. "You can dispose of it. I have no need for it," Ava's grandmother said to Sarah. "Grandma, that tea is far from ordinary. It's called Heaven's Breath, a rare and expensive tea... Unlike some people who present fake bowls," Ray interjected with frustration. Heaven’s Breath was grown in the highlands of Xi’an, where the air is pure and the soil untouched. Monks tend to the leaves, believing them to hold spiritual energy. This tea is said to promote vitality and extend one’s life. "How dare you?" Sarah said as she was infuriated by Ray's comment. She stormed over to him and landed a resounding slap on his cheek. Paaaaah!