"Absurd!" Mary glared furiously at her eldest son. "I think you've completely lost your mind, trying to scheme away that property. Latham, is this how I raised you?"
Latham was momentarily left speechless. He wanted to argue that both his parents had been incredibly busy with their respective careers when he was growing up, leaving them almost no time to actually raise him. But then he remembered how, whenever his mother had a day off, she made it a point to personally care for him and his brother. She had indeed raised him well. But in the face of a businessman's profits, integrity was entirely worthless.
"Mom, I have no other options left. You block me at every turn. At this rate, our family is truly going to go bankrupt." Latham practically wanted to fall to his knees and beg his mother to show some mercy.
Mary knew all too well the crushing pressure her son was facing.
"Isn't there still one path left for us to take?" Mary softly reminded him. The James family hadn't been born into vast wealth. If they had to reduce their massive fortune to half, or even a third, why should that be so completely unacceptable?
"What path?" Pearce interjected, beating Latham to the punch.
Latham shot a look at Pearce, thinking his brother was an absolute fool. Latham knew better than to underestimate his own mother.
Mary offered a tight smile. "Cut your losses and survive. I just don't know if you two brothers have the confidence to start over and rebuild from the ground up."
Latham remained silent, and Pearce kept quiet as well. Pearce would love to make a massive comeback, but that required actual talent. He was thoroughly mediocre, while Latham was the one gifted in business. But Pearce knew his brother well enough to realize that asking Latham to abandon the Westside project right now was equivalent to taking a complete, unmitigated loss. Latham would never willingly agree to it.
Mary also knew that Latham would be fiercely opposed to the idea.
"If you refuse, then the company will just have to face bankruptcy. Think it over carefully. No matter what
happens, I will never agree to let you use Shirley in a political marriage with Mr. Clark's son Why on earth should my granddaughter be forced to settle for a man like that?"
The man didn't even like women. The mere thought of her granddaughter getting engaged to someone like him felt like a tragic waste.
Hearing her grandmother's words filled Shirley with both joy and deep emotion.
"Thank you, Grandma! If I ever fall in love, I promise to bring him home for you to meet first. If you don't approve of him, I won't marry him!" Shirley was laying on the charm and flattery thick right now.
Octavia was absolutely miserable, and her displeasure was plastered clearly across her face. Pearce and his wife, however, were thrilled. With the old lady backing them up, Latham would have to think twice before scheming against their daughter again.
"Latham, do not think you can just pretend to agree and then do whatever you want once I leave. My connections might not be able to help you succeed, but they are more than enough to trip you up!" Mary warned him again when she saw he wasn't responding.
Latham felt a vein throb in his temple. He truly had the absolute worst luck in the world.
After Mary finished threatening her
son, Shirley was likely the only
person at the table who actually enjoyed the meal. When dinner was over, Mary made no move to stay the night. Even though Octavia had
already strugh
structed the maids to
prepare a guest room, Mary coldly
refused the offer.
"If you two can manage to live a good life together, then do so. But if the James family falls apart and you wish to divorce my son, I will fully support your decision," Mary said suddenly, turning to Octavia.
Octavia was completely caught off guard. "Mom, what are you talking about? Of course I want to live a good life with Latham."
Mary's expression remained
perfectly stoic. "Octavia, I can clearly see when a woman's heart is no longer with her husband. After all these years, no one knows better than you exactly what you value most. Sometimes, lying to yourself isn't actually a good thing."