Chapter 65 - 64: Or I’ll Punch You
Yvonne Lowell froze for a moment. Just as she was about to answer, Leo Grant spoke first.
"It’s mine. I asked Yvonne to hold it for me while I was grilling."
’Hah, who would believe that?! Everyone knows those Buddha Beads are Leo Grant’s most prized possession!’
’He normally doesn’t let anyone touch them, and now what? She’s wearing them?!’
Harrison Lowell raised an eyebrow. "Since you’re done grilling, Brother Grant, you should probably hold on to them yourself. Don’t want them getting dirty."
"It’s fine. I’ll be heading back over there in a bit anyway," Leo Grant said calmly, his expression unchanged.
Harrison glanced at him. "I’m thinking of getting a string of Buddha beads to wear, too. Say, Brother Grant, how do yours feel? Let me try them on, why don’t you?"
"If you like them, I can find an old master I know to make you a string from the same wood another day. After all, our wrist sizes probably aren’t the same."
Leo Grant didn’t even look up as he poured more red wine into Yvonne Lowell’s glass.
Harrison: ’...? So his wrist size isn’t a match, but my sister’s is?! Is he trying to fool a child?!’
"But Brother Grant, I remember you have a fear of women. Don’t tell me you don’t see our Nola as a woman?"
Yvonne Lowell rested her chin in her hand and looked at him teasingly, seemingly curious about his answer as well.
"Of course not. Yvonne is different from those people." Leo Grant remained perfectly composed, his expression not changing in the slightest.
Harrison pushed his tongue against his cheek, deliberately misinterpreting him. "I get it now. You mean she’s just like us, one of the guys! That’s great!"
"Of course it’s not the same. You guys are my buddies, but she isn’t," Leo Grant said, taking a light sip of his red wine.
Legendary kill!
Harrison was so furious he could barely breathe.
"Second Brother, you should go eat. Otherwise, the grilled abalone you’ve been talking about all day will be gone," Yvonne Lowell said, tilting her chin toward the barbecue grill.
Harrison Lowell looked at her in disbelief. ’The kid’s all grown up, her wings have hardened, and now she’s taking an outsider’s side?!’
"You... you... you... you... you..."
Yvonne Lowell stuffed a lamb skewer into his mouth. "What about me? Hurry up and eat, don’t starve yourself."
"Hmph!" Harrison Lowell walked off, the lamb skewer dangling from his mouth.
...
"Stop teasing him all the time." Yvonne Lowell shot him a sideways glance.
Leo Grant pressed his lips together. "He’s the one who started picking a fight with me."
"Come on, let’s go over there too." Yvonne Lowell pulled him up and started walking in that direction.
[Hahahahahahaha...]
[President Grant didn’t even take a scratch and sent my bro back to the fountain with critical HP.]
[But~ she~ is~ di~ffer~ent~]
[President Grant got told off. He looks so wronged, hahaha.]
[They’re holding hands! They’re holding hands!!!]
[I’m dying, his own sister is fed up with him.]
[Is it possible the sister didn’t understand his meaning at all...?]
[I think so too.]
[Who cares, whatever’s going on with them, I approve.]
[I agree too!!]
[I’ll gift 100,000, put it on Harrison Lowell’s tab!]
...
Over on the other side, Penelope Lynch saw that everyone was eating and handed the freshly grilled skewers to her younger brother and sister, gesturing toward the camera.
Phoebe Lynch and Simon Lynch each grabbed a handful and offered them to the cameraman, but he refused to take them.
"Go on, take it, or I’ll punch you!" Phoebe Lynch shoved them directly into his hands, shaking her fist.
Simon Lynch looked at her, then mimicked her actions, stuffing the skewers into another crew member’s hands. "Go on, take it, or I’ll have my sister punch you!"
Helpless, the camera crew reluctantly accepted. They had long been captivated by the fragrant aroma anyway.
"You two are guests today, too! Remember to give us a five-star review later, ’kay!" Harrison Lowell cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted at them.
Cameraman: ’Damn, I miscalculated!’
’But still... it smells so good!’
[LMAO, ’Take it or I’ll punch you!’]
[Okay, okay, does this count as bribing the judges?]
[More like a threat...]
[A mix of carrot and stick. The cameraman has no choice but to eat this time.]
[You can’t criticize someone who just fed you. Just give them the good review.]
Everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, and the live stream was drawing to a close.
A cameraman stepped forward and said, "Congratulations, everyone, on exceeding your mission goals. Today’s broadcast ends now."
"Alrighty, see ya!" Harrison Lowell waved at the camera.
[No, don’t go! We haven’t seen enough!!]
[Can’t you just broadcast 24/7?! I’d be happy just to stare at this huge villa!!]
[Don’t turn it off, I’m begging you!!]
Everyone said their goodbyes to the audience, and the live stream ended amidst the viewers’ reluctant farewells.
...
Almost everyone had left. Only Leo Grant was still at the Lowell residence.
Yancy Lowell watched him, a shrewd glint in his eyes. "Brother Grant, where are you headed? Should we arrange a car to take you?"
"No need, I’m staying at my parents’ place tonight," Leo Grant said, casually draping his suit jacket over his shoulders.
As if no one else was there, he patted Yvonne Lowell’s head. "Get some rest. Good night."
"Alright then, we won’t see you out. Take care," Yancy Lowell said, pulling Yvonne Lowell behind him.
Yvonne Lowell peeked her head out to say to him, "Good night."
After Leo Grant left, Yancy pulled her over to the sofa. He and Harrison sat on either side of her, looking like they wanted to say something but were hesitating.
Yvonne Lowell found it a bit funny. "What’s all this?"
"Nola, stay away from Brother Grant from now on. He’s got bad intentions," Harrison said, his face full of indignation.
"What’s wrong with him? Weren’t you two buddies just this afternoon?"
"Buddies are buddies, but him having ulterior motives is not okay!"
Yancy pushed up his glasses. "Brother Grant is a very dangerous man."
Just as Yvonne Lowell was about to speak, Caleb Lowell cut her off. "Alright, that’s enough. Nola is tired after fooling around with you guys all day."
"Go on up and rest. Don’t mind them," Caleb said, patting her head.
"Okay, good night, brothers." With a WHOOSH, Yvonne Lowell ran upstairs, escaping the contentious scene.
’Sigh, my brothers are guarding against that handsome guy like he’s a thief. He sure has a long way to go.’
"Brother, you clearly know..." Harrison stomped his foot in frustration.
Caleb shot him a sidelong glance. "If it’s something even you can see, do you really think Nola doesn’t know?"
"This..." ’Why does that sound like an insult?!’
"Nola knows everything, but she’s still choosing to indulge him, isn’t she? Besides, what makes you so sure it’s the pig going after the cabbage?"
"It has to be! Nola is so innocent, she’s being tricked by that old man!"
Caleb: ’I’m a year older than that ’old man,’ so what does that make me?!’
"Alright, I know what you’re thinking. I used to be the same way. But the best thing we can do is stand silently behind her and protect her, not lock her up and eliminate what we perceive to be so-called dangers."
After saying that, Caleb Lowell went upstairs.
He left the two brothers in the living room, lost in thought.
...
The next morning, the live stream started right on time.
Just as the audience began flooding into the stream, they were met with a piercing sound, like a pig being slaughtered.