Chapter 5: Uncle, You Have to Stand Up for Me
Matthew Grant pressed his tongue against the inside of his cheek. This woman was just as ungrateful as ever. He let out a scoffing laugh.
"Stop pretending, Caroline Whitman. I won’t even bring up how shamelessly you chased after me back in college. After graduation, you practically got on your knees to beg me for a partnership. When I said no, you turned around and used your looks to sleep your way to the top. Do you really think no one knows about your dirty little secrets? If you think you can use those same cheap tricks to seduce Adrian Grant, you’d better give up while you’re ahead!"
In an instant, the entire private room fell dead silent.
Every single classmate wore an expression hungry for gossip.
Caroline gently swirled the wine in her glass. As she stood up, her cheongsam clung to her voluptuous curves. She slowly walked toward Matthew.
Standing nearby, Molly Lawson could barely hide the smug smile on her face.
The surrounding gazes grew even more feverish. Someone discreetly pulled out their phone, waiting to record Caroline lowering her head in submission.
Seeing her approach, Matthew scoffed. "Figured it’s time to come over, offer a toast, and beg for mercy?"
He reached out, deliberately trying to touch the cuff of Caroline’s cheongsam, but she stepped sideways, leaving his fingers grasping at thin air.
Matthew wasn’t annoyed. Instead, his smile grew even more triumphant. "Let me tell you, Caroline. If you apologize to me publicly today and punish yourself by drinking three glasses of wine, I’ll let the past go.
"Otherwise, your company is finished. The Grant Group is my family’s business. Who you get to partner with is entirely up to me. Let alone Adrian Grant, even if God himself came down, he’d still have to look at my face for approval."
As soon as the words left his mouth, a glass of freezing red wine was splashed violently across his face.
In the split second Matthew stood frozen in shock, Caroline raised her hand and delivered a crisp slap.
SLAP.
The amused smirks froze on everyone’s faces.
"Caroline Whitman, are you crazy?!" someone screamed, finally snapping out of their daze.
"Fuck! You bitch, you actually dared to hit me!"
Recovering his senses, Matthew immediately lunged forward to retaliate. However, Caroline grabbed his wrist first. Her grip was astonishingly strong, a complete contrast to her fragile appearance.
SLAP!
Another vicious blow struck his cheek.
"You fucking—" Before Matthew could finish cursing, Caroline clamped a hand down on his shoulder and executed a flawless shoulder throw.
THUD.
He was slammed ruthlessly onto the floor.
Molly, who had been standing to the side, stumbled back in terror, terrified that Caroline might slap her next.
"Hey, stop hitting him! Break it up!"
Class Monitor Walter Carson was stunned. By the time he reacted, Matthew was already pinned to the ground by Caroline’s assault.
He thought, "Holy shit! I’ve never seen Caroline act so fiercely before."
Caroline looked down at Matthew’s pathetic state as he sprawled on the floor, his hair a mess and blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
"You think a piece of shit like you is worth me chasing after? Stop deluding yourself. It’s an absolute joke!" she said coldly.
Caroline had put up with this jerk for a long time. She had only ignored him because of his ties to the Grant Group, but this time, she had truly reached her limit.
After all, she was the cannon fodder sidekick whose sole purpose was to provoke the protagonist. If she didn’t beat him up, she would be doing a disservice to her original role in the book.
"Oh, come on, let it go! We’re all classmates here!" someone tried to mediate.
After all, this was Mr. Grant. There wasn’t a single soul in Kingsport who didn’t know his name.
Compared to Caroline’s status, they were simply in two entirely different leagues.
Everyone sitting in the room had practically groveled at Matthew’s feet back in college. Naturally, no one dared to offend him.
Caroline coldly shook off the hands trying to hold her back. Without sparing Matthew another glance, she turned and marched toward the door.
Under the warm yellow halo of the hallway lights, a figure was leaning casually against the doorframe.
Adrian Grant had been standing there for God knows how long, his hands resting casually in his tailored trousers. The exquisite suit accentuated his broad shoulders and long legs. Behind his glasses, his eyes concealed an imperceptible glint of amusement. He had taken in every single thing that had just unfolded in the private room.
Caroline’s heart sank heavily, and her body instantly froze in place.
The face before her perfectly overlapped with the face of the man who had pinned her down in her dreams. Even her breathing hitched subconsciously.
Her mind buzzed with panic. She thought, "I’m doomed... Of all the times to show up, why did it have to be now?"
She wondered if he had heard all the ridiculous things Matthew had just spouted.
"Fuck you! If you dare to walk out that door, Caroline, your company is dead!"
"Don’t fucking think I don’t know you had a bastard child with some old sugar daddy! I saw it with my own eyes! Stop acting so pure and mighty. Do you really think your old geezer can save you?"
Having been utterly humiliated by Caroline in front of so many people, Matthew pointed a trembling finger at her, screaming in furious exasperation.
Caroline’s expression darkened. She wondered, "Did he see me with Ryan Grant?"
"I’m telling you, you want to partner with the Grant Group? Over my dead body! Without my permission, don’t even dream about it!"
"What is over your dead body?"
At that moment, a deep, icy voice drifted in from the doorway.
The crowd turned their heads in unison toward the sound.
The man stood tall at the entrance of the private room. His posture was straight and elongated, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist. His towering figure exuded an intense, oppressive aura.
He merely stood there quietly, yet an undeniably dominant presence radiated from him, instantly plunging the previously rowdy room into total silence.
It was Adrian Grant.
He had arrived.
When Matthew saw Adrian’s face, his reaction mirrored Caroline’s. His heart practically leapt out of his chest.
"U-Uncle Adrian."
Matthew’s scalp went numb. He thought, "Why is he here?"
He wondered just how much his uncle had heard.
He hastily plastered a grieving, wronged expression onto his face and rushed over to Adrian, expertly playing the victim.
"This woman wants to negotiate a partnership with the Grant Group, but her methods are completely shady. I told her not to even think about it, and she just straight-up punched me. Uncle Adrian, you have to stand up for me!"
Adrian merely cast an indifferent glance at Matthew before shifting his gaze to Caroline. He stared at her intently for several seconds, as if offering her a chance to defend herself.
Caroline simply swept her eyes over the spectators and smiled coldly. "I believe our classmates here can all testify. President Grant, you can just ask them, and you’ll know exactly why I punched him."
The room was instantly so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Who would dare say a word with two members of the Grant family standing right there?
"Of course, if they’re unwilling to testify," Caroline paused, lightly waving her phone in the air as she flashed a smile at Matthew, "I have an audio recording right here."
"How about I just repeat exactly what happened, word for word?
"Originally, I had an emerging industry project I wanted to partner with the Grant Group on, but your nephew here slandered my company, claiming we run a dirty business.
"He even said, ’The Grant Group is my family’s business. Who you get to partner with is entirely up to me, Matthew Grant. Let alone Adrian Grant, even if God himself came down, he’d still have to look at my face for approval’..."
Mimicking his tone flawlessly, she repeated Matthew’s exact words without missing a single syllable.
Adrian’s voice held absolutely zero warmth. His gaze turned icy as it landed on Matthew, carrying a trace of scrutiny and dangerous amusement.
"Oh? Since when did the Group’s prospective partners require your verbal approval to do business with us? Even I have to look at your face for approval?"