Chapter 2048 Respect
âWhy would you do that?â Sheila cried as she stood between her father and the door. âEvan will definitely not give you the loan if you do!â
âYou make it sound as if he will if I stay put. He was playing me, Sheila. You know it as well as I do! If heâd wanted to, Seet Group is more than capable of having twenty billion delivered to my doorstep, but no! Everybody in Y City knows you are the daughter-in-law of the wealthy Seets. How do you think itâll look to the city if they found out that your in-laws couldnât even spare two billion? Do they even respect you?â
Patrick gritted his teeth in consternation as he shot a glance at his son-in-law to gauge the latterâs reaction. Davin stared at him, aghast. Disgusting old f*ck! How could you drive a wedge between your own daughter and her husbandâs family for your own gain?
âWrong,â Davin growled. âMy parents, especially my mother, love Sheila more than they love me. In fact, I feel like an outsider in my own home. Sheilaâll tell you. For the sum of two billion and your own selfish desires, you stoop to instigate your daughter against her in-laws. You are despicable, sir. Rotten to the core!â
Patrick swelled with rage at his words. âHow dare you speak to me like that? I am your father-in-law!â
âYou are, but that doesnât give you the right to sow discord between us! Respect is earned, not entitled. I wouldnât give a d*mn even if you were my own father. Iâd put you in your place if you deserve it. Believe me, there are a lot more things that Iâm holding back out of respect for Sheila.â
Patrick turned to face his daughter. âYou see how he speaks to your father, Sheila? He has no respect for me like they have none for you. Not only did they refuse me a loan, but your husband is also brazen enough to come to my house to tell me how to behave.â
Sheila met her fatherâs eyes resolutely. âThatâs where youâre wrong, Dad,â she said quietly. âThe Seets have been nothing but kind and loving to me. Unlike you, they treat me like family. Iâd always thought you were the one who loves me most in this world, but Iâm starting to doubt that now. Is money, fame, and power the most important to you? Is the loan really for funding cancer research?â
Patrick gazed at his daughter in surprise. She knows?
âCome on, Dad. Be honest with me for once. The loan is to fund the research of illegal technology for corporate espionage, is that correct?â
âPreposterous!â Patrick shouted. âItâs for-â
âLetâs head over to your lab, then,â Sheila suggested without batting an eye. âWeâll be able to ascertain your motives once and for all. No? Hiding something? Dad, you should know better than to fund immoral projects like that.â
Patrick could only watch in dismay as the house of lies he had built was being demolished by his daughterâs relentless interrogation.
After a brief silence, he sighed. âIâve had more than my fair share of difficulties to ascend to where I am now within Muir Group. Iâm not as young as I once was. I obviously canât count on the boys, and my only daughter behaves like an outsider to me after being married. I canât watch my lifeâs work fall apart before my eyes!
If I donât do something about it, pieces of my company will be up for grabs by the vultures! Weâll be truly finished if it gets to that point. Iâm only doing this because I have to protect us, not because I want to.â