CHAPTER 67: CHAPTER 67: ETHAN STERLING LOSES HIS TEMPER

Leon Sterling knelt on the bed, lightly sketching lines on a drawing pad, his lips curled up in a smile, seeming to find limitless joy in drawing.

He was unlike the stereotypical image people have of an artist, with his neat short hair, love for shirts and ripped jeans, fondness for laughter, and a down-to-earth demeanor without any sharp edges. If you didn’t know his other name, you might think he was either a college student yet to graduate or... a young teacher.

Such a man, perhaps with no special qualities other than being handsome, often saw his paintings sold for astronomical prices at auctions.

The drawing pad had already begun to outline the shape of a person—a little girl with a round face.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. He put down the drawing pad and went to open it. It turned out to be his mom, Rachel Lawson.

He greeted her with a sweet smile, "What’s up?"

Rachel held her shawl in front of her chest, looking up at her son, who towered over her, "I ate too much and came to chat with you."

"Come in." Leon opened the door and cheekily gestured for her to enter.

Rachel pulled the chair to sit down, not intending to beat around the bush, "Did you also recognize her?"

Leon wasn’t surprised by his mom’s perceptiveness; no one in this world understands better than her. But he had a pact with Ruby Sullivan, so he just smiled without admitting or denying.

Rachel understood from his expression, "When are you going back to Gallia?" Actually, she hadn’t expected him to follow along and return.

She thought The Sterling Family would be a place Leon would never wish to visit again in his lifetime.

"I don’t plan to go back for now, maybe... I’ll settle down here, who knows?" He laughed unseriously, like a child yet to grow up.

Rachel sighed, "Suit yourself, I’m leaving."

Leon got up to see her out, "Sleep tight." Closing the door, the smile on his face gradually faded. His mom came over to confirm Wenny’s identity.

The ex-wife hiding her identity upon return and deliberately getting close would make anyone suspicious of her motives.

However, he differed from his mom. She worried about Brother Sterling, while he was purely curious.

The next day, Ruby Sullivan woke up early, not wasting a minute, quickly washed up and applied makeup, afraid that a group of people might rush over to her house for meals. Only after breakfast ended without a sign of them did she breathe a sigh of relief.

Thinking, she might be overthinking things—why would anyone want to come to your place for meals every day?

Honey was rather disappointed, "Seth Sterling said he’d come and spend time with me today. When will he come?"

"Mommy has to go to work now. You can call Seth and ask." Ruby Sullivan comforted Honey briefly before hurriedly leaving.

It wasn’t Ethan Sterling’s absence at breakfast that unsettled her, but the Monday meeting rescheduled for today and some chores originally meant for Sunday piled up for today. If the morning meeting went smoothly, she would head straight to the factory in the afternoon—not because she wanted to rush but because she had to handle it intensely.

Honey asked despondently as she saw her mom out the door, "Mommy, when can we go and live at Seth Sterling’s house again?"

Ruby Sullivan was taken aback, suddenly realizing she’d been focusing too much on work and somewhat neglecting Honey’s feelings. She felt the issue of staying at The Sterling Family couldn’t be explained in a sentence or two and smiled to placate her, "Mommy will try to come home early today and have dinner with Honey, okay?"

"Great, Mommy be careful on the road." Honey agreed, beaming.

*

Ethan Sterling was still upset about being hung up on last night, and since Rachel had made breakfast this morning, he felt it inappropriate to leave with his son.

Cindy Sterling was going to the advertising agency for a photo shoot today. After having some juice, she left with her agent. Not long after Ethan Sterling left, Seth Sterling got ready to head off to the Sullivan Family with his backpack, arousing Leon Sterling’s interest to go along.

Rachel originally wanted to spend the day bonding with her grandson; how come after breakfast, both were ready to leave her again? Dissatisfied, she ordered the driver to pick people up from the Sullivan Family—today’s sunshine was splendid, wouldn’t it be better for the little ones to run around in the garden?

Seth thought of Honey’s previous injury, who recently wasn’t inclined to be taken out to play, immediately finding this suggestion appealing, his little mouth instantly sweetening, "Vivian, it’s so nice to be at home."

"Of course, I’m not like your great grandmother at all." Rachel patted Seth’s head, utterly pleased. Her son had been snatched by that old lady for over two decades; now was her time to show off!

*

In the CEO’s office, Ethan Sterling looked at the latest contract brought by President Lawson from the marketing department, his expression growing darker and darker.

President Lawson, observing Ethan’s expression, felt his interlaced fingers resting on his stomach nervously twitching.

Finally, Ethan Sterling looked up, sneering at President Lawson, "Bring Rhonda Sullivan here."

President Lawson shifted uneasily in his seat to ease some inner anxiety, "Apparently, Mr. Sullivan went to Meridia for a business trip yesterday, won’t be back until next week. Her secretary is waiting in the lounge for the outcome."

"Outcome?" Ethan squinted, "I’m guessing The Sullivan Group doesn’t want to cooperate anymore."

Increasing the commission rate by double, who gave Rhonda Sullivan the guts?

President Lawson remained silent for a moment, then smiled, "Mr. Sterling, please don’t get mad first. Indeed, The Sullivan Group’s decision isn’t entirely unexpected. Although Wenny’s reputation abroad is fine, many mainstream media think it’s all thanks to her mentor, Dr. L. Now that she’s independent, there might not be buyers, and the Lawson Group’s latest perfume ’Blue Mountain’ launched last month consistently tops sales charts. Most companies have avoided releasing new products during this period, yet Wenny requested an early launch for no reason. Sure, Mr. Sullivan wouldn’t trust her, and neither do I."

President Lawson spoke eloquently with a smile.

He was a college friend of Mr. Sterling, and although Mr. Sterling’s time at The Sterling Group wasn’t long, during their collaboration years, they stabilized The Sterling Group’s market position. It’s also why Ethan has held President Lawson in high regard over the years.

But he despises those who betray from within, even if his dad stood before him pleading, it wouldn’t work.

He smiled faintly, yet the cold sheen in his eyes was unsettling. "Take this contract to Rhonda Sullivan; if she doesn’t want to do it, you don’t have to come back." With that, he directly threw the contract on President Lawson’s big belly.

President Lawson froze, apparently not expecting such a cold reception.

His face, plump enough to be wrinkle-free, instantly reddened like a heated iron block. He glared fiercely, his nostrils flaring double with anger, and yelled, "Ethan Sterling, when I was fighting the empire with your dad, you weren’t even born yet. Now you’re risking The Sterling Group’s interests for a woman, aren’t you afraid your dad would be heartbroken from the heavens?"

Ethan Sterling sat composedly in his chair, smiling, "Get out."

"You..." President Lawson pointed at him, fuming into speechlessness, taking deep breaths before finally finding words: "I couldn’t care less about managing this mess, so you want me gone? Think of convening a shareholders meeting!" He said, tossing the contract back onto the desk and then turning to leave.

Ethan Sterling’s face sank, "President Lawson, you know about my grandmother passing, right? Her shares are now all under my son’s name."

President Lawson froze, his hand on the doorknob, unable to decide whether to turn it.

Ethan Sterling leisurely continued, "I used to call you Uncle Lawson when I was young; today, on account of my dad, I’ll still call you Uncle Lawson. The shareholder meeting, you’re overthinking it. Once you leave today, it’ll have nothing to do with The Sterling Group anymore, as for those shares of yours, rest assured, soon I’ll make them utterly worthless."

President Lawson stood rigidly by the door for a while before opening it to leave.

Ethan Sterling pressed the intercom button, "Howard, come in for a bit."