CHAPTER 113: CHAPTER 113- THE INFORMATION

Lilian lightly blocked Tiffany with the Karl topic.

"Mom, Karl was someone you personally vetted for me, but in the end, nothing came of it."

Tiffany instantly fell silent.

It was true — the man carefully chosen and approved by her parents had parted ways with her after only a few days...

So Tiffany didn’t press further. She trusted her daughter enough to believe that the man Lilian chose now wouldn’t be any worse.

After dropping Lilian off, Morrison headed back to the Mo residence, planning to rest. But a friend called him out for drinks, so he changed clothes and left without eating at home.

Linda was waiting, ready to interrogate him more about his girlfriend, but he was already gone, which frustrated her to no end.

Karl happened to be home that day. Slowly coming downstairs, he smiled and said to Linda,

"Mom, if you can provide me with some funds, I can give you some information about my brother’s girlfriend."

Linda’s eyes lit up immediately.

"Really?"

Karl nodded confidently.

"Of course. Why would I lie? And since you’re paying, I’ll make sure the info is 100% accurate."

Karl never missed a chance to get research money, and Linda, curious about Morrison’s girlfriend, hesitated briefly before eagerly agreeing.

"Fine. Cash for info."

She went back to her room to get the money.

Not long after, Linda returned with a bank card and handed it to Karl.

"The password is my birthday. Now, can you tell me?"

Karl took the card, squinting at it.

"Wow, a gold card."

There had to be a hefty sum in there. Pocketing the card, he rubbed his chin with a sly smile and said,

"All I can say for now is... you actually know my brother’s girlfriend."

"I know her too?"

Linda frowned, thinking hard, then pressed again.

"So who is she, then?"

"To get the next piece of info, you’ll have to keep paying."

Karl knew exactly what kind of reaction he’d get after saying that, so as soon as he finished, he spun on his heel and dashed away.

He wasn’t stupid enough to just blurt out the girl’s identity to Linda. First, he wanted to squeeze a little more money from her. Second, until Morrison himself went public, he definitely wouldn’t be the one to expose it — otherwise, his brother would make his life miserable.

Linda heard him ask for more money again, and after handing over a gold card only to get a vague "You know her too" as the reply, she was furious beyond words.

She shouted after Karl’s retreating back,

"Karl, you better stop right there!"

But Karl had already disappeared into his room like a flash. No matter how loudly Linda banged on the door and shouted, he refused to open it.

Mos came out from the bedroom, frowning, and asked Linda, who was still fuming,

"You’re not exactly young anymore, why are you getting louder and louder?"

Linda was even angrier after being scolded and yelled back,

"Your son’s a little liar! He says I gave him money, and then he ’tells’ me who Morrison’s girlfriend is!"

From behind the door, Karl defended himself,

"Hey, Mom, I never said I told you who his girlfriend is! I just said I’d give you some information about her."

Linda was so mad she nearly cried,

"You—"

What a son she had! She always thought he was the obedient, well-behaved boy. But no — he was a scheming little wolf in sheep’s clothing!

She’d spent her whole life in the business world, reading people like open books, and yet she’d been taken for a ride by her own son. It wasn’t the money she was upset about — it was realizing she had misjudged him all along.

Mos wasn’t interested in how she’d been tricked. What caught his attention was the information Karl had managed to dig up.

"So, what is the information you got?"

Linda was still fuming, too angry to think straight, and just shouted,

"He said I know Morrison’s girlfriend too!"

Then she stormed back into her room and slammed the door behind her.

Mos stood there, deep in thought for a moment, before following her back inside.

The information from their youngest son only made Mos more convinced of a certain suspicion he’d been harboring.

Morrison had met up with a college friend who was also a business partner for drinks. Hearing Morrison hadn’t eaten yet, the friend suggested they meet at a restaurant. The two drank and talked.

It was obvious the friend came to drown his sorrows. Morrison asked what was wrong.

"I got divorced today. Finalized it this morning," the friend said.

Morrison was surprised. This friend and his wife had met in college, fallen in love, and gotten married with everyone watching their happy journey.

So hearing about the divorce was hard to believe. He frowned and asked,

"Why? Do you have someone else? Or is it her—"

The friend shook his head,

"No."

"Neither of us cheated, but we just couldn’t live together anymore. We were tired of each other. Every morning we woke up and saw each other, and it was enough to drive us mad. So that’s it."

He took a sip of his drink and sighed deeply,

"You wouldn’t understand that feeling. When two people just can’t stand each other anymore."

Two people who hated each other’s sight.

That phrase stirred an inexplicable unrest inside Morrison’s heart.

The friend sipped his drink, letting out a long sigh.

"After all these years together, there’s still some reluctance to let go. But sometimes, no matter how much you care, you just can’t keep living like that. It’s a painful feeling."

Then he asked,

"A few days ago, you mentioned you have a girlfriend you’re serious about. Whose girl is she?"

Morrison chuckled lightly,

"I’ll bring her along next time for dinner, let you all meet her."

His friend looked at him with a knowing smile,

"For someone like you—a notorious playboy—to settle down, she must be really something. Didn’t expect the guy who never believed in marriage to actually be talking about tying the knot. And here we are, married and already divorced."

Morrison’s heart grew heavier with unease.

If even his old college buddy—the kind who stuck together through thick and thin, from youth into middle age—was reaching that stage of weariness in marriage and love, then what chance did he and Lilian, a young girl with a generation gap between them, really have?

The honeymoon phase might be masking the cracks now, but suddenly the future felt terrifyingly uncertain.

He had once sworn he would marry her, spoken with unwavering certainty.

But now that the reality was closing in, he realized how frightening everything truly was.