CHAPTER 29: CHAPTER 29- TORMENT

Ever since their relationship had smoothed over—ever since Daniel had suffered that serious illness—Bert rarely did anything to make Daniel angry. When disagreements arose, he usually stayed silent, as he did now.

During that time, it was as if he had suddenly seen everything clearly. Living well mattered more than anything else; quarrels and petty disputes were meaningless. His life had already been lonely enough—apart from Daniel and his mother, there were very few family members left in the world. All he wanted was for Daniel and his mother to live well. Even if their relationships weren’t particularly close, he wished for their wellbeing.

Because if they were gone, he would truly be all alone in this world.

That was also why he now cherished the sense of family that Dave and Lilian brought him, and why his usually sharp, irritable nature had softened considerably.

Of course, this restraint applied only to those close to him. To outsiders—especially those who crossed him—he could be just as ruthless and merciless as ever. That much was evident in his strict prohibition of Washington Co. and MOS Corp. from having any dealings with the S family or the Channing family.

And Channing still came to him asking for help to save his company?

Not destroying Channing’s company outright was already an act of mercy.

Faced with Bert’s silence, Daniel continued to scold him:

"You have a girlfriend, and you didn’t tell me?! Then this afternoon at the blind date you just paraded her around in front of everyone? Now look at this! I’ve completely offended the friend!"

Daniel was furious. Bert calmly explained,

"You never said that today’s meeting was a blind date arrangement, did you? I thought it was just a casual meeting between us."

Daniel was momentarily speechless. Indeed, the "meeting" had only been a pretext for the blind date, and Bert had had no prior knowledge of it.

After his anger softened slightly, Daniel continued,

"Fine, then tell me—what’s the background of this girlfriend of yours? I heard from Sophia that her last name is Channing?"

Bert had already prepared his answer when he decided to let Catherine pretend to be his girlfriend:

"We’ve just started seeing each other. Let’s not go into details for now."

He knew the blind date would inevitably question Daniel about it, and that Daniel would want to know more once he learned Bert had a girlfriend. He had already crafted the perfect response.

Daniel was not satisfied.

"So what, you’re telling me not to meddle?"

"You’re thirty-six and still unmarried. How can I not meddle?"

Bert was annoyed by this notion—that being unmarried at his age made him a failure. Rarely, he actually pushed back at Daniel:

"Is life really incomplete just because someone hasn’t married or built a career?"

Bert had never thought that way. He felt perfectly fine living alone—peaceful and free.

He had no pressing desire to find a woman just to marry and settle down. Sure, sometimes he felt lonely, but it was a loneliness he could tolerate.

He was not the type to casually give a woman marriage or promises. Because his own family had always been incomplete, he was cautious in matters of the heart. And that caution meant that once he truly decided on a woman, he would not settle for anyone else.

Unfortunately, no such woman had appeared... yet.

Daniel was furious at Bert’s attitude, but before he could erupt again, Bert interjected calmly:

"I’m driving. The roads are wet with rain, not convenient to talk. I’ll hang up now."

After a brief goodbye, he ended the call, successfully avoiding further questions about his so-called girlfriend, and quietly drove home.

Daniel had made this call from his study. Coincidentally, today was the day Dave and Lilian were returning to Burg Eltz for a family gathering, so Morrison happened to pass by the study and overheard the conversation.

Hearing Daniel mention that Bert had a girlfriend—whose surname was supposedly Channing—and recalling Bert’s serious declaration in front of him about not having any feelings for Catherine, Morrison snorted coldly:

"Some people really are stubborn."

No feelings for her, just wanting to set boundaries—sounded convincing, but behind the scenes, he was clearly close with her. Otherwise, how could people even claim his girlfriend’s last name was Channing today?

After some thought, Morrison found a quiet corner and dialed Bert’s number.

Bert had just entered his apartment. His original residence had been in a villa cluster somewhat removed from the city’s bustling center. He liked the peaceful, elegant environment, with fresh air and a refined atmosphere. So when he returned to the country a few years ago, he had immediately bought a property there and decorated it meticulously.

Now that he had established his company, he had also purchased a downtown apartment for convenience. He still went to the villa on weekends to relax—a short retreat amidst the mountains and sea, climbing, fishing—treating it as a mini vacation for himself.

The downtown apartment was over 150 square meters—more than enough for a single man like him.

After changing shoes at the entrance, placing his briefcase and keys on the cabinet, he headed to the bar and poured himself a glass of water. Morrison’s call came just then. Bert lounged lazily on a chair by the bar, legs stretched to the floor, arms resting on the counter, speaking in a casual, indifferent tone:

"What is it?"

Compared to the harmonious and mutually beneficial relationship between Dave and Morrison, Bert’s attitude toward Morrison—his brother-in-law—remained strict and cold. He constantly used that icy demeanor to remind Morrison to treat Lilian well, keeping Morrison on edge at all times.

On the other end, Morrison chuckled.

"I heard from Father-in-law that you have a girlfriend... and her last name is Channing?"

Bert took a sip of water to clear his throat, then flatly denied it:

"You must have misheard."

Morrison paused, then said,

"...After all this, what’s the point in hiding it?"

Morrison had clearly heard Daniel’s roaring voice over the phone, yet Bert kept insisting on denying everything. Morrison assumed it was probably because Bert and Catherine had only just started dating and felt a bit shy about admitting it. He found that understandable.

So, as a somewhat experienced elder, he offered Bert a piece of advice:

"Listen, when you’re in a relationship, don’t talk so harshly. Otherwise, the girl will definitely get annoyed and leave."

That was the real reason Morrison had called. He had been worried about Bert’s dating life, imagining his usual infuriatingly blunt manner, and wanted to give a friendly warning.

But Bert merely let out a dismissive chuckle:

"Hmph."

Morrison didn’t know whether to continue talking or stay silent—it was awkward either way.

Bert thought Morrison must be crazy. If you genuinely liked and cared for someone, how could you deliberately speak to annoy her? You’d probably want to coax her gently every single day.

Take Lilian, for instance. When had he ever spoken harshly to her? When had he ever embarrassed her? Morrison always felt that Bert was infuriating, but that was only Morrison’s perception. It was easy to explain—he simply couldn’t bring himself to like Morrison, so he was naturally antagonistic.

Of course, his care for Lilian was that of a protective older brother, a pure familial affection. But Bert was certain that if a woman ever came along who could give him the feeling of love, he would spoil her utterly.

"Enough. Hang up."

Bert decided there was nothing more to discuss with Morrison and prepared to end the call.

Morrison sighed on the other end:

"You really should think about finding a partner. Especially on gloomy, rainy days like this—don’t you feel lonely or a little desolate all by yourself?"

"I don’t."

Bert answered coldly, then immediately cut the call.

Morrison gritted his teeth in frustration. Bert was truly impervious.

He shook his head, thinking, Why do I keep worrying about him? Coming over to Bert just to get tortured... fine, let him live as he pleases. Being a lifelong bachelor is none of my business.

Yet, deep down, he groaned. If Bert really stayed single forever, all that energy would probably just be used to torment him.