CHAPTER 397: CHAPTER 397: COMBAT POWER

But as long as Paige Sterling is here, it feels like the knife isn’t that terrifying, after all, Paige can crush a knife into powder with her bare hands.

So, she calmed down, her body stopped shaking.

Paige didn’t move either, both sides stared at each other, locked in a standoff.

Soon, another man came over, intending to repeat the trick to grab Paige’s arm and take her away too.

Paige dodged and gave the man a cold look.

The man’s expression froze, his whole body shivering under Paige’s deathly gaze, feeling an urge to run away.

He didn’t dare get closer to Paige, simply stood beside Penelope Thatcher, watching Paige.

Paige realized it, these two weren’t here for Penelope, but for her.

Now, these two were threatening her with Penelope, and that woman shouted at her, "Little Sister, come here, let’s go home and see Mom together."

Paige stood, unmoving.

At this moment, Penelope Thatcher’s body started trembling again.

The woman thought she finally knew fear and let out a sigh of relief.

Afraid, yes, afraid is what normal people are.

Like Paige, who not only wasn’t afraid, but made them the fearful ones, now that’s terrifying.

However, Penelope Thatcher not only shook but also began to shed tears.

At first quietly, as if building up emotions, then slowly started crying.

First softly, then wailing loudly, crying with such vehement intensity.

Even Paige, who prided herself on acting, was overpowered by Penelope’s performance.

She looked at Penelope, speechless.

Meanwhile, that man and woman’s faces turned ugly.

No one had noticed them initially, but with Penelope’s crying, everyone in the shopping mall looked over, making it hard for them to remain unnoticed.

"Second Sister, why are you crying?"

The woman gritted her teeth to comfort her, "Don’t cry, Mom’s not in too much trouble, you..."

Penelope wailed as she cried, "Boo hoo, I’m sad and heartbroken, Big Brother and Sister-in-law, I know our family prefers boys over girls, boys are treasures and girls are worthless. You all want to sell me and my sister for money to buy a house, but you didn’t need to lie that Mom was in a coma..."

Penelope didn’t give the man and woman time to react, continuing to cry.

"My sister and I work hard in the city, sending all our salaries back home every month, not daring to keep a penny. Why do you still want to marry us off to an old man, boo hoo..."

Paige, "..."

She was considering solving it by force, but now... it seemed unnecessary.

So, she stood by like a wooden post watching Penelope’s self-directed drama.

"Big Brother and Sister-in-law, I beg you, don’t sell us. My sister and I will find another part-time job, we won’t rest at night, we’ll work tirelessly, giving you all the money to buy a house, take care of children, and then in the future supplement your retirement and also buy houses for your children to marry until the day we die..."

The words were as humble as they could be.

The mall was already crowded with mostly women.

Women already face much unfairness in society.

Especially concerning gender preference.

But it’s already 9102, even in gender preference, it shouldn’t be this extreme, right?

The brother and sister-in-law were able-bodied sitting at home like lords, while the two sisters had to come out and earn money.

And now they even wanted to sell the sisters to an old man, are they even human?

Simply beasts!

So a crowd gathered, pointing and judging that man and woman, they couldn’t leave even if they wanted to, their faces looking very unpleasant.

"Second Sister, what nonsense are you spouting! Mom is really sick! We’re here to take you back to see her, if you don’t want to go, don’t smear us like this."

Penelope sobbed, seemingly scared by her brother and sister-in-law’s fierce faces, "Yes yes, I’m talking nonsense, I’m talking nonsense..."

The more she did this, the more the surrounding accusations against the man and woman intensified.

Some even suggested calling the police.

The man and woman looked like they had eaten something unfavorable, casting glances at Paige.

Seeing Paige still standing there unfazed, they even thought Paige was a robot.

But it didn’t matter, if they couldn’t catch Paige, capturing this woman guaranteed Paige would follow.

So, the two dragged Penelope forcibly toward the edge of the crowd.

Penelope screamed and cried.

"No! Big Brother, Sister-in-law, please! Boo hoo, I can make money, I’ll work my whole life without sleeping for money, please, I don’t want to marry an old man..."

The onlooking crowd was furious, "You’re too much, it’s the 21st century, and you’re still using feudal practices. If you don’t let her go, we’ll call the police!"

"Yeah, we’re calling the police..."

The man’s face twitched several times, are these people brain-dead?

This woman’s acting is so exaggerated, yet they believe her?

He glared warningly at Penelope, even poking the knife at her.

Penelope flinched, "No, no, Sister-in-law, please put the knife away, I’m scared..."

The man and woman hadn’t expected Penelope to be so unafraid of dying, and as the car shifted slightly, the knife exposed against her waist became visible.

The crowd, seeing the knife, recoiled in terror.

"Oh my, this is insane! Call the police, call the police now!"

The man and woman, seeing this, knew that taking Paige was impossible, gritted their teeth, and shoved Penelope aside before fleeing.

Penelope, who was firmly fighting the villains just now, suddenly became a delicate flower, falling into Paige’s embrace crying.

"Paige, I’m so scared, boo hoo..."

Paige, "...", I don’t believe you, you looked quite excited just now.

The crowd thought she was genuinely frightened, offering comfort.

Paige let Penelope snuggle into her arms, then looked up to the floor above.

There stood a woman wearing sunglasses, and as Paige looked, she turned away into the shadows.

Paige withdrew her gaze, about to push Penelope away, when Penelope was suddenly pulled out of her arms with great force.

Penelope then fell to the ground, screaming miserably, while the one who pulled her began patting her body.

Paige asked, "What are you doing?"

Julian Hawthorne’s voice was urgent, flustered, "Are you hurt anywhere?"

Paige said, "I’m perfectly fine."

Julian always underestimated her combat abilities.

But seeing Julian’s sweaty forehead, she realized he had rushed over worried she might be in danger.

Suddenly, she had no mood to mock Julian, only feeling touched and heartbroken.

"I’m really okay."

She took the initiative to embrace Julian, gently soothing his back, coaxing his slightly trembling body to gradually calm.

Julian investigated the incident thinking it targeted Paige.

But what he didn’t expect was that the trail led back to his... mother.

His mother, who was always abroad, had already returned and had been watching Paige for a while, even planning on acting against her.

Julian’s face looked grim; he didn’t tell Paige about this as he headed straight for The Hawthorne Family.

Mrs. Hawthorne had just returned to the family, pretending she had just gotten off a flight, telling Old Master Hawthorne she needed to adjust her jet lag, just as Julian returned.

His gaze was deep as he looked at Mrs. Hawthorne.

In truth, family affection is nurtured over time.

Julian had lived with Old Master Hawthorne and Simon Hawthorne for years, hence the familial bond.

However, towards his mother...

He seldom saw her since birth, and she wasn’t close to him, so Julian didn’t have much affection for this mother.

He thought they’d remain indifferent kin forever, but now, his mother upset this balance.

Upon her return, she intended to harm Paige, so she came back this time, targeting Paige.

Julian directly asked her, "Why did you do it?"

Upon his questioning, Mrs. Hawthorne knew Julian was aware of what she had done to Paige.

Her son was a capable and clever man, it wasn’t surprising he’d find out.