Chapter 348
Briar’s response was to hang up the call directly. She didn’t want to “work harder next time” at all.
Connor.continued to act as an emotionless tool, standing there and waiting for Briar’s orders.
Briar had no choice but to tell him to follow their car home.
Now that Ashton had seen through her scheme, Briar couldn’t just run off again. Time to head home.
Besides, she had already taken care of most of her business, so there was no rush. She might as well go home and get some sleep.
As instructed, Connor drove, keeping a safe distance behind Ian’s car.
“Mr. Wade, Mrs. Wade seems to be in a pretty good mood. I guess she succeeded. Should I send people to check what happened with the first and second branches?” Connor reported dutifully.
Ashton replied calmly, “No need. When has she ever failed? Those people must have had a rough night. No need to add fuel to the fire.”
The people from the first and second branches might have only sustained minor injuries tonight, but if Ashton’s men were to show up, they’d probably drop dead from pure rage.
The first and second branches wouldn’t be grateful for Ashton’s concern. They’d just think Ashton had come to gloat.
Just then, two ambulances sped past and soon turned into the villa district.
“Oh, Mr. Wade, I suppose you’re right. No need for us to check in. I just saw two ambulances enter the neighborhood. Looks like there’s still a chance they might be saved,” Connor said with open schadenfreude.
Ashton heard the sound through the phone as well. His tone grew lighter, and if one listened carefully, there was even a hint of pride in it. “Briar’s control is really perfect.”
Briar was a former instructor of DDC Vanguard Mercenary Special Operations Base. Calling this “perfect control” was generous. It was more like “she didn’t kill them.”
As long as they were still breathing, everything else didn’t matter.
But to Ashton, who saw her through rose–colored glasses, this simply translated to, “My wife certainly knows restraint.”
By dawn, word had already spread across Shoneport that the heads of the first and second branches of the Wade family had both been rushed to the hospital on the same night.
Finally, Griffin, who had remained silent on the matter, called Moonspring Estate this morning. Too embarrassed to face Briar, he called Ashton instead. “Ashton, about your uncles…”
“Grandpa, you’ve already guessed the answer. Why ask for my confirmation?” Ashton calmly cut him off, not
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giving him a chance to continue.
Griffin was speechless for a moment. “So it really was you?”
Ashton admitted it bluntly. “I did it. So what? Do you think I went too easy on them? Maybe I should go to the hospital tonight and stab them a couple more times.”
Griffin was stunned into silence by Ashton’s words. After a long moment, he managed to say, “You could at least spare their lives, couldn’t you?”
“Fine. Since you’re asking me yourself, I’ll let them live,” Ashton said agreeably. “But let’s be clear. Next time they provoke me with outsiders again, I won’t be so merciful. They can decide whether they’d rather keep their money or their lives.”
Griffin said, “If they dare to try that again, you won’t have to lift a finger. I’ll cripple them myself.”
Ashton agreed with satisfaction. “Good. Those are your words, Grandpa. I didn’t force you to make that promise!”
The punishment this time was already enough to keep them suffering for life.
From what Hamish had heard from the hospital, Sean and Justin were both now permanently paralyzed, one with a crushed spine, the other with a needle–induced lower–body paralysis.
In short, they would never stand again. Of course, Griffin knew.
Although Griffin disliked the members of the two family branches, they were still Wades. After such a major incident, he had to ask about it.
So, when Arlette and Henriette came crying to the Wade Mansion, Griffin could only pretend to call and inquire about the situation.
In fact, given how Sean and Justin were paralyzed, it was not hard to guess who was responsible.
However, Griffin did not want to involve Briar in the Wade family’s drama at this critical moment, so he directed the blame toward Ashton.
After all, the kid had always been at odds with the first and second branches. He was bound to settle the score eventually. Might as well let him take the blame.
Sure enough, as soon as the call connected, Ashton immediately admitted to it.
Griffin hung up and said helplessly to his two daughters–in–law, “You heard him. Ashton was responsible for what happened last night. It’s up to you if you want to seek revenge. Ashton is no longer part of the Wade family, so even if I wanted to intervene, he wouldn’t listen to me!”
When Griffin was on the phone with Ashton, he had intentionally put it on speakerphone, so Arlette and Henriette heard every word clearly.
Especially when Ashton said, “Money or their lives. Tell them to think it over.” Both of their expressions changed.
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They knew exactly who was responsible, so why didn’t they confront them directly? It was because both families had a guilty conscience.
And why would Briar come after them? They knew the reason better than anyone.
They had meddled in affairs they knew were wrong, fully aware that Ashton would eventually come to settle the score. But faced with such enormous profits, they couldn’t resist.
A 50% profit was enough to tempt people into taking risks, let alone a surefire 300% profit with no chance of
loss.
Therefore, Ashton’s words were also a warning to them. If the two family branches behaved from now on, perhaps he and Briar would let the matter slide for Griffin’s sake.
But if they refused to let go and continued to cling to those profits, then Sean and Justin wouldn’t just be lying half–dead in a hospital bed.
“Griffin, we’re your family. You can’t abandon us just to appease Ashton’s anger,” Henriette said, testing the waters as she wiped away her tears.
Arlette chimed in, “Yes. Ashton may not be part of the Wade family anymore, but he lived off us for all those years. How could he be so ungrateful?”
“Shut up!” Griffin’s previously nonchalant expression instantly soured when he heard Arlette accuse Ashton of being ungrateful. “How dare you call Ashton ungrateful? If you ask me, the most ungrateful people in the Wade family are your first and second branches.”
Arlette’s expression darkened. “Griffin, how are we ungrateful? We have never done anything to let the Wade family down.”
Griffin snorted dismissively. “You know very well what you’ve done. I don’t even need to say it. Even if you hadn’t done anything, you know how much Ashton has grown the Wade Group over all these years, don’t you?”
Arlette and Henriette were speechless.
Griffin added, “And when outsiders deliberately try to sow discord among us, you’re the first to jump up and take the bait. Let’s see what becomes of the Wade Group once you take over without Ashton there to hold it together.”
