Her Daddy Issues

After Joyce was released, she coughed repeatedly, glaring at me with venomous hatred.

I looked at her foolish expression and brushed my hands together in disgust.

She and I were in a marriage of convenience. My family wasn't as high-profile as the Fosters in business circles, but my grandfather's authority in the military was a protective shield no money could ever buy.

So, Joyce had no choice but to marry me.

She resented all of it, so she decided to humiliate me today as some form of comeuppance.

It was a shame that there was one thing she'd failed to consider.

I'd trained in boxing since childhood and was proficient in kickboxing, grappling, and other martial arts.

Anyway, if she wanted to play rough, who was I to refuse?

Pointing at me, she screeched, "Henry, you have to apologize to Lucius and me today! Otherwise, I won't marry you!"

I scoffed. "You want me to apologize? Sure! If he bends the knee and calls me his grandfather right now, I'll forgive him for being so insolent. What kind of elder wouldn't give his idiot grandson a chance, right?"

Lucius blew up.

Relying on Joyce's indulgence, he'd ruled this social circle for years. Since when had he suffered such humiliation?

"Someone needs to teach you a lesson!"

Lucius grabbed a bottle of wine and swung it toward my head, eliciting shocked gasps across the room. Someone even whistled.

Joyce only watched, a mocking sneer on her face.

However, the expected bloodshed never came.

The moment the bottle came swinging down at me, I stepped to the side and grabbed Lucius's wrist with my left hand, fast as lightning.

Crack!

A sharp, sickening sound echoed in the room.

Lucius let out a shriek, the bottle slipping from his fingers and shattering on the floor. Meanwhile, I smiled faintly, my grip tightening little by little.

Lucius's face went deathly pale. His knees buckled, and he dropped straight to the ground.

"It hurts! It hurts! Let go! My hand's going to break!" he wailed, reaching to claw at my clothes with his free hand.

I lifted a leg and kicked him in the chest, sending him flying and knocking over the coffee table, utterly disgraced.

Then, I walked over to him, planted my foot on his chest, and leaned down, my voice low and calm.

"My dear grandson, if you can't handle the consequences, don't get started with me. Are you sure you want to start a fight?"

Deathly silence filled the room, and everyone stared in disbelief.

The ever-arrogant Lucius was taken down in a single move?

Joyce couldn't stand it anymore, screeching like a banshee as she ran toward me, trying to shove me away. "You've gone mad, Henry! How dare you hit him?!"

The moment Joyce attacked, I retracted my leg and took one elegant step back.

She fell onto Lucius, seeing his swollen wrist and the footprint on his chest, and immediately started tearing up.

"Lucius, are you alright? I'm calling the police, Henry! I'll make sure you end up in jail!"

Lucius clutched his wrist, in so much pain that he broke out in cold sweat."Joyce, my hand's ruined! How am I supposed to play games now? How am I supposed to stay with you? You have to avenge me!"

Joyce glared at me furiously. "Henry, you just came here to cause trouble, didn't you? You hurt Lucius, this isn't over!"

I chuckled lightly and straightened my collar. "Joyce, let's get things straight. You're the one who invited me here, and since he wanted to become a father, I just taught him how to be a proper citizen.

"Since he lacks discipline, I'll discipline him on behalf of his parents."

She ground her teeth.

"Fine, you've got guts! Don't think that just because your father arranged this marriage, I have to worship you. This isn't over! I'll make sure you'll kneel and apologize to Lucius!"

Honestly, I found her complete lack of common sense laughable.

Not wanting to stay here any longer, I asked, "Your good'father' looks like he's going to breathe his last. Are you sure you don't want to send him to the hospital?"

It was then that Joyce finally remembered she was lying on an injured man, and she frantically ordered someone to send him to the hospital.

Before they left, she gave me one last, venomous glare. "Our engagement is over! Just wait, your family's bound to go bankrupt!"