Chapter 679 Unlimited Wants
“What about your older brother? You can’t treat him differently,” Ophelia said, pushing her luck. “I thought that you weren’t earning that much in Tayhaven, so I never told you about this. Jayden tried to start up a business a while ago, and he ended up losing a lot of money since it failed. He doesn’t have a lot of money left, so give him a helping hand.”
Tiffany subconsciously turned to look at her older brother, who turned away guiltily. On the other hand, his wife gave her an embarrassed smile.
Tiffany then said, “Mom, it is as if you don’t know that Jayden is not cut up to do business. Why didn’t you tell me he was going to start a business?”
Ophelia’s expression darkened, and she huffed, “Do you hear yourself? Why can’t your brother start up his own business?”
Tiffany fell silent.
Instantly, the atmosphere in the room turned tense.
A beat later, she uttered, “Everyone, rest first. Derrick and I need to take a look at the wedding dress, and we have many things to do up until the wedding. I don’t think we’ll have much time to take care of you all.”
Ophelia then sent her to the doorway and repeated, “Tiff, don’t forget to buy a house for your younger brother and help out with Jayden’s finances. They’re living hard lives, and you can’t forget about the kind things they’ve done for you once you’re living the good life.”
Tiffany managed to hold herself back from starting an argument with her mother.
“I know what to do,” was all she said before leaving.
Upon leaving the hotel, Tiffany heaved a sigh to let her anger seep away.
She then sent Derrick a message, telling him that she was going to head home first. She also told him to go straight home after work.
After that, she took a cab home. What Tiffany did not know was that a car came over a while after she left. The person in that car smirked as she looked at the hotel. “Tiffany Winters, so you have a family too. I genuinely thought that you have none despite the long fight with you. Still, that’s good. It’s good that you have weaknesses. I don’t believe that I won’t be able to take you down by targeting your family.
The woman in the car then made a call. Once the call went through, she said, “Archie, this is Crystal. I have something I need your help with. I’ll send you an email with the details of the woman I told you about. Help me look into her family details, and I want the findings on the day after next. All right, I’ll leave this to you. Once I’m back at Saspiuburg, We shall meet up.”
After ending the call, Crystal gave the hotel another glance before driving off.
Two days passed by in peace after that. Crystal then received the information about the Winters family and found out that Ophelia and Reginald were normal retired white-collared workers. The eldest son of the Winters family had failed in starting up a business a while ago, so he was currently working as an employee in an insurance company. He was earning two to three thousand every month, and he frequently had arguments with his wife because of financial matters. As for Tiffany’s younger brother, he was a civil servant, and so was his wife. They had taken out a loan to buy a house, but the wife was a materialistic individual who spent all of her pay every month. Not only did Tiffany’s younger brother have to pay the loan with his salary, but he was also the one to pay for their living expenses. Hence, both his and his wife’s life was tough as well. Like Tiffany’s older brother’s relationship with his wife, Tiffany’s younger brother’s relationship with his wife was no better either.
Crystal refused to believe that she would not be able to strike them down by targeting them financially.
Her lips curled. Even if she could not wreck Tiffany and Derrick’s wedding, she could still humiliate Tiffany in front of everyone.
Meanwhile, Tiffany had no idea what Crystal was planning. Even though she was initially upset about how her parents had talked to her about buying houses for her brothers, her mood soon took a turn for the better when she thought about how they could benefit from that.
Nevertheless, Tiffany had forgotten one thing—human wants could never be fully satisfied.
That day, while Amelia was accompanying her on a shopping trip for furniture for her new house, Ophelia called. She told Tiffany that she wanted to join them, and she had no choice but to let her.
The moment Ophelia arrived and saw that Amelia was there as well, she quickly plastered on a kind and caring demeanor.
“Amelia, you’re here too,” Ophelia said.
Amelia replied, “Hello, Mrs. Winters. How have you been?”
“I’ve been good.” Ophelia nodded fervently before pulling Tiffany aside.
“Mom, what are you doing?”
With a nervous look, Ophelia said to her, “Tiff, how much do you have right now? Jayden previously took a loan from the loan sharks for his business, and now they’re here at his place, hounding him for the money. You have to save your brother!”
Tiffany barked out an angry laugh.
At that very moment, she really wanted to tell her mom off. Why don’t you tell your son to ask for money from god instead? What made you think that people like us can borrow from loan sharks? Getting a loan from loan sharks means getting trapped in a bottomless pit of paying back the interest.
“Mom, how much did Jayden borrow?”
“Two hundred thousand. It’s three hundred thousand now. The guy said that it’ll be four hundred thousand by tomorrow if we can’t pay the interest today.”
“Oh, wow, a hundred thousand each day? Why don’t you tell him to rob a bank instead?”
“Tiff, stop saying such things. You really have to help your brother out, or else he’s dead meat!”
Tiffany folded her arms as her mood turned foul.
Right then, Amelia walked over and smiled at them. “What’s the matter, Mrs. Winters? You can tell me.”
Ophelia blinked and immediately shifted her target to Amelia.
“Mom, talk to me instead. Don’t try to trick my friend,” Tiffany huffed.
Ophelia rolled her eyes at Tiffany.
“Amelia, something happened in the family. Can you help us out?” Ophelia said.
Instantly, Tiffany loudly uttered, “Mom.”
However, Amelia raised her hand and gently replied, “Go on, Mrs. Winters. Your family matters are Tiff’s matters, and her matters are mine. I won’t say no if it’s something I can help with.”
In the next second, Ophelia grabbed Amelia’s hand and cried out, “Amelia, Tiff is really lucky to have a good friend like you!”
Ophelia then told Amelia what happened.
Amelia smiled. “Three hundred thousand isn’t a problem; I can give you that. However, can I meet the loan shark? I’ll get Oscar to deal with this and make sure you won’t have any problem in the future.”
“Of course. Sure.”
Ophelia nodded vigorously.
By then, Tiffany was so furious she was at a loss for words.
After reassuring Ophelia and sending her back, Tiffany shrugged and said in a deliberately nonchalant tone, “Babe, you saw it yourself. My family is worse than yours, and I’m related to them by blood too.”
Amelia responded, “Don’t say that, Tiff. They were never mean to you when you grew up, and they sent you to school. They love you too, but in comparison to their sons, you’re not as important. Moreover, your brother took a loan from loan sharks. You’re having a good life now. Who are they going to seek help from if not you?”
Tiffany’s head began throbbing, and she raised her hand to rub her temples.
“Babe, you know it’s not the three hundred thousand I’m upset about. It’s just the way they are. They’re not even concerned about my well-being nor worried if my husband’s family will be mean to me. The first thing they say is to ask for money from me. I’m just very disappointed.”
Amelia knew how she felt.
It was tradition for children to be dutiful toward their parents, but it was another matter if the parents demanded endlessly from their children.
“Babe, I’ll handle this. Don’t intervene.”
“Loan sharks like these are associated with the mafia, or else they won’t have the courage to make the interest so high. Therefore, we’ll need someone reputable in the underworld to deal with this. Oscar knows someone like this, so I’ll tell him about this matter once I’m home.”
“Thanks, Babe.”
“What are friends for, right?”
Tiffany then found a place to sit. As she watched the cars rush by, she frowned and quietly said, “Babe, I shouldn’t have told them that I am getting married. I’m afraid that they’ll become greedier at the sight of the Hissons’ wealth.”
Amelia sat down beside her.
The rich were most fearful of getting impoverished, greedy in-laws. That was why they only wanted to marry someone of equal status. That way, they would be able to avoid feeling disgusted by the in-law’s greed.
“They’ll go back after your wedding. As long as you send money to your parents on time, I’m sure they’ll be considerate of you too,” Amelia told her.
Tiffany chuckled. The moment Ophelia arrived and saw that Amelia was there as well, she quickly plastered on a kind and caring demeanor.
I hope that’s the case.
Unfortunately, both Amelia and Tiffany underestimated the intensity of human greed. Therefore, later on, when the Winters began asking for more, Tiffany grew increasingly frustrated. In fact, her marriage suffered from their greed to the point it was nearly ruined.
Tiffany never thought her seemingly perfect marriage would turn out to be that unstable—that something minor would burn it down so easily and push her to the brink of a mental breakdown.
“I don’t want to think about this anymore. I’m about to get married in a few days, and it’s not like the Hissons are waiting for my dowry. In fact, they’ve prepared everything, and there’s nothing much I need to do,” Tiffany casually remarked.
Amelia reached up to pat her head—a silent gesture of consolation.
