Listening to the increasingly clear, indignantly sarcastic words penetrating Ann Vaughn’s ears, she immediately furrowed her delicate brows, pursed her lips, and walked toward the living room.
Staring at the greedy face of Ryan Rhodes, Old Mr. Vaughn and Old Mrs. Vaughn both had unpleasant expressions, yet their years of cultivation prevented them from directly telling him to leave, so they kept their faces cold.
Ryan Rhodes didn’t give up easily; instead, he felt this was quite a good opportunity.
If his daughter could give birth to a descendant for the Vaughn Family, their entire family would rise to prominence.
"Old Mr. Vaughn, Old Mrs. Vaughn, you watched Brooke Ryan grow up, no one knows her character better than you do," Ryan Rhodes said earnestly. "An adopted daughter becoming a daughter-in-law, now that’s a fine story, isn’t it?"
"Dad..." Brooke Ryan shyly called out from the side, as if embarrassed.
Before coming, Brooke Ryan thought Ryan Rhodes was simply bringing her to apologize, but unexpectedly, the older he got, the craftier he became.
Old Mrs. Vaughn turned her gaze to Brooke Ryan, "Brooke, tell me, is this what you want too?"
"Grandma, you know I’ve liked Xavier for many years, even if he is now a vegetable, even if he may never wake up, I’m willing to marry him, to bear children for him, to continue the Vaughn legacy."
"You also said Ian is now a vegetable." Old Mrs. Vaughn closed her eyes and turned away.
Brooke Ryan thought she was disagreeing, so she quickly said, "Grandma, with today’s advanced technology, IVF and surrogacy are common, I, I am willing to be a surrogate for Xavier..."
"Old Mrs. Vaughn, seeing how deeply Brooke cares for Ian, she’s willing to endure the suffering of surrogacy, why not fulfill her wish?" Ryan Rhodes sighed and said.
"Grandma, you don’t want Xavier to pass away without leaving a child, right?" Brooke Ryan caught Ryan Rhodes’ eye signal, sat beside Old Mrs. Vaughn, held her hand, and gently persuaded.
Old Mrs. Vaughn already cherished Ian, her late-born child, and the thought of the possibility Brooke mentioned caused a dull ache in her mind.
At that moment, a soft yet resilient female voice interjected.
"Why so lively? I thought there was someone entertaining guests here with a performance."
A slender, graceful figure elegantly walked into the living room, her long hair slightly curled, her features exquisite but not gaudy, capturing everyone’s attention involuntarily upon her entrance.
As soon as Ann Vaughn appeared, the gloom in the two elders’ hearts dissipated, and they pulled her to sit beside them.
Seeing their affectionate treatment of Ann Vaughn, Ryan Rhodes glanced at her thoughtfully, then turned and signaled to Brooke Ryan with his eyes.
"Grandpa and Grandma are very fond of her, as is Xavier," Brooke Ryan whispered disdainfully. "Just a sparrow trying to become a phoenix."
Ryan Rhodes, for the first time, doubted his daughter’s mental capacity.
As soon as Ann Vaughn sat down, a maid promptly served her red tea and snacks. Though he didn’t understand much about antiques, he could tell the cup in Ann Vaughn’s hand was precious.
The cups in front of them were far inferior to the one she held.
Ann Vaughn took a sip to moisten her throat, then looked at Brooke Ryan, smiling as she asked, "You said you want to help Ian through surrogacy, right?"
"So what if I do?" Brooke Ryan recalled yesterday’s two slaps, her eyes filled with hatred as she looked at Ann Vaughn.
Ann Vaughn nodded, "I believe it’s entirely feasible, but there are some prerequisites."
Old Mrs. Vaughn and Old Mr. Vaughn exchanged a glance; despite their doubts, they chose to trust Ann Vaughn, remaining silent.
Their tacit approval further made Ryan Rhodes less willing to underestimate Ann Vaughn’s status. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ NovᴇlFirᴇ(.)nᴇt
Let’s not mention that since they arrived, this was the first sign of leniency from the two elders.
"What prerequisites? Please feel free to say, whatever it is, Brooke can certainly do it!" Ryan Rhodes boasted.
Ann Vaughn’s red lips curved into a satisfied smile, "First, your daughter will only fulfill the obligations of a surrogate, she cannot marry into the Vaughn Family."
Brooke Ryan was about to retort but was pulled back by Ryan Rhodes, pretending to make a great sacrifice, "Of course that’s no problem, Brooke just wants to do something for Xavier, whether she marries into the Vaughn Family is secondary!"
When the child is born, getting Brooke Ryan into the Vaughn Family would be a piece of cake.
"Second, your daughter will have no contact with this child."
"Very well. The last one, has Mr. Ryan ever heard of the story ’to keep the child, the mother must go’?" Ann Vaughn picked up the red tea, gently blew away the white steam, and said leisurely.
As soon as these words came out, Ryan Rhodes’ and Brooke Ryan’s faces suddenly turned white.
To keep the child, the mother must go?!
Brooke Ryan looked through the curling white mist, at Ann Vaughn’s exquisite face, feeling a chill in her heart.
How could there be such a malicious woman?
"I’ve always been cautious by nature, not too trusting of living people," Ann Vaughn raised her bright eyes, smiling as she looked at Brooke Ryan, "Miss Ryan, being so understanding, you can understand me, right?"
Her eyes, as bright as the stars, were smiling, but they gave Brooke Ryan an inexplicable sense of urgency.
"Old Mrs. Vaughn, Old Mr. Vaughn, our Brooke is willing to be a surrogate for Xavier, which is already a huge sacrifice, yet you let this cruel person insult Brooke , isn’t that too much!"
Ryan Rhodes looked displeased, with an air of ’I am doing you a favor, but you don’t appreciate it’.
"Mr. Ryan, those words do you injustice." Ann Vaughn softly laughed after hearing this, "Miss Ryan simply wants to do something for her beloved, ignoring consequences, disregarding returns, isn’t that so? How come this can’t be tolerated?"
"Then Miss Ryan’s sincerity is really more fragile than cellophane."
"You!" Brooke Ryan, furious, almost splashed the tea in her hand on Ann Vaughn’s face, but the still faintly aching face stopped her from acting rashly.
Ryan Rhodes stopped listening to Ann Vaughn, turned to the two elders, "You allow her to humiliate us ? Or do you also support such a ridiculous thing as ’to keep the child, the mother must go’!"
Ann Vaughn took another sip of tea and leisurely replied, "There is a second option, Mr. Ryan, would you like to hear it?"
Ryan Rhodes had to suppress his anger, "Speak!"
"Once Brooke successfully provides a surrogate, your family moves to Mordane and never sets foot in S Country again. How about it, am I not being considerate?"
As soon as these words were spoken, Ryan Rhodes’ anger rushed to his brain, and he cursed uncontrollably, "Bitch! You’re simply pushing it too far!"
Brooke Ryan, for the first time, doubted her father’s brain.
Couldn’t he see how much the grandparents cherished this woman?!
Could he not see Ann Vaughn was deliberately provoking them?!