
Twenty fours hours straight, that's how long John had been forced without a meal, he had been made to go for a longer period though but this time, with the heavy labour, his body ached all over.
His spine made a cracking sound when he eventually stood up from a cleaning position.
John could barely feel his arms and his legs at this point but he forced himself through into the kitchen to get some meal.
His eyes brightened up at the aroma of the food that he had been made to prepare. He dished into his plates, forcing some into his mouth quickly.
John was the popular live-in Son-in-law of the Armstrong family group that was treated even more than a slave.
Taking his meal to his room, he was about to take a bite when a yell forced sudden grip of shock to ran through his body in an instant.
"John?" A scream came from behind, almost deafening his ears but even without turning around, he could already tell who it was, Lady Willow.
His room flew open in an instant as his gaze met with the fury filled eyes of his mother-in-law. Her tongue stretched into one of hate and disgust as she paired at the garbage that her daughter had gotten for a so-called husband and she almost spat.
“You lazy asshole. How dare you try to flaunt my orders openly?" She glared with irritation.
"And you even dare to eat the food meant for other members of the household?"
John stared with a blank face, still confused at the words that she just spoke. Before going over to get his meals, he had made sure that he did everything that he had been told to him.
Seeing the looks on his face, the grip around her face tightened even more as she sneered at him.
"What was I expecting from such a dumb fool that only knows how to fill his stomach full?" She glared, quickly peeling off the plates from his hands and tossing it off into the garbage bin.
John felt like the world was going to close up on him. He stared at her with hate coursing through his throat and his hands clutched but he forced himself into doing the calms.. Taking deep breaths at multiple instances.
"Since you appear to be even more dumb than I thought you initially were, I am going to repeat my instructions for the very last time!" She glared.
"Bella needs someone to help her fix her bed. And I can't go get a carpenter when there is someone like you laying around wasting!
So you are going to get yourself off that chair that you can't afford and fix the problem immediately!" She ended with a snare before walking away.
John on the other hand barely knew anything about carpentry. His face went blank as his eyes paired at the vacuum that had been created right before him and he sighed deeply.
Already knowing the kind of person that his mother-in-law had grown to be, he knew that he had to go and see exactly what the problem was or he was going to be getting into a whole lot of trouble!"
With all the strength that he had gathered, John drew his feet off from the floor, dragging them over to Bella's room.
Tapping on the door slightly, the harsh voice of his wife's cousin came from the inner room towards him.
“I never envisioned myself asking you to come over so you can keep standing there ?" Bella mumbled under her breath with a long hiss loud enough for him to hear from the point that he was standing.
Even though John was way older than the her, he wasn't the slightest bit bothered.
His gaze fell on the bed that she was sitting on at the moment and it looked perfectly alright. Was this some sort of prank that they were planning again?
He could feel the angry frustration creeping through his vines and running throughout his body and his hands were clenched tightly
"Have you suddenly gone deaf?" She thundered once again.
"John!" She gasped in surprise.
"What should that be, a frown? You are getting angry at me?" She inquired.
"Lady Willow informed me to assist and that was giving you a few issues. But looking at it from this distance, it looks completely fine to me?" He inquired, with a hot gaze still focused on the bed stand at the moment.
"Then what took you so long? Do you know how long I have been waiting? I have not been able to do anything because of your stupid delay!" Bella suddenly snared at him.
One that was enough to make anyone fall back in their steps. But John's gaze was still static and strong. He had seen a whole lot of those already and they weren't enough to freak him anymore.
Ever since he stepped into the family, Bella has been his most hated foe who felt that a poor ass like him was no good for her sister who was now one of the top ten most successful CEOs in the city.
"And don't be so dumb! You could not even listen when Aunty was instructing you! You are even more worthless than I thought you were going to be initially!" She hissed suddenly.
"I don't have a problem with my bed stand if you aren't too stupid to notice! The problem is with my shoe stand!" She said, pointing to her wreck in the wall.
John shot a few blank stares at the mannerless peacock, wishing that he could shoot a few slaps that were going to reset that already derailed brain of hers. But no matter how much he wished to, he knew that was something that he could not afford to do, so he pushed the thoughts out of his head.
"Haven't I waited enough already? What are you still waiting for!" Her sudden yell snapped John off from his thoughts.
John didn't say anything more as he made his way up to the wreck on the wall that had been pointed out to him.
However, he could see anything else apart from a fault on that wreck.
"Could it be that I'm making a terrible mistake?" He thought suddenly, still staring in confusion at the moment.
While he was still trying to wrap his head around this snapping sound that came from the door drew John off from what he was doing but before we could tell what she was up to, Andrea slipped off her shirt and made her way towards him.
With every step that she took, She pulled off a fabric from her body, tearing them apart until she had only her underwear on.
"What are you trying to do?" He pulled away from what he was doing confused by her sudden actions.
Ignoring his words, she made her way towards him. Her face was laced with obvious disgust, as a smirk dominated her face.
"If this is what I have to do to get rid of you! So be it!" John heard Bella mutter. But those slight whispers only caused him more confusion.
Before he could tell what was happening, she wrapped her hands around his waist so tightly that it hurt badly.
"Bella". He called out but she practically ignored him, holding tightly to his waist.
“What are you trying to do? Get your hands off me right this instant.“ He glared at her but she didn't seem like someone ready to listen to him, even for a moment.
"Shouldn't be happy that I am even touching you! Lowly dog? Doing this disgusts me but I just have to." She spat angrily on his face, utterly irritated by the slight touch.
"I heard that my cousin hasn't touched you since your wedding night so I would advise you to shut up and enjoy the moment while it still lasts!"
"If you don't stay put, you are only going to make things a lot worse than it is already for you!" She threatened while John could feel the Outlines of his heart beating hard against his chest.
A stream of confusion flooded through his head almost in an instant. John could not wrap his head around what was going on, but he needed to break away from these strong grip.
But as John paired at those delicate fingers, his face was flooded with sweat. There was no way that he could forcefully break off without hurting those hands. And that would only mean a whole lot of trouble for him.
"Gulp!" A lump suddenly went through his throat.
'How do I get her off me now.' John blinked with multiple thoughts.
Thoughts ran through his mind. First, he thought about talking some sense into her but the Bella that he knew already was stubborn and would not listen to him once she had already made up her mind
While he was still deep in thoughts, the door suddenly flew open and his eyes erratically moved towards the direction.
"Bella! You said that you needed help. Why didn't you just get John or mot.." The words that came from this person suddenly ran dry from its roots.
Latest Chapter
Chapter 157
JOHN'S POVI wake before dawn, the meeting with Dr. Vance sitting heavy in my chest like a stone I can't dislodge.The pre-dawn darkness feels oppressive as I lie there staring at the ceiling, watching the shadows gradually lighten as morning approaches. Sleep never really came last night, just restless half-consciousness filled with anxious speculation about what Dr. Vance wants.I go through my morning routine without really going through it, each action performed on autopilot while my mind stays locked on eight AM. Shower. Dress. Check the message again to confirm the time and room, even though I've memorized both.Conference Room A. Eight o'clock.Breakfast passes in a blur of food I don't taste and conversation I barely register. My team talks around me but I contribute almost nothing, just nod occasionally when it seems appropriate.I notice Rachel across the dining hall, surrounded as always by people from prominent families. She's listening to someone talk but her attention se
Chapter 156
The Space BetweenJOHN'S POVThe moment with Divo stretches longer than it should, the silence between us growing heavier with each passing second.Neither of us moves first, both holding our ground in the narrow corridor like stepping aside would be admitting something neither wants to concede. Something close to defeat. Finally, I break the standoff. "What are you doing here?"Divo's response comes immediately, his voice cold and controlled. "I could ask you the same thing.""I was just passing through," I say. "Heading back to my room.""Interesting route," he says, his tone making it clear he doesn't believe me. "I was just passing through too."We both know it's a lie. Both of us were near the restricted wing for a reason, drawn to that partially open door like moths to flame. But neither of us acknowledges it directly, the truth sitting between us unspoken but understood."Right," I say after a beat. "Well. I should get going.""Yeah," Divo agrees. "Me too."But neither of us
Chapter 155
Afterward, the collective trial firing of the percussion cap guns by the police school instructors began.After trying out the new guns, everyone appeared incredibly excited. They knew what it meant to have the shooting speed increased by three to four seconds.Joseph himself also fired a few shots and just felt a huge recoil; the butt of the gun made his shoulder sore. Moreover, in terms of loading speed, even Louis XVI was streets ahead of him.Well, as for the Crown Prince, his strength lay in his intellect; firing guns was a task best left to Kesode.Soon, Principal Frient discovered another advantage of the percussion cap gun, "I feel that this gun has greater firepower than the 1776 model."Joseph nodded inwardly, as no leaking from the ignition chamber meant more of the explosive force of the gunpowder was acting on the bullet, definitely increasing the firepower.An instructor standing by nodded, "I feel it too. Moreover, this gun doesn't spray gunpowder smoke in your face whe
Chapter 154
The father and son shared a knowing smile and promptly set out.Upon leaving the workshop, Joseph headed towards the Marble Courtyard, only to see Louis XVI turn towards the tea room.He quickly followed and asked in surprise, "Father, aren't we going to the shooting range?""Indeed," Louis XVI nodded. "While they prepare the carriage, we can have a cup of tea, some pastries, and change our clothes in the meantime."It then occurred to Joseph about Louis XVI's super luxury carriage weighing 1.5 tons; with all his travel necessities, it would take no less than 40 minutes to prepare.He eagerly caught up to Louis XVI, "Dear father, you're going as a master gunsmith to inspect your work, there's no need for such ceremony. Why not take my carriage instead?"Louis XVI blinked, hmm, a master gunsmith, huh? That does sound interesting, very stylish.He heeded the advice and after a quick change of clothes, he left the Palace of Versailles and climbed into his son's grey-black carriage.The K
Chapter 153
The current situation in France is such that it should thank Providence simply for being able to pay the interest on its debts, as for repaying the principal? Ha, one doesn't even dare to dream of it in one's sleep.Joseph's face tightened as he shook his head, thinking to himself that it would be great if all those banks that lent to the government could just go bankrupt...Besides debt interest, another major "bleeding point" of France's finances is taxation.The French Government now entrusts most of its tax collection to "Tax Farmers." Every year, Tax Farmers pay a lump sum to the government, after which they are free to collect taxes.Estimates by later historians suggest that the actual amount of taxes collected by Tax Farmers each year exceeds the fee they pay to the government by more than one-eighth.Based on last year's tax revenue in France which totaled 500 million livres, one-eighth amounts to forty million. This money goes straight into the pockets of the Tax Farmers.In
Chapter 152
General MacArthur, a renowned five-star critic from the United States, once said, "The sky is high, the earth is wide, but Daddy is the biggest." A summons from Daddy must certainly be the highest priority.Joseph, feeling helpless, looked towards the carriage and gestured to Eman, "Let's head to the Palace of Versailles first, and then look at them in detail on the carriage.""Yes, Your Highness."Before long, several carriages drove out from the Industrial Planning Bureau.Inside the carriage, Joseph opened the envelopes one by one.The letters were from the three "white gloves" who had been tasked with purchasing grain overseas for him; for secrecy, they used coded language.Joseph then took the codebook from Eman and began to read with effort.In the letters, the "white gloves" first reported on the situation of the grain procurement, which was generally optimistic. The first two batches totaled nearly 70,000 setiers of grain from places like England, North Africa, Eastern Europe,
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