The Orphan Dragon Marshall

Grandfather's Bet

"You may kiss the bride." Andrew drew Maliya close and kissed her. The crowd clapped.

"You're the prettiest bride I've seen," Andrew said. Maliya's cheeks turned red.

Andrew drove Maliya to her home. When they arrived, he saw she was nervous. He took her hand and kissed it.

"You have me," he said. She nodded.

They opened the door and found Babara and Barth, Maliya's dad, inside. They didn't notice them.

"You good-for-nothing man, all you ever do is eat!" Babara exclaimed angrily at Barth, who let out a frustrated sigh.

"Can you just stop? I'll give you the money for now, I'm out of cash," Barth said, trying to placate her.

Babara let out a bitter chuckle. "Tell me when you ever had money. Tell me, because ever since I married you, I've done nothing but suffer."

Barth continued to sip his tea, ignoring Babara's outburst, which only fueled her anger further.

"You're a waste of the Coker's family name! Your mother should have just aborted you!" Babara spat venomously at Barth.

Barth stood up, slamming his fist on the table. "One more word from you, woman, and I promise to chop off your tongue!" he threatened, his anger boiling over.

Barth's low status in the Coker's family had always been a source of tension, and his relatively poor life was a constant reminder of his struggles.

Maliya cleared her throat, drawing the couple's attention. Babara's eyes widened in wonder, taking in Maliya's transformed appearance.

"Who is this beauty goddess who has blessed our home?" Babara asked, her gaze darting to Andrew, who simply pointed at Maliya.

“Maliya,” he mumbled.

Babara's eyes returned to Maliya, and she gasped, "What...this...is Maliya?" Andrew nodded, and Babara's surprise turned to disbelief.

She walked towards Maliya, wiping her eyes as if to ensure she was seeing correctly. She touched Maliya's face, pinching her cheek. Maliya winced, and Babara apologized, "Sorry, I just wanted to know if you're real."

Babara began to count on her fingers, "1...2...3...it's barely 15 days you left, and your face has changed. How...?" She trailed off, incredulous at the transformation.

Maliya gave her a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Oh, my daughter, I've missed you so much," Babara said, enveloping Maliya in a warm hug.

Maliya was taken aback, unable to recall the last time her mother had shown her such affection or referred to her as "my daughter".

Babara released Maliya from the hug, beaming at her. "You look stunning," she said.

Maliya replied with a hesitant "Th...thank you", but Babara cut her off.

"Come on, darling, you don't have to say thank you."

Maliya's eyes widened in surprise; Babara was notorious for demanding gratitude for every little thing.

Babara's gaze then shifted to Andrew, her expression twisting in disgust.

"What would you like to take, darling?" Babara asked, leading Maliya inside the house.

"We're not hungry," Andrew replied, earning a scathing glare from May.

"I wasn't talking to you, Mr. Man," Babara snapped, turning back to Maliya.

"Mum, I'm not hungry," Maliya managed to say.

Babara dismissed her protest, "No, you must eat." She dragged Maliya to the dining table, serving her food despite her reluctance.

After the meal, Babara took Maliya to the family house she had a plan. She wanted to persuade Stanley to cancel Maliya's engagement to Andrew.

As they arrived at the family house, everyone was shocked to see a stunning Maliya.

Babara cleared her throat, proudly announcing, "I present to you the most beautiful, fairer of them all, my beautiful Maliya Coker!"

Babara's gaze turned to Stanley, her voice taking on a persuasive tone. "Don't you think it would be a waste to still keep an engagement with this riffraff?" She pointed at Andrew, disdain evident in her gesture.

Stanley murmured, "Hmmm," his eyes scrutinizing Andrew as Babara continued.

"Even Harry would want to take her back now. I know you're mad at her, but think about the good in this. Cut her engagement, and you won't regret it."

Babara held her breath, praying Stanley would accept her suggestion.

Meanwhile, Stanley was weighing the benefits, his gaze fixed on Maliya's beauty.

No man could resist her charms. With a calculating smile, he declared, "I break the engagement between Maliya Coker and this lowly riffraff.”

"Grandfather, no! I don't want that. I want to be with him," Maliya begged, desperation in her voice.

"My decision is final, and it will benefit you too," Stanley said, smiling condescendingly. "A powerful family will be a good match for you."

Maliya's eyes darted around the room, and she suddenly grabbed a fork from the table, pointing it at her face.

"If you don't allow me to stay with him, I'll disfigure my own face," she threatened, her hand trembling.

Stanley's expression turned angry. "What are you, crazy? Drop that!" he shouted, moving forward, but Maliya backed away, warning him.

"No one comes closer!"

"You're a child, you don't know what's best for you," Stanley said, trying to reason with her, but Maliya refused to listen.

Andrew stood up, clearing his throat. "No one can force my wife. We are already married," he declared, his voice firm.

Eric burst into laughter, mocking him. "Yeyeye, when rich people are talking, keep shut!"

Andrew turned to face Eric. "I love how you say 'rich people.' The last time I checked, you have nothing. The only difference between us is that you hide your poverty under the Coker family name."

Stanley intervened, his voice stern. "Enough!"

Andrew rolled his eyes but remained silent, not wanting to make things difficult for Maliya.

Stanley scolded Andrew, "How dare you talk to a Coker like that? If you speak to him disrespectfully again, I'll kick you out of this house, with money!"

Maliya begged, her hands clasped together, "Grandfather, please forgive him."

Stanley muttered under his breath, "He has no money, yet he's arrogant." He thought to himself about how to deal with Andrew.

"Fine, prove your worth," Stanley said, sitting down and smoking his shisha. "Let's place a bet. Negotiate a cooperation order with the Yale Group worth thirty million within 10 days."

Maliya intervened, "Grandfather, we both know 10 days is too short, please add more days for us."

Stanley chuckled, his plan being to make things difficult for Andrew and Maliya.

"Ten days, or not," he said, puffing out smoke.

Andrew smiled confidently, "I will complete the task tomorrow."

Stanley's eyes widened in surprise, and Eric burst into laughter. "Yeyeye, he thinks this is a child play!"

But Andrew responded, “Only tomorrow will tell.”