I Forged the Myth of the Ancient Overlords
Chapter 621 - 621 620. Awkward but polite smile_1

Chapter 621: 620. Awkward but polite smile_1 Chapter 621: 620. Awkward but polite smile_1 Miss Emma was confounded by Lu Ban’s question.

Wasn’t it agreed to investigate the pollution of her father’s mansion?

Why was he asking about Mr. Gaude now?

Mr. Gaude had nothing to do with her father’s inheritance, so why inquire about him?

Although this detective was rather handsome, he didn’t seem professional at all.

Looking at Lu Ban suspiciously, Miss Emma began to have some doubts about him.

Meanwhile, Mr. Stone, who was watching Lu Ban, also struggled to keep his composure.

“Ahem, he’s just a bit curious. We’d like to start by asking about your relationship with your father and whether he’s said or done anything particularly memorable in the past few years?”

Mr. Stone cleared his throat and asked.

“My relationship with my father wasn’t that good. He always did things by the book, had his own way of doing things, and never wanted to deviate from his plan. He’s like a precise clock, always striking at midnight, and although this brought him great business success, if you ask me, my father was really an uninteresting person.”

Emma seemed to open up and babbled on.

“So, if you want me to talk about something memorable he’s done, I really can’t think of anything right away because he was just that kind of person, consistent for a decade.”

As she spoke, Emma glanced at Lu Ban and seemed to get an idea.

“That being said, there was something unusual; the way he bought this mansion was strange. My father was never interested in real estate. He lived in the same house for decades, just renovating it from time to time. He didn’t have many material desires, merely dabbled in drinking and smoking. After my mother died, he didn’t find another woman, uh, at least not to my knowledge. So, it puzzled me when he bought this place, collected those terrifying artworks, and even took a lover.”

Emma rambled on.

“I’m not sure exactly how my father bought this place, but he moved here quickly from the old house where he lived for decades and began collecting a variety of oddities: novels from Ancient Capital, those paintings, some antiques and treasures, and even took a lover. My God, does he even realize how old he is?”

“Miss Emma means to say that Mr. Bronning underwent a change before purchasing this estate and after moving here he showed behaviors he had never exhibited before?”

Mr. Stone noted down in his notebook while asking.

“Ah, yes, exactly, you see, it might all be due to Mr. Gaude. He’s known my father for over a decade, and my father changed so much. Oh right, this mansion was apparently sold to my father by someone introduced by Mr. Gaude’s side.”

As if recalling something, Emma continued.

“He introduced it?”

Mr. Stone stopped writing and looked intently at Emma.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, that’s right, I remember now. Mr. Gaude got into some speculative business and lost money, then he turned to my father, introduced this property, and took a commission out of it. If it weren’t for Mr. Gaude, my father would not have bought this place.”

Suddenly, Emma gnashed her teeth, her clenched fists revealing the veins on the back of her hands.

“Perhaps that woman was also introduced to my father by Mr. Gaude. How could he do this? My father was so good to him, and now he wants to harm our inheritance…”

“Please calm down a bit, Miss Emma.”

Mr. Stone gently took her hand to soothe her. Emma looked at Mr. Stone and flashed an ambiguous smile.

“You’re very kind, Mr. Stone. I’ve met many people, but none of them have been such a true gentleman like you.”

She was just short of shoving a room card into Stone’s hand and saying, “Don’t leave tonight. Come to my room, and I’ll show you how a rich lady has fun.”

Stone maintained his amiable smile and then spoke.

“So let’s talk about Mr. Gaude, shall we? What kind of person is he, how did he come to know your father, and has he ever mentioned Master Byron?”

Lu Ban shot a glance at Stone.

This question was exactly the same as the one he had started with.

However, this time Aima wasn’t baffled but pondered for a moment before replying.

“About Gaude… how should I put it, I don’t really like him. He comes from a gang background, but back in the day when the big gang fell apart, he started his business with some shady tactics and had already accumulated quite a bit of wealth by the time he met my father.”

“The turbulence back then?”

Curiosity caused Lu Ban to interrupt Aima.

“Don’t you know? It was the Catania Family. They were aggressively expanding and defeated several other big gangs, but they ended up falling apart due to internal feud within the family. The godfather died, and by that time, the Catania Family had nearly monopolized the underworld. However, because of that infighting, the gangs that had initially submitted to them rebelled, and the Catania Family vanished from the world of the gangs. Most others haven’t amounted to much since then. Gaude was one of those who had been absorbed by the Catania Family and later managed to break away.”

Aima explained it as if it were a matter of course.

“I see.”

Lu Ban glanced at Stone, who although kept his expression unchanged, the hand holding his pen tightened slightly; he seemed somewhat uncomfortable.

After all, what Aima was talking about was part of Stone’s own past deeds, and speaking of such history in front of the person involved carried a hint of a public execution.

“Speaking of the gangs, they were just street thugs, riffraff. He knows a lot of people who are not exactly decent. It is said that even after he went into business, he often engaged in intimidation and bribery. I don’t like this man much, but sometimes my father would cooperate with him. I really can’t understand why someone as precise as a pocket watch like my father would work with Gaude.”

Aima ranted, implying her preference for clean, sunny young men like Stone or Lu Ban with a gentlemanly demeanor, and showing no interest towards a strong, muscular bruiser like Gaude.

“That’s normal. Perhaps your father needed someone like Gaude to do some dirty work for him, to keep his own hands clean,”

Lu Ban said candidly.

This left Aima at a loss.

Although she was not interested in her father’s business, she still had a basic understanding and certainly knew why her father would deal with someone like Gaude: to conduct legitimate business and entrust dirty tasks to trusted people. This way, one could always cleanse themselves and avoid even a speck of pollution. In an era dominated by gangs, businessmen were almost coerced by the gangs to act this way. And after the decline of the gangs, businessmen took the lead, converting these former gang members into their private enforcers, continuing their original work.

But there was no need to spell it out.

What’s wrong with this man?

He might be handsome, but if he keeps talking like this—even if she were swayed by looks—she couldn’t tolerate it… Well, one more chance. If this man is rude again, she would just walk away!

Facing Lu Ban’s question, Aima exhibited an awkward yet polite smile and answered.

“Perhaps.”

“Regarding Miss Lily, what are your thoughts? Although she hasn’t married your father, from a factual standpoint, she’s still like your stepmother. If she became pregnant, her child would theoretically have inheritance rights,”

Lu Ban continued to inquire.

“???”

Aima clenched her fan tightly.