The elderly matriarch turned her gaze toward Khloe, who was wearing an ingratiating smile, and narrowed her eyes slightly.
Truth be told, the old lady had never been fond of Beverly either.
Not just because of the woman's scandalous behavior and the turmoil she'd brought into the Stone family after marriage, but also because she had hurt Alvin. No matter how flawed Alvin might be, he was still a child of the Stone family—
Beverly's actions had disgusted the old lady to the core.
So when Khloe made this request, the matriarch didn't have any particular objections.
After a brief silence, she finally spoke, "So, have you found a suitable candidate?"
Khloe eagerly replied, "Madelyn from the Olson family. She's a lovely girl—I took a liking to her at first sight. Though the Olson Family can't compare to our Stone family, since Arnold is remarrying, I just want him to marry a decent, well-behaved girl. It doesn’t matter if her family background isn’t as prestigious."
The latter part of Khloe's words softened the old lady’s heart considerably.
Her expression, initially indifferent, lingered on Khloe for a few more seconds.
"Very well, then," the matriarch conceded.
In truth, when Khloe first brought it up, the old lady had been wary. She’d assumed the eldest branch of the family was still scheming, their judgment clouded by foolish ambitions. But now that she saw the proposed match was from the Olson family—
Her concerns melted away.
The matriarch didn’t ask for much. The old master had already made his choice of successor clear, and frankly, she was quite satisfied with the decision.
All she wanted now was to avoid further upheaval.
After all, the old lady was still a mother. Though she didn’t particularly favor her eldest son—especially after all the foolish things he had done—he was still her flesh and blood. If the eldest branch of the family could finally settle down and behave, nothing could have pleased her more.
Beside her, Aster couldn’t hide her surprise.
Earlier that day, when she had run into her sister-in-law, Khloe, the woman had asked for a favor—to put in a good word with the old lady about remarrying Arnold. Aster had agreed without much thought. Knowing Khloe’s pride, she had assumed the new wife would be someone impressive, and she had looked forward to watching the eldest and third branches lock horns. But now, it seemed the eldest branch had no such intentions…
A frown crept onto Aster’s face as a creeping sense of unease settled in her chest.
Don’t tell me the eldest branch really isn’t planning to make trouble for Lambert anymore.
If that were the case…
Then their own, the second branch, would have to tread carefully too, lest they invite Lambert’s retaliation later.
…
After a while longer of idle chatter with the old lady, the two women were dismissed when she claimed she needed rest.
Aster was more than happy to leave.
Yet as they parted ways, a shadow of something unreadable flickered in her eyes.
Jolene was the first to take her leave.
Khloe, noticing Aster’s lingering gaze on Jolene’s retreating figure, couldn’t resist remarking, “Ah, they say birthright trumps everything. But these days, it seems luck matters more. Look at Jolene—a peasant woman from the countryside, now climbing over our heads. How unpredictable life is.”
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