Chapter 2

I wrenched myself free from my relatives' grip.

I snatched up the rope beside me, ready to rush over and strangle the child in Ryan's arms.

When they saw I was serious, my relatives went pale with fright.

They held me back, swearing up and down.

"Brendan, Ryan's an honest man. He'd never cheat on your daughter behind her back!"

"Calm down! Today is your grandson's one-month celebration. Do you really want to destroy this family?"

Then they quickly called my daughter and told her to come back.

"Norma, where are you? Get to the hotel, quick!"

"Your father's gone mad. He keeps insisting that the child you risked your life to have with Ryan isn't his grandson, and he wants to kill him!"

Too bad she hadn't even finished before I was standing right in front of her, the hemp rope in my hand.

Looking at the hemp rope in my hand, as thick as a baby's arm, I was less than half a meter from her.

Close enough to lunge and strangle her with it at any moment.

The relative who'd tipped off my daughter was so frightened they started stammering.

"Brendan, don't say that—the child Norma had is definitely hers."

"And even if it isn't, that's got nothing to do with me!"

"It's not like I egged Ryan on to go cheat on your daughter with someone else..."

But I went around her, straight to the kitchen.

The weed killer had to be spread, the hemp rope still had to be pulled tight.

A cleaver was more convenient.

I grabbed a bone cleaver from the kitchen and returned to the banquet hall.

I was about to strike at Ryan and the child, who were surrounded by relatives trying to comfort them.

But before I could act, a pair of hands seized my arm and held on tight.

"Dad! Haven't you made enough of a scene?"

"I know you've never liked Ryan, but that doesn't give you the right to slander the child I gave birth to as not being your grandson!"

"You spread these lies in front of all these relatives—how is my child supposed to hold his head up when he grows up?"

But I stood my ground, full of righteous conviction.

"Pah! A bastard pretending to be my grandson, and he wants to live like a decent person?"

"I'll send him straight to hell right now!"

"Maybe the King of Hell will be kind enough to send this bastard off to be reborn sooner!"

I raised the bone cleaver and swung it down again at the child in Ryan's arms.

But my daughter threw herself in front of Ryan and the child.

I pulled back as fast as I could, but the cleaver still caught my daughter's shoulder.

Blood soaked through her coat, and I was terrified too.

I quickly grabbed her hand, meaning to take her to the hospital.

But my daughter flung me off.

Clutching her wounded shoulder, my daughter looked at me like I was a stranger.

"Dad, I used to think you just didn't like Ryan, and that you couldn't bring yourself to love the child I had with him either."

"That's why you made up that lie about our ancestors coming to you in a dream, to humiliate him and my baby."

"But I never imagined you were this vicious—that you actually wanted to kill my child!"

"I don't need your fake kindness taking me to the hospital. Get out of my child's one-month celebration, now! I don't have a father like you, and my child doesn't have a wicked grandfather like you either!"

I couldn't believe it.

She was actually driving me out for the sake of this bastard!

The livestream comments joined in, gloating.

Serves you right for going crazy and slandering people! See what you've done now? Your daughter's disowned you.

Just apologize to your daughter and son-in-law already! They're not really mad at you, they just can't stand you making a scene at the baby's one-month celebration.

As long as you're sincere and bring out that big gold bracelet again, you can still be a happy family!

But I clenched my fists.

My wife passed early, and I raised my daughter all on my own, being both father and mother to her.

Only I know how much I suffered to do it.

You could say my daughter is my whole life!

Her disowning me is no different from killing me.

But to make me accept this bastard as my grandson...

I couldn't accept it!

Fists clenched, I told my daughter.

"I can go."

"But this bastard has to die today!"

The words were barely out before I caught Ryan off guard and snatched the child from his arms.

Then I ran out of the hotel like a madman.