After Claude saw clearly what was inside the box, the curve of his mouth grew wider; Xu Ke truly understood him, and the gift was perfectly suited.
"Master, how should we handle this person?" the butler asked.
"Send him to the dungeon for now," Claude said, with a hint of pleasure in his voice.
Xu Ke worked swiftly; over the next three days, Claude received two more boxes, each containing well-preserved, though aged, won. By then, the butler had grown accustod to the sight of the large boxes and directly sent the contents to the dungeon.
Three children had been brutally murdered in succession; one was dismbered, another was corroded by acidic solution, and the last was burned to charcoal in a fire. anwhile, their mother disappeared at the sa ti.
Bart might not care much whether these people were dead or alive, but he cared that his reputation was trampled and desecrated. How many years had it been? Ever since the rise of the Calvin Family, everyone had to treat him with utmost respect. No one dared oppose him, nor did anyone dare to defend against him. But now, sobody had killed three of his children in succession and made his woman disappear. What was this doing? It was a blatant provocation, a provocation against his authority.
"Investigate, find out who it is! Once you find the mastermind, I want him torn to pieces!" Bart swept everything from the table to the floor with one swing, crashing to the ground with loud clatters.
The butler’s smile waned for the first ti as he looked at the report on the nas. He frowned deeply at the grouping of these three.
Seeing his butler linger on the list instead of executing his order imdiately, Bart couldn’t help but ask, "Have you discovered sothing?"
The butler put down the list and hesitated before speaking, "I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but the three involved were the earliest to follow you, and all three caused trouble during the late madam’s lifeti. Back then, the madam suffered from postpartum depression, and after their disturbances, she committed suicide."
Though the butler didn’t directly point out who was responsible, his words clearly implied his suspicions.
The muscles on Bart’s face twitched quickly, "Are you suggesting it was Claude who did this?"
"That possibility cannot be ruled out, and personally, I think it’s quite likely," the butler replied.
"No, it’s not just likely; the perpetrator must be him. Who else would take such painstaking efforts and use such cruel ans against them?" Although Bart hadn’t yet conducted an investigation, the butler’s words had already convinced him that the culprit was his son, Claude.
"But how old was he back then? He couldn’t even rember it. This is all the doing of the Manson family! When they wanted to take the child back for upbringing, I knew they had ulterior motives. It turns out I was right; they just wanted to disrupt my household, make my life difficult. Now that brat killed them, who’s next? Is it ?" Bart spoke with a manic expression, staring directly at his butler.
"Probably not," the butler replied uncertainly.
"What do you an ’probably’? He would. He would think my unfaithfulness led to his mother’s death. Those people were rely catalysts; I am the true culprit, and he would find even more ruthless ways to kill ," Bart was wholly absorbed in his assumptions. The mont the butler suggested Claude might be involved, he fell into a state of paranoid fear.
"I understand; this was all a Manson family plot with him. Otherwise, why did he stay at the Manson family until he suddenly wanted to return to the Calvin family one day? If he didn’t want revenge, why would he co back, and why target the other children? I originally thought he just wanted to seize the inheritance. I didn’t realize he actually wanted dead, wanted to kill ."
Bart rushed toward the butler and instantly grabbed his arm, squeezing so tightly he might have broken it.
"Sir, what I stated was just a conjecture. Perhaps it’s not as bad as you think. I still suggest investigating before reaching a final conclusion. What if it’s all a misunderstanding? After all, Master Claude has beco increasingly excellent in recent years. Your favor towards him inevitably makes other children envious. Although this incident happened years ago, many people know about the events at that ti. So people may take extre asures to take down Master Claude, to win your favor," the butler calmly analyzed.
Bart fell into deep thought once again due to the butler’s words. He unconsciously released his grip on the butler’s arm, and his previously manic expression slowly returned to normal.
"What you said is reasonable, but right now, my suspicion towards Claude remains the strongest. Yet, he’s so outstanding, I don’t want to wrong him. So you investigate quickly. Who knows who the next target is? Make sure to find the result before the next victim appears," Bart instructed.
"Understood." The butler took his leave.
The door opened and closed, leaving the room empty and extraordinarily quiet for just one person.
"Why do you have to be so excellent? You make my other children seem so utterly foolish. If you were just a bit more foolish, I wouldn’t be so torn now. If you were a bit more foolish, I wouldn’t be so indecisive. Or if you weren’t her child, I would unhesitatingly hand over the entire Calvin family to you. Why can’t you just satisfy ?"
Bart watched the window with a bitter expression.
In recent years, he often sank into such dilemmas. In the darkness of night, he pondered why Claude had to have Manson blood. If only his maternal family’s background were simpler, or if his mother had lived longer, if their marriage had been happier, he would have given the Calvin family to Claude without hesitation.
Yet, nothing t those conditions, but he still turned out to be his most outstanding child bar none, making all his other children seem like rubbish, putting him in a conflicted yet delightful agony.
"Are you here to punish , to deliberately exact revenge because you can’t stand ?" Bart muttered to himself, staring out the window.
"If that were truly your objective, then you’ve succeeded. I truly regret it." Bart’s final words were so faint they disappeared into the air with his gentle breath.
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