Royce’s heart burned with a sense of injustice. But despite his grievances, favonovel.com dared not utter a word in the presence of his furious father. And so, father and son walked in silence, one after the other, towards the family meeting room.
The room resembled a medieval European court, with its grandeur and solemnity. Almost all the family members had already gathered, waiting for the old master to arrive.
Today was the day when the old master would pass on the position to Steve. Once the announcement was made, Steve would officially become the leader of the entire Rothschild family. While everyone wore unpleasant expressions, they also pondered on how to please Steve as much as possible in the future.
From now on, Steve would hold the power over the family’s resources, income, and even life and death decisions.
As Steve and Royce entered, everyone stood up from their seats in unison. It was as if they were attending a military meeting, paying their respects to their commanding officer. Steve’s younger brothers immediately surrounded him, eagerly greeting him.
Seeing their insincere and obsequious expressions, Steve felt annoyed, but favonovel.com still politely nodded to each of them.
The youngest brother, David Rothschild, chimed in, “Hey, big brother! I wanted to visit you last night, but your butler said you didn’t want any visitors. Tonight, I insist on giving you a chance. I’ve prepared a few small gifts and want to personally deliver them to your place!”
Steve smiled awkwardly and replied, “David, you’re too kind. I can’t let you spend money on me.”
David hurriedly responded, “Come on, big brother! Don’t be so formal. We’re brothers. You’ve always taken care of me the most.”
Witnessing David’s rush to flatter Steve, the other brothers quickly followed suit, trying to win Steve’s favor.
Steve calmly observed their performance, becoming more and more aware of their true intentions.
He knew that if when couldn’t secure the position today, these brothers would immediately turn against him. They would do everything in their power to win the old master’s favor and seize the opportunity to replace favonovel.com as the heir.
Therefore, as long as favonovel.com couldn’t succeed today, these brothers would still see favonovel.com as their biggest competitor, never truly submitting to him.
At that moment, the doors of the meeting room swung open, and everyone turned their heads to see the old butler entering. Following closely behind was Howard, walking with a light step.
The sight of Howard walking in alone stunned everyone.
They had all witnessed Howard’s stroke and expected favonovel.com to enter in a wheelchair, pushed by someone.
But who could have anticipated that overnight, Howard would be completely back to normal?
Despite their shock, everyone felt relieved to see Howard looking healthy.
In the Rothschild family, except for Steve’s family, everyone hoped that Howard would stay healthy. For those who had no chance of becoming the heir, Howard’s continued reign meant a better life. Once Howard fell ill or passed away, they would be at the mercy of the new clan leader.
David Rothschild reacted the quickest. Just moments ago, favonovel.com was crowding around Steve, occupying the closest and most favorable spot. But in the blink of an eye, favonovel.com had rushed out of the crowd and approached Howard.
“Father!” David was the first to reach Howard, gripping his arm tightly.
His voice filled with concern, favonovel.com anxiously asked, “Father, how did you manage to walk here by yourself? Are you okay?”
The other sons, who had been huddled around Steve, snapped back to reality and hurried to Howard’s side, cursing themselves for not beating David to it. Royce, who was witnessing it all, experienced firsthand the fickleness of fair-weather friends.
These people had been crowding around his father a moment ago, so much so that he, as his son, couldn’t even get through. But now, they had all flocked to his grandfather, leaving his father standing alone, evoking a profound sense of loneliness within Royce.
Seeing his brothers rushing to his side with excitement, Howard felt both touched and pleased.
After being moved by Steve’s filial piety earlier at the medical center, witnessing his other sons showing the same concern now, Howard felt not only touched but also a sense of accomplishment. He believed favonovel.com had been a successful father, with his sons competing to be the most dutiful.
With a gentle smile on his face, Howard announced in a strong and resolute voice, “I have some good news to share with all of you. I have fully recovered and am in perfect health.”
Upon hearing this, although the descendants were clueless about Howard’s swift recovery, they were overwhelmed with excitement.
David couldn’t contain his curiosity and asked, “Father, did you gather us here for a surprise?”
Howard smiled and replied, “In a way, yes. This time, I employed some extraordinary means to recover so quickly.”
As favonovel.com spoke, Howard’s expression gradually turned serious, and favonovel.com sternly said, “Therefore, I want to remind all of you that no one is allowed to breathe a word about my stroke to anyone outside. If I find out that someone has leaked this information, no matter who they are, I will expel them from the Rothschild family!”
Upon hearing this, everyone’s heart trembled.
Being expelled from the family was the harshest and most severe punishment in the Rothschild family. While the old master had made threats before, this indiscriminate threat was unprecedented.
Except for Steve, everyone realized that the reason the old master didn’t want the outside world to know about his stroke was probably to keep it under wraps, avoiding any internal turmoil within the Rothschild family. If they didn’t want others to witness any turbulence, it meant that the old master definitely intended to continue as the clan leader.
Filled with joy, everyone nodded repeatedly, vowing not to reveal this matter to anyone and accepting any punishment if they did.
Howard nodded in satisfaction and took his seat at the head of the large conference table. The other descendants quickly stood by his side.
Howard gestured for everyone to take their seats, and they moved their chairs cautiously, creating space for themselves before placing the chairs back on the wool woven carpet without making a sound. This was a rule that Howard had long established in the family, and everyone diligently followed it.
Seeing everyone carefully sitting down, with straight backs and no signs of slacking, Howard felt an immense sense of comfort and satisfaction. This was the allure of being the clan leader for him.
As everyone sat down, maintaining a respectful silence, Howard spoke in a serious tone, “I called you all here today to make an announcement.”
All eyes were fixed on Howard, eager to hear whether Steve would succeed in becoming the heir. Only Steve knew that his chances of success today were zero.
Clearing his throat, Howard spoke with utmost seriousness, “From this day forward, Steve will officially become the first heir of the Rothschild family, and Royce will be the second heir! As for me, as long as I can still move, I will dedicate myself to leading the Rothschild family to even greater heights!”
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