Chapter 852: 427: Who Calls the Shots in This Family (First Update)

The people at the Grant Branch office finished discussing their countermeasures; by then it was already past midnight. They obviously couldn’t have that gunman go turn himself in at the Stetford Family in the middle of the night.

They had to wait until early the next morning before they escorted the gunman to the office building under the Stetford Family that specialized in handling matters related to the Grant Branch.

That morning, Evan Stetford got up at dawn, went out for a run, and on his way back discovered a stretched Rolls-Royce Phantom parked at the gate of his house.

Cars of that brand were very common in their neighborhood, but this extended model was rarely seen.

By the sea in the early morning, dewdrops glittered on the lawn; the green grass and emerald trees reflected one another, completely shading the black asphalt road beneath.

Dressed in a white tracksuit, Evan Stetford jogged over from the foggy path.

Sitting in the car, Ruby Sheldon’s eyes lit up. She immediately pushed open the door and jumped down, running toward Evan as she called, "Uncle! Uncle! I’m here!"

Evan stopped, and said coolly, "...Betty, didn’t you already go back to the country?"

A lot had happened at Ruby Sheldon’s birthday party that time; a thorn had lodged itself in Evan’s heart.

But Ruby always looked so innocent, and her health really was bad.

So Evan hadn’t been too harsh with her.

If you saw Ruby, you would naturally see her mother, Autumn Stetford.

This was her maiden home too; she was Evan’s older sister by blood.

Sure enough, the people in the car filed out one after another.

Besides Autumn Stetford and Aiden Sheldon, there were actually Ava Harlow and Spring Spencer.

Ava Harlow counted as a distant relative on Evan’s mother’s side, though her relationship with Autumn was closer.

Spring Spencer wasn’t exactly familiar with him, but they had met a few times when they were young and could be considered family friends.

Evan raised his brows slightly and strolled lazily over to Aiden Sheldon, saying with a faint smile, "You came too, brother-in-law? How come you’re all here?"

Aiden Sheldon also smiled lightly and said, "This year Betty said she wanted to watch your Celestial Path Sect World Cup grand champion finals, so your sister brought all of us along to broaden our horizons."

Actually, ever since Autumn turned eighteen, she’d watched every tournament, but Aiden had never come.

Ava Harlow and Spring Spencer had only ever heard of this competition; they’d never had the chance to see it in person.

Evan and Aiden shook hands, then turned together to walk inside through the iron gate, as Evan said, "You can watch the preliminary rounds, but for the finals, not many people are allowed to see them."

Because this involved the highest-level contests of the Celestial Path Sect, there were always some things that would seem utterly unbelievable to ordinary people.

To avoid causing unnecessary panic, the last round of the Celestial Path Sect finals was basically only open to the judges.

Recording and filming were strictly forbidden.

Anyone who dared leak what happened in the finals wouldn’t only face the wrath of the Grant Branch; the Stetford Family would also hunt them down to the end.

Richard Stetford had never once attended this Celestial Path Sect tournament.

In the past, the reason Autumn could watch the final round was because she stood in for her father, Richard, attending as the official representative of the Stetford Family.

But this year Evan had come home to take over the family business, so the family’s representative ought to be Evan.

Yet Autumn had come back again.

Aiden didn’t know all the rules of the Stetford Family, but he knew what he needed to know.

He never got involved in the Stetford Family’s domestic affairs, but this time he had come along with Autumn.

Evan was a little surprised.

With both hands in his pockets, Aiden laughed and said, "I’m actually not interested. Just let Betty and her mother watch the first and second rounds; that’s enough."

Ruby Sheldon hooked her arm through Aiden’s and asked curiously, "Is the finals the third round? Why can’t we watch them?"

Evan gave a small smile and said, "Ask your mom and you’ll know."

Autumn, Ava, and Spring were walking behind them.

When Evan spoke, he glanced back. Autumn smiled faintly and said, "Betty, in a minute you can beg your grandpa. As long as he says the word, you can watch whichever match you want."

Ruby nodded quickly. "Okay, okay! I’ll go ask Grandpa!"

She skipped and bounced as she ran ahead.

Spring Spencer walked silently beside Ava, the corner of her eye occasionally sweeping over the scenery in the courtyard.

She had come here a few times when she was very young, but she hardly remembered it.

Coming back here again this time was truly overwhelming.

Compared with the Stetford Family and the Sheldon Family, the Spencer Family really wasn’t even in the same league.

Just like ordinary middle-class people when they stood in front of the Spencer Family.