Chapter 269 What is Your Relationship with Thalia?
Just watching the show wasn't enough - she even had to greet her.
Elowen looked at the relaxed and carefree Thalia, trembling with anger all over.
The more furious she became, the more relaxed Thalia appeared. Compared to her, she looked just like the evil queen from Snow White - hateful and hideous.
As if she was about to open her bloody mouth the next second.
"You guys carry on." Thalia said lightly.
"Thalia, you're feeling pretty pleased with yourself, aren't you?" Elowen looked down on Thalia. The original reason was because she looked down on Hayden. Hayden got involved with Eleanor's biological mother but they never ended up together, which made the Mitchells hate him, and by extension, they hated Thalia too.
What was most hateful was that if the Smith family had fallen on hard times, that would be one thing, but over these years, they'd been thriving - even better than the Mitchell family. Thalia's reputation in Emerald City was everywhere.
Good family background, good looks, and a personality that got along with everyone - all the men in their circle wanted to get close to her.
Any one of these things would make people jealous, but what was infuriating was that they were all concentrated in one person.
She thought that when Hayden died, Thalia would suffer a bit, but she didn't.
"What am I pleased about? Elowen, get this straight - I sat down first, you came in after. Don't tell me I have some kind of psychic ability to know you were coming in to catch someone cheating and waited here in advance?"
Maybe because propping up her chin was tiring, Thalia switched hands. "Eleanor is such a proud person, I thought as a fellow Mitchell family child, you'd be the same! Who would've thought - you're also the type of woman who can fight with those low-class people in public."
After Thalia finished speaking, Evelyn added another jab. "How embarrassing!"
"Who are you calling embarrassing? What are you to dare talk back to me? If my aunt hadn't looked down on your dad back then, your mom would still be a homewrecker who couldn't show her face in public, and you'd just be an illegitimate daughter. Who do you think you are? Think you're better than everyone else?" Elowen cursed.
Thalia picked at her ear. "Can you change your script? I'm tired of hearing this. Who doesn't know that the Mitchell family was arrogant back then and looked down on the Smith family? Thought their daughter was born superior, and what happened? Isn't the Mitchell family falling apart anyway? I thought your family would keep thriving and stay on top forever. Turns out you're not doing so well after all?"
"In the end, they threw out a useless person like you for an arranged marriage," at this point, Thalia suddenly remembered something. "Oh right, the Mitchell family also looked down on the Carter family back then, didn't they?"
"Why don't you go back and ask for me - what's it like to have an arranged marriage with someone you look down on?"
"You..." Elowen couldn't win against Thalia in a war of words. In her anger, she grabbed a water pitcher from a passing waiter's hand, ready to splash Thalia.
Thalia calmly shifted her position. "Dare to splash me, and I'll dare to put you in jail."
Although Raymond hadn't spent much time with Thalia, after a few encounters, plus seeing how respectfully people in Emerald City treated her, he knew she meant what she said.
He stepped forward and grabbed Elowen's wrist, stopping her action.
Seeing this, Evelyn laughed. "Mr. Carter, looks like you have some conscience. Seems you haven't forgotten about us saving you last time."
Last time?
Elowen turned to glance at Raymond, but before she could explode, Raymond pulled her away.
In the elevator, sounds of arguing rang out.
"What's your relationship with Thalia?" Elowen asked.
Raymond replied coldly, "No relationship."
"No relationship? Why would someone like her save you if there's no relationship? Raymond, who do you think you are? The Emerald City circle is tight-knit. You're from Regal City - they wouldn't give you the time of day." Elowen's shouting filled the entire elevator. Compared to Raymond's coldness, she looked like a crazy person.
"Are you done?" Raymond snapped.
Elowen was furious. "What do you mean?"
"If you're done, shut up. Elowen, remember this - the law only recognizes marriage, not love, especially not arranged marriages like ours without love. Isn't it too early for you to be controlling me? Does the law recognize it? You keep coming to provoke me again and again - believe it or not, I can make you even more embarrassed."
"You and I are both castoffs from our families, useless people who get used as marriage pawns. Even if I run naked with another woman at our wedding, the Mitchell family absolutely won't allow you to break off the engagement."
Raymond said this while reaching out to brush Elowen's messy bangs aside. "Life is like rape - if you can't resist, you can only accept it."
People like them had no freedom or dreams to speak of. Children of wealthy families either had strong abilities and paved the way for the family, or like them, contributed to the family.
Whether they were willing or not didn't matter. What mattered was that they'd enjoyed decades of privileged environment provided by their wealthy families, enjoyed resources and education. Now it was time for them to give back.
Raymond had always known - wealthy families were ruthless, aristocratic families even more so.
And they were just pieces on a chessboard. When the time came, where they moved was completely out of their control.
"So because I'm useless, I don't even have the right to struggle?" Elowen asked him with red eyes, her voice trembling, fists clenched.
She was hurt by Raymond's words.
"Futile." Raymond replied.
"Raymond, fine if you're useless yourself, but you won't even let me struggle?"
Raymond choked up, looking at Elowen, not knowing what to say for a moment. He was probably hurt by her words.
He was silent for a while. The elevator door opened, and Elowen stepped out first.
The argument just now seemed like an illusion.
Upstairs, Evelyn was confused. "What do you think Elowen means? Does she like Raymond? Or is it just about saving face?"
Thalia scooped up a piece of cake with a small spoon and put it in her mouth, answering, "Saving face."
"You're that sure?"
"The Mitchell family has Eleanor above her, pressuring her. Whatever she does gets compared. Wanting to save face isn't wrong."
"Just like how I was determined to surpass Chase. Some people can't change that mindset until they die."
Evelyn laughed at this explanation. "So how did you change?"
"The person I needed to please died. What do I have to worry about anymore?" She put down the spoon, propping her chin up with both hands as she looked at Evelyn.
If Hayden hadn't died, she'd probably be spending all her time thinking about how to compete with Chase. How miserable that would be!