Chapter 28 Skillfully Retorting Isla
As soon as Cleo said this, Isla's face turned extremely ugly. Her fingers gripped the corner of her clothes so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
She opened her mouth, wanting to argue back but couldn't find the right words. She could only swallow her words forcefully, her eyes full of resentment mixed with fear.
Meanwhile, the elders and younger family members around all kept their heads down, either pretending to drink tea or looking around. No one spoke up, because after all, Cleo was the one in charge of the Thompson family. Nobody wanted to get involved in their conflict, or they'd be asking for trouble.
Just as Jasper continued to praise me, I patted his head, signaling him to quiet down a bit, then gave Cleo a grateful look.
Cleo gave me a reassuring look back, which kept my heart feeling warm.
If it weren't for Cleo backing me up every time, I would have been picked on countless times by everyone in the Thompson family. Although Isla has been living abroad and I only see her twice a year at most, every meeting inevitably involves her making me feel sick.
If Cleo isn't around, then I have to just endure it. But when Cleo is here, it's better.
Just like now, backing me up time and time again.
Tyler seemed unable to stand this scene any longer and changed the subject. "Grandma, if you want to give the gift to Sophia, that's up to you. We're all Thompson family anyway, it's the same whoever gets it. Mom heard abroad that your back wasn't doing well, so she specially asked foreign doctors for some medicine. I've already had someone take it to the kitchen. If you take some every day from now on, they say it works wonders."
I thought Cleo would surely agree, but unexpectedly she said dismissively, "What medicine haven't I taken or drunk? When you're old, you're old. It's not about maintaining yourself with medicine. As long as you keep a calm mind in daily life, eat well and drink well, nothing else matters."
I deeply admired Cleo's way of thinking. Very few people are this open-minded anymore.
Hearing this, Isla's expression was complicated and her face looked terrible. After a while, she spoke up, "Mom, this prescription is completely different from what you've taken before. Many people say it works wonders. Just try it, it's very expensive. I pulled a lot of strings to get it."
Cleo's expression remained calm. "Just leave it for now. I'll drink it when I feel like it."
The implication was very clear - she wouldn't drink it.
Tyler seemed to not want Isla to be too embarrassed, so he said again, "Grandma, Mom means well, and this medicine has an expiration date. We can't just leave it sitting there. I'll have someone prepare a bowl before dinner, and you can drink it first."
After he spoke, Cleo looked at Tyler, and the two seemed to be silently battling each other.
I didn't want things to get worse, so I said to grandma, "Grandma, since Mom brought it, why don't you try it? Maybe it really will work."
Hearing me say this, Cleo patted my hand and finally gave in. "I'll listen to Sophia."
When it was time to eat, everyone gradually took their seats. I helped the servants set out the tableware. Actually, this wasn't work I needed to do, but since everyone was discussing work matters and I couldn't really join in, I could only find something to do.
It was precisely because of this that Isla, taking advantage of Cleo going to drink her medicine, started mocking me again.
"Sophia, this is the servants' work, not yours. Just sit down and relax. Even if you don't understand what we're talking about, you don't need to do these servant tasks. Otherwise it makes the Thompson family look bad."
As soon as she said this, everyone who had been chatting instantly fell silent.
Everyone knew that Isla's status back in the day wasn't exactly respectable either, but my status was from a proper marriage. Her treating me this way was just making trouble for no reason to assert her presence.
Since that was the case, I didn't need to give Isla any face.
"Mom, the Thompson family doesn't have rules against helping the servants, right? Everyone is human, all people are equal. Where does this hierarchy come from?"
As soon as I said this, Isla's face looked terrible, though she was still trying to appear calm. "Right now there are so many people sitting at the dinner table, and no one else is moving, just you here helping. It makes it look like the rest of us aren't doing anything, don't you think?"
Isla's words were clearly mocking me for pretending to be diligent.
Tyler came to my rescue at the right time. "Mom, you're overthinking it. Sophia is just helping out casually, it's not as complicated as you think."
But even though Tyler gave her an out, Isla still didn't take it. She said mockingly, "I'm just concerned, aren't I? The Thompson family is a big family after all. She's always staying at home - if word gets out, people will think the Thompson family mistreats her and won't let her go out to work. Besides, women should have their own careers. Otherwise, if they get abandoned one day, they won't even have the ability to support themselves."
I had just sat down, and my body involuntarily stiffened. I took a deep breath, suppressed the anger in my heart, and said calmly, "Mom, whether I have ability or not doesn't need to be defined by others, and it doesn't need to be defined by what I'm doing now. I take good care of the home, manage the household well, and let Tyler focus on his work. I'm not like some people who really came for the status of a big family, only knowing how to rely on the family, living a life where everything is handed to them, unable to even manage their own lives properly."
I deliberately emphasized the words "some people" - anyone with eyes could tell who I was talking about.
After speaking, I casually glanced at Isla.
Seeing this, Tyler's eyebrows furrowed almost imperceptibly. He looked at me, his eyes hinting that I should stop talking.
I ignored him and continued, "Mom, if you don't want me to call you Mom, then I don't have to. After all, you never wanted me to call you Mom in the first place."
Back when Isla married into the Thompson family, it wasn't smooth sailing either. If she hadn't given birth to Tyler, her status would probably be no different from a servant's.
So Isla's hostility toward me now was just her venting about her own past.
Because Cleo wasn't there, Isla was about to lose it. I had embarrassed her badly, and just as she was about to explode, Gray spoke up at the right time. "Today is a family dinner, everyone stop fighting. Isla, you're an elder - why are you randomly targeting a younger family member? All these years, even if Sophia hasn't made great contributions to the Thompson family, she's still put in the work. Look how well Jasper has been raised? Still not satisfied?"