Chapter 193: Tonight’s Tribulation Is More Pressing

Alvin Lancaster didn’t expect her to answer. He thought for a moment before asking cautiously, "Why do you think he’s not a good person?"

Jane Lancaster said, "Like I said, it’s just a feeling."

’In the original novel, that guy could be considered a Good Samaritan, I guess. When those three dogs were attacking the mother and daughter, he ran away at first but then turned back to help drive them off.’

’But his initial reaction—to run away—sparked a huge controversy online. Maybe that’s why he was too scared to come forward later?’

’In contrast, Luna Morgan, a frail young woman, was incredibly brave for rushing in to help immediately, with no regard for her own safety.’

’Now the whole plot is a mess. Luna Morgan is lying in a hospital bed. Who knows what’s going to happen now?’

Alvin Lancaster’s brow twitched. He just knew something was going to happen tonight!

They had reached the banquet hall as they spoke. Alvin Lancaster paused, a small doubt nagging at him, and he wasn’t sure if he should bring it up with his sister.

Jane Lancaster stopped in her tracks. "If you have something to say, just say it."

’You don’t have to look so hesitant.’

Alvin Lancaster looked a little embarrassed. "Um, Reggie seems to have some old scars on his leg. But he was almost dismembered when he was little, so they’re probably from back then."

Jane Lancaster stopped and looked at him. "Just get to the point. Don’t backtrack. What about the old scars?"

’I checked the scars, too. Is there a problem with them?’

Since she put it that way, he just said it outright. "I accidentally squeezed one of the scars, and I think it hurt Reggie."

Normally, a scar from something that happened years ago shouldn’t be painful anymore, even if there was surgery. But Reggie’s expression at that moment was odd.

"Then again, maybe I’m just reading too much into it," Alvin Lancaster said awkwardly.

After all, Jean Hughes and Reggie seem to have a great relationship. Jean is a good owner, so it’s impossible that any abuse is happening.

Besides, dogs are intuitive and intelligent; they would never be so affectionate with someone who abused them.

"Reading too much into what?"

Jane Lancaster froze for a moment, then turned to meet Jasper Sterling’s pair of stunning, captivating eyes.

"What are you doing here, too?" she asked instinctively.

She immediately realized how stupid the question was.

’Hmm, I remember seeing Jasper Sterling at the Hughes estate when I was little. Back then, out of all the boys, he was the only one who really talked with Jean Hughes.’

Alvin Lancaster knew the scene she was picturing.

Jean Hughes was the Hughes family’s precious golden boy, their undisputed little prince. His playmates certainly weren’t limited to just Henry Hughes and Jim Jenson.

But the others had poor grades; they were only good for playing with, not for studying with.

To prevent any ill-mannered girls from offending their little prince, the Hughes family forbade any girls from getting close to Jean Hughes.

That was why Jasper Sterling was the only one who could converse with Jean Hughes. The two would often be in the same room, working through practice exams together, a stark contrast to the noisy chaos in the courtyard outside.

However, Jasper Sterling didn’t attend these parties often. Out of every five or six invitations from Jean Hughes, he might show up to one, if that.

"The Sterlings and the Hugheses of Solara have been family friends for generations. Of course they’d send me an invitation for a celebration like this."

Normally, he wouldn’t have come even with an invitation. After all, the Hughes family wasn’t blameless in what happened all those years ago.

But he made a last-minute decision to come because Jane Lancaster was here.

Jasper Sterling’s gaze shifted toward the back garden, his eyes darkening slightly. "Did you two just come from next door?"

Jane Lancaster sensed he was implying something and couldn’t help but look at him in confusion.

"Jasper! Miss Lancaster, Alvin!" Ronald Hughes hurried over, a step behind the others. Seeing them, he let out a huge, internal sigh of relief.

Before making the rounds for toasts, he had gotten a call from Jasper Sterling. When Jasper said he was coming over and asked him to look after Jane Lancaster, Ronald felt that something was wrong.

A cold sweat had broken out on Ronald Hughes’s back at the time. He knew that his wife, just to be spiteful, had deliberately seated Jane Lancaster at the least desirable table.

That was why he had planned to use the toasts as an excuse to invite Jane Lancaster back to the head table.

But who would have thought Jane Lancaster would not only refuse to move to the head table but also remain perfectly composed? He had no choice but to drop the idea, planning to apologize to her privately later on.

He hadn’t expected the two of them to go next door, and when Jasper Sterling heard about it, the look on his face had changed so drastically it nearly scared Ronald to death.

"Since you’re all back, why not come to my study for a cup of tea?" Ronald Hughes offered hospitably.

Jane Lancaster turned her head and saw Alan Wallace staring at her, a hopeful look in his eyes.

He looked on with envy, clearly wanting to network but not daring to impose.

Jane Lancaster waved him over. "You, sir. Where are your wife and child? Bring them along, too."

Alvin Lancaster was taken aback. ’This guy has a kid? I didn’t see one. Weren’t there only adults at our table?’

Jasper Sterling asked, "A child?"

Jane Lancaster replied, "That’s right. A very pretty, cute, and quiet little girl. Our cars were close to each other on the way here, and she even smiled and waved at me."

Alvin Lancaster: "???"

’There’s really a kid?’

"In that case, please, bring them along. My son just turned one, and he loves being around older children," Ronald Hughes said, finally showing some quick thinking.

Alan Wallace hesitated for a moment, then steeled himself. "Alright. I’ll go get my wife and have her bring our child over."

---

Inside the study, once the group was seated, Mrs. Hughes hurried out with her son in her arms to greet the distinguished guests.

Her son, who had just turned one, couldn’t talk yet but was quite a handful. Mrs. Hughes had to keep an eye on him the entire time, leaving her unable to make small talk with her guests.

A few moments later, Alan Wallace and his family of three appeared at the study door.

Alan Wallace’s wife held their daughter’s hand. The little girl looked to be about three or four years old, with large eyes and a pointy chin, and she seemed exceptionally frail.

In comparison, Ronald Hughes’s son was chubby, his arms creased like little bread rolls, making him look far cuter.

Alvin Lancaster thought that, in all honesty, the little girl wasn’t really what you would call cute.

When people greeted her, she wouldn’t even glance their way. She even irritably smashed a toy that Ronald Hughes handed her onto the floor, which came across as rather rude.

"Tiana, what are you doing?" Alan Wallace was frantic. He grabbed his daughter’s hand, about to hit her, but someone caught his arm.

Jane Lancaster said, "Don’t hit your child."

She thought for a moment, then picked up the toy from the floor, trying to capture the child’s attention.

The little girl stared down, poking at her fingers, her gaze unfocused, as if she couldn’t even see the toy in front of her.

Jasper Sterling suddenly spoke up. "Does this child have autism?"

Alan Wallace gritted his teeth and nodded. This was the very reason he had come today. He had seen countless doctors for his daughter’s condition, and he’d heard that the Hughes family in Solara had once helped cure a child with autism. He wanted to ask Ronald Hughes to help put him in touch.

After hearing him out, Ronald Hughes immediately nodded and promised to help. All parents want what’s best for their children.

Worried that his daughter might have another episode, Alan Wallace proposed that they take their leave.

He had left his daughter in the car with her grandmother earlier. Now that his business was concluded, he wanted to get her home as soon as possible.

"Wait a minute," Jane Lancaster called out to him. "You’re leaving with me."

Alan Wallace froze. "Huh?"

’Compared to her autism, the disaster awaiting them tonight is far more urgent.’

’After the attack by the vicious dogs, the tragic plight of the mother and daughter initially garnered widespread sympathy online. But as the story developed and people found out that Alan Wallace was a businessman who owned a house and a car, the tide turned, and netizens accused the family of exploiting public compassion.’

’The Wallace family hadn’t even asked for donations; they only wanted to use the internet’s reach to find the dogs’ owner.’

’Alan Wallace himself was so viciously cyberbullied that he had to delete his social media accounts. And though the mother and daughter ultimately survived, they were both left with permanent disabilities.’