Chapter 95: Chapter 95: A Single Sentence Decides the Vaughn Family’s Life and Death

Under their terrified gazes, Mason Lawson spoke. "I hear the old lady’s been hospitalized?"

Jason Vaughn was stunned, completely unable to follow Mason Lawson’s train of thought.

He quickly nodded. "My mother... she had a bit of a scare yesterday."

The corner of Mason Lawson’s mouth lifted in a smirk. "Then I suppose that’s my fault. When I made my move yesterday, I didn’t consider that there was an elderly person at home."

"No, no, no, how could this possibly be your fault?"

Jason Vaughn chuckled obsequiously. "We were in the wrong. We’re the ones who upset Mr. Lawson. It’s all our fault."

With that, he snapped at his wife. "What are you just standing there for? Hurry up and pour some tea for Mr. Lawson and Evie! Use your head!"

Lana Chambers had completely lost her nerve and scurried off to the kitchen to prepare the tea.

Mason Lawson said, "There’s no need to be so formal, Mr. Vaughn. You should sit, too. The truth is, Evie is my woman, and you’re some of the only family she has left in this world. That should make us family, too. Why must we be at each other’s throats?"

Jason Vaughn’s eyes widened in disbelief. So, after all that, Mason Lawson hadn’t come to settle the score, but to make peace?

He’d been so terrified a moment ago that he was on the verge of kneeling to beg for forgiveness.

Now, hearing Mason Lawson’s words, the heart that had been caught in Jason Vaughn’s throat finally dropped back into place.

He relaxed and sat on the sofa. "Mr. Lawson is right. In fact, our Charlotte will be marrying into the Lawson Family soon. We’ll be adding one happy union to another. We were always meant to be one big family!"

Eve Vaughn sat beside Mason Lawson, looking very obedient and quiet.

But inwardly, she thought: ’Jason Vaughn really knows how to push his luck!’

Jason Vaughn then turned to Eve Vaughn, his smile not reaching his eyes. "Evie, your uncle was too hasty. I was just so worried about you getting married that I meddled where I shouldn’t have. Now that you have Mr. Lawson to protect you, I can finally rest easy! You have to be sure to listen to Mr. Lawson from now on!"

Eve Vaughn smiled faintly. "Of course. Mr. Lawson is my savior. He rescued me from dire straits. Otherwise, who knows what kind of state I’d be in now, getting pushed around by some lowlife scum."

Jason Vaughn ground his molars. He knew Eve Vaughn was insulting them in a roundabout way but could only force a smile.

Mason Lawson, however, just patted Eve Vaughn’s head dotingly. "No more nonsense."

Eve Vaughn stuck out her tongue with a mischievous look, but obediently fell silent.

Watching them flirt as if no one else was in the room, Jason Vaughn couldn’t help but wonder.

’It looks like Eve Vaughn is very much in Mason Lawson’s favor right now!’

Just then, Mason Lawson spoke again. "Mr. Vaughn, I know you and Evie have had some misunderstandings in the past. But this time, let’s bury the hatchet for my sake."

With that, he took out a land acquisition certificate he had prepared beforehand. "This is a prime piece of land in the north of the city. It couldn’t be better for an investment. Consider this a thank you from me, on Evie’s behalf, for taking care of her all these years."

Jason Vaughn’s hands trembled as he accepted the gift, so excited he could hardly believe it.

Just then, Lana Chambers brought over the freshly brewed tea, her smile more pained than a grimace. "Mr. Lawson, please have some tea. Here, Evie, you have some too." 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Mason Lawson helped Eve Vaughn to her feet. "We’ll have to skip the tea. I have other business to attend to shortly. Mr. Vaughn, if Evie has offended you in the past, I hope you’ll find it in your hearts to forgive her. But as for what happened yesterday... I don’t want to see a repeat of that."

As he finished, the chill in his eyes was unmistakable.

Jason Vaughn and Lana Chambers immediately promised, "Rest assured, Mr. Lawson. We wouldn’t dare touch your people even if we had ten times the nerve."

And just like that, under their fearful and reverent gazes, Mason Lawson left with Eve Vaughn.

Jason Vaughn felt every tense nerve in his body finally go slack, and he collapsed onto the sofa.

Lana Chambers hurried over. "What did Mason Lawson give you just now?"

At the mention of this, a cunning glint appeared in Jason Vaughn’s eyes. "That prime piece of land in the north of the city... Mason Lawson actually gave it to us as a gift. Do you know what this means?"

Lana Chambers stared at her husband blankly and shook her head.

Jason Vaughn burst out laughing. "If we build a villa complex there, the profits will be more than what this little company of ours makes in thirty years! Soon, we’ll be part of Rivaster’s high society!"

Lana Chambers asked in astonishment, "Are you serious? He just gave us a piece of land that valuable? That doesn’t seem right. Why would he be so good to us? Yesterday, we nearly did... to Eve Vaughn..."

Before she could finish, Jason Vaughn cut her off. "This is what I mean by a woman’s shortsightedness! The reason Mason Lawson has gotten to where he is is because he’s a master of unconventional tactics, the carrot and the stick. See? Yesterday, he put us in our place. But today, he probably realized that our Charlotte is going to marry into the Lawson Family, so he can’t completely sever ties with us. That’s why he sent this extravagant gift to make peace!"

After hearing her husband’s explanation, Lana Chambers snorted. "And here I was, thinking that little bitch Eve Vaughn was so important to Mason Lawson!" she said smugly. "Turns out she’s just a toy. At the end of the day, he still has to be polite to us for our Charlotte’s sake!"

...

「Meanwhile, on the road back.」

Mason Lawson glanced over at the girl in the passenger seat. She was pouting, her cheeks puffed out in a fit of pique.

He chuckled. "What’s wrong? Who’s made my Evie angry this time?"

"How can you even ask!"

Eve Vaughn complained indignantly, "You told me to learn from you, and this is what you wanted to teach me? I thought you were going to put them in their place. I never expected you to give them a sugar-coated poison pill! Do you really think they’ll leave us alone just because they took your gift? They have massive appetites!"

Besides, Eve Vaughn couldn’t stand the thought of her insatiably greedy aunt and uncle gaining any more advantages because of her.

Mason Lawson couldn’t help but sigh. "I’m really trying to teach you, but you’re just not getting it."

"What do you mean?"

Eve Vaughn’s large, dark eyes were filled with confusion.

As he drove, Mason Lawson explained at a leisurely pace, "I’ve already had it looked into. After your father passed away, your uncle took over the company. For the past few years, it’s been losing money, the cash flow is shot, and he’s been scrambling for investors everywhere. Even if I give him that land, he doesn’t have the capital to develop it. Given your aunt and uncle’s character, what do you think they’ll do when faced with the temptation of such enormous profits?"

Eve Vaughn thought hard for a moment but still shook her head, asking impatiently, "Mr. Lawson, what are you getting at? Stop keeping me in suspense and just tell me!"

Mason Lawson continued, "If he wants to make money off that land, he’ll have to borrow from every source possible and mortgage all his fixed assets, including the company your father left behind. In order to develop that land, they will bury themselves in massive debt."

Eve Vaughn thought for a moment. "But that still doesn’t make sense! Even if they go into debt now, once the villa complex on that land is built, it’s bound to be profitable, right? Didn’t you say it was a prime location?"

Mason Lawson smiled. "It *was* a prime location. But we recently received intel that the government plans to build a chemical plant nearby next year. Once that plant is built, your uncle will lose his entire investment and then some."

His words were casual, but they sealed the fate of Jason Vaughn’s family.

Eve Vaughn stared at him in disbelief, speechless for a long moment.