When Catherine compared herself to a commodity, even using the word "sell" to describe her mother's actions, the atmosphere in the room was oppressive.
Her father glanced at the woman who had been with him for more than twenty years, wanting to say something, but in the end he said nothing, and took on a responsibility he should not have to bear.
There is a saying in the Baylor Federation - "When you have to bow down to life, don't begrudge your knees and forehead from touching the ground."
This saying may be a bit too pessimistic, but life is like that, and if you choose to compromise, then compromise completely.
As a man who has lost the power to be the pillar of the family, he naturally senses that he is rapidly losing the power to control the family, and in the face of the conflict between a new generation of "dominators" and a "newcomer" who lives behind the scenes but may change the status quo, he is faced with a new generation of "dominators" and a "newcomer" who may change the status quo. In the face of the conflict between a new generation of "dominants" and a "newcomer" who is hidden in the background but could change the status quo, she chooses to remain silent.
Catherine's mother shook her head after the silence had passed, "I hadn't thought of it that way, I told you Rom was a fine young man."
"He is a little older than you, but he knows how to heart a girl, he has a steady job and a separate house, isn't it nice that you don't have to suffer like everyone else?"
Her voice quickly went from heartfelt with faint uncertainty, to forceful, and it gradually amplified.
In fact, in some ways, Rom did seem like a very suitable marriage partner for some families, but it was only certain families, and only for certain people.
Catherine shook her head, "I've never been hopeful about your choices, you've already proven yourself wrong once, who knows if this will be the second time."
The first time was naturally there was the question about Lynch, of course Catherine herself was in the wrong, but this statement caused the woman, who was already filled with remorseful emotions within her, to burst into anger.
"I'm not the Lord, I can't see things that far away, all I know is that you did have a bad time at that time in that situation, am I at fault for my own daughter?"
Catherine shook her head, "Then why wouldn't you be wrong a second time?" , she said not continuing to give the woman a chance, stealing the words in a more calm, but also more forceful way, "You all grew up telling me not to sell my body for money, but today you committed a shameful act, I would have thought that we would have been a different family."
With that she stood up, and for the first time a look of disappointment spread across her face, perhaps most children believe that they, and their families, are fundamentally different from the rest of society until they realize the cruelty of reality.
This illusion knows that the day they recognize the reality is the day they will be broken by their own hands.
Catherine's words made the couple also feel a very hard, condemnation from their conscience.
Living in a neighborhood like this, a parent's greatest fear was that their child would follow a crooked path, but they themselves had set the most wrong example.
Catherine turned towards the foyer, it was nearly dark outside, no girl from a proper home would choose to leave her home and go out on the street at this time of day, which made the couple instantly nervous.
Catherine's mother stood up in a hurry and ran two steps to pull Catherine's wrist, "Where are you going?" , followed closely by her emphatic, "You can't go out there!"
With a wave of her hand, Catherine shrugged off her mother's arm as she glanced sideways at the woman and smiled, "If you've decided to sell me for a good price, why don't you sell me for more?"
The way she spoke felt a bit creepy, and the woman even forgot to try and stop her, watching her leave the house at this point.
On the other side, Lynch, who had just finished his socializing, returned home, and in the afternoon Joe Gleeman gave him a call, telling him that someone had become interested in the land he was holding, and that they could sit down and have a chat.
He attended the dinner that Joe Gleeman had organized, but he wasn't at all interested in the person on the other side of the table, or what the other person had to say.
It was obvious that the other party probably wanted to buy the land for Joe Gleeman's sake, or for some other reason, and the other party only offered a price that was so low that Lynch couldn't accept it, one million six hundred thousand dollars.
That asshole used a condescending and patronizing tone of voice, trying to buy this piece of land at a ridiculously low price, and as if what he did was a favor to Lynch.
Facing this kind of person, Lynch would not be too polite with the other party.
His rich experiences had made him realize the truth that those who looked down on you now, even if you made changes, the other party would still all look down on you, and it wasn't until you stepped on the other party's face and spat on him that he would put away the idea of belittling you.
Until then, the more you do, the more it looks like a vain and worthless struggle and resistance to the other person.
So Lynch simply terminated the continuation of the dinner at the appropriate time, maintaining the most basic courtesy.
After the meal Joe Gleeman also expressed a little apology to Lynch, he was not aware that he had found this person and fool, of course he also said that he would continue to find some suitable people for Lynch.
It was about eight o'clock and Lynch was ready to rest, and it was at this time that the phone rang.
He was a bit surprised, it was rare that someone would call him at this time, but he still picked it up, and immediately on the other end of the phone came a voice he was very familiar with, it was Mr. Fox.
"Didn't sleep, did you?" , Mr. Fox's voice was bottomless and loud, he had been having a good time lately and was in good spirits, "No old man like me would go to bed this early, you're missing out on too many wonderful things in life, friend Lynch."
Lynch laughed a few times and didn't continue the discussion on this topic, he basically went to bed earlier if he didn't have social engagements.
Sleeping was a very "nourishing" process, and wasting time just for the sake of wasting time was an unnecessary behavior.
"Something wrong?" , he asked casually, he didn't think that Fox would have anything to do with his phone call at this time of night, odds were that he was invited out to relax.
Mr. Fox had a vague, odd feeling that he was being watched by kindly eyes again from Lynch's brief chuckle, and he shook his head to throw the absurd thought out of his mind and got down to business, "Do you know a girl named Catherine?"
"There was a man who was looking for you in the street during the night, you know, now that I am more or less famous, the boys told me about it, and the man I invited, perhaps you would be interested in the matter?"
Mr. Fox because of the cooperation with Lynch's business is getting bigger and bigger, coupled with the FBI and the Federal Tax Administration in order to redeem their image in front of the public, the ruthless sweep of money laundering bookmakers in Sabine, which also made Mr. Fox's "turf" expanded many times.
There are more people in his service, these people are ordinary, serious employees, but also some of the employees wandering on the street all day.
The partnership between Mr. Fox and Lynch had become a classic case in the eyes of some people, who also knew Lynch.
A little later in the evening, a pretty girl approached a couple of young men on the street who were obviously part of the street force and asked about whether they knew Lynch or Mr. Fox, which put them on alert.
They brought the girl over to Mr. Fox's side, and since they weren't sure exactly what the girl's identity was, they didn't dare to act rashly.
Mr. Fox wasn't interested in his ex-girlfriend who had already broken up when he investigated Lynch before, so he missed this point of knowledge, and now he was calling just to confirm if Lynch knew this girl.
Hearing this, Lynch looked down at the ring on his pinky finger, smiled and sighed, "Arrange for someone to send her to my home ..."
More than twenty minutes later, the former boyfriend and girlfriend who had been separated for more than a month met again, without much awkwardness, but rather a hint of curiosity and exploration.
"Looks like you're having a good time!" , Catherine didn't act like an ordinary girl who expressed her remorse or something like that, she surveyed the splendid villa and couldn't help but praise it.
Lynch was dressed in civilian clothes, he bristled as he walked over to the bar and pulled out two glasses, "Juice? Wine? Or coffee?" , said he as he poured himself a little wine, "I don't know how to use a grinder, if you want coffee you'll have to make it yourself."
"Some wine, I don't like coffee." , Catherine looked around everywhere and sat down on the couch in the living room, the texture of the leather couch and the full, bouncy padding inside made her caress it lovingly a couple of times and patted it, "Life is hard enough as it is, why don't you make it easier on yourself?"
Lynch walked over with two cups, one cup was given to her, and one cup was in his own hand.
After a brief clink, each took a sip.
Perhaps it was the psychological effect of the alcohol, Catherine quickly stated the purpose of her visit, "I didn't expect you to become so fast, is there a trick to it?"
Lynch, on the other hand, thought seriously, "If I were to say a trick ...", he had a very special smile on his face and lowered his voice, "Actually, I'm the illegitimate son of the Heavenly Lord, don't tell anyone. "
Catherine couldn't help but laugh, smiling and sighing as she took another sip of her wine, "You always liked to joke ..."
She suddenly closed her mouth as she said this, as it made the atmosphere in the room a little sad, "I said something I shouldn't have, and I apologize for that."
Lynch on the other hand was generous, "I forgive you."
The two of them looked at each other, a little strange, yet a little familiar.
"My mother was going to sell me to a fool on the condition that my father would get a job."
"It's a sale anyway, and I think you'll pay a higher price, right?"