Samuel went downstairs and was immediately grabbed by his mother. Mrs. Johnson pulled him aside and asked with a bit of reproach, "Samuel, what did you do with Amanda last night?"
Samuel was also irritated at the moment. After coming home high from drinking with his friends the previous night, he had no recollection of how he had ended up sleeping with Amanda Smith.
"Who knows? I don't remember a thing. It might well have been that shameless woman who climbed into my bed in the middle of the night!"
"Keep your voice down, Samuel!" Mrs. Johnson covered Samuel's mouth and looked around. "Jarek has gone to inform your grandfather. He'll be here soon. You wouldn't want your grandfather to hear this!"
Grandfather?
Thinking of what was about to happen, Samuel grew even more irate.
Since he was a child who had been coddled and raised without fear, the only person who could truly discipline him was Mr. Johnson.
As they spoke, Mr. Johnson, who lived in the secondary residence, arrived.
The man in his seventies, with a walking stick in hand, appeared remarkably spry. He had received the news early in the morning from a servant and was in good spirits. Upon entering the main hall, Mrs. Johnson went up to greet him respectfully, "Dad, you've arrived!"
Mr. Johnson sat in the armchair, took a sip of his tea, and then spoke to Samuel, "Did you consummate your marriage with Amanda last night?"
Consummate? What a joke! Samuel thought angrily. He'd been duped by that wretched woman Amanda Smith!
"Amanda is only twenty, and although I've been eager to get you two married, we have put it off because of her age. But now that you've taken her virginity, you should marry her as soon as possible!"
Samuel's eyes widened in disbelief. "Grandfather, have you lost your mind? I refuse to marry that despicable woman!"
Mr. Johnson's face turned very ugly. He slammed his cane onto the ground and bellowed, "Samuel Johnson, don't think you can spout nonsense just because you're my grandson! If you dare slander Amanda in front of me again, I'll thrash you!"
Samuel snorted disdainfully, his handsome and noble face filled with contempt. "Even if you are my grandfather, or even if it were the Jade Emperor himself, no one can make me marry that woman! I'm not blind!"
Mrs. Johnson, seeing that the atmosphere between the two was becoming increasingly tense, hurried over to mediate. She pulled Samuel aside and whispered soothingly, "Samuel, why are you arguing with your grandfather? Amanda has been raised by our Johnson family; isn't she cleaner than any outsider?"
Samuel scoffed in anger, "Cleaner than any outsider? She..."
He hadn't finished speaking when Mr. Johnson raised his walking stick and struck him.
Mr. Johnson, who had been a soldier in his younger days and had never slacked off afterward, had a strong arm. The cane that hit Samuel's back was incredibly forceful.
Samuel's face turned white with pain, and as he looked up, he saw Amanda Smith slowly coming down the stairs.
To him, Amanda's face was unremarkable, and coupled with her timid character, he found her utterly repulsive.
At this moment, seeing the culprit behind his chastisement, his anger intensified.
While he endured being beaten and scolded downstairs, this woman was taking her leisurely time!
Samuel felt vicious inside, but a smile spread across his face. He walked over to Amanda and whispered in her ear, "You were eavesdropping from upstairs just now, weren't you? Satisfied? ... Amanda," he lowered his voice, speaking coldly so that only the two of them could hear, "Amanda, why are you so cheap? Are you so desperate to be laid that you shamelessly climb into my bed in the dead of night? You must be mad with desire!"