Free Web NovelChapter 269: Chapter 272: Finn Quincy’s Regret
"...Dad?"
Finn Quincy’s sudden outburst caught Cecilia Quincy completely off guard. Cecilia’s eyes widened in stunned disbelief, and she looked at Finn Quincy with a sense of grievance.
"Dad, what’s wrong with you? Why are you suddenly yelling at me for no reason?"
"Why?" The question only made Finn Quincy angrier. "Cecilia Quincy, how dare you ask me why? Don’t you know that you were the one who brought on the first wave of attacks against the Quincy Group?!"
"I..." Cecilia wanted to argue, but the moment she met Finn Quincy’s furious gaze, she didn’t dare say another word.
The more Finn Quincy looked at her, the more his anger simmered. The resentment that had been building up for so long suddenly burst forth like a broken dam.
"You couldn’t just live a quiet life; you had to stir up trouble everywhere! You already drove Charlotte Shaw out of the Quincy Family, but you still wouldn’t leave her alone. You had to find ways to torment her and cause her problems!"
"And what happened in the end? All it took was a small counterattack from her to leave you utterly defenseless! Not only did you ruin your own reputation, but you also dragged the Quincy Group down with you! Do you have any idea how much the Quincy Group’s stock price plummeted during that time, or how much market value we lost?"
Cecilia didn’t know, nor did she have the courage to find out.
"Dad, I’m sorry..." Finn Quincy was terrifying right now. Cecilia didn’t dare act willfully as she usually did. She could only lower her head and apologize repeatedly, hoping it would cool his anger.
"I’m sorry, Dad. I know I was wrong. I’ll never do it again."
"Sorry is useless!" Finn Quincy glared at her viciously, his voice a low growl. "You think a few hollow apologies can recover the Quincy Group’s losses? Can they restore the Quincy Family’s reputation?"
"..." Cecilia trembled under his shouting, not daring to respond.
Finn Quincy continued, "You were raised in a poor family, for crying out loud. How did you not learn to be more sensible? How do you have no skills to speak of?"
"You said you wanted to start a business, to open a studio, but it got so much hate you didn’t even dare open your doors! You said you loved design, and that everyone who saw your work praised it to the skies. And the result? The designs you were so proud of were proven to be plagiarized the moment they were released! And you plagiarized Charlotte Shaw’s work, of all people!"
"You’ve made it so I can’t even hold my head up in public!"
"..."
Cecilia was already crying from the verbal assault but didn’t dare make a sound.
Finn Quincy panted heavily, his sharp eyes bloodshot with overwhelming rage.
"It would be one thing if you just weren’t as smart as others, but your judgment is a world apart too! You were so adamant about choosing Ethan Lockwood, but look at the pathetic state he’s in now! You looked down on Felix Preston so much back then, but look at him now!"
"His romance game has received widespread acclaim and has already broken multiple records before the closed beta is even over! Everyone in Aethelburg is optimistic about him now. They’re all saying that if his game takes off, it could become even bigger than the Preston Group was in its prime!"
"Cecilia Quincy, that’s the man you chose. You went to great lengths to steal Ethan Lockwood, and in the end, you lost both the man and the money! Meanwhile, Charlotte Shaw, the woman you always looked down on, picked up Felix Preston. Now, not only is she in a happy marriage with a wonderful family, but she’s also about to become the wife of the boss of Volition Tech!"
"...Dad, I didn’t want it to be like this either," Cecilia said between sobs, wiping her tears. "Felix Preston failed so spectacularly back then. Who could have known he’d make a comeback in such a short time with just one game?"
"As for Ethan Lockwood, I never expected him to do so many terrible things behind my back. Now that it’s all come to light, it’s only natural that Felix Preston would get his revenge on him..."
"’Never expected, never expected,’ that’s all you ever say!" Finn Quincy was about to go mad with anger. "If you can’t think of anything, then why did the Quincy Family raise you? Just to be a decoration?"
"..."
Cecilia pouted aggrievedly, not daring to speak, let alone argue back.
Finn Quincy plowed on, "That Charlotte Shaw isn’t just a successful influencer; she also earns money drawing jewelry designs, bringing glory to the Shaw Family in every way! Jackson Shaw now brags about his daughter wherever he goes. He says she’s incredibly capable, earning millions at such a young age just from her designs. He also says she’s an excellent judge of character, having picked a husband who turned out to be Aethelburg’s biggest rising star!"
At this, the anger in Finn Quincy’s eyes turned to naked jealousy.
"Cecilia Quincy, Jackson Shaw has always been my arch-nemesis! We’ve fought and competed against each other our entire lives! But look at him now! His reputation is soaring, his children are successful, and his family is happy! The biological daughter he just found even gave him a healthy baby grandson!"
"Unlike me! I’m being bested in my career, bested in my family, and even bested when it comes to my own children!"
"WAAAH..." Cecilia couldn’t take the scolding anymore. Her face crumpled, and she burst into loud sobs.
"Cry, cry, cry! That’s all you know how to do!" Her crying only irritated Finn Quincy more, and his voice grew even louder.
"What can you do besides cry? You’re not even a tenth as good as Charlotte Shaw!"
"...What do you mean by that, Dad?" Cecilia had been enduring Finn Quincy’s belittling, but after that last remark, she couldn’t take it anymore.
She lifted her tear-filled eyes to glare at Finn Quincy, asking with a mix of grievance and indignation, "You keep saying I’m not as good as Charlotte Shaw. Do you regret kicking her out?"
"..." Finn Quincy didn’t speak.
But in a situation like this, silence was the most definitive answer.
Cecilia’s heart shattered in an instant.
"So you really do mean it? You regret keeping me, and you think it would have been better if Charlotte Shaw had remained your daughter!"
Finn Quincy averted his gaze guiltily. "If you had just been a little more impressive, I never would have had such thoughts."
It was a direct admission.
Cecilia gasped, nearly fainting from the sheer anger of his words.
"Dad!" she screamed, her fists clenched. "What do you even take me for?!"
"What’s wrong?"
Fiona Dalton suddenly ran in from outside the door.
"What on earth is going on?" She looked at the father and daughter in confusion, then hurried to Cecilia’s side and hugged her.
"AHH!" Cecilia threw herself into Fiona Dalton’s arms and let out a raw, unrestrained wail.
"What’s wrong, Cecilia?" Fiona Dalton’s heart ached as she listened to her daughter’s cries.
"Did something happen? Why are you crying so heartbrokenly?"
"WAAAAHHH!!!" Cecilia’s crying grew louder. Sobbing, she pointed a finger at Finn Quincy and stammered out her accusations.
"Dad... Dad started yelling at me the second he came in! He said he hates that I’m not as good as Charlotte Shaw, and that he regrets kicking her out!"
"He thinks I’m useless, that I’m not worthy of being his daughter, and that... that Charlotte Shaw is the precious daughter who could actually make him proud!"
"He regrets keeping me... He wants to drive me away and bring Charlotte Shaw back!"
"...What?!" Upon hearing this, the color drained from Fiona Dalton’s face.
