Silly Bride

Chapter 197

When Winnie took the call, she had put it on speaker so that everyone could hear Nate’s voice.Faced with Xavier’s questions, Nate was stumped over the line. He had obviously not expected to hear Xavier’s voice at all.Amidst Nate’s silence, Xavier sneered, “What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue?”After another bout of silence, Nate replied through his gritted teeth, “Xavier, why is Yolanda’s phone in your hands? What have you done to her? Let me tell you, I was the one who gave her all the instructions. If you want vengeance, come at me instead of an innocent girl.”Xavier snorted. Concurrently, he eased up on restraining Yolanda. “It looks like you’re quite ready to confess. Since you’re so brave, why did you send a woman to do your dirty work?”“Shut up!” No sooner had Xavier spoken than Yolanda protested before Nate could reply.She hissed at Xavier, “Stop trying to sow discord. My relationship with Nate isn’t something you can easily break.”After throwing Yolanda a thoughtful glance, Xavier shifted his attention to the phone with a slight curl to his lips.“I understand now. Ms. Xander, you have feelings for Nate, but do you know why he tried to harm me? It’s for a woman named Yulissa White. Without being aware of the relationship between them, how can you be so sure that he isn’t using you?”Yolanda obviously knew that Xavier was speaking the truth. However, as long as neither she nor Nate brought it up, she could always pretend to be oblivious to the fact.Therefore, Xavier’s attempt at mercilessly revealing the truth infuriated her.The icy expression on her face was visibly replaced by one of anger. “I told you to shut up!”However, just yelling at him alone wasn’t enough to calm her rage. She was filled with the urge to give Xavier a slap.Because of his absolute dominance in strength, Xavier would never lay a finger on a woman.To him, they were the weaker of the species, and he would never bully the weak.Nevertheless, if they didn’t know better and insisted on doing him in, he would no longer have any reason to hold himself back.Xavier—with a faster reaction time than Yolanda—grabbed her wrist and swiftly twisted her arm behind her back. Nudging her gently, he sent her stumbling forward two meters.Upon impact, she crashed into the lamp and books on the desk, causing a loud commotion when everything fell to the ground.Having heard the noise over the phone, Nate raised his voice as he said, “Xavier, I told you to come at me. Don’t take it out on a woman.”Knitting her brows, Winnie

snapped back at him, “Nate, let me remind you that it was Yolanda who struck first. Regardless of whether she was stopping us from getting treatment or tainting the silver needles with poison, she had always been the first to act maliciously.”“Winnie, I didn’t realize you were there.” The fury in Nate’s tone intensified. “What makes you think you’re qualified to judge her? You’re no angel yourself.”Winnie was amused, but her tone was serious as she said, “That’s right. You’re the only one who’s righteous here, and none of us can compare to you. Anyway, cut the crap, and let’s meet up. There’s something I need to confirm with you.”“I have no time to meet any of you,” Nate rejected them outright.Winnie was all the more tickled by his response. “Mr. Nate, do you think this is a negotiation? I’m sorry if you have gotten the wrong impression. In reality, I’m just notifying you about it. Previously, we never knew who the mastermind behind Yolanda was. Now that we do, do you think you’re in a position to refuse?”Nate’s stance was firm. “I have nothing to say to you lot.”“You’re a public figure, popular actor, and one of the scions of the Fraser family. If you refuse to discuss with us, do you then intend to talk to the media, and the elders of the Fairchild and Fraser families?”The effectiveness of Winnie’s threat elicited another silence from Nate.He didn’t mind losing his reputation, but the Fraser family’s was one he couldn’t afford to ruin.Sensing his hesitation, Winnie was confident that his stance was already wavering.Hence, she named a venue right away, “We’ll meet at the same old place where you sincerely apologized to me in front of Old Mr. Fairchild and your mother.”With that, Winnie hung up the phone.She had barely done so when there came a knock on the door.The next moment, Sebastian’s voice could be heard. “Yolanda, Nini, what are you doing inside? I think I heard something crashing on the ground.”Detecting the anxiousness in Sebastian’s tone, Winnie walked up to Yolanda and signaled for her to speak.Crawling back to her feet, Yolanda glared at Xavier as she replied, “Grandpa, it’s nothing. I just accidentally knocked over a lamp.”Winnie added, “Old Mr. Xander, we’re done with our discussion and will be out at once.”Just as she spoke, she opened the door and emerged with Xavier, one after the other.Cognizant that they were going to see Nate, Yolanda—missing him dearly—wanted to go with them to see him too.She swiftly placed the lamp back on the desk and hurried after them.Unexpectedly, Sebastian, who was standing by the door, stopped her when he saw her pursuing Winnie.“Yolanda! You’re not allowed to go anywhere today. You’re grounded at home!”Yolanda furrowed her brows.

“Grandpa, this isn’t a prison. Why can’t I go out?”“Yolanda”—Sebastian was heaving in anger—”do you really think that I’m oblivious to what’s going on? I have been standing by the door and have overheard everything that transpired inside. It was then that I learned of the despicable deeds you have done for the sake of that kid, Nate. Yolanda, stop being so stubborn. He clearly doesn’t care about you. All these years, your feelings have always been one-sided. It’s wrong for you to help him hurt others.”“Grandpa, stay out of my business. I know very well what our relationship is, so don’t stick your nose in blindly when you know nothing at all!”“Stick my nose in blindly?” Sebastian was filled with disappointment. “I couldn’t care less if it was just a matter of love, but do you know that you’re helping him commit a crime? How could you taint my silver needles with poison? If Xavier had been hurt or died from it, it would have been murder. Do you understand?”Yolanda was obviously aware.Unfortunately, Sebastian’s words weren’t getting through to her, and she had no intention of listening any further.Turning around, she went back into her room and slammed the door in Sebastian’s face.Inside, Yolanda gave Nate a call.“Nate, I’m sorry. It was my mistake to have accidentally let them discover you. Tell me, where are you meeting them? I’ll head over to be by your side.”“There’s no such need,” Nate replied flatly. “I’ll deal with them myself since I have already been exposed. Anyway, here’s where we draw the line. I don’t want you to be dragged into it any further.”Yolanda’s brows knitted slightly. “Aren’t we already on the same boat? Regardless of how difficult the path forward is, I’m willing to walk it with you.”“Really, Yolanda. Forget it.” “Why? Are you concerned about me? Ever since the call just now, you were worried that Xavier would hurt me. That shows that I mean something to you, doesn’t it?”As Yolanda pressed on with her questions, she was oblivious to how pathetic she sounded to Nate.Naturally, Nate was reluctant to answer her question.“I don’t want to talk about this anymore, Yolanda. Also, I’m sure you know that there’s already someone in my heart.”Nate had hardly finished when Yolanda added, “I’ll wait regardless of how long it takes. I’m willing to do anything for you as long as it makes you happy. Even if it’s going through seas of flames, I’ll willingly do it with you.”“Are you serious, Yolanda?”“Yes, without a doubt.”“All right. I’m glad that I can still count on you.”Upon ending the call, Nate couldn’t resist curling his lips into a smile.Hehe, is this the power of love? All I did was say a few words of concern to her. And now, she’s happy to go through hell and high water for me.

Nevertheless, it does make sense. This is how desperate someone can be when they love someone to the extreme, just like how I’m willing to do anything for Yulissa.Inside the car, Winnie wound down the window to give the Xander residence one last look.Xavier held her hand when he saw her. “What is it?”A slight frown descended upon Winnie’s face. “When we left, Old Mr. Xander and Yolanda seemed to have gotten into an argument. Old Mr. Xander is getting old. I’m worried that he might not be able to take the shock.”“Don’t fret. Old Mr. Xander looks as if he’s built like an ox, just like Grandpa. When I was younger, I would often quarrel with Grandpa, and nothing untoward came from it.”“I do hope that’s the case.” Winnie retracted her gaze as she wound up the window. “If Old Mr. Xander hadn’t pleaded for mercy on behalf of Yolanda, I would certainly have made her suffer. Also, your cousin Nate cannot be underestimated. It’s now clear that his previous apology in front of the elders bore no sincerity at all. On top of that, he was the mastermind of the incident this time. What do you plan to do about it?”Xavier furrowed his brows slightly. “Aunt Beatrice has always been good to me. Setting the Fraser family aside, I can’t do much to Nate solely on Aunt Beatrice’s account alone. At most, I can get him beaten up before handing him over to my aunt for her to deal with him.”Winnie nodded in understanding.Ever since the olden days, those in high positions had always had trouble dealing with family affairs, especially when it came to prominent families such as the Fairchild family and the Fraser family.Any conflict between the two families would send shockwaves throughout the entire relationship. Hence, one had to manage the situation carefully.Xavier could only blame his own bad luck for having a cousin like that.Under normal circumstances, each family would deal with its own members. The one in the wrong would apologize and provide compensation at the negotiation table, which would usually resolve the matter.As for Xavier, he personally didn’t want to have any further conflict with Nate.After all, given Nate’s character, he definitely wasn’t one to compromise. In fact, he might not even turn up for the meeting at all.As a result, Xavier leveraged Beatrice to make sure of Nate’s attendance.Reacting swiftly, Beatrice arrived at Nate’s mansion ahead of Winnie and Xavier.No matter what, she was grateful for Xavier’s decision, for the latter had called her instead of going straight to her husband or Rufus.If Xavier had brought the matter to either man’s attention, Nate would end up suffering a terrible punishment.Nonetheless, Xavier’s magnanimity toward Nate wasn’t shared by Beatrice, as she endedNôvel(D)rama.Org's content.

up calling Nate’s father, Jonathan Fraser, to join her.Xavier was shocked to see both Beatrice and Jonathan together at the mansion.“Uncle Jonathan is here too.”Even though Jonathan always wore an amiable expression, those who knew him well were aware that his character was anything but that.In contrast to his elegant demeanor, his methods were extremely ruthless.“Xavier, I’m sorry for what happened to you. But don’t you worry. I’ll definitely punish that b*stard son of mine.”Ten minutes later, as they were chatting, Nate arrived.However, he didn’t come alone, as he was forcefully brought there by his eldest brother, Kevin Fraser.The moment Nate stepped into the house, Jonathan kicked him to his knees.“Today, you will answer us on your knees. I don’t want to hear a single lie from you. Do you understand? Fortunately, Xavier came out of it unscathed. If anything happens to him, there’s no way I’m going to let you live.”As Nate was the youngest in the family, he was spoiled since he was young. He feared no one except his own father.Back when he first entered the entertainment industry, it was due to his mother’s support. Otherwise, his father would have forbidden him from doing so.As a result, he turned into someone submissive in his father’s presence, answering all the questions that were put to him.In a very short while, he handed over all his chat logs with Yulissa.Unfortunately, they didn’t show any evidence that the latter was alive.“In that case, where did you get the poison you gave Yolanda? Did you delete some of the chat logs before you came?” Xavier put forward the questions he had.Under Jonathan’s watchful eye, Nate replied honestly, “No, but she has a property in Avenport, which no one else knows about other than the two of us. That’s where I got the poison from.”“Very good.” Xavier furrowed his brows. Even after having Yulissa investigated previously, he was still surprised by her secret hideout. “Bring me there right away.”Upon hearing Jonathan’s order, Nate didn’t dare disobey.In fact, Jonathan ordered Kevin, “Take Nate with you there. As for you, Nate, you’d better not have any funny ideas. After you have done what’s required by Xavier, I’ll send you to Alendor to manage your granddad’s project. At the very least, you’ll stay out of Xavier’s sight for the next few years.”“Dad, I refuse to go to Alendor!” Nate protested. “I don’t want to go to that wretched place!”“Are you in a position to make any demands? Nate, you have to pay the price for what you have done. Now, help Xavier with whatever he needs!”When Jonathan’s temper flared, even Beatrice didn’t dare plead for mercy on Nate’s behalf. All she could do was reassure Xavier that the matter had been taken care

of.Given Beatrice and Jonathan’s response, there was no reason for Xavier to make Nate’s life any more difficult.All he wanted to do now was to visit Yulissa’s secret hideout.Subsequently, Nate— restrained by Kevin—obediently led Winnie and Xavier there.When they arrived at a basement, they saw someone in a face mask and a cap slip out suspiciously.The moment the figure saw Xavier, she was momentarily stunned before she started to flee.Even though she was all covered up and was wearing loose clothing, her slender silhouette easily gave her gender away.In that instant, Yulissa was the first suspect that simultaneously popped into Xavier’s and Winnie’s minds.Exchanging glances, they gave pursuit without a moment’s hesitation.