Chapter 69: I Agree to Your Conditions

At that moment, Eleanor finally realized she had ignored Sierra for so long. At this thought, she suddenly turned to Franklin and said, “Forget it! We won’t marry Sierra into the Richardson family!”

As soon as Eleanor spoke, Bradley, Evan, and Sean couldn’t help but stand up as well. “Dad, forget it,” Bradley said.

“I’ll think of another way,” Bradley added.

Evan immediately followed. “Yeah, I’ll talk to my teachers. There has to be a solution.”

Sean also spoke up, “Dad, there must be another way.”

Sierra had no idea what kind of act they were putting on now. She didn’t know if they were sincere or just pretending, but none of that mattered anymore. All she wanted was to sever ties with them.

Franklin didn’t say a word. He simply lifted his head and looked at Sierra. He had never really looked at her directly. The only time he had was when she was first brought back, but as soon as she saw him, she instinctively lowered her head. He had disliked her from that moment on. He thought Sierra was petty and unsophisticated, completely unpresentable.

Now, years later, he looked at her again and suddenly realized that this daughter of his had become a complete stranger. Her eyes no longer held the timid fear they once did. Instead, they were filled with mockery. Even under his oppressive gaze, she neither flinched nor looked away. Her eyes brimmed with defiance. Even his eldest son, whom he had personally raised, wouldn’t dare look at him like this. She was like a wild, stubborn little wolf. A strange feeling stirred in his heart, mixed with a trace of regret.

“What do you think?” he asked.

Sierra replied indifferently, “My conditions are still the same as that day. If you agree, then I’ll accept the marriage. It benefits both you and me.”

“Sierra!” Bradley couldn’t help but shout at her. “Stop talking.”

These past few days, he had finally seen what kind of person Kason was. Besides, with the Xander family in trouble, they might need to rely on the Richardson family in the future. If Sierra suffered grievances, they might not even be able to stand up for her.

Sierra looked at Bradley expressionlessly and sneered, “Mr. Xander, please don’t look at me like that. It makes me sick.”

“You!” Bradley’s face turned red with anger.

Since they had already torn off all pretense, Sierra didn’t bother pretending either. She knew the Xander family would still send her away in the end. All of this was just their way of easing their conscience.

She dragged a chair over and sat down, facing the six members of the Xander family alone, yet she wasn’t the least bit intimidated. “There’s no outsider here, so who are you putting on this act for? Hadn’t you already made up your mind when you called me! Now you’re putting on a show here. If you’re not disgusted by it, I am. Why don’t we just sign the contract and be done with it? Why all this nonsense? Fine, if you don’t want to send me to the marriage, then send Denise instead. After all, you’ve raised her for so many years. It’s about time she did something for the Xander family, isn’t it?”

As soon as she finished speaking, she saw the Xander family’s faces change in unison. Sean, especially, was furious. “What nonsense are you talking about? How could we possibly send Denise to Kason? He’s a madman! We would send anyone but…”

Hearing this, Sierra clapped her hands and laughed. “See? Isn’t everything clear now? Between me and Denise, you will always choose Denise. You were the ones who abandoned me, so spare me the hypocrisy. I only lived here for four years. Three years in prison, plus this marriage—whatever debt I owed, I’ve long since repaid. From now on, let’s go our separate ways. You can’t keep sucking me dry just because you gave me life.”

Sierra’s words were like a slap in the face to the Xander family, leaving them speechless.

In the end, Franklin was the one who broke the silence. “I agree to your three conditions.”

He turned to Bradley. “Take care of her observation period issue tomorrow.”

Then, to Evan, “Evan, go to school and change Denise’s major.”

Finally, he looked at Sierra. “I’ll have someone process your household registration separately and file the paperwork. From now on, you will have nothing to do with the Xander family.”

“Dad!”

The three Xander brothers looked at Franklin in disbelief, but Franklin only looked at Sierra. “I’ll handle the Richardson family myself. You’ll be fine.”

Sierra treated his words as meaningless noise. She smiled faintly and said, “Mr. Franklin, you’re decisive as always.”

She glanced at everyone. “There’s one more thing I’d like to trouble you all. I don’t want anything from the Xander family, and whatever I’ve given you, please return it to me.”

She turned to Eleanor first. “Madam Xander, I once gave you a necklace. I worked all summer to buy it. It might be worthless to you, but it’s valuable to me. Please return it.”