Chapter 4 Wanting To Break Off The Engagement

Eric froze, completely thrown by the slap. For a moment, he just stood there, dazed and motionless.

A few seconds later, fury flashed across his face as he turned to glare at Clara. "How dare you hit me!"

Emily, utterly shocked, rushed to pull Eric behind her, her voice rising with outrage. "Clara, you country bumpkin! How could you lay a hand on Eric? He's-ah!"

Before Emily could finish, Clara landed a sharp slap on her face as well, saying nothing.

This time, Clara didn't hold back. The blow sent Emily stumbling, blood appearing on her lip as she crashed down onto the ground.

The bustling entrance of Jones Manor instantly fell into a heavy silence.

Every servant who had been watching from the sidelines was now gripped by fear.

Emily stayed on the ground, needing a moment to process what had just happened.

She completely cast aside her usual poise and shouted in fury, "Are you crazy?!"

Clara's eyes stayed cold. "As the eldest sibling, it's my job to set you straight. If you show me disrespect, is there anything wrong with me correcting you?"

Clara understood that Eric was at an age where pride came easily and rebellion was to be expected.

But that was exactly why he needed someone firm to keep him on track.

Otherwise, he would fall into the same traps as before, thinking he could do anything he wanted, racing recklessly, crashing, and ending up with an injury that left him mentally impaired.

Now that Clara had a second shot at life, she was determined to keep Eric from repeating that fate.

And as for Emily, putting her in her place was just something she wanted to do.

Emily was shocked, unable to move.

In the past, whenever Eric and Emily went out without Clara, she would feel hurt and distant from the Jones family, but she kept those feelings to herself.

Today, however, Clara refused to stay silent.

"You-" Emily said, her body trembling with anger.

At that moment, Clara's father, Brad Jones, and her stepmother, Ramona, pulled up and stepped out of the car.

They froze, shocked by the strange scene unfolding at the entrance.

"Mom! Clara's lost her mind! She slapped both me and Eric!" Emily ran into Ramona's arms, sobbing and looking pitiful.

Ramona could hardly believe it. "What? This can't be happening. There must be some mistake."

Ramona remembered how Clara had always tried to fit in with the Joneses, continually making efforts to please both Eric and Emily.

"I'm not lying! Just look at our faces, mine and Eric's! Her slaps left them both swollen!" Emily raised her head, revealing her reddened cheek and a split lip.

Eric, rubbing his stinging face, turned to Brad and complained, "Dad! Can you discipline Clara? Even if she's from the countryside, she shouldn't act so rudely..."

At first, Brad felt angry, convinced Clara had overreacted.

No matter the cause, hitting her siblings seemed unacceptable.

But when he glanced up and saw Clara's eyes filled with tears as she looked at him, his heart softened.

Hearing Eric's words, Brad slapped the back of his head and scolded him, "You brat, how dare you speak of your sister that way! Apologize to her right now! If you make her cry again, I'll deal with you!"

Seeing Brad's reaction, Clara could no longer hold back her tears.

She rushed into his arms and cried out, "Dad..."

She wanted to apologize to him.

In her previous life, she had been far too trusting, letting Emily manipulate her and constantly fighting with Brad over Robert, that worthless man.

Things only got worse after Brad bailed her out of jail. Emily tricked her into signing a confession, and Clara ended up turning herself in, which made Brad so furious that it affected his health.

In the end, Ramona and Emily's plotting left Brad in a coma.

Clara couldn't shake the feeling that she had let him down as a daughter.

"What happened? Were you really bullied?" Brad wrapped his arms around her, startled and worried.

Ever since Clara came back into the family, she'd always kept her distance from him, rarely speaking unless it was to blame him for losing her and failing to find her back for so long.

But now, she was clinging to him, openly crying.

There was no doubt she was hurting.

Brad turned a stern gaze on Eric. "Eric! Did you upset your sister again?" He raised his hand, ready to discipline Eric.

Eric tried to defend himself, but being blamed made him even more frustrated. "Dad! You're always siding with her! She's the one who hit me..."

Brad cut him off. "Hit you? Your sister was setting you straight for your own good! And Clara is my one and only precious daughter. If you think that's unfair, too bad!"

Eric had nothing to say.

To Brad, his daughter meant the world!

And he, as the son, was simply unwanted.

Meanwhile, Ramona and Emily stood nearby, their faces turning sour.

His only precious daughter?

Where did that leave Emily?

Clara quickly pulled back from Brad and wiped her tears. "Dad, this isn't about Eric," she said softly. "Eric spoke to me disrespectfully, so I put him in his place right away."

Taking a steady breath, Clara looked Brad in the eyes. "Dad, I want to break off my engagement with Robert."