Norton said nothing, but he was glaring daggers at Nathan. No one dared to utter a word.
As for Ronan, he could barely keep the smug smile off his face. He continued to provoke Norton by saying, “Grandpa, this is absolute lunacy. He is clearly not fit to be the head of the family! I think you should double the usual punishment in order to teach him a lesson. We must not let him off easily, or he will only do more absurd things in the future!”
Norton remained silent and just stared at Nathan. There was a sharp edge to his narrowed gaze as he waited.
But Ronan didn’t stop there.
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“He has forsaken the company just to make Lucinda happy. What happens the next time she gets upset? Will he hand over the entire family to her just to cheer her up? Is he going to make us all change our surname to Simmons?”
As harsh and exaggerated as his words were, they weren’t that far off from what Norton was fearing.
The Payne lineage dated back a few hundred years ago, and they had upheld the same traditions established by their ancestors.
Nathan might have spearheaded the family’s recent progress and made it into the most powerful family in the country, his current actions could easily destroy all of that.
Norton reined in his sorrow and disappointment, and turned to Kern.
“As per the family rules, how many Lashes should Nathan receive for his transgressions?”
Kern thought about it for a moment. With no small amount of hesitation, he said, “If we do as Mr. Ronan suggested and double the punishment… That would be eighty Lashes.”
The elders gasped in unison.
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If Nathan was whipped eighty times, he might not be able to remain standing afterward, let alone walk out of here on his own legs.
In fact, if he were any less of a fighter, he just might die after the ordeal.
And yet, Nathan stood straight and held his chin high. His face was devoid of emotion, as if this matter had nothing to do with him at all.
Norton’s heart skipped a beat.
After some consideration, he said, “Lucinda cares about you a lot, Nathan, and she is not a greedy person. If you speak with her and take the shares back, you shall not be punished.”
He glanced at the other men of the family and gave them a pointed Look.
“Yes, yes, you’re still so young!” one of them spoke up.
“It’s perfectly understandable for you to make mistakes here and there. As long as you remedy them before it’s too late, there’s no need for such drastic measures.”
“If it weren’t for Nathan, the family wouldn’t have thrived as much as it had,” Jeff pointed out.
“He has made incredible contributions to the family, and everyone in this room are reaping the benefits for that. He deserves another chance.”
Within minutes, everyone was defending Nathan. Ronan pushed his gold framed glasses against the bridge of his nose and tried not to sneer. He was not happy with this development, but he knew when to shut up.
Norton breathed a small sigh of relief.