Chapter 462 No Need to Dwell On “If’s”

“If this delicate balance were to break, the ones who would suffer losses wouldn’t only be the Dragon Regiment but also the Shelby Clan. Hence, I definitely wanted to sniff out who was the mastermind behind this. Unfortunately, my investigations haven’t borne much fruit.” Gideon frowned at his findings. “So, even you guys didn’t manage to find anything?” Being called out, an expression of gloom took over Gale’s face. “Yes, in this world, there’s always going to be someone who is better than you out there. Over the years, I’ve come to think that though the Bauhinia Clan wasn’t omniscient over the affairs in this land, it definitely came quite close… But who would’ve thought…” He sighed as he stopped speaking. The group also did not suspect him. As the group looked at each other, Gideon Leith finally broke the silence. “Alright, then, I’ll just take your word for it. If there are any updates to the situation, please inform us about it.” Gale Shelby just nodded. Suddenly, he looked over at Nell and put on a smile. “Now that we’re done talking about your issues, do you guys mind taking a bit of time to listen to mine?” Everyone was utterly stunned except for Nell, who was the only one who frowned at the suggestion. She stood up and spat coldly. “We have nothing to talk about here.” “I know that you’re angry, not only because of the issue with your mother but also because of my lapse in judgment this time which caused Gideon harm. “However, from the bottom of my heart, I didn’t mean for any of those to happen. More importantly, a partial reason for all of this was because we didn’t understand each other before, which caused layers upon layers of misunderstandings. “Now that we have this opportunity to meet face to face, we might as well try to understand each other and treat each other sincerely. Wouldn’t that be better than staying as bitter enemies?” Nell looked him in the eye, still quite angry at him, but she could not deny that he had a point. No matter what their mutual feelings toward each other were, it was still important to try and understand each other from the other person’s perspective. She turned back to take a look at Gideon Leith. Seeing Gideon giving her a small nod, she finally sat back down. Seeing this situation, Gale’s face showed a gentle smile, motioning for Scarface to leave. Then, he had his people brew some good quality tea for his guests. Finally, he turned over to Nell and said softly, “You looked a lot like your father.” Nell lightly harrumphed, not looking at him at all. She still had a bad opinion of him. Gale did not mind as he laughed plainly. “Speaking of which, you still don’t know your father’s name yet, right? His name is Guile Shelby, my brother. Back in the day, he was this hotblooded young lad brimming with talent and oozing charm wherever he went. There were countless young ladies from wealthy families crushing on him back then.” Although Nell still had her own opinions about Gale, he was talking about her biological father. Any ordinary person would have some fascination given the topic. Hence, although she was acting like she did not care, she was listening to every single word. Gale knew what she was doing, but he did not seem to mind. He continued. “I don’t know how much you know about him and your mother, but I’ll vaguely tell you about it.” With that, he started to give an overview of the centuries of history behind the Bauhinia Clan bloodline and the traditions that came with it to her. He took a deep breath and said, “Your father was a man of freedom. He didn’t like to be held back by material possessions, much less these kinds of forced traditions that were set in the family. “Hence, when he met and fell hopelessly in love with your mother when he was in school, he even tried desperately to break the rules and traditions of the family to be with her. “However, this was a tradition that has been in the family for centuries, how could anyone just break it on a whim? Furthermore, the Gu poison had already been planted. Unless he were to be together with someone else who also had the Gu poison planted within them, the poison would eventually kick in. No matter what, it was not a rule that could be broken just on a whim. “Your father knew the repercussions but he still went against it without any fear. He truly loved your mother.” As Nell listened, more emotions started to spread across her face. Her cold aura had dissipated, replaced with a sense of curiosity and intrigue. Gale continued. “When your father and mother first got separated, there was nothing he could do. He knew that he would never be the person to accompany her for the rest of her life. If he stayed with her, it would only burden her with the guilt of having taken a man’s life. “Hence, he went somewhere far away dejectedly, ultimately dying in an African warzone. The situation in Africa back then was so chaotic that even the Bauhinia Clan didn’t dare to step in. Moreover, he enlisted as a nameless infantry under a pseudonym and proceeded to charge onto the battlefield with the intent of dying. He had completely given up on any hope of living, putting his all into dying. How could he have survived?” Nell silently looked at him, looking at the regret and sadness on his face. “How unfortunate… He thought that doing so was enough to protect your mother. Never could he have imagined that your mother would fall into severe depression due to his death, causing her to follow in his footsteps just a few years later. Maybe that was just a tragedy of two lovers but seeing you grown up now, I’d like to believe that if they’re watching down on you in heaven, they’d be proud of how far you’ve come.” Nell frowned and asked, “Back then, when he died, did he not realize that my mother’s heart would die along with him?” Gale smiled grimly. “There aren’t any psychics in this world that could predict the future… If there were, there would be much fewer regrets in this world…” As Gale said that line, the entire room fell silent. No one knew what to say to that. Gale continued. “Back when your father charged into the battlefield, he didn’t even know about your existence. Maybe if he knew about it, he would have one more thing to hold him back from going down such a path.” Nell coldly smiled. “These things have already happened, there’s no need to dwell on so many ‘if’s’.” Gale swallowed hard. For a brief moment, his smile had disappeared. “Maybe you’re right, but now that you’re all grown up, I still have to give back what’s rightfully yours. When you have time, come over to my estate to find me. I’ll fill you in on the details then.” Nell’s attitude was still cold toward him. Without even looking at Gale, she coldly replied, “No need, we’ll talk about all of that next time.” Although she was curious about her father’s story, she still could not fully accept the reality that she was part of the Shelby family. Hence, she still held some form of caution and distrust over Gale’s proposition. Seeing this, Gale did not force her, saying, “It’s fine. You can think about it more. No worries, I’m the one holding onto what’s rightfully yours, no one would even dare of taking them away. Whenever you’ve thought over it fully and want to take up my offer, just come find me. I’ll give everything back to you when that time comes.” Nell did not say anything. After a brief moment of silence in the room, the group stood up.