Chapter 185 - 135: Him Getting This Big Has Absolutely Nothing to Do With His Mother Giving Birth to Him
Chapter 185: Chapter 135: Him Getting This Big Has Absolutely Nothing to Do With His Mother Giving Birth to Him
Antoine was losing his patience and turned on Yudola.
With a grim face, he asked in a low voice, "Empress, where is His Majesty?"
Yudola replied breezily, "His Majesty and the others are in a morning meeting."
"Then let’s wait until the meeting is over and have His Majesty pass judgment on this matter!" Antoine’s tone was overly forceful.
He truly had no respect for the Empress!
Shu Yao sneered. "What, are you intentionally trying to stall for time?"
Antoine said in a restrained voice, "The Empress and my Austin family have never been on good terms. If she handles this, it’s inevitable she’ll be biased!"
But, just as Shu Yao had said, he was indeed stalling for time.
’If this woman is here, it means the Mecha and the Flying Machine were left in the abandoned building district.’
’As long as I secretly send someone to destroy the evidence in time, her words will lose much of their credibility.’
As if she had seen right through his insidious thoughts, Shu Yao gave a light, unconcerned laugh.
"The Empress is the mother of our nation." Shu Yao’s eyes held a cold smile, and her words were forceful and clear. "You’re just some mutt. What gives you the right to question her decision!"
Upon hearing this, Yudola and Lady Xin turned to look at her in unison, both seeming rather astonished.
But it had been a long time since Yudola had felt this gratified.
’Mutt. What a perfect insult!’
’And so fitting!’
Noticing the smile on the Empress’s lips deepen, Antoine’s expression soured further.
The lawyer beside Antoine decided to speak up, sternly warning the foul-mouthed Shu Yao, "Miss Shu, I must solemnly remind you that if you continue to insult Antoine, I can, on his behalf, sue you for defamation and insult!"
Shu Yao was disdainful. "Where were you when he was disrespecting the Empress just now? Why are you popping up now trying to make yourself relevant? I’d love to hear you explain if defamation is a more serious crime than lèse-majesté."
The lawyer, argued into a corner, flushed red. "I’m Antoine’s lawyer, not the Empress’s..."
"So, you mean to say that in your eyes, your client is more important than the Empress." Shu Yao feigned confusion. "To not take the Empress seriously... wouldn’t that also be considered lèse-majesté?"
The lawyer was furious. "Please don’t twist my words!"
Shu Yao let out a light laugh and said insincerely, "My mistake, I must have misunderstood you."
Antoine shot his lawyer an irritated glare.
Shu Chao Yu felt he had to say something at this point; after all, his presence as her uncle couldn’t be overshadowed by some lawyer who didn’t even deserve a name, could it?
"Antoine, you should be thankful my niece didn’t lose a single hair on her head today. Otherwise, even if your Austin family are the mechanical pioneers of the Interstellar Federation, my Shu Family would not have let you off!"
Antoine couldn’t help but snort in contempt.
’Who the hell does this guy think he is, yelling at me like that!’
’Where does he get the nerve!?’
Shu Yao corrected her uncle. "Even though I didn’t lose a single hair on my head today, I’m still not letting them off."
"Ah, right!" Shu Chao Yu scratched his messy hair and gave a silly grin.
Antoine was about to explode with rage! The two of them across from him were still laughing and joking around. The atmosphere made it seem like he, the one sitting here with a lawyer, was the real victim!
’This is so fucking frustrating!’
Yudola enjoyed Antoine’s colorful expressions for a while longer. Once she felt sufficiently satisfied, she slowly began to speak.
"I understand the specifics of the situation now." She looked at Shu Yao, her gaze gentle and warm. "At its root, this is a conflict between you and your classmates that has escalated to a political level. Neither His Majesty nor I wish to see this escalate further."
She suddenly turned her gaze to Antoine, her expression becoming intriguing. "Therefore, I hope that Antoine, representing the Austin family who started this incident, can propose a solution to resolve this conflict on the spot."
Antoine, his face grim, thought for a moment before saying through gritted teeth, "Juelton, in an effort to stand up for his younger brother Edgar and one of his brother’s female classmates, stole one of our newly developed combat Mechas. I had no idea he stole the Mecha to hurt someone; I thought he was just taking it to school to show off to his teachers and classmates..."
Yudola cut him off. "Antoine, I’m not interested in excuses or attempts to shift the blame."
Antoine ignored her, his tone hardening as he continued, "By the time I tracked Juelton down, I saw the destroyed Mecha!"
Shu Yao took a deep sniff.
’This familiar style of blame-shifting... it’s exactly the same as Lin Zhenxiang’s!’
Yudola looked at her. "Miss Shu, that’s what he said. Did you understand? Do you need him to repeat it?"
"There’s no need." Shu Yao’s smile was lazy and wild. "To put it simply, it’s like he’s arguing that him growing up has nothing to do with his mother giving birth to him. The logic is identical."
Yudola couldn’t help but chuckle.
’What a sharp, on-point, and insightful summary!’
’I’m liking this sister-in-law more and more!’
The lawyer bristled again. "How dare you insult Antoine’s mother!"
Shu Yao spread her hands innocently. "I was just making a comparison!"
Antoine ground out, almost word by word, "In the Federation, destroying a Mecha is a serious crime!"
Shu Yao put on a fake expression of fear.
Shu Chao Yu said, "What if it was self-defense?"
Antoine lowered his gloomy, dark brown eyes as he listened to the lawyer whisper in his ear:
"Antoine, that man is right. If it was self-defense, we can’t convict that woman for the destruction of the Mecha!"
Antoine gradually realized the situation was even more disadvantageous than he had thought.
After weighing his options, he reluctantly compromised. "Fine. On behalf of the Austin family, I will publicly apologize to Miss Shu for today’s incident and compensate her with a new Flying Machine. Seeing as Miss Shu is so healthy, I assume I won’t need to cover any medical expenses, but I will still compensate her for her emotional distress."
He stated magnanimously.
’Making such a concession wasn’t so difficult after all.’
Shu Yao, who had crossed her legs, gave a cold laugh. Her expression was defiant. "My classmate and I almost died, we were so scared we nearly pissed our pants. You offer the compensation you’re obligated to give, then act all generous by throwing in enough money for a new pair of pants, and you think that’s the end of it?"
Antoine asked darkly, "Then what do you want?"
Shu Yao lifted her chin slightly, looking down on him with disdain. "I don’t like your current attitude. If you’re going to admit you’re wrong, you should act like it. Once you understand that, fix your attitude and talk to me again!"
Yudola was so startled by her words that she forgot to look at Antoine’s reaction.
’That last sentence from Shu Yao had a familiar ring to it.’
She remembered now. When she was discussing special benefits with Mrs. Bao, Mrs. Bao had said the exact same thing to her!
The exact same thing!
"Shu, I’d advise you not to be unforgiving now that you’re in the right!" Antoine struggled to hold back his anger, implicitly warning her that offending the Austin family would have dire consequences.
Shu Yao played along, putting on a fragile, frightened act. "Are you threatening me?"
Antoine gritted his teeth, reining in his explosive temper. After a long moment, he lowered his stance again. "In any case, regarding today’s incident, I will, on behalf of the Austin family, give you and your classmate a satisfactory resolution!"