Chapter 85: I’ll Fight You to the Death

Half an hour later, Samuel Ford’s face darkened further as he stared at the mess on the floor.

Felix Ford stood on the bed, hands on his hips, and looked at him defiantly. "You told me to smash everything!"

’He said it first, so it’s not my fault.’

The father and son stared at each other for a long time. Faced with his father’s cold gaze, Felix flinched inwardly. But he gritted his teeth and held his ground, widening his eyes and refusing to so much as blink.

Somehow, their staring contest turned into a game of ’whoever blinks first loses’.

"Clean up this mess you made yourself, or you’re not sleeping. You aren’t going to school anyway, so you have plenty of time," Samuel Ford said coldly. With that, he walked out, leaving the door open. Felix could still hear him instructing someone, "Don’t help him."

Felix was stunned. He hadn’t expected this kind of punishment. A moment later, he sat on the bed, his cheeks puffed in anger. ’I’m not cleaning it up. Let’s see what he does to me!’

He soon found out.

Seven, finally released from its immobilization, slid into the room, calling out in its soft voice, "Young Master."

Jean Vance had restored its settings before she left.

Hearing the sound, Felix turned around. He greeted his only little companion with a rare smile. Seeing that it couldn’t get through, he kicked aside the junk on the floor to clear a path for it.

He threw his arms around it. "Oh, Seven, I missed you so much."

Seven’s screen flickered. "I missed you too, Young Master."

"I knew it. Let’s play hide-and-seek."

"I’m afraid not, Young Master. The Master told me to tell you that you have to clean everything up before you can play. And..." A photo appeared on its screen. "The Master said if you don’t clean up, you can’t have this anymore."

When Felix saw the photo, he was stunned. He quickly tossed his pillow aside and, sure enough, the space underneath was empty. ’My stuffed animal!’

He flew into a rage. He started to charge out of the room but stopped halfway and ran back to grab his little wooden sword. With a loud "AHHH!" he stormed toward the study, shouting furiously, "Samuel Ford! I’ll fight you!"

Inside the study, the voices on the video call fell silent. The Ford Group executives exchanged glances, not daring to say a word as they furtively studied President Ford’s expression.

’Wow. The little prince is probably the only person on earth who dares to yell at President Ford like that.’

They were eager to see Samuel Ford’s reaction, but he gave them no such chance. He simply said, "The meeting is postponed," and ended the call.

’This isn’t going to be pretty, that’s for sure.’

’Let’s just hope the little prince makes it out alive.’

’Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.’

In truth, Felix was scared too, especially when his father’s cold gaze fell upon him. But at this moment, he was so consumed by rage that the fear faded. For now, at least, he could hold his ground and glare back.

Samuel Ford looked at his son in the doorway. The boy’s little face was a mask of fury, and he held the small wooden sword as if he wanted to charge and stab him at any moment.

His eyes grew cold. "Are you staging a rebellion?"

Felix had heard that word while watching TV with his grandma. It meant something like a duel. He thought for a moment, then nodded and said solemnly, "Yes! I am staging a rebellion! I will overthrow you and take back my stuffed animal!"

As he spoke, he clumsily tried to twirl the sword in his hand but nearly dropped it. He hastily caught it with his left hand, barely saving himself from embarrassment. His bravado faltered for a moment. He stamped his foot to build up his courage and shouted, "Samuel Ford! Do you accept my challenge!"

Hearing his son call him by his full name over and over, Samuel Ford let out a cold laugh, rose to his feet, and walked toward him.

Seeing him approach, Felix gritted his teeth, stamped his foot, and kicked off the ground with his right leg. "AHHH—" He charged forward, but before he could even shout "Charge!" the sword was plucked from his hand.

He froze, staring in disbelief.

Samuel Ford toyed with the sword. A bit large for Felix, it looked minuscule in his own hand. It seemed more like a toy than a weapon, making the whole confrontation feel like a complete farce.

Felix glared at him, incensed. "Give me back my sword!"

Samuel Ford scoffed. "You’ve been disarmed. You lose before the battle even begins."

Seeing his father’s disdain, Felix bristled. "I didn’t lose! Just you wait until I grow up! I’ll definitely be able to beat you!"

"Fine. But before you’re grown up, how about you start by picking up the things you broke."

"Give me back my stuffed animal first."

Samuel Ford shot him a sidelong glance. "You’re in no position to be making demands."

Knowing he couldn’t win, Felix could only storm back to his room huffily. He lay on the bed, growing angrier the more he thought about it. Suddenly, he sat bolt upright. ’No! I absolutely can’t give up like this!’

He clenched his fists. But before he could come up with a new plan, he heard someone calling to him.

"Young Master."

He turned his head. His eyes lit up, and he jumped off the bed and ran toward her. "Miss Lynch! You’re back!"

"Yes." Miss Lynch gently stroked his head, then looked at the mess on the floor and dotingly tapped the tip of his nose. "Have you been causing trouble again?"

Felix pouted. "No! Daddy’s bullying me. He won’t find Mommy for me, and he stole my stuffed animal. Daddy’s mean!"

Hearing this, Miss Lynch shook her head with a helpless sigh. She closed the door and said with a warm smile, "How could that be? The Master cares a great deal about our young master. Think about it, every time you run away from home, he always comes looking for you, right?"

’Oh, that is true.’

’If I hadn’t been hiding from him at the airport, I never would have accidentally ended up with Mommy.’

’I wish I could be with Mommy again.’

’Even though Jean Vance said she wasn’t my mom, I feel so close to her. Being with her makes me really happy.’

’I miss her so much.’

’Maybe I should go find her?’

Felix’s eyes shifted. He looked at the mess on the floor, then looked up at her and asked, "Miss Lynch, can you help me clean my room?"

"Of course I can. I’ve already heard what happened. Don’t worry, I won’t tell the Master."

"Thank you, Miss Lynch."

"You’re welcome. Just a moment, Young Master. Let me go get a plate of fruit for you."

"Okay, okay! Go on!"

Before long, Miss Lynch came back up with a fruit platter. The fruit was all cut into small pieces with toothpicks stuck in them, so he could eat them without getting juice on his hands.

He leaned against the headboard, kicking his feet contentedly as he ate the fruit and complained to her about Samuel Ford.

"Daddy’s always bullying me. When I grow up, I’ll be way more powerful than him. Then it’ll be my turn to bully him! Hmph."

Hearing this, Miss Lynch couldn’t help but chuckle. "Young Master, you shouldn’t say such things. How hurt the Master would be if he heard you."

"He wouldn’t be." Felix switched to swinging his left foot, a nonchalant expression on his face. "He doesn’t care about me. The only thing he cares about is his business. It’s all the same to him whether I’m here or not."

Miss Lynch started to say more, but he cut her off with an impatient wave of his hand. "Miss Lynch, stop taking Daddy’s side all the time. I don’t want to hear it."

"Alright, alright, I won’t say any more."

’That’s more like it.’

Felix ate for a little while longer, then crept over to check on the study. The door was still closed; his dad hadn’t come out yet. Even though he had been coming home early the past couple of days, he would hole himself up in the study to work as soon as he returned, finishing late into the night.

Felix counted on his fingers, a wide grin spreading across his face. ’Soon, I can go see Mommy.’