Chapter 374: Evan Yeats Isn’t Mrs. Yeats’s Biological Son

Chapter 374: Chapter 374: Evan Yeats Isn’t Mrs. Yeats’s Biological Son

Estelle Lockwood whipped her head around. "Claire Yeats?!"

"Yes. One day, Claire suddenly gave those artworks to Evan. She even said she hoped they would help him out of his immediate crisis. Evan, at the time... I know my own son well. He was so desperate to prove himself against his older brother that he immediately conspired with Claire to fabricate the persona of a ’Genius Painter’."

Mrs. Yeats sighed. "I really don’t want my son to keep going down this wrong path, but he simply won’t listen to my advice."

Estelle felt the situation was becoming increasingly complicated. Though alarmed inwardly, she maintained her outward composure and asked nonchalantly, "Why is that? Mrs. Yeats, as far as I know, Evan respects you deeply as a mother and always listens to you. How do you know your persuasion won’t work? Or, let me phrase it differently—if you knew everything, how could you just watch Evan make one mistake after another?"

"I..."

Mrs. Yeats choked up. She suddenly covered her face as tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Estelle! That is exactly why I’ve come to you for help!

"Evan doesn’t listen to me at all. My usual image as a strict mother, and his deliberate pretense of being obedient—it’s all just an act!"

Estelle found a seat and sat down. "An act?"

"Yes, actually, everything is... Estelle, I was forced into this. This isn’t my true personality. If you can find Eleanor’s diary, you’ll see what I used to be like. I never liked fighting for things, and I was never some strict mother.

"But the Yeats family forced me to do this!"

Estelle was curious. "And the reason?"

"There must be a reason why the Yeats family forced you to do this," she continued. "Besides, I don’t see what effect this so-called ’act’ is supposed to achieve. To make it look like you dote on Evan? To show that you care deeply about him?"

After all, Mrs. Yeats was Evan’s mother. No matter what she did, she would always be seen as a mother. What was the purpose of all this? Forcing someone to change their personality sounded incredibly bizarre.

"The Yeats family hoped I could create an illusion of caring for Evan in front of the public... to make everyone believe that, as a strict mother, I genuinely want what’s best for him. Estelle, you know how it is. If we were strangers, or—

"Even though I’m your aunt, if you did something wrong, I wouldn’t criticize you directly because we aren’t the closest of relatives. You understand this logic, don’t you?"

Estelle raised an eyebrow. This explanation...

It was indeed the typical dynamic between most parents and children in Innerland. The majority of parents were gentle with other people’s children but harsh with their own. For instance, if two children got into a fight and both were clearly at fault, the parents would only scold their own child, saying things like, "Look at how unreasonable you’re being! Hurry up and apologize!" But basically, this made it instantly obvious who belonged to whom.

"Yes, you’re right about that, Mrs. Yeats. So?"

Mrs. Yeats took a deep breath. "Estelle... don’t be surprised. What I’m about to say might shock you, but it’s okay, just let me explain it to you slowly.

"The reason the Yeats family wanted me to do this, the reason they wanted me to be strict with Evan in front of outsiders, is because..."

Mrs. Yeats paused for a moment. "Because Evan isn’t my biological son."

Estelle’s eyes widened, genuinely shocked. "What?!"

But Mrs. Yeats had been pregnant twice and given birth twice, staying at the best maternity hospital in Capital City each time. This was no secret! So why wasn’t Evan her son? Could it be...

Mrs. Yeats’s face was covered in tears, her voice choked with emotion. "You guessed right, Estelle. My baby was switched. Evan isn’t my biological child at all.

"I don’t even know where my real son is, or if he’s even still alive. I used to think Evan was my husband’s illegitimate child... but I secretly had a paternity test done, and they have no blood relation either."

Suddenly burdened with such a massive secret, Estelle’s mind was in turmoil. Then, a thought struck her. "If that’s the case, why didn’t you tell the Family Head, or Old Mr. Yeats?"

Mrs. Yeats shook her head, crying. "Estelle! The person who switched the babies back then was Old Mr. Yeats!"

Estelle felt her heart pounding like a drum. "...What do you mean? The old man deliberately switched his own biological grandson?"

"Yes..."

Mrs. Yeats gritted her teeth. "Estelle! I don’t know why Old Mr. Yeats suddenly sought you out, but I’m certain he harbors no good intentions! You can call it ’once bitten, twice shy,’ but because he swapped my son, I hold a natural hatred toward him!

"You don’t have to believe my words, but please, do not fully trust Old Mr. Yeats either!

"To this day, I don’t know why your mother suddenly disappeared. I’m not clear on the situation with your father, but Eleanor never once had the thought of running away from home. Yet, one day, she vanished. I said we should call the police at the time, but the old man stopped me!

"He put on a facade of being heartbroken and missing Eleanor, but he never actually sent anyone to look for her. Then, twenty-five years later, he suddenly remembers you. Isn’t that a joke?"

Estelle did not express an opinion.

Mrs. Yeats continued, "I don’t dare tell Zion. I’m terrified that he already knows and has been hiding it from me along with his father. In the entire Yeats family, Quentin is the only one I’m certain is completely in the dark. But Quentin respects his father and grandfather the most—how am I supposed to bring this up to him?

"Quentin is too righteous. If I told him the truth, he would definitely go get a DNA test and then confront Old Mr. Yeats for an explanation. If that happened, I don’t know what Old Mr. Yeats might do to him.

"He has already harmed one grandson. What if Quentin also falls victim to him? I don’t dare take that risk!"

Seeing that Mrs. Yeats was on the verge of an emotional breakdown, Estelle helped her sit down on a chair in the dressing room.

Her words were full of genuine emotion and seemed flawless. But Estelle still felt... it wasn’t that simple.

Old Mr. Yeats would have definitely needed to hide the baby swap from the mother, or else wouldn’t he fear Mrs. Yeats blowing the matter out of proportion? So how did she find out? And after finding out, she hadn’t come up with a single plan in all these years? She was part of the Yeats family and had her own company. Did she really not have a single trusted confidant who could help her investigate further?

Estelle had too many questions, but she simply asked, "You came to me for help, Mrs. Yeats. What exactly do you want me to do?"

Mrs. Yeats opened her mouth to speak, but suddenly, a woman’s voice drifted in.

"Madam, have you not finished changing your clothes yet?"

Estelle recognized the voice as belonging to Mrs. Yeats’s female assistant.

Mrs. Yeats’s expression stiffened. She hurriedly wiped away her tears and asked anxiously, "Estelle, are my eyes red? Will people be able to tell that I’ve been crying?"

Estelle felt perplexed. Could this assistant be someone assigned to monitor Mrs. Yeats? It was possible... but she still felt something was off.