1224 The Third Option
All of a sudden, everyone turned to look at Bruce.
Without hesitating, Bruce walked straight over to Lucas, who was sitting in the corner, and bent forward respectfully. “Mr. Gray, you’re the most honored patron of the Hales. Please decide how we should deal with the Hamiltons! We will follow your instructions!”
Connor quickly followed suit and stood in front of Lucas respectfully. “Mr. Gray, the Hales will obey your instructions!”
The two of them were extremely respectful to Lucas, and they clearly viewed him as their master. Their actions immediately made the others stunned speechless.
!!
Edmund knew Lucas’s true ident.i.ty, so his reaction wasn’t too bad, and he could roughly guess what the relations.h.i.+p between Lucas and the Hales was.
Ethan was astonished, wondering when Lucas and the Hales had such a close relations.h.i.+p. It seemed that Lucas was the true master of the Hales. It made Ethan rather uncomfortable.
As for Joel and Anthony, they were incredibly shocked.
It was their first time coming to the Hale residence, and they had barely interacted with the families in California in the past, so they didn’t know who Lucas was.
Because they didn’t know Lucas’s ident.i.ty and because they were too shocked, they looked at each other and couldn’t say anything for a while.
When Lucas saw Bruce and Connor standing in front of him and asking for instructions, he nodded slightly.
When Bruce was thinking on his own about how to deal with the Hamiltons, Lucas had thought that Bruce had completely forgotten who the true master of the Hale family was and who had brought them to the success they enjoyed now.
If Bruce had really forgotten, then Lucas didn’t need to help the Hales anymore.
But it seemed that Bruce and Connor weren’t that foolish as to forget who had helped them.
Lucas said, “I think Mr. Cole is right. You should negotiate with the Hamiltons first. If it doesn’t work out, just get physical.”
Although he didn’t mind fighting directly with the Hamiltons, they still had a high status in the US after all. If they could negotiate with the Hamiltons and get them to give up, it would be for the best.
Bruce had no doubts about Lucas’s decision at all. He agreed right away.
“Yes, Mr. Gray. Since you have already spoken, the Hales will definitely do as you say. If the Hamiltons really refuse to drop their ambitions, we’ll fight them to the death and force them away!”
Edmund smiled. “Haha, that’s how it should be! How can we be so cowardly and allow the Hamiltons to bully us?”
Now, the two helmsmen had already decided to resort to force against the Hamiltons in the event that negotiations fell through.
Ethan looked at Bruce and Edmund, feeling extremely conflicted.
He didn’t have much confidence in Lucas.
In the beginning, Ethan got close to Lucas and helped him entirely because Chad Kennedy, the chief butler of the Huttons of DC, had asked him to look out for Lucas and cooperate with him if possible.
But deep down, Ethan felt that the royals were a far more terrifying family than the eight top families of DC and far more powerful than the Huttons. They were just some wealthy families in California. How could they possibly have any chance in a confrontation with such a horrifying family?
Ethan really couldn’t make up his mind. He clenched his fists tightly while his heart raced rapidly.
Seeing that Bruce and Edmund had chosen to follow Lucas’s lead, Joel and Anthony immediately had a drastic change in expression.
Joel said with displeasure, “Mr. Hale, isn’t your decision too frivolous?
“Who is this young man? Why are you obeying him after just hearing what he said? This matter concerns the future of your family, yet you’re leaving it in the hands of a greenhorn. What a joke!”
Antony narrowed his eyes as he glanced at Lucas with disdain and said coldly, “Yes, Mr. Hale. Your decision is too hasty! Moreover, your decision not only concerns the future of the Hales but also the direction of our alliance. One mistake will ruin the Hales and us too! Why should we leave such an important matter to a clueless, unknown young man?”
Bruce snapped angrily, “Shut up! Mr. Gray is the Hales’ most honored patron, and he has every right to make decisions on our behalf. You people are in no place to criticize him!
“If you’re upset, just leave. That way, you don’t have to be afraid that we’ll implicate you.”
Hearing this, Joel and Anthony were stunned.
They never thought that Bruce, who had treated them with courtesy from the very beginning, would rebuke them so mercilessly for the sake of a young man.
They were the helmsmen of top families on par with the Hales. How could their statuses be inferior to the seemingly ordinary young man sitting here?
Edmund mocked too, “Exactly. Mr. Hale is right. If you’re so afraid of dying, you should leave sooner so you won’t be implicated by us.
“I think you weak cowards should just surrender to the Hamiltons as soon as possible and become their dogs!”
“You!” Joel was furious. “What are you saying? We came here to discuss a solution on how to deal with the Hamiltons. If we were really weaklings, why would we still be here?!”
Anthony chimed in, “Hah, you Californian helmsmen are really arrogant! We specially came here with good intentions to form an alliance to deal with the Hamiltons together. But I didn’t expect your att.i.tudes to be so horrendous. You don’t take us seriously at all. In that case, I don’t think there’s a need for us to stay here any longer!”
Seeing that Anthony and Joel were furious, Ethan hurriedly stepped forward to smooth things over. “Everyone, please calm down!
“Now is the time for us to unite and think of a way to tide through this ordeal. We mustn’t start internal strife and conflicts at this juncture!
“Given the current situation, it’s impossible for any of our families to deal with the Hamiltons alone. We have to set everything else for now and focus on the problem at hand. Everyone, please do me a favor. At this time, we should work together and not fight against each other!”
Joel snorted coldly. “We aren’t the ones who started it. It’s because of Mr. Cole and Mr. Hale’s problematic att.i.tudes! I just told them not to treat this like child’s play, and they lashed out at me instead. Why can’t I be angry? What working together is there to speak of when they’re giving us such att.i.tudes?!”
Edmund sneered aggressively. “You’re blaming us? Aren’t you just cowardly? Since you don’t even have the courage to wage a war with the Hamiltons, what’s there to discuss? By acting that way, haven’t you already chosen to surrender?”
Joel gave him the side-eye. “Is surrendering the only solution left if we don’t fight? There’s clearly a third option. Just because you haven’t thought of it doesn’t mean we haven’t!”