Chapter 877 Power And Influence
Isabella was very nervous to see her videos and photographs spread like wildfire on the internet. The incident caused members of the Walker family to be anxious as well. Even Noah was seen pacing around the house.
“Isabella, why don’t you go meet Oscar? He has always told you that he likes you. Moreover, you’re his fiancée. It’s weird if he’s merely sitting back and doing nothing,” he said with jitter.
Similar to him, she was restless as well. After all, she had put in a lot of effort to be where she was now. Therefore, she would not let everything slip through her hands so easily.
“Please find ways to delete the videos and photographs for me, Noah. If you don’t, it will really anger Oscar and the Clinton family. I’m not the only one who’s doomed. Even the Walker family won’t gain anything good from it,” said Isabella petulantly before grabbing her bag and leaving the house.
Noah clenched his hands into fists and snorted angrily.
All of a sudden, Stephanie came down the stairs. She noticed his grim expression and approached him. “Look at how furious you are. Did you argue with Isabella again? What’s there to fight about? In my opinion, the Walker family can only prosper if both of you can get along well.”
With that, Noah took a deep breath to calm his temper.
He frowned as he spoke. “We didn’t argue. I only reminded her to be careful for the time being She shouldn’t let the reporters take more photos of her. You shouldn’t go out as well. It’s to prevent you from being ambushed by the reporters. They’re never afraid of making trouble. Sometimes, they even have no qualms about twisting a story completely.”
Stephanie huffed, but she had to admit that he was right.
With a frown, she said, “I need to go home to see what the Clinton family is up to. Logically, Oscar won’t let the videos and photos circulate further.” Even though she usually couldn’t care less about others, she also noticed that something was amiss.
Moreover, she was afraid that Oscar would be furious and plan to use the incident as an excuse to teach Isabella and the Walker family a lesson.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, Noah said, “I’ll come with you.”
Stephanie shook her head after mulling it over.
“You don’t have to go. I’m sure my parents are still angry over Isabella’s incident.”
“Steph, thank you for helping out. We can only rely on you to come up with a plan after something like this has happened.”
She rolled her eyes and waved her hand impatiently.
“That’s enough. Stop being melodramatic. It pisses me off. It’s better if you start finding ways to delete Isabella’s videos. More than two days have passed, and there’s no progress at all. Don’t let me think that you’re good for nothing without help from the Clinton family.”
Keeping his anger in check, Noah said, “Don’t worry, Steph. I’ve instructed my men to delete the videos. It should be over soon.”
He was annoyed by people frequently mentioning that he relied on Oscar to make Walker Group grow bigger and stronger. It was no surprise that he started to find ways to bring Oscar down and take away the shares in Clinton Corporations in order to claim them as his.
“I’m leaving now. If everything is good, I won’t come back home. Don’t try to flirt around while you’re at home. Otherwise, I’ll teach you a lesson.” Having warned him, Stephanie left hastily.
Clenching his fists tightly, Noah looked at Stephanie’s retreating back with mixed feelings. He was dissatisfied because Stephanie had been bossing him around for the past two years. If she were not the daughter of the Clinton family and also the mother of his son, he would never let her challenge his authority.
He had been patient all this while and was looking forward to seeing Oscar eating out of his hand one day.
Meanwhile, Stephanie did not know what was going on in his mind. Otherwise, she would scorn his overly-ambitious dream. In her opinion, Noah was an easy target. He would never be a threat to anyone. It was the reason why she had managed to bully him for the past few years.
She brought Nolan, her son who had just learned how to walk, home to the Clinton residence. It was a surprise for her to see Amelia and Tony there as well. With a frown, she subconsciously hugged Nolan tighter.
Her life had been good for the past year because Olivia loved Nolan. Moreover, as her relationship with Oscar was on the mend, she could do as she pleased in the Clinton residence. In fact, she got so carried away that she had forgotten all about Amelia and Tony. Their sudden appearance awakened a sense of danger in her mind.
It was not easy for her to gain Olivia’s love—all thanks to Nolan. Thus, she would do anything to stop Amelia from taking away all that she had now.
Thousands of thoughts raced through Stephanie’s mind at that moment. However, she did not stop walking while carrying Nolan in her arms.
“I brought your grandson to see you, Mom,” said Stephanie as she pretended not to see Amelia and Tony.
Olivia was having fun playing with Tony. It had been a year since their last meeting, and she had missed him so much. As such, she was not angry over Stephanie’s rudeness.
“Amelia and Tony just came back from overseas. Aren’t you going to greet them, Steph?” she asked.
As a response, Stephanie put her son down and let him walk toward Olivia.
“Mom, I don’t see Isabella and Oscar around. Can you help me to coax Noah? I’m starting to get tired of hearing him asking for you for the past couple of days,” Stephanie said coyly while continuing to ignore Amelia and Tony.
Olivia’s face darkened. Deep inside, she was annoyed by Stephanie’s attitude.
“Why are you behaving like this, Steph? Tony just came back from overseas after a year. Can’t you treat him nicely?” she said grimly.
Finally, Stephanie glanced unwillingly at Tony. She noticed that he had become more handsome after a year. Even the aura that he was exuding and his appearance looked very similar to Oscar’s. Stephanie gritted her teeth as she did not want him to come back. Once he did, she knew that the Clinton family would treat Nolan like he was an outsider.
Stephanie approached him and said with feigned affection, “Come here, Tony. I’m sorry that I didn’t greet you. You’ve grown so much in a year.”
Without any expression on his face, Tony nodded toward her solemnly.
“Hello, Aunt Stephanie,” he said with a slightly cold tone.
Except when he was with Amelia, he rarely showed any spirited behavior toward strangers.
After a mocking glance at Amelia, Stephanie said to Tony, “You’ve only been staying abroad for a year, Tony. Why are you so formal with me? You were so cute when you were younger, but now you look so unhappy. Were you bullied overseas?”
He glared at her in displeasure.
“I have never been bullied, Aunt Stephanie. In fact, I’ve always ranked first in school. Other children always said that I was their boss. Mommy told me that as the first grandson of the Clinton family, I’m the heir, so I can’t show any weaknesses in front of others. I can’t embarrass Grandpa and Grandma,” he explained solemnly.
Stephanie chuckled flatly. Covertly, she hated him so much.
On the contrary, Olivia was very sad to hear his remarks. She hugged him tightly and called him “Darling” repeatedly.
Stephanie was furious when she saw Nolan left standing at the side.
“Mom, Nolan is asking for you. Can’t you see that he’s going to cry?” Stephanie reminded Olivia.
Olivia finally noticed her grandson.
Tony also noticed the cute little boy. The former lifted his hand and wanted to hold his face. However, Stephanie grabbed his hand all of a sudden.
Olivia and Amelia turned to look at her at the same time.
“Don’t misunderstand, Mom. Nolan is still young. I’m only afraid that Tony might injure him. It’s going to be difficult if he cries,” Stephanie explained.
However, Olivia was evidently displeased with her actions. After giving Nolan back to Stephanie, she took Tony into her arms.
“Steph, you’re my daughter, and Nolan is my grandson. So I’ll always love both of you. That being said, Tony is also my grandson. He’s my precious treasure. When you complain about him, you’re also indirectly implying the same about me. If you don’t like this family, you can go back to the Walker family. Don’t get carried away and think that you can give Tony the cold shoulder just because I was willing to forgive you for the sake of your child,” Olivia said with a grim expression.
Upon hearing Olivia’s words, Stephanie’s expression darkened.
She hugged Nolan and proceeded to pinch his waist when no one was paying attention to them. Immediately, he felt the pain and cried out loud.
The moment he started crying, he extended his hands and asked for Olivia. Stephanie then took the opportunity to put him on Olivia’s lap.
As Olivia felt sorry for Nolan, she hugged and consoled him.
“Hush hush. It’s all right. I’m here, Nolan,” Olivia said gently.
However, she did not expect him to cry even louder.
As Amelia watched from the side, she did not have the heart to see him crying.
“Let me try, Mom,” she said.
Olivia passed him to her. Initially, Stephanie wanted to stop Olivia, but the latter glared at her discreetly. Therefore, Stephanie had no choice but to let the matter go.
Unexpectedly, Nolan stopped crying the moment he was in Amelia’s arms. He even hugged her back.
Meanwhile, Stephanie was frustrated to see him acting that way with the woman she hated the most.
What an ingrate! Doesn’t he know who his actual mother is? I’m the one who gives him food to eat and clothes to wear.
Olivia looked at her meaningfully. “Why don’t you give more attention to Nolan, Steph? Don’t just dwell on trivial matters. Just spend more time teaching your child so he doesn’t become a stubborn ingrate.”
Stephanie’s expression stiffened as her temper rose.
“Mom, how could you say that about Nolan? You’ve been watching him grow up, so you should know him well. The moment Tony came back, you’d been praising him non-stop. Worst of all, you even said that Nolan would become an ingrate. Do you still think of him as your grandson?” she retorted.
Olivia shot her a glare.
“That’s enough. Since Tony is here today, I won’t be too harsh on you lest you say that I’m humiliating you in front of them. If there’s nothing else that you want, why don’t you bring Nolan home?” she huffed.
Stephanie was stunned.
She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down.
“Mom, I’m here to see you. Moreover, I want to explain to you about Isabella’s videos. She was framed by someone else. I remember that you saw it before. Can you instruct them to delete the videos? Since you liked Isabella, why don’t you help her?” she asked matter-of-factly.
Having heard her words, Olivia was so angry that she chortled.
As she looked at Stephanie, she regretted spoiling her daughter in the past, causing the latter to be so brazen. Previously, Stephanie had teamed up with Isabella to frame Oscar, and she only forgave her because of Nolan. However, Isabella had tried to earn her trust and used it as a weapon to harm Oscar. While she would never be able to let the matter rest, Oscar had been very kind not to get his revenge on Isabella. Now that Stephanie wanted her help, she had an urge to tell the former to stop being delusional.
“Steph, just go back and inform Isabella that our family will hold a press conference later to announce the cancellation of her engagement with Oscar. I don’t want a promiscuous woman to be my daughter-in-law,” she said frankly.
Stephanie’s expression darkened as she said hastily, “Mom, you can’t do that to Isabella.”
Unable to stand her daughter anymore, Olivia instructed the housekeeper to escort Stephanie and Nolan out. Then, she arranged for them to be sent back to the Walker residence. Furthermore, she even instructed them not to come to the house for the time being.
Amelia remained an onlooker during the entire incident. She only relaxed after Stephanie left and everything was back to normal again.
“It’s time for Tony and me to go back, Mom,” she said.
“You have to stay for dinner. I’ve not met Tony for a long time. I really missed him. You must allow him to stay for the night,” persuaded Olivia while hugging Tony tightly.
Amelia chuckled.
“Mom, why do you behave like I’m the enemy? Rest assured, I won’t take Tony away from you. I just want to inform you that I’ve already found a school for Tony. He skipped preschool and attended primary school when we were abroad, so I’ve been teaching him the syllabus for primary schools here. Therefore, he’ll be able to fit in perfectly once he transfers here. I just want to bring him to see the principal and take the entrance exam,” she explained.
Olivia was relieved to hear that. She recalled Amelia mentioning it before during their conversation over the phone. However, she had forgotten all about it when she met Tony. Moreover, she always thought that Tony was still a young kid and had no reason to be so diligent at that young age. Nevertheless, she knew that as the oldest grandson of the Clinton family and the heir to Clinton Corporations, he had to start his education early on. Otherwise, he might become an arrogant scion due to the power and wealth of the family.
As such, she was not going to interfere in his education. She merely felt sorry for him.
“I’ll go with you because I want to see which school he will be attending. I have to make sure the school is good enough for my grandson.”
Upon hearing her remarks, Amelia nodded.
At two in the afternoon, Olivia and Amelia brought Tony to the school that he would be attending in the future. It was an international private primary school. The annual fee was more than one hundred thousand, and it did not include the fees for the books and accommodation. Nonetheless, it was a good school. The teachers were very knowledgeable. Even the security measures were impeccable as there were teams of security guards making rounds around the school. Outsiders would not be able to enter without any permit.
All of that made it the most expensive and the best school in the city.
Olivia was pleased after seeing its surroundings.
The principal, Idris Young, personally came out to meet them.
When he saw Olivia, he said with an amicable smile, “Hello, Mrs. Clinton. How are you? I didn’t expect to see you here. We met at a dinner party before.”
Puzzled, Olivia looked at him. She tried to recall his face in her mind, but she was unable to remember him.
“You must have forgotten about it. After all, I’m merely the principal of a primary school. I had the opportunity to meet you and Mr. Clinton at a charity event two years ago. What brings you here? Are you here to discuss your grandson’s enrolment? Let’s not stand here. Please come inside.” He brought them into his office and instructed his assistant to prepare some drinks and pastry for them.
Then, he added, “I can see that the young man is a smart kid. He doesn’t have to do the entrance exam. I will assign him to the best class in first grade. Please be rest assured. The teacher for that class is the best one in the whole grade. She won’t mistreat him,” he said after praising Tony.
Olivia was very satisfied upon hearing that.
“I’ll be counting on you, Mr. Young. If you need any supplies, you can get in touch with Clinton Corporations at any time. We’re always happy to help the school.”
Idris grinned widely at her offer.
“In that case, it will be rude for me to reject your offer, Mrs. Clinton.”
With that, the arrangements for Tony’s school were settled swiftly. After all, wealth and power could do wonders.
Once Amelia and Olivia were back inside the car, the former was able to once again feel how influential the Clinton family was. Nevertheless, she also knew that there were many people who merely wanted to suck up to the family.
