“Investigate thoroughly according to the rules?!” Calvin Norton was taken aback. Although he hadn’t figured out what Gavin Norton was up to, he instinctively sensed a trace of unease and immediately shouted, “What’s there to investigate? Lü He was caught red-handed—what else is there to check?!”

Gavin Norton raised an eyebrow and suddenly smiled. “Caught red-handed? That’s just your side of the story!”

“My side of the story?!” Calvin Norton’s expression darkened. “So, you’re planning to help your maid get off the hook!”

Gavin Norton shook his head repeatedly. “I’ve said before: the nation has its laws, the family has its rules. Right and wrong are not for you to decide, nor for me to decide!”

“Then who gets to decide?!” He was getting confused by Gavin Norton’s words, and his gaze instinctively swept over to Colin Norton. Right now, in this Birch Garden, it seemed Colin Norton held the highest status. Could it be that Gavin Norton wanted to ask Colin Norton for help?

But that didn’t make sense. He knew why Colin Norton was here—it was to ask him for a favor, so there was no way he’d help Gavin Norton.

Colin Norton, who had been sitting on the side watching the commotion, also had a change in expression. He gave Gavin Norton a deep look, as if he was only now recognizing him. Calvin Norton, that fool, hadn’t understood the meaning behind Gavin Norton’s words. Gavin Norton hadn’t said much, but the information within was extremely rich—he understood it.

The nation has its laws, the family has its rules. Gavin Norton wanted to handle this matter according to the family rules. It wasn’t for Gavin Norton to say, nor for Calvin Norton to say, nor for Lü He to say, and certainly not for him, Colin Norton, to say. It should be decided by the enforcer of the family rules. Gavin Norton was trying to escalate the matter, maybe even make a big scene!

However, to blow things up over such a matter—even if Lü He’s innocence was ultimately proven—he himself wouldn’t be left with a good impression. And in a place like the Ning Prince’s residence, a good reputation was often more important than anything else. If the upper echelons of the residence didn’t value you, then even if Gavin Norton entered the academy in the future, his status probably wouldn’t rise much.

All of this flashed through Colin Norton’s mind in an instant, and his expression only shifted slightly. The way things were developing had already exceeded Colin Norton’s expectations. He didn’t want to get involved in the war between the two illegitimate sons of the Ning Prince’s residence. With that in mind, he prepared to get up and leave. But unexpectedly, just as he shifted his seat, he stopped again, because four or five figures had already appeared at the entrance of the Birch Garden.

“Fourth Grandpa, Seventh Grandpa, Ninth Grandpa!!” Seeing the three figures in front, Calvin Norton’s expression changed. He never imagined that Gavin Norton would dare to summon these people. Following behind the three was Yan Cui, the personal maid of Gavin Norton’s mother. At this moment, Yan Cui also looked terrified, not understanding what her young master was trying to do.

“Greetings to the three grandfathers!” Gavin Norton’s face remained expressionless as he saluted the three elders. “I apologize for the abrupt invitation—it was rather discourteous of me!”

“You are Gavin Norton?!” The burly elder leading the trio frowned slightly, looking at Gavin Norton with some displeasure. The lines on his face exuded an oppressive aura.

Stanley Norton, the previous Ning Prince’s younger brother and the current Ning Prince Wang Bicheng’s fourth uncle, held a position in the Ning Prince’s residence equivalent to the clan steward in the royal family, known as Fourth Master. Because he was in charge of the clan and its rules, his authority in the residence was second only to the head of the house, the Ning Prince Wang Bicheng. In some respects, he was even more intimidating than Wang Bicheng. As for the other two, Gavin Norton’s Seventh and Ninth Grandfathers, they were his brothers, Samuel Norton and Stephen Norton. Their status in the residence was far below Stanley Norton’s, but still not something illegitimate sons like Gavin Norton could compare to. Today, like Colin Norton, they just happened to be present.

Old men, after all, are often bored all day. When they heard there was some excitement, of course they wouldn’t miss it and came along.

Although Stanley Norton was the clan steward, there were simply too many people in the Wang family. He only roughly knew how many sons the Ning Prince had. As for who was who, except for the outstanding legitimate and illegitimate sons, he didn’t care at all. Among the Ning Prince’s many sons, Gavin Norton’s background was the lowest, so how could he catch the eye of this Fourth Master? If Yan Cui had explained things clearly when she went to invite Stanley Norton today, even if they met face to face in the residence, Stanley Norton probably wouldn’t have spared Gavin Norton a glance.

But today, he had no choice but to come.

He was an old man who had lived many years in the Ning Prince’s residence and held real power. He was all too familiar with these messy affairs in the household. Before Yan Cui had even finished speaking, he had almost figured out the whole story—the only thing he didn’t understand was Gavin Norton’s purpose.

Why did he want to bring him over? In the Ning Prince’s residence, this was a minor matter, involving only a maid and two illegitimate sons. Normally, such things were settled privately—who would go out of their way to invite him? And even if they did, they’d have to be able to persuade him!

“Yes, Grandson Gavin Norton greets Fourth Grandpa!”