The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 437 Mother-And-Son Showdown

Since his mother Nancy had been working for the Lu family for many years, Brent had it in mind that Charles and Autumn would at least give him a better position in the household staff. He was appalled at just being assigned as Autumn's driver, a job far below his expectation.

"Mom, is there no other job they can give me?" he complained to Nancy. Brent was far from pleased with what was being handed to him.

His mother was taken aback by his attitude. "What, you think it is not good enough?" Nancy was extremely grateful to Autumn for agreeing to give Brent a job, even if it was only to serve as her driver. She was aware that her son was hardly a responsible man and constantly worried whether he could perform well in this job.

Yet here he was complaining that the work being given to him was not decent enough. She was really getting annoyed with Brent now.

To express her frustration, she slapped Brent on the back and shouted, "I had to humble myself before Mr. Lu to give you a job, so you have no other choice. Will you look at yourself? You have no other skills except for driving so what can you expect!" Nancy was nearly huffing. "Don't tell me you're dreaming of Mr. Lu letting you become an executive in his company!" She was pacing back and forth now. "He works very hard to manage the business, but can you do the same thing? I doubt it!" she scoffed.

Brent refused to be discouraged. "How do you know I won't be able to run a company if I don't try?" he told his mother. "Mom, I'm your son. Why do you think so little of me?" he asked in despair.

But Nancy could not be pacified. She was really very annoyed with Brent. Suddenly she grabbed the feather duster nearby and started whacking him with it. While she was frustrated with Brent, Nancy was also furious with herself for not having taught him to become a responsible person. As a result, he grew up with such unrealistic ideas. She screamed at him, "Look at yourself in the mirror! Is that someone who deserves to be boss?" Nancy continued to beat her son. "The only thing you do each day is daydream. I am only a servant of the Lu family so I can't give you a job as the boss." She was running out of steam. "If you want to work as a driver, then you'd better get to it now. Otherwise, I will never do anything for you and you can just pack your bag and go back home to the countryside."

Brent, too, was exhausted. "Mom, please stop beating me," he pleaded. He held up his arms in surrender and apologized. "I'm sorry. Please forgive me."

Nancy stopped. She felt very tired. But she could not keep herself from crying out,"Is this God's punishment for me?" Looking at Brent, she warned, "If you don't work hard for Mrs. Lu, I will ask you to leave before they can even fire you. I will never allow you to cause them harm."

"Mom!" Brent cried out. He was sore from the beating Nancy gave him. Brent tried to rub his back to soothe the pain. He whimpered as his fingers ran over the welts he felt beginning to form. But he didn't dare say anything more when he looked at Nancy's hard eyes.

She looked at the man who was her son with fury and disappointment. "Will you get up?!" she ordered him.

"All right, all right!" Brent stood up slowly. While he was far from satisfied with the job he was given, he would take it because it was still better to live in the city than in the countryside. He vowed to do everything to get promoted.

Brent changed his clothes, all provided by his mother. It was a cheap suit, not made of good quality material. But it was clean and gave him a tidy appearance, looking decent as a driver.

He was, after all, pretty handsome even with the scars on his face.

Nancy inspected her son, nodded with satisfaction and said, "Let's go. I'll bring you to the Lu family house."

Arriving at Dream Garden, Brent could not help looking around and admiring the house where his mother worked as they entered the gate.

He had heard the family Nancy worked for was wealthy but now he realized the Lu family was rich beyond imagination.

Deep inside, he felt the unfairness of it all. 'Why do they live in this huge house while I, already so poor, could get almost beaten to death for just a few thousands of dollars?'

Brent snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Nancy say,"Stop looking around." His mother reminded him as if he were a little boy. "Remember to be polite when you answer Mr. Lu's questions. And don't look too distracted."

Brent heaved a sigh. "I know, Mom." She had been repeating these words since they left the hotel and Brent was already getting annoyed.

Yet he could not help the feeling of excitement as they entered the Lu family house. Every article he saw amazed him. They all looked very expensive. Unable to stop himself, he pulled at Nancy's sleeve and whispered,"How much does this house cost, Mom?" He pointed out, "Everything in this house appears to be expensive."

Nancy shook off his hand and muttered, "What does that have to do with you?" Walking briskly, she told Brent, "Let me remind you we only work for the Lu family. There is nothing here that belongs to us, so don't get any foolish ideas of taking anything. If I catch you doing anything wrong, I won't let you get away with it!"

Brent rolled his eyes. "Okay! Take it easy. I won't do anything." He grumbled, "I only asked a simple question and you get so emotional over it."

She stopped before saying, "Wait here a moment." Before going, she added, "Do not touch anything. I'll inform Mr. Lu that you're here now."

"Okay," he replied, as his eyes continued to roam the house. He motioned zipping his lips to indicate he would remain quiet but remained curious about everything around him.

As Nancy climbed the stairs, she kept looking at Brent to make sure he behaved himself. Once certain he did as he was told, she headed towards the bedroom of Charles and Autumn and knocked. "Are you up, Mr. Lu?" she called out.

Charles was still in bed reading files. He asked in a low tone,"What is it?" He wanted to be sure Nancy's voice did not wake his wife, who was still soundly asleep. Then he got up and went to the door. "What is it that you need?" he asked Nancy after opening the door.

Nancy tried to peek if Autumn was awake. She felt a little nervous, and hesitated before replying, "I've brought my son with me."

"All right. Why don't you wait for me. I'll be downstairs shortly," Charles said. Nancy nodded and turned to leave.

Charles shut the door and went to change his clothes. As Nancy was going down, Brent could not resist picking up a jade piece, owned by Gary, and inspecting it closely. His mother saw him, annoyed, and marched up to him quickly. "Put that back! Didn't I just tell you not to touch anything?" Mad because Brent disobeyed her, she spat,"Didn't you understand what I said?"

She threw her arms in an angry gesture and said, "You freak me out!" Brent put the jade back on the shelf quickly, explaining his action,"I was just so bored being left alone so I took a closer look. Mom, is that jade worth several thousands of dollars?" he asked.

It was in fact worth several millions, but Nancy was not about to tell her son that. Instead, she glared at him without speaking.

She sat down and motioned for Brent to do the same. "Mr. Lu will be downstairs shortly. So sit and stay quiet."

He chose to remain standing, and waited for Charles' arrival in silence. Charles' first impression when he saw Brent was displeasure. He did not like the young man. He saw greed in his eyes and it was unsettling. Nancy pulled Brent, motioning him to walk towards Charles. She introduced him saying, "Mr. Lu, this is my son Brent." To the boy, she instructed, "Greet Mr. Lu, Brent."

She looked at him, saw Brent hesitate, and prodded him by touching his arm.

"Hello, Mr. Lu," Brent greeted politely. The two men looked at each other.