Kendall's Sacrifice

Chapter 296

Jane giggled happily. "Are you afraid now?"

Yoseph merely jerked away his hand and kept a distance from her in response.

Jane knew that he was fuming silently because of her and figured that she had teased him enough for the day. Well, it was because he avoided her when she returned and only met today. She would feel uneasy if she didn't pull his tail a little.

The smell of delicious food was wafting in the air around the grill, and everyone was idly grilling their food while chatting.

The atmosphere was perfect, with the sun just setting and the darkness starting to blanket the sky, swallowing the last bit of light.

After they had their fill of food and drinks, Kendall pushed her husband and took a stroll on the race track.

"I'm very happy today, Dylan."

"And you're usually not?"

She smiled as she said, "I'm usually happy as well, but I'm the happiest today because I get to eat the delicious food my man grilled for me. I really didn't think that you were so good at this. It looks like Alice didn't trick me. She told me you're talented but don't show it."

Kendall thought Alice was exaggerating, but after seeing it for herself, she realized that Dylan was talented and modest about his skills.

After Dylan received praise from his beloved wife, the look in his eyes turned soft, and he said calmly, "It's stressful to take over the reins. There are many things to learn, not only about business but also about life. In the business world, nobody stays on top forever, and there will be a day when things change. My ancestors were worried that the Coleman Family would one day run into a severe predicament leading to the family's bankruptcy and be burdened with debts. So, members of the family have to be mentally strong to accept the fact that the family is bankrupt and not end up on the streets due to bankruptcy. As long as we are equipped with skills, we can make a living with one of them and won't starve to death. Also, there will be a possibility to make a comeback and rise again."

Kendall felt astonished when she heard his words, but she thought that his philosophy on education was rather insightful.

Some people said that there weren't families who would remain poor forever, just as people wouldn't be rich all the time. Even if the previous generation had made a fortune, if they didn't educate their children well and weren't capable enough, there would be one generation who would lose everything their ancestors built up with a snap of their fingers.

The best would be to educate the future generations well so they could survive regardless of the situation.

"You didn't even have the time to play when you were young, did you?"

After a short moment of silence, Dylan said, "I don't have a childhood."

Basically, he spent his childhood learning skills for the 'what-if' scenarios their ancestors were worried about. Then, every summer and winter break when he was a little older, he and his brother would be sent to live in a harsh environment for a while. Over there, they weren't the young masters of the Coleman Family, so they didn't have any special rights or pocket money.

They had to earn money through hard labor if they wanted to spend it.

Since he was fifteen years old, he would attend all sorts of business cocktail parties with his grandparents, and he met various people and witnessed the ups and downs of many companies.

He had seen with his own eyes a man who jumped off a building because his business failed, and he couldn't take the blow.

His grandfather had said that people who committed suicide were cowards. Why would they be frightened of their business failing if they weren't even afraid of death? If you failed, you could start over, but you would have nothing if you died. Death only meant relief for oneself, but what was left for their families was misery.

The craftiness in the business field and the cruelty of society were introduced into his life too early, so he quickly transitioned from pain to shock and, eventually, indifference. There were even times when he caused the downfall and heavy debts of others.

However, he also had his bottom line; he wouldn't push someone to a corner where their families would fall apart and would leave them a way out. But, of course, that way out would be full of difficulties.

"Your childhood must be very happy." This text is property of Nô/velD/rama.Org.

Dylan was worried that his words were too solemn and would affect his lovely wife's happy mood, so he changed the topic and asked about her childhood instead.

While Kendall pushed him, she smiled and said, "My childhood was very happy. As the youngest in the family with two older brothers, my parents and brothers doted on me very much. I'm always playing outside with my brothers. Sometimes when they refused to take me along, I'd cry and make a scene, rolling all over the floor. Finally, out of wits, they had to take me. Since we grew up in the village, we didn't have as much entertainment for fun as children in the city do. We would pick wild fruits from the mountains, climb trees to steal bird eggs, get into the river for fishing or play hopscotch, and hide-and- seek games with other kids in the village. After that, I started to attend hobby classes and seldom went out to play with my brothers."

The memories were wonderful.

He turned his head to face her and said, "No wonder you learned martial arts."

With a personality as mischievous as a boy, it would be such a shame if she didn't learn martial arts.

A blushing Kendall explained, "Dylan, I'm usually gentle and don't really want to resort to violence unless unnecessary."

Every time she beat up someone, she was usually caught red-handed by Dylan or Frank. So, in their hearts, she must be a violent woman.

"Back then, I started learning martial arts because, firstly, I like it. Secondly, it was my family's hope that

I learn to defend myself if I accidentally find myself in a difficult predicament. In their opinion, society was becoming more dangerous, and people were unpredictable, unlike how simple and kind they used to be. Even though we can't be a savior, we can at least save ourselves. I can protect myself by learning martial arts, and my family would be more assured, knowing that I can save myself when the time comes. Sometimes, I can even help others, so I think learning martial arts is a rather good deal."

After she learned martial arts, she also wanted more people to learn self-defense. Hence, right after she graduated, she borrowed money from her family and started the martial arts training institute, where she could teach children all sorts of skills while learning to protect themselves.

Before her biological parents brought her back to the Parker Family, her training institute had just started to be profitable. As Dylan had investigated her past, he knew what she had done before and that her institution was already making money.

The only thing which surprised him was that she had a pair of skillful hands that could weave a lot of small things to be sold on the Internet, and she said that her business was doing rather well.

All of the little gifts she gave him were nicely done, and he really liked them after taking one glance at them.

Whenever the senior management from the company or other company owners had a business discussion with him and saw the little animals on his desk, they would always ask him where he bought them.

"Dylan, when we have children in the future, regardless of their gender, we must let them learn some martial arts."

"Yeah," Dylan muttered. "All the children in our family have to learn self-defense skills, even Alice."

As Alice was the baby the elders had anticipated for a long time, and her safety was everyone's biggest concern.

Despite a bunch of bodyguards and nannies, it was better to rely on herself, and learning self-defense was much more reliable than bringing a couple of bodyguards.

That information surprised Kendall, who thought that Alice would be an exception.

"If we have children, I wish our children would do better than me. At least they should have a childhood and not end up like me. When I look back on my childhood years now, besides learning, there's nothing else and not a bit of happiness from being a child."

Especially since children had to attend all sorts of tuition and hobby classes occupying their holidays. As a result, they grew up in an uptight yet highly stressful learning environment. Dylan even thought that because of his insanely packed schedule as a child, he wished that his children would have time to themselves just to relax when appropriate.