Chapter 425
Nick rapidly approached Philip, visibly delighted as he said, “You’re here too, Mr. Clarke! What a pleasure it is to see you here.”
Philip was talking to Wynn. When he heard Nick’s voice, he raised his head and found that he did not know the man in front of
him. “And you are?” “Oh, you wouldn’t remember little old me. I’m in charge of property matters in these parts, my name is Nick
Cage. The ruckus my son Mickey caused at Longford today was my fault, I didn’t raise him well enough. I hope you don’t mind,
Mr. Clarke.” Nick heaped on the flattery, his words filled with adulation. Philip finally remembered who he was. He said with a
smile, “Good to see you too, Director Cage.” Nick wanted to talk to Philip more and get closer to him, but Mont and the others
were also approaching them now, looking far from pleased. Next to Philip, Wynn was looking at him suspiciously. So Philip even
knew the higher-ups in the property circle? “Hey, do you know Nick Cage?” Wynn tugged at Philip’s hand and looked at him
dubiously.
Philip thought it over and nodded. “I guess I do. I’ll tell you more later.”
Just then, a deep voice behind him demanded, “What are you doing, Philip?
Why aren’t you greeting Mr. Cage properly?” Mont’s expression was cold now. Philip’s nonchalant look
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtwas inevitably ticking him off. This man was their most important guest for the night. He was a director
in the Land Registry, so if anything went awry now, Mont’s plans to enter the Riverdale property market
would go up in smoke! That was why everything had to go smoothly! It was no wonder that he was
somewhat angry at Philip now.
“See, see? That’s what you get for indulging your broke relatives. What will you do if he angers Nick
Cage?” Mony’s wife, Fern, tore down the last vestiges of Mont’s half-hearted politeness. “That’s right,
Dad. Look at Philip’s useless face. Peasants like him in the family will eventually cause the downfall of
us all.” Cindi took her mother’s side as well. She never thought highly of Philip in the first place, and
she used to be quite envious of Wynn too, so of course she would not even pretend to like them. The
crowd approached Philip, and Mont quietly told him off, his expression cold. “Hurry up and apologize to
Mr. Cage!” Philip was baffled. What had he done wrong? He looked at Nick and saw that the latter was
unbelievably flustered. Why were they asking Mr. Clarke to apologize to him? That was no laughing
matter! If Mr. Clarke felt insulted and decided to take Nick down a peg, his entire family might collapse
under the weight of that offense! That was why Nick hastily barked, “Mont Renner! How dare you talk to
Mr. Clarke like that! Hurry up and apologize to him!” “Mr. Clarke?”
Mont was taken aback. Did Nick respect Philip that much? That made no sense! Nick was one of the
leaders here at Riverdale, while Philip was just his relative’s worthless son-in-law who lived off his
wife’s wage! What was happening here? Mont was not the only one confused. His wife, daughter, and
all his friends were stunned as well. “Are you pulling my leg, Mr. Cage?
Philip is just my relative’s worthless son-in-law. How would you know him, sir?” Mont asked, voicing his
doubts. “Never judge a book by its cover.
Someone like you has no right to pass judgment on someone like Mr. Clarke here!” Fury flashed across
Nick’s face. He wanted to give Mont a tongue-lashing right now! Preposterous! How could Mont say
that about Mr. Clarke to his face?! Mont was perplexed too. He could clearly see that Nick truly
respected Philip. It was not a joke at all. What was going on here? Who was Philip? Was he not just the
Johnstons’ useless son-in-law? Mont turned around and glanced at Martha and Charles, who looked
equally clueless.
Charles recovered slightly quicker because he knew Nick, and he hastily went to shake Nick’s hand. “Mr. Cage! I didn’t expect
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmyou to be the honored guest tonight!” Nick looked at Charles suspiciously as the latter tried to suck up to him. “And who are
you?” “I’m Philip’s father-in-law, Charles Johnston. I used to be the head of some section.” The dying embers of Charles’
ambition flared up again in his heart. He never expected Philip to know Nick Cage. This was huge news. Charles’ career had
always been rocky. Could this be his big day? “Oh, nice to meet you! I see, so you’re Mr.
Clarke’s father-in-law.” Nick hurriedly bowed and shook Charles’ hand, all the wrinkles on his face showing as he smiled. “Section
Head Johnston, yes?
You have a great son-in-law, magnificent.” Charles was ecstatic too. Was Nick Cage flattering him now? He gave Philip a
doubtful look and saw that the latter was smiling calmly. Charles knew it, he was right all along. Philip had indeed changed,
becoming more mysterious. No, no, he really had to go back and drill this into his mad wife’s head. They must never ever get on
Philip’s bad side again. If the punk knew someone like Nick Cage, he must certainly be a force to be reckoned with. Martha’s
heart was pounding as well. She knew who Nick was, of course. She understood everything when she saw how her husband
was treating the man. However, Nick Cage was now flattering Charles in return, all because of Philip. What was going on here?
Was Philip not a worthless wretch?