Family Banquet and a Father-Son Talk

After the carriage arrived at the manor, Victor got off first.

Victor noticed that Wembley and the others' carriage had arrived before them, and it was now empty, meaning they must have already gone inside.

He turned and extended his right hand toward the carriage. Veronica placed her hand on his and stepped off the carriage.

Victor glanced up and noticed that Veronica's face was still flushed.

As Victor gazed at the radiant and delicate beauty, he unconsciously became immersed in the enchanting scene from just moments before.

The two remained silent and motionless, as if time had stood still.

Just then, a coughing sound suddenly came.

The two of them jumped and turned around to see Irene standing by the pillar by the door. Victor hadn't noticed her before.

"Mom and Dad should be waiting for us. They just asked the Downs, Downs, to serve the food. Brother and Ronnie, let's go!"

Then Irene stepped forward, grabbed Veronica, and pulled her into the house.

Victor shrugged helplessly, took the wooden box from the back of the carriage, and followed behind them.

The two walked and whispered to each other, with Irene occasionally making "hey" and "wow" sounds. She would turn her head to look at Victor while making smacking noises.

Victor felt uneasy under Irene's gaze and unconsciously turned his head away.

At this moment, all the servants in the manor noticed Victor. When they saw their lord return, they all bowed and greeted him.

Upon arriving at the restaurant, Victor saw that everyone was already seated. Wendy was next to his mother, while his father sat opposite his mother, not in the main seat. Enlek sat to his father's right.

Victor was about to tell his father to take the seat of honor, but Wembley spoke first, "The head of the family has arrived, and we can start eating soon. Irene, you sit to my left, Veronica, you sit next to Ally."

Seeing that Veronica and Irene went straight to their seats, Victor had no choice but to take the seat of honor.

Since he was the one in charge, Victor announced directly, "It's getting late, let's start eating!"

Enlek and Wendy then began to eat, and their two personal servants served them food and left immediately.

Soon only Victor's family and Veronica remained in the restaurant, which was also a habit of Victor's family; they didn't like having too many servants to wait on them while eating.

To Victor's surprise, Veronica was already dining with her family very harmoniously, as if she were already a member of the family.

Lady Ellie noticed Victor's surprise and smiled, "Ronnie is already part of our family. This child is not as distant from you as you were when you were little, even avoiding your parents at mealtimes."

Lady Ellie's words made Victor blush a little. When he first awakened his memories of his past life, he did not feel comfortable in this family. Fortunately, the Wembley were very tolerant, unlike typical aristocratic families.

When Veronica heard Lady Ellie say this, she was surprised to learn that Victor had this side to him, and she began to discuss it with Lady Ellie with great curiosity.

Irene quickly joined in, and the three of them had a very lively discussion, occasionally pointing at Victor and chuckling.

Victor was at a loss, but fortunately Wembley came to his rescue.

"Alright, Victor is finally back. Let's eat first. You'll have plenty of time to discuss these things later."

With the intervention of the Old Baron Wembley, Victor was finally spared embarrassment during the rest of the dinner.

An hour later, the family dinner ended. Perhaps because he hadn't felt the family atmosphere for a long time, Victor very much.

After all, the culinary team in the Two Rivers Territory is the best in the entire Golden Sunflower Family. This time, under the guidance of Butler Downs, they prepared Victor's favorite dishes.

Even Enlek and Wendy were allowed by their parents to eat several pieces of cake. The two children were so full that they were taken away by their personal servants to rest before Victor could finish eating.

Before leaving, the brother and sister made a promise with Victor that Victor would tell them war stories the next day.

"Ronnie, Irene, let's go have some tea first! I reckon those two will chat for a while longer."

Only Victor and Wembley remained in the restaurant. Wembley spoke up, "Let's go to the study. I imagine you have a lot to tell me."

The two went straight to the study. To Victor's surprise, the furnishings in the study were almost exactly the same as when he left, except that it must have been cleaned regularly, as there wasn't a speck of dust.

"After I arrived, I instructed Downs to keep this place exactly as it is. Otherwise, if you don't come back, your mother and I will have no reason to miss you."

Victor understood that his father was somewhat angry about his adventure. After all, the nearly two-month journey had been accompanied by life-or-death crises, and his father's concern was understandable.

"Father, I'm back now, aren't I? You don't need to worry. Alex went this time too, didn't he? It wasn't as dangerous as you think."

Wembley took a bottle of wine and glasses from the wine cabinet next to him and poured two glasses for himself and Victor respectively.

He picked up his glass and handed it to Victor. "I'm not stupid. I understand what you're saying, but you took 47 guards with you, right? How many of them have returned?"

"Uh, 36."

"Of the 36, a quarter died in battle. I've known for a long time that you sometimes like to take risks, but don't do it again."

This is not only my concern for you as your father, but also because you are now a viscount, with tens of thousands of people in two territories under your command.

If something happens to you, who will manage them for you? I'm no longer a nobleman, Enlek is only 8 years old. What does he know? You also have to consider them.

Besides, there's Veronica. Haven't you prepared for your wedding yet? Viscount Benjamin has been corresponding with me frequently, telling you to get married as soon as you return. You're not alone anymore, Victor!

Wembley grew angrier and angrier, and finally he gulped down the wine in his glass and slammed it down on the table.

With a snap, the sturdy crystal glass shattered.

Victor quickly grabbed Wembley's hand and breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that he was not injured. However, he noticed that the spot where the cup had been placed had left a shallow mark on the table.

Victor didn't expect his father to be so angry, after all, Wembley had always been a very cultured person.

At this moment, Victor could only apologize to his father. "Father, I'm sorry, I was too reckless!"

Wembley didn't speak. After a while, he turned around, and Victor noticed that his eyes were a little red.

Wembley patted Victor on the shoulder, made him sit down, and began to ask him about everything that had happened during this time, including the details of the interception operation and the defeat of the Vanguard Army.

Victor then stopped hiding things and told the Old Baron Wembley everything.

After listening, Wembley sighed, "What you said is excellent. I believe that no one in the world can do better than you. But as a father, I hope that you will be more careful in the future and think more about yourself, your current family, and your future family!"

"Yes, Father. I will think twice before I act in the future!"

"Get some rest early. Spend some quality time with Veronica tomorrow. Don't worry about Wendy and Enlek for now. Veronica has been really working hard lately."

My mother and I both like her very much. I've already written to Benjamin, asking him to bring his family to Two Rivers Territory to hold a wedding for you two.

Victor was taken aback for a moment, then replied, "Thank you, Father!"