American Adventure: My Uncle is Don Quixote

Bizarre.

This was utterly bizarre.

Timothy’s mind went completely blank. This was far beyond his expectations.

Beatrice’s betrayal had already been shocking enough. But he never imagined that his useless younger brother, Phoenix—the one who lived abroad—would side with him at the critical moment, casting the decisive dissenting vote.

The conference room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Alister stared intently at the tabletop, deliberately avoiding Alexander’s gaze. He was terrified that if their eyes met, Alexander would fly into a thunderous rage and flip the table in the next second.

After all, what had happened to Timothy the previous night was still fresh in his mind. And now, two of his own sons had openly defied his will at a board meeting.

However, the storm he imagined never came.

"HAHAHA—"

Alexander suddenly burst out laughing. His laughter held an inexplicable trace of amusement.

He leaned back, his full weight pressing into the chair. His gaze swept over everyone at the long table, like a lion watching its cubs on their first hunt.

"Good. Very good," he said.

As he spoke, he turned his head to look out the window.

The sun had come out. The thick snow reflected a blinding glare under the pale winter sun.

"This meeting is temporarily adjourned," Alexander said, standing up and straightening the hem of his cashmere sweater. "The snow has stopped."

He stood up and surveyed the deathly silent conference room, then raised a hand. "Sitting in here breathing this stuffy air is nauseating. Now, who wants to join me outside for a few rounds of skeet shooting?"

No one spoke.

Timothy was in a state of extreme tension. In his mind, he was already on the verge of open war with Alexander; how could he possibly be in the mood to go shooting with him?

Alister was shrinking back, wishing he could find a hole to crawl into.

Beatrice was tempted, but when she saw that Alexander’s gaze wasn’t on her but was instead fixed in Elizabeth’s direction, she immediately understood and remained silent in her chair.

"Since all you spineless cowards are afraid of the cold," Alexander’s gaze passed over the others and landed directly on Elizabeth, who was sitting at the far end of the table. "Liz, we haven’t had a chat in a long time. You come with me. And while you’re at it, introduce me to that good friend of yours."

Elizabeth froze for a moment, seemingly surprised to receive such an "honor."

"Of course, Grandfather." She stood and gave a slight nod.

Meanwhile, in the drawing-room at the end of the first-floor hall.

The fire in the fireplace burned brightly, the expensive fruitwood letting out a gentle CRACKLE. Somehow, the wood the wealthy burned produced no smoke, only a strange, faint fragrance.

Li Wei sat on the sofa, playing on his phone while he waited for the meeting to end.

Not far away, Amanda, with nothing to do, was idly fiddling with her nails, bored out of her mind.

She had already paced around the room several times. Each time, she was tempted to take a few selfies to show off that she had been inside the Mellon Family’s estate.

But unfortunately, an incredibly strict non-disclosure agreement prevented her from breathing a single word about it, or she would be in huge trouble.

After pacing for a while, she stopped. Her eyes sized up Li Wei for a long moment before she suddenly broke the silence.

"Mr. Li Wei, you’re a real enigma," she said sincerely.

"How so?" Li Wei didn’t even look up.

"Logically speaking, for someone with your level of fame—an NFL superstar with tens of millions of fans, a massive fortune, and handsome looks," Amanda said, her gaze drifting over Li Wei’s broad shoulders and the cashmere sweater that hinted at the muscles beneath, "anyone who slept with you would be bragging about it for at least a month."

She shrugged and continued, "But my circle and I—we have the dirt on eighty percent of New York’s elite and celebrities, yet no one has ever claimed to have slept with you. No one’s ever seen you at some underground party or on a yacht. It’s unbelievable."

After hearing her out, Li Wei still didn’t look up. "I’m just not like people such as Alister."

"Ha!" Amanda chuckled, covering her mouth as if she’d heard a hilarious joke. "You’re right, you two are polar opposites. But..."

She leaned in a little closer. "...you’re quite similar in one respect."

"Oh?" Li Wei finally looked up.

"Neither of you has slept with me," Amanda said, confidently flipping her hair. "Everyone out there thinks Alister is some kind of playboy, but in reality, all he can do is sext with me on the phone. When it comes to real life, he can’t get it up. He’s just limp, like a dead sea cucumber."

"It almost makes me feel bad taking his 5,000 USD appearance fee every time," she said with a pout, then suddenly proposed, "If you ever have the need, you should call me. I’ll give you a discount."

"No, thanks," Li Wei said, waving a hand. "I have a girlfriend."

’Erectile dysfunction?’

Thinking back on Alister’s usual demeanor, Li Wei found it wasn’t so hard to believe.

At that thought, a good deal of Li Wei’s disgust for Alister actually dissipated, replaced by a kind of condescending pity.

Just then, a series of footsteps sounded, and Elizabeth was the first to walk in.

"Li Wei," she said, walking straight up to him. "Grandfather wants us to go to the outdoor range for skeet shooting. He also wants to meet you."

"Skeet shooting? Now?" Li Wei glanced out the window as he stood up. "How did the talks go?"