Claire agreed reluctantly.
Sitting on the edge of her bed in silence for a long while, she finally emerged and said, "Dad, Mom, Basil, I have something important to tell you..."
A little while later, the entire neighborhood could hear the cheers erupting from the Walker family home.
But just half an hour later, news spread throughout the neighborhood.
Eugene had won the jackpot, a total of 500 million! Even after taxes, that's still 400 million!
However, this was considered joint property of the couple, so even if Eugene divorced and remarried, he would still have to honestly hand over half of the money.
500 million! No, scratch that, 400 million! It didn't matter anymore. To ordinary folks, both figures were astronomical.
The old Walker family... they struck it rich!
Heavens above, they must have been blind, letting this family strike it rich!
However, many elderly folks in the neighborhood had already approached Eugene and Claire.
For what, you ask? Matchmaking, of course.
What if you've been divorced before? With a couple billion in your pocket, you're still attractive, drawing admirers like moths to a flame.
How scandalous!
Claire was already dreaming happily of immigrating to another country when the phone rang.
It was Gyles.
Freeze Eugene's money?
She quickly answered the phone.
"Ms. Claire, I suggest you come to an agreement with your ex-husband," Gyles got straight to the point.
Claire paused, "Why?"
Weren't you the one who froze Eugene's assets?
"Because your husband bought the lottery ticket after your divorce," Gyles explained wearily.
Would this case still hold up?
The evidence couldn't be more clear.
"It's impossible!" Claire blurted out. This was too irrational, and she couldn't accept this outcome. "You must be mistaken."
"No," Gyles replied, understanding Claire's disappointment. And why wouldn't he? This was a massive lawsuit involving 400 million!
"You divorced at 11:30 a.m., and Eugene bought the ticket at 2:11 p.m. Surveillance footage and the timestamp on the ticket confirm this," Gyles continued, "Now, your ex-husband is suing you for concealing Basil's existence, causing him immense mental distress, and demanding compensation."
"I suggest you reach a settlement with your ex-husband. Otherwise, the odds of losing this lawsuit are quite high."
He put it mildly.
Not just quite high, but certain!
Claire was stunned, her mind blank.
Two billion gone!
Gone!
No, this was her money! Her money!
She was hysterical, almost like she had gone mad.
Despite Gyles calling her name several times, he received no response. Knowing she was deeply affected, he hung up the phone.
These days, the Riverwood neighborhood was quite lively.
The Walker family had just announced they could get two billion from Eugene, but then?
News spread that Eugene's four billion was all post-marriage assets, and he didn't need to split it with the Walker family!
And everyone saw it, just moments ago, the Walkers were strutting around the neighborhood like emperors, but now they had all retreated, no one coming out to refute the claims. So, was this latest news true or false?
It was definitely true.
"Haha, thank goodness the heavens are watching."
"Yeah, didn't let the Walker family get their hands on that money!"
"Now they've really made fools of themselves. First, their daughter's affair and having a child with another man were exposed, and now they thought they could get two billion, only to have their hopes dashed."
"If I were part of the Walker family, I'd probably be having nightmares for years."
"Hehe, at least ten years before they can shake off this shadow."
"More than ten years! That's two billion! If they hadn't divorced, it would've been four billion! This shadow will definitely follow them for life!"
"Serves them right."
"Absolutely deserved!"
And what about the ridiculed Claire and her family?
Now, all four of them were holed up in their rooms, heads hanging low, looking as if the sky had fallen.
They had lost all spirit for anything.
The thought of losing two billion was a dagger to the heart!
"Grandma, I'm hungry!" Basil suddenly cried out.
"Hungry, hungry, hungry, always thinking about food!" Chris grumbled, looking disapprovingly at his grandson. "Whoever's the father should take care of him, not leave him here with me!"
"Dad, what are you saying?" Claire jumped up.
Chris's face darkened. "If you hadn't done those shameful things, and Eugene was still the son-in-law of our Walker family, you wouldn't have divorced, and the four billion would have been ours! But now, you are divorced. We can't get a penny.
Not just that, Eugene was also suing for a hefty split of the marital assets and seeking mental compensation. The Walker family was going to have to pay a large sum.
However, Claire hadn't mentioned this yet, or Chris would have gone mad.
Looking at her own father, Claire said, "All the money Eugene earned before belongs to me. How much have I spent on my brother? Don't you have any idea?"
Now they were blaming her son?
Unthinkable!
"Sis, isn't Dad right?" Dash chimed in, "If you hadn't divorced your brother-in-law, we would've gotten four billion!"
Tsk, now he was calling him brother-in-law.
Claire was exasperated. Just earlier, which one of them hadn't treated Eugene like a beast, and now they all came to blame her?
She felt like she was going to burst a blood vessel.
Dash continued with his bad ideas, saying, "Sis, can't you remarry your brother-in-law? Even though Basil isn't his biological son, he's called him 'Dad' for three years. There must be some emotional connection, right?"
"Yeah!" Chris and his wife both clapped their hands, eyes gleaming.
Called him 'Dad' for three years, how could there not be an emotional bond?
And, a day as husband and wife, a hundred days as kin, right?
"Claire, if you don't go back to Eugene tomorrow, no, right now, and don't make him change his mind, then don't come back to this house!" Chris laid down the law, "Take your son with you and get out of here. I'm sick of seeing you both!"
"Sis, please, beg your brother-in-law. Four billion, four billion!" Dash softened his tone.
Whether or not Claire became a second-generation rich person depended on her abilities.
Claire was literally kicked out by the Walker family, with Dash even grabbing her son and putting him outside the door, leaving her fuming.
What should she do?
She could only go find Eugene. However, after knocking on the mansion's door for a long time with no answer, and seeing no lights on in the evening, she couldn't help but feel lost. Was Eugene not staying here?
Where could he be?
Mystic Hills was so big, and Eugene, with his 4 billion in assets, could be enjoying various activities, even traveling globally. How could she find him?
At this moment, Claire felt a mix of hatred and regret.
Of course, not regretting having Eugene as the white knight, but regretting agreeing to the divorce so quickly.
If only she had waited one more day, no, half a day!
She could have at least gotten two billion!
And Eugene?
He was currently sweating it out in the gym.
He had hired a professional fitness trainer, along with a nutritionist.
Within three months, he was determined to transform himself completely, to have a strong physique.
"Mr. Eugene, your physical condition is excellent," called Nora, the fitness trainer, a beautiful woman.
Why hire a female trainer? The answer was simple. Coaching often involved physical contact, which could be awkward between men. With a woman, especially a beautiful one, there were no such issues, and it was more pleasant to look at.