Chapter 66: Breaking the Agreement

Chapter 66: Breaking the Agreement

Ethan's words left the room in stunned silence.

Even Old Mr. Harrison, who was coming down the stairs with the parrot, stopped in his tracks.

The room remained quiet.

One second, two seconds, three—

"Ethan, do you even understand what you're doing?!"

Ethan turned to see his father staring at him in shock.

Old Mr. Harrison was a deeply reserved man, someone who rarely displayed his emotions, so seeing him this visibly upset in front of others was a first for Ethan.

His father was visibly agitated, his voice rising, "Do you understand what it means to annul the prenuptial agreement?!"

Ethan looked at his father calmly. "I understand."

He even feigned a slight surprise, raising an eyebrow, "I recall you have a dual degree in law. Don't you know?"

Old Mr. Harrison choked on his words, his expression growing darker. He glanced at Emily—his look filled with complex emotions.

Emily sat there, stunned, just like everyone else, her face showing utter bewilderment.

She never imagined that this year's New Year's gift would be this significant!

Her billionaire husband, with a personal fortune close to $40 billion, was offering to share all his assets with her?

Well, it seemed she might be making it onto the Forbes list of wealthy women next year after all :)

But that wasn't the main issue. Ethan's wealth was vast, and the complexities of his interests—stocks, real estate, cash flow—were unimaginable.

The concept of marital property wasn't just about moving one piece of the puzzle; if Emily really wanted to, she could potentially destabilize the entire Harrison family, possibly even stripping them of their name.

Emily took a deep breath, gently squeezing her cool fingertips.

This gift was so overwhelming that her brain momentarily froze…

Ethan noticed his father's gaze on Emily and frowned slightly. "This was my unilateral decision. Emily didn't know about it."

He looked at Old Mr. Harrison, a barely perceptible hint of displeasure on his face. "Dad, didn't we settle this matter last time?"

Old Mr. Harrison's face darkened further, but he didn't respond.

During their previous disagreement over Emily's billion-dollar divorce settlement, Ethan had been extremely assertive, giving his father no face, and had almost outright said, "It's my money; what business is it of yours?"

Old Mr. Harrison thought the billion-dollar settlement was the limit, but now this…

Daniel suddenly spoke up, "Last time was last time; this is different."

His tone lacked the previous arrogance, and when faced with Ethan's intense gaze, he faltered slightly, "Besides, people like us don't get married without a prenuptial agreement…"

He wasn't wrong. In their circle, no one got married without signing dozens, sometimes hundreds of pages of contracts—especially someone with Ethan's wealth and background.

The idea of a billionaire not having a prenuptial agreement was absurd.

Ethan looked at Daniel. "What you're describing is a marriage of convenience. Prenuptial agreements are common in such cases."

He then turned to Emily, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly in what seemed to be a mix of pride and affection. "But what Emily and I have is not a marriage of convenience. We're getting married."

"Husband and wife are one entity; there is no 'yours' or 'mine.' Shared assets are the natural order."

"Of course," Ethan paused, turning to his father and cousin, both of whom were looking increasingly grim, "I understand the desire to use a contract to safeguard a marriage. But neither a contract nor money can truly protect a relationship—"

He turned to Susan Manley, "Isn't that right, Sister-in-law?"

Susan Manley's expression turned sour, her face paling slightly.

Indeed, a contract is useless—if a husband wants to cheat, he will cheat.

Divorce was out of the question, so all she could do was manage her own interests in the marriage.

It was a joke of a marriage…

She glanced at Emily, feeling increasingly uneasy.

Just a moment ago, she had been mentally scoffing at Emily's naivety, thinking the young woman was foolishly in love, unaware that her husband might one day trade her in for someone younger.

But now, she realized that before Emily had even grown old, her billionaire husband was already handing over half his wealth.

"I'm only sharing my personal assets," Ethan continued. "You've all seen how the group has fared since I took over. The bulk of my wealth was earned through my own efforts, and I have the right to decide with whom I share it."

He let out a small laugh, "As for the family's assets, I believe I've contributed significantly to their growth. If you want to tally things up, I don't mind."

Old Mr. Harrison and Daniel were left speechless.

Everyone knew that the Harrison family depended on Ethan. If they really did the math, their assets would shrink rather than grow…

Ethan packed away the document.

"Since we've cleared this up today, I hope there won't be any unnecessary disputes in the future. And don't use this issue to trouble my wife."

Silence fell again.

Everyone at the table was filled with a sense of suppressed frustration.

They were dissatisfied, but there was nothing they could do.

"Dad," Old Mr. Harrison suddenly turned to the old man by the staircase, "What do you think? Do you have any opinions?"

Daniel and Susan Manley also looked to Old Mr. Harrison—hoping for a lifeline.

The old man said nothing, raising a hand to stroke the parrot's feathers, still looking calm and unruffled.

"I have no opinions," he said coolly. "Since Ethan is in charge now, let him handle it."

He paused, then continued, "As long as the couple doesn't divorce, it doesn't really matter whether the assets are shared or not."

The old man looked at his grandson and granddaughter-in-law, chuckling. "They're not going to divorce!"

—The faith and blessing of a CP fan leader :)

Ethan's lips twitched slightly as he nodded to his grandfather. He took Emily's hand, leading her toward the door.

"By the way, Grandfather," Ethan stopped beside the old man. "I understand your concerns, but when it comes to having children, we have our own plans."

He glanced at his petite wife leaning against him, "Women bear more of the risks and pressures of childbirth. In this matter, I'll respect Emily's wishes. Please don't burden her with this anymore."

**

Emily followed Ethan for quite a while, still in shock from the enormous "gift" and unable to process everything.

Ethan didn't bring up the contract again.

It wasn't until they had been driving for several minutes that Emily realized they weren't heading toward Starry Sky Pavilion.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

Ethan winked at her. "You'll see when we get there."

As they drove further, the surroundings became more open, and soon they arrived at an empty clearing.

Emily got out of the car and saw a massive vehicle in front of them—a pink-and-white helicopter with her name, "Alisa," emblazoned on it.

It was the gift he had given her last year for her birthday, trying to make amends.

At the time, she had refused to accept it.

Ethan took her hand, guiding her carefully into the helicopter.

There was no pilot inside.

Emily watched in disbelief as Ethan took the pilot's seat, deftly put on a helmet, and expertly began operating the controls. Soon, she heard the loud whir of the rotors.

As the helicopter ascended steadily and the ground below shrank away, Emily continued to stare at Ethan in stunned silence.

Ethan glanced at her, pretending not to know why she was staring. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Emily swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. "You… you can fly a helicopter?"

Ethan chuckled. "I learned in college. Got my license in the States."

Emily kept her eyes on Ethan, as if they were glued to him.

"I never knew…"

She had just come to terms with the fact that he could paint, and now he was piloting a helicopter.

What else didn't she know about this man?

She had always said Ethan didn't understand her, but now Emily realized that she didn't really know him either…

"Not many people know," Ethan said casually.

"In our family, these things are considered 'frivolous.' I've loved painting since I was a kid, but my dad took away my easel in middle school, saying it was a waste of time. It wasn't until I went to college abroad that I got the chance to pursue my interests."

Seeing that Emily was still staring at him in awe, Ethan's smile deepened, "Why, are you that surprised? Did you really think I'm just a money-making machine with no hobbies?"

Emily finally looked away, mumbling softly, "Not really…"

"Before I took over the company, I indulged in all the things I loved. Painting, flying in the U.S., skiing in Switzerland… I thought I'd never have the chance to do those things again once I took on the family business."

He smiled warmly at her, "It's thanks to you that I'm painting again and flying today."

Emily pursed her lips, quietly gazing at Ethan.

She had never seen him like this before.

Wearing a helmet, his features looked even more striking. Maybe it was the light, but his entire face seemed brighter, even his eyes a lighter shade than usual.

"Why don't you do these things anymore after taking over the business? You could take a vacation, relax a bit."

"

Who has time for that?" Ethan replied, "I took over during a crisis. In those first two years, forget about vacations—I barely had time to sleep."

Emily lowered her lashes, letting out a soft sigh, "So even billionaires have it rough, huh."

Ethan reached over to ruffle her hair.

"What did you think? How else am I going to make money to support you?"

Emily puffed out her cheeks slightly, a bit miffed.