Thus Began Your Regret - Chapter 67

Louisa looked at Edward with a bewildered expression.

“Go with you? Where?”

“To the boutique. Even if you go later with Lord Averitt, you never know. We’ll go today and tomorrow. That should do it.”

Just then, someone came out from inside the building. It was Karen, who had come out to greet them after hearing about the children’s story.

“Oh, Louisa! Welcome!”

She approached with quick steps and greeted them. She looked back and forth between Edward and Louisa as she spoke.

“Seeing you together, you look quite close. It seems the rumors going around lately weren’t unfounded.”

Karen said with a bright smile.

Though she didn’t understand exactly, Louisa grasped the general meaning. She could neither confirm nor deny it, and just smiled awkwardly.

Edward stepped forward and said,

“Now that we’ve dropped off Alisa, we have plans, so we’ll be going.”

“Oh, what a shame.”

Karen’s eyebrows drooped as he said they were leaving right after arriving.

“Next time, if it’s alright, come for a cup of tea. The children will surely be delighted.”

“Delighted, indeed. I too am just like those who consider the person who quietly brings money to be the best.”

Edward cracked a joke. Karen clapped her hands and laughed.

“Hahaha, that’s quite a wise saying. Well then, I look forward to your continued support, our reliable patron.”

“It’s my pleasure.”

Edward nodded his head nonchalantly. Of course, Louisa, who had read his lips, was aghast and smacked Edward’s arm.

Having inevitably exchanged farewells together, she now had to exit holding his hand.

Far from achieving her original goal, it turned into a situation where they were leaving right after arriving.

“Well then, let’s go.”

Edward led his wife and began walking. While Louisa waved back to Karen’s well-wishes, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had been outmaneuvered by him somehow.

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The Central Square of the capital.

Going further into the square, you come across the high-end boutique street that nobles visit almost daily.

Though Edward didn’t know the criteria by which women choose luxury items, he understood people’s inner thoughts well.

For those who visit places out of vanity, the answer is to buy items that are so expensive they can’t even touch them.

Following this principle of his, the place he went with Louisa this time was where Ernst had taken him before.

“A few days ago and now, we’ve been shopping every day lately. I don’t think I’ve ever shopped this frequently before…”

Louisa said as she sat down on the sofa after being guided to the inner private room.

“Just do it. After you divorce this time and receive alimony, use that to indulge a bit. No one will say anything to you.”

If there is such a person, I plan to shut their mouth immediately.

Edward looked at his wife nonchalantly, swallowing the latter part of his thoughts.

Louisa slowly shook her head.

“What alimony? It’s fine. I’ve already received enough from you.”

“You have? What exactly?”

Edward asked, furrowing one eyebrow.

What on earth did she receive enough of, when she left behind everything I bought for her?

Louisa blinked her eyes a few times, as if thinking about something, shifting her gaze to one side.

“Countless things, but… to summarize, it would be our family name.”

“That’s not something you received, it’s just something you got back.”

Edward shook his head a couple of times, raising both hands. He leaned back against the sofa and said,

“You still have a lot more to receive. Even if we filled that trunk you took with diamonds, it wouldn’t be enough.”

“The one dress you bought me a few days ago is enough for me.”

“One dress?”

“Yes. One dress.”

Louisa answered firmly.

Edward read the rejection in those unwavering eyes.

[Now, truly, I don’t want to receive anything from you anymore.]

He recalled Louisa’s words from the day they parted. The inside of his palm tingled, and he unconsciously clenched his fist tightly.

It would be difficult to overturn his wife’s determination. But anyway, his wife would soon face the large number of dresses ordered from Madame Lang’s shop, and it was obvious she would be angry.

He decided to push a little more, since he had already gone this far.

The manager entered with a rack of dresses.

The short man with a stylishly trimmed beard spoke while touching his mustache.

“Here are the samples. You said you were planning to place an order for production, correct?”

“I’ll decide after seeing the samples you show. For now, explain each one slowly and carefully.”

The manager began explaining from the front, step by step.

While Louisa was focused on his words, Edward was not at all impressed with them.

In his view, the designs the manager had brought were not particularly special to begin with.

Edward interrupted the manager’s explanation.

“Not those. Even to my eyes, they all look the same. Bring something more special, regardless of the production cost.”

“If you want something truly special, we have a sample of a dress that was supplied to Princess Beatrice, but…”

“Now we’re talking.”

Edward sat cross-legged, folding his arms.

Dresses of the caliber supplied to the royal family!

The manager was moved. He bowed deeply to this generous big spender and said,

“Yes. Then please wait a moment. I’ll replace the samples and return.”

Springing up like a coiled spring, he ran out quickly, making hand signals to the staff with his short arms.

Noticing from the manager’s actions that Edward had said something, Louisa whispered.

“Ed. What did you say this time?”

“Nothing much. I just told him to bring out something of better quality than what he just showed.”

“I saw Princess Beatrice’s name just now.”

“That’s right. He said it was a sample of a dress supplied to that princess.”

“Oh my goodness. Ed.”

As she was about to get angry, Edward said nonchalantly,

“It’s mine. I’m buying it to give to my little sister if I dramatically meet her someday.”

“What kind of nonsense is that?”

Louisa let out a hollow laugh as if dumbfounded.

Edward had no such thing as a little sister.

“You never know. My runaway father might have had another daughter somewhere.”

“Even if that were true, that child wouldn’t be old enough to wear such clothes yet.”

“If you say that, people who mature faster than others would be in tears.”

It was a statement that completely silenced Louisa.

As she pressed her lips together and glared at him, Edward shrugged his shoulders and needlessly shifted his gaze to the door where the dress racks would enter.

‘If I force these on her like this, she’ll end up using them out of guilt for throwing them away.’

Because his wife was such a kind person.

He resolved to gift his wife dresses that no one would dare covet.

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In the end, Edward came out after giving the designers there a hellish interrogation and providing the shop owner with tremendous sales.

How about this? What’s the most luxurious fabric you consider now? Is it possible to import? Do you have anything supplied to the royal family this time too? What’s the lace used in that sample?

Louisa, not knowing the details, could only blankly watch his outrageous behavior without being able to stop him.

She could only see what the designers were noting down, which showed that from the fabric, they would use the highest quality silk-made velvet, and even use that fabric excessively to create a voluminous bustle and layered pleats.

Just calculating that alone would already cost an astronomical amount, but Edward also ordered lace, ribbons, and jewels to go with it. Estimating the total amount, it was an extravagance that far exceeded her scope.

Louisa looked out the window the entire way home, avoiding eye contact with Edward. She decided to keep her mouth shut, knowing that whatever she said, she couldn’t overcome his stubbornness.

Edward glanced at her occasionally while driving. However, his wife remained unmoved.

That silence was broken after they arrived at the Averitt mansion. Louisa was surprised by the scene before her eyes and spoke first.

“What on earth is this?”

In front of the Averitt mansion’s garden, large cases were piled up like small mountains.

The butler of the Averitt mansion said,

“These are items sent by someone called Madame Lang from Tanasen. They say they were purchased by Sir Edward Allen.”

“What exactly is all this… Edward?”

At that cool question, Edward even considered avoiding answering. He knew the day would come when his wife would face those things, but he didn’t know it would be now.

However, faced with her direct gaze, he finally opened his mouth.

“I don’t know. Throw them away. If you really hate them, use them as kindling or something.”

“Good heavens. This is really too much.”

“Then give them back to me. I’ll give them to my little sister who might show up someday.”

Knowing that was nonsense, Louisa bit her lip and glared at him.

“And by the way, keep it a secret that I came here. If your brother finds out, he won’t leave me alone.”

“If you wanted to hide that, you shouldn’t have done this.”

“Unfortunately, this kind of thing is possible even remotely.”

At his words that didn’t give an inch, Louisa closed her eyes and held her forehead.

“I’ve arranged for the dresses ordered today to come here too, so do as you please when they arrive. I’ll come to pick you up on the day, so keep that in mind.”

“There’s no need for you to come, I can take a cab.”

Louisa said with an intentionally sulky face, annoyed at Edward who kept making unreasonable demands. However, that attempt was neatly foiled by Edward’s one statement.

“It would be stranger for both of us to attend but arrive separately.”

It was a fair point, but agreeing readily was too annoying.

Edward said that and got into his car.

“Don’t think about taking a cab or anything alone, I’ll come to pick you up, so wait.”