The Lawsons, who were watching coldly from the sidelines, were also stunned by Mason Lawson’s actions.

They couldn’t believe that Mason Lawson would rush in at a time like this to shield Eve Vaughn.

The Third Madam was so terrified she trembled. ’Mason Lawson must be out of his mind! He’s throwing his life away!’ she cursed inwardly.

’Doesn’t he know the consequences of this?’

"Mason, what are you doing?"

The Third Madam scrambled over, trying to pull him away.

But Mason Lawson endured the pain, straightened his body, and said, word by word, "Dad, Eve Vaughn is my woman. If you want to beat someone, beat me."

The members of the family’s first branch were inwardly ecstatic. ’Mason Lawson admitted it! He’s finished!’

’Old Mr. Lawson will never allow something that brings such shame upon the family.’

Only Julian Lawson, witnessing all of this, clenched his fists tightly, his eyes practically spitting fire as he stared daggers at Mason Lawson and Eve Vaughn.

’He never imagined that his youngest uncle, who always weighed every pro and con so clearly, would one day be brought down by a woman.’

’And of all people, it was his ex-girlfriend.’

At that moment, Mason Lawson stood in the center of the living room, his hard features now radiating a bone-deep chill.

He said to Old Mr. Lawson, "Dad, Eve Vaughn isn’t one of the Lawsons. There’s no need to use family punishment on her, wouldn’t you agree?"

Old Mr. Lawson was so enraged he nearly choked. He glared at Mason Lawson and said, "So you admit it! Mason, you really are involved with this wench! Do you have any sense of shame? If our rivals at the Lawson Group or the public were to find out about this, what would become of the Lawson family’s reputation?"

Mason Lawson squeezed Eve Vaughn’s hand in his and said to the old man, "Dad, the Lawson family has a century-long legacy. Its reputation and assets have been built over generations. If it could all be so easily destroyed by one young woman, wouldn’t that be a joke?"

"Insolent!"

Old Mr. Lawson violently hurled a nearby antique teacup, and it shattered in front of Mason, a piece worth millions now in fragments on the floor.

Seeing this, the Third Madam could only support the old man and try to placate him. "Old Mr. Lawson, Mason must have been bewitched by that Eve Vaughn girl. He was never like this before! If you ask me, you should just drive her out of Rivaster, or even have her killed. As long as we don’t want the public to find out, no one would even notice if she just... disappeared."

Eve Vaughn stared at the woman in disbelief. ’How could she speak so casually about taking a human life?’

An almost imperceptible tremor ran through her. After all, no one could face the prospect of death with complete composure.

Mason Lawson seemed to sense her tension and fear, and his grip on her hand tightened.

In that moment, Eve Vaughn felt that even if she were to die right then, she would have no regrets.

But the more they acted this way, the angrier Old Mr. Lawson became.

Nothing the Third Madam said could soften the old man’s expression.

He pointed at Mason Lawson. "Since that wench isn’t one of the Lawsons, you certainly are, aren’t you? I may not be able to use family punishment on her, but can I not use it on you?"

Fearlessly, Mason Lawson nodded calmly. "You can. Punish me however you wish. You are my father. You gave me this life, and if you wish to take it back today, I will not protest. But as long as I am here, no one will lay a hand on Eve Vaughn."

Old Mr. Lawson couldn’t believe it. His son—normally the most tactful, the most brilliant of them all—was saying such utterly defiant words to his own father, and all for a woman.

He coughed with rage. "You’ve got some nerve. Do you really think I wouldn’t dare to strike you? Today, we’ll see what’s stronger—your love for her, or my whip! Butler, beat him! Beat him mercilessly!"

The Third Madam was so frightened she dropped to her knees before the old man. "No, Old Mr. Lawson! Mason has been pampered his whole life. How could he withstand this? I’m begging you, please show mercy. As for that girl, I’ll handle her. I promise I’ll make her disappear from Rivaster. Please?"

"No!"

Old Mr. Lawson’s mind was made up. He roared at the butler, "What are you standing there for? Do it!"

Eve Vaughn was terrified by the old man’s murderous expression. She turned to Mason Lawson. "Mason, quick, tell your father we broke up! Just admit you were wrong, please? I don’t want you to do this for me..."

Her words trailed off as tears streamed down her face, a lump forming in her throat so tight she couldn’t speak.

Her own heart was aching, but if that thick whip were to fall on Mason Lawson, the pain would be more than she could bear.

But Mason Lawson said to her, "Evie, I’m a man. The whip isn’t as scary as you think. Don’t cry, hm?"

He wiped her tears away, but they only fell faster.

Old Mr. Lawson saw this as a blatant provocation, a deliberate act of defiance.

He roared, "Bodyguards, pull that wench away! Butler, now!"

The next second, bodyguards had dragged Eve Vaughn aside, and the butler’s whip began to fall, again and again, across Mason Lawson’s back.

After just a few lashes, his white shirt was soaked red with blood, torn to ribbons along the welts.

Even from a distance, Eve Vaughn could see that his skin was split open, the flesh underneath exposed.

Mason Lawson gritted his teeth, eyes squeezed shut, standing like a towering mountain. Only a slight tremble that wracked his body with each lash betrayed the unbearable pain.

The living room was filled with the Third Madam’s terrified shrieks and Eve Vaughn’s own hysterical sobs, both of them begging for it to stop.

Meanwhile, the first branch of the family looked on as if the old man was venting their own frustrations for them. They wished the whip would beat Mason Lawson to death on the spot!

That way, no one would stand in their way anymore.

Eventually, the intense pain became too much, and Mason Lawson finally dropped to one knee, his pale lips pressed into a thin line, still refusing to yield.

’He knew Old Mr. Lawson was trying to force him to deny his relationship with Eve Vaughn, just as Julian Lawson had once done.’

’But he couldn’t do it.’

’He was a man. He could never push the blame for all this onto a young woman to bear alone.’

’He even felt a sliver of relief. What if he hadn’t returned in time? What if those lashes had fallen on Eve Vaughn instead?’

’He couldn’t bear to imagine how broken she would have been.’

Seeing the man she considered her mountain, her rock, now collapsed on the floor, Eve Vaughn screamed at Old Mr. Lawson through her tears, "Don’t hit him anymore! I’m begging you, stop! I’ll leave Rivaster! I’ll leave tomorrow! Please, for the sake of the time Mason Lawson saved your life, just stop!"

Eve Vaughn’s words finally seemed to awaken a sliver of reason in Old Mr. Lawson.

He immediately said to the butler, "Stop!"

The Third Madam finally let out a breath she’d been holding and stumbled over to Mason. "Quick, apologize to your father! Apologize! Tell him you’ll break things off completely with that girl. Mason, don’t forget, everything you have today was given to you by your father!"

Even now, what the Third Madam feared most wasn’t the state of Mason’s lacerated body, but the power and status he would lose by angering the old man.

’She couldn’t imagine how she would go on if her son, the one she had pinned all her hopes on, lost everything.’

’She’d be mocked to death by the first branch for the rest of her days.’

But Mason Lawson ignored the Third Madam’s pointed suggestions.

He forced his pain-racked body to stand. His voice trembled from the agony as he spoke, "Dad, the beating is done. I’m taking Evie home now. I’ll come back to make amends later."