The Villain Mom Awakens — Going Viral by Parenting on a Reality Show

Chapter 445 - 447: Jane Chandler Will No Longer Interfere

"Have you all heard? The Lane family’s young master jumped from a building."

"Who hasn’t heard about something this big? The poor kid was only nine. What could have made him so desperate as to jump from a five-story building?"

"I heard he was pushed too hard. He jumped right before his tutor was supposed to arrive. He was alone in the room, and by the time the maid found him, it was too late."

...

Jane Chandler paused as she poured the tea, her tone a mixture of pity and disbelief. "The young master of the Lane family... are you talking about the one who was a genius since he was little? I heard he made his first fortune in the stock market at eight and was praised by Old Master Lane as a worthy successor. Did he really jump? That makes no sense. He was Old Master Lane’s most beloved grandson. Why would he be so desperate as to jump? If you ask me, this was probably a planned murder!"

Jane Chandler’s words amused the other ladies.

"Jane, have you been watching too many mystery thrillers? There was no murder. He jumped himself. He even left a suicide note, condemning his family for the pressure and brainwashing-style education they put him through."

This only confused Jane Chandler more. "That doesn’t add up at all. The Lane family gave him the best of everything—food, drink, the finest education, the most beautiful clothes. How could he write a suicide note to condemn them? It’s completely unreasonable."

Mrs. Warren tutted at her. "I can tell you weren’t listening to a word we just said. The Lanes had such high expectations for their son, they might as well have had ’We Demand Success’ tattooed on their foreheads. They wished he could age ten years overnight so he could conquer the business world and win back all the face their family had lost!"

"But people aren’t machines you can just wind up and expect to run forever." Mrs. Warren pointed to her own head. "A person needs to rest, to catch their breath. The Lanes didn’t treat their son like a person at all. They scheduled sixteen hours of studying for him every day, calling it ’developing his abilities.’ The last time I saw him, his steps were unsteady and he had severe dark circles under his eyes. I had a feeling something bad was going to happen, but I never expected it to be so soon..."

The other ladies chimed in. "I always say you can’t push children too hard, or you’ll regret it sooner or later. The Lane family is a perfect example."

"It scared me so much I immediately fired half of my kid’s tutors. Whether they become successful or not is one thing, but life is what’s most important. I heard the Lanes held their son’s body and cried for a day and a night, but what’s the use? The child isn’t coming back. He probably died hating them."

Hearing this, Jane Chandler shivered for reasons she couldn’t explain.

Mrs. Grant asked curiously, "By the way, Mrs. Shaw, you’ve raised such an excellent son and grandson. Why don’t you share some of your parenting wisdom with us?"

Before Jane Chandler could answer, she saw Mrs. Hilton—a woman she never got along with—approaching, surrounded by a crowd. "You might as well ask her how she raised her son, but what does her grandson have to do with her? Didn’t she used to look down on her own grandson? His success has nothing to do with her. If you want to ask someone, you should go find Ian’s mother."

With that, Mrs. Hilton turned and left.

Jane Chandler’s face fell. For once, she didn’t retort with her usual sarcasm, because she knew Mrs. Hilton was right.

The wealthy ladies close to Jane Chandler gathered around, defending her. "Jane, you know what she’s like. She’s always finding fault with everyone. Just ignore her. Go on, tell us, how did you raise such an excellent son and grandson?"

"As for raising my grandson, I have no right to speak on that. After all, he didn’t grow up by my side. As for my son..."

Jane Chandler’s brow furrowed. She clearly didn’t want to talk about it anymore.

The people around her were perceptive; seeing that Jane Chandler was unwilling to continue, they changed the subject.

Jane Chandler lowered her gaze, lost in thought. No one could have known the turbulent storm raging in her heart as she listened to the story about the Lane family’s young master.

’A person who was so full of life just a few days ago was suddenly gone. And to think he was driven to his death by too much pressure.’

Jane Chandler remembered the demanding educational regimen she had once imposed on Ethan Shaw, and a cold sweat broke out on her skin.

’What’s more, she had even wanted to take Ian and personally oversee his education.’

’Still, with what happened to the Lane family, you couldn’t blame their strict discipline entirely. Perhaps the boy was just too psychologically fragile, and that’s why such an accident occurred.’

Jane Chandler comforted herself with this thought, and she did feel much better.

Soon, a commotion stirred through the banquet hall. Mr. and Mrs. Young were suddenly seen leaving, crying their hearts out.

Someone asked what had happened.

"The Young family’s only son is dead. He jumped from a building, too. The cause of death is the same as the Lane family’s boy—too much pressure."

The hairs on Jane Chandler’s arms stood on end. Ignoring the protests of those around her, she went home.

That night, Jane Chandler had a nightmare. She first dreamed of a young Ethan Shaw staring at her, his eyes filled with resentment. When she drew closer, he transformed into his adult self and demanded to know why she had locked him up.

Jane Chandler explained that she hadn’t locked him up, but when she looked closely, she saw Ethan Shaw wrapped in layer after layer of chains. The chains grew tighter and tighter. Jane rushed forward, trying to pull them off, but the chains were all locked, and she couldn’t open them. All she could do was watch as Ethan’s face turned blue, then gray.

Jane Chandler screamed in terror. The next moment, she saw her grandson standing on the roof of an eighteen-story building. He leaped, jumping without a moment’s hesitation, just like the Lane family’s young master and the Young family’s only son...

Jane Chandler began to cry helplessly.

"Jane, Jane, what’s wrong? Are you having a nightmare?"

Jonathan Shaw woke Jane Chandler up, finding her sobbing uncontrollably.

"Don’t jump! I’m the one who should die! Must I watch the young die before me? Why is my life so cursed? I was wrong, I was so, so wrong..."

*

Early the next morning, Jane Chandler fired all the household tutors. Not a single one was left.

Susan Hughes was wheeled out by a maid to enjoy the sun. Seeing this, she couldn’t help but ask, "Finally come to your senses? Weren’t these the tutors you spent so long scouting? Why did you get rid of them all?"

Jane Chandler had arranged for these tutors a long time ago for Ian’s lessons. She had never given up on the idea of cultivating Ian. Her previous concessions had merely been a passive retreat under pressure from Ethan Shaw.

Jane Chandler forced a smile. "Keeping so many tutors around just takes up space, and they aren’t needed anymore. Since Naomi Kenway is so capable, let her handle it. I won’t interfere anymore."

Susan Hughes looked at her in surprise. "That’s the spirit. If you’d thought this way sooner, you would have saved yourself so much trouble. We’re old now. We should worry less when we can. We shouldn’t meddle in things that aren’t our business. He’s her child, what right do you have to take over? Besides, Naomi really is doing a good job teaching him. Just think of it as saving your energy."