Julian Sterling led Ethan Caldwell up to Richard Sterling's study, then turned back to the kitchen. Richard's expression upon seeing him wasn't exactly joyful; it was obvious he had been holding back a lot. Julian didn't bother staying there long either; he just exchanged a few words with Ethan, then put on an obedient facade and went downstairs.
To be honest, hardly anyone met in the study during a family dinner. Looking at this setup, even a fool would know the Sterling family wanted to ask the Caldwell family for a favor. Or to put it bluntly, they wanted Ethan to yield that piece of land. Julian just didn't know if Richard would bring up the land issue directly with Ethan or beat around the bush.
But he didn't think Richard would mention it right there in the study; doing so would reveal his true nature too clearly. Compared to a plot of land, Richard obviously wanted to latch onto this son-in-law more tightly.
And if he could get both, that would be even better.
