After Florence spoke, the Howards immediately felt confident and pleased.

The Howards were among the top eight families of DC. When had they ever suffered anyone disrespecting and bullying them like this?

If Florence really agreed to the demands of the shameless Derek and gave in to him, it would be the most humiliating thing ever for the Howards!

Just as Florence said, the Howards were not pushovers just because Felix had passed away.

Even if the Howards couldn’t defeat these two wealthy families working together, they could easily cause them great damage if they went all out to deal with them!

Derek and Rayson were shocked and surprised.

They didn’t expect the Howards and Florence to be so stubborn!

The reason they had each brought only a few dozen bodyguards to the Howard residence was that they didn’t actually have the intention of fighting directly against the Howards here.

In their opinion, as long as they brought their people over and threatened the Howards, Florence would definitely panic, and so would the Howards because they were now led by a woman. They would have no choice but to concede.

After all, the Howards were also one of the top eight families and on par with the Piers and the Williams. If they really got into a fight, it would indeed be like what Florence said. Even if they could eventually defeat the Howards, their losses would likely be extremely heavy, and they might even become the target of the remaining five families.

Thus, unless it was the last resort, the Piers and the Williams were unwilling to get into an actual fight with the Howards.

However, the fact that Florence was so aggressive and unaffected by their threats made them feel that something was amiss.

“Florence Howard, do you really want to start a war with us? You should know that there’s no way your family can be a match for the Piers and the Williams!” Derek threatened with a gloomy look.

Florence sneered and said assertively, “If you insist on doing harm to the Howards and forcing us to a corner, we will have no choice but to fight!”

After she said this, Derek was annoyed and seemed flustered.

If they really went to war, they would have to worry about whether or not the Williams would be willing to go against the Howards together with them, not to mention that the Piers would very likely suffer huge losses themselves.

After all, when Derek and Rayson discussed joining hands previously, they had thought that coercing the Howards with benefits and threats was all it would take. If they really went to war, the Williams would also face immense losses. In that case, Rayson probably wouldn’t be willing to stand on his side.

If the Williams chose to withdraw, it would be hard to determine who the final victor would be since the Piers and the Howards were on par in terms of strength.

At the thought of this, Derek immediately turned his head to look at Rayson, wanting to find out what he was thinking.

“Derek, rest assured. Since the Williams have agreed to join forces with the Piers, we will stand strong together regardless of what happens. If Ms. Howard insists on going to war with us, the Williams will definitely stand on your side!” Rayson immediately understood what Derek was worried about, so he gave him an affirmative answer.

He also understood Derek well and knew that if he showed any hesitation at this juncture, Derek would definitely be the first to beat a retreat and not dare to go toe-to-toe against the Howards. When the time came, they would end up having all their efforts go down the drain and gain no benefits.

“Awesome, my brother! In that case, let’s deal with the Howards together! Haha!” Derek patted Rayson’s shoulder with a wide grin on his face, feeling greatly relieved.

“Hah, two men are ganging up against a woman. How shameless!” Suddenly, a clear and contemptuous voice spread from outside the Howards’ funeral hall.

A middle-aged man in his fifties was slowly walking in from outside.

The moment Lucas saw the man, his gaze fluctuated slightly, but the change was fleeting.

The man was none other than the head of the Huttons in DC, Michael!

There was a young man in his thirties standing beside him. It was Roman, whom Lucas had just made the new successor of the Huttons.

Their arrival immediately sparked another uproar in the hall.

The Howards were shocked, and they didn’t know if the Huttons were here as friend or foe.

If the Huttons also had the same intention as the Piers and the Williams to kick the Howards while they were down and take advantage of the situation, the Howards would be in a worse predicament.

But based on what Michael just said before entering, he was at least not in cahoots with the Piers and the Williams.

The moment Derek and Rayson saw Michael, a hostile intent immediately appeared on their faces. They were already on the verge of slaughtering the Howards, but the Huttons suddenly appeared and insulted them. Did they want to take a piece of the loot?

“Michael Hutton, what do you mean by that? Do you want to interfere with the matters between our families and the Howards?” Derek said hostilely.

Although Rayson didn’t say anything, there was also a strong animosity in his eyes as he stared at Michael.

“Welcome, Mr. Hutton,” Florence greeted Michael politely.

Although she still didn’t know what Michael’s purpose was at the moment, what he just said was enough to prove that he wasn’t in cahoots with Derek and Rayson. In that case, the Huttons might just be the Howards’ savior today!

“Ms. Howard!” Michael greeted Florence politely and then looked at Derek and said sarcastically, “I can’t believe that at your age, you two have the cheek to gang up against a woman whose father has just passed away! I just can’t stand it, and I insist on helping the Howards. So what?”

“You!” Derek immediately lost his temper.

Indeed, Michael was here to jeopardize their plans!

After taking a few glances at Michael, Rayson suddenly said with a smile, “Mr. Hutton, just a few days ago, I heard that the Howards attacked your family, causing many of your family’s businesses to incur heavy losses. Why have you put aside your old grudges so quickly and come to help the Howards?”

He deliberately brought up this matter in front of Michael to arouse his enmity against the Howards. He didn’t want Michael to help the Howards.

As a last resort, they could even give the Huttons some benefits.