Gerald was always tormented by his in laws. His mother in law cursed his name, and his brother in law harassed him daily to divorce his sister. Gerald would enjoy seeing their faces when they learned who he really was.
While it's plagued by some missing commas, the story doesn't beat around the bush in establishing what kind of character Gerald is. He may be the laughingstock of his rich family, but I expect him to be a "crouching tiger, hidden dragon" type of rich man.