“If you know she’s your in-law, Cynthia, what makes you think an adopted cousin like you can compare to my wife?” Gerald said bluntly. “In other words, what gave you an ego big enough to convince yourself that you’re worth that 1.9 billion?”The entire room fell silent.Cynthia was still teary-eyed, but now she was humiliated to no end. Turning red, she cried out, “Gerald! How can you say that to me?”Gerald watched her tears fall onto the bracelet. It was supposed to be a beautiful sight, but all it did was disgust him.Frowning, he leaned in to whisper in North’s ear. “We don’t have to take the jewelry if someone else has already put it on.”Cynthia froze. Was Gerald disgusted by her tears?!North blinked. “Why? That’s 1.9 billion dollars. I want it back.”Gerald gulped. Was North… playing coy?Emotionlessly, he turned to the trembling assistant nearby. “Take them off.”As the assistant walked over, Cynthia’s humiliation hit a breaking point.Still teary-eyed, her arrogance
The assistant was filled with sympathy for the manager and the employees. If one offended Mr. Howard, one was doomed!Then again, they had brought it onto themselves. When Gerald ordered the bespoke jewelry, Mr. Tripoli had not even asked who it was for. Instead, to flatter the Brackens, he had given it to Cynthia right away.They were tripping over dollars just to pick up pennies.After going home, North was admiring the purple diamonds when an image suddenly flashed in her mind.It seemed to be of her holding a stack of blueprints, asking someone beside her if they looked good.“When we get the chance, I’ll take your blueprints and turn them into actual jewelry for the masses to admire,” that person said.North pressed a hand to her head.Why were these memories real? She did not remember any of them!And that blueprint… North looked up instinctively and stared at the purple diamonds in front of her for a while.The blueprints in that memory matched the jewelry exactly.“Ha
It was a young man in his 20s with platinum blonde hair and arrogance written all over him.He blew up upon hearing North’s response, looking downward abruptly. “How dare you…”He was about to start yelling when he saw her beautiful face and blushed instantly. Swallowing all the insults he had been planning to say, he choked out, “You… I…”The femme fatale looked quite nice. Were women like her Gerald’s type?North had no idea who this man was, but she recognized Joe Hampton behind him.Oh. Sharon’s bootlicker was here.Joe was so angry that his face tensed as he gritted his teeth and asked, “How dare you show your face at the auction? Did you find out Sharon was coming? Are you trying to outbid her?!”North had nothing to say to a bootlicker, so she turned and tried to leave but got blocked by both men again.“Say something! Are you trying to outbid Sharon for the violin?”“Sharon’s the darling of our group, but you? You’re the jinx!”North frowned. Were these people sick in
Sharon’s lips thinned, and she wore a bitter smile. “However, sometimes I really do admire you. At least you have freedom, unlike me. All my life, I was forced to learn etiquette and music.” She sighed.Nathan opened his mouth to say something. However, he stayed quiet. For some reason, he got the feeling that Sharon’s words were a little… fake.North was mildly interested as she watched Sharon put on her show.The way she framed herself as superior really made North want to puke.Because North had been banished to the country when she was younger, she had never been to the etiquette classes of the upper class. That was why Sharon could attack her confidence. North looked up coldly and said, “That’s true. I never got as good an education as you did, Ms. Sharon. That’s why you need to keep an eye out. I have never been well-bred, and I have a bad temper. So, you should think carefully before you provoke me.”Sharon’s face suddenly went pale.Nathan could barely maintain his arro
Sharon stuttered, “I-It just s-slipped my mind… Nate, I didn’t do it intentionally.”North clicked her tongue. “If you say it slipped your mind, Ms. Sharon, then you must really have only forgotten to mention it. Gerald, let’s go to the auction hall.”Gerald glanced at Sharon dully. “Take care of yourself.”Sharon stumbled a little and swayed on her feet.Once Gerald and North left, Sharon clenched her fists. She felt resentful as tears began to fall. She wailed, “Nate, I didn’t know North hated me so much. Gerald and I are only friends. Maybe I shouldn’t have come back to the country…”Nathan did not comfort her as she had expected. Instead, he asked, “Sharon, did you really not tell me they were married because you forgot to?”Sharon’s body went rigid. She sounded even more pitiful as she asked, “Do you doubt me too?”Nathan hesitated for a moment and found that he really could not bear it. “Sharon, when all is said and done, you and Gerald already broke up. He has his own fam
North frowned. She turned and saw Mike standing there. She said, “Gerald, do you hear a dog barking?”“It’s you!” Mike could not help but lose his temper. “Gerald, you must be here for the final lot of the auction, right? Do you want the land in Southvale?”The land in Southvale? North blinked. She had heard Patricia and Mike mention this plot of land many times. Had they still not been able to obtain it?Gerald did not even look up. “F*ck off.”“Gerald, what are you so haughty about?” Mike hated Gerald’s unaffected demeanor the most.Back when Gerald had newly returned to the Howard family, he was a malnourished beggar without a home, while he was the superior heir of the Howard family! Yet, when Gerald looked at him with that cool expression, it made Mike feel a wave of shame and rage.He gritted his teeth. “Gerald, don’t you really want to know where that person from four years ago is? I have news about her! I’ll tell you if you let me have the land in Southvale!”North abr
Veronica’s expression turned stiff. She never expected that Gerald would come to North’s aid. For a moment, she found that she had no way to get out of this situation. “B-But…”“Sorry, Gerald. Veronica misspoke.” Sharon walked over rapidly. She looked regretful as she said, “As a token of apology, you can tell me what you’re interested in, North. I’ll buy it for you. Please don’t take things up with Veronica.”North lifted an eyebrow. Sharon was truly capable of taking several insults. She was about to speak up when Gerald rejected the offer offhandedly. “If there is something North likes, I will naturally pay for it. There’s no need for the Lane family to intervene.”Sharon’s expression shifted. “Gerald, that’s not what I meant. I was only afraid… Forget it. Veronica, let’s go.”North mentally flipped them off. What in the world was going on? Was this b*tch not satisfied after provoking her once? Did she want to go another round?Was she mocking her for being poor?North eyed
Veronica said disdainfully, “You’re right. Sharon, you’re a kind person. You naturally don’t know that some people can do anything in the name of money. They’re absolutely disgusting.”Sharon smiled in delight. Soon, the auction began.The first auction lot was a fountain pen. It was a normal pen, but it had been donated by a teacher. It symbolized the hope for the future of the schools in the mountain villages.The pen, which could be bought for a few dollars at a shop, was purchased by Sharon for 100,000 dollars. Someone nearby could not help but exclaim, “Ms. Sharon is truly kind!”“That’s right. Although this fountain pen has sentimental value, it’s just a plain pen. It won’t be of much use even after being bought. But the fact that Ms. Sharon can spend this money proves how much she’s willing to contribute to the kids in the mountain villages.”“Unlike a certain someone… The auction has already started, but she’s still napping.”Sharon looked over at North in glee. Besid