Chapter 176: Tit for Tat

Chapter 176: Chapter 176: Tit for Tat

Vivian’s spoken English was excellent. She had a standard British accent, which her IELTS tutor had specifically taught her back in the day.

However, judging by the conversation between Miss Drake and Felix Faulkner, Vivian could tell they were speaking with American accents, slightly different from hers.

Both were English, of course; they just differed slightly in the pronunciation of certain words.

Yet, to the British, their accent was the orthodox one, and they sometimes looked down on American pronunciation. Conversely, given America’s high global standing, speakers with American accents often felt a sense of national pride and looked down on the British accent.

There was an underlying friction between the two.

Now that Vivian had spoken, Sylvia Drake snapped back to reality. Giving Vivian a strange look, she replied in American English, "I don’t know you.

"But I must admit, I didn’t expect this lady’s English to be so good. Did you also just return from abroad?"

Sylvia sized Vivian up.

Vivian had an outstanding presence that made her stand out even in a crowd, not to mention her impeccable sense of style. Her outfit was a haute couture piece specially provided by a brand she collaborated with as a designer, naturally making her look exceptionally elegant.

As the Veridian saying goes, beautiful women always appreciate each other.

But this sentiment clearly didn’t apply to someone like Sylvia, whose mind was completely consumed by petty female rivalry.

Sylvia was hostile toward Vivian, especially upon realizing that she was standing right behind Julian.

Naturally, Vivian noticed Sylvia’s gaze. With a polite smile, she replied, "I was merely an exchange student for a few years. I suppose you could say I just returned from abroad.

"However, compared to being overseas, I prefer Veridia. After all, it is my home country, isn’t it?"

Sylvia raised an eyebrow, a trace of disdain flashing in her eyes. Perhaps she believed that the truly capable ones always chose to stay abroad. Only those who couldn’t make it overseas would choose to return. Consequently, her impression of Vivian immediately soured. She simply offered a cold, "Hmm, right.

"Veridia’s development over the past few years has indeed been quite good. That’s why my great-uncle chose to come back."

After exchanging a few brief words with Vivian, Sylvia shifted her attention back to Julian, her gaze as complex as before.

She hadn’t expected this. She had said all that to Julian in hopes that he would remember her, yet he had maintained his icy demeanor and flatly claimed not to know her.

Sylvia refused to accept defeat.

Nearby, seeing the tension, Felix stepped in to smooth things over. He gave Sylvia a gentle pull and said, "Sylvia, the banquet is about to begin.

"Didn’t you say it’s been a long time since you were last here? After the banquet ends, how about I arrange a yacht for you and Finn to take a night cruise on the Krystan?

"Valeria is nothing like it used to be. The night view along the Krystan is truly spectacular now."

Finn was Sylvia’s biological brother. They had both returned to the country, but Finn was a cynical playboy with zero interest in the Drake family’s internal business affairs. He hadn’t even shown up to tonight’s banquet; instead, he had run straight to Valeria’s biggest bar street to party.

At the mention of Finn, Sylvia looked slightly disgusted. Turning to Felix, she said, "It’s highly unlikely Finn will even have time to come out tonight. But a night cruise on the Krystan..."

Sylvia glanced at Julian. She wished Julian could accompany her.

Enjoying the evening river breeze, admiring the dazzling night view, sipping red wine on the yacht’s deck until they were slightly tipsy, and reminiscing about their childhood—it would actually be quite romantic, wouldn’t it?

However, Sylvia stared at Julian for quite a while, likely expecting a gentleman like him to take the hint and formally invite her out. Yet, Julian gave absolutely no reaction.

Sylvia didn’t want to wait any longer, nor was she willing to compromise her pride. She turned back to Felix and said, "Let’s talk about that after tonight’s auction ends.

"Mr. Faulkner, have you really made up your mind to sell your shares in the Faulkner Group? Honestly, hadn’t we already pretty much finalized the deal when we were overseas?"

Refusing to look at Julian anymore, Sylvia pressed Felix, "If you have reservations about the price, we can renegotiate. Why go through the unnecessary trouble of holding an auction today, right?"

Hearing this, Felix merely smiled without a word. He always carried an air of profound secrecy, making it impossible to discern his true intentions.

This infuriated Sylvia.

The Drake family had long known that Felix wanted to offload his shares. After several rounds of negotiations, they had almost reached an agreement, hoping to use the Faulkner family as a springboard to establish themselves back in the country.

Who knew Felix would turn out to be such a slippery old fox? He repeatedly strung the Drakes along, even using them to shake off Julian’s surveillance.

Sylvia hadn’t intended to offend Julian. At least on the surface, she hadn’t wanted to compete with him, but now she was left with no other choice.

Only if the Drake family grew more powerful would she have the leverage to make Julian take her seriously!

The banquet soon began.

Vivian stayed firmly by Grandma Faulkner’s side, terrified that the unfilial Felix might anger the old woman into a heart attack at any moment. She made sure to instruct Ms. Shaw to keep a constant eye on Grandma Faulkner’s heart rate and other vital signs.

Fortunately, apart from her earlier agitation while scolding Felix, Grandma Faulkner remained quite calm for the rest of the time.

"Grandma, do you want to eat something? I saw that the banquet has..."

Vivian had originally planned to grab a slice of mousse cake for her.

But the moment Grandma Faulkner heard it was food from the banquet, she pursed her lips in disgust. "I don’t want to eat anything from here. However, I am getting a bit hungry."

She sighed. It had been a busy day, and apart from a small bite on the plane, she hadn’t eaten anything at all.

Helpless against Grandma Faulkner’s stubbornness, Vivian pulled out her phone to see if she could order some delivery to tide her over.

There was no telling when the banquet would end, and letting the elderly woman go hungry wasn’t a good idea.

Yet, as Vivian pictured the scene—once the auction began, Grandma Faulkner, the matriarch of the Faulkner Group, leaning imposingly on her Dragon Head Walking Stick while munching on fried chicken and french fries—she felt the image was a little too weird.

"Ms. Shaw," Vivian said after a moment of hesitation. "I still haven’t eaten the bread from the flight earlier. Could you ask the hotel staff to bring it down here?

"Or better yet, have the hotel prepare a meal and send it over. Something like noodles or a quick meal, but nutritious."

"Understood," Ms. Shaw nodded, immediately heading off to make the arrangements.

Only then did Grandma Faulkner’s expression soften slightly.

Hmph.

She refused to touch a single crumb from that unfilial son’s banquet!

The Solstice Hotel had its own restaurants anyway; if it came down to it, she would simply eat something else.