Chapter 304: Banquet

Joy Drake wore her signature smile. Just like every other time Vivian Lowell had seen her, she looked gentle and composed.

“Miss Drake.”

Julian Faulkner and Vivian responded. The two sides exchanged a few pleasantries, as if there hadn’t been any friction between them at all.

Vivian didn’t like this kind of socializing, but it couldn’t be helped. After casually entertaining the conversation for a few moments, she and Julian took their seats.

The banquet was hosted by the Drake family to mark the advancement of their project after returning to the country. The attendees were all partners, brand representatives, and some of Mr. Drake’s domestic friends.

Vivian recognized quite a few of the brand representatives.

Of course, it was limited to just recognizing them. Their social circles were different, and they rarely interacted. At best, they could only be considered nodding acquaintances.

Vivian hadn’t seen Mr. Drake yet.

Too lazy to mingle with the crowd, she found a small sofa with Julian and sat down.

Not long after they sat down, someone came over to chat with Julian.

Well, rather than chatting, it was more about making their presence known. They wanted to speak with Julian and get acquainted.

This kind of thing happened often.

After all, the Faulkner Group, where Julian was at the helm, was one of the top enterprises in the country. For most people, being able to collaborate with the Faulkner Group, even on a small project, was an excellent opportunity.

Vivian was used to this. She simply sat quietly on the side, sipping some water and snacking.

However, among the people who came to chat with Julian today was a heavily made-up woman.

Vivian seemed to have some impression of this woman. She was apparently the CEO of a certain enterprise. Although she was a woman, her capabilities were on par with any man’s.

She was highly competent and had developed her company exceptionally well single-handedly, even taking it public a few years ago.

She was in her forties and still unmarried. Vivian hadn’t heard of her having any plans to marry, either. She occasionally had young, handsome men hovering around her, though she had never publicly admitted to any romantic relationships.

She was probably the quintessential wealthy woman.

She was rich and not bad-looking. At the very least, with money, she never had to worry about the cost of cosmetic procedures. She maintained her appearance well, looking to be in her early thirties at most.

Vivian thought that, as a strong career woman, living like this wasn’t bad at all.

If she felt like it, she could easily charter a yacht and host parties with male models.

But past acknowledgment was just that—in the past. For some reason, this female CEO couldn’t stop talking once she started chatting with Julian today.

That wasn’t the main issue.

The main issue was that the woman’s perfume was far too overpowering.

Just like when Joy and Shelly Drake had come to find her the other day, the excessive perfume made Vivian feel suffocated and a bit uncomfortable.

She wanted to throw up.

Vivian rubbed her chest and whispered to Julian, “I need to go to the restroom.”

“I’ll go with you.”

Julian stood up subconsciously and reached out to support her.

Seeing this, the female CEO nearby teased with a smile, “President Faulkner and Mrs. Faulkner really have such a good relationship. It’s truly enviable. Is Mrs. Faulkner feeling unwell?

“Should I call my private doctor over? It just so happens that I brought him along today.”

A private doctor?

It seemed he was also one of her young boy toys.

Vivian waved her hand to indicate it wasn’t necessary. Right at that moment, President Ward walked over.

President Ward was the same executive who had bought shares alongside Julian when Felix Faulkner returned to the country. Because of that incident, President Ward stood firmly on Julian’s side.

They had kicked out President Zane, who had “betrayed” the company. Now, President Ward held quite a lot of sway within the Faulkner Group.

At the very least, he and Julian were good friends—the trustworthy kind.

Therefore, when President Ward suddenly appeared, Julian paused and looked over, asking, “What’s wrong?”

“Well… someone from a partner company just asked me to come get you, President Faulkner. They said they want to discuss a previous project again.”

President Ward looked helpless.

Clearly, he had already discussed this project with the other party, but they were still dissatisfied with certain aspects and wanted to see Julian.

“Right now?” Julian asked, slightly displeased.

They really hadn’t picked a good time.

“Yes, right now,” President Ward said. He looked at Julian, then at Vivian. As if realizing something, he asked, “Is Mrs. Faulkner feeling unwell?

“President Faulkner, how about I have my secretary come over and accompany Mrs. Faulkner? Special Assistant Wyatt can stay too… That way, you can rest assured.”

President Ward’s secretary, and Vance Wyatt.

Julian thought about it and had no choice but to agree.

“It’s fine.”

Vivian didn’t think much of it and told Julian, “I’m just going to the restroom to wash my hands anyway. I can go by myself.”

“Let them go with you just to be safe.”

Julian was still worried and decided to agree with President Ward’s suggestion.

“Alright then.”

Vivian agreed, wondering if President Ward’s secretary was also a man.

He was in his forties and quite reliable, but both he and Vance were men. They couldn’t exactly follow her into the women’s restroom!

But since Julian needed this to feel at ease, she couldn’t argue.

After they agreed, Vance and President Ward’s secretary came over and accompanied Vivian to the door of the restroom.

Vance remained highly dedicated. Whatever task he was given, he always insisted on doing it perfectly.

“Madam, go on inside. Just call for me if there’s any problem. Although it might be a bit awkward… I’ll still come to your aid.”

Vance braced himself, glancing left and right to see if the cleaning lady was around. If she was, it would probably make things much more convenient.

“Okay,” Vivian agreed, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Actually, she was already feeling much better.

It was probably just that the female CEO’s perfume was too strong. Because they had been so close earlier, she had felt uncomfortable. Now that they were farther apart, that suffocating feeling had faded significantly.

It was just that… perhaps she had drunk too much water, because she actually did need to use the restroom now!

Walking into the restroom, Vivian washed her hands first and then looked at herself in the mirror.

She wasn’t wearing makeup today.

She looked pale and plain, yet possessed a natural, unadorned beauty. Her facial features were inherently exquisite; wearing makeup would only make her look more vibrant.

Still, Vivian thought she looked quite pretty even without makeup.

It was just that pregnancy had inevitably made her look slightly haggard.

After admiring herself for a moment, Vivian tidied up a bit. Just then, she heard the sound of a flushing toilet coming from a stall behind her.

A middle-aged woman, around fifty years old, walked out and looked at Vivian.