The girl next to her said, "What else could it be? It''s definitely Elena from the Charlotte Jewelry! I just didn''t expect that she would be such a young and beautiful woman!"


    "I didn''t see you speaking up for her earlier. Now you''re praising her."


    "What could I have been able to do?"


    The girl next to her gave her a sidelong nce. "Did you forget what you and Carrie and Bethany said earlier? If I had helped her, you would have probably cursed me as well."


    It was only natural to protect oneself.


    "No..."


    She didn''t argue, muttering, "Originally, my mom was trying to get another spot for a privatemission with Elena, but now that I''ve messed things up... I''m afraid it''s impossible for the rest of our lives."


    "Not necessarily." Another.girl spoke up, "She doesn''t seem like the type to hold grudges. She probably won''t hold it against someone like you who doesn''t have much sense."


    The people around were also discussing among themselves.


    The dinner hadn''t ended yet, and I had already received a stack of business cards, some proposing coborations and others wanting to secure a privatemission.


    Of course, more were just trying to build connections.


    They believed that as long as they established a good rtionship with me, any project they wanted would be easy to aplish.Exclusive ? material by N?(/v)elDrama.Org.


    Alex also made a point that, since I was acknowledged as Yasmin''s goddaughter, I was naturally his


    niece.


    So even if I wasn''t willing to help them, leaving a good impression on me could still be beneficial.


    After all, Yasmin, Frank, Ryan, and Alex-any one of them alone was someone no one present would dare provoke easily.


    It was not an exaggeration to say that this was the day I felt the most goodwill in my life.


    Perhaps that''s just human nature.


    But it also made me realize that I still needed to work hard. Despite the Charlotte Jewelry''s rapid development, it wasn''t enough to be my sole confidence in a city filled with wealthy families. As I took another business card, Frank strode over and casually put his arm around my waist.


    "Mr. Smith, Ms. Wilson, I''ve spotted a friend. You two go ahead and talk."


    The person handing me the card discreetly walked away.


    Frank smirked and teased, "A lot of men are handing you business cards, huh?"


    "Yeah, are you jealous?"


    I cocked my brows. He chuckled and gave my waist a light pinch, leaning in to whisper, "I''m not just jealous."


    I felt a bit ticklish and couldn''t help butugh. "Then what else?"


    Frank''s voice lingered. "I also want to eat someone up."


    My face flushed, and I looked around. Fortunately, everyone saw him approach and tactfully gave us


    space.


    I certainly wasn''t foolish enough to continue asking him what he meant by "eating people."


    We were all adults and it was obvious what he meant.


    When Ryan returned to the banquet hall, he mingled with a few people before greeting Yasmin.


    He left directly.


    Before exiting the banquet hall, he instinctively nced back and locked eyes with the woman who once held his heart.


    Only now, she was embraced by someone else.


    It seemed to draw a clear line between them.


    On the way back, Diana felt the car''s atmosphere was as low as it could get, with the crimson hue on the man''s fingers never fading.


    She disliked secondhand smoke but stubbornly endured it all the way.


    For a moment, she wondered if Charlotte were in the car, would he still be smoking like this.


    After a long while, she finally couldn''t hold back. Clenching her skirt with her fingers and pressing her lips tightly, she said, "Mr. Frost, about my mother''s illness... thank you."


    The man seemed distracted. Upon hearing this, he furrowed his brows slightly, nced at her indifferently, and responded with a tone devoid of any emotional fluctuation, "No need to thank me."


    He had heard about this fromn, who had handled it.


    He remembered it vaguely but not in detail.


    His response was so cold it left no room for further discussion. Diana looked at the man''s cold, perfect profile and said, "The doctor told me it was charged to your ount. Don''t worry. I''lepay you once I save up enough money." "Repay me?" Ryan''s lips suddenly curved into a mocking smile. "Then contactn and have him transfer it to his ount."