"The word ’bitch’ immediately changed the expressions of Old Mrs. Vaughn and Old Mr. Vaughn, causing anger to surge within them."
"Butler, see them out!" Old Mr. Vaughn commanded the butler beside him, suppressing his anger. "From now on, the Ryan Family is not allowed to step foot in the Viridian Palace!"
The butler promptly stepped forward, nodding, "Yes."
Only then did Ryan Rhodes realize what he had just said. Hearing Old Mr. Vaughn’s words, he felt a surge of indignation: "Mr. Vaughn, Mrs. Vaughn! Even if Brooke is not your biological granddaughter, she was raised under your care and has deep affection for you! What does this woman count for!?"
He had never heard that the Vaughn Family had such a relative!
"Rest assured, Mr. Ryan, my relationship with Ian Vaughn is much closer than your daughter’s with him," Ann Vaughn replied lightly, unperturbed.
Her words truly stirred one’s imagination, coupled with her demeanor as the hostess since she walked in, even the elders hadn’t said anything about her.
It was hard for Ryan Rhodes and Brooke Ryan not to think wrongly about her relationship with Ian Vaughn.
The butler didn’t give them any more chance to rattle on, directly letting security drag these greedy and insatiable parents out.
After they left, Ann Vaughn returned to her usual lazy demeanor, leaning into Old Mrs. Vaughn’s arms and playfully said, "Grandma, when Uncle wakes up and finds out I did something bad in his name, you must plead for me."
Old Mrs. Vaughn’s heart immediately softened, wishing she could present all the world’s treasures to her little darling.
It’s strange, Brooke Ryan used to act cute and charming often in front of her, yet she only felt Brooke was sensible and well-behaved, nothing more.
But with Ann Vaughn, a softer voice made her feel greatly satisfied?
"Your uncle wouldn’t bear to hit or scold you; if you’re upset, he might even let you hit him to vent," Old Mrs. Vaughn indulged her.
Old Mr. Vaughn also laughed cheerfully, "Grandpa just discovered that our Sweetie is so quirky at heart. This tactic of retreating to advance is brilliant; without a ruthless heart, one’s status is unstable."
Even he almost believed her words earlier.
The sudden oppressive aura Ann Vaughn exuded reminded Old Mr. Vaughn of someone.
"Why didn’t Sweetie come over with Cian?"
Ann Vaughn’s smile froze slightly, quickly pretending indifference, "He’s too busy; I didn’t want to interrupt his work."
Did she not tell Cyrus Hawthorne about this yet??
Suddenly realizing this oversight, Ann Vaughn immediately sprang up from the sofa!
Rushing to the room quickly, she grabbed the phone on the table only to find it was out of battery.
No wonder it hadn’t rung...
She bit her lip in frustration, hurriedly charging the phone then turning it on.
During the booting process, her heart was pounding as if it would jump out any second.
Since last night until now, she had left The Imperial Capital for a day.
Hopefully, Cyrus won’t mistakenly think she’s been kidnapped...
With chaotic thoughts, Ann Vaughn unlocked the phone, opened the dialer interface, discovering several missed calls from Sherry and Kressiel.
But none from the person she had expected.
She exited, finding neither messages nor WeChat from that person.
The overwhelming psychological gap left Ann Vaughn stunned for quite a while, suddenly feeling as if all the strength in her body had been drained away, slumping powerlessly at the bedside, not wanting to move.
Why does she suddenly feel a bit pathetic?
Always fooling herself.
At the same time. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ ɴo(v)elFɪre.ɴet
Inside the White Koenigsegg parked by the pavilion at the Mountain Loop Road’s halfway point.
If Ann Vaughn were here at this moment, she would definitely recognize her voice coming from the car’s monitoring device.
Upon hearing "keep the son and abandon the mother," the man with an almost demonic appearance chuckled softly, his indifferent voice carrying a sense of tenderness.
"It’s getting more interesting."
"Is Master referring to the Princess?" Quinn Bishop cautiously asked while adjusting the equipment, "The Princess really does have quite a unique personality, even sharing a similar ruthlessness with Master."
Warren Vance raised his dark red eyes slightly, speaking somewhat unhappily, "Being sharp-tongued is not enough; her methods are still lacking."
Ruthlessness might earn her some points, but in terms of vicious moves, she lacks entirely.
"No need," Warren Vance lowered his gaze, leisurely teasing the little Sweetie spinning around his wrist, "She doesn’t like me messing with her toys."
After resting well, Ann Vaughn went alone to the hospital to see Ian Vaughn, hoping for some luck.
Standing in front of the hospital ward was a middle-aged man in a gray plaid suit, looking sophisticated and not appearing aged, exuding a sense of mature steadiness.
"Chairman Murray?" Recognizing the middle-aged man’s appearance, Ann Vaughn greeted him with slight surprise, "Are you here to visit my... Ian Vaughn?"
The word "uncle" almost slipped out but thankfully Ann Vaughn stopped herself in time.
"You’ve been too polite, young lady; you and Ian are the same, just call me Uncle Murray," Flynn Murray smiled warmly at her, "I know that you are Paige Sherman’s daughter."
Ann Vaughn felt slightly embarrassed, fiddling with her wrist, "Alright, Uncle Murray."
"I’m here to find you today." Upon hearing "Uncle Murray," Flynn Murray nodded with satisfaction, "Since Ian’s car accident, the Vaughn Headquarters has been experiencing frequent turmoil, opposing companies secretly acquiring our shares, while internal conflicts are over who should take the chairman’s position."
"I hope you can temporarily assume the role of chairman in Ian’s stead to stabilize morale until the turbulence settles."
"But Uncle used to leave it to you for management, why now..." Ann Vaughn asked, confused.
Flynn Murray sighed, "But I am ultimately not a member of the Vaughn Family, merely acting as a manager. They trusted me while Ian was there, but now that’s uncertain."
Ann Vaughn remained silent.
What’s going on, her and her uncle’s lazy approach to managing the company seems to be identical.
"Uncle Murray, even if I’m the Vaughn Family’s granddaughter, I might not be able to convince them. They respect the one with the largest shareholdings, not merely the identity as Vaughn Family."
"When you came to Marinia last time, Ian had the lawyer draft a share transfer agreement, which is in his safe, he said the password is known only to you," Flynn Murray explained.
Returning to the Viridian Palace, Ann Vaughn, according to Flynn Murray’s instructions, found Ian Vaughn’s room safe.
She pondered for a moment, carefully entering the series of numbers that popped into her mind.
The password that Uncle said only she would know should be this one.