Sienna Everett gave a slight nod. "Okay."
With that, she left with Samuel Sutton.
Seeing this, Morgan Everett stood frozen in place, as if struck by lightning.
’The Samuel Sutton he was so desperate to curry favor with came specifically for Sienna Everett?’
’To take her back to the private room?’
’And with such a respectful attitude?’
’This... How could this be?!’
Recalling Samuel Sutton’s cold indifference toward him just now, Morgan Everett’s brows knitted together tightly. "Wyatt, what’s going on?"
Wyatt Everett was just as puzzled. "The last time Sienna Everett ran away from home, it was Samuel Sutton who came to pick her up. Could... could that damn girl have some connection to the Forrester family?"
Hearing this, Shannon Everett’s heart leaped into her throat, a mix of anxiety and jealousy.
’How could someone like Sienna Everett possibly be involved with the Forrester family?’
’The Forresters would look twice at Sienna Everett? You’ve got to be kidding.’
’But Samuel Sutton’s attitude toward Sienna really was so respectful...’
The three invitations the Everett family had worked so hard to obtain were for seats in the first-floor hall.
Logically, they weren’t qualified to go up to the second-floor private rooms. It was only because Shannon Everett wanted to have a look around that Morgan and Wyatt Everett had accompanied her to broaden her horizons.
The auction was about to begin, so the three of them couldn’t linger. They scurried back to the first-floor hall in disgrace.
’Sienna Everett gets to be in a private room on the second floor, while I’m stuck in the main hall on the first.’ The mere thought made Shannon Everett burn with jealousy again, filled with anger and resentment.
...
「Back in the second-floor private room.」
Sienna Everett took a seat, with Julian Forrester sitting beside her.
An array of delicate pastries and fruit was laid out on the table.
Sienna ate a few bites out of sheer boredom, her eyes fixed on the situation in the first-floor hall, wondering if anything good would come up at this auction.
Finally, the auction officially began.
The auctioneer took the stage, gave an opening speech, and then started the bidding for the day’s first item.
Each guest below the stage had been given a numbered paddle. If they were interested in an item, they could simply raise their paddle to bid. The highest bidder would win after the auctioneer’s gavel fell for the third time.
The auctioneer enthusiastically introduced the item. "The first lot of this auction is the Princess Crown! It’s inlaid with 108 diamonds and 99 pearls, and was once a favorite of the Queen of Faeloria!"
As the auctioneer spoke, an attendant displayed the Princess Crown to the audience below, turning it for all to see.
With the atmosphere heated up, the auctioneer began the bidding. "The opening bid for this Princess Crown is eight hundred thousand! Interested friends may begin bidding!"
"Eight hundred and eighty thousand!"
"Nine hundred thousand!"
"Nine hundred and fifty thousand!"
...
Several interested guests began to bid, and the price quickly reached nine hundred and fifty thousand.
When Shannon Everett saw the Princess Crown, her eyes lit up instantly.
Wyatt Everett noticed her expression and immediately raised his paddle. "One million!"
Shannon Everett was overjoyed, her eyes welling up with tears. "Wyatt..."
Wyatt Everett smiled, looking every bit the doting older brother. "This Princess Crown is the perfect match for our Shannon. Shannon is the one and only Little Princess of our Everett family."
Morgan Everett nodded in agreement. "Wyatt is right. Since Shannon likes it, let your brother buy it for you."
Shannon Everett was so moved that her eyes immediately reddened. "Thank you, Dad! Thank you, Wyatt!"
Hearing this price, the auctioneer on stage repeated loudly, "One million! Wyatt Everett of paddle number 20 bids one million! Are there any other bids?"
「In the second-floor private room.」
As soon as the item was brought on stage, Julian Forrester glanced at Sienna Everett beside him. Her expression was placid; she was clearly uninterested in the pearl crown.
Julian Forrester didn’t bid. He turned and glanced at Samuel Sutton.
Samuel Sutton understood immediately and left the private room for the first floor.
The auctioneer raised his gavel and asked again, "Wyatt Everett of paddle number 20 has bid one million. Are there any other bids? If not, this Princess Crown will belong to Mr. Everett! Going once for one million, going twice..."
Just then, a clear male voice rang out in the hall. "One million two hundred thousand!"
The auctioneer’s gavel froze mid-air. He looked toward the bidder, his voice filled with excitement. "Mr. Samuel Sutton of paddle number 10 bids one million two hundred thousand!"
Hearing the name Samuel Sutton, Wyatt Everett, Shannon Everett, and Morgan Everett all whipped their heads around to look.
’Special Assistant Sutton?’
’He wants this pearl crown too?’
Wyatt Everett thought for a moment. ’If Samuel Sutton wants it, then I’m a little hesitant to bid further.’
The Everett family had been trying to build a connection with Samuel Sutton. This pearl crown could be a way to do him a favor.
’But Shannon really likes this pearl crown...’
The auctioneer on stage continued, "Ladies and gentlemen, the current bid is one million two hundred thousand! Are there any more bids? Does anyone else want to bid!"
"One million three hundred thousand!"
A middle-aged man in the audience raised his paddle, having also taken a fancy to the crown.
Wyatt Everett immediately looked in Samuel Sutton’s direction, expecting him to raise the bid, but he saw Samuel Sutton sitting there with a composed expression, not saying another word.
’What’s going on?’
Morgan Everett’s brows furrowed slightly. "Wyatt, bid again."
Wyatt Everett nodded and raised his paddle. "One million three hundred and fifty thousand!"
The words had barely left his mouth when Samuel Sutton raised his paddle and called out, "One million four hundred thousand!"
"One million four hundred thousand! Mr. Sutton from paddle number 10 bids one million four hundred thousand!" The auctioneer was all smiles. "It seems this Princess Crown is very popular! Are there any more bids? Miss this chance and it’s gone for good!"
"One million five hundred thousand!"
A wealthy, middle-aged man in the corner raised his paddle, intending to buy it for his mistress.
Wyatt Everett stared intently at Samuel Sutton, waiting for him to bid, but found him completely unmoved. It seemed he wasn’t dead set on winning this pearl crown.
But as soon as Wyatt Everett bid, Samuel Sutton would inevitably follow up with a higher bid to one-up him.
"Dad, look at this..." Wyatt Everett frowned in confusion.
Morgan Everett also sensed that something was wrong. This Samuel Sutton was clearly targeting them, trying to stop them from winning the pearl crown.
Wyatt Everett pondered for a moment before guessing, "Could we have offended Special Assistant Sutton?"
Morgan Everett thought back carefully. They could hardly ever get a meeting with Samuel Sutton, so how could they have possibly offended him?
’Could it be... because of the conflict with Sienna Everett just now?’
’Did Samuel Sutton come specifically to stand up for Sienna Everett?!’
’Is... that even possible?’
Just then, Shannon Everett spoke up at the right moment. Her eyes showed deep reluctance, but she put on a show of being sensible. "Dad, Wyatt, since Special Assistant Sutton has a misunderstanding with us, let’s not compete with him. I guess I’m just not fated to have this pearl crown. I’m not worthy of it."
Seeing her being so well-behaved and understanding, Morgan Everett felt both pleased and pained. "Good girl, you’ve been wronged! There will be other items later. If you see something else you like, Dad will buy it for you!"
Shannon Everett nodded meekly. "It’s okay, Dad."
’In reality, she was seething with anger. She really wanted that Princess Crown, but someone had to come and throw a wrench in the works. It was infuriating!’
Wyatt Everett put down his paddle and stopped bidding.
As soon as he stopped, Samuel Sutton also stopped bidding.
In the end, the pearl crown was sold to a wealthy tycoon for one million eight hundred thousand.
「In the second-floor private room.」
Sienna Everett was slightly taken aback by what she saw.
’When I saw Samuel Sutton bidding earlier, I thought he’d had a burst of sentimentality and really liked that Princess Crown.’
’Only now do I realize that Samuel Sutton was deliberately trying to mess with Wyatt Everett.’
’Shannon Everett didn’t get the one thing she desperately wanted. She must be so mad right now she could spit blood.’
Sienna Everett’s shimmering eyes blinked. A thought suddenly occurred to her, and she turned to Julian Forrester. "Did you tell Samuel Sutton to do that?"
The man lifted his eyes to look at her. His well-defined fingers tapped twice against the white porcelain cup as he replied nonchalantly, "No."
"So he went on his own." A warm feeling spread through Sienna’s heart. ’That Samuel Sutton is pretty amusing.’
Samuel Sutton returned to the second-floor private room, still buzzing from the experience of bidding freely. He couldn’t have been more excited. "Miss Everett, Mr. Forrester told me to go down and bid just now. Did you see the looks on Shannon Everett’s and Wyatt Everett’s faces when they were thwarted!"