At seven o’clock the next evening, the banquet was about to begin.
Estelle Lockwood and Nathaniel Sloan arrived. They signed their names at the entrance and walked inside.
Hearing that everyone had arrived, Jane Winters immediately asked her butler, "Lynch and little Estelle are here, right?"
"I saw Estelle just now," the butler said with a smile. "Although she was still a child the last time we met, she has grown into a graceful young woman. You’ll be able to see her in a moment."
Jane Winters felt a pang of pity for Chase Lockwood—the Grandpa Lockwood who had ’adopted’ Estelle. Despite it being an adoption, Jane Winters felt that Chase Lockwood was truly Estelle’s biological grandfather. She had treated Chase like a younger brother. It was just a pity that he had passed away so suddenly seven years ago. However, this melancholy was significantly diluted by the prospect of seeing Estelle soon.
"What about Lynch?" Jane Winters asked again.
This time, the butler fell silent for a long moment before slowly shaking his head. "I haven’t seen her."
Jane Winters pressed her lips together slightly, wondering if Lynch had missed the event due to not receiving the invitation or if she was simply tied up with something else.
The butler comforted her, "You can contact the charity foundation at any time. There will always be a chance to meet Mr. Lynch. Madam, the banquet is about to begin."
Jane Winters snapped back to reality. "Let’s go."
In the banquet hall.
Jane Winters’ luxury brand primarily focused on bags, with women’s handbags being particularly famous. Her brand might not rank in the top three globally, but in Innerland, which lacked indigenous luxury brands, it was second to none. Although Jane Winters was not of Innerland descent by blood, she was born and raised there, so her brand was naturally registered in Innerland. A large promotional screen was mounted on one side of the banquet hall, showcasing all the bestselling women’s bags from the brand QIONG.
Nathaniel Sloan leaned in and whispered something into Estelle Lockwood’s ear. Estelle raised an eyebrow. "Alright, go ahead."
Nathaniel gave a slight nod and walked off in a certain direction. Jane Winters’ invitation had been delivered to him, but he had surprisingly spotted other people from the charity foundation. Logically speaking, the person acquainted with Jane Winters was ’Mr. Lynch’, not the charity foundation itself. Therefore, Nathaniel found it strange to see people from the charity foundation here.
Estelle strolled around the banquet alone. Hearing that their senior, Jane Winters, was arriving soon, the guests all put on smiles, intending to leave a good impression on her. However, at this moment, an uproar broke out not far away.
Estelle turned to look and saw many people flocking in that direction. In the center of the crowd, treated like royalty, stood a haughty-looking woman. She seemed inherently noble, her eyes looking down on everyone else. Estelle instantly knew who this was—the collateral descendant of the Yeats family who had been spoiled rotten by them, Claire Yeats.
Claire had absolutely no concept that people swarming around her at Jane Winters’ banquet meant her entrance was stealing the spotlight. Perhaps in her life, she felt this was perfectly normal. For a dignified Miss Yeats like her to attend this banquet was already giving Jane Winters face. Even if Jane Winters were here, she would only be fit to fawn over her.
Estelle furrowed her brows. For some reason, she disliked this woman the moment she laid eyes on her. It was clearly someone else’s banquet, and she was clearly not the main character tonight. The event that Jane Winters had painstakingly organized was not Claire’s personal runway. In short, Estelle hated people who stole the host’s thunder.
Therefore, Estelle did not crowd around her like the others. Instead, she walked over to a corner and sat down by herself. Because she had just turned around, she didn’t notice Claire’s gaze lingering on her for a second, her expression turning ugly. Claire casually shot a look at her entourage, and the person beside her immediately understood.
Estelle sat quietly for a while until she suddenly heard footsteps approaching. She thought Nathaniel had returned, but just as she was about to look up, a haughty and disdainful female voice rang out.
"Is this Miss Lockwood, the designer from Star Group? Miss Lockwood, since you are a designer yourself, you should know the importance of a brand. Wearing a knockoff to Jane Winters’ banquet isn’t very appropriate, is it?"
The woman spoke very loudly, instantly drawing the attention of the surrounding crowd. Estelle raised an eyebrow and looked up, immediately recognizing her. The woman speaking was a lackey in Claire’s entourage. Although Estelle didn’t know why she was being targeted, she could tell the woman came with ill intentions.
Estelle replied in a flat tone, "If your eyesight is poor, you should go to the hospital."
"You!" Probably not expecting Estelle to shoot back with such a line, the woman’s mocking words caught in her throat. She sneered, "You’re still being shameless even now. Yes, the knockoff you’re wearing is well-made and can indeed fool most people. But blame your own bad luck, our Claire is here today too!"
At this point, the woman raised her head arrogantly, as if being a lackey for Miss Yeats was a matter of great honor. "You know who Claire is, right? The only girl in this generation of the Yeats family, the Miss Yeats who grew up being pampered and spoiled by everyone in the family!"
Estelle narrowed her eyes, rested her chin on her hand, and asked with a half-smile, "I see. And?"
The lackey’s gaze was disdainful and pitying. "Estelle Lockwood, that’s why I said you have bad luck. Wearing a knockoff is one thing, but you actually clashed outfits with Claire. You have to know that Claire is Miss Yeats. Would the things worn by the Yeats ever be knockoffs?"
The bystanders understood. The gown Claire Yeats was wearing was definitely a one-of-a-kind haute couture piece globally. Claire’s status dictated that she couldn’t possibly wear a knockoff—or rather, she wouldn’t even have the channels to buy one. As a member of the Yeats family, she certainly didn’t lack the money, nor did she have any reason to.
Since Claire’s gown was the only such haute couture piece in the world, then the appearance of an identical gown at the banquet meant, without a doubt, that it had to be a knockoff.
The lackey sighed dramatically. "Alas, who asked you to bump into Claire? Claire doesn’t like others wearing the exact same outfit as her. You should go change."
Some people were already shaking their heads. They didn’t know much about this Mrs. Sloan, but she looked very young. Young people were just impetuous. Under normal circumstances, they wouldn’t have noticed, but who told her to cross paths with Claire today? But with the backing of Star Group and Nathaniel Sloan, why would she even need to wear a knockoff? Today was also Jane Winters’ banquet. Everyone knew that luxury brands abhorred knockoffs the most! For Estelle to attend in a knockoff gown right under the nose of a luxury brand founder—wasn’t this blatantly slapping Jane Winters in the face?
Consequently, someone reminded her, "Miss Lockwood, before Ms. Joan Winters arrives, you should hurry and change your clothes.
"It’s not like there aren’t spare gowns here. You can just pick one at random and change into it. This knockoff on you does look pretty, but Miss Claire Yeats is the true owner of the gown. It’s really not worth offending the Yeats family over a piece of clothing."
"Yeah, hurry up and change," another chimed in.
Estelle’s smile deepened as she narrowed her eyes. With just a few simple words, and without Claire even showing her face, they had decisively labeled the gown she was wearing as a knockoff.
She mused, "Is this the power of the Yeats family?"