Rosy curled her lip in disgust. "Honestly, Julian has way too much unearned confidence. He actually assumes you secretly like him without realizing it himself. What a shameless tool."
She grabbed Natasha’s hand, speaking with utmost seriousness. "Natasha, let me tell you—if Julian comes crawling back to apologize later, you must never forgive him!"
"Don’t worry, I know," Natasha nodded coldly.
She cast a reluctant glance toward the fading taillights of the Pagani Huayra as it glided into the traffic. In her eyes, a man driving a ten-million-dollar hypercar was the ultimate match—far superior to even someone like Leo Vance.
Sadly, she might never see that handsome driver again.
Meanwhile, Julian was cruising toward an upscale shopping mall when his phone rang. It was Manager Wang from the brokerage firm.
"Is something wrong, Manager Wang?" Julian answered casually over the hands-free speaker.
Manager Wang’s voice was practically trembling with excitement. "Mr. Vance! It went up! I’m calling to report that BrightStar Media just hit the maximum daily limit!"
"Is that so?"
"Yes! The animated blockbuster ’Toy Story,’ heavily backed by BrightStar Media, just opened to overwhelming rave reviews!" Manager Wang gasped. "Tickets are completely sold out nationwide, and major cinema chains are doubling their daily screening slots! The film is projected to break all-time box office records!"
Manager Wang took a breath, his tone bordering on awe. "The moment afternoon trading opened, the stock rocketed straight up! You bought in at the twenty percent lower limit, and now it’s up twenty percent on the day—you made a forty percent return in a single session! Your thirty million has already grown to over forty million dollars!"
A forty-percent swing on a thirty-million-dollar capital injection in less than six hours! It was a legendary move in the trading world.
"I see," Julian replied calmly. It was all within his expectations—after all, his system had provided the exact stock performance chart for the entire month.
"Mr. Vance... if you don’t mind me asking, how did you know BrightStar Media was about to explode?" Manager Wang asked reverently.
Julian chuckled softly. "I actually caught a private screening of ’Toy Story’ movie earlier. The animation quality and story were incredible, so I figured the company’s valuation would soar once the public caught on. I simply put my money where my mouth was."
"Your vision is truly extraordinary, Mr. Vance!" Manager Wang praised.
At the same time, inside the brokerage’s VIP trading room, Sean watched the green ceiling candles on BrightStar Media’s chart. Tears of sheer relief filled his eyes.
In a single day, he had recovered his entire trading loss. His mother’s firm was saved from greedy relatives.
I need to find a way to properly thank that young man, Sean thought, resolves firming as he headed outside to wait for Julian.
By mid-afternoon, Julian arrived at a luxury shopping center, intending to pick up a thoughtful gift for Victoria to keep her satisfied.
He walked into an elite women’s boutique, where an attentive sales associate greeted him warmly. "Good afternoon, sir! Are you looking for anything specific today?"
"Just browsing for now," Julian replied, looking around.
Victoria’s wardrobe was exclusively designed and custom-tailored by elite personal stylists who visited Rose Manor directly. Not knowing her exact sizing measurements for high fashion, buying standard outerwear seemed impractical.
Pajamas and loungewear felt like a much safer choice.
Julian wandered over to the sleepwear department.
Seeing him pause, the sales clerk leaned in and whispered discreetly, "Sir... if you’re selecting pajamas for your girlfriend, we have a specialized private collection in the back suite that guarantees a wonderful evening. Would you like to take a look?"
Curiosity piqued, Julian followed her into a hidden showroom behind a velvet curtain. "Sure, show me."
The sales clerk gestured with a professional smile. "These pieces are designed to enhance domestic harmony between couples."
Julian’s eyes widened in complete shock.
Holy crap!
The room was filled with sheer mesh lingeries, silk corsets, maid uniforms, cat-ear sets, and sultry roleplay outfits. On a velvet tray nearby sat leather crops, silk ribbons, and scented candles.
"Do any of these catch your eye, sir?" the clerk asked politely.
Julian shook his head rapidly, backing away. "No, no! Absolutely not!"
Victoria was already an unhinged, overly passionate yandere. If he brought these back to Rose Manor, she would lock him in the master suite for three days straight! For the sake of his physical survival, he needed to steer clear of these landmines.
"I’ll just take some comfortable, cute silk pajamas," Julian requested hastily.
"Understood, sir."
Julian selected two sets of adorable silk loungewear featuring soft pastel bunny patterns, which he figured would contrast hilariously with Victoria’s icy CEO persona.
"That will be seventy thousand dollars total, sir," the clerk announced after wrapping them in luxury gift boxes.
Julian swiped Victoria’s black card without batting an eye and headed toward a high-end luxury jeweler next door.
Welcome, sir," the jewelry consultant greeted Julian with a polite bow. "How may we assist you today?"
"I’m looking for a pair of high-end matching couple’s watches," Julian replied calmly.
"Right this way, sir. Our flagship luxury timepieces are displayed in this gallery."
As Julian scanned the diamond-encrusted displays, two familiar figures entered the boutique.
"Mom, look," Leo Vance pointed across the showroom, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Isn’t that Julian over there?"
Elenor Vance glanced over and sneered. "How could that handsome, well-dressed gentleman be Julian? Julian is a clueless country bumpkin who doesn’t possess a shred of that kind of elegance or style."
"Mom, look closely! It really is him—he just got a high-end haircut and changed his clothes!" Leo Vance insisted bitterly.
If Julian hadn’t returned to the Vance family home to disrupt his status, Leo wouldn’t have to work so hard every day to maintain his mother’s favor. Even if Julian turned to ashes, Leo would recognize his face.
Elenor focused her gaze, her eyes widening in realization—and immediate fury.
It really was Julian!
How dare he step into a boutique where a single watch cost hundreds of thousands of dollars?!
He’s squandering the seven million dollars I gave him! Elenor thought angrily. That money is supposed to be returned to the family account later! How dare he spend it on luxury items?!
"Julian ..!" Elenor stormed across the marble floor, her voice sharp and loud enough to draw glances from other shoppers. "What on earth do you think you’re doing here?! Get over here right now!"
Leo followed close behind, staring at Julian in disbelief. Why did his trashy brother suddenly look and act like a completely different person?
Julian tapped his ear casually, turning around with a faint, amused smile. "Mrs. Vance, I’m buying a gift. Isn’t that obvious?"
"Are you out of your mind?!" Elenor demanded in a harsh whisper. "Are you spending the seven million dollars I transferred to you?! I’m telling you right now—you are forbidden from touching a single cent of that money!"
Julian slowly picked at his ear, looking thoroughly unimpressed.
"You’re being awfully noisy," Julian said lazily, leaning against the glass display case. "Keep shouting, and I might just lose my appetite to attend your precious engagement party tomorrow."