Chapter 177
Stephanie sat in the corner of the Pearson Villa hall, bored and looking around aimlessly, and noticed that Dominick and a few other men seemed busy with something urgent.
Shortly after, Dominick walked over to her and quickly said, “Let’s go back to the hotel first.”
“Why? The banquet hasn’t even started yet.” Stephanie refused to budge. Her eyes then darted around as if she had something on her mind, murmuring, “I want to wait a bit longer…”
“Who on earth are you waiting for, Stephanie?” Vincent glared at her. “Scott’s son is missing. We need to find the kid, and no one can stay with you.”
The maid had rushed to the cafe to look for Andy, but he wasn’t there, and Vincent had immediately started imagining terrible scenarios, making him anxious.
Stephanie was surprised at first since a missing child was serious, but she still said, “You don’t need to stay with me. I’ll just sit here. You guys go ahead.” With that, she even nudged Dominick’s arm, urging him to leave quickly.
He, however, furrowed his brows, seemingly thinking about how to arrange things.
Scott, on the other hand, was calmer. He looked at the moving red dot on his phone screen and said, “He’s gone to the amusement park…” His son had a habit of hiding in noisy places whenever he was upset.
He put away his phone and walked briskly toward the door, saying, “Andy is just throwing a tantrum. I’ll go find him now. Dominick, you stay here and see if Oscar comes back…”
When Stephanie heard Oscar’s name, her expression froze, and she wondered, ‘Are they really that close to Oscar?‘
She wanted to ask something, but Vincent, looking worried, followed Scott. “Scott, wait for me. I’ll go with you to check on the little guy…” Vincent, who had always been unreliable, had a particular fondness for children and was now acting like a devoted father.
“Stay here and don’t wander off,” Dominick instructed Stephanie, then had a brief conversation with the two bodyguards behind him. Afterward, he looked a bit strange as he walked into the crowd.
She stayed put, watching them all busy with their tasks, and suddenly felt incredibly useless.
There were actually many things Stephanie could help with, but Dominick wouldn’t let her get involved.
She then waited until dusk at seven o’clock, when the sky outside had turned dark gray, and the Pearson family’s birthday banquet officially began.
At that moment, the lights in the hall dimmed, and a spotlight illuminated the stage where an elderly couple in their sixties stood surrounded by flowers. They faced the guests with warm, generous smiles, saying, “Thank you all for attending my wife’s birthday banquet today. We apologize for any shortcomings…”
Shane Pearson, the current head of the Pearson family, was speaking on stage. His voice was full of vigor, and his face looked healthy and rosy. Stephanie estimated he could live quite a long life, but she had always disliked the Pearson family, thinking Shane’s smile looked particularly fake
now.
“Today, I would like to take this opportunity to announce another important thing,” Shane said from the podium, pausing briefly with a tense expression on his wrinkled face. He then naturally took Teresa’s hand, and the two elderly people, looking very much in love, stepped forward.
He cleared his throat and started speaking in a gentle tone. “My wife and I have dedicated most of our lives to this company. We’ve now reached the age where it’s time for us to retire and enjoy our lives…” As soon as he said this, the crowd below became restless.
The head of the Pearson family officially announced his retirement, which was no small matter, especially for companies that had close cooperation with them. They were particularly concerned about who the successor would be.
“Our board of directors unanimously agreed last week to appoint Oliver Vanderbilt as the CEO of the Pearson Group…”
Stephanie, who was in a dimly lit corner, was furious upon hearing this news. “Why him?!” she exclaimed.
She thought angrily, “That Oliver wasn’t even the Pearson family’s heir. He only agreed to marry the Pearson family’s first heiress because the Vanderbilt family went bankrupt. It’s clear he has ulterior motives, and now Shane, the old fool, is just handing the company over to an outsider. What about Oscar?!‘
As the hall’s lights gradually brightened, a rough, surprised voice suddenly sounded next to Stephanie, who was scowling. “Well, isn’t this Oscar’s girlfriend?”
She looked up with a grim expression to see a short, chubby, middle–aged man with a big gold chain around his neck. Stephanie then wondered who this chubby man was.
“Get lost!” Stephanie was in a bad mood and found the flashy stranger increasingly annoying.
1/2
10:49 AM
Chapter 177
“It’s really
you.” But the ma
man
your family still spoil you
didn’t leave. Instead,
like this?”
he looked at her
curiously. “Little girl, after all these years, you still have the same temper.
Does
Hearing his rough
voice,
Stephanie was instantly reminded of her childhood. “You’re Oscar’s fat uncle?”
She remembered now. When Stephanie teasing her.
used to sneak to Pearson Villa to find Oscar, she often ran
into a
strange uncle named Foster, who loved
“Girl, you better watch your mouth. I only let it slide before because you pregnant belly, and he immediately looked shocked. He asked, “You’re
were a kid, but now
pregnant?! Is it Oscar’s?”
look
at
you…” The
man’s gaze
shifted to
Stephanie’s
alarmed. “Don’t talk nonsense.”
ephanie quickly got to her feet,
Seeing her panic, the man sneered
with a hint of mockery in his tone, My
autistic fool of a nephew is indeed
unworthy of you…”
“That’s right,
you used to despise him. How could
you be
carrying his child?
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