Chapter 12

"Tell me, how can I be more proactive?" Tiffany was sitting in a cafe, wearing a sky-blue dress. As she sat there docilely, she looked like a little fairy. However, the question she asked nearly made the person sitting across from her spit out their coffee. Yasmine said, "Hold on, you need to let me digest this slowly." As one of the top players in the 5G wave, she only found out yesterday that her best friend had married the big cold man from the Blake family. She had first thought that Tiffany was forced into the marriage, but now she was hearing that Tiffany wanted to make him her conquest. "What do you see in that big iceberg?" Tiffany's pale white fingers twirled around the golden handle of the spoon, and she gave it some thought before she laughed. "His face." Yasmine looked like she had seen a ghost. Never mind that Tiffany usually appeared to be happy-go-lucky and sweet. In reality, Yasmine knew what she was really like on the inside. Like a chocolate-filled donut, she looked soft, fair, and tender on the outside. In truth, they both contained a dark filling. She was as dark as she was bad. "Are you serious?" Tiffany said, "Serious enough to have a marriage certificate. What do you think?" "Then why aren't you with him today?" Tiffany became crestfallen at the mention of this, for Micah had chased her out of the car the moment it left the grounds of Twilight Villa. If she had not gotten herself an e-hailing ride, she would still be sunbathing at the top of the mountain. Yasmine folded her arms. "He did this to you, and still, you’re falling for him. How have I never realized your potential as a lapdog?” "What’s so bad about being a lapdog? I can lick all of him if I try hard enough.” Tiffany did not think there was anything wrong with pursuing a man. It was only the beginning, and there was no telling what the outcome could be. With a face like his, what was wrong with being his lapdog? Yasmine was speechless. Speaking of faces, Tiffany’s uncles and cousins were all blessed with beauty in abundance. Could she really be lured by physical appearances? Yasmine’s instincts told her not to buy it. There had to be something fishy here. However, she also knew that Tiffany was tight-lipped and would never reveal anything she did not want to. No matter how she asked, she would not be able to pry the answer out of Tiffany. Yasmine resumed her flirtatious posture, her long hair spread out gorgeously. "Men. There are only so many types out there. "If he's in love, then you'll undress; if he's good at reading people, then you'll be on the stove." Tiffany asked, "Which one do you think Micah is?" "The second one, of course." Yasmine rolled her eyes. "He's an old man. He's definitely not a baby." Tiffany furrowed her brows and murmured something. Yasmine could not hear it clearly and changed the subject. "Earlier, you asked me to investigate your family. Are you planning to make a move?" Tiffany nodded. Yasmine handed her a flash drive. "In all these years, Braxton Young has been going about things carefully, so catching him in the act is difficult. You should take a look at the information in here first, but I don't think it’s very useful." Tiffany raised her eyebrows. Braxton was the typical type with big ambitions and little actual ability. He would resort to any method to achieve what he wanted. She was surprised that Yasmine could not find any dirt on him. Although Yasmine was born with a silver spoon in her mouth, she was wild at heart and always took the path less traveled. Instead of sitting back and inheriting her family’s billions, she preferred being a detective and paparazzo instead. By and large, most people in South City had gotten their hands dirty, save for a few. Looking back, the two got to know each other solely because Yasmine scaled the Young family’s walls trying to dig up gossip about them. "I have a feeling that Braxton is hiding from someone." Yasmine’s eyes shone with a curious gleam. "This person's identity and origins must be very mysterious to spook him like this, which would explain why he hasn’t dared to make a single mistake all these years and has had to stay on the down-low." It was a pity that she had been investigating for so long without getting any valuable information at all. "No one becomes rich all of a sudden without resorting to some shady methods. Back then, the Youngs had such a massive fortune which is now gradually dwindling. This is the reason why Braxton wants to form a relationship with the Blakes through marriage, to profit from it." Tiffany's finger traced the rim of her cup as she fell into deep thought. Yasmine let her mind wander as she speculated. "Say, do you think that Braxton sensed that you’re investigating him and that’s why he hasn’t dared to be greedy?" Tiffany shook her head. "I’ve only asked you to investigate, no one else. "However, with his selfish nature, it’s normal for him to have offended many." Just as they were talking about him, a call from Braxton came. Tiffany swiped the screen to answer and held the phone to her ear. "Come home for a bit." He then hung up, just like that. Since she married into the Blake family, Braxton had never called or sent her a message. Now that he had her on his mind again, there was no question as to why. Tiffany had just stepped into the door of the Young family’s house when she saw Avery and Jessie. Jessie had just bought a new outfit and was twirling around in front of Avery, waiting for a compliment from her. "It looks good. My baby girl looks good in everything." The two looked nothing alike. In fact, Jessie was far better looking than Avery. Jessie got a little upset. "I've told you not to refer to me as your daughter. What if someone were to hear you?” "That’s right. After all, you’re the daughter of someone’s mistress, so how can you be worthy of your status as the Youngs’ eldest daughter?" Tiffany leaned against the doorway, her tone a lazy drawl. It was full of mockery. As she saw the look on the mother and daughter’s faces change, Tiffany’s mood took a turn for the better. Jessie gritted her teeth. "Tiffany, who allowed you to come here?" "My father." Tiffany sat on the sofa and pointed at the table. "Aunt Avery, where's the tea?" "Is this how you act as the matriarch of the Young family? Don’t you know that you’re supposed to serve tea when guests come over? It’s overly petty behavior and unbecoming of a matriarch. You don’t even know what to do despite having servants. "In the past, when my mother was around, she was on top of everything." Avery was born into a petit bourgeois family and was only able to rise through the social ranks on account of her being a mistress. Now that she was the wife of a magnate, she was eager to erase all traces of her past and assume the role of Mrs. Young openly and proudly. She could not stand to hear people disparage her as a mistress or bring up her background to call her unbecoming. She also had low self-esteem and was afraid of people comparing her to Yulia. Avery quietly clenched her hand into a fist. Her eyes were gloomy, and she felt Tiffany’s little face to be most aggravating. How dare she compare her to Yulia again? That woman was the eldest daughter of the Queen family from the capital city. She was dazzlingly beautiful, intelligent, and someone of great renown. How could she possibly compete with her? While she was still alive, Yulia overpowered her greatly. Although she was now dead, Avery was still no match for her. Whenever she thought of her, a burning hatred would rise in her heart. She could not do anything about Tiffany, so she could only criticize the maid. This made the maid feel downtrodden. She thought to herself, ‘Madam, you were clearly the one who instructed us not to treat Tiffany as a human being whenever she comes home. You said that a country bumpkin like her is not fit to drink tea from the city.’ Now, Avery was scolding her for it. ‘Furthermore, Tiffany is your biological daughter whether you like it or not.’ Tiffany scanned the house. There were so many servants in the house, and not a single one was a familiar face. In the past five years, the servants had all been replaced by Avery. All those who came were new and had no knowledge of the past. Rumors spread that Tiffany was Avery’s daughter, so they really thought that she was. Sitting with an elegant posture, Tiffany looked pleased. "That's more like it. Next time, change it to English breakfast tea. It tastes even better." Jessie took the teapot and poured out all the tea. "Do you like it now?" "Tiffany, you've spent the past few years in the countryside. I don’t think you can even afford to drink tea, so why are you being so picky?" Tiffany splashed the tea that was in her hands on Jessie’s face. The tea was slightly hot and washed away Jessie’s makeup, causing her to let out a high-pitched scream. Tiffany shook her head resentfully. "I've told you several times not to make despicable expressions with this face of yours. "If you can't remember, I won’t mind destroying it." Jessie lunged toward her in a fury, her sharp nails scratching Tiffany’s face. "Tiffany, I’m going to kill you.”