Chapter 18


    Inside the old Hawthorn family manor.


    Arabe rushed back to the house, barely steady on her feet. She blurted out, "Granny, Dad has rented


    a house, and it''s in Tranquil Estates!"


    "What?!"


    Beatrice, Michael, and Joseph all shot up from their seats, their faces showing utter disbelief as they


    stared at Arabe.


    Beatrice was the first to recover, barely keeping her surprise under control. "Are you sure? Tranquil


    Estates doesn''t usually rent to outsiders."


    Arabe looked serious. "I asked the security staff in the residential area. They did rent it, and the rent


    is ridiculously low. It''s practically a giveaway."


    Beatrice stayed silent, her eyebrows furrowed. After a while, she said, "Michael, look into who the


    the Ellington family gave us is approaching fast. We can''t afford any mistakes."


    Michael responded, "I''m on it."


    Arabe frowned slightly. After a pause, she said, "Grandma, I have an idea, but..."


    "What idea? Let''s hear it," Beatrice asked quickly.


    Arabe leaned in to whisper in Beatrice''s ear. A smile spread across Beatrice''s face. "Good, that''s a


    good idea. Let''s do that."


    "But isn''t this a bit unfair to Vivienne?" Arabe hesitated.


    "Who cares what she thinks? She''s just a nobody to me. If this marriage falls through, what does


    Vivienne have to do with the Hawthorn family?" A cold glint shed in Beatrice''s eyes.


    "I''ll follow your lead then." Arabe lowered her head, a sly smile flickering in her eyes. But no one saw


    it.


    Vivienne got up early to go jogging. It was something she''d been doing for ten years. Just as she got to


    the entrance of the residential area, she ran into Arabe and her two ssmates, who were invited


    over to someone''s house.


    Upon seeing Vivienne, Arabe immediately walked up to her. "Vivienne? What are you doing here?"


    Vivienne gave her a nonchnt nce. "What''s up?"


    What was this girl up to now? Didn’t she already know they lived here?


    "No, nothing." Arabe feigned fear of Vivienne, whispering, "I thought you guys were staying at a


    motel? How did you end up here?"


    "Oh, I live here." Vivienne replied, amused. She decided to y along with Arabe''s game.


    "What?" Arabe was taken aback by Vivienne''s cooperation, but she quickly recovered. "You mean,


    you''re living here? Vivienne, do you know what ce this is?"


    Vivienne raised an eyebrow. "Tranquil Estates?"


    "Do you know that outsiders aren''t allowed in Tranquil Estates?" Arabe chuckled. "Vivienne, I know


    you just moved to the city and everything is new to you, but this is not the ce for you. You better


    leave before someone loses something valuable and you get med."


    Vivienne smirked, "So where do you want me to go?"


    "Aren''t you guys staying at a motel? You should just go back there," Arabe suggested casually.


    Before Vivienne could respond, one of the girls next to Arabe blurted out, "Arabe, who is she?"


    The girl who spoke was Coral, the daughter of the Lockwood family. Though the Lockwoods weren''t as


    prominent as the Hawthorns in Havenwood, they still held a significant status, and Coral''s two brothers


    were both politicians.


    Arabe didn''t like Coral, but she couldn''t ignore the Lockwood family. "She''s my sister." Arabe


    replied.


    "So, she''s the country girl." Coralughed, covering her mouth. "Look at her clothes. They probably


    cost less than fifty bucks total. Arabe, you''re like night and daypared to her."


    Arabe lowered her gaze and whispered, "Coral, don''t talk like that. She''s still my sister, and I''m just


    an adopted daughter of the Hawthorn family."


    "What''s wrong with being adopted?" Coral retorted immediately. "Even if you''re adopted, the


    Hawthorns prefer you. You''re so outstanding, why wouldn''t they? And what if she''s the daughter of your


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    family? She''s still been driven out, hasn''t she?"


    The other girl chimed in, "Yeah, you''re famously talented in Havenwood. How could you bepared


    to a country girl?"


    Vivienne shoved her hands into her pockets, nting her eyes at them with a smirk. Were these people


    here to stir up trouble on purpose?


    "But didn''t your adoptive father get kicked out of the Hawthorn family? How did she get into the


    residential area?" Coral demanded.


    Arabe sighed and defended Vivienne. "Maybe she saw how luxurious the neighborhood was and


    wanted to look around."


    She then turned to Vivienne and advised, "Vivienne, once you finish sightseeing, please leave. This is


    not a ce everyone can just enter. If someone loses something, it''ll be hard to exin."


    Vivienne stood there, hands in her pockets, watching her with amusement.


    Arabe felt a bit jittery under her gaze. It was as if she could see right through her. Could she have


    figured out why she was here? No way! Vivienne was just a girl who grew up in the Emerald


    Monastery. She''d supposedly been living there for the past decade. There was no way she could read


    her like a book.


    "You snuck in here?" Coral snapped. "That''s not cool! I need to check if anything''s missing from my


    house."


    With that said, she whipped out her phone and dialed a number.


    "Coral, don''t overreact. There''s probably a misunderstanding. Vivienne''s not like that. If you get the


    security involved and she ends up at the police station, her reputation is toast!" Arabe protested, but


    her eyes were twinkling with mirth.


    Vivienne nced at her, a hint of ice in her gaze. So that was the game she wanted to y?


    "Arabe, you can''t be too naive!" Coral shook off her hand, raising her voice. "She''s a thief, and she


    didn''t steal something trivial. She stole something worth tens of thousands of dors. That''s a one-way


    ticket to jail."


    Arabe opened her mouth, but then fell silent. They were standing not far from the main entrance, and


    two security guards rushed over after hearing themotion.


    "Ms. Lockwood, what seems to be the problem?" One of them asked.


    They both recognized Coral. In fact, they knew all the homeowners here.


    Coral huffed, "Is your security system that bad? How can you just let anyone waltz in here?"


    She pointed at Vivienne. "She stole my mom''s bracelet."


    The security guards turned to look at Vivienne, doing a double-take, "Ms. Hawthorn?"


    They hadn''t noticed Vivienne since she had been standing behind Coral. Now that they noticed her,


    their voices wavered a bit.