"Emily, that shawl is gorgeous! Who''s the designer? I haven''t seen anything like it before," Kristina remarked, lightly touching the fabric, her eyes full of admiration and curiosity. Emily smiled, her face glowing with pride. "It''s handcrafted by my future daughter-inw."


    Kristina paused for a moment, then regained herposure and nodded, smiling. "That''s really impressive."


    Nearby, Annabelle''s eyes flickered with barely concealed envy and dissatisfaction. She forced a smile, ncing at Emily''s shawl now and then, gripping her mother''s hand a bit too tightly.


    Kristina gently squeezed Annabelle''s hand, smiling. "Connor''s in a rtionship, huh? I wonder who the lucky girl is. I haven''t heard anything about her."


    Emily chuckled, her eyes shining with admiration. "She''s not from our social circles, but she''s truly a wonderful girl."


    At that moment, a wealthydy chimed in with augh, "Is it that celebrity girl?"


    With a hint of disdain, she recalled how she had once tried to introduce her daughter to Connor, but Emily had politely declined, a decision that still seemed to irk her.


    Emilyughed, covering her mouth, and shook her head. "No, it''s not her. Connor and she are just ssmates."Original content from N?velDrama.Org.


    Hearing this, the other wealthydies expressed their curiosity and surprise, specting about who this mysterious fiancée could be and how she had won Connor''s heart. Meanwhile, Annabelle remained silent, her jealousy simmering.


    "Seen any jewelry you like tonight?" one of thedies asked.


    Emily smiled softly and shook her head. "Actually, I haven''t set my sights on any particr piece tonight. But Connor has taken a liking to a bracelet and ns to gift it to his girlfriend. I guess I''m ying


    the middleman'' tonight."


    Thediesughed, and one teased, "Connor must really care about her; it looks like the Passos family will have a celebration soon."


    Emilyughed and replied, "I''ll definitely invite everyone when the timees."


    Just then, the auctioneer''s voice filled the room, and Emily, along with the otherdies, took their seats.


    The auctioneer, holding a gavel,


    enthusiastically introduced each


    item up for bid, while Emily sat in the front row of the VIP section,


    listening attentively. Her gaze shifted calmly between the auction items and the bidders.


    Suddenly, the auctioneer presented a magnificent jadeitevender bracelet, announcing, "This is a precious bracelet from the ancient East, featuring rarevender jadeite, a gift from nature itself. The bidding starts at five and a half million; please begin."


    As soon as he finished speaking, Emily raised her bidding paddle and calmly said, "Six million."


    The bidding instantly became lively, with other participants quickly raising the price to eight million six hundred thousand.


    "Nine million," Emily raised her paddle again.


    At that moment, Annabelle suddenly lifted her paddle, her voice clear and determined: "Ten million!"


    Emily turned, slightly startled, and looked at Annabelle, a flicker of surprise in her eyes. The other bidders stopped, and the atmosphere in the room tensed up.