Obsessive Devotion Ice-Cold Tycoon's Calculated Proposal

To Vivian, Vincent was the adulterous man who had an affair with Gloria while she was married, one of the accomplices who led to the destruction of her family. Naturally, she despised him.

But to Daniel, Vincent was his flesh-and-blood father.

"Blood ties run deep," Daniel once remarked.

When Daniel spoke about it, it was as if he were discussing something trivial, a distant, disconnected issue. That kind of detachment made him all the more dangerous.

From his behavior now, it seemed that money no longer held much value for him. Everything about his mannerisms—his every movement—exuded the condescension of someone who had long ascended to the top.

If he could treat his own father with such cold indifference, what did that mean for Vivian?

Vivian truly believed that character wasn't measured by how someone treated themselves but by how they treated others. The thought of five years ago gnawed at her. She wasn't naive enough to think Daniel had forgotten everything—he might just have been biding his time, waiting for the right moment to strike a lethal blow.

She wasn't a match for someone like him.

Vivian turned to look at Daniel, sprawled casually on the couch with his legs stretched out and his arms draped carelessly. The boy from five years ago had matured completely into a man who could wield power, deciding life and death with a mere flick of his wrist.

This realization made her resolve clear: some advantages were too precious to be taken lightly.

"I won't comment on Mr. Smith's family matters, but thank you for today. I will repay this favor," Vivian said firmly. "Goodbye."

To her, Daniel had always been just a pawn in her plan for revenge against Gloria and Vincent. All the love and hate she felt towards him ended when the morning came. There was no future for them, and that was why she hadn't even said goodbye earlier.

She wouldn't see him again.

With a soft click, the automatic door slid shut behind her. Vivian leaned against the wall for a long moment before finally getting up to leave.

Lawrence, still stunned, glanced at Daniel before pointing at the door. "Dan, you're just letting her go like this?"

"What is this?" Lawrence muttered under his breath. "We went through all that trouble—heroic rescue, sending me off to get things, and now it's over?"

Daniel, ever the epitome of composure, didn't react at all.

His fingers were still flipping through the financial reports of Smith Jewelery for the past few years. Even when Vivian had said she was leaving, he didn't show much of a reaction, as though he had expected this outcome all along.

"What else could I do?" Daniel replied coolly. "It's been an eventful night. I'm afraid I scared her. Let her have some time to settle down."

The necessary information had already been revealed. He had plenty of time to let her process it at her own pace.

Daniel fastened his shirt all the way to the top, though if one looked closely, they could still see several visible scratches on his neck, streaked with redness and blood. These marks were just the ones visible, but there was no telling how many others there might be on his body.

All of them were Vivian's handiwork.

Lawrence regretted not taking a picture with his phone. If he had, everyone would've seen the usually cold and unapproachable Mr. Smith being ridden by a woman.

"Dan, do you want me to call Sophia to come and treat your wounds?" Lawrence asked. "The UX.Inc. event is just around the corner. It's a live global broadcast. You can't be looking like this on TV, can you?"

Daniel didn't even look up. "No need."

As Vivian stepped out from the top-floor presidential suite, the city lights twinkling outside confirmed that she was still in Rosewood Hotel.

The elevator was initially empty, but as it stopped on each floor, more people crowded in, and soon the small space was packed.

"Hey, did you see that? The engagement ceremony today is something else! Mr. Smith even brought out 'Blazing Core' as a dowry for Evelyn—what a big spender!" one person said.

"Right? The grandeur of a wealthy family's engagement is always over the top. I've never seen anything like it. The luxury cars and famous guests—did you hear? The minimum price per table is 88,000!" another person added.

Vivian stood in the corner of the elevator, closing her eyes and pretending to nap, feeling a bit exhausted.

"Cut the crap. This is all just show for the outsiders. For those of us in the know, we understand the real motive. They're just trying to catch those naive investors off guard," someone interrupted.

The elevator was packed, gossip swirling around.

Vivian's mind was elsewhere, her body leaning against the corner, but she couldn't help but overhear snippets of conversation.

"What do you mean 'cut the grass'?" one of them asked, still confused.

"You wouldn't get it. I've heard AW.Inc. has been struggling lately. Smith Jewelery isn't doing great either. With the real estate and jewelry market sluggish, they're putting on a show to bait people in, and when they do, the money just rolls in," the first person explained.

Vivian's mind raced as she processed the details. Then, someone else chimed in, "But wasn't AW.Inc. awarded a plot of land recently? They wouldn't need the small change from this, would they?"

"Don't be naive. I heard from my classmate's cousin, who works in the Development and Reform Commission, that Jadeite Lane was sold to AW.Inc. by the Smith Jewelery chairman's wife—sold for billions, and it was a 'friendly price'…"

The mention of Jadeite Lane made Vivian stiffen!

The following morning, at six a.m., after a light rain, the fog hung over the mountains as dawn broke. The servants at the Smith family's hillside mansion were already busy preparing.

Yesterday, the Smith and Davis families had officially united, and according to tradition, Evelyn from the Smith family was to have breakfast with Ethan. The preparations had been underway all night.

The iron gates of the mansion clanged loudly as the servants ushered Vivian inside.

Inside, the Smith family was already seated at the dining table, having breakfast together. Ethan spotted her immediately, standing up instinctively, only to be quickly pressed back down by Evelyn.

Gloria and Evelyn were unsurprised, but Vincent looked genuinely stunned upon seeing her. Still, the old fox had his composure and directed Vivian to sit down, maintaining his usual air of authority.

"Pearl, please add another set of utensils," he ordered casually.

"I heard you went to Rosewood Hotel yesterday, but I didn't see you," Vincent remarked, as if making small talk.

Vivian ignored him. She hadn't slept all night, and had been waiting here since the early morning. Her eyes were bloodshot as she glared at Gloria with unmasked anger. "Did you sell Jadeite Lane?"

The sound of a spoon clattering to the floor echoed loudly as Ethan dropped his spoon, surprised.

Gloria shot a quick glance at Evelyn, who nodded, before nonchalantly sipping her bird's nest soup and replying, "Jadeite Lane was promised to me by Mr.Pruitt. It's my property now. Selling it isn't illegal, is it?"

Vivian's head nearly exploded with rage, her hands trembling uncontrollably. "How can you say that?" she demanded. "You sold Jadeite Lane when my father was in desperate need of help, and you refused. He had no choice but to jump to his death! Now, you just sell it as if it's your property?!"

Years ago, Vivian had been a child. Gloria had tricked her father into transferring the property rights to her, secretly working with Vincent to sell it for a fraction of its value—moving the assets in a shady deal.

When her father had been desperate for that money, Gloria had feigned innocence, claiming she'd been scammed in business. Meanwhile, she and Vincent had been pocketing the profits all along.