"Of course it’s real! You insolent whelp, don’t think you can just sling mud at me and sweep this under the rug!"

"If you weren’t so despicable, do you really think I could have taken over just because of that one percent of the shares? The shareholders and the family elders aren’t blind. They sided with me back then, not because of some shares, but because they saw right through your character. They knew you would only drag The Sterlings into the abyss."

As soon as Kian Sterling said this, the family elders nodded one after another, furiously rebuking Franklin Sterling:

"How far can underhanded tactics take a great family? Franklin, I tried to talk sense into you so many times back then, but you refused to see reason. When you lost the power struggle to Kian, you even cursed me, your Second Uncle, for betraying the family. Do you have any idea how much trouble The Sterlings were in during the years you were in charge? The company was riddled with problems. It took Kian three years just to get your broken-down subsidiaries back on track and turn a profit."

"Losing the power struggle was one thing. For the sake of you calling me Youngest Uncle for all those years, I swallowed my pride and begged Kian to let you off the hook. He let you live out your days in the old mansion with your passive shares. But what did you do? You turned around and absconded with a huge sum of money, nearly driving the family into ruin! And it was Kian who signed countless high-stakes agreements, clawing back projects from the mouths of other powerful families, one by one, to create the prosperous Sterling empire we see today!"

...

Franklin Sterling’s face twisted. "You’re all on his side. I worked my fingers to the bone for The Sterlings back in the day, and now I’m nothing but a joke to you! Forget everything else. Kian Sterling, I’m here today about one thing, and one thing only: the matter of Celia Sterling. Are you going to admit to it or not?"

"And you old fools!" He suddenly glared at the elders who had just spoken. "You’re all in league with him, so of course you’d speak up for him. But there are plenty in the family who stand with me. In front of everyone here, I must get justice for what happened back then! That bitch, June Coleman, tricked me into giving two percent of my shares to Cece. But that two percent was the last straw that broke my back!"

He grew more and more agitated, his words becoming reckless. "By that time, my ill-fated Cece was already dead, wasn’t she? Otherwise, how could that bitch have had such a huge emotional swing! Kian Sterling, your bitch of a mother used the dead Cece’s shares to support you, which just so happened to put your total support exactly one percent above mine. This was all planned from the start, wasn’t it? Such malice is unforgivable!"

Kian Sterling said nothing, but the air around him grew terrifyingly cold.

Silas Norwood could no longer remain composed. His cold gaze fell upon Franklin Sterling. "Mr. Sterling, you keep calling her an ’ill-fated wretch.’ Where does that leave my wife? And where does that leave The Norwood Family?"

"Your wife? Your wife isn’t Celia Sterling at all! Her surname is Sutton; she’s a cast-off from the Sutton Family of Port Sovereign. That bitch June Coleman and that insolent whelp Kian Sterling took her in and raised her, and in the process, she became a tool in their power grab within the Sterling Family." Franklin Sterling’s eyes were full of scorn. "The Sterlings and The Norwoods, united by marriage—what a grand affair! Too bad you married a phony. So much for a beneficial alliance. That insolent whelp really played his cards well. What, was the tool so useful that a power grab wasn’t enough? Now you’re using this marriage to get a heap of projects from The Norwood Family. Aren’t you afraid you’ll bite off more than you can chew?"

Kian Sterling signaled for his bodyguards to snatch the paternity test report from his hands. "Franklin Sterling, if you’re going to keep barking, at least prove this document is authentic first. The sample is dated yesterday, but Cece has been with Silas Norwood for the past several days. How could you possibly have gotten her DNA? Besides, the data in this DNA sample is fabricated. I have a complete backup of her real DNA values right here." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"I can’t prove mine is real, but how can you be sure yours is?" Franklin Sterling pointed to two staff members beside him carrying cases. "I’ve brought personnel from Metropia’s largest agency here today. You insolent whelp, do you dare let that phony take a paternity test with me on the spot?"

Kian Sterling was unmoved. "Are you even worthy?"

"You just don’t dare!" Franklin Sterling’s expression was already crazed. Combined with the wound Kian Sterling had given him earlier, he looked truly horrifying. "I demand a test! I’m going to take legal action to get back the shares I gave her! A cast-off from the Sutton Family, dreaming of taking what belongs to the Sterling Family? Is she even worthy?!"

"Mr. Sterling’s foul mouth is polluting the air." Silas Norwood rose slowly and deliberately, instructing a nearby bodyguard, "Throw him out."

"I’ve already arranged your flight for this afternoon. I originally planned to see you off properly." Kian Sterling’s voice was ice-cold. "The police department overseas is already waiting. Sending you to prison for a few decades doesn’t sound too bad."

He paused, his tone so calm it was as if getting angry was beneath him. "As for the on-the-spot test you mentioned, I won’t state my position. Let the family elders and the board members vote."

Franklin Sterling looked expectantly at his kinsmen, calling out to several who had once been on his side: "Third Uncle, Second Uncle, Eldest Cousin, Youngest Cousin..."

With each name he called, that person would unnaturally avert their gaze, playing deaf and dumb.

"You... you pack of animals! A pack of opportunistic animals! Eldest Cousin, and to think I brought you in on every profitable project I had! And you, Third Uncle, don’t forget how you got the things hidden in the walls of your villa—"

Before Franklin Sterling could finish, several family members cut him off in unison!

Everyone’s eyes blazed with fury as they stared at him, looking as if they wanted to subject him to death by a thousand cuts right then and there!

"Franklin Sterling, who’s the real animal here?! You cast aside your legitimate children to raise a bunch of bastards on the side, and you even had the gall to bring them into the corporation to carve up the power. I wanted to kill you back then!"

"Do a test? Is there any need?! We watched Celia Sterling grow up all these years. She’s sweet and considerate. She is the official young miss of the Sterling Family! If you don’t acknowledge her, we will!"

"You keep calling him an insolent whelp, but if it weren’t for Kian, would The Sterlings be as prosperous as they are now?! The power struggle back then was never about the shares; it was about winning people’s hearts. So what if you had an extra two percent to put you over Kian? There were still a few old-timers who hadn’t declared their stance, but they had already decided in their hearts to side with Kian. You never stood a chance!"

"The marriage between The Sterlings and The Norwoods is a win-win situation for both sides. We won’t let a rat dropping like you spoil everything! Get out! Get the hell out! And you can forget about that dividend! The Sterlings have no place for a scoundrel like you!"

...

Silas Norwood and Kian Sterling quietly watched the farce unfold.

The scene was a cacophony of arguments. Though Silas Norwood and Kian Sterling were at the center of it all, they seemed like mere spectators.

"Silas Norwood." Kian Sterling looked at Silas Norwood, who had been calm from beginning to end. He gently stubbed out his cigarette, his eyes holding a deep, inscrutable look. "What do you know?"

"I don’t know anything." Silas Norwood calmly played dumb. "My wife must be the young miss of the Sterling Family."

’When I married her, whatever her status was then is the status she will always have.’

’Our marriage bed isn’t even warm yet.’

’Becoming a widower is absolutely not an option.’

Kian Sterling leaned lazily in a dark corner, the beauty mark by his eye turning a shade of red, making the corners of his eyes seem flushed as well. "Of course she is Celia Sterling."