"Aunt Yara is my grand-aunt’s guest. Who dares throw her out!"

The child’s voice, though still young, carried a nascent authority that froze the security guards in their tracks.

Christian was flanked by several bodyguards. He kept a straight face, his soft, cherubic features holding an immense deterrent force.

"Aunt Yara, don’t be afraid."

Estelle was stunned. She hadn’t expected Christian to be the one to help her.

Clearly, Noelle and Laura Jennings hadn’t expected it either.

Noelle, in particular, was so furious she wanted to march right up and kill Christian Sloan. ’That meddling bastard!’

’But she couldn’t!’

Noelle feigned disappointment, her expression darkening. "Christian... Christian, how could you..."

Laura Jennings snapped to her senses, screeching, "Christian Sloan! Is this any way to behave? Siding with an outsider to accuse your own grandmother and mother?"

Christian said coolly, "Grandma, you know perfectly well whether Aunt Noelle is my mother or not. There’s no need to keep up the act."

Laura Jennings was so furious she nearly fell over backward. "You... You..."

Christian’s words made some of the surrounding guests exchange surprised glances.

Noelle’s heart sank. ’This is bad.’ Everyone still saw her as the Sloan Family’s future daughter-in-law precisely because the public believed she was Christian’s birth mother...

Noelle knew she couldn’t let him say any more, so she hurriedly changed the subject.

"Christian, your grandmother was just frantic with worry. You mustn’t blame her! Besides, we aren’t trying to target Yara. It’s just... she doesn’t have an invitation..."

Christian repeated coolly, "I already said, she is my grand-aunt’s guest. And mine."

Noelle feigned helplessness. "Be that as it may, we still have to follow the rules. And the rule is, no entry without an invitation. If everyone acted like Yara, wouldn’t there be chaos?"

Christian was once again struck by Noelle’s shamelessness. He pressed his lips together, a sudden wave of helplessness washing over him.

’This woman is so vile... But Grandpa, Grandma, the assistants, and even Daddy all said she risked her life to save me. They said I have to be respectful to her.’

’...Impossible!’

Estelle’s heart suddenly ached for him. ’Christian is only five. With a "mother" like Noelle and a grandmother like Laura Jennings, his life must have been so difficult.’

Estelle moved to stand in front of Christian, her gaze turning cold as she looked at the triumphant smirk still on Noelle’s face.

"Since Miss Lockwood insists one cannot enter without an invitation... may I ask, Miss Lockwood, why were *you* allowed in?"

Laura Jennings immediately scoffed. "Noelle got in because she has an invitation, of course!"

Estelle replied nonchalantly, "Is that right? And where is it?"

Unable to contain her smugness, Laura Jennings put her hands on her hips and bellowed, "Are you blind? What do you think that is in Noelle’s hand? Now scram before you make a fool of yourself!"

Indeed... The crowd didn’t understand what Estelle was getting at.

Noelle had, in fact, entered holding an invitation.

But to everyone’s surprise, Estelle smiled. "Then let me rephrase. This invitation... is it yours, Miss Noelle Lockwood?"

The area fell silent for a few seconds as everyone’s eyes widened in shock.

Noelle’s fingers tightened. She feigned innocence. "Yara, what kind of joke is that? Of course the invitation is mine."

Estelle shot her a sidelong glance and spoke coolly.

"Is that so? What an unfortunate coincidence. My invitation disappeared this morning. And Aunt Iris told me she wasn’t inviting you today. So, my invitation goes missing, and you—someone who wasn’t supposed to have one—suddenly have an invitation in your hand. How do you explain that?"

Noelle bit her lip.

Laura Jennings’s heart leaped into her throat. She immediately raised her voice to cover her guilty conscience.

"What are you trying to say? That Noelle stole your invitation? That’s ridiculous! So what if Iris Sloan said she wasn’t going to invite Noelle? Who’s to say she didn’t change her mind!"

A small smile played on Estelle’s lips. "Since Mrs. Sloan is so certain the invitation is Noelle’s, why don’t we have Miss Noelle open it? Let’s see if my name is written on it."

Laura Jennings suddenly burst out laughing. "HAHAHA! Estelle Lockwood, you’re killing me! If you’re going to impersonate a guest of the Sloan Family, you should at least do your homework! Sloan Family invitations don’t have names on them!"

The crowd looked on, eager for a show, their eyes fixed on Estelle.

It was true.

The invitations they had received were all standard-issue from the Sloan Family; none of them had names.

Anyone who had ever received one of their invitations knew its design and format.

The fact that Estelle claimed her name was on the invitation was definitive proof that she was lying.

—Because everyone’s invitations were identical. It was absolutely impossible for a name to be on one!

Laura Jennings was gloating. ’So what if I stole Estelle’s invitation? The girl’s as dumb as a rock. This is her own fault, not mine!’

Estelle looked calmly at Noelle. "Noelle, do you dare open it?"

’Estelle has no way to prove this invitation is hers.’

So Noelle put on a helpless expression. "Yara, your name isn’t on the invitation... This is *my* invitation. You think I don’t know what’s written inside it?"

"But this is Aunt Iris’s party, after all, and it wouldn’t do to cause a scene at the door. Since you’re so insistent on seeing it, I’ll show you."

"But you have to promise me that you’ll leave right after you see it and not disturb the party. Can you do that?"

The onlookers couldn’t help but marvel at how gracious Miss Noelle was. Even though Yara had repeatedly claimed the invitation was hers, Miss Noelle remained gentle and was trying to reason with her kindly.

’If it were them, they would have kicked Yara out ages ago!’

Estelle raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Open it."

Noelle shook her head with an air of exasperated tolerance. She brought the invitation up and began to open it, one fold at a time.

"Yara, I’m really not trying to give you a hard time. Like I said, the rules are the rules. No one gets in without an invitation."

Noelle had been to several Sloan Family parties. She knew their invitations never had names on them.

Combined with Laura Jennings’s guarantee, she was completely confident.

’So what if this is Yara’s invitation? And so what if Yara is actually Estelle? I’ve stolen so much from Estelle in the past—what’s one more little invitation?’

’Anyone who opposes me is bound to be humiliated! That’s how it was then, and that’s how it is now! Whether she’s Estelle or Yara, she’s nothing but a stepping stone for me!’

At this thought, the smile on Noelle’s face widened. It was a gentle, helpless expression, as if she were completely oblivious, yet every word she spoke was designed to push Estelle into an abyss.

"Yara, next time you want to attend a party, just let me know ahead of time. I’ll be sure to find a way to help you. But for today, please, just..."

Before she could finish, the invitation was fully unfolded.

The crowd saw the glittering gold name on the invitation and froze.

"Wait a minute... there really is a name on the invitation! It’s Yara’s!"