?Chapter 458:


    “Are you pleased with the oue now, Miss Burgess?”


    Leah’s expression crumbled, her mask ofposure slipping as fury red in her eyes.


    “You did this on purpose!”


    Corrine let out a soft chuckle, stepping closer.


    “But you were the one who pushed me onto the stage,” she mused, her voice dripping with mock innocence.


    Leah stiffened as Corrine reached for her face. Instinctively, she recoiled, her eyes widening in wariness.


    “What do you want?” But Corrine merely grasped her chin, her touch light yet deliberate. With a slow, almost condescending pat to Leah’s cheek, she smiled.


    “In the end, you brought this upon yourself. But I must thank you. Without your contrast, how would my excellence have shone so brilliantly?”


    The words were gentle, yet each syble carried the weight of a p. Leah’s face burned—not from the touch, but from the sheer humiliation of it.


    A cold sense of helplessness washed over her, as if she were being crushed beneath Corrine’s heel.


    Her breath came in short, sharp bursts, her eyes reddening with unspoken rage.


    Just as she was about to snap, Corrine straightened, her gaze calm, almost amused.


    “Miss Burgess, don’t forget your manners. You’re supposed to be a refineddy.”


    Your storytelling begins at g α? ησ ν?? ??s,


    With that, she turned, sidestepping Leah with effortless grace, and walked away.


    Meg studied Corrine, her appreciation for the young woman growing with each passing moment. There was an effortless charm about her, something both refined and undeniably likable.


    Unfortunately, Corrine’s status ced her far beyond their reach.


    That thought weighed on Meg, and she sighed softly.


    Cn, ever attuned to her moods, immediately pulled a small thermos from his pocket and offered it to her.


    “Are you feeling unwell? Have some herbal tea.”


    Meg barely spared the thermos a nce, a touch of mncholy in her eyes.


    “Why would I need herbal tea?” She exhaled another quiet sigh.


    “I just feel a weight on my heart.”


    Cn’s expression shifted instantly, as if she had just uttered a grave diagnosis.


    “Heart problems?”


    Meg stared at him, wordless.


    Cn felt a chill creep over him at her unimpressed silence.


    “Honey, don’t look at me like that.”


    Seeing his worry, Meg let out a resigned sigh.


    “Your son is almost twenty-four. Doesn’t his future concern you at all? As his father, you barely pay him any attention.”


    “So that’s what this is about,” Cn murmured, visibly relieved. He leaned back slightly.


    “Have you not been searching for a girl from a simr background? No luck?”


    Meg’s gaze drifted toward Corrine.


    “I’ve found someone.”


    .


    .


    .