?Chapter 624:


    “As for my attire, this event didn’t exactly specify that we needed to dress to impress, did it? I’m not here to please anyone or catch the eye of any of the men here. You all im to be high-societydies, but to me, you seem no different from gossipy back-alley chitchatters.”


    At her words, Judie and her group flushed a deep red with embarrassment.


    They had pegged Corrine as an easy target, but she had surprised them, standing her ground and reprimanding them without a hint of hesitation.


    Her sharp words didn’t go unnoticed by the young men nearby, either.


    “This outsider heiress of the Ford family really stands out,” one remarked, nudging Gregory with his elbow.


    “Gregory, aren’t you two somewhat rted? Why not introduce us?”


    Callie, standing nearby, scoffed lightly, “What kind of rtion does she even have to our family? If it weren’t for…”


    She cut herself off mid-sentence, her gaze falling on Gregory’s sharp look, swallowing the words she’d been about to speak.


    “Carl’s granddaughter isn’t someone we should associate with lightly,” Gregory responded, his voice smooth as he casually swirled his wine.


    “What’s so unattainable about her? It’s just the Ford family elevating her,” the man muttered, his eyes lingering on Corrine with a look of overt appraisal, as though she were an object on disy. His voice dripped with disdain.


    “Carl has been hospitalized recently, and rumors are flying. Now he’s bringing her to this elite event. It’s obvious—he’s using her as a pawn in a marriage of convenience. Otherwise, why would the Ford family have supported her all these years?”


    His words implied that the kindness the Ford family had shown Corrine was merely a strategic investment for the sake of an arranged marriage.


    where stories grow


    “Even if the Ford family’s fortunes were in decline, we would never throw our girl’s marriage into the fire to survive,” a calm,zy voice interjected, cutting through the tension like a sharp de.


    Everyone turned to see Jules reclining in an elegant chair, effortlessly exuding an air of leisure.


    He wore a ck shirt, the cor slightly undone, revealing the subtle curve of his corbone. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, exposing his slightly tanned skin, while his clean, slender fingers casually held a cigarette.


    Through the swirling haze of smoke, his features appeared like a painting, his high nose and subtly curved lips giving him an enigmatic, almost ethereal look. His eyes, naturally upturned, were both affectionate and indifferent, conveying a world of emotions with just a nce.


    The man who had been speaking stiffened the moment he saw Jules. His eyes shifted uneasily, and he respectfully greeted, “Mr… Mr. Ford…”


    Juleszily lifted his gaze, his eyes flicking dismissively at the man before him.


    “A mere fly dares to hover too close to what doesn’t belong to it? Truly unaware of its own ce in the world.”


    His voice, though t, carried an icy authority that seemed to freeze the very air, sending cold shivers down the spines of those who heard it.


    In the blink of an eye, the room fell into a heavy silence, the tension thick enough to cut with a knife.


    It had long been whispered that the men of the Ford family held an almost sacred guardianship over the youngdy with a different surname. Jules’ words now were all the proof anyone needed. The man who had just beenpared to a mere fly couldn’t hide the flush of humiliation creeping up his neck.


    .


    .


    .