Chapter One-Hundred and Fifty-OneAdrian turned his gaze toward Gerald. “Proof? Look at Master Hollen’s hands.”Everyone turned. Hollen instinctively tried to hide his hands behind his back, but it was too late.“The tea and vinegar bath used to age the jade leaves a very specific staining under the fingernails. It takes weeks to wash off,” Adrian said. “Master Hollen didn't just appraise those needles. He helped cook them.”The crowd recoiled from Hollen as if he had leprosy. The Master looked at his stained cuticles and then at the ground, his silence a deafening confession.Seraphina stood behind the group, her hands trembling. She looked at Adrian, the man she thought she was helping, the man she had pitied for his inexperience. She realized with a jolt of lightning that he hadn't been lucky. He had been playing with them the entire time. He was a tiger walking among house cats, bored by their hissing.Adrian turned back to his truck and pulled the handle. The door groaned in a h

Chapter One-Hundred and Fifty-ThreeSeraphina’s sedan pulled into the driveway of the penthouse apartment compared to the massive, sprawling fortresses of the Moore family.Seraphina stepped out of the vehicle, carrying two heavy insulated bags filled with the premium groceries Lina had requested. The sharp, high-society tension that had gripped her all afternoon at the pavilion finally began to melt under the warm afternoon sun.The front door opened before she could even reach the porch. Lina stood there, wearing a simple linen apron over a casual dress, her hair tied back in a messy bun.“You actually brought the imported sea bass!” Lina squealed, instantly pulling Seraphina into a tight hug before snatching the grocery bags. “You’re a lifesaver, Phina. If I served my husband standard market fish, he’d still eat it and smile, but I’d feel like a terrible wife.”Seraphina followed her into the bright, spacious kitchen, kicking off her designer heels at the door. “You’re treating him

Chapter One-Hundred and Fifty-Five“Miss Seraphina,” Vera’s voice came through the encrypted line, trembling with an erratic, breathless panic that Seraphina had never heard from her professional assistant before. “I am at the Central Medical Center. I tried to access the registry for Adrian’s sister as you instructed.”“And?” Seraphina demanded, her eyes fixed through the glass partition on Adrian, who was calmly waiting for the kettle to whistle. “Did you move her to the imperial suite? Did you clear the family debt?”“No, Miss Seraphina, that’s the issue,” Vera said softly, struggling to breathe steadily. “When I mentioned his name, the hospital staff looked shocked. They told me the eight hundred thousand dollar bill wasn’t paid by some secret fund. The hospital has a program for families who do dangerous, low paying jobs for the city. Adrian didn’t settle the debt with money. He signed a harsh five year contract to work manual labor in the city sanitation department just so her t

Chapter One-Hundred and Fifty-SevenAdrian smiled softly, picking up a small bowl of rice and handing it to her along with the chopsticks. “Seraphina was about to spend 10 million on an artifact, Lina,” Adrian said mildly, shifting the platter of sea bass closer to her side. “The city elites were busy arguing about the originality of a medical artifact and I solved it for them. It wasn't anything special.”“But Seraphina said you saved his life,” Lina insisted, her eyes searching his face. “She threatened to destroy my father’s business just to protect your reputation.”“Miss Moore is a very dramatic person,” Adrian chuckled, pouring himself a fresh cup of the earthy barley tea. “People who live in marble towers think every cracked tile is a disaster. To them, a simple needle trick looks like magic. To me, it’s just the same as fixing a loose radiator pipe. You find the leak, you plug it, and you move on to the next job.”Lina looked down at her plate, a soft, bittersweet smile touch

Chapter One-Hundred and Fifty-nineFollowing Seraphina Moore’s iron-fisted directive from the previous evening, the Moore Group had officially and publicly terminated all joint venture contracts, logistics agreements, and real estate leases with the Noble family’s subsidiaries. The news hit the wire like a localized economic bomb. By 8:00 a.m., the Noble family’s public stock faced a total, forced halt. Decades of generational wealth and high-society standing were completely dismantled in a matter of twelve hours—all because a single, arrogant young master had tried to use a fraudulent piece of artifacts to poison the Old Master of the Moore family.Meanwhile, in a quiet, sunlit suburb miles away from the panic of the financial district, the atmosphere inside Lina’s villa was entirely serene.The air was filled with the rich, savory aroma of a perfectly seasoned breakfast. Adrian stood at the kitchen island, his long fingers manipulating a pair of chopsticks with effortless precisio