CHAPTER 296: THEIR RELATIONSHIP

Ella glanced at the man in front of her. He seemed like another rich young master present in the grand hall.

His appearance was impeccable and his disposition was graceful.

But the way he addressed Adrian, Ella was sure of one thing: They were definitely close.

But after she scourged through her memory, she could remember encountering this man in her previous life.

Feeling her gaze on him, he turned, and the smile on his face widened, "And this lady..."

Ella smiled slightly, about to speak when she heard the man continue.

"Let me guess. You must be Ace’s little sister or his cousin..." Luca turned completely towards Ella.

Suddenly, dark clouds rolled beside the glamourous chandeliers.

And the temperature in the hall dropped. A few passerbies stopped by to double check.

When Ella looked at Adrian, she could see his displeasure written all over his face.

"No? A distant relative?" Luca continued asking.

Ella pursed her lips, stifling her laughter when Adrian’s eyes narrowed even further.

"I am her boyfriend," Adrian’s calm voice dropped as he pulled her closer.

Ella’s smile widened as she turned and nodded at the man, "Hi, I am Ella, nice to meet you."

However, her introduction barely seemed to register in Luca’s mind who seemed thunderstruck by this revelation.

After a long while, the man put on a graceful smile and turned to Ella, "I am Luca, Adrian’s best buddy."

"I beg to differ," Ronan chimed in, followed by Kade.

"I am his best buddy," Luca insisted with a casual shrug.

Ronan rolled his eyes.

Kade sipped on his wine, enjoying the drama. The look on his face said—Brother might or might not have a best buddy but me being his only little brother is an unshakeable fact.

The atmosphere lightened while Ella’s mind had drifted somewhere else.

In her previous life, Ella had never really stopped investigating Adrian’s world to get a weakness.

She snuck into his study, looked into his business, his business partners, deals...

And when Lilith entered their life back then, Ella tried to find more about her. But she could not manage to get a lot of details about Lilith except for her family background.

So, she reached out to Esther for help. And Esther did not disappoint her.

In order to aggravate her already poisoned relationship with Adrian, Esther came back with some rarely known information.

In Country Z, one of the most prestigious and powerful families was Lilith’s family. The Quinns commanded a lot of power in the place.

But not many people knew that there was one family that could rival them in terms of power, the enigmatic Caine Family.

And all the members of the Caine family were completely hidden from the public view, except for one person.

Luca Caine. The adopted son of the Caines who was taken to be the face of the family, and the sole heir.

"Little Ian, you are finally here..."

Ella snapped out of her reverie when she heard Old Madam King’s familiar voice.

When she turned, the old madam and old master were already heading in their direction followed by a bunch of people whom Ella recognized... as some of the powerful branch members of the King Family.

When Adrian and the rest turned to face the old couple, all of them spotted Ella who was standing in the center of the group.

The old couple had a look of surprise on their faces and the branch members frowned.

"Second Master, who might be this lady?" One of them voiced their doubt in a polite voice.

"Yes, I don’t remember seeing her before..."

"Which prestigious family does this lady belong to?"

Although they spoke in considerably low voices, the guests nearby had been observing Ella in silence, not daring to offend Adrian.

Soon, whispers spread throughout the hall and all the guests looked over.

At a little distance from the scene, Lilith’s footsteps halted when she halted a familiar face.

"Mr. Yu?"

Mr. Yu turned around, his brows rising in surprise, "Who might this lady be?"

Lilith paused and a small smile quivered on her lips, "Ella’s friend. I didn’t get a chance to greet you at your anniversary party."

Mr. Yu was a smart man. Somebody who could be a part of the King Family’s event was no ordinary person.

"You must be here for Ella. She is right ahead. You can go and meet her."

...

Back in the center of the hall, the situation was slightly tense after the series of questions.

Seeing the indifference on Adrian’s face, the branch family members quietened, wary of offending the man.

At this moment, a voice cut through the stillness.

"Ella..."

Everybody turned to look at the newcomer.

The moment Ella spotted Mr. Yu, she looked up at Adrian.

Adrian’s gaze was unreadable but his brow was slightly raised. Seeing the look on his face, Ella doubted that he would invite her father over, knowing everything that has transpired between them recently.

"Did... I interrupt something..." Feeling the weight of everyone’s gazes, Mr. Yu halted in his tracks, an embarrassed smile creeping on his face, "I just saw my daughter here so I had to..." he trailed off.

The moment he spoke, countless whispers erupted in the hall.

"Daughter?"

"Oh isn’t he the CEO of some small jewellery brand?"

"I remember now... Ella Yu! That model who got involved in a scandal years ago and was kicked out of her family, the Yus!"

"Impossibe! How could a person like that be here, that too with Mr. King!"

"I am not wrong about it..."

The branch members of the King Family observed the scene closely, awaiting a confirmation.

Mr. Yu shrunk slightly, his eyes nervous.

"Dad, you didn’t tell me you were coming tonight," Ella calmly walked towards the man.

Mr. Yu’s eyes brightened, "I... Well, it was a last minute plan."

"Second Master, who is this lady?" Somebody asked again.

Adrian glanced at Ella.

Ella offered him a small smile as she led Mr. Yu forward.

"Second Master, could it be—"

"My girlfriend," Adrian’s crisp voice reverberated in the entire place, astonishing every person present in the vicinity.

At a little distance...

Eli chuckled, "Your plan failed."

Lilith’s lips pursed.

"You wanted to humiliate her by sending her father there... and exposing her identity. But Ella did not seem very stressed about it."

The Yu Family might be wealthy and have some decent history but in front of the giants present in the ancient royal palace of Vermilion City today, the Yu Family was not even an ant.

With Mr. Yu pushed into limelight, and Ella’s identity exposed, she should have been labelled a Cindererella, trying to climb the social ladders through Adrian!

Yet, now Ella stood there like an official girlfriend, not some dirty secret...

"From the investigation, Ella has had limited contact with her family over the years. I thought Ace..."

"Mind her background?" Eli raised a brow as he glanced at Adrian who led Ella and her father away, very attentively, "Doesn’t seem so."

"What about Ella?" Lilith frowned, refusing to believe how things panned out.

"Did you think Ella would be disgusted with her father, or should she refuse to acknowledge him?"

"They had a fallout before. If she refused to acknowledge him, then she would have a perfect excuse in front of Adrian, she could say she was upset with him. And at the same time, she could hide her identity."

Eli smiled, "Well, I doubt she can be that heartless. Maybe that sets her apart in Mr. King’s eyes."

Lilith’s gaze snapped at him, "You... Why don’t you go become her secretary instead?"

Eli’s smile deepened, "Well, wouldn’t I do that if I was not so reluctant to leave your side?"

...

After the shocking revelation, the ball continued as if nothing had happened.

Even if people had their thoughts, nobody let it show on their faces but they discussed things amongst themselves.

The branch members were not quite pleased but they knew better than to ruin the event and invoke Adrian’s wrath.

"Earlier... I did not think you’d do that. Does that mean you have forgiven me...?" Mr. Yu asked Ella in an isolated corner.

Ella released the man’s arm and turned to look at him, "It was the need of the situation."

As angry as she was with her parents, Ella did not have it within herself to turn her back on them even.

And she did not regret it. However, she was not going to act like nothing ever went wrong with them.

Mr. Yu opened his mouth to speak but at this moment his phone buzzed. The moment he answered the call, his face blanched.