h4Chapter 189: Chapter 189/h4

    At that moment, upon hearing what the announcer had just said, immediately, five of the gold invitee card memberslooked at each other.

    There was a short silence before it happened, an elegant pause, as though even time itself was waiting to see who among the elite would be bold enough to im the stage first. Then, slowly but confidently, one hand went up. Then another. And another. One after the other, the five gold card members raised their hands not hurriedly, not like they were desperate, but with calcted pride. Each one moved like royalty, fingers stretched slightly, wrists rxed, as if bidding on a million-dor dress was just part of their usual Tuesday evening.

    Immediately eyes shifted toward them in admiration and curiosity. A few murmurs flowed through the audience like soft wind. These weren’t just random rich people. These were names, names that sat on business boards, that influenced markets, that wore wealth like it was stitched into their DNA.

    At that moment in time a slim woman in a red velvet gown leaned forward slightly, her lips curling as she called out, "Six million." Then a tall woman with silvery hair and diamond earrings countered, "Seven million." Anotherdy, barely in her thirties, gently tapped her golden fan against her palm and said, "Seven-point-five." The announcer, unfazed, simply nodded, her hands elegantly folded over the bidding podium.

    But then, all of a sudden, the energy in the room shifted.

    Abigail was seated just a little off-center, unbothered, unshaken. She didn’t need to raise her voice. Her presence alone was thunder in disguise.

    Abigail doesn’t even want to drag space with anybody.

    She didn’te here to wrestle bids with people who measured luxury in millions. She didn’te to y the same game as them she came to end it. From the beginning, she had one goal: to let the world know, especially certain people in this room, that she belonged to a different echelon entirely. That if they were gold invitees, then she was the one who gold bowed to.

    She really wants to show them that, yes, they are not of the same ss.

    Because she didn’t buy her seat she was the table.

    And also, she really wants to show Cora that she’s not even in the same trajectory with Cora.

    That no matter how well Cora dressed, how hard she tried to mingle with the upper crust, she would never be her. She didn’t need to speak to prove that. Her actions would say everything. Her money would echo louder than any insult or condescension could. Cora, who had always tried to wear confidence like perfume, would now suffocate in her own insecurity.

    At that moment without wasting anymore time she saud.

    "15 million."

    At that moment, upon hearing what Abigail just said, a sudden hush swept across the grand auction hall like a wave of silent thunder.

    Immediately every head turned toward her direction. Eyes widened. Some jaws even dropped. The murmurs that had buzzed just seconds ago died off instantly, reced by stunned silence and reverence.

    Abigail had just dered a bid of $15 million for the diamond dress loud, clear, and unapologetically confident.

    She sat there calmly, not even sparing a nce at the others. Her posture didn’t change either. She didn’t smirk. She didn’t blink. But her presence alonemanded respect. This was not a show-off; it was a statement. She was telling them without words: "Know your ce."

    Everyone in that hall had heard of her Abigail, the woman with a pedigree of elegance and a reputation that preceded her. A name that turned heads in the highest circles. Not just rich, but established. Not just powerful, but untouchable. Her wealth wasn’t new money. It was generational. Deep. Solid. The kind of wealth that didn’t need to speak to be heard.

    The announcer, momentarily taken aback, adjusted her mic and gave a nervous chuckle before finding her voice again.

    "$15 million," she repeated with emphasis, drawing out the sybles as if to confirm she’d heard it right. "Is there... anyone willing to go above that?" Her eyes scanned the golden seats cautiously, knowing well that this kind of bid had just changed the entire tempo of the auction.

    However the remaining four gold invitee card holders, all once confident and proud, satpletely still. Their earlier bids of $6 million, $7 million, and $7.5 million now seemed almost childish. No one dared lift a finger. No one blinked. A quiet resignation washed over them like a cold breeze.

    It wasn’t just the number that silenced them, it was who said it.

    They understood the unspoken rules now. Abigail was involved.

    And if Abigail was involved, there was no room forpetition.

    Each of them slowly kept quiet in their seats, some sipping champagne to mask their retreat, others forcing a chuckle as if they never intended to win in the first ce. They were wise enough to let go.

    They knew better, this wasn’t just above their limits, it was above their league. And if Abigail is involved, it is better they just let go of it.

    At that moment, the announcer’s voice echoed across the hall, confident and poised. "Since no one is willing to go above Ms. Abigail’s ten million dor bid, it is officially confirmed, Ms. Abigail has won the diamond dress." Immediately a sharp wave of apuse followed, but what broke through the scattered ps was the sudden sound of one pair of hands pping slowly and deliberately, and it was Victoria’s.

    She stood tall, her eyes gleaming with admiration and pride. "That’s Ms. Abigail for you!" she dered with enthusiasm. "No onepares. That dress was made for her. Just look at her, elegance in human form."

    Several heads nodded in agreement, some envious, others in awe. Everything luxury Cameras clicked from every angle as Abigail smiled graciously, epting the moment of glory. But deep down, behind that soft smile, her eyes were fixed on one person Cora.

    She wasn’t smiling for the cameras. She wasn’t smiling because of the dress. She was smiling because she thought this would be her moment of triumph over Cora. Ever since Cora came in, she had one thing in mind to show Cora that she was far superior in wealth, ss, and influence. But something didn’t feel right.

    Cora hadn’t even raised a single finger to bid, and that was a problem.