From Exile To Queen Of Everything - Chapter 37: Chapter 37

The security guard certainly recognized this man as the heir of the former Junior Quinn Group. But this was no longer the Quinn family's territory. It was now Hart Corporation. Of course, he couldn't let Mason in.
The security guard stepped forward and said firmly, "Sorry, sir, you can't enter."
Mason's eyes widened as he glared at the insolent security guard. 'How dare this lowly guard try to stop me?' he fumed inwardly. 'He's got some nerve. I'll have HR fire him immediately.'
"I'm giving you one last chance," Mason snapped. "Get out of my way now, or I'll call Sophie and you'll regret it."
The security guard stood firm. Just as Mason was about to explode, he spotted Zack, Sophie's assistant. He bellowed, "Zack, get your ass over here now."
Zack froze, then turned to see Mason. 'What's he doing here?' Zack frowned and wondered. Still, due to their past, he walked over.
Zack approached politely and asked, "Mr. Quinn, may I ask what brings you here today?"
Seething with rage, Mason didn't even notice that Zack's tone had become somewhat indifferent.
"Fire him immediately. He's a complete idiot. He actually stopped me from going in. Where's Sophie? I demand to see her now," Mason tried to barge in as he said.
But Zack swiftly stepped forward to block his path. "Mr. Quinn, you're not allowed inside."
Furious, Mason jabbed a finger at Zack and snapped, "Zack, now even you dare to stand in my way? Do you think I can't do anything to you?"
Seeing Mason's reaction, Zack realized that Mason probably hadn't heard about the Quinn family's bankruptcy yet.
Zack looked at Mason and said calmly, "Mr. Quinn, hasn't your family informed you? This is no longer the Quinn Group."
"What do you mean by that?" Still fuming, Mason froze at these words and wondered, 'How can this not be Quinn Group anymore?'
Zack remained patient and explained calmly, "Mr. Quinn, the Quinn Group has already gone bankrupt. This property now belongs to Hart Corporation. If you need confirmation, you can check the news online."
Mason immediately pulled out his phone. A tidal wave of trending news left him stunned and overwhelmed. Seeing his expression, Zack quietly slipped away.
Zack was just an employee. After the Quinn Group went bankrupt and the Hart Corporation took over, the new management recognized his competence and kept him on. For that, Zack was simply grateful.
To Zack, loyalty meant nothing. It was just a paycheck. Whoever paid him, that was who he worked for.
Mason finished reading the messages, utterly unable to accept them. His pupils dilated with shock as he screamed, "No. This can't be true. How could our family go bankrupt? Where's Sophie? Where is she?"
Mason screamed hysterically, while the security guard stood as rigid as a tree, silent and watchful, ready to restrain him the moment he tried to charge inside.
"Mason, where are you?" Sophie had come to the police station specifically to pick up Mason, but when she couldn't find him, she tried calling, and to her surprise, he actually answered.
"Sophie, I'm outside Quinn Group. What the hell is going on? Is everything they're saying online really true?" Mason asked.
Sophie paused for a moment, then said gently, "Just come back first. We'll talk when you get here."
Mason stepped into the tiny apartment, shocked by the appalling conditions. The place was even smaller than his former bathroom. 'How could anyone live like this?' he thought in disbelief.
"Mom, Dad, Sophie, what the hell happened? How could our family go bankrupt?" Mason said.
Clearly, Mason couldn't accept this. Just days ago, he was the heir of Junior Quinn Group, living high, never worrying about money. Now they told Mason the family was bankrupt, penniless, forced to squeeze into this cramped room.
"Are you saying Sienna, Vivian's sister, did all this?" Mason was both shocked and skeptical.
'How could Hart Corporation possibly have bankrupted the Quinn Group, let alone taken over our company?' he wondered.
Sophie lowered her head, her eyes burning with bitter resentment and envy. "That bitch has ties with SIE Corporation. Now Hart Corporation's got SIE backing them up," she said.
"How could this be? How could SIE Corporation possibly team up with a small fry like Hart Corporation? I-I don't believe it. T-There must be—" For a long moment, Mason racked his brain but couldn't come up with a plausible reason.
Amelia grabbed Mason's hand, her voice trembling with excitement. "Mason, this changes nothing. You and Vivian are still engaged. You're in a relationship.
"As long as you two get married, the Quinn Group will still be yours, and our family can go back to the way things were. So go find Vivian right now and marry her immediately."
Clapping his hands in sudden realization, Mason exclaimed, "I've got it. This was all Vivian's scheme. She orchestrated the Quinn Group's bankruptcy just to force me to come to her. She wants to be with me that badly."
"Exactly, Mason," Amelia said innocently. "You're absolutely right. Vivian is so obsessed with you. Everything she's done is just for you."
They were well aware of how obsessively in love Vivian was with Mason. 'If Vivian marries Mason, I'll make sure she pays dearly for it,' Amelia thought to herself, feeling quite pleased.
Mason fell silent, utterly shaken. 'I never imagined Vivian would be so obsessed with me,' he thought, 'She'd even resort to such extreme measures just to be with me. Well, I suppose I could reluctantly marry her.'
Vivian had no idea what kind of schemes the Quinn family was plotting. She just went about her work as usual, completely unfazed.
Ever since Sienna had locked her up in the dark room, Linda hadn't dared show her face around Sienna anymore. Whenever Sienna was at home, Linda would stay hidden in her room.
Linda's first reaction was disbelief when she saw the news about the Quinn family's bankruptcy and Hart Corporation's partnership with SIE Corporation. 'How could Sienna possibly pull this off?' she thought.
Aiden looked at Sienna, who was reading on the sofa, and smiled as he asked, "Sienna, I'm impressed you actually managed to get SIE Corporation to partner with Hart Corporation."
Sienna offered no reply, her gaze still fixed on the book.
Aiden, unfazed by Sienna ignoring him, watched as Linda burst out of her room and hurried over to his side. "The Quinn family went bankrupt? So now their company belongs to Hart Corporation?"
After speaking, Linda shot a defiant glance at Sienna.
"Anything else? If not, back to your room," Aiden grunted. He didn't want to upset Sienna again because of Linda.
Linda said, "Honey, of course, I have something to say. Sienna, now that the Quinn family's company is ours too, you must be stretched too thin managing everything, right?
"How about I introduce a few capable people to help you out? Do you think that would work?"
Sienna nonchalantly put down her book, her icy gaze sweeping over Linda. "No. Hart Corporation belongs to the Hart family, not the Lambert family. Stop shamelessly trying to force your way in."
Linda gnashed her teeth in fury. Sienna didn't even bother to spare her the slightest dignity. In Sienna's eyes, this so-called stepmother held no authority whatsoever.
Linda continued, "Can't you see I'm just trying to help? I thought I could lighten your load a bit."
No sooner had Linda finished speaking than her phone rang. She rushed to answer it, her face darkening with anger, then stormed back into the room.
Linda shrieked furiously, "Sienna, you bitch, how dare you fire all my people?"
Over the years as Aiden's wife, Linda had been quietly planting her relatives throughout Hart Corporation.
Over the years, nearly two-thirds of Hart Corporation's employees were Linda's people. She was now the family's golden child.
Overnight, Sienna had fired all of Linda's cronies. Hart Corporation was completely purged.
Sienna watched with icy detachment as Linda raged like a madwoman before her. The next second, her icy gaze settled on Aiden.
Aiden caught Sienna's silent message. 'Stay or go,' she said inwardly.
Aiden rose to his feet abruptly and, furious, delivered a resounding slap across Linda's face.
The slap sent Linda reeling, her head snapping to the side as a red handprint bloomed across her cheek. A searing pain shot through her like wildfire, mingling with waves of humiliation.
Linda stared at Aiden with a look of utter disbelief, her trembling fingers gingerly touching her numb cheek.
For years, Linda had lived in the lap of luxury as a wealthy socialite. Never once had anyone dared lay a hand on her.
Aiden snapped furiously, "That slap was well-deserved. How dare you insult Sienna? She's my daughter."
Linda's eyes widened in shock.
Over the years, Linda had gradually turned Vivian and her sisters into exactly the kind of people Aiden despised, driving a wedge and sowing discord between them.
However, Sienna hadn't even been back a week, and now Aiden had already defended her.
Sienna was quite pleased with Aiden's actions. Behind her, the butler, Ebert, and Elisa, who had been itching to step in, quietly lowered their rolled-up sleeves and stepped back.
Sienna observed coolly. "Dad, Mrs. Lambert doesn't seem very accepting of that slap you gave her."
Aiden snorted coldly, "She wouldn't dare. Linda, don't push your luck. Since when does Hart Corporation need your input?
"Your people? What people? Hart Corporation doesn't tolerate incompetence. Being fired, they got exactly what they deserved."
Sienna's acquisition of Junior Quinn Group sent her status soaring, and Aiden basked in the reflected glory. No one dared look down on Hart Corporation now.
His million-dollar watch gleamed on his wrist. 'I'm no fool,' Aiden thought. 'Abandoning the Hart family for Linda simply isn't worth it.'
Aiden never loved Linda. He never confused sex with love. Though he harbored resentment, jealousy, and bitterness, the only woman Aiden had ever truly loved was Selina.
Selina was sheer perfection, the unattainable ideal in every man's heart, the ultimate dream woman. Linda wasn't even worthy of a single strand of Selina's hair.
If Linda wasn't at least useful around the house, Aiden wouldn't bother with her. He would have kicked her out right away.
Linda was left speechless, her face turning gloomy with humiliation. Deep down, she knew full well just how incompetent her relatives were.
Linda seethed with hatred as she wondered, 'How could Sienna act so recklessly and treat me with such blatant contempt? Even Aiden actually slapped me, all because of Sienna.'
Without Aiden backing her up, Linda didn't dare make another move.
After work, Vivian stepped out of her office, spotted Mason waiting by the entrance, and paused in surprise. But she ignored him completely and strode away without a second glance.
"Vivian, stop right there," Mason snapped.
Vivian crossed her arms and fixed him with an icy stare. "What do you want? Spit it out."
Mason stepped forward and noticed that lately, Vivian had become increasingly beautiful, graceful, and charming, her aura now completely different from before.
Mason's lips curled into a smile. Just knowing that all of Vivian's changes were for him filled him with a rush of smug satisfaction and a flutter of excitement he could hardly hide.
"Vivian," Mason declared with absolute certainty, "I've decided to marry you."
"What did you just say?" Vivian's lips twitched as she wondered, 'Did I hear that wrong, or has this guy completely lost his mind?'
Seeing the shock on Vivian's face, Mason thought smugly, 'Of course, she's surprised. She's been obsessed with me all this time. Now that I'm going to marry her, she must be over the moon.'
Mason cleared his throat, straightened up, and declared, "I mean it. I'll marry you. Let's get married."
Vivian thought she'd seen everything, but Mason really took shamelessness to a whole new level. 'How did he have the audacity to show up in front of me and propose? Unbelievable,' she wondered.
"Mason, if you're crazy, go see a psychiatrist. Get out of my sight," she snorted.
Mason, thinking Vivian was still mad, quickly blocked her path. "Vivian, I swear I'm not lying to you. I really mean it. I'm willing to marry you."
A mocking gleam flickered in Vivian's eyes as she spoke in utterly disgusted tones. "Are you insane, Mason? Who in their right mind would want to marry you?
"We already broke up. Or are you suffering from early-onset dementia at your age?"