From Forgotten Wife To Fierce Queen - Chapter 70: Chapter 70

As Paisley called out the price of "20 million dollars," the spotlight fell on her. At the same time, she drew the attention of all the guests in the room.
Everyone turned to look at her and began discussing in whispers.
"Who is she? We've never seen her before."
"Why is she sitting with those poor kids? Doesn't she have her own seat?"
"Whoever she is, she sure has guts."
"Ms. Vanderbilt obviously wants this painting. Even Mrs. Beaumont isn't bidding against Ms. Vanderbilt, and yet she dares to bid?"
"Exactly, is she crazy?"
Paisley heard the murmurs but maintained a calm smile.
"Ms. Sutton..." Lucy, confused by Paisley's actions, asked, "Why are you joining the bidding, too?" Lucy couldn't understand why Paisley was bidding on her own painting.
"I have my reasons," Paisley replied, giving Lucy a sly wink before turning her gaze back to Kayla and Marissa.
Kayla had thought her price was high enough to win. Since the people here were all sharp, they could tell how interested Kayla was in that painting, so no one would compete with her. Kayla hadn't expected someone to be so unwise and knew nothing about social customs.
'I'm going to find out who's the idiot who dares to compete with me,' she thought angrily, turning around. And what she saw was Paisley's calm face under the spotlight.
"Paisley. How dare you bid against me?" Kayla shouted, ignoring the situation.
Paisley raised an eyebrow. "Ms. Vanderbilt, this is an auction. We're all bidding fairly. Why shouldn't I bid?"
In the dim light, Marissa's face darkened. She thought, 'So the person I saw was Paisley. She's really here. Why? Paisley, why do you always haunt me?' Under the table, Marissa clenched her fists filled with hatred.
Kayla, who had been very likely to secure the painting, was interrupted by Paisley. Kayla turned around angrily and raised her bidding paddle. "Twenty-seven million dollars."
Kayla thought, 'That's 27 million dollars. For a modern artist's piece at an auction, that's a top-tier bid. After all, even works by international masters only go for this price.'
Kayla knew it was a high price, and she was confident that Paisley wouldn't dare bid against her again. She thought, 'Now I just have to wait for the auctioneer's final three calls, and the painting is mine.'
The auctioneer began calling, "Twenty-seven million dollars once. Twenty-seven million dollars twice. Twenty-seven million dollars..."
Just as everyone thought no one would raise the bid and the painting was already Kayla's, Paisley's cool voice rang out again. "Thirty-three million dollars."
As Paisley made her bid, the auctioneer became visibly excited. "Okay, Ms. Sutton bids 33 million dollars."
Kayla's triumphant smile froze before it could fully spread. She turned around in disbelief and glared at Paisley, panting and gritting her teeth.
Especially when Kayla saw the provocation on Paisley's face, she almost lost control and rushed over, but she didn't dare. She thought angrily, 'Damn you, Paisley. It looks like you want to go head-to-head with me.'
At that moment, Marissa's mocking words reached Kayla's ears. "Does Ms. Sutton really have so much money? That's 33 million dollars. She wouldn't be faking a bid, would she?"
Kayla's eyes lit up. She pointed at Paisley and angrily shouted, "She's faking a bid. Aren't you going to stop her? How could she have that much money?"
Marissa chuckled to herself, thinking, 'Kayla is definitely a good weapon.' Then, she looked up at Paisley, curious to see how Paisley would react to being accused of faking the bid.
Marissa thought, 'Paisley, I don't believe you do have 33 million dollars. If Paisley really has 33 million dollars, why would she live in such a place?' She had been to Paisley's house to pick up Grayson. Paisley lived in a very ordinary neighborhood.
Kayla's words stirred up a storm. People began to speculate. "She dares to fake a bid openly? Impossible, right? But that lady doesn't even have a proper seat. She's sitting with those poor kids..."
At that moment, Diana, who had been silently observing, smiled and said in a neutral tone, "All guests who are allowed to enter the venue and participate in the bidding have gone through a financial verification process. Ms. Vanderbilt, you didn't know that?"
Kayla froze, thinking, 'I indeed knew nothing about that.' She had come with Marissa today, thinking they were just meeting Nion. It wasn't until she arrived at the venue that she realized it was an auction, and Nion's painting was one of the items up for bid.
'But if I didn't know, did Marissa not know either?' Kayla thought, turning to look at Marissa.
Marissa gave an awkward smile and was actually irritated by Diana's interference. "I knew. I just didn't expect Ms. Sutton would have bidding qualifications. I thought there was some misunderstanding."
Kayla, convinced by Marissa's explanation, turned her focus back to competing with Paisley.
Paisley remained calm and kindly reminded her, "Ms. Vanderbilt, if you don't raise your bid, the painting will be mine."
Kayla, startled, quickly shouted, "Forty million dollars."
"Forty-five million."
"Fifty million."
"Fifty-five million."
No matter how much Kayla offered, Paisley countered with five million more.
The auction hall had become so quiet that one could hear a pin drop, with only the voices of Paisley, Kayla, and the auctioneer filling the air.
The auctioneer was so excited that his voice was nearly giving out. Kayla, too, was stunned. She never imagined she would be driven into such a corner by Paisley.
Kayla had bid up to 55 million dollars. Though she came from the Vanderbilt family, the funds she had at her disposal were limited. She lived mostly on pocket money, and at most, she could expect some dividends at the end of the year.
At this point, Kayla was feeling drained. She looked at Marissa for help, thinking, 'If I keep raising the bid, I'll definitely run out of money. Then I'll have to ask Dom for it. Hopefully, Marissa will help me talk to him so I won't get scolded too badly.'
Marissa, sensing Kayla's thoughts, realized she couldn't make any promises. She and Dominick weren't married, so she didn't have the right to ask him for money on Kayla's behalf.
Marissa began to regret bringing Kayla here. She hadn't expected Kayla to be so impulsive, and she hadn't expected Paisley to have this kind of financial power. Marissa looked at Paisley, her eyes filled with complex emotions.
"Well, Ms. Vanderbilt, are you raising the bid?" Paisley's tone remained light, as if 55 million dollars was nothing to her.
The auctioneer began the final call, "Ms. Sutton bids fifty-five million dollars. Fifty-five million dollars once. Fifty-five million dollars twice. Fifty-five..."
"Sixty million," Kayla gritted her teeth and finally shouted the amount. Then, she anxiously looked at Paisley. This sixty million dollars was the maximum she could offer.
"Oh my. Sixty million dollars," the crowd gasped in shock. No one had expected Nion's painting to reach a price of sixty million dollars.