"What?" Adrian shouted in shock. Dominic Hayes called him an idiot?!

The people around them started laughing at him.

Seeing Adrian's reaction, Julian felt utterly embarrassed. He wished he'd never had a friend like Adrian.

He looked so unsophisticated, it was mortifying.

How could Natalie be a top student? He had known her for years and had never seen her work a day in her life.

Where did this supposed excellence come from?

Still, he was curious. He looked at Maxwell Griffith and Joanna and asked, "Joanna, is what Dominic Hayes said true? Is Natalie really that brilliant?"

Joanna had witnessed Natalie's capabilities firsthand. She didn't want to admit it, but a simple background check would reveal the truth. "Julian, I don't know if it's true or not. Maybe Natalie is just saying it to get attention. You know how she is, a pathological liar."

Julian frowned. He had underestimated Natalie.

So she had deceived everyone, and Dominic Hayes was foolish enough to believe her lies.

"Hmph, Natalie is a deep schemer. I won't let her get away with this. She caused my family's business a huge loss."

Ignoring Maxwell Griffith, Joanna, and Emily, Julian chased after Natalie.

Maxwell Griffith and Joanna exchanged a glance, a sinister smile playing on both their lips.

Adrian turned just in time to see their wicked smiles.

He frowned. What was going on? Sebastian seemed so strange today.

As Joanna and Maxwell Griffith walked further into the venue, Emily shot a flirtatious look at Maxwell.

Maxwell gave her a warning glare, but she just smiled faintly and looked away.

Joanna saw the exchange, and her gaze instantly turned cold. Could this be the other woman Maxwell was involved with?

She remained composed, but she knew Julian would find an opportunity to go after Natalie.

They would just wait and watch the show.

After greeting a few key partners, Natalie was led to a lounge by Dominic Hayes to have dinner. He and Brian Foster then went out to network.

Luna stayed with Natalie. "Natalie, from the way Julian was acting, I'm worried he's going to do something to you," she said, her voice laced with concern.

Natalie picked up a pastry and took a bite before replying, "What's there to be afraid of? That idiot Julian is just a pawn Joanna is using against me. He's a fool. If he ends up with nothing her have brought it on himself. Joanna was even able to destroy Mr. Wilson."

"What are Julian and Adrian in comparison? In less than three months, Joanna will have schemed Julian out of everything he owns. And he'll probably still be thanking her for it."

Natalie understood Joanna's ambition all too well. She would never let go of juicy targets like Julian and Adrian.

Luna was confused. "Natalie, then why did you warn Mr. Spencer but not Julian?"

Natalie's eyes narrowed and she

In

gave a cold smile. "Because he's not worth it. Julian is not like Marshall Marshall may be a jerk, but he's fundamentally decent. Julian is different. He and Adrian are

Joanna's dogs, they are

stbad to

the bone, and age has nothing to do with it. Those two were born bad."

"Julian has a few profitable subsidiaries under his name. Those will definitely become Joanna's next prize. We just have to wait and watch the show."

That idiot Julian was in for a miserable end.

Luna didn't feel any sympathy for Julian either. "Natalie! So we're just going to watch Joanna get stronger? She stole your design, and now her designs are a huge hit She's going to make a fortune this holiday season."

Natalie's beautiful eyes narrowed as she continued to eat her small cake. Under the lights, she was breathtakingly beautiful.

She turned her head and gave Luna a mischievous smile. "You're just too impatient, little one. With Joanna, we don't need to do anything. We just wait."