Chapter 364

‘Is he back?’ Alice thought to herself.

Alice stared blankly at Kyler, her eyes welling up with tears. The surrounding noise was deafening, but in her eyes, there was only him.

Rationality told her that this was just someone who looked very much like Xander. But even so, she couldn’t help but steal a few more glances.

Fortunately, Ronald and the others were focused on Aubree and didn’t notice her abnormal behavior.

Thinking Alice had always disliked Aubree, Bryan said, “Mom, Dad and I are planning to go see Aubree. Are you coming with us, or…?”

Alice finally came back to her senses, hastily pulling her gaze away. “She’s still my daughter. I might not like how she constantly targets Carmen, but we can’t stay estranged forever.”

She said the words, but her thoughts were already drifting back to Kyler. ‘Who is he? What’s his name? Why is he by Aubree’s side?’

Alice thought of many things, but never imagined this man was someone Aubree had intentionally brought in. After the incident at the hospital, she was sure Ronald would investigate. Her calmness then stemmed from confidence. After Xander passed away, the Diamonde family had wiped away every trace of him.

Partly, it was to keep Alice from clinging to a dead man, and partly, it was to make sure nothing would blow up in her face if Ronald ever got desperate and started lashing out.

Bryan actually felt a bit relieved. At least there was still hope that his mom and Aubree could finally bury the hatchet.

When Tryfon saw Ronald and the others coming over, he beamed and started introducing them to Aubree. “Ms. Miller, let me introduce you. This is Bryan Wilson, current chairman of Rithol City Wilson Group. And this is Mr. Ronald Wilson, the man who built Wilson Group from scratch.”

He continued, “This is Mrs. Alice Wilson. She founded a fashion brand with considerable international fame and is also the eldest daughter of the Diamonde family in Südlichen Strand.”

Aubree’s identity was no secret in Rithol City, but outside of it, few paid attention. Tryfon only knew she was an orphan, and with the surname Miller, it never crossed his mind that she might have any connection to the Wilson family.

Tryfon continued, “You’ve probably crossed paths doing business in Rithol City and Südlichen Strand. Actually, JinnCee is one of Wilson Group’s e-commerce platforms. Who knows, maybe you two could collaborate.”

Tryfon smiled warmly, introducing them for Aubree’s benefit.

Aubree smiled slightly. “Thanks for the introduction, Mr. Marchuk, but there’s really no need for us to get acquainted.”

Her gaze swept the room, landing briefly on Alice. “Mr. Marchuk, I have other matters to attend to. If you’re ever in Rithol City, dinner’s on me.”

Aubree left behind Vincent and also kept Kyler.

She didn’t go far, heading instead to the second floor where she found the perfect viewing spot. From there, she had a clear view of the Wilson family downstairs.

“Well…” Tryfon sensed the tension and suspected something more was going on.

Dmytro quickly whispered in his boss’s ear, “Ms. Miller is Mr. Ronald Wilson’s daughter.”

Ronald forced a smile. “Aubree is my… daughter.”

Tryfon wasn’t stupid. Knowing the surname mismatch and the family tension, he immediately shut up and gave a dry laugh. “Well, what a coincidence.”

The atmosphere instantly turned awkward.

Tryfon then said, “Your daughter is quite the achiever. So young, and already she’s pioneered livestream commerce on Playzy, launched a short sides platform. Now she has created GriCheap, breaking into the heavily saturated e-commerce space. Her future is limitless.”

Tryfon’s compliments finally drew a genuine smile from Ronald. As a father, hearing such praise for his daughter, especially from someone like Tryfon, made him feel proud.

It was his daughter, achieving so much at such a young age.

Ronald replied, “You flatter her. She’s just dabbling in a few things.”

If this is just dabbling, then the rest of us might as well give up. A few compliments later, the atmosphere lightened considerably.

Ronald kept smiling, choosing to ignore the fact that Aubree had no intention of acknowledging him as her father. “She’s got her own ideas. We can’t control her. I didn’t expect her to be here either.”

Tryfon suddenly understood, thinking of Aubree as an eccentric genius. No wonder she could stand out in a place like Rithol City at such a young age, and now she was expanding into Südlichen Strand. It turned out she was from the Wilson family.

Having good ideas wasn’t enough in business. Without a strong background, no one would last.

Tryfon and Ronald continued exchanging praise, both very pleased. Tryfon felt his earlier investment in Aubree, on Dmytro’s advice, was the best deal he ever made.

The Wilson family’s daughter was remarkable indeed.

Vincent rolled his eyes the entire time, praying the Wilson family would stay far away from Aubree.

Vincent still didn’t understand why she had kept him and that man. He couldn’t recall the man’s name. No one even knew where he came from.

“Aubree…” Bryan stood beside Ronald, murmuring to himself as he looked in the direction Aubree had gone, his gaze not wavering.

She hadn’t acted cold or hostile like before. Usually, she would avoid them with visible disgust. But this time, nothing. No closeness, but no rejection either.

A spark lit up in Bryan’s eyes.

As for Alice, her eyes never left Kyler. She couldn’t believe how two people could look so alike.

Even someone as blind as Ronald should have noticed her odd behavior by now. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, his face darkening immediately. ‘What is Alice playing at?’

From the second floor, Aubree watched it all unfold with a faint, cold smile. She thought, “What a touching love story. After all these years, and she’s still not over him?”

“Alice!” Suddenly, a warning call cut through the air.

Alice snapped out of her daze, realizing everyone was staring at her. She quickly lowered her eyes.

“Ernesto,” she called softly.

The newcomer was Ernesto. He was Alice’s brother and current head of the Diamonde family. Behind him stood Quantavius.

These days, the most talked-about gossip in Südlichen Strand’s business circle was about the Yurchenko family. Specifically, Milena, who’d foolishly gotten involved with Trevor. She got played, gained nothing, and ended up offending both Bree Technology and the Turner Group. Now the Yurchenko family was barely hanging on.

Tryfon assumed the Yurchenko family was here to confront the Wilson family and quickly excused himself.

On the second floor, Aubree saw that Kyler had already caught Alice’s attention and sent Vincent a message to take everyone away.

“What were you just looking at?” Ronald asked Alice, his gaze sharp.

Alice’s expression faltered for a second. “Nothing. I was just scanning for potential collaborators.” Her voice was calm. Since Ronald didn’t know about Xander, he wouldn’t be able to dig up much.

With Ernesto still there, he could only let it go for now.

Ernesto introduced himself. “Mr. Wilson, I’m Quantavius, from the Yurchenko family in Südlichen Strand.”