Chapter 70

“Leonard, could you please help us determine which of these is the real rare saffron?” Elara asked. Although she believed Elizabeth’s saffron was the genuine article, she needed Leonard’s confirmation to convince everyone present.

“Which saffron belongs to Ms. Busel?” Leonard asked Esme. He had seen the Russell family announce in the news that they were giving Lily the rare saffron. Esme immediately pointed to her saffron. A hint of contemplation flashed in Leonard’s eyes, and then he twitched his mouth. Leonard looked at the saffron and couldn’t help but laugh.

Everyone’s eyes in the room fell on Leonard, as if they had received some signal, and they hurriedly said, “It seems that Ms. Bussell’s saffron is the real one!”

For Ms. Russell, she went through so much trouble to celebrate, only to be wronged like this. Esme immediately felt aggrieved upon hearing this. Her tears came quickly, and in just a second, her eyes turned red. She hadn’t shed a tear when she was wronged earlier, but now that she was proven wrong, she couldn’t help but want to cry.

But what Leonard did next left everyone dumbfounded. “I’ve seen this in a book before; this one is real—” Leonard picked up the saffron Elizabeth had given and confidently said, “This is the genuine rare saffron!”

“This saffron looks like a rose. As for the one Esme gave—” Leonard laughed again as he pointed to Esme’s gift, “That’s just an ordinary saffron.” His cheerful and open voice reached everyone’s ears. For a moment, everyone was at a loss. It turned out that Leonard’s earlier laughter wasn’t because Esme’s saffron was the real rare one; it was because it was just an ordinary saffron.

“Leonard, are you telling the truth? Is the saffron Elizabeth gave really the rare one?” Lily demanded. Leonard nodded seriously. “Lily, when have I ever misled you? Besides, with so many people here, I certainly wouldn’t lie. I can’t be so shameless.” As he spoke, Leonard glanced at Esme. That look seemed to say: She really has no knowledge.

Esme’s expression suddenly turned very ugly, a tightness in her chest, and she almost fainted. Everyone in the room fell silent, so quiet that they could hear a pin drop. Elizabeth watched the embarrassed faces with great interest, her lips curling into a bright smile. She wanted to see who would still dare to say that the saffron she gave was fake. She either didn’t give gifts or gave real ones. Giving fake things to pass off as the genuine article was something only an idiot like Esme could come up with!

“Esme, do you have anything else to say?” Elizabeth raised an eyebrow and lazily asked. Lily also looked at Esme, snorted, and was visibly angry. At her birthday banquet, the Russell family had made a big deal about giving her a rare saffron, only to end up giving her a fake one!

If Elizabeth hadn’t brought the real rare saffron today, wouldn’t she have been showing off a fake rare saffron to her friends? Wouldn’t they laugh their heads off? They would definitely say Lily was a fool who couldn’t tell what was good. The more Lily thought about it, the angrier she got.

“Grandma,” Esme looked at Lily, and her tears fell instantly. “I didn’t know, I was deceived! I spent a lot of money. I didn’t know it was fake. I genuinely wanted to celebrate your birthday!” Esme grabbed Lily’s arm, losing her queenly aura in an instant, leaving only a pitiful facade. And those who had fanned the flames earlier were now completely uninvolved.

Lily pushed Esme’s hand away and said indifferently, “Ms. Russell, I appreciate the Russell family’s good intentions!” With that, Lily went to catch up with Leonard. Her attitude said it all, and Esme’s heart instantly sank.

Elara snorted, crossed her arms, and asked, “Who was it that said if it turned out to be fake, she would kneel down and polish Elizabeth’s heels?” As soon as she said this, Esme’s face turned even paler. At such a large birthday banquet, they wanted her, a young lady of the Russell family, to kneel down and polish Elizabeth’s heels?!