Isabella Ashcroft joined the family business immediately after graduation.

She knew her mother's email password by heart.

She had even studied all the email correspondence.

Dr. Nan replied to every one of her mother's emails instantly.

He never asked for details, just solved the problems directly.

This special treatment convinced her that Dr. Nan valued her mother immensely.

It was this conviction that made her dare to lie, claiming Dr. Nan had agreed to join the Vance Group.

Isabella opened the email with a confident smile.

But she saw a cold reply:

[I only handle Ashcroft family affairs. The Vance Group is of no concern to me.]

Her smile froze on her face.

Julian Evans noticed something was wrong. "What happened?"

Isabella forced composure. "Dr. Nan says he needs a few days to study the solution…"

Julian breathed a sigh of relief. "Reasonable. This problem is indeed complex. But I made a bet with Evelyn Ross. It must be resolved by Friday. No problem, right?"

Isabella nodded. "No problem."

Her fingertips trembled slightly.

He had clearly mentioned Evelyn Ross's name.

…

Julian returned to the Vance mansion preoccupied.

His father, Richard Evans, rarely smiled at him, but now clapped his shoulder firmly. "Well done, actually getting Dr. Nan to agree! Now you'll have a firm foothold in R&D!"

Julian was flattered. "Dad, I'll keep working hard to help you regain the chairman's position!"

"Good!" Richard Evans said, heading toward the master bedroom, unusually not going out.

His mother, Margaret Evans, wept with joy. "Julian, your father isn't going to that vixen tonight! You must be better than that love child, make your father change his mind!"

She wiped her tears. "Isabella may not be favored by the老夫人, but she did well this time. I'll go take care of your father."

Watching his mother's delighted back, Julian clenched his fist.

Proposing to Isabella brought Dr. Nan's support. This move was right.

Since he made the choice, he would never look back.

As for Evelyn Ross… he was determined to have her.

"Achoo!"

Evelyn Ross rubbed her nose, her eyes still fixed on the computer screen.

She reached for her water glass and found it empty.

As she stood to get water, the light in front of her dimmed.

Alexander Vance placed a full glass on the coffee table, his expression natural. "Convenient."

Evelyn was slightly taken aback. "Thank you."

Alexander nodded and returned to his seat.

The little old lady watched their interaction, grinning from ear to ear.

She put on her reading glasses, picked up a dictionary and book of poetry, and began pondering her great-grandson's name…

Night deepened. The Shiba Inu "Kitten" wandered around bored a few times, finally curling up at Alexander's feet and falling asleep.

The next morning, Alexander put on a crisp black suit, behaving normally, showing no trace of his injury.

The burn was actually excruciating, but he hadn't uttered a word of complaint since getting hurt.

Evelyn secretly admired his endurance.

They went to work together, and she naturally got into his car.

Thomas Watson observed them from the rearview mirror.

The boss and Miss Evelyn were still each doing their own thing, but something in the air seemed to have quietly changed.

Arriving at the company, Evelyn went straight to the R&D department.

Julian was already waiting at the elevator, holding coffee. "There's a new energy industry exchange tonight. All the big names will be there. Rumor has it Dr. Nan might attend."

Evelyn kept walking. "So?"

"The R&D department has invitations. I can take you to see the scene, expand your network. It'll help your future development."

"Unnecessary."

She walked into the first team office without looking back.

Julian's face instantly darkened.

Jason Lawrence shuffled past in slippers, sneering. "Think you can buy her with one invitation? Evelyn Ross isn't that short-sighted."

Julian sneered. "Following me is the only way to get the best resources! You think just anyone can get into that level of gathering?"

Jason raised an eyebrow. "At least I can get her in."

As a core member of the R&D department, he naturally qualified for an invitation.

Julian's eyes turned cold.

…

Evelyn was busy all day.

After work, Jason called out to her. "Got some work tonight. Come with me."

"Okay."

She texted Alexander about working overtime and got into Jason's car.

They arrived at a high-end cocktail party.

Jason instructed, "Stick with me, meet some industry elites. But Dr. Nan rarely shows up, don't get your hopes up."

Evelyn was amused.

She had no interest in such events anyway, but since she was here, she might as well meet James Klein.

At the entrance, Jason presented his invitation, but was stopped by a server.

"Sorry, Mr. Lawrence, your name isn't on the Vance Group's registered list."

Jason frowned. "Impossible!"

He was quite renowned in the industry; organizers usually begged him to attend.

Julian walked over leisurely with a champagne flute. "Team Leader Lawrence, the first team's R&D tasks are heavy. I thought you weren't coming, so I declined the invitation for you. Can't add people last minute."

Jason was furious. "Julian Evans, how dare you make decisions for me!"

Julian sneered. "Your status is given by the Vance Group. They invited the Vance Group's Jason Lawrence. I'm the VP of R&D, of course I have the right to decide!"

Jason turned pale with anger.

With his skills, plenty of companies would fight to hire him if he left the Vance Group. Julian dared to pull rank on him!

"I advise you not to make a scene here. We're all respectable people. Don't want to be thrown out by security, do you?"

Julian turned to Evelyn, his tone triumphant. "Evelyn Ross, see now? Without my permission, you can't even get through the door."

Evelyn glanced up calmly. "Is that so?"

She took out her phone, displaying the electronic invitation James Klein had sent her.