Rural Belle & Three Heirs

"What's going on here? Why's everyone arguing?" A man in his forties asked, his voice stern as he looked at the women.

One of the women quickly moved closer to him, almost like a delicate bird seeking protection.

"Honey, we weren't arguing. This girl just started calling us dogs out of nowhere," she said, her voice sweet but accusatory.

Hearing the woman's words, the man turned to look at Chloe. When he saw the mole on her face, a clear expression of disdain appeared.

He remembered, this girl was brought by Grant. He'd spent the whole evening talking to Grant, who hadn't mentioned her much. In fact, Grant had kept his distance from her.

It seemed this girl was the infamous ugly duckling from the Davis family, rumored to be forcing her way to marry into the Martin family.

"Yeah, we were just having a nice conversation, and she started attacking us. We were just trying to give her some friendly advice, and she went off on us," another woman added.

"Exactly! She even dared us to confront her if we had any guts."

"She looks down on us, and by extension, she looks down on you men too. We came here with you, and she's disrespecting us, which means she's disrespecting you."noveldrama

"She's got to far. Don't step on someone's toes without considering who they are connected to, right? This girl has no boundaries."

The women continued to accuse Chloe, conveniently leaving out the nasty things they had said to her earlier.

When Chloe heard that, she couldn't help but smile. These women were essentially comparing themselves to dogs.

In just a few words, Chloe was painted as a troublemaker and an ill-mannered ugly girl.

She initially wanted to explain, but she realized that any explanation she gave would seem weak and ineffective.

These women were twisting the truth, and it would be hard to convince the men otherwise with just her words.

The men looked at Chloe with displeasure, and Chloe instinctively glanced at Grant. Grant's expression remained cold, his gaze complex and unreadable. He held a glass of fine champagne, looking like he was just there for the show.

"Hey, they say you bullied them. What do you have to say?" A man who looked to be in his late forties asked Chloe with a calm expression.

Chloe glanced at him, finding him somewhat familiar. She remembered seeing an interview with him in a business magazine. His name was Vernon Graves. He had started in manufacturing, but after his business went bankrupt, his wife left him, and he ended up with his mistress.

Unwilling to accept his downfall, he illegally raised some funds and revived his business. Now, his business was just starting to pick up, but he still had a significant financial gap.

Recently, he had gone to the Northwest to seek support from Nicholas, but Nicholas hadn't even agreed to meet him.

After he left, Nicholas's people had said, "Who does he think he is, wanting to meet Nicholas?"

Hearing Vernon's question, Chloe shrugged. "They say I bullied them, but I didn't." One of the women got anxious and snapped, "How can you say that? Didn't you accuse us of using underhanded methods to seduce men?"

"Yeah, and you said you were using your family background to bully us. What could we do about it?"

"You also said your elders taught you to speak plainly to people and hit dogs with a stick. You called us dogs. Did you say that?"

In their panic, the women revealed the offensive things Chloe had said to them, pushing her to admit her words.

Chloe didn't avoid it and said directly, "Yes, I said those things."

"In the beginning, I was just standing here looking at the paintings. It was you who said that I do not deserve to stand in front of Grant because I am ugly. You claimed that Grant only brought me out because he was coerced by the marriage agreement between the Martin Family and the Davis Family. So, I want to ask you, Grantie, do you also think that I am clinging to you?" Chloe looked at Grant as she spoke.

Grant's face darkened. He glanced around at the women and then spoke slowly, "Ladies and gentlemen, I didn't realize my personal affairs were of such interest to your women."

Grant's words made the men uncomfortable. They were all business elites, but compared to the Martin family, they were far behind.

Their women discussing Grant's personal matters was inappropriate.

They all apologized to Grant, except for Vernon, who had caught on to what Chloe had said.

Chloe mentioned the marriage agreement between the Martin and Davis families. If he understood correctly, this ugly girl might be Nicholas's only heiries of the Davis family. Vernon knew very well how powerful the Davis family was.

Seeing everyone apologizing to Grant, Chloe said. "My last name is Davis, from the Davis family in the Northwest. Even if I did use my family background to bully them, anyone who wants to avenge their women can come at me. I'm ready.

And before you seek revenge, let me remind you that your women said my family didn't raise me well. I wonder what my grandfather would think if he heard that."

Chloe's words immediately drew the men's attention back to her.

They stopped apologizing to Grant because offending Grant could be mended, but offending Nicholas from the Northwest could ruin them in the business world.

Even if Chloe had bullied their women, they had to accept it.

Given Chloe's family background, bullying them was a favor.

The Davis family was giving them such a favor, and they had to accept it.

Vernon was the first to react. He turned to the woman he had brought and slapped her

hard.

"Fuck, I brought you here to be a decoration, and you're causing trouble? You dare

offend Miss Davis? Do you have a death wish?"

Vernon's slap stunned his woman and scared the other women.

The situation had changed so quickly that they couldn't process it.