A tea set is meticulously arranged on the coffee table; underneath the dim light, it carries a sense of intimacy.

Seeing no reaction from Jaxon, who kept staring straight at her, Aria squints her brows and watches him intently. "who do you say?"

Aria wasn't sure Jaxon would agree; she was left with no choice but to risk it regardless of the outcome; she wouldn't be at a loss eventually.

Jaxon eyed her up and down, the corners of his mouth into a sly smile, shift slighly, carrying an enigmatic smile, drawing nearer. Aria steps back slightly.

"who's wrong?" Jaxon pulls her into his embrace, tilting her head to lean on his chest. "You've read the contract; you even agreed to it. Why so coy now?"

"You," Aria blushes ferociously, glaring at him.

"who about me?" Jaxon retorts, leaning into her ear, "You're perfectly aware; the deal I discussed with you the other day, even though we didn't sign a contract, only covered you becoming my contractual wife and me helping you reclaim the Jenson family. Your father's fate, on the other hand, has absolutely nothing to do with me!"

Aria's face turns paler by the moment. Is he... rejecting her?

Jaxon offers a thin smile. "However, if you impress me enough to convince me of your worth, I might agree to your request and perhaps even more."

Aria looks up at him sharply: "You..."

"Alright," Jaxon lets her go and turns to leave. "We have been away from the engagement party for quite some time. It's time we went back."

Aria stands still, contemplating the meaning behind his words, gradually clenching her fist. After a moment of deliberation, she lets out a deep sigh, firm determination written all over her face, and descends the stairs.

"Ah." As soon as she walks into the banquet hall, a woman dressed in a bright red evening gown charges directly at Aria, spilling the wine in her hand all over Aria without hesitation.

Immediately, the silver helm of her dress darkened, stained with rich, crimson wine.

"Oops, I'm really sorry." The woman covered her mouth into a sly smile, with her hand, feigning surprise and apology, yet her eyes were filled with mockery and satisfaction. "I didn't mean to; you don't mind, do you?"

Aria lowered her head and looked at her clothes, lightly pursed her lips, and said, "Forget it."

That said, she prepared to leave.

"Eh?" The woman's eyes suddenly brightened, and she affectionately grabbed Aria's arm. "Aren't you that actress—Aria Jenson? I've seen your movies."

"I'm sorry, but I’m currently..."Aria politely pushed her away and wanted to say something, but the woman stubbornly held on to her and shouted to the crowd around:

"Hey, ladies, come and see, this is that actress from before, the one who acted in 'The Love Triangle', Jenson something!”

“Really!”

Immediately, a group of flamboyantly dressed women rushed over, and Aria was soon surrounded.

“So, you are Aria Jenson. Wow, I am seeing you in person today!"

"I feel she doesn't look as good as she does in her movies!"

"You and Roman, are you two a couple?"

Aria was embarrassingly squeezed in the crowd; it was clear these people were purposely trying to humiliate her.

Who present here today doesn’t know that she is Jaxon Hathaway’s fiancée? Yet, they still cling onto her identity as an actress, obviously trying to make her feel awkward.

"Your earrings look great! Where did you buy them?" A hand reached over, pulling her ear.

"Hiss..." An earring was pulled off forcibly, causing Aria to wince in pain.

"Oops! Did that hurt you? I apologize, Aria."

Aria looked up, catching a glimpse of Jaxon's mocking smile through the slight opening. She recalled his words—seeing if she had any value.

Value...Aria clenched her hand and then raised the hand holding the wine glass high up, then spilled it over the woman that yanked off her earring.

"who are you doing?!" The red wine trickled down through her hair, and the woman yelled at Aria in rage.

"I did nothing." Aria answered as the corners of her mouth into a sly smile, curled up She grabbed the earring from her hand and put it on elegantly. "I just think you are a bit drunk, so I'm so, I'm waking you up."

"You!" The woman was fuming and yelled at her, "You're just an actress; why act so arrogantly?"

"An actress?" Aria frowned, glanced at her scornfully, and asked, "And what about you?"

The woman was speechless, but she couldn't let it go, so she gritted her teeth and shouted angrily, "Who do you think you are?"

"Oh?" Aria nodded, looking at her with a smile. "Who do you think? I am Jaxon's fiancee, the future mistress of the Hathaway family. The Jenson family might have declined, but it's still a major corporation. Who do you think I am?"

At these words, the woman was shocked. The Hathaway family is not a family that anyone dares to offend. No matter how much she looks down on Aria, she has to admit her status is different now.

Besides, although the Jenson family is not as it used to be, it is indeed a force to be reckoned with. Her family is also good, but no matter how good, they can't offend the Hathaway family.

Aria smiled, looking at her mockingly.

"Bitch!" The woman gritted her teeth and cursed under her breath.

At this moment, Jaxon walked over, subtly pulling Aria into his arms.

"Hathaway...Hathaway...Mr. Hathaway..." The woman lowered her head in confusion when she saw this. Did he see everything?

"Um," Jaxon hummed in agreement, leaning over to look at the woman in his embrace and said softly to the woman in front of him, "you need to apologize to my wife."

"Aria, I'm sorry." The woman lowered her head, the apology tumbling from her lips.

"You got it wrong," Jaxon teased, pressing on Aria's shoulder. "Isn't that right, Mrs. Hathaway?"

Raising her head abruptly, Aria met Jaxon's teasing yet serious gaze, feeling momentarily dazzled.

"Mrs. Hathaway, I'm sorry." The woman repeated her apology, her embarrassed demeanor a stark contrast to her previous harshness towards Aria.

"I can hardly hear you; you're too soft-spoken," Jaxon said, still smiling.

Aria tugged at the corner of his clothes, indicating he should stop escalating the situation.

"Mrs. Hathaway! I'm sorry!"

"Does Mrs. Hathaway consider the apology satisfactory?" Jaxon grinned, quite pleased with Aria's reaction.

Aria rolled her eyes. This man really is hard to fathom.

"Leave." Aria glanced at her, delivering the command in a dismissive tone.

Immediately, the woman lowered her head and disappeared into the crowd of the banquet.

"Mr. Hathaway, are you enjoying yourself?" Aria removed his hand from her shoulder, raising her head to look at Jaxon's polite yet distant smile.

Jaxon hooked the corner of his mouth into a sly smile, into a sly smile, his hand coming to wrap around her again. "Aria really is heartless. I just did you a huge favor."

Aria furrowed her brows, wanting to push him away, only to find that Jaxon's gaze was fixed behind her.

Just as she was about to turn around, a deep voice sounded from behind: "Not inviting your father and elder brother to the engagement banquet, Aria, you're becoming more and more willful."

Upon hearing this familiar voice, her body stiffened.

Jaxon leaned down in a timely manner and whispered in her ear, "Now you understand my usefulness, right? You can't just use and then discard me."

"Davies, I'm looking for Aria; where's Aria?" The voice of her father rang out, and Aria quickly turned back.

Davies... he actually brought her father along, too?