The Million-Dollar Heart (Percival and Vivienne)
Chapter 294

No sooner had Mila spoken than Baron and Scott descended from the stairs.

The old man wore a scowl, sweeping his gaze over Mila and Calista in the living room. "The children of the Brooks family don't need your lectures!" "Baron, Scott..."

Their arrival left Mila somewhat flustered. She stood up, saying, "I didn't mean it that way. I just wanted to guide Vivienne on proper etiquette. After all, Vivienne has been on her own for a long time without anyone to guide her. She's bound to be different from other refined young ladies..."

"Nonsense!"

Baron snapped and bristled in fury. "What do you mean no one guided her?! Our Vivienne is of good character. She is as excellent as they come; she doesn't need you pointing fingers!"

Baron's strong demeanor silenced Mila. Scott's face also showed a trace of coldness. "Mrs. Clark, my daughter doesn't need your guidance."

"Scott!" Mila anxiously tried to defend herself. "I didn't mean it that way. I was just trying to help."

"Scott, my mother is just concerned about Vivienne." Calista also came to her aid. "We want to resolve past misunderstandings, and I hope to become friends with Vivienne."

"I don't need friends." Vivienne tossed her magazine onto the table as she stood up. "And I don't need your concern."

Did they really think she couldn't see through their intentions?

Mila was aspiring to be the matriarch of the Brooks family? Ha!

As long as she was still trying to replace out whether Scott was involved in her mother's death, she would remain his daughter, so Mila could only dream about becoming her stepmother. "Vivienne." In the presence of Baron and Scott, Calista's attitude shifted. "Regardless of what you think, you should respect others."

"We visited out of respect for Mr. Brooks. Surely, you understand basic hospitality?"

Vivienne lifted her chin and looked down at her. "You consider yourself a guest?"

Vivienne ascended the stairs after dismissing them with her cold remark, leaving Mila and Calista standing there in frustrated fury. "Vivienne doesn't enjoy company." Baron glanced at them, adding, "If you don't respect Vivienne, you will never be welcome here again." "Scott, I..." Mila wanted to explain to Scott, but he didn't spare her a glance.

"I don't want to hear it. Go home."

Mila's and Calista's arrival didn't affect Vivienne's mood.

As soon as she returned to her room, her phone rang.

After picking it up, she heard a respectful voice from the other end. "This is Professor Madison. I apologize for the interruption, but I was wondering if you might be free at the end of the month."

Professor Madison was a highly respected figure in the medical field and had helped Vivienne with her studies in the past.

"What is it?" Vivienne sat on the edge of her bed, playing with a special tool she'd acquired from a junior disciple, Larry.

"There's a medical conference at the end of the month." Even though Madison was a respected figure in his sixties, he still showed the utmost respect to Vivienne. "I was hoping to invite you to attend on behalf of our institute."

Vivienne wasn't interested in such conferences, but considering Madison had helped her and remembering that Calista had mentioned it, she found herself intrigued.

Her silence made Madison think she was refusing, so he anxiously spoke up again. "Vivienne, your achievements in medicine are unmatched. For my sake, even half an hour of your time would be appreciated, and I can accommodate any requests you have."

He had called her several times before, only to be refused each time. He felt he had to convince Vivienne to attend somehow.

Vivienne considered it briefly, then agreed. "Fine. Send me the details."

Upon hearing her agreement, Professor Madison breathed a sigh of relief. "Excellent! I'll share this good news with everyone right away."

After hanging up, Vivienne turned her attention back to the tool on her desk.

She needed to replace a chance to revisit Scott's study so she could open that safe and see what secrets it held.

Half an hour later.

Vivienne was about to head to the kitchen to get a jar so she could continue her experiments on an antidote. Just as she opened the door, she heard a mumbling sound coming from the next room, indicating some commotion.

She tiptoed to the door and saw Carl squatting inside, tearing into a loaf of bread, and feeding a dirty little kitten.

"Don't blame me for not getting you cat food." Carl rambled on, seemingly unaware of Vivienne's presence. "Blame Vivienne. If it weren't for her scamming me out of 12 million, would I be in such a state?!" Every time he thought about it, he felt a rush of anger.

If Vivienne hadn't deliberately outbid him, goading him into increasing his bid so he could bid higher and suffer, he wouldn't have ended up buying a mediocre black moss stone for 12 million. Every time he thought about that stone, Carl gritted his teeth.

He'd assumed Vivienne was a small-town girl playing at being an expert in gemstone betting.

He really wanted to teach her a lesson, which was why he kept raising his bid. But in the end, he was the one who got burned.

In his frustration, Carl tore at his bread, stuffing it into his mouth. "For now, you'll have to make do. Once I win the competition and earn some money, I'll buy you better food."

The kitten sniffed at the bread on the floor, then turned its head away despondently.

Who would enjoy eating this hard bread? Nobody liked stale bread. Even as a stray, it found it hard to swallow.

"You're quite picky." Carl couldn't resist giving it a pat on the head. The kitten immediately rubbed itself against his jeans in return.

He found this little cat in the bushes near the Brooks Mansion. Its skin was hugging its bones due to starvation, and its body was covered in filth. His heart melted at the sight, and he brought it home without a second thought.

However, his purse was as thin as a pancake. That broken piece of jade had consumed three years of his pocket money, and he was still in debt.

The only option left for him was to mooch off his family. He barely had money to go out, let alone feed the kitten. "Hey, how about you sneak into Vivienne's room? She's got a jackpot from that gemstone auction. She must have something edible in there."

Vivienne, who was right at the door, raised her eyebrow. "Do you think I'm deaf?" She thought.

"Meow..." The kitten mewed at him a couple of times, indicating that it fully agreed with his suggestion.

Carl sighed. "Nah, let's not. We may be poor, but we still have our dignity. I will check in the kitchen and see if there's something we can eat."

With that, he turned to leave but froze when he saw Vivienne standing at the door.

His temper flared up, and he stormed over to Vivienne, fuming, "What are you doing here? Do you enjoy messing with me?"

"You're a jinx! Ever since the Brooks family took you in, nothing good has happened!"

Vivienne glanced at him dismissively. "You brought this upon yourself. How is it my fault?"

"How is it not your fault?!" Carl was short-tempered. He was so angry that he almost grabbed Vivienne by her collar. "If you hadn't set that trap, I wouldn't have thrown all my money in! Even a fool could see that stone wasn't any good. You deliberately bid against me, making my millions go down the drain!"

In his mind, Vivienne was to blame for everything. He was the victim and had been deceived and manipulated.