Chapter 10 I’m Sephora Garcia
Lowell was surprised. Was Sephora serious?
He said, “Do you mean it? Aren’t you worried you might embarrass yourself?”
“I’ll write in front of everyone,” Sephora repeated.
Elaine chimed in, “Don’t let her go on stage, Lowe. She wants to curse Xavier and is here to sabotage his birthday party! She’s Bridie’s sister who comes from a poor, remote place. Do you really think she’s a calligrapher?”
A poor, remote place?
Sephora almost rolled her eyes. Elaine and Bridgette were indeed birds.
of a feather.
She said clearly, “My name is Sephora Garcia.”
Elaine retorted quickly, “Yeah, yeah. Sephora Garcia Levine, right? Bridie has already told me. How’s that relevant?”
Sephora was speechless.
Meanwhile, Lowell was stunned. “Garcia? Did Seymour send you here?”
Sephora nodded, pointed at the calligraphy, and looked at Elaine mockingly. “That’s his gift for Sir Austin, and he asked me to deliver it. I have no idea how it ended up in Bridgette’s hands.”
18437
Elaine didn’t know who Seymour was, and Sephora’s words deeply bugged her. “Stop lying and twisting the facts! Bridie invited Philomel to write that as a birthday gift for Xavier!”
Just then, one of the old men who was appreciating the calligraphy chimed in, “What did you say? This piece was written recently?”
Elaine nodded. “That’s right.”
He said, “No way. This is the piece that was auctioned off three years ago, OK? How come it’s written recently? Check out the ink. It’s not fresh at all.”
A few other of his friends, who were professionals in calligraphy, echoed with him. Immediately, Elaine flew into a rage. “I’ll let Bridie explain to you all!”
She dragged Bridgette over, who braced herself under the old men’s intent gazes and said, “I asked my friend to invite Philomel to write this. I didn’t know it was an old piece.
“It is indeed Philomel’s authenticated work,” they commented. “It must have taken you a lot of effort to get this.”
Their approval made Bridgette nervous, and her eyes were brimming with tears. “Sephora, I know you hate me, but I really went through a lot to get this. I just want to celebrate Sir Austin’s birthday. Why did you say it’s yours?
“Dad and Mom adopted me, and I can’t be compared to you. But this is the gift I sincerely prepared for Sir Austin. How could I just let you have it?”
She started to sob, and those old men looked at Sephora
13,67%
Chapter 10 I’m Sephora Garcia
disapprovingly.
Feeling those sympathetic gazes, Bridgette cried even harder.
Then Sephora said with a half–smile, “How much did you pay for this piece?”
Bridgette said while still sobbing, “Over 500 thousand dollars.”
Lowell knew she was lying right away, his gaze turning cold.
Xavier had told him the piece was a gift from the Garcia family.
7
As Bridgette continued to shed tears, Sephora no longer bothered to waste her time here. She was just here to deliver the gift, and she’d leave right after.
The walnut ink and vellum had already been placed on stage, and Sephora walked up.
Bridgette hurriedly asked, “What’s she doing?”
Elaine gritted her teeth. “She said she’d write up there, and Lowe has
allowed her.
“Stop her! What if she writes something rude?”
“Lowe said she could go!”
Elaine was furious, but she didn’t dare to do anything at the sight of Lowell’s expressionless face.
Lowell had someone invite Xavier over.
As soon as Xavier approached them, he saw Bridgette, who was crying
1043
Chapter 10 Im Sephora Cia
pitifully. “What happened? Who upsets you?”
Elaine said immediately, “Bridie’s sister insisted that the calligraphy was sent by her brother in the countryside as a birthday gift for you. But the truth is that Bridie spent 500 thousand dollars to buy it!”
Xavier’s expression darkened. “What?” He knew the piece was a gift from Seymour. In other words, Bridgette was lying.
Just then, Lowell patted Xavier’s shoulder. “Grandpa, look at the stage.”
Sephora, in her down jacket, was holding a pen, writing something deftly.
Soon, she finished writing, and two attendants held up the vellum.
“Congratulations on your eightieth birthday, Sir Austin. May you live long and prosper.”
Xavier widened his eyes at once.
“Bring it here. I wanna take a closer look!”
The attendants walked down with the vellum, and Xavier and his friends quickly surrounded it.
“Check out the strokes. They’re the same as Philomel’s! Is she really Philomel?”
“What did she say her name was again?”
‘Sephora Garcia?”
“Right! Sephora Garcia… The sister of the Garcia Group’s CEO?”
104 D
Chapter 10 Tm Sephora Garcia
“I bet she is!”
Bridgette was stupefied, not understanding what was happening. Meanwhile, Elaine looked at her with a complicated expression. “Bridie? What’s going on?”
Elaine saw Sephora’s calligraphy. She had calligraphy appreciation- someone from a remote place could never reach this level.
Bridgette cried pitifully, her tears streaming down her cheeks. She panicked, stuttering, “I … don’t know…”
She thought, “Sephora comes from a poor, remote place. How is this possible?
“Her adoptive parents are farmers. How could she have any connections to the Garcia Group?”
Realizing he had mistaken Bridgette for the daughter of the Garcia family, Xavier said, “Where is Sephora?”
Being reminded, his friends all looked around, but Sephora was nowhere to be seen.
“She probably left because she was too upset with Bridgette,” someone said.
Xavier immediately pulled a long face and looked at Elaine. “Elaine, you should be wiser in choosing friends from now on.” After saying this, he turned to Bridgette. “Someone, escort her out.”
Everyone looked at Bridgette with disdain and ridicule, and Elaine was angry with Bridgette for lying to her.
Bridgette looked at Elaine pleadingly, but the latter turned around and
(1044)
Chapter 10 I’m Sephora Garcia
walked over to Xavier. “I’m sorry, Xavier. It’s my fault. From now on, she’s not my friend.”
Bridgette didn’t want to be escorted out. The guests present were all from the upper class, and she could forget about marrying into a top- tier family if she was kicked out in front of them.
“Sephora is my sister. She’s my sister! You can’t do this to me!” she screamed frantically, but the attendants ignored her struggle and escorted her out of the Austin’s mansion anyway.
As for Sephora, she left after writing. To her surprise, Lowell caught up with her right after she walked out of the gates.
“Why are you following me?“.
She looked at him, puzzled.
He lowered his head and looked at her. “You’re leaving just like this?”
“Yes. Seymour asked me to deliver his gift, and I had to wait because of the little incident earlier,” she said.
She was calm and talented, and she punched well.
After a brief pause, Lowell suddenly smiled, “Seymour and I have a deal that we haven’t finalized yet.”
“So? Go and talk to him then.‘
“It’s about developing your hometown. I heard you built a track and a fishpond there. Is that right?”
“Why?”
1040
Chapter 10 Im Sephora Garcia
“I’ll trade Austin Plaza’s track for yours and get you a fishpond. Your fish will be fine. How about that?”
Sephora realized what he wanted. “You want to tear down my track and fishpond, but Seymour won’t let you?
“About the track part, yes. But you don’t have to build me a fishpond, and the contract terms you have with him stay unchanged.”
Lowell thought, “She’s a shrewd one. She gets my track for free!”
“Alright,” he agreed.
