My Fiancé's Scandals Never End, So I Married His Uncle Instead-Chapter 30: Silas Norwood’s Hidden Fortune

That outing had been organized by several young ladies from the Capital Circle.

Quinn Sinclair was there at the time, too.

The head of the Sterling Conglomerate, a bewitching and alluring man, was dressed in vibrant colors. Beneath a fine V-neck, a serpentine chain necklace gleamed against his striking collarbones. He was handsome and dominant, and beneath his languid, refined eyes, a single beauty mark seemed to have been etched right into the hearts of every young lady present.

The rumor was he had dropped a major project just to be there.

Throughout the trip, he kept a respectful distance behind Celia Sterling, watching over her without interfering in her fun with the other young ladies. His assistant brought him a stack of remedial plans for the interrupted project, and he handled his work with effortless ease. Whenever he occasionally glanced up from his documents, his gaze would always find Celia’s figure with unerring accuracy amidst the large group of women.

"Brother, you’re following so closely. They’re all laughing at me, saying I haven’t been weaned yet..." Celia Sterling privately complained to Kian Sterling.

Kian Sterling cut her short. "A few days ago, didn’t Cece tell me that the socialite circle was ostracizing you?"

It was from that day on that Celia Sterling, who had never been very popular, suddenly found herself with many more female friends. Everyone in their circle knew that the ultimate prize was hard to get close to, so they got close to Celia instead. Where there was Celia, the prize himself was never far off. Kian Sterling doted on his sister to an obsessive degree; for anyone hoping to catch him, there was no better stepping stone than Celia Sterling.

Celia Sterling was lost in thought, reminiscing about that time in Oakhaven.

A middle-aged man walked in through the café’s main entrance.

After a brief inquiry with a waiter, he knocked on the door of Celia Sterling’s private room.

Celia Sterling and Quinn Sinclair stopped talking and looked at the newcomer.

"Miss Celia Sterling, I am the butler from the Shepherd Residence." The middle-aged man politely handed an invitation to Celia. "This Saturday is our Third Miss’s tenth birthday party. The madam specifically requested your presence to celebrate with her."

The Shepherd Family was the wealthy family her mother had married into.

Celia Sterling accepted it in silence.

The middle-aged man paused before continuing, "And what of Chairman Sterling?"

"I will tell him, but whether he goes or not is his decision."

The middle-aged man was very courteous. "The weather has been dry lately, and the madam has not been in the best of health. She also mentioned that it has been a long time since she last saw Chairman Sterling and Miss Sterling..."

"I understand," Celia Sterling interrupted. "I will head over early on Saturday."

The middle-aged man took his leave.

Once the man had left, Quinn Sinclair kicked the door shut, snatched the invitation, and her expression darkened.

"Seriously? What kind of biological mother sends a formal invitation to her own daughter? Is a phone call that hard? And she’s throwing a huge tenth birthday party for your half-sister? I remember she didn’t even show her face for your tenth birthday! It was your brother who invited all your good friends from our circle to celebrate with you."

Celia Sterling bit the end of her coffee spoon and said softly, "It’s no big deal. I’ll just treat it as a family visit."

That night, Celia Sterling and Silas Norwood’s date was in a VIP suite at a concert by the Music King.

"I’m not very experienced when it comes to romance, and I don’t really know what young women like these days." Silas Norwood poured Celia Sterling a glass of juice, his voice gentle. "I heard this artist is the Music King with the most female fans, ranging in age from ten to eighty. I can only hope this earns me some points with Cece."

"A lot of his songs are great, but this is my first time seeing him live." Celia Sterling looked down at the dense sea of light-up signs. She wasn’t much of a fangirl, but the wild atmosphere of the live show was still immersively exhilarating.

The suite’s location was excellent, offering a clear view of the stage. One popular song after another played, the sound filtered through the suite’s custom audio processor to block out the noise, making it perfectly clear.

Silas Norwood passed a dish of Glazed Cups to Celia Sterling.

"Miss Sinclair asked me about you today." Celia Sterling casually picked one up and took a bite, making small talk. "You should bring enough bodyguards when you go out from now on."

Seeing she was still in the mood to chat, Silas Norwood knew the concert hadn’t fully captured his fiancée’s attention. He mentally crossed ’concerts’ off his list of future date ideas and asked with a smile:

"Oh? And why is that?"

"Most of the women in my circle have designs on you. I heard they want to wait until you’re alone to copy me and, ahem, take advantage of you." Celia Sterling avoided Silas Norwood’s gaze, feeling a little guilty. "But I also told them they’d have to pay up."

"Pay up?"

"I had Quinn Sinclair spread the word that when I took advantage of you, it resulted in a large sum of money changing hands between you and my brother—compensation."

Silas Norwood understood her little wordplay after a moment’s thought. He smiled elegantly. "It only worked because that person was Cece."

’Anyone else wouldn’t even get the chance to get close to me.’

Celia Sterling understood his meaning and looked slightly uncomfortable. She changed the subject. "That case you sent, Silas, it was too much."

"They’re just flashy trinkets meant to catch the eye." Silas Norwood was very casual about it. "I also had a display cabinet custom-made for Cece at Jade Orchid Manor. When you move in, I’ll go with you to the major auction houses to pick out some more."

"I do like jewelry, but I much prefer the set of perfume ingredients you sent last time, Silas."

As Celia Sterling spoke of her hobby, she seemed to perk up. "Silas, the Norwood Family isn’t involved in the perfume industry, so you might not understand. Those twelve types of the world’s most precious perfume ingredients... it’s not just me; even the great perfumery houses would be envious."

There was a hint of a smile in Silas Norwood’s eyes as he played along. "Is that so?"

"Yes!" Celia Sterling began to earnestly explain it to him. "There are many perfumery houses around the world, but only three are considered truly legendary. Two in Morellia, and one in Port Sovereign. But even for monopolistic perfume dynasties like them, their stock of these twelve ingredients is extremely limited. I heard that the House of Aurelian in Veridia is even missing one of them. Silas, where did you get all these?"

Silas Norwood lowered his gaze slightly. "I’ve forgotten. They’ve just been gathering dust in a warehouse for a long time."

Celia Sterling sighed softly. "I have to touch those twelve bottles several times a day now. That was the only gift in my life I was utterly unable to refuse."

Silas Norwood noted her expression. "I have some more."

’And a whole warehouse of over a hundred types of top-grade raw extracts, plus eighty-six high-end ingredient production bases spread across the globe.’

Celia Sterling’s eyes lit up. "Another set?"

Silas Norwood’s expression was calm. "There are more, but not a full set."

"Oh, just a few incomplete bottles? That’s still incredible!" Celia Sterling exclaimed in amazement. "Back when I got into perfumery, my brother went to great lengths and only managed to find me a single bottle of agarwood extract. Your private collection is amazing, Silas."

Silas Norwood didn’t say anything, only thoughtfully refilled her juice.

"Speaking of perfumes," Celia Sterling leaned closer to him. "Which perfumery house’s fragrance are you wearing, Silas? It smells wonderful."

Silas Norwood’s expression faltered slightly. After a few seconds, he asked uncertainly, "Perfume?"

"Yes, perfume." Celia Sterling moved even closer, her almond-shaped eyes sparkling with curiosity. "I’ve never smelled anything so pleasant, and I’ve never come across it on the market. Plus, judging by the incredibly delicate top notes, the perfumer must have been a woman."

Silas Norwood fell silent.