Lia Aiken thought that the man whose appearance was unknown to her back then was surely a man of noble descent, otherwise he wouldn’t exude such a regal aura. Now knowing his true identity, it confirms Lia’s suspicion.

"Mr. Ivan."

Mr. Aiken was still following Ivan Horne’s entourage.

Ivan finally stopped.

Mr. Aiken’s face was full of smiles, and as Ivan stopped, he hesitantly said, "Mr. Ivan, I’m sorry to disturb you. I only need a few minutes of your time." Mr. Aiken feared he would always remain anxious if he didn’t clarify the matter.

Ivan seemed to think for a moment, only then did a faint smile appear on his handsome face, "Mr. Aiken?"

"Yes, yes, it’s me."

Ivan smiled, a bit embarrassed, "I didn’t recognize you at first. Please don’t take offense, Mr. Aiken. Why are you here?" Actually, it was intentional; he has an excellent memory.

The two companies were at the stage of discussing a partnership, seemingly not scheduled for today. Oh, that’s right—Mr. Aiken had arranged with his secretary to bring his daughter, Lia, over today to apologize to him.

Lia hadn’t offended him before, so there was no need for a special apology. However, Ivan did not refuse Mr. Aiken’s visit, as he considered Lia to be the woman using a painting to capture his attention for her father’s benefit.

Nevertheless, Ivan had to go on a sudden business trip, and his secretary had already informed Mr. Aiken not to come over. Yet, they happened to meet at the airport.

Ivan instinctively looked at Lia, who was still standing in her original spot. They were only a few meters apart, and to Ivan’s surprise, this calculated daughter of Mr. Aiken’s had an elegant demeanor, with the vibe of an artist, and was pretty. She stood quietly there, and when he looked at her, she merely nodded politely, not displaying the deep cunning he imagined. Instead, she seemed pure and unassuming.

Ivan had a good first impression of the woman who captured his attention with a painting of a back view.

"Mr. Ivan, regarding last night’s matter... I specifically brought Lia here to apologize to you." Mr. Aiken turned his head and gestured for Lia to come over.

Lia pursed her lips, but eventually walked over.

"Lia, hurry and apologize to Mr. Ivan." Mr. Aiken, dissatisfied with Lia’s slow pace, stepped forward and gave Lia a firm pull; she instinctively shook off her father’s hand.

It was precisely this action that made Ivan see the poor relationship between this father and daughter.

"You brat, I warn you, don’t play tricks on me at this moment. Quickly apologize to Mr. Ivan. Mr. Ivan’s time is precious. He’s about to go on a business trip, giving us only a few minutes. If you don’t want to make a second trip, be quick."

Mr. Aiken quietly warned Lia.

Lia’s lips curled into a mocking smile but quickly restrained it.

Ivan observed the little interactions between the father and daughter, Mr. Aiken’s harshness towards Lia, and Lia’s sarcasm towards her father—all of which he took in.

It seems his assumptions were slightly off.

Lia probably wasn’t helping her father capture his attention. What was the story behind that painting?

Ivan dared to say he had never met Lia, and when had Lia ever seen him to paint a back view of him?

Last night, he asked Jimmy about Lia. That guy only told him Lia was indeed the daughter of the River City Aiken Family and that she actually didn’t want to sell the painting, saying it held great significance to her. It was Jimmy who had half coerced and half bought it.

Regarding other matters, Jimmy firmly claimed ignorance.

Ivan knew that his cousin wanted to pique his interest, prompting him to seek out Lia for understanding.

He had to admit, it worked.

Now, having met Lia face-to-face, Ivan also wanted to know what significance his back view held for Lia.

Lia walked up to Ivan, but instead of apologizing, she politely introduced herself: "Mr. Ivan, hello, my name is Lia."

Ivan’s sharp eyes lingered on her face for a moment, unable to find any trace of adulation from her beautiful visage. Ivan smiled slightly and responded, "Miss Aiken, hello."

"Mr. Ivan, this is my young daughter. She is still young and immature. If she has offended you in any way, please allow her to apologize. I hope you will forgive her." He didn’t want this brat to affect the cooperation between the Aiken Family and Valence.

Mr. Aiken noticed that Lia had only introduced herself without apologizing, and hurriedly spoke up, though he didn’t voice his last thought.

He also urged Lia, "Lia, why aren’t you apologizing to Mr. Ivan yet?"

Ivan still didn’t explain to Mr. Aiken that Lia hadn’t offended him but rather looked at Lia with interest, curious to see if she would comply with her father’s wishes and apologize to him.

Facing Ivan’s gaze, Lia said calmly and fearlessly, "Mr. Ivan, have you seen me before? This is our first meeting today, isn’t it? How could someone meeting for the first time offend the other? Since I haven’t offended Mr. Ivan, why apologize? Even if I had offended Mr. Ivan, I would only apologize if I was at fault."

Three years ago, she only saw Ivan’s back, and neither of them had come face-to-face before. Their meeting today was indeed their first; how could she have had a chance to offend Ivan?

Ivan smiled; this girl was not afraid of his identity or power. What’s right is right, and she wouldn’t wrongly apologize just because of his status.

"Miss Aiken hasn’t offended me; she need not apologize to me."

Mr. Aiken was stunned for a moment. The brat hadn’t offended Ivan, so had Ivan asked about her because he was interested in her? But looking at the expressions between them, there was no romantic tension. Why did Ivan suddenly ask about her?

"Mr. Aiken, Miss Aiken hasn’t offended me. You misunderstood my intentions last night. I inadvertently received a painting, which was well done, and the painter turned out to be Miss Lia. Remembering that Mr. Aiken’s last name is Aiken, I was curious and asked Mr. Aiken a question. There was really no other meaning."

From the time he called Mr. Aiken last night until now, ten-odd hours later, Ivan finally explained to Mr. Aiken. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

He also explained because he saw that Lia hadn’t intentionally helped Mr. Aiken gain his attention; otherwise, he’d let Mr. Aiken continue to misunderstand.

Mr. Aiken: ...

"Miss Lia is a painter, isn’t she? Your paintings are genuinely good. I heard you’ve opened a gallery. Some other day, when I’m free and in River City, I’ll definitely visit Miss Lia’s gallery." Ivan smiled at Lia as he said this, complimenting Lia while probing her.

When there’s potential gain, would this girl still remain calmly composed?

Lia hadn’t even had time to reply before Mr. Aiken eagerly answered, "Mr. Ivan, don’t laugh at me for bragging. My daughter has had a gift for painting since childhood, her portraits are lifelike. Now she manages her own gallery, and the business is excellent. Many people want to buy her paintings; they have to reserve in advance. If Mr. Ivan likes them, perhaps Lia could gift you a few paintings."

Ivan’s interest lay in the brat’s paintings, so he had better quickly withdraw the pressure he was putting on her and even help elevate her reputation. Only then, when Ivan visits River City, will he believe Lia is a genuine painter.

However, Lia didn’t save face for her father and honestly said, "Mr. Ivan, I’m sorry, my gallery business is very poor, not like my dad says. If Mr. Ivan visits my gallery someday, any painting that catches your eye, I’ll offer a ten percent discount."

Mr. Aiken’s face turned green with embarrassment from being contradicted by his daughter.

If Ivan wasn’t present, he’d surely slap her, brat!

Always a hindrance to him.