Paul's incessant chatter buzzed in Ella's ears like an annoying fly, casting shadows under her lashes as she tried to maintain her composure.

The bright lights illuminated Austin and Judith, creating a picture-perfect scene.

Austin's gaze briefly met Ella's before he deliberately looked away.

Taking a deep breath, Ella shook off Paul's grip and glared at him furiously. "Go get your eyes checked if you're blind. Which of your stupid eyes saw envy in me?"

"Stupid eyes?" Paul's mouth twitched, clearly stunned by her response.

This wasn't the Ella who typically endured everything in silence.

Her voice wasn't loud, but it attracted attention from those nearby.

"Who's that? So rude."

"Isn't that from Summit Technologies Group? I wanted to check out their brochure, but let's stay away now."

"Can't believe a representative from such a big company at a business summit would use such language."

The small crowd that had been drawn to their promotional materials quickly dispersed.

Paul, seeing this, smiled smugly. "Everyone can see the truth. Even if you've latched onto Summit Technologies, you're just a housewife dreaming of becoming a career woman. You'll never measure up to Judith-not in

education or family background."

Rather than arguing, Ella looked at him with disdain before turning away to start fresh.

Paul watched her proud,retreating figure with mounting anger.

According to his calculations, after being humiliated like that, she should have been too ashamed to appear before Austin.

Why did she keep following Austin everywhere he went?

Frustrated, Paul eventually returned to Austin's side.

Austin was engaged in conversation with an investor,enthusiastically promoting Judith.

The investor was clearly impressed with Judith, expressing interest in potential collaboration.

After the person left, Paul grabbed a bottle of water from the table,unscrewed it, and took a gulp.

"Ella's out of her mind," he said bitterly.

"She upset you again?"

"I was just hoping she'd realize her place and stop following Austin around,but she called me blind."

Paul drained the bottle and set it aside, crossing his arms as he glared at Ella's busy figure across the room.

She was still handing out flyers, moving through the crowd undeterred despite repeated rejections.

"Look at her-isn't she shameless?" He sneered.

Judith's eyes gleamed with satisfaction, though her words conveyed sympathy. "Don't be angry at Ella. I'm sure she dloesn't mean it."

She sighed compassionately. "She's quite pitiful."

"She deserves it for wasting years of Austin's life. It's karma!" Paul snorted dismissively.

Though Judith maintained a concerned expression, inside, she was secretly delighted.

'Ella, everything-both the man and your career-belongs to me. Don't even think about competing with me.' She thought to herself.

Ella moved against the crowd, offering flyers. "This is Summit Technologies Group's Prometheus Project. We're launching a breakthrough AI software."

Before she could finish, she was jostled by the surging crowd.

Just then, a strong hand gripped her arm.

Ella looked up to see Anthony Gonzalez, and her expression softened."Anthony."

"Watch where you're going," he said with a warm smile, pulling her behind him.

After steadying herself, he released her arm and gentlemanly cleared a path,leading her awway from the crowd.

As the noise of the crowd faded, he smiled, "You came to the summit for that project you asked me to help expand your investor network for?"

She nodded eagerly, her eyes filled with hope. "Yes, I want to raise awareness at the summit, so when the product exchange meeting comes.we can suaccessfully market it."

"Let me see."

Anthony had specifically inquired about the Prometheus Project after escorting Ella home that day.

He'd heard the project had significant innovations and had achieved breakthrough developments in AI.

Compared to existing AI products on the market, Anthony believed Prometheus might create a new technological era.

Moreover, he had always respected Ella's abilities.

After briefly reviewing the promotional material, he looked up and said,"You're as impressive as you were when we were younger. Always excelling at whatever you do."

"This is Summit Technologies' promotional language. I'm just partnering with them," Ella explained modestly.

Anthony tucked the flyer away and led her to meet several major investors.

Ella felt somewhat overwhelmed by his support, but he reassured her."Some of these people will be judges at your product exchange meeting.You should network with them-it might help your project."

"Anthony, I... I don't want to impose," Ella hesitated, nervously clutching the edge of her skirt.

Seeing her endearing uncertainty, Anthony gently touched her head. "The

business world runs on relationships, Ella. If you don't want to use connections, plenty of others will gladly leverage relationships to get opportunities. Are you sure you don't want to take advantage of my network?"

If Judith could use Austin to build connections, why couldn't she do the same?

In the profit-driven market, who truly succeeded without any help?

She needed to learn to use the available resources.

Through Anthony's introductions, Ella quickly engaged in deep discussions about the Prometheus Project.

Meanwhile, Paul returned from the restroom and spotted Ella standing with Anthony.

He hurriedly reported back to Austin.

"Austin, Ella is so calculating. She's with Anthony now, probably trying to make you jealous. That's Kenneth's grandson! Who knows what tricks she's using?"

Judith scanned the summit venue and confirmed that Ella was indeed missing from the Summit Technologies corner.

She lowered her gaze, feeling uneusy.

"Austin, you don't think Ella is approaching Anthony just to impress the judges,do you?" Judith asked with concern.

She'd learned from inside sources that Anthony was one of the judges for the product exchange meeting, given his status as the renowned Kenneth's

grandson.

Austin lowered his eyelids, his expression impassive as if Paul's words hadn't affected him. "Don't worry about it. She won't be at the product exchange meeting."

"Why not?" Judith asked, puzzled.

Just then, Austin's phone rang, and he stepped aside to answer it.

As he leaned against the wall near the entrance, one long leg slightly bent with his foot against the wall, he had a clear view of Ella laughing and conversing with the investors, with Anthony standing protectively nearby.

After finishing his call, Austin noticed Ella had spotted him as well.