The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Suddenly, a voice rose above the chatter in the crowded gallery.

“Whos the artist behind this masterpiece? Is there staff around?”

Chapter 348

In no time, a gallery associate made his way over, “Good day, sir. Can I assist you in any way?”

“I want to commission the artist of this painting to create a portrait for my mother’s 70th birthday

celebration.”

The associate gave him an apologetic look, “I’m afraid that won’t be possible, sir. The art is done by our

gallery owner. He doesn’t take on private

commissions

As the associate’s words hung in the air, a visible shift in Vivienne’s demeanor was apparent.

Jeffrey Ellington really had the audacity!

“Can you call your boss over here? I’d like to discuss this with him,” the man insisted.

No sooner had the man finished speaking, Jeffrey himself appeared. “Who’s looking for me?”

The man was clearly familiar with Jeffrey, “Isn’t this Mr. Ellington? You own this gallery too?”

The Ellington family was a well–known entity in the circle

The arrogant Paul, the motorcycle–obsessed Earl, Jeffrey, Fiona, and even the youngest Ellingtons,

Kenneth and Isolde, were known to everyone

Perhaps the only Ellington they knew little about was Percival, who was thought to be disabled.

“Of course,” Jeffrey replied with a dismissive tone, “Just how many galleries in Rivenwood do you think

aren’t mine?”

The man didn’t dare offend Jeffrey, and his posture slumped a bit involuntarily, “Right, right. I was

wondering why this painting was so exceptional It turned out that the painting was yours.”

“As long as you appreciate it, that’s all that matters. As for your mother’s portrait, I’ll have one of our

staff artists take care of it. Consider it a token of my appreciation for your taste

The man, publicly humiliated by Jeffrey, couldn’t save his dignity. But all he could do was chuckle

awkwardly and express his gratitude

Jeffrey huffed, sweeping his gaze over the crowd until he spotted Percival and Vivienne at the back.

“Since we’re all here at my exhibition, I’d like to introduce two special guests,” a smirk tugged at his lips

before he pointed towards Percival, This is my cousin, Percival I’m sure you all know him.”

The crowd turned to look at Percival and gasped in surprise.

“Isn’t Percival supposed to be wheelchair–bound? How is he standing? Am I hallucinating?”

The news of Percival’s recovery was only known to a few close families in Rivenwood. To the public,

Percival was still believed to be disabled.

“No, you’re not hallucinating. I saw him walk in too. He’s standing right there.”

“Good heavens! The Ellingtons must have some top–notch doctors in their network. They managed to

cure a disabled man!”

“Having such a powerful doctor in their corner definitely solidifies the Ellingtons‘ status in Rivenwood.”

While the crowd was still buzzing, Jeffrey gestured towards Vivienne, “And this is Vivienne, my cousin

Percival’s fiancee

After the Brooks family hosted their family reunion party, the Ellington family was going to host another

party to publicize Vivienne and Perovals engagement, but the party was pushed back when Richard

was attacked after mistakenly riding in Percival’s car

And they hadn’t nail down the exact time. Vivienne didn’t let them do it. She was too busy to attend any

parties.

News of Vivienne and Percival’s engagement was still a well–guarded secret among their close circle.

Thus, many at the exhibition were hearing it for the first time

Although Eddy’s two live streaming before let a large netizen group know their relationships, but those

were from the younger generation. The people who came to the exhibition today were company board

members, those people were older and rarely read gossip news in that case they never knew their

relationship

As the crowd turned their attention to Vivienne, expressions of shock spread across some of the faces

“Isn’t that Vivienne Brooks, the lady of the Brooks family?”

The Brooks family’s reunion banquet for Vivienne had drawn the attention of everyone in their circle

Scott admitted Karen as the only love of his life. That was why people admired their fairy–tale love

story. And when they admitted Calista, the Brooks family shot into the spotlight

So each member’s life in the Brooks family was flipped through by the netizen group Their stories were

so hyped up that everyone in the circle had to pay them attention

“Ah, that makes sense I saw Percival and Vivienne together at the engagement party So, the Ellingtons

and the Brooks are uniting through

marriage.”

“With the top two families joining forces, it’s a power couple in the making!”

“And Vivienne is quite a beauty. She’s dressed so simply, yet she stands out like a painting come to

life.”

Hearing the crowd’s praises, Jeffrey’s face hardened. He wasn’t here to listen to them fawn over

Percival and Vivienne.

With Paul in the police station, there was no one to steal his thunder. It was his time to shine.

Jeffrey chuckled, “Percival, Vivienne, since you two are engaged, I haven’t prepared a gift for you.

Allow me to offer this painting as a token of my congratulations”

He gestured at the painting “I’d like to invite Vivienne to share her thoughts on it.”

All eyes turned to Vivienne. As the daughter of the Brooks family, commenting on a piece of art should

be a simple task.

Vivienne glanced up at him, her imposing aura pulling back, her hands shoved into her pockets, her

attitude a bit roguish, “This is plagiarized How could you possibly have the nerve to ask me to critique

it?”

Everyone gasped in shock!

Plagiarism?

How could that be?

Until today, they had never seen any other artist exhibit this painting.

Jeffrey’s eyes flashed with surprise, but he quickly regained his composure, “I was simply giving you a

gift. If you disdain it, you could have just declined Why do you have to throw such a heavy accusation

at me? Do you realize how much of an insult plagiarism is to an artist?”

Vivienne flashed him a wicked smile, “So, you are very sure that you didn’t plagiarize?

“Absolutely!” Jeffrey responded confidently

As soon as he finished speaking, someone spoke up in his defense, “Vivienne, we shouldn’t make

accusations without evidence.”

“Right, you’re suggesting that Mr. Ellington plagiarized but do you have any proof?”

Vivienne shot the two people a glance, they were the ones who had just asked Jeffrey to paint.

She retracted her gaze and stowed her smile away. She said in a cold tone, “When did you paint this?”

“A few years ago!” Jeffrey replied without any hesitation.

Vivienne smirked, “You said you painted this years ago. But why did you use this year’s newly

manufactured paint?”

Jeffrey was taken aback. It strike him that she could literally discern the paint.

The paint he used for this painting was indeed newly developed this year.

This brand of paint had brighter colors and a longer oxidation time, and was currently popular among

artists.

“Yes, this painting was indeed made with new paint. The colors are more accurate, and it’s easier to

mix the shades I want.”

“Exactly, it’s the latest development. I just bought it yesterday”