?Chapter 1259:


    A collective gasp followed, sharp and immediate.


    Most couldn’t believe how ruthless Cedric had just been.


    After all, the woman he dismissed was the cherished daughter of a powerful business entrepreneur.


    Did he really just toss her aside like she was nothing?


    A deep flush of humiliation and fury crept up the woman’s cheeks. “Cedric, what’s that supposed to mean? You should be grateful someone like me even—”


    Raising his head atst, Cedric met her gaze with chilling calm. “All you’ve got going for you is your family’s name. Strip that away, and what are you left with? I’m not waiting for anyone, but I’m definitely not lowering myself for someone who can’t even hold a proper thought. I don’t need a marriage to build my empire. I’ve always made my own fortune.”


    Once the words left his mouth, Cedric cast a cool nce across the crowd of women.


    Suddenly, the ones who had been so eager to approach him found the floor far more interesting than his eyes. Trying to match Dani was no easy feat—she had set a standard most couldn’t even hope to reach.


    Next to her, they all looked painfully out of their depth. While disappointment weighed heavy on their expressions, one attendee quietly recorded the entire exchange and sent it to someone overseas.


    Without a backward nce, Cedric exited the event. But before he got far, hurried footsteps trailed after him.


    Once hailed as the wealthiest man in the country, Alexander now found himself easily outshone by Cedric—a fact that gnawed at him. Still, the memory of Dani presenting Cedric with a divorce agreement offered him a strange sense offort.


    “You really managed to rub every socialite in there the wrong way.”


    Without so much as a shrug, Cedric replied, “Is that supposed to concern me?”


    Your escape begins with ga ln ov els .


    A lowugh rumbled from Alexander. “So the rumors are true—you and Dani split. Honestly, I figured you’dst longer than I did. Guess you’re no different after all.”


    Cedric turned his gaze on him, his expression unreadable. Then a smirk tugged at his lips. “Maybe. But the duration of my marriage to Dani is still longer than your time as the nation’s wealthiest man.”


    In an instant, Alexander’s grin disappeared.


    “‘Cedric, does Dani even realize how mean you are?” Alexander shouted, his voice rising like a storm.


    “Maybe she doesn’t, but your ipetence? That’s one thing she knows all too well.”


    Alexander nearly choked on his anger. “You’re just the richest man in the country. What gives you the right to be so damn smug?”


    Cedric smirked, unbothered. “Smug? Of course I am. Before leaving, Dani handed me a fortune worth tens of billions.”


    Cedric tilted his head, feigning confusion. “Wait, didn’t you marry Dani once? Just curious—what did she leave you when she divorced you?”


    That question jabbed straight into Alexander’s unhealed wound.


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