?Chapter 363:


    The reverse side revealed a phoenix, wings stretched wide, soaring into the heavens with a triumphant scream. The canvas zed with color and life, fierce and unstoppable.


    “The brushwork… the colors… the force behind it — it’s on another level. I’ve never encountered anything this breathtaking at any exhibition.”


    “Buried under all that despair was a fierce hope… a drive to rise from ruin. It’s overwhelming!”


    “This… This is the gallery’s true masterpiece!” The crowd stood stunned, awestruck.


    Atst, the real gem of the gallery hade to light — something far greater than anyone had dared to expect.


    No one noticed that when the painting turned, the signature tucked into the corner changed too.


    Meanwhile, the Ward family was plunged into a crisis unlike anything they had faced before, both financially and socially. Thanks to Chris’ quiet maniption behind the scenes, several of Vince’s biggest projects crumbled one after another.


    Desperate to stop the escting financial losses, the Ward family poured their money into the problem, only to watch their savings vanish.


    Before long, a swarm of suppliers began demanding payments, and the media pounced, casting an unrelenting spotlight on the Ward family’s unraveling reputation.


    Panicked by the threat of total loss, early investors began to withdraw, and as the market’s confidence in Ward Group crumbled, thepany’s stock price took a nosedive, crashing for several days in a row.


    Overnight, Ward Group had be a disgrace in Wront’s capital market, shunned by nearly everyone.


    Adding salt to the wound, news broke that the Cooper Group’s grand banquet had pointedly excluded the Ward family, a clear sign that they were about to lose their status among Wront city’s elite families.


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    Blinded by rage, Gavin smashed several valuable teacups in a single outburst, and every time his eyesnded on Vince, his fury reignited. Looking utterly wrecked with an unkempt beard and rumpled clothes, Vince had been drowning in chaos for days.


    He simply couldn’t figure out who had set this nightmare into motion. Ever since that night at Nexus Collective, when that man took Maia away, Vince felt like he had been marked as a target.


    Vince couldn’t shake the feeling that Maia and that man had something to do with his downfall. Did she truly want to see him ruined? Had shepletely thrown away everything they once shared without any mercy? Was that man truly her husband?


    Deep down, Vince refused to believe it. A part of him stubbornly clung to the idea that Maia being married was just a lie spread by herself. Maybe she was only trying to provoke him? Or perhaps she had no other choice but to say so?


    Being locked up under house arrest for days was enough to drive Vince to the edge of madness.


    One moment, he burned with a desire to crush Maiapletely. The next, an overwhelming longing to im her once more flooded his thoughts.


    Back when Maia had shown him genuine warmth and devotion, he hadn’t even bothered to nce her way. Now that she had truly walked away, he found himself trapped, unable to move on.


    Just a few words of concern from Maia, just a sliver of the affection she once gave, would have been enough to make him feel like he ruled the world. Yet now, Maia wouldn’t even spare him a second thought.


    Vince’s eyes burned red with frustration as he clenched his fists so hard that his knuckles turned white. He couldn’t ept it. He wouldn’t. As the sole heir to Ward Group, he had never been denied anything he wanted, and Maia was supposed to be no exception!


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