Rejected Heiress, Reigning Queen novel Chapter 239

Emma wasn't in the mood to deal with her and had her assistant send Gillian away.

In just a single afternoon, the new exhibition venue was fully prepped and ready.

And that night, at the stroke of midnight, The Crystal Pagoda lit up the sky.

[Holy crap! Which billionaire just rented out the ultimate money pit?! All seven floors lit up at midnight?!]

[The last time The Pagoda was fully lit was for a global summit! I haven't heard anything about foreign dignitaries visiting!]

[I'm dying to know what massive event triggered a full-tower buyout!]

[Look at the marquee display! It's the letter 'L' for Lockwood! A VIP from the Lockwood family bought it out!]

The moment the tower lit up the night sky, the internet exploded with viral speculation.

The next morning, Gillian clutched her exclusive VIP entry pass to The Pagoda, her eyes sparkling with ecstatic joy.

"Percy, did you prepare this surprise just for me?"

Gillian had seen the trending hashtags and knew the venue was bought out for someone with her last name.

She had briefly wondered if it was Emma, but then Percy had shown up to hand-deliver her pass.

That meant The Pagoda was lit up for her!

Assuming she was talking about the entry pass itself, Percy nodded. "Pamela asked me to arrange it. There's another pass for your friend. Apparently, that famous international painter is hosting her exhibition here today."

Gillian had been trying to launch Phoebe's career, and since Pamela wanted to help, Percy was happy to play the middleman for a favor.

Gillian's smile grew radiant. "Mom is the absolute best!"

No wonder she couldn't get in touch with the painter privately—her mother had already bought out the ultimate venue to set the stage for her.

Gillian was practically vibrating with excitement. She immediately started flexing on social media about how The Crystal Pagoda had been illuminated just for her. She picked Phoebe up along the way.

By the time their trio arrived at the entrance, Emma was just stepping out of her car.

"Emma, you really are like a ghost haunting me everywhere I go."

Gillian assumed Emma had somehow found out she would be here and showed up just to cause a scene.

Carter smiled, guiding her toward the private VIP elevator.

"Because I built it."

Emma stared at him in utter shock before the realization hit her. "No wonder it popped up in your personal real estate portfolio. I didn't even put that together."

She had assumed a lavish architectural marvel sitting in the heart of downtown had to be a government-backed cultural project. She never imagined it was Carter's private property.

"I built it for fun a few years ago. After the government used it for the global summit, I stopped renting it out to private parties to maintain its prestige."

Carter explained patiently. Emma clicked her tongue. "Then aren't you afraid that lighting up all seven floors for me will ruin its prestige?"

"Don't stress over it. The lower floors still operate normally; I just keep the penthouse permanently closed and refuse all private buyouts."

Besides, Carter would personally reimburse the government for the buyout fee out of pocket. They would be thrilled by the massive revenue injection and wouldn't utter a single complaint.

Emma chuckled softly just as the elevator doors chimed open. Logan was standing right at the entrance of the exhibition hall.

"Emma, what are you doing here?"