The True Heiress's Return novel Chapter 76

Chapter 76
This might have made Xanthe beam with joy; if it weren’t so quiet around, she would have clapped her thighs in excitement. “Oh right! How did I not think of that? I need to ask my dad!” With that, Xanthe dashed off to find Enrique.
Before long, Xanthe, who had just left smiling, returned with a serious expression.
Shakira asked her, “What did your dad say?”
“My dad just got the news too. The Nelson family and the Smith family were getting along just fine, but then the other night, Finn personally met with Lago and suddenly decided to back out of the deal, even paying a penalty fee. But the Nelson family had put in a bid themselves, so they just happened to be in the right place at the right time.”
Shakira was surprised too. They had just canceled the partnership two days ago. Did they discover something they hadn’t noticed before? But then again, if they had noticed something, why not just drop Lago’s project team instead?
But looking at how things were going, it seemed more like they couldn’t stand each other. Shakira thought about it and saw Arturo in the front row turn slightly to share a glance with Lago. Lago, without hesitation, flashed a smile, and when Arturo looked away, Lago puffed out his chest, looking all proud and c******y.
“Ugh, what a sycophant!” Xanthe spat “Whether the Nelson family and the Smith family work together or not, they’re still Yvette’s parents.” As soon as she said that, her expression changed slightly as she glanced at Shakira. “Sorry, I didn’t mean anything by that, I just-
Shakira’s expression didn’t change. “You’re right, they are her parents, but I wonder who she really favors.”
Xanthe thought for a moment and blurted out, “She probably leans towards the Nelson family, since they’ve been together for over ten years.”
Shakira just smiled without saying anything.
At that moment, Lago looked over at her. His expression twisted into something fierce and threatening, as if he wanted to swallow her whole.
Shakira didn’t even glance at him and just turned back.
“That little brat really has nine lives!” Lago hissed, each word dripping with anger.
Jessie, sitting next to him, looked anxious and muttered, “How did she get a ticket in the audience? I couldn’t even get one,”
Instinctively, she tensed up. “What if she did something sneaky on the side?”
“What if she did? That clueless little blonde can’t do anything to me. Who would she rely on? That useless heir from the Lopez family?” Lago scoffed. “Mr. Joyce already told me we’re practically guaranteed to win this!”
He sneered at Finn from across the room. “That kid from the Nelson family is so clueless. Once our family gets even bigger and better, he’ll be begging me to collaborate, and I still won’t want to!”
Jessie sighed. “How could you not realize that getting someone to teach Shakira a lesson would get Finn’s attention? Yvette already told me Finn is really stubborn. Now he’s clearly set on opposing us, especially since he didn’t even bring Yvette along
“Ha! What can that kid from the Nelson family do? Just because they have money doesn’t mean they can win this bidding!” Lago’s expression was wild with excitement. “If he won’t work with us, I won’t even care! Luckily, I have a lot of connections and managed to scrape together funding. As long as we get through this phase, all the profits from the project will be ours!”
The host on stage finished explaining the bidding rules and the meeting etiquette, and then they moved on to the opening of the bids. The bidders had already gotten the scoop through their connections, so this part didn’t excite anyone much.
08:23 Wed, Oct 23 GT.
Chapter 76
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Finally, they reached the moment everyone had been waiting for-the bid announcement. The supervising staff opened the sealed bid documents and announced the contents aloud, recording everything for transparency. Once that was done, they moved on to the evaluation phase.
Xanthe was already dozing off shortly after the bidding session began. She looked at Shakira in front of her, who was wide awake and paying close attention. Curiously, she asked, “Can you even understand this?”
Shakira replied, “Can’t you?”
“Wow, that stung. “I can’t understand it, and honestly, I don’t want to. If I hear that the Smith family won, I might just lose it.” Xanthe let out a small sigh of relief. “At least Yvette’s not here; otherwise, I’d really embarrass myself.”
“No need to worry; the Smith family is the main event today”
Xanthe still seemed uninterested. She didn’t quite get why Shakira was so eager. It felt like she was absolutely sure the Smith family would lose badly this time…
The bid announcements continued on stage, and Shakira paid special attention. The first bidder was an established construction company, the second was the Sullivan family, and then it was the Nelson family’s turn.
The Nelson family’s qualifications were outstanding and matched the first two bidders. Then came the Smith family, who had slightly-less favorable conditions but offered a more flexible adjustment plan.
Finally, the last bidder was their competitor, who had taken their bidding documents in a past life. Shakira closed her eyes, deep in thought, listening carefully to the host’s announcement. The documents were consistent, the plans were the same, and the price…
Suddenly, Shakira opened her eyes wide. Their quoted price was a full ten million less than the Smith family’s. Her eyes widened in shock. She couldn’t believe it. In the past, they lost out because their price was higher.
Shakira abruptly turned to look at Lago’s direction. The project manager for their bid was sitting right next to him.
After the bid announcements ended, Lago linked arms with the manager, and the two of them were laughing loudly, as if they already knew they were the big winners before the evaluation even started.
The atmosphere in the room brightened significantly as they entered the evaluation phase.
Lago even swaggered over to Enrique. “Hey, Enrique, you’ve been so busy lately you’ve lost a lot of weight! You’ll need new pants soon, right?”
Without waiting for Enrique to respond, Lago laughed heartily. “Oh, I know what I’m saying-if you don’t get the project, how will you have time to buy new clothes?”
Enrique snorted coldly, completely ignoring Lago.
Shakira was quite impressed with Enrique; he seemed very composed,
Just that…
Xanthe was furious, clenching her fists. “That old loser, I’ll kill him!”
Shakira held her back. “Just wait until the bids are announced.”
Lago not only showed off in front of Enrique but also turned to Finn next. “Hey, little Mr. Nelson, why don’t you listen to your dad! If you just hold on, we could work together and benene both families!”
Before he could finish, the host’s voice rang out excitedly. The evaluation results are in! I announce that the winner of the Southville development bid is… Enriquel