Chapter 45: The Price of Pride

Chapter 45: The Price of Pride

"You're flaunting your so-called art while squandering our family's wealth? Ha…" Daniel sneered, raising his voice deliberately. "Your so-called taste and artistry are all built on someone else's money!"

The room erupted in murmurs as the gathered media caught the scent of scandal. Whispers spread like wildfire:

"Isn't Alisa the one with the billionaire husband? Are they divorced now?"

"And it looks like there's some kind of financial dispute? This is a public feud..."

Divorce, a wealthy family, hidden secrets, and a fight over money—any one of these topics could fuel a sensational headline.

Cameras flashed between Daniel and Emily, capturing every second of the unfolding drama. Everyone turned to Emily, watching her closely, waiting for her response.

Emily stood on the stage, maintaining the composed posture she had during the interview.

She wore a white knee-length dress from a renowned brand, its sleek lines perfectly accentuating her slender waist, while her long, smooth legs extended gracefully from beneath the hem.

Crystal heels lifted her posture, making her shoulders and back appear even more elegant and poised. She looked like a proud, elegant white peacock.

The white peacock's silence carried an inherent air of coldness and pride. Emily's almond-shaped eyes stared unwaveringly at Daniel, her gaze sharp and assessing, her matte red lips pressed into a tight line.

The tension in the room thickened under her scrutiny, and the crowd fell silent.

"Nothing to say?" Daniel pressed on, his tone growing harsher. "Am I wrong? Everything you wore, ate, and used after marriage came from our family! And now, after the divorce, you want to walk away with such a huge sum—"

"A shameless woman like you, what right do you have to talk about art and taste here?"

His voice grew louder, echoing slightly in the empty exhibition hall.

Emily's face remained impassive, but her hand at her side clenched, her fingertips digging into her palm.

Cameras clicked incessantly, the sound blending into a cacophony. Emily had never felt so alienated from the cameras and lenses.

Her studio staff and security rushed in. Her assistant stepped forward, spreading his arms to block the cameras and shouted, "Stop filming! No more pictures!" The security team tried to surround Daniel and his group, attempting to push them back.

The scene grew chaotic. Some reporters stood on chairs, trying to get a better shot, while the security team struggled with Daniel, who yelled, "Do you even know who I am?!"

"Let him go."

The room seemed to freeze, and everyone turned to see Emily stepping forward.

"I said, let him go."

The security hesitated but finally backed off, allowing Daniel to push past them. He faced Emily, his anger boiling over.

"You—"

"Listen to me," Emily interrupted, her tone icy.

"What I spent during my marriage and the money I received in the divorce were decisions made by me and your brother," she said, her voice turning sharp. "It's none of your business."

Emily had no memory of her marriage to Ethan, much less his idiotic brother. However, she knew enough about him from rumors in their social circle—Daniel had always been overshadowed by Ethan in every way.

When Ethan took over the family business, Daniel's side of the family received a portion of the assets, but they hadn't managed them well. Without the Harrison Family name to support them, Daniel's dwindling wealth wouldn't have sustained their lavish lifestyle.

So who was this classic mama's boy, living off his family's wealth, to bark orders at her, a self-made woman?

Did arrogance run in their family?

Emily didn't hold back with Ethan, so she had no reason to hold back with this distant relative. She smiled coldly.

"You say I lived off someone else's wealth? What about you?" Emily's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Aren't you also living off your family? What makes you think sponging off your family is more honorable than a wife being supported by her husband?"

"Who's really shameless here?"

Daniel hadn't expected his typically quiet sister-in-law to be so fierce. But her words hit all his sore spots, leaving him speechless, his face contorted with rage as he stared at her.

Emily slowly crossed her arms, looking down at him from the stage.

"So why are you here today? Are you jealous that I got a large settlement, or are you jealous that the person who gave me that settlement is better at making money than you'll ever be?"

She raised an eyebrow, shaking her head slightly as she enunciated each word: "Let's be clear—"

"You're just throwing a tantrum out of incompetence."

**

Jason put down his phone, his expression serious. He glanced at his boss, about to speak—

"Do you think roses or lilies are better?" Ethan suddenly asked, his eyes focused on his phone as he browsed an online flower shop. "How about these preserved flowers?"

Jason pursed his lips, unsure of how to respond.

Ever since they returned from the amusement park in Japan, his boss had been acting like a lovestruck teenager, far from his usual Chairman Harrison demeanor.

He had just flown back after an overseas meeting, all to deliver a bouquet before Emily's photography exhibition ended.

Jason couldn't bring himself to shatter Ethan's fragile, romanticized hopes.

He watched as his boss spent an unusually long time selecting flowers, finally settling on the most expensive bouquet available.

Jason cleared his throat and spoke softly, "Chairman Harrison, the exhibition ended early."

Ethan's hand paused mid-action. "Ended early?"

He checked his watch, frowning slightly. "Why did it end so soon?"

Jason swallowed nervously. "There was an incident at the exhibition…"

He kept the explanation brief, but the key points were clear.

Ethan's expression darkened as he listened, the pink-tinted bubble of romance from earlier evaporating.

He put away his phone, his eyes growing cold. "To the studio."

**

Emily wasn't at the studio.

"Ms. Hart just said she was leaving, nothing else," the assistant glanced nervously at Ethan. "We don't know where she went…"

Ethan lowered his gaze, his long lashes casting shadows over his eyes. He stood in silence for a few moments before softly thanking them and quickly leaving.

Half an hour later, a black SUV pulled up outside the Harrison Family estate in the suburbs.

As Ethan walked through the entrance, he heard angry shouting from inside.

"…Did you see how she acted? Taking off with a hundred billion without a word, and she thinks she's in the right? When has this family ever been humiliated like this? Uncle, if you don't do something about this, Ethan—"

Daniel stopped mid-rant when he saw Ethan entering the room.

Ethan walked in slowly, his eyes briefly acknowledging his father before fixing on Daniel with a piercing stare.

Daniel, emboldened, stepped forward as if to confront him. "Ethan—"

"Is it true? Did you really divorce her? Did she really take a hundred billion?"

Ethan glared at him, his emotions tightly controlled beneath a thin veneer of calm.

"No."

Daniel barely had time to relax before Ethan continued, "She didn't take it—I gave it to her."

Daniel was stunned. "Are you out of your mind?"

Old Mr. Harrison, also taken aback, furrowed his brow. "You gave her a hundred billion?"

Daniel still couldn't believe it. "How could you give her so much?"

A hundred billion!

During the family's division of assets, Daniel's side had received a significant portion due to Ethan's marriage, but even that didn't come close to a hundred billion.

Over the years, Ethan's wealth had only increased, making Daniel's side of the family look impoverished in comparison.

Now, hearing that an outsider had walked away with a hundred billion was unbearable.

"Didn't you sign a prenup?" Daniel's voice rose. "What gives you the right to give her a hundred billion?"

"Because that money is mine," Ethan replied coldly, his voice devoid of emotion.

"And because the money that kept your company afloat is also mine." Ethan's tone grew icier, his authority as a leader naturally commanding respect.

"And the money your son squandered abroad, the wealth that maintains your family's status, is all mine."

"What kind of attitude is that?" Daniel's face turned red with anger. "Uncle, did you hear what he just said—"

"Enough." Old Mr. Harrison's voice cut through the tension. "I heard it. I'll handle this."

He turned to Daniel, nodding toward the door. "You should leave."

Daniel hesitated, his expression fluctuating between frustration and resignation. He tightened his jaw, casting one last glare at Ethan before slowly turning to leave.

"Wait," Ethan called out suddenly.

Daniel stopped and looked back, surprised by the cold, emotionless gaze fixed on him.

"If you ever approach Emily again, I won't hesitate to withdraw my funding and turn your company into an empty shell."

Daniel's mouth twitched, but he said nothing. Instead, he shot Ethan a venomous glare before storming out, slamming the door behind him.

Old Mr. Harrison turned to his son. "Have you signed the divorce papers?"

Ethan remained noncommittal.

His father frowned, probing further. "Did she catch you…in an affair?"

Ethan chuckled softly, his voice laced with irony. "Don't worry, Father."

"I won't repeat your mistakes."

Old Mr. Harrison fell silent.

"Then why—"

"Father," Ethan interrupted coldly, "I've already said, the money I gave Emily was my decision. It's a matter between

her and me."

He didn't know how the family had caught wind of the situation, but their immediate concern over the division of assets, rather than his reasons or feelings, was telling.

If that was the case, he saw no reason to explain further.

"A hundred billion in liquid assets is no small amount," Old Mr. Harrison's tone grew stern. "Besides cash, did you give her any shares? Don't you realize that this divorce will impact the company, the family, and even the entire Harrison estate?"

Ethan remained silent for a moment before turning to leave.

"I've already told you," he said as he walked toward the door, "I earned that money."

"Ethan!" Old Mr. Harrison's voice boomed, "What kind of talk is that?"

"Do you think there would be a Harrison Family without us?"

Ethan abruptly stopped in his tracks.

He turned back, his eyes dark and unreadable. "You're mistaken."

"There wouldn't be a Harrison Family without me."

Old Mr. Harrison froze, stunned.

"You've always acted as if my position as heir was something I wrested from you," Ethan said with a bitter smile. "But you and I both know the truth."

"There was no other choice but me."

The Harrison Family, a legacy of wealth and power spanning over a century, had begun to decline with Ethan's grandfather's generation. By the time it reached his father, the situation was dire.

Then Ethan took over, transforming the family's fortune nearly a hundredfold in just a few short years, reviving the Harrison name.

Without him, the Harrison Family's century-long legacy of wealth would have ended.

Without him, there would be no Harrison Family as it stands today.

Ethan walked to the door but paused once more to look back. "Father, I hope you understand and accept this reality—"

"In the Harrison Family now, I'm the one who calls the shots."

**

A month after signing the divorce papers, Emily moved out of her luxury apartment and into one of the estates she received in the settlement.

By the time Ethan arrived at the estate in the city center, the night was deep.

He looked up to see the lights still on in the house.

But no matter how many times he rang the doorbell, there was no answer.

Ethan pulled out his phone and opened Emily's chat window, seeing only a series of unanswered messages from himself.

He dialed her number, only to be met with the cold, mechanical voice of an automated response: "The number you are calling is currently switched off."

Ethan's frown deepened.

He pressed the doorbell again, relentlessly.

After several attempts with no response, his phone suddenly rang.

Seeing the name on the screen, he exhaled in relief.

But before he could say a word, the voice on the other end was colder than the automated one:

"Go home, Ethan. I don't want to see you."