Party

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

By afternoon, the invited neighbors and Rosalie's friends began arriving one after another.

Rosalie stood at the gate to the yard with Mark, welcoming the guests.

"Mr. Evans, welcome to you and your wife."

"Caroline, thank you to you and Mr. Louis for coming to this party."

"..."

Rosalie warmly greeted everyone.

"Rosalie, thank you for the invitation!"

"Mark looks so adorable today!"

"..."

Everyone responded with smiles and presented the gifts they had brought.

Some of the ladies could not resist stepping forward to pinch Mark's cheeks.

Mark wore a crisp children's suit today, and paired with his flawless face, he was indeed devastatingly charming to these ladies.

"Rosalie, Mark!"

Daphne arrived just then and handed the gift in her hands to Rosalie.

"Daphne, welcome!"

"Aunt Daphne."

Rosalie and Mark each stepped forward to hug Daphne.

"Rosalie, I really envy you. You can afford to buy a house here in Hollywood."

Daphne looked over the yard before her and spoke with envy written all over her face.

"It's all thanks to Mark. You know, the games he made are selling very well now."

Rosalie shrugged and said self-deprecatingly, "If I had to rely on myself, who knows how long it would take me to save enough money for a house!"

Hearing Rosalie say that only made Daphne more envious.

She had originally thought that Rosalie, a single mother raising Mark alone, must have had a very difficult life.

And that had indeed been the case in the beginning.

Rosalie worked as an extra during the day, then had to take care of Mark after coming home from work.

She had looked much more haggard as a result.

But ever since she and Mark had landed that formula commercial, their lives had visibly improved!

Now, relying on the games Mark made, Rosalie had even spent a million dollars to buy this house. How could Daphne not envy her?

If she could have a smart, adorable child like Mark who could make money too, she would be willing to become a single mother!

The last three to arrive were friends Rosalie had met while working as an extra.

She had originally invited more than ten people.

But most of the extras had to work overtime filming even on weekends and could only decline Rosalie's invitation.

"Rosalie, did you really buy this house?"

"A house like this must cost nearly a million dollars, right?"

"..."

A man and two women had come. As they looked over the house before them, they could hardly believe it.

"Yes, the transfer has already been completed."

"You're all welcome to visit my home often from now on."

Rosalie nodded as if she were perfectly calm, but the smile at the corners of her lips was nearly impossible to suppress.

In truth, she was not especially close to these extras she had known before. They were merely ordinary friends, and she had not been in touch with some of them for two or three years.

Why else would she invite these old friends to the party if not to see the shock and envy in their eyes?

Looks like my mom still enjoys this kind of vanity just as much as before. No wonder her biggest dream is to become a star!

Mark curled his lips to himself.

But he did not expose Rosalie. Instead, he politely stepped forward and greeted them one by one.

"Wow! Rosalie, is this child really your son with Tony Stark?"

When she saw Mark's delicate, adorable face, the woman named Beatrice immediately lit up and could not help crying out excitedly.

Beatrice's voice was somewhat loud.

The others who had been chatting in the yard all turned to look at Rosalie and Mark.

Many people in Los Angeles had also seen Rosalie and Mark's interview program on CBS.

Naturally, the people in the neighborhood who knew Rosalie were also curious to know whether Mark was truly the child of Tony Stark, the richest man in the entire Federation.

But out of politeness and manners, they had not dared to ask rashly before.

Rosalie knew that Beatrice had always been rather careless, so she did not blame her for being so abrupt.

After hesitating slightly, she still nodded and said, "That's right. Mark really is his and my child."

Back then, Stark Group's legal department had only warned her not to talk nonsense in public. This was merely a private party, so there was naturally no need to worry so much.

"So it really is true!"

After receiving Rosalie's personal confirmation, Beatrice cried out again. Looking at Mark with envy, she said, "I wish I could have such a smart and adorable child with Tony Stark too!"

Rosalie and her friends had long been used to Beatrice's unfiltered mouth and did not take it to heart.

The party then began.

Everyone helped Rosalie carry the food and drinks she had prepared in advance onto the dining table in the yard.

They ate and drank to their hearts' content while casually sitting around the yard and chatting.

"By the way, why haven't Mrs. Weston and her husband come?"

Rosalie suddenly realized that, among the more than twenty neighbors who had come today, Mrs. Weston's family seemed to be missing.

Mrs. Weston was a very kind person, and she especially liked Mark. She often brought him homemade pancakes and beef burgers.

Rosalie had specifically invited Mrs. Weston three days ago, and she had accepted. Rosalie did not know why she had not come today.

"Huh? You're right, Mrs. Weston really isn't here!"

"Mrs. Weston has always liked lively gatherings. How could she miss this?"

"..."

After Rosalie pointed it out, the others finally noticed that Mrs. Weston was not there and all showed surprised expressions.

"I heard on my way here that Mrs. Weston seemed to have suffered an accident."

Mrs. Evans hesitated for a moment before sharing the news she had heard earlier. "This morning, when Mrs. Weston went to the market in the neighboring district to buy groceries, she ran into a shootout between two gangs. She seemed to have been caught in the crossfire and taken to the hospital."

"What? Something happened to Mrs. Weston!"

Hearing Mrs. Evans's words, everyone's expressions changed, and they all cried out in alarm.

"Hasn't the area around Clem District always been pretty safe? How could something like this happen?"

Rosalie also looked utterly incredulous.

"Rosalie, you haven't been around lately, so you don't know. A group of Mexicans has come to the nearby districts recently. They seem to have just formed a gang, and they've been clashing with other gangs often lately."

Mrs. Evans shook her head helplessly.

The residents of Clem District rarely came into contact with gangs and could only learn bits of information through neighborhood gossip.

"It looks like Clem District hasn't been very peaceful lately either."

Mark made a note of that information.

After the party ended, he handed Faith a bank card containing one million dollars. "Faith, proceed according to your previous plan. Buy the materials and carry out a full renovation of this house!"