Chapter 900: Why Conflict?

"It’s the wedding wine his grandfather prepared for him. It’s been aging in the cellar for nearly twenty years. They didn’t have a wedding banquet, so it was never opened."

"He guards it like gold—no one’s even allowed to touch it. The whole case is still sealed."

"He wouldn’t even give a bottle to my dad. It’s not expensive, but with age, it tastes amazing."

Nancy grew more animated as she spoke, looking at Luis with affectionate eyes—almost as if this mattered more to her than beating Mira.

Deewa was stunned. "Your sister hasn’t even had any?"

Nancy nodded. "She doesn’t like alcohol anyway, so she never tried it."

Deewa blushed. This was clearly significant to Luis—a sacred, meaningful gesture.

What was he implying? That she and Nancy were his brides tonight?

After their semi-reluctant threesome, the two beauties’ thoughts aligned. They exchanged glances, a hint of embarrassment between them.

As he poured, Luis said casually, "My father-in-law and Daniel’s father have both been eyeing this. If I didn’t hide it well, those two old drunks would’ve found it by now."

"Smooth."

Deewa’s eyes softened. She could share in Nancy’s joy.

They clinked glasses and took a big sip.

Neither liked the harshness of baijiu, but this aged liquor was milder. They could taste a richness they’d never noticed before.

Maybe it was psychological, but what they once disliked now felt like nectar.

"Brother-in-law, if your wife finds out, she’ll probably be jealous."

Nancy was in a great mood, a rare joke slipping out.

Since sharing secrets, their conversations had become much more casual.

Before, Nancy would only bring up such topics in private. Feeling guilty, she wouldn’t dare tease her own sister like this.

"You two are my wives too."

Luis leered. "If Lily found out, you could serve her during the day and me at night—wouldn’t that be perfect?"

"Bullshit. She’d have you castrated in a heartbeat."

They joked and drank, the aged liquor warming their bellies. Seeing Nancy in such good spirits, Deewa—who’d already conspired with Luis—spoke up. "Nancy, there’s something I need your input on."

"What is it?"

"Bubbles contacted me. She’s fallen out with Vivid Media and wants to bring her studio under our company."

Nancy was stunned, then scoffed. "Is she out of her mind? If you can’t beat them, join them? Since when is Mira so spineless?"

Just as expected—Nancy saw it as surrender, while Mira saw it as business.

Nancy grew agitated. "She’s definitely up to something. Now that I’ve surpassed her, she wants to play spy? How dare she even ask?"

Deewa said bluntly, "She’s out of options."

"Why?"

Nancy asked, confused.

"Under the ’Top Creator’ rules, only officially registered media companies can participate. Her studio doesn’t qualify."

"That’s why she joined Vivid Media. But our city’s self-media scene is underdeveloped—I know only two companies signed up."

"Even if she registers now, it’s too late. Buying a shell company would also miss the deadline."

Nancy narrowed her eyes. "So you’re saying her only way into the competition is through us."

Deewa nodded. "I have contacts at Vivid Media. Bubbles and Iron Ox parted on bad terms."

"And Bubbles doesn’t know her contract had a trap clause. Iron Ox’s legal team is already preparing to sue."

"From what I’ve heard, it’s a nuisance lawsuit. She could drag it out but she’d eventually lose—at best, she’d settle for around a hundred thousand."

Luis shook his head. "These people are ruthless."

Some companies don’t make money from operations—they make it from termination fees, just like shady entertainment agencies.

Nancy perked up. "So she has no choice but to beg me?"

"For the competition, yes. It’s her only option."

Deewa nodded. "But she won’t grovel. If we cooperate, it’s a win-win."

"Business-wise, Bubbles has a solid following. Her joining would bring more traffic to our company."

"Especially since we’ve been playing up this rivalry narrative with Vivid Media—it’s boosted both sides."

"Her switching sides now would be huge publicity. It’d improve our reputation and keep the momentum going."

Deewa was a sharp operator, calmly analyzing the situation.

Nancy was annoyed. "So she thinks she can just waltz in without showing me some respect?"

"Her team is experienced. They’d accelerate our growth."

Deewa said earnestly, then subtly signaled Luis. It was clear Nancy was reluctant.

Luis knew his sister-in-law’s pride. On other matters, she’d compromise, but this one hit a nerve—she’d held a grudge for years.

Luis jumped in. "Speaking of which, what exactly is your beef with Bubbles?"

At that, Nancy’s face darkened. She took a big swig of the liquor, drinking sulkily.

"Look on the bright side—if not for that, you might never have met Luis."

Deewa fanned the flames with a flattering remark.

Nancy hesitated, clearly weighing whether to share the old grudge.

"Fine. I’ll spill it. You two already know anyway, so there’s no point hiding it from you."

After a moment, she finally made up her mind.

There was one thing in Iron Ox’s exposé video that was absolutely true: Mira was a notoriously promiscuous woman with a chaotic personal life.

In terms of being a player, she was even worse than Luis. She’d "turn" someone, and once the novelty wore off, she’d dump them without a second thought.

She was a year ahead of Nancy. When the freshmen Deewa, Chloe, and Nancy arrived, they were considered goddesses.

First, she sexually harassed Deewa, pestering her endlessly. Deewa, having a temper of her own, slapped her and put an end to it.

Next was Chloe. At that curious, impressionable age, Chloe was a total shut-in, obsessed with gaming and not interested in dating.

Mira wheedled her way into their dormitory. Chloe, annoyed by the harassment, was completely cold toward her.

She simply accepted Mira’s enthusiastic services, letting her go down on her a few times. Eventually, both lost interest and things fizzled out.

In Mira’s definition, she’d never really dated Chloe—Chloe had only given her a first kiss.

She’d accepted Mira’s caresses, teasing, and oral services without complaint, enjoying her devoted attention but never reciprocating.

She wouldn’t kiss, tease, or go down on Mira. Even touching her chest felt perfunctory. Mira grew bored and moved on.

All four were stunning, but Nancy in her youth was the icy beauty—aloof and unapproachable. Her proud demeanor was what attracted Mira most.

For a top-tier player like Mira, "turning" someone so proud and beautiful would be the ultimate conquest.

She shifted her attention to Nancy, pursuing her relentlessly, even making her sexuality known, doing candlelight confessions and grand gestures.

She did everything a male simp would do—and more, with more effort than she’d ever shown before.

Her devotion made the girls she’d dumped jealous of Nancy. Those who knew Mira thought she’d turned over a new leaf.

But when she confessed publicly, Nancy simply said "Get lost" and walked away without a second glance, leaving Mira humiliated.

She’d always been discreet before, but this time she’d been publicly shamed. To make matters worse, Nancy didn’t even look at her—just turned and walked off.

This made Nancy a hero among the lesbians, and even more admirers flocked to her.

Daniel wasn’t even Nancy’s first love. In school, the most handsome boy in the accounting class had pursued her relentlessly.

Nancy had been moved and agreed to date him. The boy was so thrilled he announced it to the whole school—rubbing salt in Mira’s wounds.

The bitter player, Mira, was scheming and ruthless.

Despite being forced to drop out, she secretly contacted the boy—somehow seducing him, using methods unknown.

This stone-cold lesbian had the boy utterly bewitched. Less than a week after he’d announced his relationship with Nancy, he publicly dumped her.

Her first relationship, without even holding hands, ended in humiliation.

Then the boy proudly declared he was dating Mira. Nancy became the laughingstock of the school.

Losing to Deewa or Chloe would’ve been one thing—but to a lesbian?

It was a huge blow to Nancy, who’d been naively dreaming of a beautiful first love. To be stabbed in the back like that?

Even worse, after Mira dumped the boy a few days later, he came crawling back to Nancy.

It became an even bigger mess. Nancy slapped him and became disgusted with men, keeping everyone at arm’s length thereafter.

"No way!"

Luis was stunned after hearing all this. "Sis, was that guy brain-damaged or blind? I’d donate his medical bills."

Nancy, who’d been fuming just moments before, burst out laughing. "You’re so generous!"

Deewa commented, "That kind of thing would scar anyone at that age. Who’d expect Mira to pull such a backstabbing move?"

The prouder and more sensitive you are, the deeper the wound.

Nancy couldn’t help but hold a grudge. Someone so proud could never forget such humiliation. Those taunts had become her nightmare.

Luis knew his sister-in-law’s personality well—this was worse than death for her.

He was deeply troubled. He started reconsidering the feasibility of the School Beauty’s Feast quest.

Both endings required Nancy and Mira to face each other. After all these years, Nancy still couldn’t let go—the trauma was clearly severe.

Deewa tactfully added, "I’d hold a grudge too, if it were me."

Nancy, finding a kindred spirit, happily clinked glasses with her.

After drinking, noticing Luis’s silence, Nancy asked carefully, "Brother-in-law, are you thinking about how to handle this?"

"Yeah."

Luis said with a headache. "I invested in this company to make you all happy—that was my main goal."

"By that logic, I should just refuse. Making you face your enemy every day would be painful even for me."

"But we’re adults. We have to be practical. In business, we can’t just..."

Before he could finish, Nancy, visibly moved, interrupted, "Brother-in-law, I know you’re torn. Don’t worry—I’m not saying I’ll definitely refuse."

"You’ve invested a lot of money. I can’t let my stubbornness waste it."

Her sudden maturity surprised even Deewa. Nancy had always been self-aware about her own, but still naive and untouched by the real world, lacking in maturity.