Registering the intense waves of profound dissatisfaction written across the features of the assembled executives, Chloe meticulously feigned absolute ignorance regarding their emotional displays, guiding her strides directly toward the position occupied by the senior family butler.

Noting her arrival, the senior butler finally initiated the proceedings, extracting a thick legal document from a secure leather portfolio.

"Ladies and gentlemen, prior to his ultimate departure from this world, the late patriarch meticulously executed a binding last will and testament, a reality that the majority of the individuals present within this room have undoubtedly intercepted through various channels. Under normal legal inheritance parameters, the patriarch's extensive block of corporate shares ought to be preserved exclusively for the direct biological lineage of the family empire."

The senior butler paused briefly to allow the weight of his words to settle over the assembly before continuing levelly: "However, during the historical era when the foundational pillars of this conglomerate were initially constructed, the primary catalyst was none other than the massive inheritance left behind by the biological grandfather of the young lady standing beside my form. Throughout the course of his existence, the late patriarch was consumed by a profound, unshakeable sense of internal guilt regarding this reality. Consequently, he has dictated that the absolute entirety of his personal estate shall be transferred into the exclusive possession of Miss Chloe."

Chapter 28: The Controversy

The freezing winter wind outside howled violently against the glass, and the ambient atmosphere within the executive boardroom turned completely stagnant for several seconds before a thunderous wave of collective opposition erupted from the assembled shareholders.

"We have all received extensive data regarding this specific woman! Her marital contract with Eric was restricted to a mandatory three-year duration, and now that the timeline has reached its natural conclusion, that marital bond has achieved absolute dissolution automatically. The late patriarch was undeniably suffering from a severe lapse of foresight regarding this precise eventuality when he drafted the document; how can this corporation logically permit the absolute control of our core blocks of shares to be delivered into the hands of an total outsider?!"

The individual who had delivered the exclamation was none other than Charles, his emotional state exceptionally volatile as he slammed his palm against the wood, a display that instantaneously triggered a chorus of intense validation from the remaining family elements present.

The senior family butler calmly retrieved a certified copy of the legal codicil, passing it systematically down both perimeters of the long table to permit individual verification before articulating his rebuttal: "The late patriarch's last will and testament has formulated this reality with absolute, legally binding clarity. In the event that Mr. Eric Vance and Miss Chloe successfully maintained their marital cohabitation for the entirety of the mandatory three-year duration, these specific assets would default automatically into the possession of Mr. Eric Vance."

He swept a clinical, searching gaze across the room, noting the highly volatile, shifting expressions masking the features of the collective executives, before delivering the final clause: "However, if the three-year timeline failed to reach its natural conclusion due to Miss Chloe encountering any form of lethal misfortune, or if any alternative structural catalyst forced a premature disruption of the marriage prior to the conclusion of those three years, these assets were to be delivered in their absolute entirety to Miss Chloe as a form of total legal restitution."

The senior butler had remained anchored by the late patriarch's side for over forty consecutive years; his level of absolute devotion to the old man's memory was naturally beyond any common measure.

Throughout the past weeks, he had consistently deployed his clandestine resources to watch over Chloe’s safety from the shadows, a positioning that had ultimately permitted him to personally extract her unconscious form from the blazing inferno on the night Lyndsey orchestrated the destruction of the suburban villa. Had it not been for his timely intervention, Chloe’s physical form would have been reduced to ash within that sea of fire a month ago.

It was precisely because this near-fatal catastrophe had occurred under his watch, directly violating the absolute mandate entrusted to his care by the late patriarch, that the senior butler had made the conscious decision to expose the contents of this will to the light of day on this morning.

"The old man must have been thoroughly demented by his medical failures when he executed that document!" Charles roared, slamming his fist violently against the table once more.

In absolute truth, among the collective shareholders seated around the perimeter, there was not a solitary soul who genuinely desired to see these massive assets fall into the exclusive grasp of Eric Vance. However, witnessing the entirety of the inheritance default into the hands of an total outsider, leaving their own factions completely starved of any financial benefit, was a reality that remained entirely impossible for their greed to accommodate.

The moment the syllables left Charles's lips, an alternative executive immediately rose to reinforce the stance: "Precisely! The late patriarch was undeniably clouding his cognitive faculties due to his failing health at that juncture; consequently, this specific will cannot be classified as a valid legal instrument!"

Throughout the entirety of the proceedings since she breached the threshold, Chloe had maintained an absolute, icy silence, standing quietly to one side as she observed the display with complete detachment. Yet, she suddenly detected a remarkably sharp, penetrating gaze locked onto her form, causing a distinct sensation of coldness to ripple across her spine.

She swept her eyes across the room, ultimately anchoring her focus directly onto the form of Isabella.

Isabella's eyes were systematically tracking up and down her frame, her facial features meticulously masked by a pleasant, superficial smile, yet the display could not prevent a profound, ominous sensation from taking root deep within Chloe’s heart.

This specific woman had likewise maintained an absolute, calculating silence since the initiation of the meeting, choosing not to voice a solitary shred of direct opinion regarding the distribution of the property, yet a dense cluster of proxy shareholders had already articulated every single thought she harbored on her behalf.

Observing the assembly spiral into an absolute, unmanageable screaming match, Chloe slowly pushed herself to her feet, a gentle, pleasant smile gracing her features, yet the warmth failed to penetrate even the surface of her eyes.

She cleared her throat softly before articulating her stance in a remarkably smooth register: "I possess a comprehensive understanding regarding the underlying perspective of everyone present within this room. In absolute reality, my personal consciousness harbors very little genuine interest regarding the estate left behind by Grandfather Vance. If the collective members of this board remain profoundly unsatisfied with my integration into the conglomerate, the senior family butler possesses the absolute authority to execute a total donation of these assets to public philanthropy, strictly in accordance with Grandfather Vance's alternative legal directives."

The moment the final syllable resonated through the air, the entire boardroom plunged once more into an absolute, breathless silence.

Observing the utter sincerity defining her delivery, which bore absolutely no indications of a hollow bluff, the collective expressions of the shareholders shifted into a state of profound panic.

The sheer volume of material wealth anchored within the late patriarch's personal estate was by no means a negligible sum; if these assets were truly cast into the void of public charity in accordance with the old man's contingency clauses, there would be absolutely no structural mechanism to ever retrieve a single fraction of that wealth.

"Absolutely unacceptable! A donation is completely out of the question!" Charles was the very first to vocalize his frantic opposition. "This wealth constitutes the fundamental property of our family empire; it must naturally be distributed among the direct bloodline!"

This exact psychological progression was something Julian had already thoroughly mapped out for Chloe prior to her arrival at the facility, rendering the display entirely within the boundaries of her expectations.

The expression masking her features experienced no visible alteration as she cradled the certified copy of Grandfather Vance's will, her face contorting into an expression of deep, manufactured frustration.

"Then this scenario presents an exceptionally complex legal gridlock. If the collective members of this board refuse to validate Grandfather Vance's explicit testament, then according to my understanding of the legal frameworks, Grandfather Vance executed a binding donation pact during his lifetime. In the event that the direct inheritance process encounters a terminal failure, these specific assets will automatically default to a state of total public contribution. Or perhaps, does this assembly prefer to turn a blind eye to the documentation and deliver the entirety of this wealth into the hands of the primary legal heir of the first order?"

The collective shareholders exchanged frantic glances, an intense wave of low-toned, panicked murmuring instantly saturating the space.

Lest anyone forget, the primary legal heirs of the first order under the statutory framework consisted exclusively of two individuals: Eric Vance and Charles.

And every single soul within that room possessed absolute knowledge regarding the reality that if those two half-brothers were to engage in an unrestricted corporate war for the control of the family fortune, Charles would be completely dismantled by Eric in a fraction of a second.