The air in the grand ballroom of Hotel Flexing thickened once more, but this time it was charged with the vibrations of hatred and shameful arrogance.
The awestruck silence that had previously enveloped the room was shattered by a loud, sharp voice.
"Ha!" Kevin snorted loudly, breaking the quiet with intense mockery. His face, which had been pale, was now flushed red with a combination of shame and envy. "Maybe he just found that old thing in a pile of trash! Yes, that must be it! How could a mere ride-hailing driver afford jade that expensive? He probably doesn't even know it's valuable!"
Kevin's disparaging shot was immediately followed by Dennis, who quickly seized the opportunity to shame Davin further. "True! I've seen him myself, rummaging through the trash behind the mall like a scavenger! Wow, he got really lucky this time, finding an antique! But still, it's just trash!" Dennis said enthusiastically, twisting the facts without a hint of guilt.
He had never actually seen Davin scavenging like he claimed, but his words were instantly believed.
The lie, delivered with such confidence, was unfortunately immediately met with nodding heads around the table.
The Santosa family, who had been mesmerized moments before, now quickly and easily swallowed this demeaning narrative. It fit better with the image of Davin they had created in their minds: a beggar, a loser, someone unworthy of being among them.
Expressions of awe turned to scorn, gasps of admiration turned to sneering amusement.
"A scavenger! No wonder!"
"Disgusting! Giving a gift from the trash to Grandma?"
"Vania, how could you let your husband do something so shameful?"
Vania felt slapped by every word. Her cheeks burned with shame and simmering anger.
Tears began to form in the corners of her eyes. She looked at Davin, who still stood calmly, as if the insults didn't touch him at all.
But for Vania, this was too far. She couldn't bear to see her husband—despite all his shortcomings—treated like garbage by her own family.
"Davin," Vania whispered, her voice trembling, as she tugged on the sleeve of his worn-out jacket. "Let's... let's just go. Now." She couldn't take it anymore. Her shame had reached its peak.
Davin looked at her. In his eyes, Vania didn't see anger or hurt, but something else... something like... pity? Or perhaps acceptance? He nodded slowly. "Alright," he said, his voice still calm.
Without responding to a single insult, without defending himself, Davin turned and walked out of the ballroom.
His back was straight, unlike someone who had just been driven out.
Vania followed him with faltering steps, feeling shattered and humiliated.
But Davin didn't go far. He stopped in the hallway outside the ballroom, leaning against the wall as if waiting for something. Vania looked at him, confused.
"Why don't we just go home?" she asked, her voice still shaking.
"Wait a moment," Davin replied succinctly. "The event isn't over. Your grandmother will discuss something important soon."
Vania frowned. How did he know? What did he mean?
Sure enough, shortly after they left, a manager from Sentosa Company—the family business—was invited to give a brief report.
The atmosphere inside the ballroom slowly returned to normal, as if the embarrassing incident with Davin had never happened.
The manager excitedly announced major news: Laguna Company, the business giant from the capital that had purchased a vast plot of land north of the city a month ago, was officially opening bids for a partnership to build a luxury residential area on it. Sentosa Company was one of the firms invited to submit a proposal tomorrow.
Hearing this, Kevin immediately pounced on the opportunity. Arrogantly, he raised his hand. "Grandmother, leave it to me! I will handle this bid. I will definitely bring that contract for Sentosa Company!"
Dennis, not wanting to be outdone, also quickly volunteered. "Me too, Grandma! Let us handle it. A company like Laguna Company will surely accept our offer immediately!"
They fought over it like children fighting over a toy, completely unaware of how naive their assumptions about a "company like" Laguna Company were.
Vania, who had been working as a junior staff member at Sentosa Company, could only remain silent as she listened to the discussion.
Her status in the family had plummeted since marrying Davin. She wasn't even considered worthy of being asked for her opinion, let alone being given such a major responsibility.
She looked at her two cousins with mixed feelings—envy, annoyance, and a little despair.
From behind the door, Davin watched all of this with a deep, cynical smile. He knew something they didn't.
"Laguna Company is mine. The subsidiary managing the land north of the city is mine. And all the requirements, all the criteria, were set by me."
He looked at Kevin and Dennis, who were puffing out their chests, already feeling like heroes in the upcoming battle.
"Tomorrow," Davin thought, you two will fail. You won't even pass the most basic administrative requirements.
His faint smile widened. Tomorrow, without them realizing it, they would face the true power of the man they called a scavenger and a ride-hailing driver. And they wouldn't even know why their proposals would go straight into the trash.
---
In the hallway outside the ballroom, Vania was still trembling, her cheeks flushed with the remnants of shame and anger.
She desperately wanted to go home, to escape the endless insults hurled by her family.
Yet, Davin stood calmly, his sharp eyes observing the arrogance of Kevin and Dennis as they fought over the Laguna Company project inside.
Davin looked at Vania. His voice was low, almost a whisper, yet filled with undeniable conviction.
"You must attend the bidding event tomorrow, Van. As a representative of Sentosa Group."
Vania immediately shook her head, her eyes wide with disbelief. "What? Impossible, Davin! Look at them!" she glanced at Kevin and Dennis, who were still puffing out their chests. "They will never allow me. I'm not even a manager! I'm just a regular staff member. Grandma will definitely choose them. It's certain." Her voice was full of resignation and the inferiority complex cultivated by her own family for years.
But Davin didn't give up. He looked at her, and in his gaze, Vania saw something she rarely saw: absolute belief.
"Listen to me, Vania," he said, his voice softer but still firm. "The Laguna Company bid is open to the public. They won't care about internal company politics or who your grandmother 'chooses'. What they care about is a good proposal. That's all."
Vania was still doubtful. "But... the proposal..."
"Create your own proposal," Davin interjected. "You understand Sentosa's operations better than those two who only know theory and are full of themselves. You know the details, you know the company's strengths and weaknesses. Pour all of that into it. If you come with a solid proposal, Laguna Company will consider it. They are a big company, Van. They look at quality, not just titles or empty talk."
He paused for a moment, letting his words sink in. "This opportunity is open to anyone who dares to take it. Not just the family's golden children. Take this chance, Vania. For yourself."
Davin's words pierced directly into Vania's deepest doubts. All this time, she had always been positioned as second-best, her opinions unheard simply because she married a man deemed "unworthy". But here, in the quiet hotel hallway, her husband—the man who was always looked down upon—was telling her to believe in her own abilities.
A small flame suddenly ignited in Vania's chest. A flame long suppressed by taunts and unfair comparisons. Davin, strangely, was the only person who had ever seen her as something more than just a disappointing granddaughter.
She took a deep breath, looking into Davin's calm yet intensely confident eyes.
"Are you sure?" she whispered, her voice still doubtful, but with a spark of courage.
"Sure," Davin replied without a hint of doubt. "The important thing is that you go and submit your proposal. Leave the rest to them. Believe in your own ability, Vania."
Vania pressed her lips together. She glanced once more into the ballroom, seeing Kevin and Dennis still vying for Grandma Heidi's approval. Then she looked back at Davin, the mysterious man who had just given a priceless gift and was now encouraging her to do the impossible.
With newly formed determination, she nodded slowly. "Alright," she said, her voice still trembling, but now containing resolve. "I'll try."
A small smile finally appeared on Davin's face. It was a rare smile, and to Vania, it felt... different. As if a great secret was hidden behind it.
Unbeknownst to them, the brief conversation in the hotel hallway was the first step of a major change. And Davin, who knew exactly how all of this would end, remained silent.
Tomorrow, when Vania stood before his own subsidiary, he would make sure that only one person's proposal would be seen.