Chapter 343 Guess Correctly for a Prize
When Elizabeth heard Seraphina mention the Nightingale family's party, she figured it was Freya's birthday celebration.
Timothy walked out of the dining room and also heard Seraphina talking about how the date didn't work out.
He casually suggested, "Seraphina, maybe you should find a different boyfriend, someone who's not an assistant."
Seraphina felt awkward hearing this from Timothy. "Dad, you can't just switch boyfriends like that. Plus, I'm going to be Mr. Ellis's assistant soon too. Is he going to dump me then?"
Elizabeth shot Timothy a look. "Stop stirring up trouble."
While they were talking in the living room, Brandon was in the dining room sneakily putting the celery from his small bowl back onto the plate.
He pretended he'd already eaten the celery and smiled happily to himself.
Brandon wanted to go out and talk to Seraphina too.
But he was sitting in his high chair and couldn't - and wouldn't dare - unbuckle the safety strap without Elizabeth's permission.
Brandon was a good boy!
Outside in the living room, Elizabeth told Seraphina to go freshen up and change. "You go wash up, I'll cook you some dishes."
"Thanks, Mom." Seraphina smiled and headed upstairs.
Timothy waited until Seraphina went upstairs before saying to Elizabeth, "Stefan was accompanying Armando's daughter Sloane to the party. Good thing Sloane's already married, otherwise I really wouldn't want Seraphina dating Stefan."
Elizabeth didn't argue with Timothy's thinking.
Seraphina had to make her own decisions about relationships - as parents, they could only help keep an eye on things.
"Let's not overthink it. Stefan doesn't know about all the drama between our generation anyway."
At that moment, the Stefan that Timothy just mentioned had arrived at The Nightingale Mansion with Sloane.
This was the first party Sloane was attending since returning to the country. Normally, Tommy should have been the one accompanying her.
Tonight was Freya's birthday party.
Freya was chatting cheerfully with guests, and the party atmosphere was lively.
Sloane entered the ballroom wearing an elegant evening gown, looking noble and graceful.
Stefan stood beside her, maintaining a gentlemanly distance.
Sloane smiled and walked toward Freya, saying warmly, "Mrs. Nightingale, happy birthday. I wish you good health and happiness."
Freya looked at Sloane with a kind smile, but asked with some confusion, "Which family are you from?"
Sloane smiled. "My husband is from the Robinson family. I'm Tommy Robinson's wife."
When Freya heard Tommy's name, the smile on her face clearly faded.
Freya used to be very good to Tommy and Jane, but thinking of them made her think of Emma, and then of her own daughter Elizabeth.
Freya's smile grew even fainter.
Sloane calmly smiled and stepped aside, letting other guests have a chance to wish Freya well.
Sloane actually had no idea why Freya seemed to dislike her.
Sloane continued moving through the ballroom with Stefan, meeting elite businesspeople from their circle.
It was a good opportunity for networking and conversation.
Sloane chatted with them gracefully, showing off her excellent social skills.
Stefan occasionally needed to help Sloane avoid drinking, but to show sincerity, Sloane drank most of the alcohol herself tonight.
Midway through the birthday party, Freya walked up to the stage, supported by Gino Nightingale.
Gino was Herschel and Juniper's son, fourteen years old this year. Freya had even chosen his name.
Freya looked at all the guests with a beaming smile. "Thank you all for coming to my birthday party tonight. Taking advantage of this special day, I want to announce something to everyone."
Juniper quietly moved closer to Herschel and whispered, "Honey, what's Freya going to announce?"
Herschel shook his head. "No idea."
On stage, Freya continued, "I'm announcing that I'm giving twenty percent of my shares in the Nightingale Group to my nephew Herschel."
Herschel was instantly shocked, staring at Freya.
And Juniper was so excited she almost screamed!
Some guests below the stage looked at Herschel with envy, while others thought of Elizabeth, the real power behind Seraphina Enterprises.
Elizabeth was Russell and Freya's biological daughter, yet in the end, the Nightingale Group had nothing to do with Elizabeth at all.
Freya's gaze fell on Herschel standing shocked below the stage. She didn't see much joy on his face, and she nodded with satisfaction.
She believed her decision was right.
Her health had never been great, and for over a decade, it was Herschel and his wife who had cared for and looked after her.
As for her biological daughter Elizabeth, Freya considered her dead.
Freya turned to look at Gino and said kindly, "Today, there's one more thing. I'm giving five percent of the Nightingale Group shares to Gino."
Hearing this, Juniper could barely control her happiness - she almost wanted to faint! Her son Gino was getting shares too!!
All these years of patiently caring for Freya had finally paid off!
Juniper had actually been worried that if Freya suddenly died, the assets would be inherited by Elizabeth, the direct relative.
Now Juniper could relax.
After the party ended, Sloane and Stefan left the venue together.
Stefan opened the car door for Sloane. "Chairwoman Johnson, I'll take a taxi home myself."
Sloane nodded and got in the car.
Stefan watched the car drive away, then took off his suit jacket, hung it over his arm, unbuttoned two buttons on his shirt, and took out his phone to call Seraphina.
Seraphina was playing with toy cars with Brandon. She held down Brandon's hand as he tried to cheat and overtake, while answering the phone with her other hand. "Stefan, is the party over?"
Stefan was walking on the sidewalk. Hearing Seraphina's voice, he smiled warmly. "It's over. What are you doing now?"
Seraphina glanced at Brandon, who was trying every way to escape from her palm, and smiled. "Playing with my brother. Was the party fun?"
Stefan paused for a moment. "Not really. You know about the Nightingale Group, right?"
Seraphina naturally knew about the Nightingale Group. "What about the Nightingale Group?"
Stefan told Seraphina what Freya had announced at the party today.
He said slowly, "Mrs. Nightingale gave twenty percent of her Nightingale Group shares to the current chairman Herschel, and five percent to Herschel's son."
Hearing this, Seraphina immediately felt bad for Elizabeth.
She knew that even though Elizabeth didn't care about the Nightingale family's assets, hearing about what Freya did would still feel uncomfortable.
But Seraphina also felt that Elizabeth probably didn't want anything from the Nightingale family anyway - no messy entanglements.
"Seraphina, are you done talking to your boyfriend? I need to go to the bathroom." Brandon put on his most sincere little expression.
Seraphina released her hold on Brandon. "Go ahead."
The next second, she watched helplessly as Brandon stuck his butt up in the air and pushed his car straight to the finish line.
Brandon grinned foolishly. "Seraphina, this is called strategy in war."
He raised his head high, looking proud.
Seraphina fell silent.
At the same time, Elizabeth and Timothy were also discussing what Freya announced at tonight's party in their bedroom.
Elizabeth was applying face cream while saying casually, "I'm not surprised at all that she did this. Timothy, guess why I chose to give up inheriting the Nightingale Group shares back then?"
Elizabeth finished applying her cream and walked to the sofa, sitting down next to Timothy. She tapped her finger on Timothy's thigh. "There's a prize if you guess right."