The crowd swarmed forward and tried to push me into the pool.

I hastily called someone on my phone.

Not even a minute later, six bodyguards, who were wearing sunglasses, rushed toward me and shielded me behind them.

"Let's see who dares to lay a finger on me now," I said, sweeping my cold gaze over Alan and his lackeys.

Seeing how they were still unaware of the predicament that they had gotten themselves into, I pointed at the bodyguards and the Rolex around my wrist that was worth over 100,000 dollars.

"Just think about it," I said sternly. "My watch costs over 100,000 dollars, and I have a team of bodyguards following me wherever I go. Do you really believe that I'm poor? On top of that, I knew the password for the front door. Don't you think that's strange?"

Doubt flickered across some of the guests' faces. It looked as if my words were getting through to them.

Meanwhile, Alan approached one of my bodyguards and jabbed his finger into his chest. He then ran his fingers over my watch.

He burst into laughter, exclaiming, "Where did you find these actors to act out this farce with you? I see that not only are you poor, but you also like to put on an act! Also, this watch of yours. It's clearly just a high-quality counterfeit."

What a preposterous situation. I was just about to insult him when a weak voice asked, "But, Mr. Barrington, why does a lowly scum like him know the password to your villa's front door?"

Alan was stunned by the question.

I was admiring Alan's speechless state when he seemed to recall something, a look of realization crossing his face.

"I know! You must be the cleaner that Zara hired!" he exclaimed, arching his brow and shooting an arrogant look at me.

Alan's lackeys immediately chimed in to support his claim.

"Not only did he show up without his uniform, but he also dared to provoke you. I'll file a complaint against him on your behalf, Mr. Barrington!"

"Tell me. Which company do you work for? All I have to do is lift a single finger to make you lose your job!"

A smug expression appeared on Alan's face as he looked at his lackeys. He lifted a black card high into the air and sneered, "Don't just stand there. Go ahead and teach him a lesson. I'll let you use my card to your heart's content if you do. There's no need to be scared because those bodyguards are just actors."

I stared at the card. It was the supplementary card that I had given to Zara!

I scoffed to myself before raising my voice and demanding, "You claim that this card belongs to you, but do you dare show everyone here the details of the card on your phone? Can you prove that the card is registered under your name?"

A hint of panic flickered across Alan's face.

I had a feeling that he knew that the card in his possession was just a supplementary card, but he had no idea that the main card was registered under my name.

"How dare this pauper doubt you, Mr. Barrington?"

"You said that you were going to give everyone here an iPhone 16, didn't you, Mr. Barrington? Go ahead and prove to him that the card belongs to you!"

Just then, Oliver sent me the results of his investigation.

It turned out that Alan was nothing more than a nightclub host.

The club that he was employed at was established by my childhood friend, Vincent Potter. He once told me that Alan was an expert at charming rich women.

It was no wonder his name had felt so familiar to me.

Oliver explained that Zara started funding Alan's lifestyle six months ago, right after I left for my business trip.

After getting in Zara's good graces, Alan moved into the villa and made exorbitant purchases with my supplementary card. He also claimed ownership of my luxury cars.

As for Zara, she took advantage of my absence and pretended to be the CEO of Apex Group, elevating her status in the eyes of others.

Most of the attendees of the party were employees of Apex Group. After finding out that Alan shared a close relationship with Zara, they became his lackeys.

In the end, Alan was nothing more than a host who lived off somebody else's money. A man like him was a far cry from the CEO of a company.

I became determined to expose his pathetic farce.

I fixed a doubtful expression on my face as I planned how to make Zara and him pay for the consequences of their actions.

"There are over 100 people here. Can you really afford to buy a new phone for all of them? You'll have to buy the one with the best specifications, of course, and those cost close to 1,000 dollars for just a single phone."

Alan's face slowly turned a ruddy red as he hesitated. Sweat beaded across his forehead and rolled down his face. He gritted his teeth as he took in everyone's expectant gazes and exclaimed, "Of course, I can! I'll do it right now!"

He then stubbornly handed the card to one of his subordinates, telling him to buy the phones.

The crowd cheered.

However, I knew that the supplementary card that I gave Zara only had a 20,000 credit limit. It was far from enough to buy over 100 iPhones with the best specifications.

Alan would have to work himself to the bone currying favor with his clients and selling countless bottles of alcohol to them before he could pay off the massive bill. However, he was also the one who was digging his own grave by being so stubborn.

"Do you acknowledge how amazing I am now, you stupid cleaner? If you grovel at my feet and lick my shoes, I might consider buying a phone for you as well," Alan sneered.

"He's right! You're just a cleaner, so I bet you've never seen so much money in your life, right? Get on your knees and beg Mr. Barrington for mercy right now. He might even reward you with something good!"

Alan and the others were still flaunting their arrogance, but I had reached the end of my patience for this farce. I told Oliver to inform Vincent about what was going on and tell him to rush over to the villa.

Naturally, the truth would come to light the moment Vincent showed up to drag Alan away.

"Forget the cleaner, Mr. Barrington. He'll definitely crack under the pressure and leave of his own accord when Ms. Hudson gets back."

"It's our first time visiting your villa. Why don't you give us a tour of the place?" one of Alan's lackeys asked excitedly as he scanned his surroundings.

Alan's anger immediately dissipated upon having his vanity thoroughly satisfied. He chuckled, saying, "Why not? I bet none of you have ever seen such opulence."

He led the group upstairs and explained, "I have a vault where I store all the rare items that I acquired from auctions. I'll let all of you have a look."

My heart skipped a beat upon hearing his words, and I hastily chased after him.

I wasn't worried about the collectibles. Instead, panic coursed through me because I had placed the last item that my daughter, Holly Chambers, had left behind in the vault. She passed away when she was five years old.

I had just rushed upstairs when I saw Alan lifting Holly's favorite porcelain cat figure high up in the air.

"Who put this piece of trash here?" he complained before hurling the figure to the floor.

"Put it down!" I roared. "Put it down now!"

My eyes widened. The bodyguards lunged forward to stop him.

However, it was too late.

The cat figure shattered into a million pieces with a loud cracking noise. The broken shards were scattered all across the floor.

My hands trembled violently as my fury reached a boiling point.

I had been angry earlier when I found out that my villa had been stolen, that my supplementary card was being used by a stranger, and that Zara was cheating on me with a host, but I had been able to stay rational.

However, at that moment, as I watched Alan destroy the last item that Holly had left behind, I was overwhelmed with the urge to take revenge on everyone present.

Alan cackled. "Why are you panicking when I'm simply breaking my own belongings? You're just a cleaner. I can break anything in here if I feel like it, let alone a useless piece of trash like that!"

He arched his brow and shot an arrogant look at me. He then picked up a small, crystal glass and hurled it in my direction.

He probably chose the glass because it was the smallest item in the vault, assuming that it was worthless. However, he had no idea that the tiny glass was actually worth 9,000 dollars.

I finally lost my temper as I took in Alan's smug expression. After ordering the bodyguards to immobilize him, I punched him hard in the face.

"How dare you, Alan Barrington?" I shouted.

Alan shot a look of disbelief at me as he held his cheek. "Have you lost your mind? Do you know who I am? My wife is the CEO of Apex Group! People like us can crush a small fry like you under our feet without breaking a sweat!"

"I already told you that Zara is my wife," I retorted. "I'm the CEO of Apex Group."

Seeing how Alan still refused to back down, I punched him again.

A furious expression crossed Alan's face. He grabbed his phone and dialed Zara's number, shouting, "You need to come home right now, Zara! The cleaner you hired is provoking us. He also raised his hand against me!"

Alan's eyes were bloodshot when he looked at me again, breathing heavily. "Just you wait."

His lackeys shot angry looks at me as they whispered among themselves.

"He's done for. He angered Mr. Barrington."

"Let's see what other lies he's going to come up with when Ms. Hudson shows up later."

Meanwhile, I quietly picked up and cradled the shattered pieces of the cat figure, not sparing the people around me a single glance.

A person showed up at the door of the villa 20 minutes later.

It was none other than my wife, Zara, who had rushed home as quickly as she could.