Chapter 505

After saying this, Eleanor Vance paused for a moment, her gaze resting on Evelyn Ross's face.

Evelyn nodded.

It was indeed mysterious.

So mysterious that they had almost searched everywhere and found no trace, as if she had vanished from the face of the earth.

She waited quietly for Eleanor to continue.

Eleanor spoke slowly, "Actually, I don't know much about the Sterling Family. When I was young, although I was in San Francisco, I also heard that a Lady Sterling had arrived here in New York. She was gentle, dignified, well-educated, and probably a bit younger than me."

A Lady Sterling who was slightly younger than Eleanor?

Calculating the age, and combining it with the elder mentioned by Chloe Roland's father, this Lady Sterling should be her own grandmother.

Evelyn listened intently.

Eleanor continued, "Back then, Lady Sterling's reputation for beauty and virtue had even reached San Francisco. Out of curiosity, I came to New York with a few other young ladies from prominent families to see her. And indeed, Lady Sterling was as learned and accomplished as the rumors said. She seemed... like a princess from the old royal families. You know, these prominent families in our country, though they seem glorious, are actually all newly risen. At that time, the Vance family was also just starting out. Our generation all had a bit of that 'new money' air about us. But Lady Sterling was different. She was like..."

Eleanor paused here, as if searching for the right words.

She suddenly asked, "Have you heard of the 'Wei-Jin Spirit'?"

Evelyn and Alexander Vance both nodded.

Eleanor smiled, "Speaking of the scholarly demeanor in our history, the noble-born children of the Wei and Jin periods had an innate, lofty temperament, a kind of indescribable charm. That's the feeling Lady Sterling gave me. Elegant, noble. Mentioning money in front of her seemed vulgar. Anyway, I've never seen a second person with her kind of character since."

Evelyn was slightly taken aback.

She couldn't quite picture the grandmother Eleanor was describing.

But Chloe Roland's father had been so impressed by that elder's demeanor, so she must have had a unique charm.

Evelyn thought for a moment and asked, "Where did she come from?"

Eleanor chuckled, "What a question. Lady Sterling, naturally, came from the Sterling Family. At that time, we all wondered what kind of family could raise such a young lady. So we kept inquiring about her origins. We only knew she had returned from abroad. Where her family was exactly, no one knew. Some even suspected she was an imposter, a fake socialite. They followed her, only to discover that Lady Sterling's daily necessities, her food and clothing, were of the utmost refinement. Some scenes of extravagant luxury were things we couldn't even imagine..."

Evelyn pressed, "For example?"

Eleanor smiled, "For example, in her daily meals, the most ordinary side dish was called 'Silver Sprouts Stuffed with Meat.' Do you know how it's made?"

As a professional chef, Evelyn had certainly heard of this dish.

It was an imperial dish from ancient palace cuisine.

She nodded and explained to Alexander, "You hollow out the center of each bean sprout, stuff it with shredded ham, then fry it and serve it cold."

Alexander was silent for a moment.

He then asked, "A meal would require at least a hundred bean sprouts, right? Every single one done like that? Is that even possible?"

Evelyn cleared her throat softly, "I tried it once when I was bored. Bean sprouts are very brittle; a little too much force and they puncture. The shredded ham is also very soft and difficult to stuff in. But it's not impossible... Back then, I spent six hours and successfully stuffed twenty."

Alexander asked, "How much is twenty?"

Evelyn paused, "One chopstick's worth."

Alexander couldn't help but say, "Who on earth would eat something like that for no reason?"

Eleanor laughed heartily, "Right? Even families like ours today wouldn't have a dedicated person in the kitchen just to make this dish. But Lady Sterling's chefs were a team. About twenty people, dedicated to cooking for her. This dish was the job of one of them. This cold dish was refreshing, and Lady Sterling would have it every few days. And this dish was just one item on her daily menu. There was another dish called 'Flying Dragon Soup.' That bird is a protected species now, can't be eaten. But back then, because she liked it, her family could always procure game. Also, because Lady Sterling liked the tiny strip of meat in the center of a duck's tongue, her menu included a dish called 'Hundred-Flavored Duck Tongues' every other day. As the name suggests, it's the tongues of a hundred ducks... You have to understand, in my youth, living conditions in our country were still quite poor. Whose family could eat like that?"

Evelyn listened, somewhat stunned, "Even the empress in ancient palaces wasn't that extravagant, was she?"

"Exactly," Eleanor smiled. "So, when we heard about Lady Sterling's daily life being like this, we finally understood how that kind of demeanor was cultivated."

The corner of Evelyn's mouth twitched.

Eleanor added, "The key point is, these things were only exposed because paparazzi followed and photographed her. She never flaunted her family background in public; it was as if all that was just normal for her. She also never looked down on any of us. That kind of magSterlingimity and bearing is something I, an old woman, have never seen to this day."

Evelyn understood why Eleanor was so impressed.

She asked, "And then?"

Evelyn suddenly thought of something, "Did you ever meet her husband?"

Since she was Lady Sterling, and her mother was named Sophia Ashcroft, did that mean Lady Sterling's husband's surname was Sterling?

Eleanor gave a bitter smile and shook her head, "I don't know. Part of her mystique lies in this. Everyone knew she was Lady Sterling. Her daughter's surname was Sterling. But no one ever saw her husband, and no one knew her name. During her time in our country, she really opened our eyes. Then, suddenly one day, a great fire broke out. Lady Sterling just vanished from New York along with that fire. As for her daughter... your mother, she also disappeared. It was only recently that I realized your mother was the daughter of that Lady Sterling from back then."

Evelyn took a deep breath.

Eleanor smiled again, "Back then, we were all very curious. Whose lady could be raised in such luxury? The family seemingly had no visible industries, yet money flowed like water, endlessly, as if the family's wealth could never be exhausted..."

Eleanor looked at her, "Until later, we heard legends about her."

"What legends?"