The gazes falling on Vesper Grayson grew heavier with undisguised scorn and disdain, pricking her like fine needles and leaving her feeling deeply uncomfortable.
"She clearly wasn’t raised by her mother. She may have a pretty face, but her behavior is utterly classless."
"Looks aren’t everything. What’s most important is to be well-spoken, act with decorum, and be smart enough to handle major responsibilities. If the Grayson Corporation really falls into the hands of someone like her, it’ll be bankrupt in no time."
"Poor Miss Grayson. She must have been bullied past her breaking point to finally lose her temper in public."
"She’s so shameless. How can she still have the nerve to stand here after all this? If I were her, I would have already run away in humiliation."
"Sister, I don’t blame you. We are sisters, after all." She stepped forward, gripped Vesper’s arm, and whispered, "Stop embarrassing yourself here! Aren’t you going to leave?"
Vesper reversed her grip, gently securing Gwen’s hand, and smiled. "What’s the rush, little sister? I just called you brainless, and you really didn’t take it to heart. When you were plotting to frame me, didn’t you bother to check if this hall has surveillance cameras?"
She shot a glance toward the southeast corner, where a hidden camera was quietly mounted.
However, it was obscured by decorations, making it difficult to spot without a careful look.
When Gwen had intentionally thrown herself at her just now, Vesper had deftly sidestepped her. She’d then quickly scanned the area and shrewdly spotted the hidden camera in the southeast corner.
Gwen followed her gaze, and her face instantly turned pale. Her previous smug expression vanished without a trace, and a flicker of panic crossed her eyes.
"Little sister, why don’t we have the hotel staff pull up the security footage? We can see whether you staged that fall, or if I intentionally embarrassed you." Vesper’s voice was perfectly level, yet it carried clearly to everyone present. "Or maybe... you directed this little play yourself, taking everyone here for a fool?"
She deliberately stressed the word "fool," her tone laced with mockery.
"If you’ve done nothing wrong, you have nothing to fear. My conscience is clear!"
Gwen forced herself to remain calm and shot a subtle glance at Gael Keane. He understood the signal, quietly retreated a few steps, and quickly vanished from sight.
"That’s right! Do you really think the hotel’s security room is just for decoration? Pull up the footage and put her in her place! Miss Grayson, don’t you worry. We won’t show favoritism to anyone."
"If it really was Miss Grayson who bullied you, we’ll have security throw her out. She won’t be allowed to set foot in an event like this ever again!"
Hearing the chorus of support around her, Gwen’s voice caught with a sob.
"Thank you, everyone, for believing in me."
The hotel manager hurried over, his face etched with apology.
"My apologies, everyone. I am terribly sorry. The security system happened to malfunction a few days ago. We’ve already scheduled a technician to come for repairs tomorrow, so I’m afraid we can’t retrieve the footage right now."
’What a coincidence.’
’It didn’t break down earlier, and it didn’t break down later, but it just had to break at this exact moment?’
Vesper narrowed her eyes. Her gaze went past the manager and landed precisely on Gael Keane, who was standing not far behind him. The man who had just vanished had somehow returned and was now signaling the manager with his eyes.
Realization dawned on her instantly.
Gael Keane noticed her stare. He stepped forward and said gently, "Vesper, it has come to this. You should just admit it. Gwen is so kind-hearted; I’m sure she won’t hold it against you."
With the security system ’malfunctioning,’ Vesper’s words had no proof.
The crowd, already biased, was inclined to believe Gwen’s one-sided story. People always tend to side with the apparent underdog.
"Elias, if you don’t step in, your little kitten is going to be in trouble."
Noah Nash leaned against the railing, a faint, unreadable smile on his face.
Sean Chandler snapped out of his daze, utterly astonished.
"Cousin, the beauty I was just talking about... that’s her? She’s Elias’s woman?"
’I thought Elias wasn’t interested in women. When did he pick up such an ethereal kitten?’
Jared Hawthorne shot Sean Chandler a cool glance. "This is your Chandler family’s hotel. You go handle it."
Sean Chandler understood. Elias wanted to protect Miss Grayson.
"I’m on it!"
Holding his wine glass, he strode toward the main hall downstairs.
Downstairs, the manager had summoned security and was about to have Vesper thrown out.
"Manager Warner, you seem to be getting quite bold in your methods these days!"
A cool, unhurried male voice rang out.
Manager Warner’s shoulders went rigid. He spun around, his face instantly plastered with a sycophantic smile that crinkled the corners of his eyes. "Mr. Chandler! This woman is causing a disturbance at your reception. I was just ordering my men to remove her, so as not to ruin the evening for everyone!"
"Oh? And who is causing the disturbance? Are you sure you have your facts straight?"
Sean Chandler’s eyes met Vesper’s, and he gave her a slight nod.
The tension in Vesper’s shoulders eased, but a question bloomed in her mind—’I’ve never met this Mr. Chandler before. Why is he helping me?’
Manager Warner froze, stammering, "Mr. Chandler, you mean..."
’Mr. Chandler never meddles in trivial matters like this. Could he be interested in Miss Grayson’s beauty? After all, it’s only natural for a man to be drawn to a beautiful woman.’
"Go get the security footage," Sean Chandler ordered, his tone turning several degrees colder.
"What? Mr. Chandler, the footage... it’s..."
Before he could finish, he met Sean Chandler’s icy glare. A chill shot through Manager Warner, and he swallowed the rest of his sentence. He bowed hastily. "Yes, yes, of course! I’ll go retrieve it immediately!"
At his words, the color drained from both Gael Keane’s and Gwen Grayson’s faces. The surrounding guests also sensed something was wrong—’Didn’t the manager just say the security system was broken?’
Sean Chandler’s sharp, dark eyes bored into Gael Keane, his voice as cold as ice.
"Mr. Keane, I warned you not to pull any tricks on my territory."
He had seen everything—Gael Keane hiding by the door, bribing Manager Warner. The Chandler Family hotel inspected its equipment daily; there was no way they would let a malfunction go unrepaired for days.
Gael Keane’s face was ghastly pale, his fingertips trembling. He forced himself to offer an excuse. "Mr. Chandler, I... I just felt bad for Gwen. She was being bullied by this woman, so I only..."
"Hah."
Sean Chandler let out a cold, disdainful laugh.
’How dare he try such a clumsy scheme in front of me?’
Though he was the sole heir of the Chandler Family and had no need for such scheming himself, he’d been exposed to conspiracies his entire life. He had witnessed situations a hundred times more complex and sordid than this.
"A trick this pathetic is beneath my notice. President Keane certainly raised a ’fine’ son."
That one sentence struck Gael Keane like a hammer, plunging him into an icy abyss.
In his panic, he immediately turned on her. "Mr. Chandler, this has nothing to do with me! It was her! Gwen Grayson asked for my help! She’s the one who wanted to frame Vesper and have her thrown out!"
Gwen’s pupils shrank, her eyes wide with disbelief. Her voice trembled. "Caleb! What nonsense are you spouting? It was you! You lusted after my sister’s beauty, and when she rejected you, you flew into a rage out of humiliation and decided to get revenge!"
"Shut up!"
Gael Keane’s face was as black as thunder. He snarled, "It was you! You were afraid Vesper would secure the Vaudin distributorship for Greater China, so you begged me to help you get her thrown out of this reception!"
"You..."
Gwen was shaking with fury, her face flushing crimson, utterly speechless.
"You resort to dirty tricks when you can’t compete fairly. I can’t stand women like you."
Gael turned his head, his expression shifting to one of desperation. "Vesper, I really do like you. I was just confused for a moment and made a mistake. Please, forgive me this one time..."
Vesper’s eyes were bone-chillingly cold and filled with utter revulsion. "Your ’affection’ is nauseating."