Chapter 185

Natalie hadn’t heard about the drama online yet. She glanced at the puffed-up Luna and chuckled, “What’s up, Luna?”

Luna slapped the tablet down in front of her. “Natalie, take a look. Vance is such a jerk. He actually got someone to edit photos to smear your reputation.”

Natalie’s eyes widened as she saw the photos. She knew Vance was selfish, but she didn’t think he’d go this far.

She paused for a moment, then looked at Luna with a sigh. “Luna, get everything ready for a live stream. I’ll make him explain himself. We just started working with the Chambers family; we can’t let this news ruin our partnership."

“Tell the PR team to stay out of it. I’ll handle it myself. If he wants to ruin my reputation, I’ll ruin his company.”

Luna nodded. “Got it! Natalie, wait in the car for me. I’ll be right there.”

In the car, Natalie explained her plan to Luna. Carl called her, “Natalie, let me handle this.”

Natalie replied, “No need. I can handle it myself. You focus on the company.”

“Alright,” Carl said.

Natalie’s eyes turned cold. She hadn’t moved against Vance because his fate was already sealed, but if he wouldn’t let her off, she wouldn’t hesitate to strike back. No matter what their relationship was, if someone ignored her feelings and interests, she would fight back.

At the Garcia Group, Jennifer came to see Easton, who was sitting in his office sipping coffee. She saw the scandal about Natalie and smirked. She thought, ‘Vance really didn’t disappoint me. The internet was full of people bashing Natalie.’

“This guy has no morals at all. If she can be a designer, I could probably be a teacher.”

‘I’ve seen Natalie. She’s really flirtatious, but she has a great figure.’

‘Get out of the design industry. You’re disgracing us all.’

‘Get out of the design industry.’

Most comments below were variations of that, telling Natalie to leave the design world. Easton saw the news too, and a flash of anger crossed his face.

Seeing Jennifer smile, he knew she had noticed. Noticing the IP was from Vance’s company, he said, “If Vance causes a scene and the 1.5 million dollars I pay you monthly is exposed, you’ll be worse off than Natalie.”

Jennifer was stunned, feeling a surge of anger. She thought, You haven’t been giving me the money lately anyway. “Easton, it was she who ruined our relationship. Even if it comes out, I’m not afraid. You pamper me, and that’s why you give me money.”

Jennifer always understood one thing: As long as Easton doted on her, she could afford to be reckless. Easton’s eyes held a strange smile. “Natalie says she’ll sue in court to reclaim the assets I gave you during our marriage.”

Jennifer finally got it. She thought, ‘Easton was going to help Natalie. I had trusted Easton too much and should have made him add a clause about voluntary gifts. If this went to court, I would be ruined. No, I needed to find another way.’

‘As a legally married couple, Easton and Natalie had the right to reclaim the assets. But once the money was in my hands, it wouldn’t be easy to take back.’ Jennifer pouted, “Easton, I know you still care about me.

“If it weren’t for your mom stopping us back then, we would have been married long ago. Besides, the money was given voluntarily. You’d rather give me millions than a single cent to Natalie."

“I know how deeply you love me and how much you hate Natalie Easton. Thank you for loving me so much.” Jennifer deliberately lowered her head, feigning sadness as she described the vast difference between her and Natalie.

Easton’s lips curved into a meaningful smile, and his hand on the table clenched slightly. Instead of speaking, he sent a message to Xavier: [Take down the trending topic.]

Xavier: [Mr. Garcia, no need to take it down. Check the live stream.]

Natalie’s company wasn’t far from Vance’s, and it only took a few minutes to get there. When they arrived, the security guards tried to stop them, but Luna charged straight in, making it easy for Natalie to reach Vance’s office.

Vance, unaware it was a trap, simply grinned wickedly when he saw Natalie enter. Natalie’s face was filled with pain; these people had forced her to become a cruel woman.

Vance’s eyes darkened as he looked at her pained expression. “So, Natalie, you came to apologize so quickly? That was fast.”

Natalie feigned distress. “Vance, why are you defaming me like this?”

Vance’s eyes gleamed with a bloodthirsty smile. “Simply because you’re too disobedient. You’re just a girl from an impoverished town. The Simpson family gave you a good life, and you should be grateful.

“If you did something wrong, you should kneel down and apologize, not steal my business and partnerships. Natalie, do you know ruining a woman is simple? Just like online, find a few different men, Photoshop your picture with theirs, and ruin you.”

The live-stream viewers were shocked. Natalie was using the Fashion Fusion account for the live stream, and within minutes, over 100,000 people had joined, with more pouring in.

A look of disdain flashed in Natalie’s eyes. She thought, ‘With just one sentence, he had exposed himself!’

Vance didn’t give Natalie a chance to speak. “Natalie, you made Jennifer miserable, so I won’t let you off easily. I once said that if you ever made Jennifer cry or suffer, I would be ruthless with you.”

Natalie replied, “But from the beginning, it was Jennifer who plotted against me. How can you say it’s my fault? You two really are siblings, using the same underhanded tactics. I’m an adopted daughter, so I deserve to be bullied by you.

“Moreover, it was you Simpsons who decided to adopt me. You adopted me at 17 just to use me as a free maid. After you achieved your goals, you kicked me out with a letter severing ties. The Simpson family is truly despicable.”

Vance’s deep, chilling laugh echoed through the room, sending shivers down the spines of the live-stream viewers. Natalie continued to glare at him with a hurt expression. Seeing the tears in her eyes, Vance felt a twisted satisfaction. He wouldn’t admit that Natalie was excellent, nor that they had misjudged her.

He leaned closer, his eyes icy cold. “Natalie, at least you have some self-awareness. My dad brought you back to use you. You only figured it out now?

“Since you’ve realized it, get lost and don’t interfere with Jennifer’s life. You don’t even deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as her.”