The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance

For several seconds, the scene seemed frozen in time.

Then, a wave of mocking laughter swept through the crowd.

"Oh my God, look at her now! She looks ridiculous!"

"Goddess? More like a stray dog, if you ask me."

"Quick, quick, get a picture of her like this. We have to post it online."

Aurora had never experienced such a humiliating, nightmarish moment in her

entire life.

It felt as if everyone around her was eager to kick her while she was down.

As the daughter of "the other woman," she was fair game for anyone's ridicule or

scorn.

She didn't even remember how she managed to walk out of the competition hall.

No sooner had she stepped outside than Sellers and Sherman came rushing

toward her.

Seeing Aurora disheveled and broken, they both stopped short, stunned.

They had never seen her like this-so vulnerable, so defeated.

But once the shock faded, it was replaced by a tidal wave of anger and helpless

concern.

Sellers clenched his jaw. "It has to be Stella!"

Stella's scandal hadn't even cooled off, and now Aurora's parentage had been

blasted all over the news.

It was obvious-this was Stella's revenge.

Sherman hurried to steady Aurora, just about to ask if she was all right, when her

knees buckled and she collapsed in his arms.

The revelation that Aurora was an illegitimate child sent shockwaves through high

society.

She had always been the reigning socialite, the one every prominent family

wanted to marry into.

Her reputation was flawless-until now. And suddenly, she was nothing but a

scandal.

Families that prided themselves on heritage and propriety scrambled to distance

themselves from her.

Even Williams Group stock began to plummet.

When Jonathan heard the news, he could hardly believe it.

He wasted no time and went straight to find Skyler.

Skyler was still flipping through Nora's old files when Jonathan burst in, his report

leaving Skyler momentarily speechless.

He thought he must have misheard. "Jonathan, what did you just say?"

Jonathan's face was ashen.

"Someone leaked the truth about

Aurora's parentage. Even the story

about Father losing his memory

years ago is all over the internet.

Now the world's tearing into

Aurora-and into Dad. Williams

Group held an emergency meetingnoveldrama

just now. They're talking about

removing Aurora from the

company."

Skyler's voice was heavy, grim. "How did this happen? Why would something like

this suddenly come out?"

Jonathan had already investigated everything before coming to Skyler. He laid out

the whole story.

By the end, Jonathan's voice was cold as ice.

"Stella was just called out as an

illegitimate child herself, and now,

right after, Aurora's secret is out.

This is deliberate retaliation.

Whoever leaked it knew every detail

about Aurora's mother. Who else

could it be but Stella?"

Skyler hurled his teacup at the floor.

Crash!

The cup shattered, porcelain scattering everywhere.

"That wretched girl!" Skyler's voice trembled with rage. "Call her. Now. Tell her to

get home this instant!"

Jonathan nodded and turned to leave, but then hesitated, something occurring to

him.

"Dad, do you think maybe Stella believes we were the ones who leaked her

secret? That she's doing this to drag Aurora down with her?"

Skyler's chest heaved with fury.

"This wasn't some spur-of-the-moment decision. She's been planning this for

ages! She resents me, she resents Aurora, she's hated the Williams family for a

long, long time!"

Skyler was rarely so unhinged. "The

Williams Group-Nora poured her

whole life into this company. Didn't

Stella think, even for a second, that

blowing up this scandal would drag

the company down too?!"