Chapter 250 Unable to Capture Any Dynamic Footage
Following Michael's gaze, everyone noticed that Tristan and Katniss were also there.
Tristan was rocking a black suit. His tall, lean frame screamed confidence, and his deep eyes casually scanned the crowd.
Next to him, Katniss was in a bright blue trench coat, her golden hair flowing down. Petite and delicate, she looked like the perfect match standing beside him.
When called out, Tristan stayed cool and composed. He slightly parted his thin lips and said, "We only caught them lying on the same bed, no video. Maybe nothing really happened."
It sounded like an explanation, but it really wasn't.
"Everything was already over by morning, so of course, there wasn't any video."
"Yeah, Mr. Forbes, that explanation isn't cutting it!"
A few reporters mumbled quietly, daring to challenge Tristan's words in a moment of emotional impulse.
It was the first time in their lives they had ever contradicted him!
After speaking up, the two reporters immediately regretted it. They nervously eyed Tristan, fearing that if he got upset, their media outlet might face closure.
But Tristan just shrugged indifferently, his cold eyes looking at Michael.
He said, "If they don't believe it, there's nothing I can do."
Michael's body tensed with anger. "You..."
Was that an explanation? That was like throwing gasoline on the fire!
It seemed that Tristan hadn't taken Michael's warning seriously at all.
Did Tristan not believe Michael would dare to touch Katniss?
"From what I know, that night at the suburban hotel, Katniss and my assistant Samuel went out in the pouring rain to have an affair, staying at a mountain lodge for half the night. Does Mr. Forbes believe that nothing happened between her and my assistant?" As soon as Michael said this, the reporters got excited!
So Katniss had also slept with another man?
The reporters discreetly observed Tristan and Katniss's tightly clasped hands, clearly showing their strong relationship!
Could it be that Tristan didn't mind?
Katniss's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly as she glanced at Samuel standing behind Michael.
Although he didn't say anything, his silence was as good as an admission.
She pursed her thin lips, wanting to explain something when suddenly Tristan spoke up beside her. "Is that so? Then you need to clarify which lodge, the specific location, and the exact time."
Michael sneered, "There's only one lodge near the hotel. If the reporters don't believe it, they can go check!"
Hearing this, Tristan led Katniss out of the corner, casually straightening a chair and motioning for Katniss to sit down. Then he sat down beside her.The reporters were still scratching their heads over Tristan's behavior until he shot them a cold look and snapped, "What are you standing around for? If you can't find evidence for this kind of thing, I won't admit it. Hurry up and send someone to the lodge to verify!"
Michael's face turned red with shame and anger.
The reporters quickly started making phone calls to get someone to check out the suburban lodge.
Coincidentally, some reporters' colleagues were already at the hotel where Michael and Isla were staying, looking for new leads, and it was very close.
Without the rain, it only took about ten minutes to reach the lodge Michael mentioned.
But when they got there, it was already a ruin, with excavators and workers still at it.
"Wait, was this place a lodge before?" a reporter immediately asked.
One of the workers pointed to a woman sitting in the corner with a lifeless expression and said, "We're just workers. If you have questions, ask her. She's the owner."
In no time, the lodge owner was surrounded by several reporters. Seeing this, she gradually snapped out of her daze. The reporters bombarded her with questions.
"Excuse me, was this place a lodge before?"
"Are you the owner? Why is it being demolished?"
"When did the demolition start?"
The lodge owner cautiously glanced in a certain direction, then decisively nodded. "I'm the owner here. Business has been bad, and I can't keep it going. We closed last week and are preparing for demolition. This used to be a guesthouse."
If the demolition started last week, then Michael's claim that Katniss and Samuel stayed here the night before last was pure nonsense.
"When was the last time you had guests? Didn't a man and a woman stay here two days ago?" a reporter pressed.
The lodge owner couldn't help but say, "I already said we closed last week. Two days ago, the interior was already being dismantled. How could anyone stay here? But two days ago, a man did come to me, asking me to testify that he brought a woman here overnight. I refused. My place was being demolished; how could I testify?"
The reporters recorded her words and, having gotten what they needed, quickly got in their car to relay it to their colleagues at the press conference.
In their rush to dig up news, they didn't notice that after they left, the lodge owner got up and ran a long way, stopping by a business car and knocking on the window.
The window rolled down, and Ryan handed her a check. "This is compensation for the demolition of your lodge. The extra is hush money. Leave Velvet City and don't come back," he said.
The lodge owner struggled to process the memory of being dragged from her dinner the previous night, her mind still buzzing with confusion.Dozens of dump trucks and freight trucks were lined up neatly on the road, and dozens of workers swarmed into the lodge, dismantling all the furnishings and loading them onto trucks within two hours.
Later, two more construction vehicles arrived, and in no time, they leveled the lodge to the ground.
Her heart ached. The lodge, with its unique charm compared to ordinary hotels, brought her an annual income of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Although she received a check and some compensation, she still felt a bit of regret.
"What are you looking at?" Ryan noticed her staring at the check with regret and said, "Taking money from the Astor family that you shouldn't have, you're lucky to be able to solve this with money now!"
If Michael hadn't tried to use what happened at the lodge to ruin Katniss's reputation, Tristan wouldn't have given the lodge owner a way out, allowing her to redeem herself.
Hearing this, the lodge owner quickly pocketed the check. "Got it, I won't come back!"
The original recording of the lodge owner's statement was relayed back, and a reporter played it publicly.
"This is impossible!" Michael, enraged, grabbed a bottle of water from the table and smashed the reporter's phone.
With a lazy smirk, Tristan leaned back and observed Michael's tirade. "The truth is staring you in the face," he stated coldly. "Denying the undeniable is an insult to everyone present. Who are you trying to fool with this charade?"
The facts were clear, and no matter how much Michael tried to explain, he couldn't talk his way out of it.
The reporters obviously wouldn't believe him anymore. They knew exactly how to report the truth to the public!
Nervous, Katniss broke out in a cold sweat. Her palms were damp, but Tristan held her hand tightly, likely sensing her anxiety.
After a while, he released her hand and took out a handkerchief to carefully wipe her palm.
His hands, with their clear veins and distinct joints, intertwined with her slender fingers, making it hard not to take a second look.
Tristan said, "To make sure everyone didn't come here for nothing, I have some good news to announce." The sweat on Katniss's palms was wiped away. Suddenly, she felt a tightness around her finger and looked down to see a ring on her ring finger.
Stunned, she looked up and met Tristan's affectionate gaze.
He slowly stood up, holding her hand with the ring in his palm, and presented it to everyone. "We're getting married," he said.
This news instantly caused a sensation among the reporters, with countless microphones thrust towards Katniss and Tristan.
"When is the wedding date?"
"Will the wedding be open to the press?""How long have you two been together?"
Questions poured in endlessly.
Katniss was reeling, still dazed from the one-two punch of Michael exposing her night with Samuel at the lodge, followed immediately by Tristan's shocking announcement of their marriage. The reversal was so drastic she felt utterly lost.
Suddenly, a warm hand wrapped around her waist, steadying her. She looked up in surprise, her lips slightly parted as she gazed at Tristan.
He leaned down and covered her lips with his. Katniss's hand instinctively rested on his chest, clutching a button on his shirt tightly.
Seeing this, the reporters gasped in surprise, quickly capturing photos of the couple kissing!
The press conference was overshadowed, and Michael couldn't explain anything.
Tristan took control, announcing their marriage without saying much more to the reporters, as the details, like the wedding date and venue, were still being finalized with Adelaide.
Tristan left with Katniss, and the reporters hurriedly followed.
The room, once crowded, was now empty, with chairs scattered haphazardly.
Michael stood on the stage, gritting his teeth, and after a moment, he swept everything off the table in anger.
Samuel stood silently by the side, his eyes downcast.
The Travis couple and the Astor family, who had been waiting as usual, were stunned by the series of events.
By the time they reacted, everyone had already left!
The Astor family suffered significant losses, and the Astor couple couldn't be cordial with the Forbes couple, leaving in a huff.
"Eleanor..." Ivy called out urgently, but couldn't stop them. She could only tug at Travis and said, "Travis, we can't afford to make enemies with the Astor family now!"
Hearing this, Travis shook off her hand and retorted, "How can I worry about the Astor family now? Didn't you hear Tristan? He's going to marry Katniss!"
The Astor family was an ally the Travis couple had just made, hoping to gather more forces to take down Tristan!
Originally, if today's plan had succeeded, the Astor couple would have supported Travis in the Forbes family's conflict!
However, one tempest hadn't yet calmed when another storm gathered on the horizon.
Furious, Travis turned and left, with Ivy losing her composure and quickly following.
Behind them, Eudora stood tense, her lips bloodless.
Her hand, hanging by her side, clenched tightly, her nails digging into her flesh, but she seemed oblivious to the pain.
Married? They were actually getting married!
Eudora glared hatefully at the furious Michael on stage, a deep-seated loathing in her heart.
Perhaps her gaze was too direct, as Michael couldn't ignore it. He rushed over and tightly embraced Eudora.
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