Chapter 342 Investigate That Woman
"Evelyn? What's wrong?" Gilbert could clearly see that Evelyn's expression was off and asked with concern.
She added, "I remember, I didn't put Edward on the blacklist. Why is he on my blacklist?"
As she spoke, Evelyn's sharp gaze slowly shifted to Gilbert's innocent-looking face.
"Evelyn."
"Did you do it?" Evelyn asked directly, "Tonight, besides you, I haven't had any private meeting with anyone. Edward told me he tried calling me all night but couldn't get through because he was blacklisted."
Gilbert's fingers clenched on his lap, and his refined gold-rimmed glasses flashed with a momentary cold light.
"I thought about it carefully. My phone was only out of my sight when I went to the restroom at the Japanese restaurant. So, it was then that you blacklisted him, right?" Evelyn squinted her eyes slightly.
"Evelyn, are you suspecting me?" Gilbert's eyes were still as innocent and clear as ever.
"I'm not suspecting; I'm stating a fact."
Gilbert felt a huge sense of loss pressing on his chest, making it hard to breathe. "Evelyn, I admit it. I shouldn't have touched your phone. But I didn't want Edward to disturb our date. You know how agonizing it was for me to wait for today? I was too selfish. No matter how I explain, it's my fault. I'm sorry."
"This is the last time. Don't let it happen again." Too much had happened tonight, and Evelyn was too exhausted to argue with him about this. "The matters between Edward and me are our private affairs. I don't like others getting involved.
"I didn't blacklist him when we divorced, and I don't want to use such a low and boring way to say goodbye to him now. After all, in the business world, we might still have to cooperate in the future.
"As long as he's dead in my heart, that's enough. Any extra actions would only prove that I haven't let him go."
Gilbert, who had been worried, suddenly brightened up upon hearing this. "Evelyn, have you really let him go?"
Evelyn's reddened eyes slowly nodded.
"That's great, Evelyn." Gilbert was overjoyed, his hands trembling with excitement. "Evelyn, since you've let go of Edward, can you give me a chance to pursue you?
"I want to be the man standing by your side. I want to shield you from the wind and rain. I couldn't be part of your past, but I want to be with you in your future."
"Gilbert, I'm not in the mood for a relationship right now. I've said this before."
Evelyn was physically and mentally exhausted, her breath weak. "I'm too tired. Love is something I don't want to touch anymore. I'm sorry."
"With me, you don't need to do anything. You just need to enjoy the feeling of being loved."
Gilbert's eyes were burning as he leaned closer to her, his breath growing warmer. "Evelyn, let's give it a try, okay? Try being with me, give me a chance to treat you well, okay?"
Evelyn pressed her lips together.
"You don't need to do anything. Let me love you and protect you." Gilbert, with his uncast arm, propped himself against the car window, enveloping Evelyn beneath him. "I'll always be behind you. If you ever think I'm worth it, whenever you turn around, I'll always be there."
"Gilbert, thank you for saving me tonight. But don't do such dangerous things again."
Evelyn frowned, her heart filled with indescribable feelings. "I'm not worth you risking your life. It's still not too late to stop now."
Gilbert's pale hand pressed against the cold car window, slowly clenching, his eyes turning red.
"Everyone's love is precious. I don't want you to end up like me," Evelyn added.
All her love had become misplaced love.
When Edward returned to the car, it was already the middle of the night.
Bart had bought a bottle of hot coffee from a 24-hour supermarket. When he handed it to Edward, he realized that Edward's hands were completely frozen, unable to even hold a simple bottle of coffee.
His heart ached as he turned the car's heater to the maximum, took off his coat to wrap Edward's wind-chilled body, and placed the hot coffee in Edward's arms.
"Mr. Wellington, there's a hospital nearby. Let's go check it out. Your hands are frostbitten."
"How did it happen?" Edward stared intently at his phone, his tone mechanical and cold.
Bart was taken aback. "Mr. Wellington, what did you say?"
"The photos were clearly on my phone. No one touched my phone, and I didn't touch it either. How were the photos deleted?" Edward enunciated each word, biting them out through clenched teeth.
"Could it be a virus on your phone?" Bart's mind raced. "When you sent me to study computer technology, I remember learning about it, though I never put it into practice. I recall that advanced hackers only need to know your phone number and model to hack into your phone and delete content not stored in an encrypted email.
"That's why you usually destroy messages after reading them or store important files in encrypted emails, never on your phone. So, could someone have hacked your phone?"
Edward took a deep breath, wiping the sweat from his forehead.
Yes, he had also studied hacking techniques in military school. How could he have forgotten?
"The content in the text messages, although it can't be altered, can be deleted!"
"Go investigate."
Edward gritted his teeth, his voice dark and thunderous, "Go to the hotel where Jessica was tonight. Check the surveillance, find that woman who looks almost identical to Evelyn."
"Identical? How is that possible!"
Bart was greatly shocked, thinking Edward had gone mad from the cold. "Mrs. Wellington is a one-in-a-million beauty. Who could compare to her? Let alone look identical. It's impossible."
"When I tell you to investigate, you investigate. Less talk." Edward recalled the face in the photo that looked so much like Evelyn's, feeling a chill down his spine.
That woman definitely wasn't Evelyn.
But if that woman was living in this world with a face so similar to Evelyn's, he feared she might use that face to indirectly harm Evelyn.
He wanted to find that woman, not just to uncover the conspiracy. "As for how the text messages disappeared, I'll trace it back to the source myself."
The late-night "private meeting" between Jessica and Edward continued to ferment online.
Both the Clark family and the Wellington family had dispatched PR teams to handle the scandal, but the situation had blown up too much. There were videos and photos, and even if the trending topics were removed, the rumors couldn't be suppressed!
When Sophia saw the trending topic, her phone suddenly fell to the ground, and she missed a step, tumbling down the stairs!
Fortunately, the staircase was like a landing, with only a few steps, but she still sprained her ankle and hit her head.
But it still scared Eric pale, and he rushed Sophia to the hospital overnight.
In the hospital room, Sophia lay on the bed receiving an IV, tightly gripping Eric's hand, tears welling up.
"Eric, what are we going to do? What are we going to do? Jessica is only twenty-two. How is she going to live after this? How can I face your grandfather and your father?"
With that, Sophia broke down in tears.
Eric sat by the bed, his throat choked with bitter emotions, full of worry. "Mom, I'll handle this."
"How will you handle it? There are photos and videos. Jessica isn't even married yet! Now that this scandal has broken out, what good family will marry her in the future?"
"Jessica is my sister. Anyone who dares to speak ill of her, I'll cut out their tongue!" Eric gritted his teeth, his eyes burning with anger.
"This is a society ruled by law. Can you control everything?" Sophia cried, pounding the bed with all her might.
Eric's brows furrowed coldly.
The Clark family did indeed have roots in the underworld. Maurice had fought to build the family business, which became the foundation of the Clark Group. As times changed, Maurice didn't want his descendants to follow his old path, so he washed his hands of the underworld and began to legitimize the Clark Group.
By the time Jared became the president of the Clark Group, the company was mostly legitimate, doing proper business. But the family style and methods still carried some traces of the past. Jared often clashed with Maurice and Neil over this.
Eric always felt that Jared was too soft-hearted and somewhat self-righteous.
If it were him, the Clark Group's power would already be in his hands, and that backstabbing, ruthless Neil wouldn't have been able to be so arrogant for so long!
"And your so-called good friend! This whole thing started because of him, and he hasn't said a word! Does he think he can just pretend nothing happened?" Sophia cried even harder, almost fainting.
"Mom, don't say that about Edward. Edward isn't like that!" Eric defended Edward vehemently.
"So many reporters caught it on camera. How can he deny it?"
"There must be a reason. Edward has never been interested in Jessica. He has someone he loves! He would never touch Jessica!" Eric's eyes reddened with urgency.
Sophia, with tears in her eyes, said bitterly, "Jessica is your only sister! She was bullied by Edward, and you're still defending him!"
"Now, there's only one way out, and that's for Edward to take responsibility for Jessica!"
Eric's eyes darkened suddenly. "Take responsibility? What do you mean?"
"I'll get discharged as soon as possible, find a day, and go to the Wellington family to discuss their marriage!" Sophia's tone was resolute.
"Don't be ridiculous! Even if you put a gun to Edward's head, he wouldn't marry Jessica!" Eric shot up, shouting angrily.
"Whether he will or not isn't up to him."
Sophia's eyes turned cold, instantly different from her usual gentle demeanor. "A man must take responsibility! If he doesn't marry Jessica, he's going against the entire Clark family. Even if I don't do anything, do you think your grandfather will just stand by and watch Jessica be bullied?
"Don't think that just because he's Patrick's son, the Clark family won't dare to touch him!"
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