Chapter 174 Ethan Warns Jasmine against Premature Dating
Ethan sat broodingly in front of his computer and pointed to where Jasmine should be. "Get to work."
Jasmine's eyes were red with tears welling up, unsure if Ethan doubted her trustworthiness.
"No dating!" After a prolonged silence, Ethan's deep voice scolded her.
Jasmine turned to look at Ethan, responding with a bewildered "Oh." As an adult, his scolding didn't seem particularly useful in advising her not to date at her age.
While Jasmine went to her own station to work, Ethan stealthily downloaded the encrypted files from Daniel's computer to the desktop, then transferred them onto his phone, and swiftly deleted them.
"Mr. Ethan... aren't you going to check the people around you?" Jasmine squirmed anxiously, afraid that Ethan might suspect her but also wanting to prove her innocence. "In such cases, it's usually a virus that has infected the computer."
Ethan leaned back in his chair and tapped on the desk as he called out for Liam.
Outside the door, Liam, who had been eavesdropping, rushed in panicking. "Mr. Ethan! I'm here."
"Who entered my office after I left yesterday afternoon?" Ethan asked. He'd normally check his computer every day, but yesterday... in the chaos of dealing with the paternity test, he'd rushed off without shutting it down.
However, Liam usually shut it down for him before leaving work. That meant, after he left and before Liam finished for the day, someone had accessed his computer.
"No one, just me and Jasmine," Liam said in a hurry, defensively adding, "It really wasn't Jasmine."
Jasmine was also panicking, her eyes reddening as she bowed her head.
Ethan massaged his temples. "You'll head to the desert project site tomorrow."
Liam didn't know what he had said wrong, but even at the risk of Ethan's wrath, he bravely spoke up for Jasmine. "Mr. Ethan, you can't suspect Jasmine, I really don't think she's involved."
Ethan was furious with Liam, who still believed he was being righteous, trying to score points with Jasmine.
Ethan now perceived all the men around Jasmine as predatory, with not a single decent one among them. Consequently, he felt the need to keep a closer watch on the situation.
"Wait! Now I remember." Liam slapped his forehead. "Ms. Harper was here!"
Ethan raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"
"Mr. Ethan, do you suspect Ms. Harper?" Liam whispered. "But she was just sitting here while I got her a glass of water."
"It's her; there's no doubt," Ethan asserted confidently. "The virus can be transferred just by plugging in a USB drive while the computer is on and connected to the internet. In the time it took you to get a glass of water, someone could infiltrate it three times over."
Liam stuttered, his mouth agape. "Then... should we call the police?"
"Call the police? Do you have any evidence?" Ethan retorted.
Their office didn't have a surveillance system.
"No..." Liam shook his head.
"Don't make a sound; just observe what she and Daniel are up to," Ethan said in a hushed tone, glancing at the time. "The Brown family should be holding a press conference right about now. She gave me a gift; don't I owe her one in return?"
Liam gasped, unmistakably feeling the chill coming off Ethan. "Mr. Ethan, are you doing what I think you're doing? "
Ethan stood up, walked to the door, and grabbed Mitchell who was still eavesdropping. "Come with me."
Liam shivered, turned back, and warned Jasmine, "See? That's what happens when you cross Mr. Ethan. The Brown family has provoked him more than once; just wait and see what happens..."
Jasmine’s palms were also sweaty. "What is Mr. Ethan going to do?"
"Just watch the news and you'll find out," Liam said as he sighed deeply. "Didn't you ask me what Mr. Ethan is like when he’s angry? Did you see his face just now? Scary, wasn't it?"
Jasmine nodded, somewhat bewildered.
Actually... it wasn't that scary; it was just an inexplicable warning against her dating too early.
"I've never seen Mr. Ethan’s face so dark; the Brown family really crossed the line this time," Liam continued to boast.
"But... I feel like Mr. Ethan is even angrier at Daniel." Jasmine wondered if it was just her misperception. It must have been Daniel who hacked Mr. Ethan's computer that infuriated him.
"Get back to work; wait for the news." Liam was somewhat excited, curious about how Ethan would handle the Brown family.
Ethan certainly didn't disappoint. At the Brown family’s press conference, Harper spoke on behalf of Zelda’s parents, admitting to Zelda’s crimes. Her speech was delivered with such artistry that it both elicited sympathy and downplayed Zelda's wrongdoing.
Just as the media was poised to report sympathetically, a grieving parent emerged, clutching a portrait of her deceased child. Accompanied by other victims bullied by Zelda, they stormed onto the scene. "Return my daughter's life to me! It was because of Zelda, using her family's power and influence to torment others, that my daughter took her own life by leaping from a building.
"I hold here the true face of their family; Zelda’s mother even had the audacity to offer us three million dollars, as if that could compensate for my daughter's life. She claimed my daughter's life was expendable, that she should have been able to withstand the abuse and deserved her tragic fate!" The mother, losing control in her grief, clutched the portrait of her daughter and released the audio and video of the Browns' attempted cover-up.
Zelda had been the queen bee of her class since school days, spearheading the bullying of those she disdained. No one she took a dislike to was spared her torment...
Another woman stepped forward bravely. "I thought I could forget the pain after all these years, but some wounds are just too deep to heal. I live in hell every day."
She pulled back her collar to reveal a constellation of cigarette burns on her collarbone. "She and her cronies bullied me, made me kneel, and extinguished cigarettes on me, saying my collarbone was the best ashtray she'd ever used..."
The woman couldn't stop crying.
More victims stepped up. "Just because a boy Zelda liked smiled at me once, she had my face ruined and called me a 'home-wrecker.'"
Removing her face mask, a scar marred her cheek. "I told the teachers, but they couldn't handle Zelda. In the end, her family settled it with money."
Suddenly, the Brown family name was thrust into controversy.
Harper watched the victims below in shock and panic, wondering what was happening...
She had ensured tight security to guarantee a flawless event that would meet Ethan's expectations without damaging the Patrick family's reputation. However, now, circumstances were turning against her.
"Who let these people in?!" Harper demanded, losing control.
The others were too scared to utter a word.
Harper's breathing was ragged; the situation was beyond her control now. "Clear the reporters!"
"Yes, ma'am," replied one of the security guards.
Harper stumbled off the stage and was escorted to the green room.
She began contemplating who could orchestrate such a scheme. She entertained the thought that Ethan might be behind it, questioning whether he had discovered these victims and deliberately timed the revelation for today, with no intention of sparing the Browns. She found it hard to believe. Maybe he had lost his mind, but there was no conceivable benefit for him in destroying the Browns!
"Ms. Harper, it was Mr. Ethan who instructed us to let them in," one of the hotel staff admitted, noting that this hotel was under the jurisdiction of the Gu Corporation.
Harper shuddered on the sofa, realizing that it had to be Ethan orchestrating this, given his considerable power. He seemed intent on dismantling the Brown family. Yet, the Browns had never committed any wrongdoing deserving of such harsh treatment.
Harper suspected Jasmine, stirring things up from behind the scenes again.
If Ethan was gifting the Browns this revenge, she wouldn't let Jasmine off easily either.
"Tell Henry, if he doesn't take Justin away from Jasmine, I'll reveal the paternity test results between Justin and the old man to Mr. Patrick Sr.!"
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