Chapter 69: Full of Rage
The receptionist’s voice came through again.
Vivian Lowell looked up. She thought Vance Wyatt or Julian Faulkner had come back for something, but what she heard sounded like... an argument?
"Ma’am, Miss. You can’t just go in to see our boss without an appointment. Please understand. Our boss is currently resting. I’m sorry."
The woman was clearly exasperated, snapping furiously, "An appointment? What appointment? I’m her mother! Can’t I even see her?"
"Vivian Lowell, get out here right now! Did you do what happened to Shelly on purpose?"
"No wonder you haven’t been home lately! It’s because you’ve latched onto the CEO of the Faulkner Group, isn’t it? You really are heartless!"
"The Lowell family raised you, and this is how you repay them?"
"You left your own family’s company only to open a competing design studio to steal business from us?"
"Vivian Lowell, if your father and I hadn’t given you the chance to study at Aethelburg University, how would you have ever gotten into design? How would you have the reputation you have today?"
Sharon Galahad hurled one accusation after another, wishing she could storm in and tear Vivian Lowell to shreds.
Unfortunately for her, ever since Mason Grant had stormed in last time, Vivian had contacted a security company to install a facial recognition system on the automatic doors at her office entrance.
The doors would open automatically for anyone on her staff whose face was recognized.
Outsiders, however, would be blocked. If Sharon Galahad tried to force her way in, the doors would trigger an alarm system that automatically alerted the police.
After shouting accusations for a while, Sharon Galahad grew tired and leaned against a nearby wall to rest.
Just then, Shelly Lowell tugged on Sharon Galahad’s arm. "Mom, I told you. Vivian Lowell is an ungrateful wretch. We should have never been so nice to her in the first place."
"Look at her now, locking you out like this. It’s so disrespectful. And isn’t she the one who loves exposing people online?"
"Perfect. You should post this online too! Let’s see what everyone thinks when they find out! Her big-name clients will definitely stop working with her!"
Shelly Lowell spoke with righteous indignation.
At this point, Sharon Galahad was out of ideas for how to deal with Vivian Lowell.
Yelling was pointless, and Vivian wasn’t coming out. All she could do was nod in agreement with Shelly’s suggestion.
Standing at the entrance to Vivian’s office, Sharon Galahad took a few photos, then gave a brief account of the situation to her contacts in the media, demanding they publicize the story.
’I refuse to believe it!’
’How could she, the matriarch of the Lowell family, possibly lose to Vivian Lowell!?’
"Hmph, Vivian Lowell. If you’re scared, come out and beg for forgiveness now. I might still give you a chance to make amends. If you continue to..."
Sharon Galahad was still spouting threats.
Inside her office, Vivian Lowell gave a cold smile, manually pressed the alarm button, then picked up a megaphone and shouted toward the entrance, "Enough with the nonsense."
"If you get lost now, you can still make it. It’ll take the police a little while to get here, so you can still get away. But if you keep talking... getting arrested for trespassing on private property would be quite embarrassing."
"Mrs. Lowell. About that deal we made... I’ve suddenly had a change of heart. I will no longer be providing the remaining thirty percent of the design plans. Now take Shelly and get out!"
Hearing Vivian’s voice broadcast throughout the entire floor, a furious Sharon Galahad pointed into the office and sputtered, "You... you..."
But alas, she was out of options. Her threats had proven useless, and she had no choice but to leave with Shelly in tow.
The entrance quickly fell silent.
Vivian leaned back in her chair, picked up her phone, and sent Vance Wyatt a message.
"Because of that trending topic last night, Sharon Galahad just brought Shelly here to cause trouble. Vance, I need you to do me a favor."
Vance Wyatt’s reply was almost instantaneous.
"Ma’am, just tell me what you need!"
Vivian smiled. "They’re planning to leak a story about how I left the Lowell family, started my own company, and am now competing directly against them."
"As it happens, I have some information on hand regarding some of the Lowell family’s internal financial problems."
"It’s not just about tax evasion. There’s also the matter of Sharon Galahad embezzling company funds. I need you to leak it for me, whether to the relevant authorities or to the media."
"The bigger the scandal, the better."
"And then there’s that whole mess with Shelly. I have security footage from the hotel that shows her deliberately getting Julian Faulkner and me trapped in an elevator."
"Leak that footage as well. In a little while, I’ll be posting a video online detailing the Lowell family’s exploitation of me over the years."
"I’ll need you to help my video gain some traction, too. Hire some online promoters to make sure it gets seen."
As soon as Vivian finished laying out her requests, Vance Wyatt replied that he could handle it.
It was so fast that Vivian suspected he might not have even finished reading her message; it was as if he would agree to anything she asked, no questions asked.
Watching Vance Wyatt work, Vivian couldn’t help but marvel at his efficiency.
’If only I could poach him for my own team,’ she thought. ’Talent like his is truly a rare find.’
But—
’Julian Faulkner would probably never agree, would he?’
’And with that temper of his... he got angry again for some reason. So strange!’
「That afternoon.」
Sharon Galahad struck first, releasing her story accusing Vivian of taking the Lowell family’s resources to start her own company out of resentment following Shelly’s return.
Sharon Galahad’s performance was incredibly moving.
She cried as she spoke. "For so many years, Vivian has always been my daughter in my heart. Even with Shelly’s return, that has never, ever changed."
"My original plan was to have Shelly learn from Vivian at the company, while Vivian remained in charge."
"But the child was so wary of us. Not only did she leave the Lowell family, but she also abandoned all her responsibilities, and even... at the last banquet, the banquet..."
At this, Sharon Galahad choked up.
She left the sentence unfinished, wanting to imply to everyone that Vivian was the one who had exposed Shelly at the banquet!
The implication was clear: Vivian resented the family for finding their real daughter, and fearing she would lose her access to the Lowell’s resources, she took what she could and was now trying to harm Shelly!
Shelly was also crying in the video.
She was dressed to look pure and innocent, claiming she had just taken those photos for fun. She said Vivian had somehow gotten ahold of her phone and leaked them, and that she was definitely not an "escort," as people online were saying!
Under the soft filter, Shelly’s innocent-victim act looked genuinely pitiful.
And the people online suddenly started to feel sorry for her.
The tide of opinion began to turn. Commenters said they regretted being so impulsive, and couldn’t believe they had hurled so much abuse at such a sweet-looking girl!
"I was wrong, I shouldn’t have been such a keyboard warrior! Shelly looks so innocent; she must have been tricked and used by Vivian Lowell!"
"Vivian Lowell is so manipulative! Even though she’s not their biological daughter, Mrs. Lowell said she was willing to keep supporting her. But she acts so ungrateful, stealing from the family to start her own company!"
"Yeah, and I also heard..."
People online are always quick to believe a rumor.
The video Sharon Galahad released quickly went viral. A flood of commenters—it was impossible to tell if they were paid promoters or genuinely incited—began to denounce Vivian Lowell.
Vivian watched the topic trend, her expression calm. ’It should be about time for Vance to make his move,’ she thought.
Just then, Vivian’s phone rang. It was Eleanor Rhodes. "Vivian, are you okay?" she asked.
"I was just having lunch and scrolling through X when I saw what that old hag posted about you! It’s disgusting! How can she just make things up like that!"
"You didn’t take a single thing when you left—not one cent from the Lowell family! In fact, you’re the one who made them a fortune over the years! What right does she have to say that!?"
"I’m so furious! My lunch suddenly seems tasteless. I’ve completely lost my appetite!"
Vivian could hear the fury in Eleanor’s voice and couldn’t help but reassure her, "It’s fine, really. I’m doing great, don’t worry."
"If Sharon Galahad has the guts to expose me, then I have the means to expose her right back!"
"But you... it’s already past two. Why are you just eating lunch now?"
"I..." Eleanor stammered, then sighed on the other end of the line. She didn’t sound very happy. After a long silence, she finally spoke again, her voice low.
"She showed up again at noon today."
’She?’
Vivian froze. A specific person immediately came to mind.