After Divorce I Married a Tycoon-Chapter 167: If She Wants to Court Death, Let Her Die
Hearing Claire Mercer repeatedly and confidently accuse her of lying, Roxanne Peyton’s heart skipped a beat, and her eyes darted about nervously.
"I... When did I lie?"
"Besides, I was just asking what you two were whispering about."
"Why are you turning this around on me?"
Seeing the guilty look on Roxanne Peyton’s face, Claire Mercer couldn’t help but smile.
"Because what I was just saying to Stella was about you lying."
Seeing that Claire Mercer was still being gentle with her reminder, Stella Thorne couldn’t stand it anymore and cut straight to the chase.
"Oh, come on. I literally saw you and Silas Rowan get out of the same car just now, but you lied and told us you came by yourself."
"Roxanne, we weren’t even going to call you out on it, but you just had to keep asking."
"So now that we’ve exposed your lie, don’t you want to explain yourself, Roxanne?"
At her words, and seeing the gossipy, scrutinizing, and probing looks on their faces, Roxanne Peyton felt even more guilty and was kicking herself internally.
’I did it precisely so they wouldn’t misunderstand or let their imaginations run wild.’
’That’s why I deliberately came in separately from Silas Rowan.’
’And why I said I came alone.’
’But now I’ve hidden it, only to get caught red-handed.’
’I bet Claire and Stella have completely misunderstood the situation between me and Silas.’
’No matter how I explain it now, it’ll probably just make things worse, won’t it?’
’But I can’t just say nothing and let them get the wrong idea, can I?’
"I was just afraid you’d get the wrong idea, that’s all. That’s why I deliberately came in separately from Silas and lied about coming by myself."
"But Silas and I really just ran into each other on the way here. Please don’t misunderstand."
Claire Mercer laughed. "We haven’t said anything. Look at you, getting all worked up."
"But if you have nothing to hide and everything’s aboveboard with you and Silas, why come in separately on purpose?" Stella Thorne said. "It just makes it seem more suspicious."
"Alright, Stella, the crawfish you ordered is here..."
As she spoke, Claire Mercer picked up a crawfish and placed it in Stella Thorne’s bowl.
’If we keep talking about this, it’ll just make Roxanne and Silas uncomfortable.’
’Getting together tonight was supposed to be fun.’
’I don’t want to make the atmosphere too awkward.’
’Some things don’t need to be spelled out so bluntly.’
Since high school, the three of them had been best friends who could talk about anything.
Even if something really was going on between Roxanne Peyton and Silas Rowan, she trusted that Roxanne wouldn’t hide it from them or secretly date someone.
Everyone tacitly agreed not to bring up the topic of Roxanne Peyton and Silas Rowan again.
The topic quickly shifted to the competition.
Roxanne Peyton had watched the live broadcast, and seeing Scarlett Jewel’s smug, arrogant expression in front of the camera after advancing, she couldn’t help but start complaining.
As Claire Mercer’s best friends, Roxanne Peyton and Stella Thorne hated Scarlett Jewel to their very core.
They couldn’t stand the sight of Scarlett Jewel and wished for nothing more than for her to be eliminated that night.
"Who knew that Scarlett Jewel would get so damn lucky and actually advance."
"Even if she advanced today, she probably won’t be so lucky in the next round."
"Whether she advances or not, she won’t get to be smug for much longer."
Out of the blue, Adrian Sutton suddenly chimed in.
"Huh?" Claire Mercer glanced at him. "What do you mean?"
Adrian Sutton: "I... asked Silas to look into Scarlett Jewel a while back. The results were quite surprising."
"Really?" Roxanne Peyton’s head whipped toward Silas Rowan, her face a mask of pure gossip.
"Does this Scarlett Jewel have some kind of earth-shattering, juicy secret?"
Silas Rowan shook his head. "Not a juicy secret."
At that, Roxanne Peyton and Stella Thorne’s faces fell with disappointment.
But then they heard Adrian Sutton add, "It’s a bombshell."
Claire Mercer: "A bombshell?"
Adrian Sutton and Silas Rowan both nodded.
"The kind that will completely destroy her reputation and make her a pariah," Adrian Sutton said.
At his words, Roxanne Peyton and Stella Thorne practically buzzed with excitement.
"Quick, quick! I can’t wait to hear what kind of earth-shattering things she’s done," Roxanne Peyton urged.
"No, no, no," Stella Thorne said. "I can’t wait to see her reputation destroyed and watch her become a total pariah..."
"Don’t be impatient. The time isn’t right," Adrian Sutton said. "Let her enjoy her moment a little longer."
"If you truly want to destroy someone, you have to let them climb to the very top first, only to then push them into the abyss."
"That kind of fall from grace is enough to make her completely break down."
’I plan to let Scarlett Jewel breeze through the rounds all the way to the finals.’
’Just when she thinks she can claim the champion’s throne.’
’When she believes her future is set, full of splendor and glory...’
’That’s when I’ll make my move and deliver the fatal blow.’
’The whiplash from being on top of the world one second and plunging into the abyss the next will be a blow she can’t possibly withstand.’
’A liar full of flaws, spouting endless lies, a schemer whose methods aren’t even that sophisticated...’
’...has the audacity to provoke Claire time and again. She’s overestimating her abilities and courting death.’
’Since she’s so eager to die, so insistent on self-destructing, then I have to grant her wish.’
’It would be a disservice to all the unscrupulous things she’s done for fame and fortune if I didn’t.’
Claire Mercer and the other two were, in fact, also very curious about what kind of bombshell Scarlett Jewel was hiding.
One big enough to destroy her reputation and make her a pariah that everyone despises.
But since Adrian Sutton and Silas Rowan didn’t want to talk about it right now, she knew better than to press them.
’They must have their reasons for not saying anything now.’
’I’ll find out sooner or later anyway, so I’m not in a rush.’
Roxanne Peyton and Stella Thorne, on the other hand, were dying of curiosity about Scarlett’s bombshell.
But Adrian Sutton and Silas Rowan wouldn’t tell them, which was driving the two of them crazy.
Claire Mercer could see they were being left in suspense.
So she quickly smiled and changed the subject back to the competition.
"Next Saturday is the second round of the finals. The theme this time is ’Veridia,’ which means we have to design clothing that best represents Veridian culture."
"But didn’t we already design historical clothing for the first round?" Stella Thorne asked.
Claire Mercer replied, "Historical clothing is a broad category, but the styles that best represent Veridian culture are Hanfu and qipao."
"I’m planning to design one qipao and two Hanfu ensembles this time."
"But aren’t qipaos your specialty?" Stella Thorne asked.
"I want to challenge myself," Claire Mercer said. "You have to step out of your comfort zone to grow."
"If you only stay in your comfort zone, you’ll never break through your own limits or discover your full potential."
"Well, no matter what you design, I’m sure you’ll make it to the grand finals. Claire, I have total confidence in you." Stella Thorne now had one hundred percent faith in Claire Mercer.
Based on the outfits she wore in the competition today, she had clearly seen the amazement and approval in the eyes of the judges and the audience.
Even she had been struck by how beautiful she looked the first time she tried them on.
’I wonder if anyone in the audience took pictures of the stage today. The exquisite, flowing historical outfits, the delicate makeup, and the stage lighting...’
’I must have looked like a fairy. Hehe.’
Stella Thorne thought to herself with a touch of narcissism. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚
Little did she know, the two outfits she had worn that day had already gone viral online for their beauty.
