After Divorce I Married a Tycoon-Chapter 72: Exploded the Hot Search

The Mercer Family went viral overnight.

Footage of the police taking Julian Mercer and Judith Caldwell away for investigation made the news and even started trending online.

This was negative press, and it even involved a criminal investigation.

This plunged the Mercer family’s already precarious business into dire straits.

No matter how much money Oscar Mercer spent to take down the posts, it was useless.

The footage of Julian Mercer and Judith Caldwell being led away by police for questioning remained at the top of the trending topics. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

The millions spent on PR had all gone down the drain.

At first, netizens didn’t know who the people in the trending post were.

But words like "wealthy family" piqued everyone’s curiosity.

But when Claire Mercer’s interview was released, the topic exploded.

"Wealthy Family’s Adopted Daughter Imprisoned After Refusing Forced Marriage"

The headline promised a juicy, melodramatic soap opera about a wealthy family.

An eye-catching "Viral" tag next to the headline drew in more and more onlookers.

The news story included a video interview.

The young woman in the video was stunningly beautiful.

But she was in a terrible state—her face was haggard, her skin deathly pale, and as she spoke of her ordeal, the tears flowed nonstop.

"Just two days ago, I found out the Sinclair family had been deceiving me for two whole years."

"When Sinclair was crippled in a car accident, I married him."

"For two years, I cared for him meticulously, more devotedly than any of our maids."

"He had once saved my life, so I was willing to do it."

"But I only found out a few days ago that his legs had healed long ago. It was all an act he put on just for me."

"His mistress on the side is pregnant, too."

"I asked for a divorce, but Mrs. Sinclair not only refused, she even hired people to try and defile me..."

"But as it turned out, we didn’t even need a divorce, because the marriage certificate was a fake."

As she finished, Claire Mercer’s tears streamed down her cheeks like pearls from a broken string.

After a great effort to compose herself, she continued.

"Just when I felt utterly hopeless about life, I thought I could find warmth with the Mercer family."

"Instead, my adoptive parents dealt me another heavy blow."

"When they found out I had no ties to the Sinclair family anymore, they tried to forcibly marry me off to a man in his fifties to secure a business deal for the Mercers."

"But I’m only twenty-four! Why are they forcing me to marry an old man whose three previous wives have all died?"

"That man is even older than my adoptive father..."

"I adamantly refused, so they imprisoned me."

"I have claustrophobia, but they still locked me in a small, dark, musty room with no ventilation and no light."

"In that confined space, the thin air made it impossible for me to breathe."

"Have you ever felt like you could suffocate at any moment?"

"For their own gain, they don’t care if I live or die. They just want to squeeze every last drop of value out of me."

"Their son has nearly drained me of my blood, and now they want to sacrifice the rest of my life..."

"If I died, they would probably try to sell my organs, too..."

Claire Mercer’s haggard face was ashen.

Throughout the interview, she spoke through sobs, her eyes red and swollen from crying.

She looked utterly tormented.

She seemed to be on the verge of a complete breakdown at any moment.

Her ordeal, her haggard and pitiful appearance...

...left the online onlookers feeling both heartbroken and furious.

"I feel so bad for Miss Mercer. This is just too tragic."

"Miss Mercer has it rough, for real!"

"Oh my god, what kind of monsters are her adoptive parents in the Mercer family?"

"Locking someone in a confined space can be fatal. This is basically premeditated murder by the Mercer family."

"I always knew the backstabbing among the rich was more dramatic than a TV show, but for the Mercer family to betray their own adopted daughter like this... it’s just disgusting."

"A man in his fifties could be her dad! And he’s an old guy whose three wives have already died. The Mercers are literally pushing her to her death."

"They aren’t just pushing her to her death, they’re openly sending her there."

"That fifty-something old man Ms. Mercer mentioned, the one with three dead wives... Is that who I think it is?"

"@poster above, spill what you know so we can analyze it."

"His surname is Bao. He’s had three wives die, and rumor is, every one of them had external injuries at the time of death. It made headlines before, but the posts were deleted and the story was hushed up. The power of money at work, I guess."

"This Mr. Bao is a notorious predator in Rhonia. For the Mercer family to force a girl as beautiful as a flower to marry him... their motives are simply despicable."

As everyone denounced the Mercer family, someone brought up a new point.

"Did anyone else notice Miss Mercer mentioned the Sinclair family?"

"The Sinclair family, the richest in Rhonia, used a fake marriage license to deceive her for two years? What kind of garbage ’prominent family’ is that? Their tactics are just plain filthy."

"I noticed she mentioned the Sinclairs, too. Does anyone know the inside story on that?"

"I can take this one. I’m a Rhonia local. I know some of the inside scoop."

"@poster above, spill it! Spill it!"

"Pulling up my chair for this."

"Got my snacks ready."

"Hurry, tell us what you know!"

"..."

"Rumor has it, Miss Mercer hasn’t had it easy with the Mercer family over the years. Her adoptive parents were always critical and gave her a hard time. She’s been working part-time jobs to pay her own tuition and living expenses since high school."

"To escape being married off in some random business alliance, she chose to marry Sinclair, the man who had saved her life but was later in a car accident."

"She thought it would be an escape, but who knew Mrs. Sinclair would use a fake marriage certificate to trick her for two years. On top of that, Sinclair’s legs were already healed, but he kept pretending to be disabled to fool her, all while cheating on her with his ex-girlfriend. And get this—his ex-girlfriend is the Mercer family’s actual, biological daughter..."

"Oh, and I heard the Sinclair family did something even more insane."

"Spit it out, don’t stop now!"

"This tea is just getting good, why’d you hit the brakes?"

"Come on, hurry! Don’t make me get down on my knees and beg you."

"..."

"I heard that when Miss Mercer found out Sinclair was faking his injury while secretly sleeping with his ex-girlfriend, she asked for a divorce. But she was nearly set up by Mrs. Sinclair."

"Mrs. Sinclair wanted to hire someone to assault Miss Mercer, creating a scandal about her having an affair so they could ruin her reputation."

As soon as these details came out, the Sinclair family also landed themselves several trending topics.

"Rhonia’s Richest Family Scams Woman with Fake Marriage for Two Years"

"Sinclair Heir Fakes Disability to Deceive Wife"

"Sinclair Heir Cheats, Mistress Allegedly Pregnant"

Of all the topics, "Mrs. Sinclair Hires Thugs to Assault Ms. Mercer" generated the most discussion.

"I don’t get it. Why would Mrs. Sinclair do that?"

"Supposedly, Miss Mercer took meticulous care of Sinclair for two years. Then, after he healed, he not only kept faking his injury but also got his mistress pregnant. If word of that got out, people would definitely blame him."

"Her grandson cheated, so she probably couldn’t stand Miss Mercer being the pitiful victim. She wanted to make it look like Miss Mercer cheated, too. That way, no one could point fingers at the Sinclair family."

With that explanation, the online onlookers instantly understood.

"Holy shit, what the hell kind of monsters are the Sinclairs?"

"Damn, it’s like she escaped one wolf’s den just to fall into another."

"How can Miss Mercer be so unlucky?"

"The people in the Sinclair family are just too disgusting."

"I can’t even tell which family is more disgusting, the Mercers or the Sinclairs."

"It’s a tough call. They’re about equally disgusting."

Everyone was devouring the drama with relish, and the topic only got hotter.

The public’s focus shifted from the Mercer family to the Sinclair family, who now found themselves the target of everyone’s condemnation.