The mid-exam disruption caused by Jaden's broken glasses prevented him from receiving outside information. His constant fiddling with the glasses was a desperate attempt to regain the lost signal. The electronic device's red light leaking through the cracked frame was what caught Mr. Brown's attention.
The entire exam hall buzzed with whispers and shock.
It turned out that this so-called top student had been cheating his way to high scores all along. The one who was once seen as a brilliant and privileged student had fallen from grace and was now despised by his peers.
"Such a fraud is disgusting! Ugh!" Someone almost jumped up to spit on him.
"Yeah, it's so unfair. We work so hard, day and night, shedding sweat and tears to prepare for exams, and he cheats his way to high scores."
"This is outrageous. He should be expelled and disqualified from the college entrance exams."
<The class erupted into a chorus of discussions, voices raising uncontrollably."I was shocked when I saw the list this morning. I never thought Isabella would be the top scorer this time.""How is this possible? Wasn't she the one who scored zero on the college entrance exam? Now she's got perfect scores? Unbelievable.""I heard her college entrance exam scores were actually the highest, but her interview scored zero. The school’s record only showed her interview score, omitting her written exam results.""Wow, so Isabella is the real top student!"Some still doubted, "Maybe she cheated too. With how advanced cheating methods are these days, who knows? She can't be lucky every time. She'll slip up eventually, just like Jaden did."Isabella finally understood why everyone had been staring at her earlier—they already knew the exam results.
Lucius glanced at the broken pieces, worried that his future might be at risk, and quickly turned around obediently to wash the dishes.When it was time to rest at night, Lucius naturally lay down on the bed.As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Isabella glaring at him.Curious and puzzled, he asked, "What's wrong, Bella? Why aren’t you asleep yet? Don’t you have class tomorrow?"Suppressing her anger, Isabella asked, "Did you forget to buy a piece of furniture?"Lucius quickly denied it, "No, everything’s here. I even bought an extra-large bathtub."Isabella clenched her fists a little tighter, took a deep breath, and asked, "Then why didn’t you buy a bed?"Lucius rubbed his forehead, "Isn’t there already a bed? Buying another one would be wasteful."Ha, this spendthrift man finally knows how to be frugal.&n
Isabella’s face went stiff. If she kept arguing with this shameless man, she was bound to dig her own grave.She decided to yank him up and push him out of the bathroom. "Hurry up and go out! Nature calls!" she said as she shut the bathroom door with a click.Lucius, still amused, lazily sauntered over to Isabella’s bed and plopped down, resuming his sleep.Mmm, her bed smelled so good, a comforting fragrance that filled his senses.Lucius contentedly closed his eyes.When Isabella finished in the bathroom and came out, she saw the man sprawled out on her bed, once again taking up the whole space. Instantly, she felt a wave of despair wash over her."Wake up, this is my bed. You need to sleep in the bathtub," Isabella said, shaking him helplessly.But Lucius was already deep in dreamland, completely unresponsive.Isab
"Light on the top," he instructed."Focus more on the bottom.""Left side, not too light, not too heavy.""Right side, make sure to press a bit."He directed her with all his energy.Isabella could see that the massage was indeed easing his headache, but his commanding demeanor was getting more and more insistent.Her hands were getting sore.Isabella glared at him, who was enjoying himself with his eyes closed, looking utterly smug.The more she looked, the more she felt he had a face that just begged to be slapped.Suddenly, her phone chimed with a message alert.Isabella glanced at it and saw a message from her cousin, Hilda: "Isabella, I just called the Rivera’s, and your stepmother said you ran away from home. Where are you? I'm so worried about you.
Lucius saw that Isabella was dressed in casual wear and asked, “For a tennis tournament, shouldn’t you be wearing a proper tennis outfit?”Isabella shook her head, “Those specialized sports outfits are too expensive, and I didn’t have time to buy one. My main goal is the prize money. As long as I win, that’s all that matters. I’m not too concerned about anything else.”As she quickly put on her jacket, she continued, “I was planning to drag you in as a last-minute partner if I couldn’t find anyone for doubles. But since you’re still recovering from your injury and shouldn’t be doing intense exercise, it worked out that the school assigned me a partner. That’s one problem solved.”Finally, she grabbed her backpack, ran out the door, and called back to him, “I won’t be back for lunch. You’ll have to handle it yourself.”Without paying any attention to Lucius’s dejected look, which resembled the Titanic
Cynthia’s eyes nearly bulged out of her head in fury. “Are you out of your mind? Call the school security! How did they let such a lunatic in?”Fanny looked at the man, who was so charming despite his rebellious demeanor. There was something particularly attractive about a bad-boy look.Seeing Fanny gaping at the man with starry eyes only made Cynthia more enraged. She shoved Fanny hard, shouting, “Go on, hurry up!”The man gave Cynthia a sidelong glance and grinned, “Security let me in. I’m just here to deliver something.”With that, he turned and headed towards the gymnasium.“So he’s just a delivery guy, acting all high and mighty,” Fanny commented, seeing Cynthia’s face turn pale with anger. Fearing that Cynthia might take her frustration out on her, she hurried to pacify her.Caleb Reed smirked. Lately, he had indeed become a delivery man.
What a handsome delivery guy.Everyone was captivated by Caleb Reed's outstanding appearance.Some couldn’t resist taking photos with their phones and posting them online with the caption: “The most handsome delivery guy just arrived.”Isabella looked at him and recognized him as the fast-track driver often called by Lucius.When did he become a delivery man?She stared at Caleb in confusion and said, “I didn’t order a tennis outfit.”Caleb, showing a face weary from Lucius’s torment, said, “Your man ordered it for you. Ah, life is tough; please sign for it quickly.”He didn’t want to be the center of attention just for delivering clothes and was eager to leave.Oh, so Lucius ordered it. Hmm, a bit touched; didn’t expect him to be so considerate.Seeing Caleb Reed’s troubled expression, Isabella i
Cynthia glared at Isabella, who was standing in the center of the court looking stunning, her teeth clenched in anger.Why did Isabella always have such a good life? Loved by her grandfather, cherished by her father, and adored by Samuel.Cynthia had schemed to take everything Isabella had, but she couldn’t overshadow Isabella’s dazzling brilliance.Cynthia glared fiercely at Isabella, her lips bleeding from the force of her bite.Fanny, feeling frustrated, countered, “No matter how luxurious it is, it can't be more expensive than Cynthia’s sportswear. Her outfit costs over ten thousand dollars.”The crowd erupted in laughter.Those who knew the industry understood that for MCM, the world’s top luxury brand, such diamond-studded high-end apparel would cost several hundred thousand.A ten-thousand-dollars outfit couldn’t compare to a hundr
As if reading her thoughts, Lucius embraced her and held her face, looking into her eyes. “I love you,” he admitted, his gaze unwavering. “I always have. Ever since the first time we met, I admired your strength and your passion. I wanted to be someone you could rely on, someone who would stand by you, even if it meant hiding who I was.”Isabella searched his eyes for any sign of deception, but all she found was raw honesty. The realization settled within her like a weight being lifted. The anger that had flared between them now seemed trivial compared to the bond they had forged through adversity. “No more secrets, okay?”“Agreed,” he said, relief flooding his features. “I promise to be honest with you from here on out. And please don’t worry about the Rivera Corporation. I’ll help you resolve everything.”“You know?” Isabella blinked, startled once again.“I said I was on a business trip because I’m helping you solve the problems at the Rivera Corporation. Your father is critically i
When Isabella finally finished her work and could take a moment to rest, she remembered that someone was waiting for her at home. She quickly took out her phone to send a message.She had expected to find numerous missed calls and messages from Lucius, given his personality, but to her surprise, there was only one message.“Bella, I’ll be busy traveling with my boss for the next few days, so don’t worry about me.”Of course, Lucius had his own life and couldn’t revolve entirely around her. Yet, for some reason, Isabella felt uneasy upon reading that message.As fatigue set in, she had no choice but to rest in the office for a while.She slept soundly until night fell and was awakened by Nate shaking her.“Miss, there’s a banquet tonight where you need to attend as the representative of the Rivera Corporation. We can't let others see us in a bad light; it’s best if you can bring in some investment for the company,” Nate said, immediately arranging for a stylist and a wardrobe for Isabe
"Are you sure it’s not needed?"“Miss, what do you mean?” Nate, perceptive and sharp, immediately understood after hearing Isabella’s words—Regina was involved.Isabella nodded and said to Nate, “Before, when I was slandered, I had a huge argument with my father because I discovered that Regina was behind the losses of the Rivera Corporation. But I only heard fragments of her conversation; I had no evidence.”“I’ll go retrieve the accounts! As long as there are financial transactions, we should be able to uncover the truth,” Nate said, quickly heading towards the company.After all, with Carlos in his current state, only the doctors and nurses could help him now.Once Nate left, no one else appeared outside the hospital room.Isabella dialed Regina’s number.
As Isabella listened to their conversation, a realization struck her. She stepped forward, hesitating for a moment before asking, “Is this the woman you saw?”Barely able to contain her excitement, she pulled out a photo of her mother and handed it to the person who had been speaking.“Yes, yes, that’s her!” The person, startled by Isabella’s sudden appearance, nodded in recognition. After all, such a beautiful woman was unforgettable after just one meeting.“I clearly remember that she was kidnapped by a man living in this building, and Regina was being chased by debt collectors. She even tried to confront that man, provoking him and putting herself at risk with those pursuing her for money.”“Oh, isn’t that just typical of her? Deep in debt and not even trying to earn her way out,” one person scoffed.“I can’t believe it!” Isabella clenched her fists in anger, her eyes wide with disbelief.Her mother had only mentioned her benefactor once,
“You don’t even share the Knight last name, and you dare to argue with me in front of my parents, and my own nephew? You really have some nerve!” Giselle coldly shot a glance at Lydia, not holding back her disdain for her. When it came to matters of interest, she didn’t even want to pretend anymore.“What do you mean I don’t share the last name? I’ve carried a Knight family member in my belly! My poor Lily is still in the hospital, all alone, receiving treatment while her mother is being bullied like this. It’s really inhumane!” Lydia put on her usual act, crying and making a scene, appealing to everyone’s sympathy for her sick daughter.Lydia was merely the daughter of a subordinate of Lucius’ father—Jay. At a banquet, she climbed the social ladder and successfully became Jay’s mistress, even getting pregnant.She gave birth to a daughter, Lily Knight, but the child was born frail and weak.
“Did they send you as a negotiator?” Hearing Lysander mention the Knight family, Lucius couldn't help but sneer, dismissively saying, “They’re all useless leeches clinging to me. None of them genuinely care about my well-being.”The reason Lucius had been gravely injured in front of Isabella was recently revealed to be the work of a business competitorBut at that time, some members of the Knight family weren’t in a hurry to find him; they even tried to take advantage of his absence to seize control of the Knight Group.The ‘useless’ people Lucius referred to included his stepmother—Lydia, his aunt—Giselle, and Lydia's brother, Hans.They all had their eyes on the Knight Group, clearly incompetent and unable to do anything, yet they harbored grand ambitions of taking it for themselves.Over the years, Lucius had cleaned up many of their messes.Fo
Seeing that the crowd was about to be won over by Isabella, Samuel couldn’t hold back his frustration any longer. He turned and walked away, almost fleeing, and his back looked utterly defeated.“I do not regret choosing Aetheron Film Academy; it has always been my dream school because it is open-minded and inclusive, a place where all aspiring performers wish to be. So today, I will not shy away from being broad-minded and accommodating of everyone’s opinions. Now that I stand on this stage, I am not just myself; I am embodying a character whose image is open to any judgment. Thus, I welcome all your doubts.”“However, I also hope everyone can think critically and analyze dialectically. It’s best to bring strong evidence before questioning me. When you defame me, don’t just follow the crowd; have your own insights. If you have grievances against me, feel free to confront me directly; I am never afraid.”“Lastly, I
Clearly, Isabella's powerful presence had intimidated them.In the audience, surrounded by so many people, it was easy for them to hurl defamatory remarks and throw a few paper balls without fear of being immediately identified by Isabella. They felt shielded by their large numbers.But when Isabella asked who among them could replace her, no one dared to speak up. Many of them bowed their heads, afraid to meet her gaze, fearing that if they made eye contact with her, they might be called up to the stage.However, not everyone present was without courage. Some were accustomed to bullying Isabella under the cover of numbers, while others genuinely disliked her due to the rumors circulating about her. One of these was Molly.Glancing around, Molly noticed that those who had thrown things the hardest were silent, not daring to contradict Isabella. Without fear, she stood up, becoming the center
After wrapping up the matter, Isabella went to Aetheron Film Academy for classes.Today was her opening ceremony, and due to her excellent grades, she had been chosen to represent the freshmen and give a speech.Such things had always been routine for Isabella.Having excelled academically throughout her life, Isabella was not intimidated at all; she delivered her speech as the representative of the new students with great fluency. “I’m very happy to enter Aetheron Film Academy and become a diligent student of Aetheron. In the near future, we will surely be the creators of this glorious era.”However, just as she was concluding her speech, someone in the audience threw a rotten egg at her, hitting her squarely.Wearing a pure white dress that day, the foul-smelling egg not only covered her in a terrible odor but also instantly stained her dress, causing the crowd to eru