"Are you a designer from the Winrazor Group?" Lana asked cautiously. The woman didn't answer but eyed her with increased wariness.Lana approached her and grinned slyly, "Natalie bought your design, didn't she?" The woman seemed surprised that Lana knew but quickly denied it. "What are you talking about? I don't understand."Seeing her reaction, Lana grew more certain. "Stop pretending. How much did she pay you? I'll offer double! Just publicly expose this at the Creative Visions Competition!"The woman hesitated. Lana persisted, "I'll add more money! Will you do it? It's easy money. Just publicly accuse Natalie! How about it?"Still doubtful, the woman said, "No ... I promised her to keep it confidential." Lana smirked maliciously, "So, you admit she bought the design, right?" The woman nervously denied, "I didn't say that!"Blocking her path, Lana pressed, "How much did she pay you for it? I'll make this simple. I'll offer five times the price!" She handed the woman
"The names of the first, second, and third-place winners are on this card. With over a thousand designers participating in the Creative Visions Competition, standing out from this pool speaks volumes about the winners' capabilities."The host smiled and continued, "Without further ado, I'll announce the third-place winner of this competition."Ten minutes later, the second and third-place winners stood together on stage, visibly thrilled. The anticipation lingered for the announcement of the champion.Natalie clenched her hands nervously, doubting any hope that her work would be recognized. Sensing her tension, Sheldon encouraged, "Stay confident. The yet-to-be-announced champion might just be you." Natalie managed a faint smile but lacked blind confidence."Finally, let's reveal the champion of this competition. Who could it be?" The host glanced at the card and smiled mysteriously. Natalie was breathless with anticipation."The champion in this competition used the code na
"If someone like you gets honored, wouldn't those of us who work hard at our jobs become a joke? I'm here to expose your shameless deeds!" The crowd erupted again."Can't draw so you buy others' work? Truly shameless!" "If she really did that, she doesn't deserve the championship!""Not only that, she should be blacklisted in this industry!" "Blacklisted? Is that possible? She's got connections!"Lana was highly satisfied with the reactions. She looked at Natalie with malice. "Natalie, get ready for your downfall!" she thought triumphantly.Natalie surveyed the reactions of the crowd and soon turned her gaze to Lana. "If you claim I did such a thing, then provide evidence! Words alone mean nothing!"Lana smirked, "You want to see evidence? Fine, I'll show you evidence!" She pulled out a recording pen from her pocket and held it high. "The evidence is right here!"Everyone focused on Lana's hand curiously. Meanwhile, Henry stood near the backstage entrance with Wade at his
"I'm Esme Henderson, the editor of a small magazine. Ms. Shepherd has provided me with design drafts for the past two years, and I've paid her for these services. This summarizes our transactions."Lana's smirk froze instantly. She stared at Esme in disbelief. What was Esme saying? Wasn't she there to accuse Natalie of buying designs? How had it turned out like this?"Shut up!" Lana yanked Esme's arm and cut her off mid-sentence. Lana couldn't accept her statement. She angrily questioned, "That's not how it happened! I heard your argument that day! You previously admitted she bought designs from you! "You even said everything would be revealed on the day of the award ceremony! Why change your stance now?"Esme didn't respond but opened a file and clicked play on an audio clip. Soon, a recording started to play. "I'll add more money! Will you do it? It's easy money. Just publicly accuse Natalie! How about it?"Lana's face turned pale upon hearing her own voice. She had rushed
Henry took a peek at the stage with mixed feelings.He fixed his eyes on the figure on the stage and said, "If everyone finds out that I'm the grand jury of this competition, they might doubt that Natalie has won the award fair and square. Especially after what has just happened."It wouldn't be a surprise if most of them thought that he had intentionally crowned his wife the champion.But the truth was, he really had no idea that that was her work. He wasn't aware that Natalie was so talented in architectural design before this."So you're trying to protect Ms. Shepherd!" Wade finally realized what Henry was doing.Henry gave him a stern glare.Wade thought that Henry was warning him that he had talked too much, so he shut his mouth immediately. However, Henry was glaring for a different reason."Stop calling her Ms. Shepherd." Somehow, that title got on Henry's nerves"Huh?" Wade was confused."You hear me. Have I made myself clear?" Henry stared at him scornfully."Loud an
It seemed that a face-off between Henry and Sheldon was inevitable."Stop it, will you?" said Natalie as she pulled Henry's arm.Then, she looked at Sheldon apologetically and said, "Please excuse him, Sheldon."Natalie felt a bit awkward after what Henry had said. Even though she and Sheldon were just friends, their relationship could barely withstand speculation and slander.On the other hand, Henry wasn't happy that Natalie cared so much about Sheldon's feelings. She seemed upset because he had mocked Sheldon."It's okay. I wasn't listening anyway," said Sheldon unconcernedly."Well, we should go now. Bye!" said Natalie."Bye!"Sheldon stood there as he saw Natalie off. All he wanted was for Natalie to be happy. But obviously, Henry wasn't the person who could bring her happiness.Henry's arm was wrapped around Natalie's shoulder as they were leaving. When they reached the end of the hallway, Natalie moved her shoulder uneasily and said, "There's no reporters here. Yo
Natalie's heart was stirred up by Henry's confession. She looked at Henry puzzledly.When Johnny insulted her in front of everyone, she was so helpless that she sought his help unwittingly.However, when she turned to him, all she saw was him standing intimately with Juliet.She thought that he couldn't care less about her. But two months after the incident, she actually found out that he actually stood up for her secretly. She was dumbstruck.Natalie tried to see through Henry. But the more she knew about him, the less she understood.She turned her eyes to Lana and stared at her angrily. "Even so, you shouldn't drag my father into this! He's innocent!" "Why can't I? Johnny was punished because he brought up your father's scandal, right? Did he say anything wrong? No! He's only telling the truth!"Since you don't want people to know about it, I definitely must expose it to the public!" Lana raised her chin, showing no signs of regret.Natalie slowly walked toward Lana.
Henry only visited fine dining restaurants. Natalie doubted that he would appreciate common diner food. And she certainly couldn't afford fine dining.After all, she was only an ordinary worker with an ordinary income.Henry dragged her to the passenger seat. He opened the door and said, "Didn't you promise to teach me how to cook? Let's do it today!"He shoved her into the car before she could speak her mind.Natalie wasn't going to turn him down. But she was rather curious. "Are you sure you want to learn how to cook?""How hard can it be? I see you've done it quite easily," Henry answered as he fastened his seat belt."It looked easy because I've prepared countless meals." Natalie laughed hollowly.Ever since they were married, she had lost count of the meals she had prepared for him.Sometimes, she waited for him like an idiot after preparing the meal. She didn't call him.In the end, even when the food had turned cold and rancid, he never came back."Cooking isn't ab