CHAPTER 146: CHAPTER 146: SHE REALLY HAS BEEN A FAILING WIFE

Silas Sheffield’s phone couldn’t be reached, so Clara Sterling called his assistant Zachary Lynch, but it was still turned off.

Clara Sterling couldn’t reach Silas Sheffield, but the phone call from the Sheffield Family’s old lady came through.

Susan Saxon’s anger was undisguised as she sternly scolded, "What on earth are you doing? Get it straight, you’re married now, the wife of the Sheffield’s president. You need to be mindful of your words and actions, as many eyes are on you!"

"I’m sorry, Grandma, I..."

Before Clara could finish, Susan Saxon interrupted harshly, "Still claim there’s nothing with that Julian guy? How many times has it been? Do you always need to stir chaos in our Sheffield family to feel at ease?"

"No, I..."

"I don’t know what kind of spell you cast on Silas, but despite wanting a divorce, he insists on denying it. Now look, he’s become a laughing stock, with everyone watching, all thanks to your doing!"

Clara said nothing, gripping her phone with knuckles turning slightly white, and listened with eyes downcast to the old lady’s tirade.

"Where’s Silas? His phone can’t be reached, tell him to pick up!"

"I can’t reach him either."

Upon hearing this, Susan Saxon retorted sarcastically, "You’re his wife, aren’t you two in love? Yet you can’t reach him?"

Clara remained silent.

"Silas must be so mad at you that he doesn’t want to deal with you. It’s good; let him see what type of person you really are. He needs to wake up, and this marriage must end!"

...

Clara’s phone kept receiving calls one after another.

After finishing a call with Yvonne Sterling and reassuring her mother that she was fine, she didn’t want to answer any more calls.

She sat alone on the sofa in the living room, staring blankly, waiting for Silas Sheffield’s call.

From morning till after four in the afternoon, Silas Sheffield hadn’t responded to her WhatsApp message, and his phone was still off.

Silas Sheffield had never ignored her messages for so long, nor had his phone been off for such an extended time.

Recalling Silas Sheffield’s unusual behavior the previous night, Clara pursed her lips, feeling a dull ache in her heart; did he already know?

Not communicating with her for so long, it seemed he was really angry...

Clara changed her clothes, got up, and went to the company.

If he won’t talk to her, she’ll go find him and explain face-to-face.

She arrived downstairs at Sheffield’s Veridian Branch.

The receptionist’s gaze was filled with gossip.

Clara tried to ignore the gossip and sarcasm in the receptionist’s eyes, and said, "I’m here to see Silas Sheffield."

The receptionist smiled, "President Sheffield is not in the office due to other commitments."

Clara frowned slightly, "Where did he go?"

"Sorry, I don’t know either."

This was not a lie; as a receptionist, how could she know Silas Sheffield’s exact whereabouts.

But to Clara, it sounded different.

Was he really not in, or was he deliberately avoiding her?

At this moment, the elevator doors opened, and Thea Tate walked over.

Seeing Clara, Thea Tate slowed her steps, asking with a smirk, "Miss Sterling, is there something you need?"

"I’m here to see Silas."

Thea Tate smiled brightly, "I’m sorry, Miss Sterling, but Silas is very busy and can’t see you now."

"I’ll go up to find him," Clara said, starting toward the elevator.

Thea Tate, however, reached out to stop her, "You’re no longer an employee here and don’t have the access to enter."

Clara looked directly at her, her tone cold, "I’m the president’s wife."

Thea Tate remained blocking her, slightly tilting her head with a radiant smile, "Even so, this isn’t your home."

Leaving the company, Clara walked aimlessly down the street and tried calling Silas Sheffield again.

Still turned off.

She suddenly felt unsure of what to do.

Silas Sheffield had never ignored her this way before.

In the past, to see him was just a matter of a message or a call.

Now that he was mad at her and didn’t want to see her, with his abilities, finding him would be nearly impossible if he didn’t want to be found.

The Sheffield family’s old lady’s words echoed in her ears.

Every sentence mentioned divorce.

Silas Sheffield going off the grid—was he really so disheartened he wanted a divorce?

The thought of this possibility left her breathless.

When they first got married, she was clear that she and Silas Sheffield were merely in a mutually beneficial agreement, with no real feelings involved. If Silas Sheffield ever wanted a divorce, she intended to cooperate wholeheartedly, leaving decisively without any lingering attachments.

But now, the thought of Silas Sheffield possibly wanting a divorce made her heart feel as if a thousand ants were gnawing at it, causing an intense pricking pain.

At some point, she had fallen in love with Silas Sheffield, completely enraptured.

She didn’t want a divorce...

...

In the Deputy General Manager’s office.

Thea Tate was lounging on the sofa, leisurely scrolling through the overwhelming rumors online, feeling extremely content.

"Heh, trying to go against me? You’re not qualified."

After browsing X to her satisfaction, Thea Tate called the Sheffield family’s old lady.

She started with the usual facade of concern and pleasantries, playing the role of the considerate and dutiful "future granddaughter-in-law," assuring the old lady not to get upset over the online gossip and not to let it affect her health.

How could the old lady not be upset? She was nearly fuming at the gossip online.

"She’s so shameless. I don’t know what Silas sees in such a woman, constantly bringing trouble into my life. This time, no matter what, I must make them divorce!"

The elderly woman rambled on, and Thea Tate listened patiently, coaxing her in a soft voice.

After hanging up, Thea Tate made another call.

"Release the news that Silas Sheffield is going to divorce Clara Sterling."

Soon, news of Silas Sheffield’s impending divorce hit the trending topics list.

After leaving the company, Clara had not checked on the happenings online.

As dusk approached, Clara took out her phone to open WhatsApp and see if Silas Sheffield had replied.

Upon opening WhatsApp, she was greeted by a flood of unread messages, making her head spin.

Messages not only from Lisa Holloway, Anabelle Spencer, and Sophie Sheffield showed their concern.

Even classmates she hadn’t contacted in years were sending messages, and she didn’t need to guess what they were saying.

Clara didn’t open those chat boxes, fixating instead on the contact she had pinned to the top.

However, in Silas Sheffield’s chat box, the messages still stopped at the one she sent that morning.

All day, there had been no reply from him.

She asked Sophie Sheffield if she knew where Silas Sheffield was.

Sophie called back, her tone filled with worry and apology, "Clara, I can’t reach my brother either, but don’t worry too much; he definitely isn’t ignoring you on purpose. My brother isn’t the type to give you the silent treatment; he must have something very important that’s holding him up."

"I called the company to inquire about his whereabouts, but they’re confidential. Although I’m his sister, I don’t have the authority as I’m not part of the core management, I’m sorry Clara..."

"It’s okay." Clara’s spirits were very low.

Sophie Sheffield was very busy, having flown back to Crestwood the day after the anniversary celebration ended.

Now that Clara was in trouble, she was very worried, "I’ve already booked a flight to Veridian, arriving at the airport at one a.m. I’ll come and stay with you."

"No need, Sophie."

Clara knew how busy Sophie Sheffield was; her jewelry company was growing larger, with a pile of matters awaiting her attention daily. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have dashed back to Crestwood right after participating in the branch’s anniversary celebration.

Clara didn’t want Sophie worrying about her.

"It’s okay, sweetheart. I’ll come to keep you company." Sophie insisted on coming to stay with her.

After some back and forth, Clara no longer refused and accepted Sophie’s offer of company.

After hanging up, Clara gathered the courage to open X, posting a clarification to state that she and Julian Hawthorne were just ordinary friends having coffee, not the type of relationship everyone was imagining.

To her surprise, within minutes of posting on X, she received over 99+ new messages.

Clara clicked in to check and found that nearly all of them were scolding her.

She responded to a few, earnestly trying to explain, but received even harsher backlash. Someone even posted a screenshot from May 20th.

[A private room booking on 520, roses, and a candlelight dinner—this is what you call innocent?]

Clara gave up, logged out of X, and uninstalled the app.

Only then did she realize how little she actually knew about Silas Sheffield. When something went wrong, she didn’t even know where to find him or his schedule.

As a wife, she truly felt she was failing.