CHAPTER 176: CHAPTER 176: YOU THINK I’M DEAD?

The air in the glass house tea restaurant was filled with the scent of desserts and red tea.

Vivian Langdon put down her teacup and looked at the phone screen on the table, her brows furrowed.

"These online users are really scary. Didn’t my sister just get divorced once? Is it worth being cyberbullied? It’s so pitiful, how will she handle the upcoming selection competition?"

Opposite her, in the afternoon sunlight, Rosalind Morgan gently stirred her silver spoon and looked at Mrs. Langdon at a diagonal, "This child, her sympathy is overflowing a bit."

Thinking to herself, the online users are acting out of a sense of justice.

Just half an hour ago, both nannies and bystanders had started spilling information.

Nanny: "They have been sleeping in separate rooms for a long time. He stays in the master bedroom, and she often stays in the guest room. Once, he drank too much and tried to get into the guest room, but the door was locked from the inside. Sigh, what kind of husband and wife is this? Even as their servant, I can’t stand it."

Another bystander revealed: "Mr. Kane, just out of prison, confessed to Vera Sheridan on the street, kneeling and coughing up a pool of blood, yet she didn’t even glance back at him. They say the grace of a hundred days comes from being a couple for one day, but she truly has a ruthless heart!"

As a result, topics like #Vera SheridanColdAndSelfish and #HeartacheForIanKane started trending again.

Online users even think that Ian Kane’s infidelity is justified.

And Vera Sheridan took hundreds of billions worth of Ian Kane’s assets, but showed no compassion for her ex-husband’s misery, not even giving him a glance. It’s really heartless and inhumane.

Mrs. Langdon picked up her teacup, blew lightly, and smiled without speaking.

Vivian Langdon gently turned the phone screen to Rosalind Morgan, looking worried and aggrieved, her fingertips seemingly unconsciously tapping on the news pop-up on the screen:

"Vera Sheridan’s former mother-in-law, Jean Crowe, will hold a live stream to accuse Vera of wrongdoing."

"Aunt, look... some online users are even scolding me, saying I’m shielding my sister-in-law. What should I do about this..."

Seeing that pop-up, Rosalind Morgan’s eyelids twitched, and a fire of anger burned in her chest.

This is the kind of person her beloved son has taken a liking to!

Her character is so bad that even her former mother-in-law is coming forward to tear her apart!

Vivian Langdon swiped the screen, watching Rosalind Morgan’s dark expression, secretly rejoicing in her heart.

Meanwhile, in Valdania.

The effects of the sleeping pills had worn off.

Ian Kane woke up with a familiar, dull knife-like headache scraping against his nerves.

The room was enveloped in thick darkness, silent.

He got out of bed barefoot, stepping onto the cold floor, walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, and suddenly pulled open the heavy blackout curtains.

In an instant, the white snow cap of the Kaelan Mountains and the azure sky crashed into view, stabbing his eyes painfully.

The man’s dark silk robe was loosely tied, his collar casually open, revealing a broad expanse of cold white chest.

Clearly defined eight-pack abs.

An excessively fair and handsome face, expressionless, eyes deep set.

He picked up his phone from the bedside table and turned it on.

The screen lit up abruptly, instantly, countless news notifications and unread messages filled the screen.

Among the top few titles, the words "Vera Sheridan" pierced his bottomless pupils and stabbed into his heart.

Without a moment’s hesitation, he clicked on it.

After quickly browsing through a few of the most dazzling headlines, Ian Kane’s jawline tightened, a surge of rage shooting straight to his head.

He clenched his large hand tightly, nearly crushing the phone, veins bulging on the back of his hand.

He made one call to Justin.

The moment the call connected, he gritted his teeth: "She’s been messed up like this, is Noah Grant dead? Is he just watching with open eyes?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, his heart felt like it was being gripped tightly by an invisible hand, twisted fiercely.

Ian Kane closed his eyes, squeezing out the question through his teeth, "Justin, are you dead?"

"Why do you stand by and do nothing?!"

On the other end, Justin lounged lazily on the sofa, his phone on speaker, carelessly cracking his knuckles.

He sneered, "Bro, Noah Grant is not anxious, what are you worrying about?"

"If we rush in now, what will it look like? Are we here to clean up her boyfriend’s mess? You might not care about losing face, but the brothers do."

Word by word, Justin gouged at Ian Kane’s heart, clamping his molars, white of the eyes quickly bloodshot.

The air stagnated.

Justin’s movements paused as well, knowing he had struck him again!

"Kane, it’s not that I’m heartless, but Vera Sheridan really treats us like a plague, why deliver ourselves to be humiliated by her!" he added.

Ian Kane’s voice was icy, "Justin, do you take me for dead?"

Hearing the dead silence and heavy breathing from the other end, a chill ran through Justin’s heart, instantly sitting up straight.

All laziness and defiance vanished suddenly.

He could advise, he could scold, he could even die for Ian Kane, but he absolutely could not challenge Ian Kane’s absolute authority.

"Kane, I’m wrong!" Justin’s voice was tense, respectful, "The old lady is about to live stream, adding insult to Vera Sheridan’s injury. I’ll go and stop her right now!"

Ian Kane’s voice was calm, "Tell her that if she doesn’t speak a few words in favor of Vera, she’ll have to forget about the pension I stored for her in the family trust."

Justin froze for a moment, "Yes, I’ll handle it."

The call was abruptly cut off.

The room returned to deathly silence, with only the snow-capped peaks of the Kaelan Mountains silently reflecting cold light outside the window.

Ian Kane picked up the cigarettes and lighter on the bedside table, walked to the large window, and sank back into the single sofa.

He held a cigarette in his mouth, lighting it.

Taking a few deep drags, he revisited those "revelations" against Vera Sheridan on his phone, one by one, each word stabbing his eyes with blood red.

The swirling smoke obscured his face.

After a good long while, he suddenly stubbed out the cigarette, picked up the phone, his finger pausing on the screen for a moment, finally clicking on the recording function.

...

Inside the tea restaurant.

The live stream began, and Jean Crowe’s voice came on.

"Dear online users, I am Jean Crowe. Regarding the false claims about my former daughter-in-law Vera Sheridan, I am here to clarify."

"During her marriage, Vera Sheridan did not engage in any inappropriate behavior. She is quiet by nature, focused on her dance career, and showed me, her mother-in-law, much respect."

"The issues in their marriage were mainly my son Ian Kane’s fault."

"On behalf of The Kane Family, I thank her for her past contributions and wish her success and happiness in her future endeavors, thank you."

Rosalind Morgan paused her silver spoon stirring the tea, looking at the screen, a deep confusion crossing her eyes.

Vera Sheridan’s former mother-in-law was actually speaking well of her.

The teacup in Vivian Langdon’s hand suddenly shook, spilling some tea, "How, how is it like this..."

Rosalind Morgan looked at her, the two met eyes, Vivian Langdon hurriedly covered for herself, smiling, "The preview earlier said she was going to expose, seems like it was just a marketing stunt to hype it up..."

Rosalind Morgan said nothing, listening to Jean Crowe’s tone, as if she was "coerced," could it be Noah Grant was secretly threatening her?

In the apartment, Vera Sheridan heard Jean Crowe’s unexpected clarification, stunned, she hadn’t yet had time to ponder the reason behind it, when her phone’s push notification beeped again.

At the top of the screen, a new message broke into view: "Exclusive Audio: Ian Kane Responds!"