Chapter 6

"Well, well, look who it is. It’s the daughter-in-law of the Blake family." A sarcastic remark was heard from afar. Tiffany turned and saw Jessie in a red, strapless evening gown. She was walking gracefully toward her. Even in the dim light, Tiffany could see the look on Jessie's face. She had such a pretty face, yet she made that kind of expression. It was such a waste. 'Disgusting!' Tiffany grunted and replied with an equal tone of sarcasm, "Well, well, look who it is, indeed. Miss Young, I heard you cut ties with your mother ever since your plastic surgery?" Tiffany overheard Jessie addressing Avery as ‘Aunt’ instead of 'Mom' when she was at the Young family's house the other day. 'I still can't believe she called her that,' thought Tiffany. Hearing her words, Jessie's face contorted with anger. Jessie loved to be praised for her beauty. It was something that she had always taken pride in. She hated it when somebody felt that her beauty was because of plastic surgery. The only people who knew about her plastic surgery were her parents. Everyone else thought that she was born with a beautiful face. That was why she got so angry at Tiffany, who exposed one of her darkest secrets. Jessie pointed at Tiffany and said, "Don't get all cocky now that you're married to Micah. I heard your little conversation just now. Like what he just said, he'll never fall for someone like you, unless he's blind." Tiffany gave her a sidelong glance and said, "Most couples bicker about little things, don't you know that?" Jessie laughed and told her that she was just lying to herself. When Jessie knew that Micah had woken up, she was slightly worried that Tiffany would get the chance to climb up the social ladder and thus surpass her in terms of social status. However, now she knew that there was no need to worry. 'Micah doesn't like her and will divorce her after one year. She'll be nothing but a divorcee then.' Jessie could not help but laugh evilly at the thought, but all of a sudden, she fell silent. She caught a glimpse of an old man who was walking toward her in crutches. His hair was completely white, and he was dressed in a casual royal-blue suit, giving off a powerful aura. After getting a good look at him, Jessie's jaw dropped when she realized that he was Mr. Lawrence. Mr. Lawrence was a powerful man. Being a retired grand marshal, he was well-connected in the military. He also received multiple awards, making him a very high-ranking official back in the day. Due to his poor health, it was said that he led a modest life and rarely attended any parties. For that reason, not many people had seen him before. Jessie's uncle had given him a medical check-up when he dropped by South City. Her uncle showed her a photo of Mr. Lawrence, and it was then Jessie got to know about him. Mr. Lawrence came forward and asked, "Young lady, do you know where the restroom is?" Tiffany pointed ahead based on her vague memory. Seeing Mr. Lawrence's unsteady steps and how there was nobody by his side, the image of Quincy White staggering in the rain flashed across Tiffany's mind. Stepping forward, Tiffany took his arm and said, "Let me take you there." She always had a soft spot for the elderly. A hint of displeasure flashed across Jessie's eyes when she thought that Tiffany was trying to make a connection with the Lawrence family. Taking a quick look to make sure nobody was around, Jessie rushed forward and gave Tiffany a hard push on her back. The sudden movement messed with Tiffany's balance, and she fell to the ground. She then heard Jessie's shrill voice saying, "You're so wicked, Tiffany. How could you push Mr. Lawrence?" While lying on her side, Tiffany saw that Mr. Lawrence was unconscious on the floor. Just as she was checking his vitals, Tiffany heard footsteps approaching. Tyler was soon seen rushing over to the scene. He then shoved Tiffany away and asked frantically, "Grandpa, are you okay?" Tiffany was about to fall when she was suddenly steadied by a pair of large hands. Turning around, Tiffany saw that it was Micah, and she thanked him. With a hint of anger in his voice, Micah asked her, "What happened here?" Jessie pointed at Tiffany and said, "It was her. She pushed him. I saw it with my own eyes." Micah frowned as he turned to look at Tiffany. She shook her head in disagreement. A commotion broke out in the crowd, and people started raising their suspicions about Tiffany. Jessie had a good reputation, unlike Tiffany, whose reputation had gone down the drain years ago. It seemed obvious who to trust. Tiffany stole a glance at Micah, thinking that he would not believe her either. However, his eyes were dark, and he seemed indifferent. Tiffany could not figure out what he was thinking. Micah asked the people around to call for an ambulance as he said, "Mr. Lawrence may be in a dangerous state. We should take him to the hospital first and deal with other things later." Seeing an opportunity, Jessie stole the spotlight and said, "Mr. Blake, Mr. Lawrence, I study medicine. Let me have a look at him." This had been her plan all along. First, she would push the blame on Tiffany, saying that she was the one who pushed Mr. Lawrence. She knew that the Lawrence family would never forgive Tiffany for doing so. Then, she would use this opportunity to 'save' Mr. Lawrence, so that the Lawrence family would have no choice but to owe her a favor. That way, Mr. Lawrence would feel indebted to her, and she would use this to her advantage. However, Jessie's frown grew deeper as she checked his vitals. Small beads of sweat started appearing on her forehead, trickling down her face. Seeing her pale face, Tyler asked anxiously, "Miss Young, how is he?" "Mr. Lawrence, given your grandfather’s poor health, he's likely to... be paralyzed after this accident." Jessie had not expected this. All she wanted was to have the old man owe her a favor. She never intended to really put him in harm's way. Given the current circumstances, she had no choice but to make everyone believe that it was Tiffany who did this. With his eyes glowing red with anger, Tyler glared at Tiffany and said angrily, "You evil woman! My grandfather doesn’t bear any grudges against you. How could you do this to him?!" He raised his hand and was about to slap Tiffany, but his arm was soon caught in mid-air. "Bro, don't tell me you plan to defend someone like her?" Micah replied with a deep voice, "We should find out what happened first. If it's really Tiffany who did this, I won't stop you." "Jessie said that she saw her push him. What's more to argue about? "Besides, she's an evil person who could even harm her own sister. Isn't it obvious enough that she's the one who did this?" "Mr. Lawrence, don't you think that you're jumping to conclusions? You've only heard one side of the story," Tiffany said calmly. She then continued, "Jessie, you said that I'm the one who pushed Mr. Lawrence. Tell me, what makes you think that I'll put him in harm's way?" Jessie was suddenly lost for words as she replied, "How would I know?" Seeing her reaction, Tiffany gave her a cold smile. "Stop accusing me if that's the case. Mr. Lawrence was just asking me for directions. I noticed he was having trouble walking, so I offered to help. Jessie pushed me suddenly, and that's why both of us fell down." "Stop that nonsense. Why would I push you?" Jessie stood her ground and insisted that it was Tiffany who pushed Mr. Lawrence. Tiffany was starting to get impatient. Mr. Lawrence's condition might get worse, yet they were still arguing about who was right and who was wrong. Knowing that the Blake family must have surveillance cameras installed around the villa, Tiffany suggested that they check the surveillance footage. The accident happened in an open area, so she was sure that it would be recorded somehow. However, Jessie did not falter when she heard Tiffany's suggestion. Jessie knew beforehand that there were no surveillance cameras in this area. She had even paused to check her surroundings before committing her act. Twilight Villa was a private residence owned by Micah. He had lived alone before his accident. Everybody knew that Micah liked his privacy. For that reason, it was unlikely for him to install surveillance cameras in his villa as that would mean exposing his private life. However, Jessie was not aware that there was another set of surveillance cameras installed farther away from the villa. This set of cameras was more advanced and was equipped with real-time monitoring. Grannie Blake had also ordered more security cameras to be installed, just in case something were to happen during the party. Jenkins soon came over with the recorded footage. The camera was not pointed directly in their direction, and the video was a bit blurry. Nevertheless, the whole incident was still recorded, although it only occupied a small section of the screen. Tyler's face was plain with resentment when he saw Tiffany walking up to Old Master Lawrence. A few seconds after that, a figure was seen pushing Tiffany from behind, causing her to fall along with Mr. Lawrence. Tyler's expression changed visibly when he saw this. That figure was just seen accusing Tiffany not long ago. All eyes were on Jessie after watching the footage. Jessie felt as if their stares were burning her alive. "I-I didn't mean to... I thought Tiffany was up to something bad. That's why I rushed forward." "Hmph." Tiffany sneered and said, "Are you sure you weren't trying to destroy my reputation by accusing me of pushing Mr. Lawrence?" Just as Jessie was about to refute, the ambulance arrived at the scene. The villa became a bit chaotic after that, and the conversation was soon dropped as everyone was more concerned about Mr. Lawrence's wellbeing. Tiffany could not help but let out a laugh when she saw Jessie breathing out a sigh of relief. 'You think you're off the hook? This is far from over.'