Under the righteous gaze of Wayne, mother and daughter felt extremely guilty.
Roles had reversed, and now it was their turn to barely dare to breathe.
Hefei chuckled dryly, "I told you Wayne was innocent. Veronica, what have you done?"
"Ah, what does this have to do with me? Clearly, it was you who first..."
"Hm, I also want to say, it was you who..."
Seeing Wayne sitting huffily in the chair, his face darkened and not saying a word, the two women realized the gravity of the situation and started bantering like a comic dialogue to try to make Wayne laugh.
In the midst of their talking, they edged little by little toward the door.
"Look at the mess you two have made!"
Wayne slammed his hand on the conference table, shaking all over with anger, and vehemently said, "Everything was going fine. Lina brought out the proof, and Odilia and I were both out of the competition, and now look what has happened. Because you two believed the enemy instead of me, you gave Flora the opportunity to turn the tables."
"Do you have any idea how much I had to pay to dig out Flora’s student, how hard I worked to get Lina to take the photos, do you know who I was doing this for?"
"Tell me, are you two trying to infuriate me to death?"
Wayne banged on the table and the chairs, howling about his family’s misfortune, a picture of woe that would make onlookers weep.
Hefei and Veronica obediently stood still, heads bowed.
Hefei was angry at herself for not being tough, just as Wayne had said; she had actually not believed her own student.
This was really inexcusable!
How could Wayne harbor any ill-will, it was all because of Austin, who dressed and even had his hair styled exactly like Wayne, creating an excellent impersonation that had fooled her earlier.
The scoundrel, I’ll kill him when I get back!
"Wayne, Sister was just worried about you, afraid you’d fallen for a honey trap. You have no idea how malicious Flora is; her student is definitely not any good either," Hefei tried to explain.
Veronica nodded incessantly, taking her mother’s cue, she chimed in, "Exactly, exactly, it’s because I care about you that I..."
Wayne’s hand struck the table, making the two Dragon Bloods stand at attention; he glared at Veronica malevolently, "You performed very well today; I’m very pleased. Just wait, there are too many people here, see how I deal with you when we get back."
Veronica looked utterly distressed, deeply realizing her mistake and hoping Wayne would no longer be angry.
Next time, she would definitely stand firm in her belief in Wayne.
Indeed, it was all Velie’s fault. Had Velie not constantly mislead her, she wouldn’t have doubted Wayne.
"Veronica, you’re too much!" Hefei scolded with a stern face, and in order to absolve herself of blame, she sold out her daughter on the spot.
"And you, teacher..."
Wayne gritted his teeth and, after a long moment, reluctantly said, "Those looks you gave me just now hurt me deeply. I don’t have a mother, and I’ve always seen you as my mother, but what then? A few photos..."
"Naively, I thought that only if Austin framed me, claiming I had other girlfriends outside, several of them, you would believe it without a doubt."
"Austin is family, he’s best at deceiving women, so it’s understandable that you believed his lies, I understand that, but Lina is a stranger!"
"A stranger, a few fake photos, and you..."
"You’ve disappointed me too much. I thought you saw me as a son, that you would trust me unreservedly."
"It’s not like that, good kid, listen to my explanation, it’s all Austin’s fault," Hefei stepped forward to embrace her son and explain.
What did this have to do with Old Login, just because he wasn’t there, he got roped in?
"Before marriage, that scoundrel was a playboy; he has a past, and you look like your father, that’s why I..."
Hefei held her son tightly, "Don’t worry, next time, I promise to trust no one but you."
Wayne: I was just waiting for you to say that.
Veronica: Great, finally the truth comes out. I must be adopted after all.
"Teacher, I trust you, this time it’s Austin’s fault, let there be no next time..."
Wayne’s eyes reddened as he lifted his head, "You have no idea how bad I felt at that moment!"
Hefei felt incredibly pained, and mother and son embraced each other.
Hefei scolded Austin for causing significant harm, looking for any excuse to lay the blame on someone, and under Wayne’s insistence, she reluctantly gave up the idea of divorce, but retribution was inevitable; a thorough beating was in store tonight.
Veronica was dumbfounded; such a big decision as divorce and no one thought to discuss it with her?
If there was one person too many in the family, she knew, without saying, who everyone thought it was.
The scene shifted to the High Priest’s office.
Hefei sat at her desk, sighing with regret, "We had a great chance this time, I was so close to winning. Austin is undeniably to blame for this; I’ll teach him a lesson when we get back."
It was about time he was taught a lesson!
Moreover, it’s a lesson, not a reward, don’t get the two confused.
Wayne shook his head, "Actually, our chances weren’t that great. I never did anything with Odilia; I’m not that type of person. It was too naïve to think a few photos could disqualify her."
"Flora has that Crystal Ball; she can prove Odilia’s purity an infinite number of times unless I grit my teeth and decide to sacrifice my own purity alongside Odilia’s."
There’s absolutely no need for that! x2
"Let it go. Using these underhanded tactics, even if you win, it wouldn’t be a fair victory. With your talent and intelligence, you can beat Flora’s student squarely," Hefei urged, fearful that Wayne would do something reckless.
Veronica silently agreed; she thought the same.
"Alright, even though that method would be simpler and more effective, since the teacher has spoken, and I guess Veronica wouldn’t be happy with it either, I’ll listen to you. But," Wayne continued, lamenting his grievances all the while.