bodyguards immediately sprang into action—one patting his back while the other quickly took out his medication and helped him take it.
"How is this possible? How..."
The Imperial Crown Club was his territory! The moment Ella barged into the club that night, he had ordered the surveillance to be turned off. There should have been no way for footage to exist after Ella and he entered the private room.
Could she have used a hidden camera? No, the angle—it was clearly from the club’s security cameras!
Leah, standing outside with dark sunglasses, couldn’t hide the fear flickering in her eyes.
"This footage was obtained by a mysterious hacker," Ella said calmly. "After striking a deal with them, I reviewed the footage right away, which is why I’m holding this press conference today."
"When I was taken to the police station, I had already sent someone to the club’s management to retrieve the surveillance footage. They claimed there had been a problem and that all the footage from that night had been lost." The sarcasm in Ella’s voice became even more pronounced.
The room fell silent. Everyone, whether they were hired hecklers or genuine onlookers, was now laser-focused on the large screen. They all wanted to know the truth.
On the screen, Ella and Sean appeared to be in a heated discussion, both visibly emotional.
Suddenly, Sean stood up in a fit of rage and swung his fist, striking his own forehead!
The audience gasped in shock, almost unable to believe their eyes.
The elderly man in the video was indeed Sean. He had actually hit himself!
This revelation left everyone stunned. No wonder Ella had insisted she wasn’t the one who assaulted him.
Up until now, most people believed Ella’s claims were nothing but lies, painting her as a venomous woman. But after seeing the surveillance footage, they realized that someone was capable of harming themselves just to frame a younger relative.
"This isn’t real! That video... they made it up!" an angry voice shouted from the corner. Everyone turned to see Sean standing there, his face twisted with rage and disbelief.
Richard couldn’t contain his laughter. "Ha! Old Mr. Carter, you actually hit yourself in the face, and you still have the nerve to stand here?"
"Old Mr. Carter, your imagination is quite something. Do you really think there’s a team out there so good that they could fabricate a video of you doing this?" Eric added with a mocking smile, his cold tone eliciting laughter from the crowd.
The video was clearly authentic—no amount of digital editing could explain the exact match of Old Mr. Carter’s cane, clothing, and every other detail from that night.
As the footage showed Sean hitting his face with his cane, those in the crowd who had initially cursed Ella quickly turned their attention to Sean, now mocking him instead.
"Old Mr. Carter, how could you manipulate our sympathy like that?"
"We were out here defending you online, and it turns out this whole thing was your twisted setup!"
"You’re a well-known businessman, and yet you stooped so low to frame your own granddaughter?"
"That was a pitiful stunt! How could you exploit our sympathy ?"
"You shameless old man! What do you gain from slandering your own granddaughter?"
The hall erupted into chaos. Several enraged reporters even attempted to rush forward to confront Sean for an interview.
"The footage is fake!" Sean shouted, his voice trembling with rage.
Ella, fuming with anger, couldn’t help but laugh. This old man still had the audacity to come up with such an outrageous excuse?
"If Old Mr. Carter doesn’t believe it, we can submit the footage to the most reputable forensic departments in the world for authentication," Ella declared, enunciating each word clearly, her voice reverberating throughout the room.
The crowd became even more agitated, turning on Sean, hurling insults and accusations at him.
Henry, who had been clenching his fists tightly, finally relaxed. He took a deep breath, gazed at Ella for a moment, and then turned to leave. Now that she was fine, he had no further worries.
Mason allowed a faint smile to cross his face. This girl was truly something else. It seemed like no one could bring her down. His thoughts drifted back to the night when Ella had fearlessly stood up to Aaron, her bravery and charisma shining through. How could anyone not be moved by her?
Sean, on the other hand, was fuming as he faced the crowd’s ridicule and scorn. The pressure was mounting, and he found himself with no solid rebuttal. Ella’s words had left him with no way out.
She was right—if the video was fake, she could easily submit it to a forensic agency for verification. Once authenticated, no one would dare question its legitimacy.
Sean’s eyes widened as he realized he had completely lost control of the situation. He never imagined Ella would get her hands on the surveillance footage and turn the tables on him so viciously.
She had deliberately waited days, allowing the public to curse and despise her before suddenly revealing the truth, making it clear to everyone how they had been manipulated by Sean. The crowd’s newfound disgust for him was palpable, and Carter Group’s reputation would be severely tarnished.
What a ruthless girl!
Sean’s face twitched, and then, without warning, he collapsed. His two bodyguards rushed to catch him, panicking as they tried to keep him from falling.
"Master, are you okay?"
"Make way! Get him out of here and take him to the hospital!"
The reporters who had been eager to get interviews reluctantly cleared a path, watching with frustration as Sean was carried out.
Leah rushed over, her face pale. "Grandpa... Grandpa, don’t you dare die on me! Ella, how could you be so heartless? What if something happens to him?" she cried, glaring furiously at Ella on stage.
Ella scoffed, "Miss Carter, are you saying I should apologize to Old Mr. Carter after being slandered? That I shouldn’t reveal the truth, but instead quietly endure everyone’s curses and your baseless accusations?"
The crowd immediately turned their mockery towards Leah. Her sense of morality was truly baffling to them.
Eric also let out a cold laugh. "Miss Carter, who taught you ethics? According to your logic, murderers should be praised, while the victims should suffer in silence without seeking justice?"
Leah stumbled back, biting her lip in a panic, unable to find the words to retaliate.
"My grandpa has high blood pressure!" Leah cried, her voice filled with indignation.
"And knowing that, you still brought him here? Was it to enjoy the spectacle?" Richard taunted, a sneer spreading across his face.
Amelia shot Leah a disdainful glance. "Leah, your grandpa just collapsed, and you’re still standing here running your mouth? Do you expect Ella to apologize to Carter Group? I recall Old Mr. Carter accusing Ella of beating him. Your audacity is truly astounding!"
"Absolutely shameless!"
"Carter Group is full of degenerates!"
"Get out! The White Lotus is trying to play the sympathy card again!"
The room erupted in jeers as the crowd turned their anger and disgust toward Leah.