Ella smiled but the smile did not reach her eyes, "Dad, I was barely conscious when I was carried out. Won’t you ask me if I am fine?"
Silence descended in the living room.
"Sis, how could you talk to daddy ?" Esther stepped in front of the Yu couple defensively, "They have been worried about you since yesterday... yet, you are blaming them..."
"Worried about me?" Ella blinked, "Essie, they might not know but you know everything. Why didn’t you assure them to lessen their burdens?"
"What is it that we don’t know...?" Mr. Yu’s voice cut through the room.
Esther’s eyes widened.
"Enough, Ella," Mrs. Yu stepped forward, "We are still standing here concerned about you and you are blaming your sister..."
"Mom, do you know who that man was?" Ella turned to her, a hint of coldness in her dark eyes.
Mrs. Yu paused, "If I knew, would I ask you to come over and clarify?"
"I will clarify but will you trust me?"
There wasn’t much Ella could bring herself to say at this point.
"Sis, you should just let the past go and apologize to our parents..."
Esther’s face turned to the side.
Gasps rose in the living room.
Mr. Yu and Mrs. Yu looked at Ella in disbelief. Mo Jun tugged Esther’s hand, pulling her to hide her behind him.
However, a glint flickered in Esther’s eyes.
With a drop of tear rolling down her eyes, she freed herself from Mo Jun’s grip and stepped towards Ella, "Sis, at this point, you should own up to your past mistakes. You can beat me all you wish but as your sister—"
The tight slap sent Esther staggering back.
"Ella!" Mr. Yu stepped forward, protectively shielding Esther behind him, "Explain."
"Dad, the man who died here yesterday was the same person involved in my scandal a few years ago," Before leaving, Ella had asked Adrian if he really killed the person.
The night before passed in a haze and she could not differentiate the truth from her imagination.
So, when she got a call from her mother, Ella knew that Adrian shooting that jerk was not a figment of her imagination.
When she questioned him, Adrian did not answer. Rather, it was Ji Yan who spoke: Miss Yu, you don’t need to worry. Things have been handled cleanly.
Ji Yan did not answer her straightforwardly but Ella understood the ins and outs of the situation all at once.
Mr. Yu spoke up, "What was that man doing here?"
"That’s right. No one could enter the party without an invitation but that person was still there. Coincidentally, in the room where Mom sent me to freshen up..." Ella trailed off and turned to Esther, "Why don’t we ask Esther about it?"
"Nonsense... How would Esther know anything about this..." Seeing the look of conviction in Ella’s eyes, Mr. Yu trailed off.
The smile on Esther’s face faded gradually as she paled.
"Ella!" Mo Jun snapped, "All these years, Esther has supported you regardless of what you did. Time and time again, she went against her conscience to stand up for you. And you are repaying her ...?"
Esther tugged at Mo Jun’s hand, tears rolling down her cheeks "Sis... Sis must have her reasons..."
"Reasons?" Mo Jun frowned as he turned to Ella, "Based on our previous encounters, I had a good impression of you even though I did not know you well.
After knowing who you are, I still thought that your bad reputation was just a rumor... But as it turns out, your infamy is well deserved indeed. You are conceited and unreasonable..."
"And who are you?" Ella glanced at Mo Jun.
Mo Jun was stumped, no words came out of his mouth.
"Mo Jun is your sister’s fiancee. Is this the way you behave with your sister and brother-in-law?" Mr. Yu’s frown turned harsher.
"How could it be... If he is Esther’s fiancee then who was that man I saw that night..." Ella covered her mouth, mid-way, as if she realized that she had said something wrong.
Esther’s face blanched as Mo Jun stepped forward, confused, "What do you mean by that?"
"Ah Jun, sis must be confused about something..." Esther tugged at Ella’s hand.
"How could I be confused? It hasn’t been long since I saw you... with a guy outside the university. He was wearing glasses and..."
Esther smiled softly as she cut her off, "Sis, just standing with a man doesn’t make him my fiance..."
"But you were kissi..."
Ella’s face whipped to the side by the impact of the slap.
"Not only do you not admit your faults, but now you are framing your sister!" Mr. Yu’s stern voice resounded in the living room of the huge mansion.
Esther’s eyes sparkled, her grip tightening around Mo Jun as she sniffled softly.
Ella slowly raised her head, the corner of her eyes turning red, "What if I tell you that I have evidence?"
"Esther got in touch with that person and invited him here yesterday. If not for Adrian, I do not dare to imagine what would have happened to me."
Other than Esther, the remaining people in the place were shell shocked. They had seen Adrian yet they did not dare to believe their eyes, nor did they even think of mentioning that name.
But having Ella say it out loud sent shockwaves through them.
Nobody dared to put a man like Adrian King in the same frame as Ella.
Mr. Yu recovered his senses after a few minutes, "Are you threatening me?"
Ella smiled bitterly, "Dad, I almost fell victim to something so heinous and you think I would threaten you?"
"You...’’ Mrs. Yu stepped forward.
Ella raised a hand, "Mom, do you see how I look now?"
Mrs. Yu remained silent.
Tears rolled down Ella’s cheeks as she opened her mouth, "For years, I lived in insecurities. I thought that I ruined my health forever. I stopped seeing food normally. I kept gaining weight, kept ruining my body and... and I continuously blamed myself for it..."
"But you know what I just discovered?"