Chapter 1383: Chapter 1383: In Harmony
But Vincent shouldn’t have known about this matter. Even if he did know, he had no proof. As long as I don’t admit it, this kind of thing will remain without evidence.
Otherwise, if this gets exposed, what will the investors think? They’ll believe that he spent money to hire someone to assist Yiren. In the end, it wasn’t Vincent who was hired but Aradia. Either way, it wasn’t Yiren’s own abilities that attracted the investment from the financial deity. This would become a major issue, a matter of deception and dishonesty.
It would negatively affect Yiren’s reputation and abilities.
"Ivanov, you’re supposed to be someone with prestige, yet you’re shameless like this. Do you think that lack of evidence means you can deny everything without consequence?" Vincent sneered, his tone dripping with disdain. "But my secretary-general records every phone call in the system. Don’t bother being polite to me. Let’s see who gets convicted when this goes to court."
"You..." Ivanov’s old face turned red and then black in fury and shame, yet for a moment, he was speechless.
Who would’ve thought this old man had such a trick up his sleeve?
The surrounding crowd erupted in astonishment. Judging from Vincent and Ivanov’s exchange, the hidden truth was obvious—Aradia had actually been bought off.
Many people looked at Yiren with suspicious, incredulous eyes. Yiren’s face flushed red; she wanted to explain, but her foster father’s behavior moments ago had clearly exposed the truth. She had no room left for explanation; her humiliation was unbearable.
The admiring gazes from the guests earlier gradually transformed into ones laced with doubt.
Such unscrupulous tactics—how much of her so-called stellar record really came from her abilities? And how much was exchanged through underhanded methods and money? The mystery within was immense.
Yiren saw their expressions and immediately understood the bad situation. She was about to lose considerable public favor.
At this point, she steeled herself and put on a shocked expression, rebuking Ivanov with righteous indignation: "Father, how could you do such a thing? You know how much I despise hidden rules like these. Whatever I want, I wish to achieve through my own ability and fair competition. What you did disappoints me deeply."
Ivanov’s face turned a ghastly shade of green.
Then, she looked at the guests with an innocent and pained expression and performed a sincere bow.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I sincerely apologize to you all. I was unaware that my foster father arranged this matter in secret. If I had known earlier, I would’ve definitely stopped such an unfair tactic."
The guests talked among themselves in low voices. Seeing her shocked expression and her sincere attitude, they began to doubt whether she really knew about the insider dealings. It was possible that Ivanov, the old fox, was acting on his own initiative.
Ivanov felt a burst of anger in his chest as he glared at this treacherous girl who was betraying him from within. She had actually pinned the blame entirely on him.
But although he was furious, he wasn’t foolish, so he put on a remorseful look.
"I just didn’t want you to work so hard trying to generate performance. I never expected... sigh, it’s all my fault."
The father-daughter duo sang in harmony, presenting a moving scene that made it hard to distinguish truth from lies.
Ye Lu looked on coldly. This father-daughter duo certainly had polished acting skills. Despite surely being at each other’s throats behind the scenes, they still managed to unite publicly on the surface.
Seeing the doubtful gazes around her diminish somewhat, Yiren let out a quiet sigh of relief. Though she had suffered some setbacks, and Aradia was no longer of use to her, the competition’s standard was based purely on performance.
She locked eyes with Ye Lu, her gaze calculated and icy, carrying an undertone of triumph.
No matter what, as long as her performance figures surpass Ye Lu’s, she will win in the end!
Huffman, who had watched the drama unfold, finally decided to speak:
