Chapter 503: Chapter 503: Scandal
Ariana Grant thought seriously for a moment and said, "...I think he’s a bit silly."
Ashley Shaw exclaimed, "Huh?" and said, "I’ve met him too, and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with his intelligence."
Ariana counted on her fingers and said, "I’m not talking about intelligence. If he had an intelligence problem, he couldn’t play games so well. I mean, he’s a bit... naïve! Who meets an online date for the first time and reveals everything about themselves? What if I was just trying to swindle his money? Wouldn’t he end up losing both the person and the money?"
Ashley Shaw chuckled and said, "But you’re not after his money. If you were a scammer, I can’t believe Leon Zeller wouldn’t see through it... So ultimately, he trusts you and loves you."
"Love... is a bit too much to say. We just chat online for now..."
"How can it not be love? Haven’t you heard the saying, where a man’s money is, his love is as well? His money is with you now, so how could he not love you?"
Ariana’s face turned red again.
That night, Ariana tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
She had anticipated losing sleep after meeting Leon Zeller but didn’t expect to be too happy to sleep.
In the blink of an eye, National Day had passed, and the other two people in the dorm finally returned.
Lynn Redding brought back some local specialties from her hometown—Jinyun pancakes.
They looked ordinary but tasted absolutely incredible.
Ariana Grant ate two in one go.
Ashley Shaw glanced at her and asked, "Aren’t you on a diet?"
Ariana had been dating Leon Zeller a few times and confirmed that he really didn’t care about her weight, so she let herself go a bit—though still more restrained than before.
Previously, she dieted for Leon Zeller, but now it’s more for her own health.
Still, she felt she had to come clean.
After Ariana revealed she was with Leon, Jocelyn Hayes and Lynn Redding almost went crazy—with happiness.
Especially Lynn Redding, who was a die-hard fan of the Stardust Team.
Seeing her friend dating the captain made her ecstatic beyond measure.
Ariana timidly said, "I remember you also liked him... you..."
Lynn knew what she wanted to say and laughed, "Don’t worry. I really admire The Wolves, but I like ’Iceman’ more."
"Iceman" was one of the members of the Stardust Team.
He earned the nickname "Iceman" for his expressionless face like an iceberg.
She giggled and said, "Next time you meet The Wolves, can you ask him to set me up with Iceman?"
Ariana readily agreed, "No problem!"
Time flew by, and soon Aethelgard started providing heating.
The first heavy snow fell, and suddenly a scandal about Owen Sinclair broke online.
[Shock! Actor Owen Sinclair suspected of keeping a college girl!]
[Owen Sinclair’s new romance, click for details...]
[Just divorced and already with someone new? Is Owen Sinclair not the gentleman he appears to be?]
Clicking on any title led to photos of Owen Sinclair and Ashley Shaw together.
Among them were pictures of Ashley entering a hotel with another man, implying that Owen’s "new girlfriend" wasn’t a decent one but a socialite.
Some reports even directly accused Owen of having a "girlfriend, girl escort".
In no time, this scandal shot to the top of the trending searches.
Not only that, Ashley Shaw’s personal information was also dug up and hung in the top five trending searches.
Ariana Grant was the first to know about this news, learning it from the dorm’s troublemaking "princess".
She was asked if her friend was the kind to sell her body.
In the dorm, Ariana had always been the neutral one, never taking sides or getting into conflicts.
Usually, she would tolerate whatever disagreements arose.
But this time, she unexpectedly clashed with the "princess" fiercely.
The "princess" was probably startled by her demeanor, and her usual sharp tongue disappeared, only weakly saying, "I didn’t say she was... I was just asking you?"
"She’s not! Do you have any more questions? Ask them all now to avoid spreading rumors outside."
"What rumors? I didn’t make the trending topics, you’re crazy!"
"Yes, I’m crazy. You better not mess with a crazy person."
"You—"
The "princess" wanted to retort, but Ariana Grant genuinely exploded this time, forcefully suppressing her attempted rebuttal.
Ariana saw that she was silent and, not wanting to waste words, took her phone and went upstairs to find Ashley Shaw.
Ashley had just finished the new assignment from Jasper Quill and was about to find him when Ariana burst in.
When Ariana explained things, the whole dorm erupted, except for Ashley Shaw.
Jocelyn Hayes was so angry her face turned red.
"This is outrageous, are those paparazzi insane? How dare they fabricate such vile rumors? Ashley, don’t worry, I’ll tell my mom right away to have those spreading the rumors arrested!"
Ashley Shaw, however, remained calm.
The innocent have nothing to fear; only those with guilty consciences are frightened during times like this.
She flipped through the news article on Ariana’s phone and finally showed some emotion when she saw a certain candid photo.
She handed the phone to Jocelyn Hayes.
"I don’t want to bother your mom, but... this involves your brother, so it’s better to let her know."
"What? My brother?"
Jocelyn immediately took the phone, only to see that the news Ariana mentioned indicated Ashley had gone to a hotel with another man, and that man was Jensen Hayes.
"Damn!"
Jocelyn was even angrier.
She had been worried her mom wouldn’t care, but seeing that her brother was involved, she called her mom without hesitation.
At the same time, Ashley Shaw received a call from Owen Sinclair.
"Ashley, are you alright?"
Ashley moved to the balcony before speaking, "You’re talking about the news, right? I’m fine, just found out about it too. How are things on your end?"
Before Owen could respond, Ashley apologized first.
"I’m really sorry for causing you trouble."
Owen sighed and said, "I’ve brought trouble upon you! I don’t even know where to put my face, but don’t worry, I’ll have them take down the trending topic right away."
But Ashley said there was no rush.
"Uncle Owen, suppressing such news never works. It’s better to let the storm rage a little longer. Let the people behind it grow more complacent and then take them down in one go."
Owen was momentarily stunned and asked her, "What do you mean? Do you know who’s behind this?"
"Yes, I do."
"Who?"
"Rosalind Lynch."
Initially, she hadn’t thought it was Rosalind until she saw the photo of herself and Jensen Hayes at the hotel.
At that time, Rosalind was also staying at that hotel.
The only person who could have taken that photo and maliciously leaked it was Rosalind Lynch.
