Trick Him Into Divorce, Then Flee With His Unknow Kid

Chapter 179: Chapter 179 A Whitewashed Scandal

Rose thought she must have misheard.

Her expression froze for a moment, and her heart twisted painfully. She looked up at him in disbelief.

"Are you out of your mind?"

For a split second, she wanted to cut open Ryan’s chest and see whether he actually had a heart.

He knew perfectly well about the feud between her and the Hill family.

Ryan didn’t answer.

Instead, he crouched down and looked at the little girl.

"There are some mini cakes over there," he said gently. "Why don’t you go try one?"

The little girl’s eyes immediately lit up.

After waving goodbye to Rose, she skipped happily toward the dessert table.

Only then did Ryan straighten up.

His gaze met Rose’s.

He could see the resentment in her eyes, as though every trace of affection from their years of marriage had finally shattered beyond repair.

After a brief pause, he smiled faintly. "You know as well as I do that there have been a lot of rumors lately. It’s not good for anyone. It’s only a matter of saying a few words. It shouldn’t be that difficult."

Rose’s eyes glittered with sarcasm.

"Whether she lives or dies has nothing to do with me."

For Samantha’s reputation and carefully cultivated image, Ryan would do anything.

Even if it meant tearing out Rose’s heart.

Wasn’t he essentially forcing the victim to clear the homewrecker’s name?

Ryan remained unbothered by her sharp tone.

He neither raised his voice nor lost his temper.

His expression stayed calm. "This won’t hurt you. The paperwork for the Bennett family’s antique shop will be finalized no later than next month. If everything is settled smoothly before then, wouldn’t that be for the best?"

A chill ran down Rose’s spine.

She stared at him in disbelief.

Was he threatening her with the antique shop?

According to their agreement, ownership of the antique shop would transfer to her after one year, provided she didn’t remarry or reveal their divorce.

Now it had become yet another bargaining chip.

"Ryan?"

At that moment, Samantha walked over.

Her arrival abruptly interrupted the tense confrontation.

Or perhaps it was only tense for Rose.

From a distance, Samantha had noticed Rose talking with Ryan.

After everything that had happened today, her pride had been thoroughly trampled.

Leo had forced her to apologize.

Ryan had publicly described her as nothing more than an employee.

No matter how humiliated she felt, she couldn’t afford to walk away.

She still needed Leo’s support.

Now, seeing Rose talking privately with Ryan again, Samantha’s expression darkened.

After glancing around and confirming that Leo wasn’t nearby, she approached.

Naturally, she slipped her arm through Ryan’s and looked at Rose with feigned generosity.

"Since you’ve decided to acknowledge me as your sister, my father has booked a restaurant for a family dinner tonight. Why don’t you ride over with Ryan and me and join us? It’ll also help show everyone how harmonious our family is."

Rose’s lips curved into a cold, expressionless smile.

So Samantha had heard everything.

Confident that Ryan was protecting her, she had deliberately come over to flaunt her victory.

And now she expected Rose to play along.

"What kind of family gathering?" Rose asked. "A seminar on how to seduce your brother-in-law?"

Samantha’s expression immediately shifted.

"Rose, you’re being incredibly ungrateful."

As she spoke, she instinctively glanced around, worried someone might overhear.

Ryan stood quietly beside her.

His gaze swept across Rose’s beautiful but sharp-featured face.

There wasn’t the slightest sign of anger.

Instead, he casually raised an eyebrow.

His expression seemed almost amused.

Rose had no desire to continue dealing with this scumbag and his shameless girlfriend.

After delivering her insult, she turned and walked away.

If she spent any more time around them, she was convinced it would shorten her lifespan.

Although Samantha was furious, she quickly comforted herself.

In her eyes, Rose had always been too extreme and stubborn.

No man would ever truly like a woman like that.

Ryan had only denied their relationship today out of respect for Leo.

Pressing her lips together, she looked at him.

"Ryan, you’ll come to dinner with my family tonight, won’t you?"

Ryan lowered his gaze.

His cold, sculpted features remained as impassive as ever.

"I’ll make time."

A sweet smile immediately spread across Samantha’s face.

No matter what happened, nothing could shake the bond between them.

All of Rose’s efforts would ultimately amount to nothing.

*****

That evening, Rose met up with Diana, who had finally wrapped up her work.

After dipping a slice of lamb into the bubbling hot pot, Diana slammed her chopsticks onto the table.

"Is he trying to ruin your life? Asking you to tell everyone Samantha is your sister—isn’t that just helping her whitewash everything?"

Rose absentmindedly stirred the sesame sauce in her bowl.

"Ryan would never allow Samantha to be criticized."

"In your dreams!"

Diana nearly exploded with anger.

"Why does everyone in the Knight family insist on bleeding you dry? These wealthy families are nothing but demons. Once you step into their world, they’ll devour you until there’s nothing left."

Rose rubbed her temple. "Right now, they hold all my weaknesses in their hands."

Whether it was the divorce certificate or the Bennett family’s assets.

"So we’re just going to let Samantha win?" Diana demanded. "Not only does she get rid of the homewrecker label, but if she and Ryan ever start talking about marriage, people will have forgotten everything by then. She’ll just claim there was never any sister relationship at all and marry him as if it were perfectly normal."

Rose fell silent.

Then she smiled faintly. "Of course we can’t let her have it that easy."

Diana immediately perked up.

"You have a plan?"

Rose lowered her head and took another large bite of meat.

"We’ll deal with tomorrow’s problems tomorrow."

*****

The next day, Rose posted a message on social media along with a photo.

[No need for further speculation.

Samantha is my sister. She works at her brother-in-law’s company, and most of her interactions there are business-related.

Rather than calling us sisters, it would be more accurate to call us sisters-in-law.

Samantha was once engaged to a member of the Knight family, so from now on, Ryan and I should probably address her as our sister-in-law.]

The attached image showed her public Aster email address, one recognized by many industry insiders.

Using that account, she released an official statement.

The Aetheris Medical AI Database had previously collaborated with Samantha directly, not with New Hope. The statement further clarified that Aster would continue prioritizing its partnership with New Hope.

The move accomplished two objectives.

First, it avoided directly addressing the accusations surrounding Samantha’s patent dispute.

Second, it helped restore confidence in New Hope and stabilize the company’s reputation.

Early the next morning, Diana called Rose.

Her voice was filled with excitement.

"Babe, you’re a genius! You did exactly what Ryan asked. You confirmed that Samantha is your sister—but then you publicly revealed that she was once engaged to another member of the Knight family and turned her into your sister-in-law instead."

Diana laughed loudly. "You’ve practically nailed her to the ethical wall. Doesn’t this make it impossible for her to get closer to Ryan the way she wanted?"

Rose had done it deliberately.

She had followed Ryan’s instructions exactly.

She had indeed cleared Samantha of the "other woman" label.

But she had done so by framing the relationship as one between sisters-in-law.

Only they knew that the Knight family’s second branch would never accept Samantha either.

With a single statement, Rose had practically destroyed Samantha’s chances of ever marrying Ryan.

After all, unless the Knight family had completely lost its mind, no prestigious family would openly approve of a woman marrying two cousins from the same family.

If such a story became public, it would be a source of endless ridicule.

And for a family like the Knights, reputation was everything.

"Samantha must be furious right now!"

Diana laughed so hard she nearly slapped the table.

Rose couldn’t have cared less.

All she knew was that Ryan had already made their marriage public.

The promise she had once made to Margaret—to keep the marriage secret from Samantha and her future in-laws—was no longer relevant.

The Knight family had multiple branches and countless relatives.

Rose had never specified which branch Samantha had once been engaged to.

She hadn’t revealed any additional secrets.

And if the situation could now be turned into a weapon, why shouldn’t she use it?

She didn’t have time to worry about Samantha’s reaction.

Because shortly afterward, New Hope’s official account reposted both her social media clarification and the official statement from Aster.

Almost instantly, public opinion shifted.

With Aster openly supporting New Hope, and Samantha now publicly framed as both Rose’s sister and sister-in-law, it appeared as though all previous conflicts had been resolved.

The company’s credibility crisis seemed to vanish overnight.

Within a single morning, inquiry calls began flooding in.

Several partners who had previously delayed payments suddenly reached out enthusiastically to arrange fund transfers, acting as though nothing had ever happened.