Lost and Found: Return of My Mysterious Fiancee
Chapter 38: More Dirty Secrets Revealed

Amber's heart skipped a beat under the intensity of that gaze. Tina seemed terrifyingly different. Instinctively, she took a step back, and the others were similarly daunted by Tina's formidable presence. Everyone wondered if this was really the same girl raised in a rural village. Her aura alone was something many socialites couldn't match.

The room fell silent for a moment until Hugo, after a brief pause, asked Tina, "Is there really no other way?" Tina's tone was much gentler when she replied to Hugo, "There is, wait for the drug to wear off!" Hugo simply nodded, not saying much more, and then said, "Since you can't solve it, let's go back. If there's nothing else in the future, we won't come here."

His statement was a public slap in the face to Elizabeth. She was furious, exclaiming, "Hugo! What do you mean? Are you cutting ties with me?" Hugo replied sternly, "Mother! I still call you mother, out of respect for the fact that you gave birth to me and raised me. You are my mother, and I won't cut ties with you. In the future, I will support you to the best of my ability. But you needn't worry about my household anymore."

"If you don't like Tina, I won't bring her here to be humiliated. She is my daughter; if you don't cherish her, I will!" Hugo said and, taking Tina by the hand, he left.

Elizabeth's chest heaved with anger as she cursed, "You ingrate! I am the head of this family! I decide everything in this house. Since she is a granddaughter of the Reed family, she should follow my arrangements!"

Tina stopped, turned around to look at her, and said, "My affairs are not for anyone to decide." Elizabeth wanted to retort but restrained herself from saying anything too harsh in front of everyone and found herself at a loss for words. Tina ignored her and turned to Jared, "Mr. Farrell! There's only one condition for our engagement: the dowry goes to my father. The Reed family never raised me; they have no right to it." Jared smiled and said, "Agreed." Elizabeth, Amber, and everyone else were stunned. Elizabeth was the first to recover, her voice rising, "Engagement? You agreed to an engagement?" Tina's lips curled into a smile, "Yes, I agreed-a few days ago, actually. The engagement is in ten days. Surprise or not? Unexpected?"

Elizabeth felt as if she had been struck by lightning. It dawned on her that when Jared had mentioned postponing the engagement, he had actually rescheduled it to ten days later! She had foolishly thought Jared was interested in Amber.

If she had known this earlier, she wouldn't have schemed so much. Now she had lost face completely! That wretched girl Tina! It must have been on purpose!

"Tina! She is your grandmother. She has always been the one to decide on family matters. The engagement dowry should naturally go to her, not to your father!" Amber, regaining her senses, clenched her fists tightly, feeling as if her face had been slapped.

Tina had already agreed to the engagement with Jared but had kept silent, making them a laughing stock. And more importantly, she didn't intend to give the dowry to the Reed family. How could this be?

"Exactly!" Elizabeth quickly chimed in, "This is unfilial!" Tina sneered, "That's just the way I am!" With that, she turned and walked away, not sparing them another glance.

She left decisively, and Elizabeth should have been grateful for having Hugo, a good son. Otherwise, the Reed family would have paid an even greater price for today's incident. The commotion finally came to an end, and the guests, having witnessed the drama, also departed.

Despite Elizabeth's repeated requests for discretion regarding this Reed family disgrace, the story was leaked to the media. That evening, the Reed family topped the trending search list, and a censored video of Talon and the nanny's affair was posted online.

"The secrets of the wealthy are deeper than the walls of ancient palaces. A grandmother drugging her own granddaughter, not even TV dramas dare to plot this!"

"How could Grandma Reed be so blind? The real granddaughter is so much more beautiful than the adopted one."

"I admire the real granddaughter the most. Even drugged, she found her own antidote, especially Mr. Farrell. Although his legs are disabled, he's a true gentleman; he didn't take advantage of her when she was vulnerable. If it were another man, he would've lost control long ago."

Meanwhile, an 'enthusiastic netizen' dug up Talon's private life.

"Shocking+++ This isn't drugging; they're clearly having an affair! Talon Breed and the nanny have been involved for a while now, and they even have a six-year-old illegitimate child."

"Talon Reed bought the nanny a house in the west district. I often saw him entering the neighborhood, initially thinking the house was for himself, but it turns out it was to keep his mistress."

"Is Talon Reed blind? His wife is so much more beautiful than the nanny. To abandon such a wonderful woman for a mistress? I can't understand the world of the wealthy!" Following the media exposure, the Reed family was in complete disarray.

Ivy woke up in the hospital and saw the media posts, feeling a surge of anger that nearly choked her. She smashed her phone and got up to confront Talon, "Talon, you dog, betraying me is one thing, but to have an illegitimate child too, I'll kill you!"

Her mother, who was caring for Ivy in the hospital, hurried to stop her, "Don't get worked up over what you read online. We don't know if it's true. Don't wrong Talon. Let's replace out the truth before we confront him."

"What's there to investigate!" Ivy couldn't hold back her tears. "They've posted photos. The woman Talon is embracing is that little wretch! They carried on an affair right under my nose, and I was clueless like a fool!"

Ivy wished she could slap herself. She and Talon had been college sweethearts, dating for five years before marriage, and their relationship had always been strong. As a wife in the Reed family, she endeavored to handle all household matters personally.

However, she often quarreled with Elizabeth and Talon. Elizabeth was ruthless in pursuing her goals, often pushing Talon into shady dealings, including drugging Tina under the guise of a birthday celebration. Ivy was aware and had resisted, but to no avail.

Despite everything, she never doubted Talon's feelings for her. The pile of evidence before her was a slap in the face.

"Media always sensationalize," her mother comforted her quietly. "Even if he cheated, we need evidence. Rest now, and I'll have your father investigate. If he did wrong by you, I'll make sure justice is served."

After some thought, Ivy said, "Call father. We need a paternity test for that child."

"Alright."