Love beyond the mask ( Whitney )
Chapter 363

"Whitney, what's wrong?"

At the venue, Keegan noticed Whitney seemed a bit distracted.

"It's nothing," Whitney's gaze involuntarily drifted back, lost in a sea of unfamiliar faces at the wedding reception.

She redirected her attention, furrowing her brows slightly, "Feels like someone's watching me?... Let's go, Uncle."

"All these high-fliers are heading downstairs for Ludwik's chip launch. You going?" Keegan asked her as they stood by the elevator.

Right then, the elevator doors opened on the ground floor.

The Skyfaith chip launch?

Whitney paused, her mind instinctively jumping to Jarvis. She frowned, her eyes betraying her thoughts. Before she could react, the crowd pushed her out of the elevator.

In the main hall, the Skyfaith Sharp-F Chip launch was just starting. Ludwik, clutching a folder and flanked by Skyfaith's top brass, strode into the venue. But before he could reach the stage-

Suddenly, two figures blocked his path, their expressions urgent, brandishing their phones and bellowing, "Mr. Lippert! What's going on? There's a rumor online about a Sharp-F Chip data leak, is it true? This video, clear as day, claims not only has the data leaked, but also that the Sharp-F Chip can't launch today because of a research mishap!"

The speaker was the CEO of Tyche Inc., visibly outraged as he presented a viral tech scoop. Poten Tech's CEO was equally furious, confronting Ludwik, "We've been waiting for this chip launch, ready to start production. We spent billions on its patent, and now there's a pre-launch data leak. Mr. Lippert, how do you explain this to us?"

As they finished, the surrounding businessmen were stunned, then a murmur spread. Reporters, smelling a story, all rushed over.

Ludwik pursed his lips, silent.

On the stage, a Skyfaith executive, after receiving an urgent call, hurried over, "Mr. Lippert, Mr. Lippert, it's bad news. The Sharp-F Chip failed its final test; the doctor found a critical data error, it's unusable. The Sharp-F Chip... can't launch as planned." "What?!" The CEO of Tyche Inc. was on the verge of fainting, clapping his hands in frustration, "Ludwik, a faulty chip, are you playing us?"

Just then, Jarvis appeared, a smirk playing on his lips. After Elaine's video debacle, it was his turn. In the video, he showed his profile, but he didn't mind being exposed. Typically, in such dramas, the focus is on how the woman behaves.

Jarvis coldly stared at Ludwik, his gaze also sweeping over his stepfather, Jason. Near the stage, Jason frowned slightly, taking a few steps toward Ludwik, "Ludwik, how could there be an issue with Skyfaith's chip?"

"I'm not sure," Ludwik shook his head, his tone nonchalant, his demeanor unchanged. He gestured, and a Skyfaith executive took the stage, apologizing profusely, "Sorry, everyone, the Sharp-F Chip launch is temporarily halted. We will investigate the data leak and replace a solution for the research mishap..."

"What's this nonsense! A big tech company producing faulty chips, are you pulling a fast one? Ludwik, you owe us compensation." The CEO of Tyche Inc. exploded on the spot.

Reporters spread the bombshell news online. Skyfaith's chip debacle quickly became top news. Related to this, Skyfaith's stock began to plummet.

Ludwik, unfazed, exchanged a glance with Felix. Felix smirked and nodded. Ludwik's icy gaze caught Jarvis in the distance, his lips curling into a cold smile, preparing to return to the company, waiting to net his catch.

Just then, the entrance was stormed by several officers in prosecutor uniforms. Approaching Ludwik, their demeanor was serious, "Mr. Lippert, we're from the Banyan City Ethics Committee. We've received a report that you've been bribing officials through your Gemstone Exhibit Project. The bribe money was hidden in a contract document. Our team is currently searching your company for evidence. If we replace that document, and it proves the allegations, you will be arrested for bribery, which is a serious offense. Please come with us to the station."

The room went silent, so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Ludwik seemed caught off guard, "The Gemstone Exhibit Project?"

"Yes."

His chiseled face turned ice cold. The only person involved with Skyfaith's Gemstone Exhibit Project was Whitney. A document of bribe money? For a crime he hadn't committed, how could there be any document? Unless...

In a flash, he thought of the woman from last night, provocatively sitting on his desk, unusually bold. She had ensnared him completely, leaving him oblivious to everything else. Placing a document in his office would have been the perfect time...

Hmm.

Realization dawned; last night's temptation, the immense favor she did him, was all part of a meticulously planned scheme. Ludwik scoffed. His icy gaze pierced through the crowd, landing on the woman at the entrance.

As his eyes met hers, Whitney, who had been standing there, finally stiffened, almost recoiling a step back. At that moment, Jarvis emerged behind her. Jarvis deliberately stood close, his proximity suggesting intimacy.

He chuckled, "Ms. Valentine, well done. You've really added a feather to my cap."

With that, he stepped back. Whitney looked up suddenly, just as Ludwik approached, stopping right in front of her. The officers trailing behind her caught sight of Whitney and one of them, with a furrowed brow, said, "Ms. Valentine, you're in charge of the Gemstone Exhibit Project, right? We've got a few questions regarding Ludwik's alleged bribery. We need you to come in for a statement, please accompany us." "...Of course." Whitney lowered her gaze, words failing her.

Ludwik's eyes lingered on her for a long moment before glancing over her shoulder at Jarvis, and then it all clicked. A cold smirk crept across his lips, growing wider, until it twisted into a grimace of pain.

"It was you, wasn't it? Last night?" he asked softly.

Whitney stiffened, avoiding his gaze as if it was frosted over, fearing her own heart might soften, fearing the absurd guilt that might overwhelm her. Her heart felt like it was being grilled over coals, her throat parched, yet her face bore a mocking smile, "Yes, it was me." He suddenly laughed, a sound filled with either venom or bitterness, "You hate me that much? Stooping so low to serve me, all to bring me down?"

"You owe us." Whitney clenched her teeth and fists, thinking of what he owed her and Sammy.

Ludwik chuckled mockingly, who owed whom?

He should have known, this woman's malicious tactics probably never changed!

"Three years ago, and now three years later. Teaming up with another man to seek revenge on me, is that the only trick up your sleeve?"

His laugh was bitter, his eyes glittering with malice, like the flash of blades. The chip malfunction was expected; Jarvis's little tricks were something he could counter.

But Whitney, she always caught him off guard.

As he wandered, unable to forget her, distracted at his own wedding, seeing her in the corner of his eye,

She was fully prepared, waiting for him with a knife in her hands.

Ridiculous, it was just his own tangled web of sorrow. This woman, heart as cold as a serpent's.

"You just wait," his tone was ice-cold, "those who cross me don't get away with it!"

Whitney stiffened, her expression masked in indifference, "I'll be waiting."