Silly Bride novel (Winnie and Xavier)
Chapter 161

"So..."

Winnie smiled coldly. Then, she turned her wrist, showing her phone screen to the reporters.

"All of you broadcasted me and my family without consent. In the event that anyone of you makes monetary gain from it and causes harm to my reputation, am I entitled to sue for infringement?" She continued, "All right. The live broadcast is still going on, even after what I said. It seems like all of you are not planning to end it. If so, let's be in the broadcast together."

Winnie passed the phone to Nathaniel and took out her phone. Then, she turned on her front camera.

In an instant, the faces of those reporters appeared on Winnie's phone screen.

At the same time, the reporters were broadcasting the same thing.

With that, the viewers of the live broadcast could then see the faces of those reporters.

Some of them instinctively reached out their hands to cover their faces.

As they did so, the viewers started to criticize their actions.

The viewers began to comment: What on earth? They're filming her excitedly. Why are they covering their faces when she films them?

Another commented: Stop covering your faces! Are you guys too hideous to show yourselves live?

Today's double standards!

How shameless! Mr. Garland invited all of you there for an official interview at Garland Group. How could you guys film the others without consent? Besides, they're filming her family as well! These reporters are so unprofessional!

In the meantime, one of the kind viewers just called one of the companies, Orange News, to lodge a complaint.

It took just a few minutes for the reporter from Orange News to receive a call from the company's manager.

"End the broadcast now! You should consider the public's influence on this matter. None of us can afford to bear the consequence if our ratings get affected!"

The viewers were criticizing Orange News. Not wanting to take the blame entirely, the reporter had no choice but to end the broadcast immediately.

Meanwhile, the other reporters followed suit as they saw the reporter of Orange News ending the live broadcast.

Winnie was pleased to see how that turned out to be.

Nonetheless, she added, "I don't wish to see my grandmother's photos online. Otherwise, I won't hesitate to seek legal action to hold all of you accountable." Right after she spoke, Winnie grabbed her sunglasses from her bag.

As she placed that pair of sunglasses on the bridge of her nose, one could sense her strong and alluring presence.

All of the reporters dared not take a photo of her face. Instead, they could only photograph her back in secret as she left.

Winnie took two steps forward and suddenly stopped in her tracks.

Her sudden actions surprised all of the reporters behind her. Startled, they quickly hid their cameras to avoid being caught by her. Winnie was not bothered to pay attention to them anymore, as she noticed a suspicious person hiding behind the trash can not far away. The trash can was quite some distance from her. Not wanting to alarm that person unnecessarily, Winnie chose not to make a move yet. Holding Jacinta's arm, Winnie acted as if she did not see anything and casually walked toward Nathaniel's luxury car.

On her way to the car, she asked Nathaniel, "Did you send my grandmother here?"

Jacinta interrupted before Nathaniel could answer, "Don't blame him. He didn't tell me anything. I was the one who asked him to fetch me here. Even if he didn't, I would still be able to locate Fairchild Corporation myself."

"Granny, I'm not blaming Nathaniel. I'm just asking." Facing her, Winnie could not help but feel helpless.

Soon, they arrived at the car.

Winnie walked to the car first and opened the backseat car door for Jacinta.

After Jacinta got in, she walked to the other side of the car to open the passenger seat's door.

In fact, it was not her intention to get in the car. She did so to trick the suspicious person hiding behind the trash can in the southwest corner.

The next second, she walked around there swiftly, slowly disappearing into that person's blind spot. Hence, the person who took photos of her secretly did not notice her whereabouts.

Winnie stealthily crept toward that suspicious guy. Meanwhile, the guy just put down his camera and was replying to someone's message on his phone.

Standing close to him, Winnie could read all of the words on the screen clearly.

Apparently, the guy was a private investigator hired by someone to follow her and take photos of her. He was reporting Winnie's every move to his employer.

He texted: The websites have stopped all the live broadcasts. Winnie should be returning to Garland Group now.

Soon, a text came in: The ghostwriters are still working online to create a publicity stunt. It would take her a while to return to Garland Group and hold a press conference. Another text read: We have enough time. Even if she has no scandals, the ghostwriters will spread rumors about her. By that time, all she could do is hide!

The corner of her mouth curled up slightly as she read those bold texts behind.

She failed to suppress a snort and voiced, "I don't think anyone is capable enough to make me hide."

Hearing her voice, the man was shocked and turned around quickly.

Before he could react in time, Winnie snatched the phone away from him.

He reached out his hand, wanting to retrieve the phone. However, Winnie stepped on his foot with her high heel before he could do anything.

She did not exert additional force. Nonetheless, the private investigator could already feel excruciating pain at that trod.

"If your hand comes closer, I won't hesitate to step on your foot with my heels. Don't make me hurt your foot with my heels." The brown sunglasses covered her cold gaze as she uttered the words aloofly. The man dared not act impulsively. "Let's talk. How about you return my phone first?"

She twitched the corner of her lips slightly in response. "I'm not interested in taking your phone. I just want to borrow your phone to make a call."

As she said that, she pressed on the video call button.

Of course, the other party would never expect such a call from her.

It rang a couple of times before the mysterious person finally answered the video call.

Winnie did not cover the lens. Her face appeared on that person's screen almost instantly. On the screen, the other party could see her wearing a pair of sunglasses.

The person did not reveal his face, and Winnie could only see the ceiling from his side.

Disdainfully, Winnie raised the corner of her mouth and said, "Are you afraid to show your face? What a clown. I bet you're the one who reported me for taking illegal drugs out of the country, right?" The other party merely kept mum. He did not hang up on her, nonetheless.

"What's the matter? Why are you afraid of revealing yourself to me?" She sneered and continued to provoke the person by saying, "If so, a low life like you is unqualified to fight me. We're not on the same level at all."

Her words successfully triggered that person. He started talking without showing his face.

"Winnie, stop proclaiming yourself as an honorable person. Don't be so smug. I swear I will make you face your downfall soon!"

Listening to that, Winnie let out a chuckle. "I've never thought of myself as an honorable person. However, I'm not hiding anything. I have a clear conscience. How about you? You can't even reveal yourself to me, coward. What do you do when I appear on the live broadcast frequently? Were you hiding in the corner, watching me in the dark with your curtains all closed?"

She continued, "What does it feel like watching me with your fists clenched and teeth gritted? You must feel upset watching me in secret, not being able to do anything to me."

"Shut up!" The young man roared at the other end of the line, unable to accept what she said. "How dare you say that you have a clear conscience? You're the one who killed the woman I love!" "Oh? Is the woman you love Yulissa?"

"Keep her name out of your mouth! You don't deserve to call her name!"

"I see. If I'm not mistaken, you are Nate. Look, I've taken off my sunglasses. Shouldn't you be more sincere and show yourself too?" Winnie smiled lightly, taking the sunglasses off her face.

As she finished her sentence, she could hear a background voice. "Nate, don't show yourself! She might take a screenshot of you once you reveal yourself! Don't be rash. She's provoking you!" Nevertheless, her words made him lose his rationality. He could not take in advice at that moment.

Then, he picked his phone up to reveal his face.

As their gazes met, the smile on Winnie's face disappeared gradually.

She stated sternly, "Yulissa can only blame herself for her death. I can replace a time to tell you what happened that day. However, you must stop spreading rumors to defame me before that."

"Get lost!" Nate did not believe her words. "I know what you did to Yulissa! You're capable enough to fool the police, but I won't fall for your tricks! Winnie, you're a despicable woman. I will make you lose your reputation. By that time, everyone will despise you. I won't let you off! Never!"

As he finished his words, Nate threw his phone away. The impact was so loud that Winnie could hear the loud crash as he smashed the phone against the wall.

Winnie raised her brows. She wore her sunglasses again and handed the phone back to the private investigator with the other hand without uttering a word. Soon, she reached Garland Group.

On her way there, Louis called to ask her about that incident, as he was worried that Winnie could not handle it.

He knew that about the live broadcast incident that had happened downstairs at Fairchild Corporation earlier.

Little did he know that Winnie was not a tad bothered by that.

Instead, she asked, "Does Xavier know about this?"

He answered immediately, "No, Mr. Fairchild is clueless about it. Sorry, Mrs. Fairchild. I'm worried about Mr. Fairchild's current mental state. Therefore, I chose not to tell him about what happened to you." "That's great. You don't have to tell him anything, and you must promise to hide this from him. It's just a small matter." Winnie voiced her concerns too.

"Yes, Mrs. Fairchild. Let me know if you need anything."

As soon as she hung up the phone, she heard a knock on her office door.

It was her assistant, Jasmine. Seeing her, Winnie nodded, gesturing for her to come in.

"Mr. Garland, there are a lot of reporters downstairs. The conference room is ready to be used. Do you want me to invite them up?"

Winnie was perusing a document. She merely hummed in acknowledgment without looking up.

After two seconds, she realized that Jasmine did not respond to her. With that, she asked, "What's the matter? Is there anything else? You can say it to me directly."

Jasmine frowned. "The rumors about you are getting out of hand online. Will it be too hasty for you to hold the press conference with the reporters now? I think that we should at least spend one day for preparation."

"There's no need for that." Winnie flipped another document that needed her signature on it and continued, "I like to settle things quickly. Furthermore, we should fight inconsistency with consistency. What the others say is false, and I'm aware of the truth. The truth will never change. Hence, we don't have to back down or be terrified of anything."

Listening to her, Jasmine was momentarily stunned. I guess strong people are born with confidence. She's such a domineering woman! Very soon, the live conference officially began.

Winnie did not want to waste too much time clarifying the matter and went straight to the point. "Let's take a look at the big screen. I'll now clarify the online rumors regarding my nationality. I'll only say this once. After today, I don't wish to see anyone make an issue out of this again."

She continued, "As all of you can see, this certificate of citizenship states that I'm a citizen of Yartran. However, it has an expiration date. If you look carefully, this certificate was valid six years ago. I turned eighteen years old six years ago. Attaining the age of majority, I'm free to choose my nationality. Eventually, I chose to be a citizen of Chanaea. It's the place where I was born, after all. As all of you are aware, dual nationality is not recognized in both Chanaea and Yartran."

Winnie went on, "Now, let me show all of you another picture. This is my Chanaean national ID card. I think I've made myself clear to all of you with the proof. If anyone of you still chooses to delude yourself even with the evidence that I've provided, then you're free to report this matter to the relevant authorities. In the event that anyone can prove that I own another nationality other than Chanaean, I'll go back to where I came from. However, kindly apologize to me if you fail to prove your allegations, as this political saga has infringed on my personal interests as well as the Garland Group's interests."

Winnie's powerful remarks made the reporters look like ignorant clowns, as she meant that all of them failed to investigate the matter properly before reporting it to the public.

It was at that moment that someone with ill intentions stood up.

"Ms. Garland, what you said seems to make sense. There's nothing to nitpick on. However, you're hiding your other identity from the public. Am I right? I can't believe that you gave up on the nationality of Yartran and chose to be a citizen of Chanaea instead if you have that identity. Are you lying to us, or are we fools in your eyes?"

"Another identity? What's her identity?" At once, the crowd went into a frenzy.

"It seems like she has a lot of secrets that we don't know!"

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