A cautious female voice said through the phone, "Mr. Xu, we have found a suitable person, and his
terms are reasonable. Do you want him to act now?"
Darren smiled gloomily. "Okay."
Public opinion had changed drastically ever since Emily's clarification of the issue during her press
conference. They had thought that this issue would negatively impact Darren or at least make him the
subject of online hate speech, but they were wrong.
Emily was quite concerned about the public opinion of her, but at that crucial moment, a man who
claimed to be Darren publicly took the blame and claimed that he had only done what he had because
of the grudge he held against Emily.
He posted online about how miserably he had lived. However, he never clarified his relationship with
Emily. The only thing he said was that she deserved it. He wanted to earn sympathy by telling his own
tragic story.
Not long after he took responsibility for the issue, the police immediately intervened.
After the incident, footage of another interview made its way online, hitting the headlines in just half an
hour.
In the video, one reporter said into his mic, "Do you know that what you've done has negatively
affected Mrs. Gu?
Her charity project is likely to end because of your story, which has misled the public. The beneficiaries
of her project will no longer receive the help that they need. Do you know how many people have been
thrust into hopelessness because of your actions?"
They were talking to the man who claimed to be Darren. He was wearing a black peaked cap, and his
face was pale. Upon hearing this, he said disdainfully, "Unscrupulous reporters like you will only report
what harm I've supposedly caused her. You will never think about how much harm she has caused me!
Can you imagine a person like her heading a charity project? Only fools will believe that she will
actually donate anything!"
"Can you tell me what actually happened between you and Mrs. Gu?" The reporter paused as if
thinking carefully about his next words. "Can you reveal to us what the public does not know about
her? Who is the real Mrs. Gu?"
The man looked displeased. Perhaps because of guilt or something else, he lost all composure in the
blink of an eye. "Leave me alone! Whatever happened between me and her does not have anything to
do with you. Get out of my way!"
In the scene that followed, the man was taken to a police car.
After watching the video, Emily lost all interest in what the public thought of her. She was more
concerned about this man. She didn't even know who he was! How could he have held a grudge
against her?
If only people were willing to look at all sides, they would realize that this young man was just a
scapegoat, a pawn! The real mastermind was still out there, hidden in the shadows.
So many people had their eyes on her and this man, but very few were willing to look at the matter
objectively.
After this fake Darren had been arrested, the majority of these people were overjoyed, as if they had
gotten a notorious criminal off the streets.
As one of the people involved, however, Emily was unhappy.
Her social media inbox was full again. The last time that this had happened, it had been filled with
people who had sent hate messages her way. Now, many of the very same people were sending her
messages of encouragement. Some of them even apologized for the things that they had said before.
Nonetheless, this did nothing to make Emily feel better.
She picked a few messages to respond to and ignored the rest. After all, there was a ridiculous number
of messages. She couldn't possibly reply to all of them even if she tried.
The next time she went online, she noticed a change. More and more people were criticizing her again,
saying that she was now too proud to respond to netizens.
She felt as if she was about to go mad!
As soon as Jacob got home from work, he noticed that something was off. He took off his jacket and
approached Emily. "What's wrong?"
Her face was puffy, and her big eyes shone with rage. In the trash can by her feet was a crumpled
piece of white paper, a clear indication that she was in a bad mood.
Upon hearing Jacob's question, she almost burst into tears. Considering the situation, she had felt
rather calm on her own. However, now that someone to whom she could vent had come, she finally felt
the weight of everything. "Have you been following the news? Darren hired someone to act like him
and take the blame for everything. He even hired trolls to defend him online! People are actually eating
up his lies!"
"Didn't I tell you not to spend so much time online?" Jacob felt a mixture of anger and amusement.
"These things aren't uncommon. Why spoil your day over such trivial matters?"
Emily raised her voice. "How could you call this a trivial matter?"
She felt as though Jacob was being unreasonable, so she brushed his hand away and raised her chin
toward him. "Have you been brainwashed as well?"
"What are you saying? Of course I know the truth," he explained helplessly as she moved away from
him. He continued, "Darren has spent a lot of money on a PR team. Naturally, it would look like people
online may not have been on your side these past few days."
"So what? I haven't done anything wrong, and I'm not going to let him bully me with his slander!" Emily
muttered.
She didn't want to give up going online altogether just to avoid seeing what Darren had done to her
reputation. More importantly, she did not want to let all the hard work that she had put on her charity
foundation go to waste.
"I'm just afraid that you'll feel bad every time you see one of those comments online," Jacob explained.
Occasionally, he loved Emily's willfulness, but he was afraid that the hateful things she saw online
might get to her. "You know what? Next week, let's go to a small, peaceful island somewhere and just
relax together."
"Okay!" Emily's eyes sparkled. She was already imagining what their little vacation would be like.
Suddenly, she changed the topic. "You know, you look so calm and collected. Have you, by any
chance, already figured out how to deal with Darren?"
He chuckled. "I'm keeping it a secret for the time being. Let's go get dinner first. I assure you, he'll
definitely get the punishment that he deserves. He has involved too many people this time."
Puzzled and still somewhat unhappy, Emily asked, "Really?"
He tapped her lightly on the nose and said, "Would I lie to you?"
His assurance greatly improved her mood, and she began thinking of places that they could visit the
following week.
Although Jacob had told her repeatedly to steer clear of the internet, Emily could not help but check in
from time to time. Every time she saw a comment showing support for Darren, she could not help but
feel contempt toward the unnamed man who was claiming to be him.
Even her two children could tell whenever she was upset.
Just as she was at her lowest, one message caught her attention. It was from a girl who was one of her
supporters. "Will you still spearhead charity foundations in the future? I don't know if you still remember
me. You came to my school not long ago and encouraged me to study hard. You also told me not to
worry about my tuition.
Please don't get me wrong. I'm not writing to ask you to fulfill your promise to support my studies. I'm
an adult now, and I'm in a position where I can work and study. I guess I just want to know if you'll stick
to your original plans and keep doing what you used to do."
'I will, ' Emily told herself firmly before giving the girl the same response.
She didn't know how that girl would feel upon reading her reply. After she had sent her message, she
saw her own smile reflected on the dark screen.
This world would not run out of people who needed her help. As such, she had to do her best. Although
she could not help every single one of these people, she hoped that she could continue living every
day with a clear conscience, knowing that she always tried to do what was right.
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