Henry said, "Mr. Parker has already cleared the air about the false usations."


    Now it was Charlotte''s turn to feel thrown off. Beforeing to Leiventale, she had braced herself for Chloe''s full-on assault. She expected to be navigating a minefield, every countermove a struggle for survival.


    But what she hadn''t expected was Liam stepping in to y fair and protect her at every turn.


    This revtion gave her a surreal feeling.


    "Mr. Parker isn''t mad at me? I mean, I''ve been butting heads with the local big shots here under the Parker Group name."


    "Framing you was a p in the face to Parker Group to begin with. Mr. Parker thinks you didn''t do anything wrong."ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org .


    After a pause, Henry added, "Miss Perry, where are you at the moment? Mr. Parker had a bit of an ident with his finger. Can youe back and give us a hand?" Did he cut his finger?


    Surely the Smith family had a home physician for such trivial matters. Nevertheless, the boss''s orders were paramount.


    Charlotte made her way back along the winding path, her steps quick and decisive.


    Henry waited by the gate, his difort fleeting as he caught sight of her emerging from the darkness.


    "Over here, Charlotte," he called out, his voice steady.


    Returning to the courtyard where she had been wrongfully used of stealing the jade pendant, Charlotte witnessed the user, propped up by her brothers, barely able to stand.


    "I didn''t mean to use you; it''s a family heirloom! How could I use it for such a prank?" the woman sobbed breathlessly, almost copsing without her brothers'' support.


    Was this an act of contrition?


    Charlotte was taken aback. She hadn''t expected Liam''s authority to cast such a long shadow even here in Leiventale.


    Then Liam''s gaze found her, icy and reproachful. Recognizing the cue, Charlotte approached him respectfully, saying, "Mr. Parker."


    "Didn''t you notice I''m bleeding?" he questioned, looking down at her from his seated position.


    It was then that Charlotte saw the blood streaming from his left thumb.


    Was she qualified to handle such an injury?


    Stiffening her resolve, Charlotte took the tray and began to clean around the wound with an alcohol-soaked gauze.


    To get a better angle, she squatted beside Liam, who rested his hand on his knee, giving her no choice but to tend to him there.


    Upon looking up, Charlotte locked eyes with Chloe, who sat to Liam''s right, ring at her with disdain.


    Charlotte shed a polite smile, "Good evening, Miss Beaumont."


    Chloe, visibly irritated, turned her head away, refusing to look at Charlotte again.


    "Enough," Liam said, his eyes briefly meeting Charlotte''s.


    Though it was a reprimand, his tone carried a hint of softness.


    Charlotte bowed her head and focused on the wound while eavesdropping on the ongoing pleas for mercy.


    The woman kept begging for mercy, but when it didn''t seem to be getting her anywhere, her family jumped in to plead for her.


    "Mr. Parker, our Evelyn is innocent; she believes anything she''s told. She''s often used by others, and today was surely manipted as well!" Their united res fell on Chloe, usingly.


    Liam, however, remained unmoved, "When you were busy framing my assistant earlier, your Evelyn seemed quite adept, a disy most vile." Hearing this, Charlotte was inwardly shocked, her fingers pressed harder, eliciting a sharp intake of breath from Liam.


    Realizing her mistake, she quickly apologized, "I''m so sorry, Mr. Parker, I''ll be more careful!"


    "Forget it, call the doctor," Liam said, withdrawing his hand, but he didn''t dismiss Charlotte, who stood by, ready to assist further if needed.


    Charlotte pieced together the story from what Evelyn and her family were saying. Turns out Liam caught up with Mr. Smith and lost his cool big time, turning the whole ''assistant getting framed'' thing into a major drama. He made it sound like they were dissing the Parker Group on purpose, throwing down a challenge.


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    Evelyn, previously whisked away by her father and brother, was hastily summoned back by Mr. Smith to offer an apology, a demand she could hardly refuse.


    But Liam, his thirst for justice unquenched, surveyed the party himself, determined to unearth the thief of the Evelyn family''s heirloom jade pendant.


    Embarrassment was too mild a word for the spectacle that followed as every guest was detained and searched, their dignity left at the door.


    In the end, the pendant remained elusive, and Liam''s rage swiftly ignited a firestorm of anger among the guests, casting Evelyn''s family as the target of collective scorn.


    In the end, they didn''t even find the jade pendant. Liam''s fury turned into everybody''s fury in the blink of an eye, and just like that, Evelyn''s family was in the hot seat, taking heat from all sides. With all that going down, Charlotte pretty much fell off the radar.


    She threw Parker Group into the mix with onement, and then Liam stirred the pot, dragging all the party guests into the mess.


    Evelyn''s family not only had to deal with the missing family heirloom and the jade pendant, but now they were also the main target of everyone''s anger.


    Mishandling the situation could lead to their societal exile in Leiventale, their reputation left in tatters.


    The best course of action seemed to be producing the pendant, feigning its miraculous recovery to salvage some dignity.


    Or, they could expose the true mastermind, Chloe, and redirect Liam''s wrath.


    But with the pendant genuinely missing, they had no choice but to opt for thetter.


    So there they stood, using Chloe of orchestrating the plot.


    Liam was not easily swayed, "Chloe was with me all evening; how could she possibly conspire with you?" he countered skeptically.


    "It''s true! Mr. Parker, you must believe me! It was Chloe who orchestrated the whole scheme to tarnish Charlotte and keep her from you," Evelyn pleaded through tears. Liam, though, didn''t even nce her way.


    Instead, he shot Charlotte a look that was hard to read.


    Charlotte was instantly confused and cocked her head at him as if to ask, "What''s up?"


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    But all she got back was an eye roll from Liam like he was frustrated at her for not getting it.


    Charlotte wanted to grill him for answers, but just then the doctor came over to tend to Liam''s injury, so she had to put her questions on hold.


    As Evelyn''s family continued their usations, Liam''s simple query, "Any proof?" left them dumbfounded.


    "Without evidence, all these allegations are nder, aren''t they, Chloe?" he said, turning to Chloe, who managed a strained smile in response. "Exactly," she agreed.


    "Look, even Chloe gets it, howe you guys don''t?"


    Liam remarked, turning away from the Evelyns and heading inside as soon as his wound was bandaged.


    He detested the scent of medicinal powder and needed to wash it off.


    Evelyn, seizing the moment of Liam''s departure, confronted Chloe with tears and indignation, "It was your n, you had me take the pendant, and now you sit by his side, watching my downfall. Are you even human?" Chloe''s reply came with a sneer, echoing Liam''s earlier sentiment about baseless usations being nderous.


    Enraged and feeling betrayed, Evelyn attempted to persist but was forcibly removed by Chloe''s entourage.


    Chloe, unfazed, brushed off her arm which Evelyn had grasped, and turned to Charlotte with a taunting smile, "You seem to have luck on your side, Charlotte. I''ll have to craft a more foolproof n to ensure your defeat next time." Charlotte, calm as ever, simply responded, "I''ll be waiting."


    With a huff, Chloe departed, leaving Charlotte contemting her next move when she was halted by Evelyn''s father''s call, "Miss Perry!"


    Turning, Charlotte replied, "Yes, what is it?"


    "Please forgive my daughter''s foolishness, Miss Perry," he started.


    "Enough. Anything else?"


    "About Mr. Parker''s words earlier, what do you make of them?" he asked directly.


    His response was hopeful, "I believe Mr. Parker was hinting that with the right evidence, even against his betrothed Chloe, he would ensure justice for us."