After her rebirth

"Alright, Nathan, let's get you back to your room," Elodie said, helping him up when he stopped talking. Suddenly, she asked, "You've been in the hospital this whole time. How'd you know about the party?"

"The videos are all over the internet now," Nathan replied.

Everyone in the room was stunned.

Desmond was the first to check his phone, and sure enough, he quickly saw it. Several news outlets were reporting on it.

Clara saw it too, and her legs gave out as she collapsed into a chair.

"How could this happen?" Her eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at Desmond.

Desmond's face was grim, but he forced himself to comfort her, "Don't worry, I'll look into it."

Everyone who attended the engagement party was a big deal with close ties to the Boleyn family.

Afterward, Carlton and Gabriel had hinted to everyone not to leak the news.

They were all smart people and wouldn't offend the Boleyn family over a bit of gossip. They'd just talk about it privately.

No one would dare take videos and spread them all over the internet!

Without thinking, Simon shouted, "It must be Katniss! She had everything planned out!"

Elodie also shouted, "Ella was already brought in, isn't that enough? What more do they want from us?"

Nathan, who had just walked out of the room, heard this and silently turned back to look at them.

Their vision had been clouded for far too long. Every time something went wrong, they would immediately blame Katniss.

Then, they would surely convict her.

Meanwhile, Katniss and Maximilian had already returned to Golden Crest Estates, and she had just finished a meal prepared by Mira.

Maximilian glanced at the nearly empty plate and smirked, "After you finish eating, let's go for a walk."

Katniss smiled with her eyes curved, "Okay!"

Then, with a touch of curiosity, Katniss inquired, "I saw a lot of news outlets reporting on what happened at the party today. Was that your doing?"

She glanced at the comments below, and Clara's situation had become a joke, with countless netizens watching the drama unfold.

But Katniss felt that this didn't seem like Maximilian's style.

Maximilian's gaze swept over her, and he said calmly, "No."

Since Maximilian said so, it wasn't him.

If it wasn't her or Maximilian, then who leaked the news?

It seemed Clara had offended quite a few people.

Just then, her phone rang.

It was Elodie!

She looked up at Maximilian, who also looked over at her, his cold eyes narrowing slightly, and asked in a questioning yet certain tone, "Someone from the Manners family?"

Katniss nodded. The Manners family had realized what was happening and were coming to confront her about it.

Katniss told Maximilian and was about to go out to take the call.

Maximilian's thin lips parted slightly, "It's okay, I'll listen."

"Let's not, Maximilian. Elodie's words are bound to be unpleasant. Don't dirty your ears."

Maximilian raised an eyebrow and signaled her to take the call.

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Katniss didn't insist, "Alright, let's listen together then."

Once the line connected, Elodie's impatient voice rang through.

"Katniss! You vicious ingrate, do you think bringing Ella here can ruin Clara and embarrass the entire Manners family? What good does that do you?"

"Ella has already been taken away. If you have the guts, bring her back! Let's see if I don't break your legs."

"And those videos online, take them down right now and admit to everyone that you smeared Clara. It was all your doing!"

"It has nothing to do with Clara!"

Katniss's eyes lifted, her heart unperturbed, "What videos? I don't know. Embarrassing the Manners family does me no good, but it does amuse me."

Elodie's voice rose sharply with anger. "Fine, you still won't admit it! If it wasn't you, who else could it be? Don't try to deny it. No one else would target Clara like this! You're Maximilian's wife now. But let me tell you, you won't hold that position for long..."

At this point, Katniss's face finally began to pale, and she felt a chill from head to toe, inside and out.

Elodie didn't like her, and she accepted that. In her past and present lives, she had abandoned any hope for maternal affection.

But to despise her to the extent of cursing strangers? How could one harbor such malice?

Katniss glanced at Maximilian's noble and cold profile, and her grip on the phone tightened.

"I may not hold the position for long, but I've held it. Instead of threatening me, you should comfort Clara. She's quite the celebrity now. You better keep an eye on her, or who knows what might happen."

To Elodie's ears, these words bore a different implication. She screamed, "Katniss! If you touch my daughter again, I will never forgive you!"

"So, this is how the Manners family bullies my wife?"

Suddenly, Maximilian spoke, his voice deep and icy, sending chills down one's spine.

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In fact, although Katniss had deliberately interrupted Elodie's unfinished sentence, Maximilian discerned its essence.

It was merely a prediction of his end.

On the other end, Elodie clearly realized that Maximilian had heard everything. She was shocked, her face instantly turning pale.

Elodie didn't want Katniss to be smug, especially with Simon still in the hospital, not knowing if his arm could be saved.noveldrama

In a moment of fury, she relinquished reason, "Mr. Hamilton, you hold a high position, and the Manners family can't afford to offend you. But Katniss is my biological daughter, raised with the Manners family's money."

"You don't know the whole story. Katniss is unruly and vicious. I'm just fulfilling my duty as a mother by disciplining her."

Maximilian's face was cold, but his lips curved slightly, his eyes brimming with utmost disdain.

"The only thing you should be grateful for right now is that you are Katniss's mother. Otherwise, who knows if the Manners family would still be in Luminous City tomorrow."

Then, Maximilian reached out and took the phone from Katniss's hand, ending the call. Elodie, oblivious to the approaching crisis, stomped her foot in vexation. Gazing upon Maximilian, Katniss wore a troubled expression, her hands fidgeting restlessly upon her knees.

"Maximilian, you saw it too. My relationship with them has always been rocky, even hostile. Do you really think I'm being ungrateful, ruthless, and heartless when it comes to Clara?"

As she waited for his answer, Katniss nervously clenched her hands, her cold eyes fixed on him.

"I'm not as kind as you think."

Would Maximilian, like others, prefer a kind, pure, and unblemished woman? Maximilian smiled, lifted Katniss's chin, leaned in close, his eyes reflecting her delicate

face, "Katniss, my wife need not be so kind. You have no necessity to be gentle. You are free to be unrestrained and proud."

"Whatever you want to do, just do it. If you get into trouble, I'll take responsibility." Katniss's eyes gradually reddened.