The afternoon was wearing on. It was almost time to head back to work.
Emma said goodbye to Elijah, slipped on her sunglasses, and drove back to the company. As she left, Elijah called Ryan and ordered him to investigate the true identity of the blogger who had released the trending post that morning.
When Emma returned to the office building, she didn't even make it upstairs before Emilia appeared in the lobby, waiting for her.
"Sister Emma, where have you been? I was looking for you at noon, but you were nowhere to be found."
Emilia looked at her with open curiosity.
Emma saw no reason to hide the truth, so she told Emilia about her visit to Elijah.
"What? Sister Emma, you're planning to hold a press conference?"
Emilia's shock made Emma pause. Was her reaction really that dramatic? Emilia seemed to realize she had overreacted, clearing her throat awkwardly before her face shifted to one of concern.
"Sister Emma, I really don't think a press conference is a good idea."
"Why not?"
Emma wasn't as surprised by the objection this time. It wasn't the first person to warn her against it.
"Don't you think that if we deny everything, it'll just cause more misunderstandings?"
Emilia laid out the downsides of holding a press conference. "Besides, you're the wife of the CEO of Pinnacle Corporation. Even if the media pretends to believe you on the spot, they'll twist it later. The public will think you're using the media to cover things up. You have to understand—how many scandals has Weibo exposed? People trust that platform more than they trust mainstream media now."
Emma had to admit Emilia's analysis was spot-on. She made a valid point.
But did that mean she should just sit back and let herself be destroyed? Emma refused to accept that. It seemed she still needed to discuss her next move with Liam.
"I understand. Thank you for your concern, Emilia. I'm a bit overwhelmed right now. Let me think it over."
Emma said this to Emilia, who accompanied her upstairs. Just as Emilia was about to head back down, Emma suddenly remembered something and stopped her.
"All this Weibo drama almost made me forget about work. Tomorrow morning, the HR manager and Liam will start interviewing for the secretary position. I can only sit in on the interviews. Go home and prepare. Give it your best shot tomorrow. As for the outcome, don't stress too much. I'm in no hurry to get back the money I lent you. If things don't work out, I'll lend you more. You won't end up in court over a debt collector."
Emma offered Emilia some reassurance. Emilia's face lit up with a grateful smile.
"Thank you, Sister Emma. I'll cherish this opportunity and give it everything I've got."
Emma nodded. Just then, the elevator doors opened. Emilia stepped inside, and Emma turned to walk back to Liam's office.
"Finally decided to show up? I thought you'd be spending the whole afternoon at the hospital."
The moment she stepped into the office, the cold pressure radiating from Liam made the air feel icy.
How did he know she had gone to see Elijah? Emma was stunned, immediately suspecting that Liam had someone watching her.
But then Liam tossed his phone in front of her, motioning for her to look.
Emma saw that a new post on Weibo had uploaded a photo of her entering the hospital at noon to find Elijah. The picture showed her from behind, her face not visible. But Elijah was standing at the door, smiling at her.
She had to admit, the scene looked incriminating.
Even though her face wasn't shown, anyone would assume it was her.
"I went to see Elijah, but I only went to convince him to attend the press conference. Are you going to misunderstand me?"
Emma looked at Liam, feeling a knot tighten in her chest.
Liam's eyes were cold. He stared at her, silent for a long moment. Soon, a knock came at the door. A secretary entered and handed a shopping bag to Emma.
After Emma took the bag, the secretary respectfully left. Emma opened it and found a pink Chanel dress inside.
"Change your clothes. When we leave work, there will be paparazzi outside the door. They'll take pictures of your outfit to confirm your identity. Do you think the situation isn't chaotic enough?"
Liam's voice was icy.
Emma felt deeply wronged, but she knew she had no choice but to follow his orders. Her current outfit had already been exposed; she couldn't wear it anymore.
As for the company employees, as long as they wanted to keep their jobs at Pinnacle Corporation, none of them would dare leak this to the media.
Emma instinctively touched the gauze on her forehead. Luckily, the photo hadn't captured her face clearly. Otherwise, even changing into this dress wouldn't help.
At Brookhaven General Hospital, Elijah's eyes turned cold as he saw the new trending post on Weibo.
He thought for a moment, then finally made a call.
"Elijah, what's up?"
Mia's voice came through the phone. Elijah hesitated for only a second before speaking slowly.
"Mia, I need to ask you for a favor. Can you come see me after work?"
Elijah slowly explained what he wanted to do. He had expected Mia to refuse, but after a brief silence on the other end, she agreed.
At five o'clock, Emma left the company with Liam. She thought there wouldn't be too many media reporters outside. After all, the consequences of offending Liam were not easy to bear.
But she forgot that Liam had more business rivals than just William Thompson. While they weren't as blatant as William, trying to bring down Pinnacle Corporation, they were still happy to let their affiliated media outlets add fuel to the fire whenever the company faced a crisis.
Seeing over a dozen media vans in front of her, Emma felt a bit foolish. Liam wrapped his arm around her, and she leaned into him, letting him handle the situation.
"Mr. Williams, is the Weibo post from this morning true? Did Mrs. Williams really have an affair?"
One female reporter's question was sharp and direct, clearly full of energy.
Several other reporters nearby refused to be outdone.