Chapter 885
With just a few statements, Jonathan flipped the entire situation. He told everyone the divorce was his call and that Teresa gave him money to start his business, and that they even had a kid. This painted him even more like the one who had abandoned his wife and child. No one would dare blame Teresa now. True or not, the public believed him.
Jonathan added, “We were already talking about getting back together when she got pregnant with our second kid. Those rumors about her trapping me or doing IVF are just insane.”
“That explains it,” the reporter said.
Just as the crowd was settling down, a reporter cut in with a sharp question. “Mr. Lynn, weren’t you about to get engaged to the heiress of the Kelly Group?”
The moment that question landed, people instantly remembered how Yalena was often seen shopping with Irene.
Jonathan said, “I never said I was gonna marry Yalena. I don’t really know what’s going on with my mom. I can’t tell her who to be friends with, right?”
Everyone laughed at that. They thought, ‘Wait, does that mean Yalena and Irene are friends?’
“So, Mr. Lynn, you and Ms. Kelly never planned to get married, is that right?” another reporter asked.
“Yes.” Jonathan’s expression turned cold. He said, “I just hope Ms. Kelly stops dragging my wife into business drama, and stops paying off the media to mess with our personal lives. We just want to live quietly.”
Yalena, who was watching the livestream, instantly went pale. She thought, ‘I can’t believe he said Irene and I were friends and that I was the one who leaked Teresa’s pregnancy to the press.’
She had only wanted to drag Horizonlead Group and Teresa’s company down with her, make them taste a stock plummet, and shift the board’s attention, but instead, she ended up shooting herself in the foot.
After reading those words, Eason leaned back in his chair, spinning it slowly. He called the secretary and told her to send Yalena in immediately.
Yalena dragged her feet as she headed to Eason’s office, clearly not happy about it.
Eason slammed the desk, saying, “Look for yourself. See how much money we lost in just one day. This is your fault. The stock has taken a major hit, and our PR team is working their ass off because of you.”
Yalena said, “Dad, I didn’t expect things to turn out like this. Who knows if they’re actually back together? Anyway, Irene told me that-”
“Stop. Don’t talk to me about Jonathan’s mother. That woman is just a troublemaker. She’s no good,” said Eason.
Eason was furious, and Yalena dared not speak of Irene anymore, tears instantly welling up.
She said, “Dad, I just can’t let this go. You’re supposed to be the richest man in Nareigh. Jonathan is nothing.”
“Shut up.” Eason pointed angrily at Yalena. “You mess things up more than you fix them. If you hadn’t cost the company so much money, Jonathan wouldn’t have surpassed me.”
He decided Yalena needed a harsh lesson. “I’m calling a board meeting to strip you of all your positions–both here and at the subsidiary.”
“What?” Yalena panicked, furious. “No. Don’t do this to me. Give me one more chance.”
Eason was shocked by how Yalena talked to him. She never talked like this before. He said, “I’ve given you enough chances. Get out.”
After Yalena stormed out, Eason leaned back with a pang of regret. He regretted having only one kid. If he had more, he wouldn’t have to leave the company to Yalena. It would probably go bankrupt otherwise.
He wondered how a child turned rotten–dishonest, always looking for shady tricks, refusing to do things the right way.
He thought, I’ve been overshadowed by Jonathan for so long. He’d better pray I don’t find a thing, or I’ll come for him.
His phone buzzed suddenly. It was a text from Evelyn.
Evelyn: [Eason, are you free this weekend? Let’s have dinner together.]
Eason: [Okay, I’ll see if I make some time.]
Jonathan was done speaking at the press conference. He introduced the Horizonlead Plaza project, which had been underway since last year and was expected to be completed next year.
A reporter stood up and asked, “Mr. Lynn, will there be children’s playgrounds built inside the plaza?”
“Yes, there will,” Jonathan replied.
“Is it just for your son?” the reporter joked.
Everyone laughed after hearing that. Jonathan just smiled coolly and said, “He’ll like it. And I hope every kid who visits the plaza loves the new playground.”
Another reporter stood up and asked, “Mr. Lynn, are you planning to hand over the company to your son already?”
Jonathan stared at the reporter and said slowly, “Well, I’m only thirty. I’m not planning to die anytime soon.”
The reporter froze, suddenly realizing just how dumb his question was. Other reporters laughed too, thinking, ‘Come on, Jonathan’s kid is still tiny. He probably hasn’t even started kindergarten.’
After the press conference, Jonathan finally left backstage and returned to his office. Teresa, who had been waiting for a long time, approached him. “Is it done? I heard what you said. Why did you say that?”
“What do you mean?” Jonathan replied.
Teresa said, “You said I lent you money for your startup. Do you know how people will twist that? They’ll say you took my money and then abandoned your wife and child. They’ll trash-talk you.”
Jonathan said, “I don’t care what they say, and I didn’t lie. You did lend me money.”
“When did I ever do that?” Teresa asked.
“Grandpa told me that when we first got married, you gave a lot of money to my family. You never told me about this,” Jonathan said.
Teresa froze. She had asked Hayden not to tell Jonathan, and she didn’t understand why he suddenly had.
“That was a long time ago, and it really wasn’t that much,” she said.
Jonathan didn’t believe it. He asked, “How much did you pay for Grandma’s funeral when I wasn’t around? Write down every cent you secretly gave when we married. I’ll pay you back a hundred times.”
Teresa blurted out, “Why would I want you to pay me back? I don’t need or care about any of that.”
“Then what do you care about?” Jonathan pressed, his gaze fixed intensely on Teresa.