Chapter 364: An Idea

Sierra returned to the Cameron household late that night. Olivia’s incessant phone calls had nearly drained her phone’s battery.

Sierra wore a somber expression. Online, she faced a barrage of mocking comments and posts. Reading through them, it felt as though accusations were closing in on her.

“You’ve got no shame! Stealing someone else’s music and pretending it’s yours! Do you really think you can get away with it forever?”

“I bet she knew it was Maggie’s video all along; that’s why she shamelessly pretended. But even rabbits bite when cornered!”

“How gross! You idiotic, spoiled princess! I wasted so many votes on you; you’re useless except for your mediocre looks!”

The insults were endless.

Suppressing her anger, Sierra responded to a few netizens. But instead of quelling the storm, she found herself facing an even fiercer backlash, becoming the target of a widespread attack.

The handful of supporters she had vanished without a trace.

Insults bombarded Sierra, and even the Camerons’ phone rang incessantly, driving Master Cameron’s blood pressure up and prompting him to call a doctor for help.

Unfortunately, Sierra remained oblivious to it all. At 1:00 AM, she returned to find the Cameron residence still brightly lit.

Ronald, Olivia, and Master Cameron sat in the living room, surrounded by a heavy silence.

Meeting their gaze, Sierra’s throat tightened. She avoided their eyes and hurried upstairs.

“Stop right there! Someone, stop her!” Ronald’s angry voice echoed.

Servants hesitated but moved to intercept Sierra. “Ms. Sierra, please cooperate…”

With crimson eyes, Sierra realized she had no choice. She turned and confronted Ronald, her voice shrill with emotion. “You want to scold me, right? Go ahead! Hit me! No matter what I do, I’ll never measure up to that outsider, Maggie!”

Tears streamed down Sierra’s face.

She felt genuinely wronged. Maggie had never behaved like this before, but they didn’t believe her. And who could have known she would become Kevin’s student and reach such heights!

Sierra’s tears flowed endlessly. “I told you she was plotting against me, but none of you believed me! She intentionally let me find that manuscript. How else would the home surveillance have coincidentally been on?”

“And those videos! How could I have known it was her? She knew I admitted to it, but she remained silent. Wasn’t she just waiting to strike me down at the right moment to humiliate me?!”

Ronald’s expression turned icy. His planned accusations and curses lost their fervor. Indeed, he no longer felt like saying anything, let alone scolding her.

For someone beyond redemption, words were useless.

Ronald couldn’t fathom how he had raised such a foolish daughter who was so reckless and blind to her own faults, and who was always arguing arrogantly and confidently.

A sense of powerlessness washed over him.

After Sierra’s tearful outburst, she found herself met with silence. Feeling awkward, she didn’t know what to do.

Seeing Ronald’s subdued demeanor, Olivia stepped forward to scold Sierra. “Sierra, why didn’t you discuss anything with us? We understand you want to prove yourself, but you shouldn’t have been so reckless…”

Sierra paid little attention to Olivia’s scolding. Her gaze flicked sneakily towards Ronald.

The living room fell quiet, the silence broken only by reprimands.

Olivia scolded her for a long time, repeatedly defending Sierra. It seemed like criticism, but it was really to protect her.

Suddenly, Ronald grasped why his children had ended up like this.

He had thought the Pierces were classy, but they turned out to be absurd!

Having heard enough, Ronald finally spoke hoarsely, “Take a seat.”

Sierra’s throat tightened. She sensed something was off about Ronald’s demeanor and glanced instinctively at Master Cameron.

But Master Cameron was lounging on the sofa with his eyes closed, pretending not to notice.

Noah still wore his cheerful facade, but his gaze felt icy.

For some reason, Sierra felt uneasy.

“Dad.”

Ronald didn’t explode; he simply said slowly, “Luster Corporation can’t keep going, and neither can our two associated companies.”

Sierra was at a loss for words. She opened her mouth but stayed silent for a while.

Yet Ronald didn’t press on. He wanted to hear her response.

After a pause, Sierra said, “I’ve tried my best. Luster Corporation was already struggling, so it’s not my fault.”

Ronald chuckled enigmatically. “We’re short on funds at home, and we might have to move out of this villa soon.”

Sierra was stunned. She knew the family’s finances weren’t great, but she hadn’t realized it was this dire.

Almost reflexively, she suggested, “Isn’t Maggie with Nathael? Dad, why don’t we ask her to borrow some funds from Mr. Harris? After all, didn’t Mr. Harris give her 150 million for the engagement? Maggie wouldn’t keep it all to herself, right?”

Ronald’s expression darkened as he stared at her silently.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Sierra couldn’t help adding, "If I were with Nathael, I wouldn’t be as useless as her. I’d definitely get Mr. Harris to help our family."

As she spoke, Sierra’s eyes brightened with another idea. “Dad, why don’t we invite Mr. Harris over sometime, and then we can…”

Sierra’s words trailed off.

Ronald seemed intrigued. “We can what?”

“Give him a type of medicine. Once he gets me pregnant, he won’t hesitate to help.”

Sierra thought her plan was clever. She’d tested the medicine yesterday; it was potent, making people willing to comply without resistance.

If Nathael took the drug, she was sure…

Olivia was startled by this. She glanced at Ronald, unsure of his thoughts, and quickly objected, “What nonsense are you talking about? Mr. Harris is an important person. If we tricked him like this, he’d be furious!”

Sierra didn’t care. “Maggie was sent to seduce him in the first place. If we had known this would happen, you should’ve…”

Ronald sneered, “We should’ve what? Are you saying we should’ve sent you to Nathael in the first place?!”