Chapter 231

Shirley's face paled instantly. "How do you know?"

It was true that Shirley had installed surveillance in Cynthia's room. She monitored everything happening there through her phone. Cynthia, however, was aware of it. She had discovered the surveillance long ago and waited for the perfect moment to expose Shirley. Simon had hacked into Shirley's phone, and tonight was that moment. Pretending closeness to Jonathan, Cynthia knew Shirley's reckless nature would draw her in.

"You brought this on yourself, Shirley," Cynthia said. "If you ever do anything like this again, you will face the consequences."

Shirley's phone rang wildly, bombarded with countless messages:

• "You're so disgusting, Shirley!"
• "How could you try to seduce your brother-in-law? How could you do that and act so righteous?"
• "You make me sick. Let's block each other."
• "I can't believe what I saw. You act like a rich girl while being a pitiful nobody at heart. You'll never compete with Cynthia!"
• "Cynthia is a perfect woman, and you're just nobody."
• "Having someone like you in my contacts is disgusting."

The group message—Cynthia had broadcast their entire conversation—enraged Shirley. Her body trembled. Her contacts were filled with wealthy individuals, people she had meticulously cultivated an image for. She daily posted on Instagram to craft her persona, even flirting with multiple boys simultaneously. Cynthia had exposed her conversation and embarrassing moments to them all. It felt worse than death. Three years of image-building shattered in an instant.

Trembling, Shirley clutched her phone, her eyes filled with rage. She wanted to attack Cynthia.

Cynthia was at the door, ready to leave. In a fit of fury, Shirley hurled her phone at Cynthia's head. But as she threw it, Cynthia stepped aside, and Justin rushed in, taking the phone directly to his forehead.

Dizzy and with blurred vision, Justin wiped his forehead, finding his hand covered in blood. Furious, he shouted, "Are you trying to kill me, Shirley?"

Stunned momentarily, Shirley quickly recovered. Seeing Justin's bloody face panicked her. "Dad… I didn't mean it. I was trying to hit Cynthia."

Knowing Shirley had aimed for Cynthia only fueled Justin's rage. Ignoring his wound, he strode into the room and slapped Shirley hard.

"Do you have any idea who Cynthia is now, Shirley?" Justin roared. "How dare you treat her like this? Do you want to destroy our whole—"

"And what was that video you sent out?" he continued. "I can't believe you're having an affair with your brother-in-law! Look at yourself! How dare you?"

"If you pull a stunt like this again, Shirley, you can move out. I'll act like I never had a daughter like you. If you hadn't shown up, our family would still be happy." Justin's words cut deeply.

Shirley half-knelt, covering her face. "It wasn't me who sent the video. It was Cynthia! She set me up! She shared the video with all my friends on Instagram. Dad, she's trying to ruin me! She's evil! How am I supposed to live? She's embarrassing me and dragging your name through the mud. She doesn't care about you or this family!"

The thought of the video's widespread dissemination terrified Justin. Not only his family, but the entire Roncrity would know about Shirley seducing her brother-in-law and attempting to destroy her sister's driver's license. He couldn't imagine the ridicule the Jones family would face.

"Cynthia just wants to humiliate our entire family, Dad. She's jealous of me and wants to destroy me!" Shirley cried, pointing at Cynthia.

Justin glanced at Cynthia, who stood coldly detached, showing no interest in defending herself. Her indifference struck him as strange and distant.

"Cynthia only brings us bad luck, Dad. She wants to ruin our family. You have to cut ties with her and kick her out!" Shirley insisted.

Justin slapped her again.

After two slaps, Shirley fell silent, staring at Justin in disbelief, her hands covering her face.

"Cut ties?" Justin said. "If anyone should be cut off, it's you! If you hadn't pulled those dirty tricks, would she have anything to share online? Look at what you've done over the years! Plagiarism, setting people up, and now slandering Cynthia. I'll say this one more time, Shirley. Cynthia will always be our family, and if you ever have those twisted thoughts again, I'll break your legs!"

Tears streamed down Shirley's swollen cheek. "Dad, you're favoring Cynthia because she's climbed the social ladder. I'm your biological daughter! How could you treat me like this?"

Justin was furious, but he knew Cynthia was more than just the Jones family's daughter. She was Jonathan's fiancée, the future mistress of the Bennett family—the wealthiest in the area. He knew what truly mattered.