Chapter 6 Public Relations Nightmare

The next day, while Kate was still sleeping, everything that had happened at yesterday's engagement party had been fermenting overnight. It was causing a huge uproar and dominated the top three trending topics in Amberhaven.

The top trending item was a photo of Ethan putting that ruby ring on Kate's finger. The photo was incredibly striking - in the background were shocked guests and Blake's ashen face, while the main subjects were Ethan with an unreadable expression and Kate nestled in his arms.

The comment section below had already descended into chaos, with almost all comments attacking Kate.

[This bitch! How dare she seduce our Mr. Levington! Canceling her engagement in public and stealing her sister's man; how can she be so shameless! My dream man, my Mr. Levington!]

[Don't talk nonsense. Mr. Levington and Sophia were just media speculation, but Kate and Blake were actually engaged! And she cheated on her fiancé? Right in front of all the city's elite; that's wild!]

[I'm disgusted. How could Mr. Levington fall for such a btich? He must have been tricked by her! Let's expose her and drive her out of Amberhaven!]

The online criticism came wave after wave. Occasionally, a few rational voices tried to analyze the situation, but they were instantly drowned out in the angry fans' verbal attacks, labeled as "Paid Trolls," and subjected to indiscriminate cyberbullying.

At the Jennings Villa, Richard looked at the constantly refreshing negative comments on his tablet, so angry his temples were throbbing.

Rebellious! Truly rebellious! She had completely disgraced the Jennings family!

"Where is Kate!" Richard slammed the table, the loud noise startling Sophia who had just come downstairs.

Sophia quickly approached, soothing him gently. "Dad, don't get angry. What if you hurt yourself?" As she spoke, she seemingly casually glanced at the tablet, then showed a worried and troubled expression, hesitating to speak. "Kate, she..."

"Speak!"

"She's at Ethan's place. She didn't come home last night, and she's probably still in bed now." Her voice faltered into a shy, almost embarrassed murmur as she spoke.

"What!" Richard flew into a rage.

That Kate actually spent the night at another man's house! Did she really think she could latch onto Ethan? Wishful thinking!

The Levington family and the Jennings family had been competing in business for years. If she got involved with Ethan, it would bring nothing but harm to the Jennings family! He would never allow this to happen!

He quickly stood up, ready to personally bring people to Ethan's house to drag Kate back. But before he could leave, the doorbell rang.

It was Blake. Behind him stood his parents with grim expressions.

"Mr. Hamilton, Mrs. Hamilton." Sophia quickly put on an obedient smile and greeted them politely.

But Dashiell Hamilton and Laura Hamilton just gave her a cold glance and completely ignored her. Sophia's smile froze, and she secretly gritted her teeth, but still forced a smile as she welcomed them in.

As soon as Richard saw them, he instantly assumed a sycophantic smile. Although the Hamilton family wasn't as powerful as the Levington family, their status was still far above the current Jennings family. More importantly, Blake was the most crucial part of their plan.

"Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton, please have a seat."

"Don't!" Dashiell waved his hand directly, his tone blunt. "Mr. Jennings, our two families agreed that when Blake married Kate, after their wedding, the Hamilton family would get twenty percent of the Morgan family inheritance. Now your daughter has caused this mess - are you trying to back out?"

Dashiell was aggressive, and Richard's forehead instantly broke out in cold sweat. He knew they were here to demand answers, but with Kate not present and him not knowing the details, he could only smile apologetically.

"Of course not, Mr. Hamilton, you've misunderstood. This happened so suddenly, I was just about to discipline Kate. How about this - you go back and wait for news, I'll definitely..."

"Wait? Wait until when?" Laura also snorted coldly. "Mr. Jennings, the Hamilton family has already faced plenty of criticism for Blake marrying Kate. Now because of your daughter, the Hamilton family has become the laughingstock of the entire city! You must give us an explanation today!"

Seeing this, Sophia quickly poured coffee for them, her voice so gentle it could drip water. "Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton, please calm down and have some coffee. This is indeed Kate's fault. We promise to give you a satisfactory answer within one day and will definitely not let the Hamilton family's reputation be damaged."

"You? What can you promise?" Laura glanced at her sideways, not buying it at all.

Sophia was momentarily speechless and looked at Blake as if seeking help. Only then did Blake speak unhurriedly. "Dad, Mom, that's enough. It's just one day. Don't make things too difficult for Mr. Jennings."

Seeing Blake speak up, Dashiell and Laura finally relented, but still left a harsh warning. "Fine, we'll give you one more day! If there's still no explanation tomorrow, I don't think this cooperation needs to continue!"

With that, the two got up and left. Blake stayed behind, nodding slightly at Richard, a calculating look flashing in his eyes.

After the three left, Richard's expression suddenly darkened. The Hamilton family was really arrogant! If it weren't for that huge inheritance and the important cooperation between the Jennings Group and the Hamilton Group, how could he possibly take this humiliation!

His anger gave him a headache. After a while, he immediately had the servants prepare to go to Ethan's house to confront him. But Sophia stopped him.

"Dad, we can't be so impulsive. We can't afford to offend Ethan."

Richard frowned. "So what if we can't afford to offend him? If Kate doesn't come back, there's no way to break this deadlock!"

"Dad, I have an idea." Sophia's eyes turned as a plan formed. "We can join forces with the Hamilton family and hold a press conference. We'll publicly claim that Kate was just being willful and push all the blame onto her alone. This way, we can both calm public opinion and save face for both families."

She paused, then showed a reluctant expression and sighed. "It's just that this would be too hard on Kate."

Richard laughed coldly. "Hard on her? She deserves it! Let's do as you say! You contact Blake - I don't want to deal with the Hamilton family anymore."

With that, he went upstairs with a cold face. Sophia watched his retreating figure and flashed a triumphant smile as she picked up her phone.

Soon, the PR departments of the Jennings Group and Hamilton Group began urgently contacting various media outlets. And Milan, as Ethan's special assistant, naturally received the news immediately.

He immediately drove to Ethan's villa.

"Mr. Levington."

"Keep it down, she's sleeping." Ethan was wearing a robe, sitting on the sofa drinking coffee. He gestured for Milan to sit down, his eyes unconsciously glancing toward the guest room on the second floor.

Milan unconsciously swallowed. Did Ethan and Kate actually sleep together last night?

"What is it? Speak." Ethan's voice pulled him back from his gossipy imagination.

Milan quickly regained his composure and reported seriously. "Mr. Levington, the Jennings family and Hamilton family are making moves. According to our information, they're planning to hold a joint press conference at 3 PM today, intending to pin everything that happened at yesterday's engagement party on Ms. Jennings to calm public opinion. What do you think we should do?"

They want to put all the blame on Kate?

Ethan laughed coldly. The tactics of these two old foxes were just as he expected.

He looked up at the second floor. The guest room door was still tightly closed. It was almost noon and Kate still wasn't awake - he wondered how she could sleep so well.

Now, with the situation so urgent, he wanted to see how she planned to handle this. He was actually quite curious about how this Kate, who had suddenly become as prickly as a hedgehog, would fight back.

He waved his hand and said to Milan. "Wait for my instructions."

Milan left as ordered. After he left, Ethan went upstairs and walked straight to the guest room door. He was about to knock, but paused mid-air before gently pressing down the door handle.

He thought she was still sleeping and wanted to go in to check. But as soon as the door opened a crack, a figure suddenly jumped out from behind it.

"Ethan!"

Kate had been waiting by the door. That look of successful mischief even startled Ethan. He shook his head helplessly.

'Trying to scare me?'

'Maybe I shouldn't tell her about the Hamilton family and Jennings family planning to pin everything on her. Maybe she already knows and this is another scheme to gain sympathy?'

Ethan narrowed his eyes and turned to leave. But Kate suddenly hugged his waist, holding on tightly.

Wait, the Hamilton family and Jennings family want to make her the scapegoat?

How dare they?