Evelyn's plan to move to West Lake had once again ended in failure.

After a sleepless night, Jason remained in the study until the early hours before finally heading to the guest bedroom to sleep. The next morning, they both emerged from their respective rooms almost simultaneously, brushing past each other without acknowledging one another.

Having cried the previous night, Evelyn washed her face only to discover that her eyes were swollen like peaches. After applying some moisturizer and putting on a pair of sunglasses, she stepped out.

Upon arriving at the television station, she learned that Director Logan, a deputy director, and four experienced anchors had all been implicated in the resurrection competition scandal. A sense of gloom hung over the entire station.

Penny, who loved gossip, clocked in and headed to Evelyn's office, claiming to have some inside information. “If this goes poorly, our leadership team is going to be wiped out. Director Logan and the deputy director are not only involved in the resurrection competition; they’re also implicated in a huge advertising kickback scandal.”

Evelyn suddenly thought of someone. “What about Nessa? Will she be implicated?”

“She’s been digging for money like a dog for bones these past two years. If she doesn’t get caught, she’s fine, but if she does, it’s going to be serious. She took one hundred thousand from John and has been involved in shady real estate, fake medicine, and health product scams. Any one of those could land her a few years inside.”

Though Evelyn had managed to extricate herself perfectly from the situation, her relationship with Jason had deteriorated to the point where she had no mood to comment.

“It’s a shame that such a great hosting competition has been turned into such a mess. Eve, can you guess how many of those kids who advanced actually paid to get there?” Penny continued to gossip.

She shook her head.

“Almost half,” Penny said, covering her mouth with the back of her hand. “If Director Logan and the others don’t go down, they’ll make a killing.”

“Thank goodness you weren’t caught up in it; otherwise, your future would be ruined. I was so scared when they took you to make a statement yesterday…”

Penny chattered on, but Evelyn didn’t hear a word of it. The results regarding Director Logan and the deputy director hadn’t come out yet, and the atmosphere at the television station was tense. She didn’t want to bring up her upcoming exclusive interview with William just yet.

On Friday morning, news suddenly broke. Director Logan and the deputy director were being investigated for serious corruption and bribery, and three senior anchors involved in the resurrection competition received severe disciplinary action, moving from on-screen to behind the scenes, never to appear on camera again.

To Evelyn’s surprise, Nessa managed to walk away scot-free.

Penny returned to her office, offering her commentary and sighing dramatically. In truth, Evelyn had known for a long time that in this materialistic society, things would never be strictly black and white.

Two out of the four leaders had been removed, and two officials from the grassroots level were promoted to fill the vacancies. They would report to the television station the following Monday.

To avoid Jason these past few days, Evelyn had deliberately adjusted her work schedule. Jason got up at seven in the morning, while she would finish getting ready by six-thirty and leave by six-fifty. Jason had been less social lately, usually arriving at 9Bliss Garden around seven-thirty in the evening.

After work, she no longer stayed late as she used to. She returned to 9Bliss Garden before seven, ate a little something, washed up, and locked herself in the master bedroom. Ever since their argument, Jason hadn’t provoked her again. Whenever they occasionally ran into each other in the living room, she would quickly turn and avoid him.

William called twice, but each time she was distracted and ended the call in less than three minutes.

After having lunch in the cafeteria, Evelyn had just opened the door to her office when Jason’s call came in. For a moment, she thought she had seen it wrong.

Only when she confirmed it was indeed Jason did she answer.

Holding her breath, she focused, feeling no desire to greet him first.

“Your flight is at four in the afternoon. We’ll meet at 9Bliss Garden by two-thirty.”

Jason's deep voice came through the phone, creating a fleeting illusion of reconciliation in Evelyn's mind. However, she quickly snapped back to reality and replied coldly, “I have to work overtime this week; I can’t go.”

Tomorrow was Adrian's engagement day, and Jason insisted on taking her back to Lycheeville to witness the occasion, hoping to twist the knife deeper.

“The tickets are booked; you’re going whether you want to or not,” Jason asserted forcefully.

Evelyn reiterated, “If you want to go, then you go alone. I’m not going back to Lycheeville.”

“After three years as Mrs. Stark, you still can’t accept Adrian’s engagement to another woman—”

“Shut up!” she interrupted him sharply.

“Jason, in our marriage, it’s you who has been unfaithful! You have no morals or decency, yet you always position yourself on a moral high ground to slander and humiliate me! You know I don’t want to return to Lycheeville and face that Johnson, yet you keep pushing me—”

As she spoke, her voice cracked, and she broke down in tears.

On the other end, Jason fell silent and hung up. Perhaps her crying had stunned him, as he didn’t call back. She spent a peaceful afternoon, feeling a rare sense of tranquility.

After work, sensing that Jason was already at 9Bliss Garden, she didn’t rush back. Instead, she sat alone in her office, staring blankly out the window.

Agnes called her multiple times, but she put her phone on silent and ignored it. When her back began to ache, she finally packed her bag and laptop and made her way downstairs.

Exiting the elevator, she glanced at her watch—it was already eight-thirty in the evening. Her poor mood these past few days had dulled her appetite; she could go a whole day without eating and wouldn’t feel hungry. Weighing herself every morning, she noted the pounds melting away.

As she made her way to the underground parking lot, she searched for her car, only to realize it was still at the dealership. Since their last argument, she had been taking cabs to work and hadn’t driven Jason’s car.

Earlier, the dealership had called to say her car was fixed and ready for pickup at nine the next morning. She muttered to herself about her poor memory, wishing she had exited the building to find a rideshare instead.

Turning around, she bumped into William.

Jason’s slander about her and William had made her question whether she had inadvertently misled William in their conversations. She rifled through her memories, but aside from the few calls about interviews, she couldn’t recall saying or doing anything inappropriate.

Though her feelings for Jason had turned cold, she still believed in maintaining the loyalty expected during their marriage. Since learning about William’s willingness to help her, her anxiety had grown. William was discreet and reserved, careful in the business world; if he had no ulterior motives, why would he assist her? But as long as he didn’t bring it up, she would pretend to be oblivious.

She tried to avoid him, but William stood directly in her path, forcing her to brace herself and call out, “Mr. Leighton.”

“Just got off work,” he replied.

“Overtime,” she said, averted her gaze. “What are you doing here at this hour?”

“I just finished, too. I happened to be passing by and thought about your car still being in the shop, so I took a chance and came by. I didn’t expect to actually run into you.”

William downplayed his three-hour wait as pure luck.

“Sorry, Mr. Leighton, but I have plans to grab a late-night snack with friends, so I can’t take your car anymore.” She cautiously declined.

To be honest, she didn’t want to offend William. Not to mention their future interviews and business collaborations, she felt she had to remember the kindness he had shown her. No matter how uncomfortable it made her, she couldn’t speak ill of him.

William smiled warmly. “They say when a person is lying, their eyes blink unusually often. Just now, in less than three seconds, you blinked nearly ten times.”