Mia’s ears burned so red they looked ready to bleed at their audacious words.

’Good heavens,’ she thought, ’what are young women thinking these days?’

She gave a light cough, a hint for them to tone it down.

The maids immediately clammed up, lowering their heads and busying themselves with their tasks.

Mia hurriedly grabbed her phone and left. About half an hour later, Adrian Preston came downstairs. He had changed into a formal suit, his tie knotted impeccably and his shirt buttoned to the very top.

He projected a restrained, almost ascetic air—a stark contrast to how he’d looked right after his workout. But it did nothing to diminish his raw appeal; if anything, it intensified it.

"Should I drive you to the office?"

"No, it’s fine. I’ll drive myself. It’ll be a hassle getting back tonight otherwise."

Mia declined.

Adrian pressed his lips together but didn’t say anything more.

Breakfast was quiet. Adrian was the type who believed in silence at the table—clear-headed, restrained, calm, and composed. He seemed incapable of error, a paragon of justice, upright and incorruptible.

It was no exaggeration to call him an untouchable beauty, a flower on a remote, lofty peak.

He was firmly seated on his pedestal, seemingly unwilling to fall from grace for anyone.

Mia waited for him to leave before driving over herself.

Partway there, Mia received a call from Shayla Quinn.

"What’s wrong?"

"Mia, I... I think I’m in big trouble. Can you come save me? Please?"

Shayla’s voice was laced with terror.

Static crackled from the other end of the line, along with what sounded like a door being slammed against, BANG, BANG, BANG.

"What’s happening?"

Mia quickly pulled her car over to the side of the road.

"I... I accidentally filmed a video of a top-tier celebrity cheating. I was going to expose him, but someone betrayed me, and now that big shot has sent people to corner me. Mia... I wouldn’t have called you if I wasn’t absolutely desperate."

"Don’t say that. Are you at home? I’m coming over right now."

"Yeah... you... you have to hurry..."

Mia hung up, her heart pounding with anxiety.

’Shayla called me because she was counting on Adrian’s influence.’

’There’s no way I could handle this alone. If I didn’t have a powerful backer, Shayla would never have called me. She would have tried to bear it all herself.’

The call connected quickly.

"What is it?"

Adrian’s question was simple and direct.

He knew Mia wouldn’t call him for no reason.

"Can you come and back me up? I’ll send you the address in a second. The sooner you can get here, the better."

"Okay. Send me the address. Wait for me to get there. Don’t do anything rash."

Adrian didn’t even ask what was happening; he just agreed.

Mia quickly sent Shayla’s address and then drove over herself, hoping to get there first.

’I can’t just call the police,’ she thought. ’It might make things worse for Shayla.’

By the time she arrived, a group of bodyguards had already broken into Shayla’s studio apartment. The door was now locked, she had no idea what was going on inside, and her calls to Shayla’s phone wouldn’t go through.

But she was certain someone was inside; she could hear faint rustling sounds.

"Open the door! I have the video. If you don’t let her go, I’m releasing it!"

Mia was terrified that Shayla was in danger. She had to see with her own eyes that Shayla was unharmed.

The door opened quickly. A burly man of about six-foot-one, wearing a short-sleeved shirt that revealed a paintbrush tattoo, stood in the doorway.

Mia looked tiny standing in front of him.

He practically lifted her inside.

"Mmph... mmph..."

Shayla was tied up. Her hair was a mess, her clothes were torn, and her mouth was gagged shut. Tears streamed from her eyes.

She had clearly been roughed up, but because Mia had arrived just in time, they hadn’t done anything more serious to her yet.

The person in charge was the top-tier celebrity’s manager, who was there specifically to clean up his mess.

She was a tall, thin woman in her thirties.

"What do you know?"

"That he’s cheating, right? I have a copy of the video, too."

Seeing this manager, Mia instantly knew which "big shot" they were dealing with.

He was the go-to male lead for prestigious dramas, a two-time Best Actor award winner, a star personally lauded by the national media.

To have achieved so much in his early thirties made him the envy of countless others in his field.

His career had been a success from the moment he debuted, and his wife was an heiress from one of the capital’s most influential families.

If a scandal broke about such a seemingly upright man, his career would be utterly destroyed.

Not only that, but his wife’s family would also make him pay a painful price.

"Hand over the video."

"Let her go first."

"Are you trying to bargain with me? What leverage do you have? You’re just a couple of bottom-feeding paparazzi. Crushing you would be as easy as crushing an ant."

The manager naturally assumed that Mia, like Shayla, was just another reporter.

"You’re not talking now, but you will be soon enough."

The manager gave a look, and a bodyguard immediately stepped forward, ready to grab her.

"You lay one finger on me, and I guarantee that video goes public instantly."

Hearing this, another bodyguard stepped forward and said, "Talia, we’ve already contacted all the media outlets. They’ll intercept any news about Star Actor Chaucer."

"We’ve also hired elite hackers. Even if a copy slips through the cracks, they can delete it immediately."

"Fine."

Talia looked at the two of them with utter composure, as if observing two insignificant insects who didn’t know their place.

"I’ll leave these two to you boys," she said. "Remember to film it. Make sure they learn a lesson they’ll never forget."

The bodyguards’ eyes glinted with greed as they closed in.

Mia’s hand had already slipped into her pocket. She pulled out a can of pepper spray and aimed it directly at their eyes.

The men closest to her clutched at their eyes, howling in agony.

Talia’s expression changed. "You reckless bitch. Still trying to fight back? Did you really think you could escape?"

"Tie her up!"

"Don’t you dare!"

Mia pulled a gun from her bag.

The muzzle was pitch-black, and it looked frighteningly real.

The men froze, glancing at one another in stunned silence.

"Who the hell are you? How do you have a gun?"

Talia stared at her, her face dark.

"Don’t mess with me. You have people backing you, but so do I. And I guarantee you, my backer is way more powerful than your precious Star Actor Chaucer. If you piss me off, you’ll all be finished."

She spoke each word deliberately. Despite her small frame, her presence was no weaker than the crowd of them. She stood ramrod straight, her eyes frighteningly bright with stubborn defiance.

She held the gun in one hand, her arm trembling almost imperceptibly.

With her free hand, she pulled Shayla to her feet and tore the tape from her mouth.

Shayla used her teeth to untie the ropes on her hands and then hid behind Mia.

"Mia, you..."

"Don’t be afraid. I’ll get you out of here."

She began to shuffle sideways, pulling Shayla toward the door with her.

Talia’s face grew darker. ’If I let them just walk out,’ she thought, ’how will I explain this to my boss?’

Seeing them about to reach the door, Talia gave the order.

"Damn it, I don’t believe that thing is real! Get them!"

The bodyguards followed the command and charged. In a panic, Mia could only shoot at the person closest to her.

’It’s a fake,’ she thought. The recoil was nothing like a real gun’s.

But the projectile still pierced the man’s flesh, and blood splattered instantly.

Everyone was terrified and stumbled back several steps.

The man lay on the ground, howling like a banshee.

"Someone’s been killed! Someone’s been killed..."

The other bodyguards were scared and wanted to flee, but then, unexpectedly, the man on the floor began to get up.

The projectile had only broken the skin; it hadn’t gone deep. He realized the bleeding had already stopped, and the pain wasn’t severe.

The gun... was fake.