What Exactly Happened at the Engagement Party

"Tell me... is that rumor about President Sterling getting married in a whirlwind wedding actually true?"

"No idea. I heard the higher-ups got a tip, so they told us to do whatever it takes to get an interview. I think it's probably true."

Some people didn't believe the news at all. A faint sneer appeared on their faces as they said, "How could that be true? What status does President Sterling have? If he really got married, how could he possibly keep it under wraps like that?"

"Exactly. So many women use every trick in the book trying to get close to President Sterling. Maybe this is just another one of those women's schemes."

That remark won quite a bit of agreement.

Given Julian Sterling's status and position, with countless women endlessly trying to seduce him, the truth of this whirlwind-marriage matter remained to be verified.

But... if it was fake news, how had it blown up this much?

For a time, everyone was buzzing with discussion.

Just as the reporters waited in great anticipation, a man in a suit, looking every bit the polished elite, appeared before them.

The noisy venue instantly fell silent.

"It's Victor Wells, President Sterling's assistant!"

A reporter recognized the man and, suppressing his excitement, identified him in a lowered voice.

Julian Sterling rarely showed himself in public. Anything that required an appearance was handled on his behalf by his assistants. Aside from Marcus Reed and Wes Mercer, Victor Wells was the one who handled the most matters for him.

Given Claire Bennett's current status, it naturally wasn't appropriate for her to appear before the public. She had asked Ruby Sterling to find someone to help, and Ruby Sterling, of course, didn't hold back and went straight to Julian Sterling. In the end, the matter landed on Victor Wells.

"Welcome, friends from the press. Sterling International has invited you all here today to make a special announcement."

As soon as he said that, all the reporters sharpened their attention.

Victor Wells continued, "Regarding Manager Ethan Sterling's assault at the engagement party, which caused a negative impact, Sterling International hereby apologizes to the public. We have already compensated the victim and obtained the victim's forgiveness..."

The entire venue fell silent. Everyone was stunned.

Wait! Ethan Sterling assaulted someone?

Wasn't today supposed to be about announcing President Sterling's whirlwind marriage?

The reporters who had thought they would hear news about Julian Sterling's whirlwind marriage all looked at each other, their minds unable to process the turn of events for a moment.

Ethan Sterling, who was at the scene, was also dumbfounded.

All the reporters at the engagement party had been paid to keep quiet, so not a single bit of information had leaked out. What was Victor Wells doing?

Once this matter was brought up, the reporters on site finally remembered Ethan Sterling's engagement party.

Ethan Sterling's engagement had been hyped up loudly long ago, practically the biggest event in Chicago, yet afterward it had ended without a sound.

Could something have gone wrong?

After a brief dead silence at the scene, the reporters caught the scent of gossip.

Everyone immediately pressed for answers. "Assistant Wells, what do you mean when you say Ethan Sterling assaulted someone?"

Victor Wells looked troubled, his face hesitant and his words vague as he said, "In any case, this matter ends here. I hope everyone won't keep digging into it."

That only stoked everyone's curiosity even more.

What exactly had happened at the engagement party?

At that moment, a reporter suddenly cried out, "Someone posted footage from the engagement party. Quick, look!"

Everyone hurriedly pulled out their phones and opened the news page.

A gossip account had posted a short edited clip showing Ethan Sterling flying into a rage and beating Naomi Pierce.

Only after seeing that clip did the reporters suddenly realize that the person being beaten was actually the bride from the engagement party!

The person who exposed the video was Claire Bennett.

She didn't make any counterattack against Naomi Pierce at all; she simply released a few short seconds of footage showing Ethan Sterling hitting Naomi Pierce.

That alone was enough to make everyone curious about what exactly had happened at the engagement party to make Ethan Sterling disregard all appearances and publicly rip things apart with Naomi Pierce.

After the video came out, someone anonymously posted a revelation in the comments.

They explained Naomi Pierce's cheating before the wedding, and only then did everyone suddenly understand. No wonder Ethan Sterling had been so furious.

What man could tolerate being cheated on?

At once, discussion exploded everywhere.

The focus that had originally been on Julian Sterling's whirlwind marriage completely shifted to Ethan Sterling and Naomi Pierce. Naomi Pierce's reputation instantly crashed to rock bottom, and she became the subject of everyone's discussion.

Ethan Sterling had originally thought he was going to watch a good show. He had never expected the matter he had gone to such great lengths to cover up would be exposed to everyone in this way.

He was so furious that his face turned livid, and he immediately got up and slipped away.

Seeing that the matter had been resolved, Victor Wells turned to leave as well. But some reporters were still preoccupied with Julian Sterling's situation and chased after him to ask, "Assistant Wells, has President Sterling really gotten married in a whirlwind wedding?"

Hearing that, Victor Wells stopped in his tracks.

He looked at the reporter who had pressed the question and revealed a mysterious smile. "When the time is right, President Sterling will share the good news with everyone."

With that, he left without the slightest hesitation.

It wasn't until he had gone some distance that the reporters realized Victor Wells had not actually answered their question. His words could be taken as acknowledging the whirlwind marriage, or as denying it.

So had Julian Sterling really gotten married in a whirlwind wedding or not?

Victor Wells had not made it clear.

Ethan Sterling stormed into Sterling International in a rage and went straight to the president's office, his face dark and ashen as he demanded to see Julian Sterling.