Chapter 13
Joseph’s feelings for Winona were undeniable, though. He was absolutely madly in love with her.
Having no more patience for such an individual, the Chapmans simply set the entire villa ablaze, thinking that a dwelling that had been so defiled ought to be utterly eradicated.
Joseph finally snapped back to reality when he saw the immense fire consume everything. His immediate instinct was not to flee but to plunge into the inferno, desperate to salvage the smashed wedding photos. They were the undeniable proof of his and Winona’s love, and they absolutely could not be incinerated!
Having witnessed this, the household staff, who were already screaming and running for their lives, instinctively reached out to stop him. Yet, in the very next moment, a massive explosion erupted with a thunderous sound.
“Mr. Lowe!”
In the aftermath, the Chapmans not only set the villa ablaze but also revealed the whole truth of the situation to everyone in Brightwood. Joseph’s intricate web of lies, so carefully spun, was now fully exposed. The facts that had been buried deep in secrecy came roaring back into the open.
It was at this moment that people finally grasped that Queenie and the abductor were actually lovers and that her child was indeed the abductor’s. In addition, they found out that the child Winona was carrying had been Joseph’s all along.
It was only then that people understood that they had been fooled by Joseph and that their scorn had been aimed at an undeserving target. Yet, in stark contrast to the uproar when Joseph initially branded Winona’s child a bastard, a subdued silence now permeated the public.
In addition, all online news articles, trending topics, and comments celebrating Joseph and Queenie’s supposed affection were entirely removed from the Internet. At the same time, outdoor advertising featuring the pair was rapidly taken down from public view.
Those who had previously hurled disparaging comments at Winona swiftly deleted their foul comments and began inundating Chapman Group’s social media accounts with apologies.
Those back in Chapman Group decisively moved to disable the comment section, and the very individuals who had unleashed the most savage verbal assaults on Winona were all subsequently incarcerated by them.
Anyone in the Brightwood social scene who had harassed Winona was comprehensively admonished and disciplined. Those silver–spoon scions blanched collectively as they witnessed their companies‘ stock values plummeting relentlessly.
They knew that they would be in trouble the moment they heard that the Lowe family’s villa had been set ablaze and that Joseph had been severely beaten. Yet, they had not foreseen such a harsh reprisal, especially since their misdeeds toward Winona weren’t nearly as egregious as Joseph’s.
In a single night, Brightwood underwent a seismic shift. Those major affluent families, formerly staunch adherents of the Lowe family, quickly disassociated themselves from them. In the meantime, several shareholders of Lowe Group, perceiving the impending crisis, opted to divest their stakes and withdraw from the company.
In an instant, the Lowe family, with its century–long legacy, found itself teetering on the edge of ruin, ostracized by all. Joseph, whose body was still weak from his injuries, was consumed by worry. He spent his days and nights sleeping in the company. He painstakingly contacted every single former shareholder linked to the Lowe family, fervently entreating them to reinvest and rejoin the company.
However, they turned him down. Joseph had gone so far as to make his wife of half a decade endure such ignominy for a childhood sweetheart. So, they reasoned that it was only a matter of time before he threw them under the bus, too.
