Chapter 304 Too Ruthless!

Chapter 304 Too Ruthless!
The room suddenly fell silent, as if the entire world had stopped turning in that instant.

The famous line from Macbeth's sleepwalking scene opens with those haunting words—"Out, damned spot! Out, I say!"

The meaning is straightforward: Lady Macbeth, once calculating and ruthless in her pursuit of power, ultimately discovers that the guilt she tries so desperately to wash away will never disappear. Her cleverness became her undoing, and she met a tragic end.

The scene's central message is a warning about being "too clever by half"—a reminder that cunning can become one's own downfall. It also foreshadows Macbeth's collapse—the inevitable fall of a house built on blood and betrayal.

But Rachel's implication was unmistakable: Lady Macbeth was Claire, and the doomed house represented the Chase family.

She was drawing a pointed comparison without saying it outright.

Claire's face went pale.

If Rachel's earlier subtle provocations had been like throwing concealed weapons to test the waters, then this reference to Lady Macbeth's fate was like hurling knives directly at her—openly and deliberately.

And every blade hit its mark.

Rachel had not only deftly dismantled Claire's carefully crafted apology but had also drawn a damning parallel between Claire and one of literature's most infamous villains.
If word of this spread, both her reputation and the Chase family's reputation would be completely ruined.

How ruthless.

The move was absolutely ruthless!

This was the first time Claire had experienced Rachel's intelligence and tactics.

It was no wonder Nancy and Heather had ended up in prison.

With this kind of skill at making insinuations, she was far smarter than Nancy.

Even someone as clever and calculating as Heather had been defeated by Rachel. Now it all made sense.

The others nearby, including Aurora, understood exactly what Rachel was implying.

The entire corridor fell silent, everyone unconsciously holding their breath.

Some looked shocked, some stood frozen in disbelief, and others were quietly sizing up Claire.

"Rachel?"

Suddenly, a cool, slightly worried voice sounded.

It was accompanied by the rapid sound of approaching footsteps.

Soon, everyone saw Benjamin approaching with furrowed brows, his handsome face slightly stern. He walked straight to Rachel without sparing anyone a glance and took her hand.

He asked softly, "What's wrong? Are they giving you a hard time?"

Rachel smiled at him and shook her head. "No, I was just chatting with Mrs. Wright and Ms. Chase."

"Chatting about what?"

"About law, Macbeth, and all sorts of things."

Aurora's and Claire's faces, which had shown a trace of surprise, immediately darkened when they heard Rachel's words.

This was blatant mockery!

Benjamin, however, only had eyes for Rachel, as if he believed they had ganged up on her.

Aurora was on the verge of exploding with anger.

She could barely contain the frustration and rage in her heart anymore, and her tone was sharp. "Benjamin, you're becoming more and more arrogant! I'm standing right here—can't you see me at all? Look at how you're protecting her. She's a grown woman—are you really afraid we'll bully her?!"

Benjamin slowly turned, still holding Rachel's hand. His eyes were filled with icy coldness.

Because of his height and commanding presence, his eyelids lowered slightly, revealing clear contempt and disdain.

His thin lips curved into a mocking smile, and his voice came out cold. "You still don't know?"

Aurora choked, her eyes widening in shock as the anger in her chest burned even hotter.

She was so angry that her vision nearly went dark. "You, you, you!"

In front of all these people, he showed her no respect at all, talking back to her like this for that woman, Rachel!

Benjamin had no intention of dealing with her. He only glanced coolly at Claire, whose face had turned pale and who looked somewhat unsteady.

When Claire met his gaze, she opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but the coldness in his eyes stopped her, and no words came out.

She could only watch helplessly as he took Rachel's hand and walked away without a word of goodbye.

Claire suddenly felt her vision blur. The two figures before her gradually shrank into a small dot and soon disappeared completely from view.

He had once protected her like that, standing firmly by her side.

Because of her condition, she'd been humiliated since childhood, but whenever Benjamin was there, he never stood by and watched—he always stood beside her and protected her.

Though his personality was cold and he wasn't easy to get along with, she knew there was tenderness hidden deep in his heart.

For anyone he cared about, he would always do his best to treat them well and protect them.

She had once felt happy and sweet because of this, but now, seeing him treat another woman this way, she felt especially bitter, with a strange sense of longing.

When that feeling faded, it quickly turned into deep resentment.

She herself had pushed away the happiness and sweetness that had once been within easy reach.

Clearly, she had already regretted it for a lifetime.

She had watched with her own eyes as he exhausted himself for another woman, giving without asking for anything in return and even humbling himself before her, saying he was more suitable for her than any other man.

That outstanding man had once reached a point where he begged for love.

Perhaps God had heard the pain of her desperate, unrequited love and allowed her to be reborn.

But fate plays tricks on people. When she opened her eyes, she hadn't returned to the moment in her past life that she'd dreamed of—the moment when she had just been diagnosed with leukemia and had the noble idea of breaking off their engagement.

She knew all too well the feeling of being looked at by him with cold eyes.

Pain—that was all she felt.

It was a dense, overwhelming pain.

Just thinking about it made that feeling seep through her body.

It was uncomfortable and desperate.

Perhaps because she had grown numb, her heart could no longer stir much reaction; it felt like a balloon with a hole in it.

Rachel had actually used Lady Macbeth's story to mock her openly.

"Aunt Aurora!"

"Aunt Aurora!"

Two simultaneous cries of alarm rang out, snapping Claire's drifting thoughts back to reality.

As her vision cleared, she realized Aurora had actually fainted from anger.

She quickly pushed aside her thoughts and frantically called for the servants, helping them carry Aurora back into Quintuple Court.

Because of Aurora's condition, the Wright family kept a family doctor living on the premises.

While the doctor began diagnosing and treating Aurora, Claire quietly began thinking about her next move.

At the very least, she needed to clear her name now. Otherwise, clarifying and explaining later would take an unknown amount of time and effort.

And Aurora had fainted from anger...

Perhaps she could take advantage of this situation and achieve two goals at once?

Her eyes darkened as calculating thoughts slowly flowed in her mind.

When she looked up again, she saw Betty rushing anxiously back from the kitchen. The corners of her lips lifted almost imperceptibly before quickly flattening again.

She immediately stopped Betty, who was about to rush into the room, and said worriedly, "Betty, the doctor is treating Mrs. Wright inside and asked us all to step out. Don't worry—just wait here for a moment."