"What are you laughing at?"
Alonso squinted at Bella, finding her reaction a bit odd.
Bella looked back mockingly. "Nothing, just thinking that it's no wonder Lance has been suppressing you all these years."
She paused, her disdain and sarcasm becoming more evident.
"Although I don't know where you got the confidence to think you could threaten me, I have to tell you, I'm not afraid of you telling this to the Mercer family."
Hearing this, Alonso understood everything. Clearly, this woman had already betrayed him.
With this realization, Alonso's face turned terrifyingly dark. "You scheming woman!"
Bella saw the murderous look in his eyes and felt a bit uneasy, her whole body tense, fearing he might suddenly lash out.
Despite this, Bella refused to show any fear in front of him. She straightened her back and sneered, "Didn't you scheme against me too? We're even!"
With that, she lost her patience and pressed the intercom to call her assistant to escort him out.
Alonso left in a fit of rage.
Soon, Bella was alone in the office. She sat in her chair and let out a deep breath, feeling relieved that she had been cautious enough to distance the Cody family from the situation.
Just as she was lost in thought, the intercom on her desk rang. It was a call from the chairman's office.
Bella's eyes flickered as she answered the phone. "Dad, what's up?"
"Come to my office."
Jeffery's voice was stern.
Bella hung up and immediately went to the chairman's office without delay.
Upon entering, she saw her father sitting at his desk and respectfully asked, "What do you need me for?"
"I just heard that the heir to the Valencia family came to see you. Since when do you have dealings with them?"
Jeffery frowned, clearly disapproving.
Seeing this, Bella knew her father had misunderstood something. She explained, "I'm not familiar with that guy; we just exchanged a few words at a party before."
Hearing this, Jeffery relaxed his frown and then asked, "What did he want from you?"
Bella concealed part of the truth and explained Alonso's purpose for coming.
"He came to borrow money, hoping our Cody family would invest. But I refused."
"You did right. We can't get involved with the Valencia family's mess; otherwise, it could cause bigger losses if the Mercer family misunderstands."
Jeffery nodded in agreement.
Bella smiled. "That's what I thought too. Besides, I've already had someone evaluate Explority Group's assets. I plan to take advantage of their conflict with the Mercer family."
Jeffery thought for a moment before letting Bella proceed with her plan.
Unaware of all this, Alonso left Cody Group and took a taxi back to his company.
During this time, they had sold their properties and cars to raise funds.
Upon arriving at the company, Alonso was about to go upstairs when the receptionist called out to him.
"Mr. Valencia, there are some police officers waiting for you; they've been here for an hour."
The receptionist pointed to the lounge area where Alonso noticed the officers for the first time.
As he looked over, several officers walked toward him.
"Hello, are you Alonso Valencia?"
"Yes, I am. What's this about?"
Alonso felt uneasy as he faced the officers.
The leading officer showed his badge and an arrest warrant. "Mr. Valencia, Lance has provided evidence that you hired someone to commit murder. The evidence is conclusive; you're under arrest."
As soon as he finished speaking, his colleague stepped forward and handcuffed Alonso.
This scene was witnessed by employees of Explority Group, causing an uproar.
"What's going on?"
"Why are they arresting Mr. Valencia?"
"Quickly inform the chairman."
Meanwhile, news of Alonso's arrest spread online through reporters.
In no time, Explority Group's already precarious situation became even more critical.
After Alonso was convicted, Explority Group received orders from higher authorities to suspend operations due to negative impacts.
Chace rushed back upon hearing the news but arrived too late; Alonso had already been taken to the police station.
He hurried there to understand the situation from the officers handling the case.
Initially intending to bail Alonso out to mitigate negative online publicity for the company, Chace was stopped by an officer who said, "Mr. Valencia, your son hired someone for murder; the evidence is solid. Bail is not an option unless the Mercer family decides not to press charges."
Chace felt both angry and frustrated. He was angry at Alonso for recklessly provoking Lance without absolute certainty.
"Thank you; I understand. I'll contact the Mercer family and see if we can reach a private settlement."
No matter what happened now that Lance was unharmed, Chace was willing to pay some price for reconciliation with the Mercer family.