Chapter 196 Will You Soften Your Heart?
The Johnson family really didn't want Sophia as their daughter-in-law anymore.
Amelia didn't know about what happened at the pharmaceutical chamber's dinner at first.
After all, the Johnson family really had no business in pharmaceuticals, and Amelia never imagined that Michael would take Sophia to the pharmaceutical chamber's dinner.
She had a gathering of wealthy ladies this morning - a social event in the upper-class wives' circle. These gatherings were held every month.
Amelia left early in the morning to attend.
In the past, because she was the hostess of the Johnson family, plenty of people would fawn over Amelia whenever she showed up.
But today, as soon as she entered the gathering venue, she received many strange looks.
These looks weren't like before - full of envy and flattery - but mixed with a certain malice.
Amelia couldn't quite describe the feeling. It seemed like their eyes carried a kind of mockery, as if they were watching a joke unfold.
But how could that be possible?
Amelia thought she was overthinking it.
She was part of the Johnson family. In Emerald City, who would dare mock her?
She walked over with forced composure, and after taking her seat, asked a friend she was usually close with, "What's going on with everyone? Why is it so quiet today?"
Her friend's expression was somewhat awkward, as if she didn't know how to respond.
Before she could speak, a lady from not far away laughed and said, "Mrs. Johnson, it's impressive that you can still come to this gathering under these circumstances.
We thought you'd be affected by what happened last night."
As soon as she heard this voice, Amelia looked toward the speaker, her brow furrowing instantly.
This lady was Isabella from the Wilson Group - Daniel's mother!
Amelia had never gotten along well with her, and the sarcastic tone in her voice made her very uncomfortable.
Amelia became even more convinced that something had happened, something she didn't know about.
She didn't wait for her friend to tell her and directly asked on the spot, "Why should I be affected? What happened last night?"
Isabella looked elegant. Hearing this, she showed a surprised expression and said, "What? Mrs. Johnson, you haven't heard yet?
Such a big incident last night, and you're so out of the loop?
I heard your daughter-in-law, that Sophia, embarrassed herself in public again."
At this point, another lady nearby spoke up, adding in an exaggerated tone, "Yes, she actually slandered the student of Rodolfo from the 'Medica Vitae Sect.'
In front of all the important people at the pharmaceutical chamber, she publicly attacked someone and nearly caused serious consequences. She almost got sent to the police station."
"Yes, but Mrs. Johnson, your son is quite loyal. He didn't abandon his lover. He compensated and apologized, which is why the police didn't arrest anyone."
"I didn't expect that your Johnson family values Sophia so much. The Johnson family is really tolerant. If it were any other family, they would have kicked her out long ago."
Everyone's tone carried a hint of mockery.
Amelia's expression froze instantly, her mind going completely blank.
What on earth was going on?
Sophia embarrassed herself again?
And dragged Michael down with her, making him bow his head to others?
How could that be possible?
Amelia simply didn't believe it.
Michael was the golden boy. Wherever he went, who didn't respect and admire him?
Who had the qualifications to make him bow his head?
At this moment, a lady noticed she didn't believe it and said, "What, you don't believe it? Last night at the scene, quite a few people witnessed it firsthand."
Other ladies chimed in, "Yes, this is absolutely true. We've all heard about it."
"My husband attended last night too. He said Ms. Brown seemed to have brought Mr. Johnson to seek medical treatment, but before they could succeed, they offended Rodolfo, the person everyone at the venue respected most."
"Sophia went crazy in public, threw a tantrum, and even called Rodolfo an old bastard, acting like a shrew."
"Right, my husband was also at the scene last night. I heard that Rodolfo's student is called Olivia?"
Hearing this, Amelia's expression changed again.
What on earth was Sophia doing?
And Rodolfo's student - what did they just say her name was?
The ladies watching the drama unfold continued to add, "If I remember correctly, the Johnson family's former daughter-in-law was also called Olivia, right?"
"Oh my, could it be such a coincidence that they're the same person?"
"It seems to be exactly that coincidental, because I also heard that at the time, Sophia and Michael were humiliating her there first. They just didn't expect to get slapped in the face later and be forced to apologize in front of all the guests." The lady laughed out loud as she said this, finding it quite amusing.
Amelia could no longer maintain her composure.
She stared wide-eyed in disbelief at the lady and asked, "What did you say?"
Isabella also smiled and said, "Mrs. Johnson, didn't you hear clearly? She said your former daughter-in-law Olivia is the student of the famous Rodolfo. Oh my, there really are such coincidences in this world."
"Is it a coincidence? That Olivia is the former daughter-in-law the Johnson family kicked out, right?"
"It's her. Otherwise, Sophia probably wouldn't have taken the initiative to humiliate a stranger, would she?"
Hearing this, Amelia's expression changed dramatically.
She clearly didn't dare believe what they were saying.
How could a woman the Johnson family had discarded like trash be Rodolfo's student?
And Michael apologized to her?
Did Olivia deserve that?
But everyone's mocking looks were too obvious, especially Isabella's, which was clearly meant to slap her in the face.
Amelia couldn't sit still anymore. She quickly stood up, her face ashen, and said, "I have something else to do today, so I'll head back first."
After speaking, she hurriedly left the gathering venue.
Once outside, she immediately took out her phone and called to have someone investigate what happened last night.
Everyone knew about it, yet she was the only one still in the dark!
Because last night's incident had caused quite a stir and had already spread throughout their circle.
So very quickly, Amelia learned the whole story from beginning to end.
After hearing it all, she felt her vision go black and nearly fainted on the spot. "How is this possible?"
How could Olivia have such a background?
This must be fake.
Even at this point, she still refused to believe it and immediately rushed to Michael's office.
"Michael, Michael! Tell me honestly, what's this about Rodolfo's student?" Amelia was too agitated. Before she even entered, her voice rang out first.
Hayden also came over at this moment, his face stern, seemingly in a bad mood as well.
Michael put down the documents in his hand. Looking up, he saw his parents appear before him.
Hayden asked in a deep voice, "What's going on with Olivia's identity? Is she really the student of that famous Rodolfo?"
After a night of calming down, Michael's expression still hadn't improved.
After leaving the dinner last night, his mood had been filled with countless complex emotions.
His ex-wife, whom he had once looked down upon, had such a dramatic change in status. As her ex-husband, he only found out at the last moment. He had an indescribable feeling, so he left Sophia behind and didn't even go home.
He didn't sleep all night. Early this morning, he went to work at the Johnson Group. But shortly after arriving, his parents came to interrogate him.
He was extremely irritated but still told them honestly, "Yes, Olivia is Rodolfo's student."
"It's really true!" Amelia felt dizzy, her steps staggering, and she finally collapsed onto the nearby sofa.
This meant they had driven out a daughter-in-law with unlimited potential and instead found Sophia, who wasn't very useful and constantly caused trouble and embarrassment?
This result was truly unacceptable for the always-opportunistic couple.
"Why have you never mentioned this?" Hayden couldn't help but question him, his voice carrying some anger. "Now Olivia's commercial value is immeasurable, not to mention she has the Medica Vitae Sect behind her!"
The ancient medical heritage of the 'Medica Vitae Sect' was said to be priceless.
Moreover, their connections spanned all sectors, especially military and political figures who had dealings with them.
Rodolfo had even treated some foreign heads of state. Just in terms of connections alone, they were countless times stronger than the Johnson Group.
Michael's face was ashen. How could he not know Olivia's current value?
But what could he do?
He responded in a deep voice, "I didn't know before either. She never mentioned it."
Amelia's face turned red and purple with anger as she scolded, "You mean Olivia deliberately concealed it and didn't tell us?"
In the past, Michael would have thought the same way.
But after last night, he rarely spoke up for Olivia, "It's not that she didn't want to say it, it's that we didn't give her the chance.
From the time she married into the Johnson family, whether it was me or you, we always looked down on her with impatient attitudes. Even if she wanted to say something, she had no opportunity."
As soon as he said this, both husband and wife were left speechless.
They were angry that their son was actually speaking up for Olivia, but they couldn't find a single word to refute him.
The two of them stood in front of Michael like pillars.
Michael was also very irritated. "Are you done asking? If you're done, go back. I need to work."
He didn't want to hear anything related to Olivia right now!
But unexpectedly, hearing her son's words, Amelia said unhappily, "At a time like this, what work are you busy with? Now the Johnson family has become the laughingstock of all of Emerald City!
Sophia causes trouble and does embarrassing things one after another.
If we had known it would be so counterproductive, you and Olivia should never have divorced and gotten involved with her."
Because of the mockery at the gathering, Amelia now had a lot of resentment toward Sophia.
But she didn't know that these words would be heard by Sophia outside the door.
Sophia, who was about to enter, froze in place.
Last night, after Michael walked away, leaving her outside the hotel, when she returned home, she found that Michael hadn't come back and his phone was unreachable.
Sophia had been anxious at home all night, waiting but not seeing anyone.
Until this morning, after tidying up, she decided to come to the Johnson Group to check.
But she never expected to hear such words.
She instantly felt cold all over.
Was the Johnson family now discovering that Olivia was more valuable and wanting to win her back?
How could this be?
She would never let such a thing happen!
Sophia gritted her teeth with resentment.
……
Olivia paid no attention to what was happening outside.
After reconciling with Rodolfo, she was in a great mood, her steps light as she walked.
After a busy morning at the research institute, she saw Daniel come over again.
This time Olivia didn't ask him why he was here. Instead, Daniel took the initiative to stop her. "I heard from my mom that at their gathering today, Amelia was laughed at and lost quite a bit of face. Apparently, it was because of what happened last night."
After listening, Olivia responded with a bland expression, "Oh."
She seemed completely unconcerned about how Amelia was being mocked.
"Don't you have any reaction?" Daniel observed her expression and asked in confusion.
Olivia looked puzzled. "What reaction should I have?"
Daniel was stumped, then asked tentatively, "The Johnson family should all know your identity now. If Michael wants to win you back, will you soften?"