Chapter 166: Cooperate in Acting
"What’s up with that? You sound like you know more than you're letting on. I mean, Emily seems pretty young, beautiful, and innocent. Is she really the kind of person you're talking about?"
Zoey was fishing for more details about Emily.
Trying not to come off as jealous, Gu Qingya asked as casually as she could.
Veda absolutely hated Emily and had been dying to vent. Now that she found someone willing to listen, and a woman on her side, she jumped right in.
She started recounting how she saw Daniel bring Emily to the event.
Mixing in some trash talk, she slammed Emily hard, "You have no idea, that girl is a total idiot. She hasn’t even married into the Smith family yet and she’s already making crazy claims, questioning the Smith family’s reputation.
And she’s just the daughter of the Johnson family, which is basically a third-rate family, barely making it into our circle. She used to be a trash picker, who would ever look up to her? I’m not kidding, and she even dared to hit me."
Veda showed Zoey the mark on her face, "That bitch is really wild, she’s got quite the punch! It hurt like hell, and I can’t believe Daniel actually defended her and wants to punish us. I’m definitely going to get back at her for this."
Zoey had initially thought that with Emily’s background and education, she wasn’t a threat. She was about to relax when she heard Veda’s last statement.
No matter the circumstances, personality, or capabilities, none of it mattered if Daniel valued her.
All these years, Zoey had never heard of anyone catching Daniel’s eye. She used to think that his indifference was a good thing, giving her a chance to get close and slowly win him over.
But suddenly, he found another woman.
Zoey was insanely jealous and wanted to meet this woman to see what kind of charm she had to attract Daniel.
"If Daniel’s defending her, she might have a chance to marry into the Smith family!" Zoey said deliberately.
Veda snorted, "No way, I won’t give her that chance. The only wife I recognize for Daniel is you. You’ve waited for Daniel for so many years, aren’t you anxious? We have to deal with her quickly so you have a chance."
Zoey knew that Veda’s words were partly sincere, but also self-serving.
Emily had offended Veda, and Veda, intimidated by Daniel’s authority, didn’t dare to act directly, so she wanted to incite Zoey to take action.
Zoey hesitated, "But what if Emily really has some skills? I don’t believe Daniel has such poor taste. She must have some redeeming qualities. I need to see her in person!"
Veda thought for a moment, "Her skill is being shameless and seducing men. You’ll see when you meet her. I’ll arrange it, avoiding Daniel."
That was exactly what Zoey wanted to hear.
This way, the responsibility wouldn’t fall entirely on her; after all, it was Veda’s doing.
The two women seemed like friends, but each had their own agenda.
Both were selfish, which is why they were drawn to each other and became friends.
Meanwhile, Emily had no idea that people were plotting against her behind her back.
Terry called, saying there was progress on the project.
"I’ll visit the company tomorrow and approve some funds. Let’s reward everyone with a good meal and drinks."
Emily didn’t expect things to move so quickly and didn’t hesitate to give credit where it was due.
Terry wanted Emily to witness every milestone, "Great, I’ll let the team know. They’ll be thrilled."
"Sounds good!"
Emily smiled.
She planned to meet Raina first thing in the morning and then head to the company since they weren’t far apart.
The next day.
Emily sat in a café, meeting Raina.
"Ms. Johnson, I’m glad you could make it," Raina greeted warmly.
For those who didn’t know her or weren’t good at reading microexpressions, her demeanor would seem genuinely friendly and inviting.
Emily smiled back, though the smile didn’t reach her eyes, "Ms. Smith, since you invited me, let’s get to the point. What do you want to talk about?"
She wasn’t about to let her guard down just because of Raina’s friendliness.
Raina’s warmth was met with a cold splash of reality from Emily’s words, causing a flicker of annoyance and malice in her eyes.
But she quickly composed herself.
She looked seriously at Emily, "I wanted to warn you that Veda won’t let this go after you hit her. She’s likely plotting with Zoey to cause you trouble. You should be careful, or better yet, tell Daniel and get some bodyguards."
Emily was a bit surprised.
Even though she could have guessed this outcome without any investigation, Raina’s willingness to inform her was unexpected. What was her motive?
Hiding her doubts, Emily asked, "Veda seems to listen to you. Why are you telling me this? Isn’t this a betrayal? I thought you were smarter than that. Aren’t you afraid I’ll tell Veda?"
Raina smiled, "If you want to tell Veda, I can’t stop you. But knowing Veda, she won’t believe you and will think you’re trying to drive a wedge between us.
Betrayal isn’t for me to define. I just follow my conscience.
It’s not that I’m popular; I just know that true friendship requires sincerity. That’s why I’m honest with you. Veda is spoiled and a bit naive, not truly malicious. I don’t want her to keep making mistakes.
Too many misdeeds can lead to a lack of conscience, which is disastrous for her and society."
Raina made herself sound noble and sincere.
If one didn’t scrutinize her words, they might actually believe she was genuine.
Emily, however, became even more cautious.
"Alright, I’ve heard you. Thanks for the warning. You can leave now."
Emily was like a heartless man who turned cold after getting what he wanted.
Raina almost lost her composure.
She coughed to cover her embarrassment, then continued with a smile, "Emily, can we be friends? I really admire you. Can I have your contact information?"
"Thanks for the warning, but as far as I know, you’re from the Smith family. You must have plenty of people wanting to be your friend. Why are you so insistent on this? It makes me suspicious of your intentions."
Emily’s gaze was piercing.
Raina quickly waved her hands and explained with a bitter smile, "Ms. Johnson, that’s just a façade. Genuine friends are few. I admire your courage to stand up to power and stay true to yourself despite hardships. I don’t have much say in my family, especially with someone like Veda around. But you, you’ve always been yourself, and that’s admirable. So, can we be friends?"