Chapter 241 Philip Ruined
Amelia really wasn't jealous that Samuel praised Evelyn for being pretty.
But when he said that, it did make her happy.
He was really good with words.
When they first met, every time he spoke, he could make her so angry she thought she'd have a heart attack. She thought Samuel was sharp-tongued.
In just a few months, he had completely changed.
Amelia's face turned a bit red.
When it came to relationships, she had always been shy.
She pretended to stay calm and said, "Don't change the subject. Keep going."
Samuel obediently continued.
"But Evelyn didn't pay attention to anyone back then. Yet several times when I was being bullied, she rushed over to help me."
Amelia's expression didn't change.
"So you two got together?"
That was still her point—she wasn't jealous.
She had her own past too. Finn was her past, so she wouldn't have double standards and demand that Samuel have no romantic history.
As long as Samuel didn't stay entangled with Evelyn after being with her, she wouldn't dwell on the past.
However, to Amelia's surprise, Samuel denied it.
"I didn't get together with her. I was very guarded back then. Although I was grateful she was willing to get close to me and help me, I never completely let my guard down around her. Over the next two years, we interacted more and more, and we became friends. But I was still cautious with her. Because her arrival and approach were too sudden."
"Then what?" Amelia asked.
Samuel told the truth, "It was during a class graduation trip after high school. I accidentally discovered she had contact with Zachary. But I didn't make a fuss about it. We went to the same university. Still friends, often eating together. Jeremy and York also got along well with her. I gradually let my guard down, thinking that her knowing Zachary might just be a coincidence. After all, they belonged to the same social circle, so knowing each other was normal. Later my dad got seriously ill. Zachary and his mom—the woman who raised me—revealed their identities. My identity was acknowledged, and I quickly took over the Crawford Group. The day Zachary was sent abroad, he was devastated and cursed at me like crazy. He mentioned Evelyn. He said Evelyn was very close to him, they'd been friends since childhood. Evelyn approached me only because she had already guessed I was the real son of the Crawford family. In case the truth about my and Zachary's identities came out, she approached me early to build a good relationship. He thought I was in love with Evelyn and wanted to use her to hurt me one last time."
At this point, Samuel shrugged and said, "Too bad for him, I only felt gratitude toward Evelyn from beginning to end, never love. I only saw her as a friend. Since she approached me with ulterior motives, even that little bit of gratitude was gone. Zachary didn't hurt me—instead, he helped me see through Evelyn. I should thank him."
Amelia understood.
No wonder Samuel had thrown away that photo earlier.
Samuel continued.
"But I'm someone who values old friendships. Although she approached me with a purpose, during our school years, she really did help me a lot. Back then everyone could bully me, but with her around, she helped me avoid a lot of trouble. So even after learning the truth, I didn't deliberately distance myself from her, I just didn't confide in her. Jeremy and York still don't know about this and still consider her my friend."
Amelia nodded, showing she understood.
If it were her, she would do the same.
Adults making friends should look at people's actual behavior, not their inner thoughts.
"But..." Samuel's tone shifted as he said, "I thought we would continue this mutually respectful relationship, but I didn't expect that what she wanted wasn't just this."
Amelia glanced at him questioningly.
Samuel then told her about Stanley.
"I have many informants in my home in Thornfield. One of them helped me find out a bit about why my dad suddenly told me to distance myself from you."
Amelia immediately guessed something.
"Was it Evelyn causing trouble? Does she like you?"
"Yes, according to the information I have so far, that's right. She wants to be my wife."
"Did you know before? That she liked you?"
"I didn't pay attention to these things. After knowing she approached me with a purpose, I cared even less."
"But I guess she doesn't necessarily like me as a person. Even if she does, what she likes more is the status of being the Crawford family heir. Otherwise, all these years, she wouldn't have kept playing both sides between me and Zachary."
Amelia gave a fair assessment, "Evelyn is a very goal-oriented person."
Samuel was slightly dissatisfied.
"I've told you all this, why aren't you jealous or angry at all?"
Amelia smiled, "You've been completely honest with me, and you don't like her—you only see her as a friend. Why would I be jealous?"
She trusted him, so she wasn't jealous.
Samuel understood too, and his mood instantly brightened.
"Don't worry, I'll soon find out exactly how she manipulated my dad."
"Okay."
Amelia nodded.
After returning home, Amelia felt strangely relaxed.
Probably because she now knew that Stanley telling Samuel to distance himself from her wasn't because he didn't like her as a person, but because someone had manipulated him.
Since someone was causing trouble rather than having an issue with her personally, there was still hope for her and Samuel to break through this situation.
She was a traditional person, so she still wanted Samuel's family's approval.
...
Soon it was the last day of October.
That day, Stella called her.
"I've collected all the evidence on Philip that you asked for."
Amelia was a bit surprised.
"So fast?"
She thought that someone as careful as Philip would take at least a few more months to gather evidence against.
Stella said, "Yosef helped me."
Amelia understood.
After all, she was the one who had told Stella to ask Yosef for help.
"I always thought Yosef was an incompetent playboy, but after spending time with him recently, I realized he's very capable. He's not what he appears to be. He's not frivolous at all - instead, he's very responsible, a good man."
There was a hint of admiration in Stella's words.
Amelia was slightly surprised.
But she didn't show her surprise, just said calmly, "In that case, we can start taking action."
"When should we release the information?"
Amelia said, "Tonight."
Stella exclaimed in surprise, "So soon?"
"Yes, tomorrow I have something very important to do. I can use this to help make that thing succeed."
"What is it?"
"It doesn't really concern you, don't worry."
"Okay, then I'll send you the evidence encrypted."
"Sounds good."
After settling on this, they hung up.
Amelia was slightly lost in thought.
Images of Stella and Yosef unconsciously appeared in her mind.
Their faces together actually looked quite well-matched.
But Amelia quickly snapped out of it and put this matter aside.
What happened between those two wasn't for Amelia to manage.
And privately, she didn't hope they would actually get together. Stella was originally Yosef's sister-in-law—if she became his wife, that wouldn't look good in public opinion.
She just hoped she was misunderstanding.
Stella was probably just expressing surprise and admiration for the real Yosef beneath his playboy facade.
Amelia quickly collected herself and called Max.
"Contact all the media we can reach and help me blow up a news story."
"What news?"
They talked for a long time, and Amelia gave Max all the evidence Stella had given her.
At 8 PM, prime time when most people were online, a trending topic suddenly appeared on the internet and exploded.
Philip, the eldest son of the Dobbins family in Thornfield, was actually gay.
Not only that, he had caused the death of his own child for his lover.
What was even more shocking was that Philip's lover was a fugitive with two deaths on his record.
The Dobbins family wasn't some small household—they were prominent in Thornfield.
The Dobbins family had people in politics and business, and their family enterprise ranked in the top 20 in Phoenicia.
Everyone loved watching secrets of wealthy families, especially secrets involving sexual orientation.
People loved discussing this kind of gossip, so as soon as this news came out, it immediately exploded on trending topics.
Philip was taken in for questioning by the police.
Harboring a fugitive was a serious crime.
Amelia looked at the trending topics, feeling slightly relaxed.
She called Yosef.
The fact that Philip's "boyfriend" was a fugitive was something neither she nor Stella had known before. It was only after Yosef joined in that they learned this person's identity.
This person hadn't killed intentionally—he had accidentally hit someone with his car.
After confirming both people in the car were dead, he hid the bodies, which weren't discovered until a year later.
But with Philip's help and protection, he used a fake name, got plastic surgery, changed his appearance completely, and remained at large.
Amelia was very glad she had told Stella to find Yosef.
After all, Yosef was part of the Dobbins family, and with his long-standing playboy image, no one was on guard against him.
So investigating Philip's affairs was easier for him than for the Shadow Operations Division.
When Amelia called Yosef, he had just bought a plane ticket and was preparing to fly to Thornfield.
"What's the situation with the Dobbins family now?" Amelia asked.
Yosef didn't hide anything and said directly, "Philip has been taken by the police. His boyfriend hasn't been found yet, but that guy can't hide for long. On this trip, I'll help the police catch him."
"Can Philip be released?"
"I don't know. I won't let him out. And even if he can get away with it, his reputation is completely ruined. From now on, the family would rather support me than deal with him."
Amelia said, "It's time you showed your true self."
Yosef laughed, "That's exactly what I'm thinking. I'm tired of playing the playboy. It's time to do something real."
"Then I won't disturb you. Focus on what you need to do. I'll wait for your good news."
"Okay."
After hanging up, Amelia drove straight to Shadow Operations Division to discuss tomorrow's matters with Byron and Louis.
Tomorrow was the first.