Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Simon smiled triumphantly. “It’s not too late for you to wake up and see the truth, Sammy. You’re my daughter, and as a father, I definitely won’t ignore my children and leave them to fend for themselves!”

“Thank you for being willing to give me another chance, Dad.” Samantha sounded infinitely grateful.

Simon was absolutely thrilled. He had suffered countless times since Samantha returned, and the most recent ended up with him being bedridden for three entire days. At long last, he could finally regain his dignity again!

He wanted her to know that he was her father and that he was the one who should dictate how her life went!

Then, he said in a commanding tone, “Since you’ve finally come to your senses, we should handle this matter as soon as possible. A press conference will be held tomorrow!”

Samantha naturally did not object to it. “Okay. Go ahead and make arrangements, Dad.”

Simon hung up the phone with glee.

Samantha put the phone away, raised her eyes, then looked at the blue sky again. She curled the corners of her lips and her eyes felt cold.

After a few seconds, she turned around and walked into the bedroom.

Inside the dressing room, she chose from Rochelle’s sportswear and donned a hat as well as sunglasses. After putting them on, she stood in front of the mirror to make sure that her disguise was airtight. Then, she picked up her bag and headed out.

…

News of Simon’s upcoming press conference was revealed later that evening. It was to be held at ten the next morning in the conference hall of a five-star hotel.

Early the next day, countless reporters had already flooded into the hotel, anxious about not getting a good seat if they arrived late.

At half past nine, the entire conference hall was crowded with people. There were still many reporters who could not get in and a crowd formed at the entrance.

Simon and Cynthia had already arrived, but there was no sign of Samantha yet. Cynthia could not help but feel a little worried and asked her husband in a low voice, “Samantha won’t disappear at the last minute, right?”

“If she doesn’t come, it’ll only reinforce the accusations against her. Moreover, there are plenty of reporters who have shown up here, and they’ll be pissed as hell if she doesn’t show up. You can imagine just how badly they’ll write about her if that happens!” Simon was not at all worried.

In an era where public opinion could influence practically anything, the reporters’ pens were mightier than the sword.

On hearing that, Cynthia finally set her heart at ease and could not help but start imagining just how she could maximize Samantha’s value later.

With ten minutes to go before it was ten o’clock, Samantha was still nowhere to be seen. The reporters seemed a little impatient and unhappy. After all, they were very upset when Samantha escaped last time. If she pulled a fast one on them again and wasted their precious time, they were not going to be polite to her anymore!

They ought to know that every minute and every second of a reporter’s time was money.

The clock finally struck ten.

Dressed in simple clothes, Samantha stepped into the conference room, drawing the attention of everyone present there.

She had finally made an appearance!

The reporters became energetic at once, pointing their cameras at Samantha and clicking away as she walked.

The clicking sound resonated continuously throughout the huge conference room.

Samantha walked to the conference room stage where a microphone stand had already been prepared. She stood behind the microphone, looked at the crowd, then lifted her lips and said, “Hello everyone, I’m Samantha Larsson. First of all, I’m very grateful to all the journalists and reporters for taking the time out of their busy schedule to participate in this conference.”

She took a step back and bowed slightly to the reporters in a very polite manner.

It was difficult for one to get angry at someone who was smiling, and such was the case when Samantha’s courtesy and respect toward the reporters calmed their anger.

After Samantha got up, she approached the microphone again and said, “Before we start this press conference, I have a small request.”

She turned her gaze to the parents standing in the audience and said, “I hope my parents can also stand onstage with me. After all, I’m only standing here today because of them.”

Simon and Cynthia looked at each other—a profound smugness emanated from the bottom of their eyes.

After all, Samantha was about to apologize to them in a moment. If they stood onstage, everyone could see them more clearly.

Simon immediately said, “Alright. Your mother and I will accompany you onstage.”

Cynthia took Simon’s arm, and the two of them walked pretentiously onto the stage, as if they were walking the red carpet in a lavish ceremony. Both of them stood beside Samantha.

Samantha smiled at them, then faced the crowd and started speaking, “My friends, if there’s anything you’d like to ask, you may begin now.”

The reporters were already raring to go, so her words were like a start button that set off a frenzy of questions.

One reporter spoke first. “Ms. Larsson, do you admit to the three accusations against you by your parents?”

The entire room fell silent on its own and everyone was waiting for Samantha’s answer.

Simon and Cynthia’s lips were already starting to curl into a smile.

Based on their agreement, Samantha would confess to everything, repent in public, and apologize for everything. The matter would then be regarded as settled.

Samantha looked directly at the largest camera lens in the conference room, which happened to be recording her live.

Her red lips parted slightly and she uttered her words clearly. “I! Deny! Everything!”

Those three simple words were like small stones that caused huge ripples as they were thrown into the sea.

A commotion immediately ensued.

The reporters initially thought that since Samantha had brought her parents out to hold a press conference, she would go through the expected course of action and confess before apologizing. None of them expected anything otherwise, but who would have known that she would deny the accusations!

A reporter’s greatest fear was the lack of chaos in the world. With chaos, their news would become even more valuable and the traffic would increase too. At that moment, everyone subconsciously sat upright, staring at the family onstage and eagerly waiting for them to rip each other to shreds!

Simon and Cynthia never thought that Samantha would still have any tricks up her sleeve after coming to the door. Simon’s face turned extremely ugly, but since they were onstage, there was nothing he could do to her. His only recourse was to lower his voice and threaten her, “I’m warning you, Samantha. Don’t play with fire and get yourself burned!”

Samantha glanced back at him, smiled warmly, and said in the gentlest of manners, “It remains to be seen who will end up setting themselves on fire.”

“You!” Simon was furious and wanted to give her a tight big slap. Unfortunately, he had no choice but to endure it.

Samantha ignored him, turned her head around, then continued to look into the live recording. Amidst the noise of the crowd, her gentle yet firm voice sounded once more.

“Next up, I’ll explain one by one the three accusations that my parents made against me.”

The reporters fell silent again.. All of them suppressed their excitement and waited for her explanation, eager to see if she really was wrongfully accused or whether she was just forcing an explanation!