Chapter 30: Cuckolding You and Me

Xander Ruan furrowed his brow, a faint sense of dissatisfaction rising in his heart. He had already lowered his head, yet Arthur Vane was still grasping onto a junior like him with sarcastic remarks; it was truly excessive. With so many eyes watching around him, it wasn't appropriate to talk back to the old man, so he could only bow his head again. "My apologies, I was out of line."

Seeing that the boy's apology was sincere enough, Arthur finally stopped hounding him. "Fine. Go about your own business. Don't stick your nose into Seren’s affairs anymore."

Xander pressed his lips thin and turned to leave.

Seren Thorne spoke up lazily: "You're going to look for Mabel Ruan, aren't you? I suggest you'd better not go right now. She’s currently preparing to seduce Alaric Vane, planning to cuckold both you and me. If you go and ruin her 'good deed,' she’ll hold a grudge against you and might target or retaliate against you later."

Seren’s reminder to Xander wasn't out of kindness; she simply wanted the outsiders to know about the scandals of these two Ruan siblings. When the Ruans forced the original host to take Mabel's place in marrying Alaric, although Alaric's leg injury was a ruse, the family's cold-heartedness toward the host was real. Dragging the Ruan family's reputation through the mud served as a small act of revenge for the host.

Hearing Seren’s words, Xander still believed she was deliberately blackening Mabel’s name. His face became even more unsightly. "Seren Thorne! Don't think that just because the Vanes are backing you up, I can't do anything to you! If you throw dirty water on Mabel one more time, don't blame me for disowning you as a sister!"

Seren rolled her eyes at him. "The way you say that... as if I actually want to be your sister."

{Who would even want a big idiot brother like this for free? Does he think he's a hundred-dollar bill? That everyone wants to stick to him?}

Xander was deeply irritated by her few words. Just as he was about to argue further, he heard Seren say: "You don't believe Mabel has ulterior motives toward Alaric? Go to the CEO's office right now; a live, full-frontal show is waiting for you."

Mabel had just been pulled into Vane Corp by Xander to start work today. On her very first day, she couldn't hold back. Using her status as the sister-in-law, she successfully entered Alaric's office, intending to implement her plan to "hook" the man. Since Alaric was out for lunch, Mabel had stripped herself bare in advance, waiting for him to return. She planned to pounce like a hungry tiger, giving Alaric no chance to react. Once she stirred a reaction from the man, everything would naturally fall into place.

Unfortunately, ideals are plump, but reality is skeletal. Regardless of whether Seren interfered, Mabel’s seduction was destined to fail. After all, Alaric was the great villain of the book who loved the heroine second only to the male lead. Previously, Seren had only managed to sleep with him by drugging him; Mabel was trying to force herself on him with nothing—how could she possibly move a block of ice like Alaric?

Hearing Seren talk about "naked pictures," Xander gasped with rage. "You! How can a girl say such things? Simply vulgar!"

Seren ignored him, patted her clothes, and stood up. "Are you going to watch the live scene or not? If you’re not going, I’ll go by myself." She had originally planned to wait for the right moment to go upstairs and catch them red-handed; if Xander didn't go, she would take others with her.

"I’ll go! Why wouldn't I? Since you're slandering Mabel, I must restore her innocence!" Xander finished speaking and was the first to squeeze through the crowd, heading for the elevator.

Seren turned back to look at Arthur Vane. "Grandpa, aren't you coming along?"

Arthur waved his hand. "Mabel is a girl after all. It’s not appropriate for an old man like me to be present. You two go ahead."

With Arthur's words, the other employees who had been eager to follow and join the fun all settled down. Although they desperately wanted to follow the gossip, being on the front lines of "eating melons" always carried risks. If they saw Mabel’s body and were later targeted for revenge, it would be a losing bargain.

Seren and Xander went up to the CEO's floor together. Seeing Seren, the front desk secretary greeted her respectfully, "Young Mistress."

Seren asked, "Is Mabel Ruan in the office?"

The secretary nodded and said, "Yes. Miss Ruan said she had an appointment with you to meet in Mr. Vane’s office, so I let her in to wait for you."

The confidential files of Vane Corp were kept in specialized safes, and all office computers were locked; a normal person entering wouldn't cause any harm to the company. Plus, since Mabel was related to the President's wife, the secretary had let her in directly.

Hearing the secretary's answer, a bad premonition flickered in Xander’s heart. Suddenly, he didn't dare to push open the office door.

Seren didn't have as many qualms. She walked to the door and pushed it open directly. As soon as she entered, a pale body lunged forward.

"Mr. Vane, you're finally... AH!!!"

Mabel cut her sentence short. Realizing the person entering wasn't Alaric, she couldn't help but scream, quickly covering herself and crouching down. "Seren Thorne! How is it you?! Where's Brother-in-law?!"

Seren unhurriedly snapped a few photos and put them into a private album. If this person ever jumped in front of her or annoyed her in the future, she would have some leverage for a threat.

After taking the photos, she stripped Xander’s suit jacket off and threw it onto Mabel. "Put it on before we talk. It’s an eyesore."

Mabel was filled with rage, but she still got up and put the jacket on. The Ruan brothers were all quite good-looking and tall; Xander’s jacket reached Mabel’s thighs, essentially covering what needed to be covered.

Once the clothes were on, Seren continued, "I’ve saved the photos of what you looked like just now. Don't pester Alaric Vane ever again, or I'll post all those photos on the internet."

Mabel’s face turned white. "You wouldn't dare!"

Seren’s tone was light and provocative: "You don't believe me? Should I send them to the media right now?" Whether Mabel pursued Alaric didn't matter much to her, but having an annoying pest fluttering around every day made her uncomfortable; she had to resolve this.

"No!" Panicking, Mabel reached out to grab Seren’s phone.

Seren sidestepped, and Mabel lunged into thin air, falling directly onto the floor. It was only then that she noticed someone else standing at the door.

Looking up to see Xander’s face—pale and bloodless—Mabel’s pupils shrunk. She immediately dropped her ferocious expression and squeezed out a few tears. "Brother, it's not what it looks like. Listen to my explanation..."

Xander looked down at the woman on the floor. His eyes no longer held the past indulgence or attachment; there was only a profound sense of strangeness. "Mabel, I heard you call out Alaric’s name with my own ears. Do you still want to lie to me?"

Mabel opened her mouth, but in the end, she couldn't utter a single word of defense. Facts speak louder than words; in this situation, even if she wanted to lie, she couldn't find an excuse.

Seeing that she had nothing to say, Xander was heartbroken and immediately turned to leave.