Ray Dunlop noticed Piper Gated' little antics behind Jasper Hart and smirked, "I bet a hundred bucks that Michelle Gates, being a trained socialite, won't fall."
Michelle Gates didn't fall, but her dress suddenly slipped, revealing her lacy lingerie underneath. She froze for a moment before a scream echoed throughout the banquet hall!
"Ah—!"
Panicking, she hurriedly grabbed her dress and held it in front of her as she dashed toward the back door… only to accidentally step on her skirt, losing her balance and crashing right into the cake beside the dining table.
"Michelle!" Cisco Gustin rushed to her side, his hand awkwardly hovering in mid-air.
At first, some guests had whistled at Michelle's stunning figure, but now the entire room fell silent. No one knew how to react to the socialite who had just landed face-first in the banquet cake.
Daisy Ethan stared wide-eyed at Michelle, shocked. This was supposed to happen to Piper Gates! How did it end up like this?
Piper had only wanted to embarrass her rival, never expecting Michelle to end up covered in cream, with a piece of fruit perched on her shoulder. She gasped, "Wow... that's something!"
Jasper Hart turned to Ray dunlop and extended his hand, saying, "A hundred bucks."
Ray Dunlop quietly handed some cash to Jasper Hart, his face filled with admiration. "That Ms. Piper is something else!"
Jasper Hart smiled slightly, a hint of pride on his face. "Really? I find it quite amusing."
Thanks to Michelle Gates' little fiasco, the meticulously planned party by the Gates family came to a hasty end. Frederick Gates wore a forced smile as he ushered guests out one by one.
As Jasper Hart passed by Piper Gates, he casually remarked, "Don't forget tomorrow."
Piper blinked in surprise. She had just overheard the guests discussing Jasper Hart: the president of the Hart family, a prestigious lineage; wondering why he was so focused on her dinner invitation.
With a smile, Piper asked, "Will you eat anything I offer?"
"Sure, anything's fine," Jasper replied with a nod.
Piper agreed sweetly, "Alright, I got it."
After sending off the guests, the servants began cleaning up the mess in the banquet hall. Meanwhile, in the back of the villa, the old man was furiously reprimanding Daisy Ethan. "What a fine daughter you've raised! Stripping in front of so many elite families! What kind of behavior is that?"
Michelle Gates, now dressed in clean clothes, sat on the sofa, crying like a broken flower. "Grandpa! Grandpa! I... I didn't mean to..."
"Dad! Michelle was just startled; she's a good girl. How could she do something like this?" Daisy hurried to defend her daughter.
The old man coughed in anger. "I know she didn't do it on purpose! But does it matter to the people outside whether she meant it or not?"
"Tomorrow, the entire high society of Swansea City will know about your precious daughter stripping in public!"
"Not to mention that the Hart family was here tonight! I was hoping to ride the coattails of the Hart family, and look what you've done! You've embarrassed us completely!"
The Gates family in Swansea City wasn't exactly a prominent family; they were more of a middle-class household at best.
The Gates family was facing a cash crunch and struggling to keep things afloat. The old man and Frederick Gates had hoped to leverage their favor with the Hart family to negotiate a project with Jasper Hart, but now they had scared him off completely!
"Well... well... Michelle can go apologize to the Hart family. I'm sure Mr. Hart won't mind the little girl's antics. Michelle's birthday is coming up in a few days; I'll personally deliver the invitation to the Hart family and make sure to bring Mr. Hart back for you!" Daisy Ethan quickly suggested.
Michelle Gates nodded eagerly. "Yes, yes! Grandpa, the Gustin family is currently doing business with the Hart family. Tomorrow, I'll go with Cisco to find Mr. Hart and apologize. I'll definitely change his impression of the Gates family!"
Seeing his tear-streaked granddaughter, who looked like a wilting flower, the old man couldn't bring himself to continue scolding her. He simply stood up and said, "Do as you see fit!"
Once the old man left, Michelle's expression changed instantly. She wiped her tears and jumped to her feet. Daisy Ethan grabbed her arm and asked, "Michelle, what are you doing?"
Michelle gritted her teeth and said, "I'm going to take down that little brat Piper Gates! If it weren't for her, I wouldn't have embarrassed myself in front of everyone!"
Daisy didn't stop her. With Frederick Gates in the living room and the old man retired for the night, dealing with Piper Gateseemed like a minor issue.
Fuming, Michelle stormed upstairs, kicked open the door, and barged into Piper's room. Piper had just gotten out of the shower, wearing only her pajamas, and was drying her hair when she collided with Michelle's swinging hand. The slap echoed through the room, leaving half of Piper's face numb.
"You little brat! How dare you mess with me!" Michelle spat, her eyes filled with rage.
Piper rubbed her cheek and met Michelle's fiery gaze without flinching. Then, raising her hand, she slapped Michelle back, coldly saying, "That's for you!"
"Piper Gates! You—"
"Slap!" Another slap landed.
Piper's sharp eyes glinted like knives. "This one is for the 'little brat' you just called me."
Michelle Gates had always been the pampered daughter of the Gates family, and with Cisco Gustin and her group of friends by her side, she had never experienced such humiliation before. But today, Piper Gates had slapped her three times! Each time, it was a stinging blow to her face!
"Piper Gates, you witch! How dare you hit me, you—"
"Smack!" Another slap echoed through the room.
Piper Gates's voice was as cold as ice. "Can't you learn from a single slap? Go ahead, call me a witch one more time and see what happens."
Once, Piper Downs had been the ace of the Jeju Island organization, the number one female assassin on the world's hit list! Even the most notorious arms dealers had to respectfully address her as Miss Downs. Now, as Piper Gates, she had no intention of letting a little girl insult her without consequence!
Michelle's face burned with pain as she finally faced Piper Gates. Though Piper wore no makeup, her eyes held no trace of the fear and weakness they once did. The ugly girl Michelle had bullied for over a decade now radiated an aura of power, as fierce as a wolf!
Michelle had no doubt that if she dared to call Piper a witch again, she would be met with another slap.
Piper reached out and grasped Michelle's chin, her voice cold and steady. "Michelle Gates, don't think that just because you bullied me in the past, you can keep doing it. From now on, if I hear anything filthy coming out of your mouth, I won't hesitate to cut out your tongue and feed it to the dogs!"