Chapter 362: Well, Another One’s Gone Mad

Chapter 362: Chapter 362: Well, Another One’s Gone Mad

The speaker was a young man in his twenties, and seated across from him was his blind date.

Hearing this, she couldn’t help but roll her eyes at him. "Figures," she said with disdain. "Nine and a half out of ten of you men can’t see through a manipulative girl’s act. Her behavior was so affected, and all that passive-aggressive nonsense she was spouting, pretending to be magnanimous... It gave me the creeps. I almost lost my temper several times."

"Girl, you are not alone! I was just telling my husband, and he said I was overthinking it. Can’t even see a scheming bitch when she’s right in front of them. These stupid men, not a single one is reliable."

The stupid men: "..." Alright, alright, stop attacking us!

Arabella Donovan couldn’t help but smile as she listened to the surrounding chatter. "This is a democracy; the minority must yield to the majority. It seems everyone is quite interested in your story. If I don’t continue, I might just incur the public’s wrath, you know."

Cassandra Lynch glared at Arabella Donovan, feeling like her heart was about to give out. For the umpteenth time, she regretted the brain fart that made her think of contacting this person to deal with Eloise Donovan and the Lynch Family.

"Well then, I’ll continue. To avoid getting caught, your mother fled to a remote town in Yarrow Province and hid there until you were born. Coincidentally, a massive mudslide occurred in Yarrow Province that year. Many people who were there for business or travel got caught in it, and your mother happened to be one of them."

"Afterward, your mother gave birth to you in the hospital, only to discover you were born with a congenital heart defect. Without proper treatment, you probably wouldn’t survive to adulthood. It was then that she noticed two other pregnant women who had been brought to the hospital from a chain-reaction car crash caused by the mudslide—namely, my mother and my fourth sister’s mother."

"Your mother set her sights on my fourth sister’s family, as her parents had both died leaving a huge inheritance. She wanted to install you as their child—the child of the Lynch family—because your blood type matched my fourth sister’s, making it hard to expose the switch. After that, she targeted me to be a pawn to divert attention. In the end, she swapped you into the Lynch family and gave the real Lynch baby to the Donovan family. As for me, I was taken by your mother, dumped in the remote mountains, and left for dead."

"Damn, that’s a new one. A real-life case of the fake and real heiress? Like swapping the prince for a wildcat?"

"Reality is truly stranger than fiction. How could something like this even happen? What the hell were the doctors and nurses at the hospital doing?"

"The medical system wasn’t as robust over a decade ago. Besides, didn’t she say there was a multi-car pile-up from the mudslide? The hospital was probably overwhelmed with casualties, things got chaotic, and it was overlooked."

"Oh my god, look, she’s telling the truth! A once-in-a-century mudslide really did happen in Yarrow Province that year. Heavy rains and a sudden landslide caused a multi-car pile-up with heavy casualties."

"Ah, I think I know which family she’s talking about. Good heavens, I originally thought it was a bit heartless of them to kick the fake heiress out right after they brought the real one back. Looks like I was the naive one."

Hearing that last young woman’s remark, the single, errant strand of hair on Arabella’s head bobbed.

’Oho, there’s actually someone here who knows the story. This makes things much easier. I hope this insider is as awesome as Melanie Yates—no, even half as awesome would be enough. They could document everything that happened here today and spread it far and wide, making sure everyone knows. That would not only reveal the truth to the public but also clear Mr. Lynch and the family’s name. Two birds, one stone. Perfect!’

The Lynch Family were stunned for a moment, especially Mr. and Mrs. Lynch. They thought about how well they had treated Cassandra, only for her to twist their kindness into claims of humiliation and abuse. Now that they had kicked her out, there was no telling what rumors she was spreading about them being cold, ruthless, and deceitful.

"It was my mistake," said Mr. Lynch. "I thought, after raising her for so many years, we could part amicably, save some face for everyone, and give her a chance to turn over a new leaf. I never imagined it would give her the opportunity to slander our family and destroy our reputation. In that respect, I wasn’t as clear-sighted as a child."

Eloise Donovan sighed and comforted him in a low voice, "It’s hard to see clearly when you’re in the thick of it."

Melody Lynch turned her head and saw her mom muttering to herself. It scared her; she thought her mother had been so provoked by that heartless monster Cassandra that she was having a mental breakdown!

"Mom, what are you..."

"Oh, I was just thinking that Serena is such an honest child. We can’t keep taking advantage of her. We have plenty of businesses in the family; we can transfer some to her as a gift."

"Yes, yes, your mother is right! Don’t you young people love to eat, drink, and have fun these days? What do you say we give her that food street in the Eastward District?"

"That food street isn’t huge, but it has quite a few shops. Young people today really care about food, so it would be perfect for her. But... would just one food street be too stingy? I remember there’s a small shopping center behind it, let’s give her that too."

"And didn’t our company just build a small amusement park over in Norwall a while ago? Why don’t we give her that too?"

"Sounds good..."

The Lynch Siblings: "..." Great, another one has lost their mind. Correction, two of them.

Meanwhile, Arabella Donovan, still holding court in the coffee shop, had no idea that a massive pile of assets was about to land in her lap.

Listening to the crowd’s chatter about her, Cassandra Lynch felt the reputation and image she had painstakingly built over so many years crumbling piece by piece because of the person standing before her.

"You... you’re lying! You weren’t even born back then, how could you possibly know all this? You must have made it all up... to... to slander my name!"

"Your name? Do you even have one of those?"

"You!"

"Getting worked up already? Don’t be. The main event is next."

Arabella Donovan ignored Cassandra Lynch’s furious glare, took a deep breath, and continued.

"Because of your birth mother’s shenanigans, you were brought into the Lynch family by Mr. and Mrs. Lynch—my fourth sister’s own aunt and uncle. They found the country’s top cardiac surgeon to treat you, hired several nannies to watch you around the clock, and whenever you had a flare-up with a high fever, the entire family would mobilize, staying up all night by your side. It’s safe to say those two elders doted on you more than they ever did on their own two children."

"Everyone in the Lynch family knew you were the most pampered child. You knew it too, and you reveled in that favoritism. You selfishly believed that everything in the world should go your way, and anything that didn’t please you ought to disappear."

"For example, when you were four, a mischievous cousin from the Lynch family accidentally bumped into a maid, causing her to spill juice on your favorite dress. In retaliation, you framed that maid for breaking a treasured family heirloom—an antique vase—and got her fired."