No longer a pushover (Noelle and Cedric)

Noelle smiled when she saw how nervous Cedric was becoming. "Go ahead, Cedric."

Just then, an employee of the Hopeful Hearts Foundation walked over and said, "Ms. Liddell, there are still some matters that require your attention."

"I'll be right there," she replied.

She then turned to Cedric and continued, "Do you want to say it now, or do you want to wait until I'm finished with work?"

She could tell from his look of hesitation that what he wanted to say was something difficult to put into words. Perhaps he wanted to say something about what Donovan had said to him earlier.

Cedric let out a sigh and replied, "You should go ahead, Noelle."

Noelle nodded and left with the employee.

Cedric then turned around and glanced at Magnus. "Be careful with your words next time."

"Cedric, I thought that you would've already told her about the truth! I really had no idea that you hadn't done so.

"What's there to hide, anyway? It's not like Noelle's a gold digger or anything. She likes you for who you are!" Magnus replied.

"I know."

Magnus was confused. "Then what are you hesitating for?"

Cedric's expression darkened with a tinge of sorrow as he whispered, "Because I feel like I've wronged her."

If only the car accident had never happened, then he could have just told her who he really was.

...

Noelle walked away from Cedric with the Hopeful Hearts Foundation's employee. She texted Cedric in the car, telling him and Magnus not to wait for her as she still had work to handle. Now that she had finally regained control of the foundation, she wanted to manage it well.

For Xenia, Noelle decided to wait for the unsuspecting prey to take the bait. She was rather curious about what exactly Cedric wanted to tell her.

It was already very late by the time Noelle finished work and returned home. As she headed upstairs, she saw Xenia standing by the staircase, glaring at her with a dark expression.

Noelle just ignored Xenia and

continued upward, but Xenia suddenly snapped out at her. "You already knew from the very start that the woman was Mrs. Greene, didn't you? You set me up by deliberately putting up an innocent act in front of her, didn't you?!"

Xenia had been thinking about what happened during the charity sales event ever since she returned home. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that something was off. She figured that it had to be Noelle's trap.

Noelle smirked, her eyes filled with mockery. "With how much you've

embarrassed yourself in front of Mrs. Parham and Mrs. Greene today, I'd say your

chances of marrying Justin are as good as none."

"You fucking bitch! I knew it! You planned all of this!"

Noelle grabbed Xenia by the throat, her tone turning cold. "You better not be

planning any stupid tricks behind my back, Xenia. I still have the high-definition video footage of you sleeping with Gordon.noveldrama

"Should I send it to Mrs. Parham and let her enjoy the show? Or perhaps even send it straight to Justin himself?"

"No! Don't do it!" Xenia shouted.

She was now utterly consumed by despair. She knew that her life would be ruined if the Parhams found out about the matter. Justin still had feelings for her, but if he were to see that video, it would definitely be over between them.

Noelle patted Xenia's face and continued, "I'm glad that you understand. From now on, you'll be my obedient little pet. You'll do whatever I tell you to do."

Naturally, Xenia was unwilling to do so.

She was reprimanded harshly by her father for the incident with Gordon. She did not even tell him that Noelle had recorded a video of her and Gordon, as she was afraid that he would no longer help her get rid of Gordon.

Xenia now deeply regretted her decision. She realized that she should never have made the plan with Gordon, which had ended up having the roles reversed by Noelle to have Xenia herself play the victim in her own plan.

She gritted her teeth and asked, "What will it take for you to delete the video?"

Noelle's gaze was filled with contempt. "I am the real heiress of the Liddell family. And you? You're just the daughter of a chauffeur. Have you forgotten your place after enjoying a few years of luxury within my family?

"I've left home for a little while, yes, but now that I'm back, I'm still the one and only heiress of the Liddells."

With that, she turned around and left, leaving Xenia behind by her lonesome.

Noelle had said all those words deliberately, the purpose being to push Xenia to make a move.