The Seventh Miserable Bride

Chapter 141

"But I still feel very bad for causing you so much trouble. Others must think that you have no taste for marrying such a terrible woman."

"I don't care what other people think of my marriage. Likewise, it is nobody's business whom I marry. What matters is that I know what kind of person you are, Yasmine."

Yasmine burst out crying and all the tears she had been trying to hold in rolled down her face. Sebastian's trust and favor were undoubtedly the best consolations she had at this point.

"Honey, thank you."

"Don't thank me, silly."

Sebastian reached out to wipe her tears and teased, "You are becoming more and more like a girl! No matter how badly you were bullied in the past, you always refused to cry, like the way men behave. But now, you keep crying in front of me. Did you know that men tend to become protective when they see a woman cry?"

Yasmine broke into laughter and said, "No, what nonsense!"

"Well, whether you know it or not, when you shed tears, I will feel distressed for you. So, if you don't want me to feel sad, then, you cannot be sad either. Don't worry, I will deal with this."

"How are you going to deal with it?" "First, I'll find out who was responsible for the rumour, and then I'll expose the truth."

Yasmine's heart tightened. "You want to reveal the reason I signed the agreement with the Lind family?"

"Yes."

"No way!"

She refused without even thinking. "You cannot do that!"

"Why?"

Yasmine's tears began to fall again. "My childhood memories left an indelible scar on my heart. It has already caused me much sorrow, and I don't want to expose that wound again, even if it can prove my innocence."

Sebastian felt distressed, and he took her into his arms. He said, "I'm sorry, Yasmine. I didn't consider your feelings before thinking of that. I'm sorry."

Yasmine leaned against his shoulder and sobbed softly. She was really tired. These complicated incidents happened one after another. If they only affected her, it would be fine. But now that they involved Sebastian too, she couldn't help but feel guilty over it.

When she got home in the evening, she stood at the entrance of the Mansion House. She wandered around for a long time and did not dare to go in. She did not dare to face her parents- in- law who loved her so much.

When Sebastian got home, he took her hand and entered the living room together with her. She came face to face with her parents-in-law and sister-in-law who were sitting in the living room. When she was about to begin her apology, Madam Simons broke the silence first. "We saw the news this afternoon. Yasmine, don't feel guilty. It's nonsense. Dad has already ensured that all the news has been withdrawn. The person who spread those rumors is so despicable! He seemed to have predicted that our family will quash the news. He wrote to all the newspapers and media companies in B City, and even the news portals in the neighboring cities too."

"You don't have to worry about this. I'll handle it. Blocking a website won't stop people from gossiping. Let's eat first."

Sebastian glanced at his family calmly. In fact, he already had an idea.

"Yasmine, don't be sad. No matter what others think of you, in the eyes of your father and me, you are an amazing daughter-in-law we could ask for."

"And me. To me, Yasmine is the best sister-in-law in the world."

Tiffany Simons raised her hand and spoke. She made her position about Yasmine very clear.

"Thank you, mom. Thank you, dad. Thank you, Tiffany." She looked at Sebastian who was next to her. Then, she said, "Thank you too."

"That's it, I'm getting tired of listening to you thanking us. Let's just eat."

After dinner, Yasmine went upstairs and dialled Richie Lind's number. The line was soon connected. He said in a slightly surprised voice, "I really didn't expect you to call me again, Yasmine." "Uncle Lind, you're the one who did it, aren't you?"

Richie was stunned. "What did I do?"

"There are rumours all over B City about me marrying Sebastian, and about how it's not in accordance with the agreement."

"Oh, so you do know that you broke the agreement after all?"

"So, are you admitting it?"

"Sorry, but I did no such thing, but if I know who did it, I will be very grateful to him, because this is exactly what I have always wanted to do but didn't have the guts to."

Slam! Richie hung up the phone.

Yasmine sat on the sofa powerlessly and her mind was in chaos.

Sebastian came to the bedroom and saw her tired face. Distressed, he asked, "Are you still worried about that thing?"

"No."

Yasmine tried very hard to squeeze a smile out and she said, "I've promised you not to think about it, so I won't think about it."

"It's good that you're not taking it to heart."

Sebastian gently tidied up the hair that was scattered over her temples. He comforted her, "Believe me, I won't let you be unhappy all the time. I won't let those malicious people create negativity to disturb you."

Yasmine leaned into his arms and said slowly, "I think you have heard enough 'thank you' today." "Yes, so you don't have to say it anymore. You don't have to say thank you if you really love someone sincerely," Sebastian sighed and said. "You're already tired enough now."

She suddenly raised her head. She felt surprised. Why did Sebastian's words sound as strange as they did when he called her that night in the United States?

The next morning, although the scandal was still rife, she went to school out of a sense of responsibility. As if nothing had happened, she taught her classes, marked her students' homework, and fought against the cruel reality with her tenacious willpower.

All of a sudden, Lily screamed as if she were an explorer discovering a new world. "Yasmine, hurry up!"

Yasmine thought something unacceptably bad had happened, so she dragged her feet to Lily's desk.

Suddenly, she was stunned.

Lily's computer screen was broadcasting a press conference Sebastian was holding on behalf of his company.

Sebastian looked smart in a suit as he sat calmly in the seat of the chief executive officer. Fynn was sitting next to him, and they were surrounded by reporters from various newspapers and news websites. The reporters scrambled back and forth as they probed Sebastian for first-hand information.

Yasmine held her breath as she stared at the computer screen. She was not mentally prepared at all. She was worried that Sebastian would expose her past. Maybe that would get her the public's sympathy. However, she did not want the public's sympathy. All she wanted was to bury that unbearable past and let it be a permanent secret.

"Hello, everyone. Please sit down and do wait for your turn to ask your questions."

Sebastian gestured for the reporters to take a seat in an orderly manner, and his expression was still calm.

"President Sebastian, I am a reporter with Business Report. Are you holding this press conference to clarify your position on your wife's engagement to another man?"

Sebastian glanced at the reporter with his sharp eyes and solemnly replied, "I knew about it from the very beginning."

"President Sebastian, why did you marry her then? Are you aware that the person who was engaged to your wife is mentally handicapped and has therefore garnered sympathy from society?"

"I know, but love has nothing to do with sympathy. I fell in love with my wife at first sight. She didn't marry me because she desired my money, but because I pursued her. Her father's business was in trouble, so I took the opportunity to marry her. She was completely forced into it, unlike that reported in the false reports that has purported her to be a gold digger. What's more, the family she was engaged to is also wealthy."

"According to what you are saying, you used your power to steal her from Leighton Lind. Is that correct?" "You may interpret it that way."

"Don't you feel guilty? For stealing a woman from a mentally-handicapped person?"

"The engagement between my wife and Leighton Lind was invalid under the law. Initially, she was forced to marry me, but we fell in love with each other after that. Given the situation, how does my actions constitute stealing?"

"But your wife signed the marriage contract with her name and her fingerprint. You knew that she already had a marriage contract with someone else, and yet you still used your power to marry her. Does this not feel like you're bullying the weak?"

"Huh!" Sebastian sneered. "Sir, do you have any common sense? Will a contract be valid just because you mark your fingerprint on it? Do you know how old my wife was when she signed the contract? She was 12 years old. Why would a 12-year-old girl sign such a contract if she was not forced into it?"

The place was silent, but another reporter quickly broke the silence. "Then what circumstances forced your wife to sign the contract back then?"

Yasmine's heart was in her throat again, but she felt relieved to hear Sebastian's answer.

"I'm sorry, but this is a private matter. Please forgive me for not being able to tell you."

"President Sebastian, your words make sense, but from the perspective of ordinary people like us, Leighton Lind needs a partner who can take care of him for the rest of his life. Because of his IQ, he might not find another woman who would be willing to marry him again. But you are different. You can have any woman you want. Hence, why do you not sympathise with him? Why don't you allow the couple to be together?"

Sebastian was about to lose his temper. He leaned to one side and asked Fynn in a low voice, "Where did you find this bunch of stupid reporters? Do you want me to beat them up?"

"I'm sorry, President Sebastian. I was wrong, but please control your temper. Otherwise, the ramifications would be very serious."

Fynn smiled at the reporter as he spoke from the corner of his mouth.

Sebastian took a deep breath and answered with a smile, "I have made it clear from the beginning that love has nothing to do with sympathy. Are you going to ruin another person's life because of sympathy? Here's another way to think about it. At that time, my wife didn't love me nor did she love Leighton either. However, her life would be unhappy if she married Leighton. On the other hand, marrying me brought her happiness. Please consider this perspective. As long as you think rationally, you would not think that I am fighting a disabled man for a woman. Instead, I saved a woman from a life of misery."

"President Sebastian, are you sure that what you said is true, or are you just making excuses for your overbearing behaviour? You keep saying that your wife is living a happy life now, but is this how your wife actually feels, or is it your one- sided conviction?"

Sebastian could not hold it in any longer. This reporter was obviously here to cause trouble. He kept challenging Sebastian's bottom line from the very beginning.

With a snap, Sebastian threw the cup of tea in front of him at the reporter and shouted coldly, "Get out!"

There was a scream, and other reporters started snapping pictures. Fynn immediately stopped them. "Stop. Stop taking pictures!"

The live broadcast on the computer screen stopped, and Yasmine's mood sank. In order to prove her innocence and protect her past, Sebastian took all the responsibility onto himself. How could she repay him?

"Oh my god, Miss Taylor! You managed to get Sebastian to help you clarify the misunderstanding by having a press conference. We women all admire how capable you are."

"That's right. If any woman reached Miss Taylor's level, it would be considered sooo successful."

Lily listened to these sarcastic words and could no longer hold her breath. She slammed the table and said, "Stop being jealous and bitter about this. Look at yourself, you're not behaving like a teacher at all!"

"Well, if we don't behave like teachers, what can be said about the person who abandoned her mentally-challenged fiance to marry a man from a rich family?"

Yasmine sneered and left the office silently. She was used to the sarcasm and insults.

Lily chased after her, but when she saw that Yasmine was walking towards the principal's office, she suddenly stopped.

Although the video was blocked right away, many people had seen it, including Abigail Tanner. She arrived at Simons Corporation in anger and she questioned Sebastian as soon as she met him, "Do you know what you have done today?"

"I don't know," Nôvel(D)rama.Org's content.

Sebastian answered coldly without raising his head.

"You shouldn't have held a press conference for such a vain woman, and you shouldn't have offended the reporters for her sake. Now the video of you with the tea cup has leaked out, and people on the internet are scolding you. Did you know that?!"

"Then let them be. It doesn't matter."

Sebastian's nonchalant attitude completely infuriated Abigail. The way she saw it, his nonchalant attitude was actually an expression of love for Yasmine.

No matter what, she couldn't accept it.

"Brother Sebastian, where did your rational thinking go? Yasmine is simply a woman who will cause you trouble. You should avoid such women, otherwise, she will cause you more trouble in the future."

Sebastian slowly raised his head and looked her in the eye, saying, "Since she is my wife, I can't abandon her."

"Neither can you take all the responsibilities on yourself. Your actions will affect your company's stock price!" "If I lose a little money but clear my wife's reputation as a gold-digger, I think it's worth it."

Abigail did not expect him to be so partial towards Yasmine. She was about to go mad. "Sebastian, how could you be like this?"

"What do you think I should do instead? Just ignore her when others attack her?"

"Yes, you should ignore her. Yasmine is not a public figure. Even if there are negative news, it is only temporary. After a while, it will naturally subside. But you are different. You are a person with a reputation in the business world. You are not responsible for her, but your family's business."

When he heard what Abigail said, Sebastian sneered sarcastically. He looked directly at the woman in front of him with his strange and cold eyes and said, "Abigail, I once regretted our three years of separation, but now, I don't regret it anymore, because during these three years while we were separated, I realised the huge difference between your values and mine."