Chapter 71 Call Her Sister-in-Law

Chapter 71: Chapter 71: Call Her Sister-in-Law

Sophie looked at Maeve Walsh, who appeared quite exasperated before her.

Maeve had ruined her mother’s marriage and driven Sophie out of her childhood home to fend for herself for years. Meanwhile, she and her daughter had moved in, basking in wealth and luxury. And now... they actually had the nerve to come and persuade her to give up her own husband.

Sophie’s lips twitched slightly, enunciating every word: "Did Julian Sterling ask you to come here and demand a title?"

Stella Sutton looked her up and down. "Naturally, there are many things Julian can’t say himself. Do you really expect him to pressure you to pack up and get out of the Sterling family?

"It’s better if only our family knows about this. We can solve it behind closed doors. When you get out of the marriage, who will know you were a wife for seven years? If you hide the fact that you slept with a man for seven years, it will be easier for you to remarry. We’re doing this for your own good."

Looking at Maeve’s seemingly sincere expression, Sophie only found her utterly repugnant, the absolute embodiment of sanctimony.

She suddenly smiled, but her eyes were devoid of warmth. "Sure. If the two of you kneel right here and kowtow to beg me, I might consider whether to transfer my secondhand trash to her."

Stella’s face fell instantly, unable to believe Sophie would spew such arrogant nonsense.

Even Maeve couldn’t maintain her hypocritical mask. "Sophie, you are being completely unreasonable!"

Sophie couldn’t be bothered to argue. Wasting energy on toxic people was no different from being haunted by a ghost. Ignoring their ugly expressions, she turned and walked away.

By the time Sophie joined her, Ivy Hawthorne had already finished her main tasks and was in high spirits. "Thank goodness Julian is busy with work. Otherwise, Stella really would have gotten her way. She wants to publicly mark her territory? In her dreams! Dragging Julian into a livestream with her—do I even need to point out her ulterior motives?"

Sophie rubbed her temples, calmly stating a fact. "That’s also because Julian indulges her and yields to her in everything. Even if their plan failed by some twist of fate, the very fact that he agreed to accompany her tells everyone that Stella Sutton is his exception. If there is a first time, there will be a second time."

Ivy looked at Sophie, who was calmly describing her husband’s special treatment of another woman. She opened her mouth but ultimately just gave Sophie a gentle hug. "It’s fine. Once the divorce certificate is issued, you can bid a permanent farewell to all these toxic people and their drama."

Sophie hugged her back. "I’m fine. I’ve been fine for a long time. A person doesn’t spend their whole life living on so-called love. I have Lydia, my career, and my friends. I have no regrets."

Ivy finally felt relieved. "The station’s documentary topic this time is about going behind the scenes of the medical field. After the second livestream episode, we’ll have to wait another week before we can start shooting the documentary."

Sophie thought it was an excellent angle. Professionals in their line of work spent their days and nights buried in laboratories in total obscurity, developing countless life-saving medicines for the general public. They deserved to be seen.

After Ivy dropped her off at Helios, Sophie immediately headed straight back to the lab.

Although the progress at Kingsford University had been stalled by Stella and related tasks had to be suspended, this was far from her only project. Between the conceptual robot capable of acupuncture and microsurgery scheduled to launch in the first half of the year, and the neurological drug she had spent years trying to crack, she had more than enough to keep her busy.

For the second episode of the livestream, Sophie appeared as one of the guests. Ivy deliberately gave her more screen time and opportunities for educational segments. Sophie was quite poised about this sort of thing and wasn’t nervous at all.

When she went offline, Ivy came over excitedly. "With a face like yours, you should be on the big screen! Your beauty blew me away, you know? The live chat is entirely filled with people praising you for being prettier than female celebrities. When the documentary comes out, Stella won’t even be able to lift her head in comparison!"

Sophie looked at the keywords in the live chat. There were indeed many comments calling her pretty, but she simply laughed it off.

That afternoon.

Sophie’s phone began to vibrate repeatedly. She checked the screen and was surprised to see messages from the wealthy heirs in Julian’s social circle—people she almost never interacted with.

—[Mrs. Sterling, it’s Jean’s baby’s one-month celebration. You should come. It wouldn’t be a proper party without you.]

Sophie was surprised they would invite her. Her phone buzzed again, this time with a direct message from Jean Hayes.

—[Sophie, my confinement period is finally over! We’re hosting the baby’s party at the Star Sterling Hotel today. You absolutely must come.]

Jean was the only female friend from Julian’s circle who had met Sophie in person and genuinely got along with her. The others she had added on WhatsApp were essentially just online acquaintances. Because Julian never brought Sophie to his social gatherings, none of them had any idea what she looked like. Jean was the sole exception, someone she had met entirely by chance.

She liked Jean a lot and considered her a good friend. After a moment’s thought, Sophie replied, [Sure, no problem.]

The one-month celebration was a grand affair. Sophie picked out a special gift for the baby and even stopped by the formulation room to grind a custom, baby-safe medicinal powder meant to protect the skin and repel mosquito bites.

During the evening rush hour, she took the subway directly there. Upon arriving at the Star Sterling Hotel, she realized just how lavish the event was. The guest list spanned across all industries.

Sophie headed straight toward the VIP section. Just as she approached the area, before she even got close, she heard a group of men chatting.

One man sounded full of regret. "Look at my terrible memory. I sent the WhatsApp message to the wrong person! I accidentally sent the invite to Sophie Winslow. You don’t think she’ll actually show up, do you?"

Sophie quietly halted her steps.

Another person laughed and scolded him, "Do you have a brain? When have you ever seen Mr. Sterling bring that wife of his to any public event? I can’t believe you even managed to call the wrong person ’Mrs. Sterling.’"

"Am I going to be a sinner? Julian is bringing Miss Sutton today. If Sophie actually shows up and makes things awkward for them, how am I supposed to explain it to Miss Sutton? I can’t even guarantee Sophie won’t get jealous and start a catfight with her."

Mrs. Sterling... they had called the wrong person.

Of all the things she had imagined, Sophie never expected such an absurd possibility. No wonder they had suddenly invited her with such enthusiasm. Stella had already been recognized by them as "Mrs. Sterling," proving that Julian had been treating her with absolutely no reservations.

Suddenly, she felt somewhat relieved that these people only had her on WhatsApp and had never seen her in person. Clearly, there was no reason for her to stick around any longer. Sophie planned to find Jean, drop off the gift, and leave.

Just as she turned her feet, she spotted Julian and Stella walking shoulder-to-shoulder from the opposite direction out of the corner of her eye.

The men who had been chatting immediately stood up to welcome them. Stella responded with a bright, genuine smile.

"Sophie!" Jean approached from behind, slinging an arm around Sophie’s shoulders.

Sophie snapped back to reality. "Jean, here’s your gift. I’m going to—"

"Jean, come over here and meet Miss Sutton! We finally get to see her in person," someone from the group called out suddenly.

Julian’s indifferent gaze swept over the crowd, pausing on Sophie for several seconds. She knew he was likely surprised by her presence and highly displeased by the situation.

Stella also frowned imperceptibly, wondering, "Why is she here? Is this really an occasion she belongs at?"

The other wealthy heirs also noticed Sophie. Struck by her beauty, they clamored, "Jean, who is this?"

Jean used to believe in eternal true love, but after a few years of marriage, she had seen reality for what it was. She harbored a particular disgust for homewreckers. Glancing at Stella, she ignored the men’s question and instead countered, "Mr. Sterling, aren’t you going to introduce us? Who is this lady next to you? I don’t believe we’ve met."