CHAPTER 2: The Ring, the Slap, and the Boy With the Camera
The heirloom ring was a treasure of the Harrington family, passed down for three generations.
It was not only expensive.
It symbolized the family’s honor.
During the engagement party, the ring would be placed in a green velvet box on the display table before Adrian officially presented it to Cassandra.
If Emma were caught “touching” the ring, no one would be able to protect her.
That was what Cassandra thought.
But she did not account for Leo.
On the morning of the party, Leo was extremely excited. He wore his little suit and ran around the mansion hugging his toy camera.
“I’m going to capture every important moment,” Leo announced to Malcolm. “When Uncle Adrian gets old, I’ll show him.”
Malcolm laughed.
“Mr. Adrian will surely be very happy to hear that.”
Leo ran into the hall, taking pictures of the chandelier, the flower arrangements, the desserts, and Emma arranging the glasses.
When Emma saw him, she smiled.
“Remember not to run too fast. The floor is slippery.”
Leo nodded obediently.
But when he took pictures near the display table, Cassandra walked over.
Leo had never liked Cassandra.
He could not explain why.
He only felt that when she smiled, her eyes did not smile.
He hid behind a large plant beside the banquet table, planning to take a “secret” picture to show Emma later.
And that was when he saw Cassandra open the ring box.
At first, Leo thought she only wanted to look at it.
But then he saw her put the ring into her purse.
Before he could understand what was happening, Cassandra dropped her handkerchief and called Emma over.
Leo instinctively pressed the record button.
He did not know he was capturing evidence.
He only felt that something was very wrong.
Then Cassandra slapped Emma.
In that moment, Leo’s fear turned into anger.
He remembered Emma holding his hand when he could not breathe.
He remembered her sitting beside him for an entire afternoon just to fix his broken camera.
He remembered her telling him:
“When you see someone being treated unfairly, as long as you speak the truth, you are already very brave.”
So Leo ran out.
And the truth was revealed.
After that night, news of Cassandra Vale framing a maid spread through high society faster than the wind.
The Vale family tried to bury the scandal.
They called Adrian.
They called Eleanor.
They sent lawyers.
They sent gifts of apology.
They said Cassandra had only “acted irrationally because of pressure before the engagement.”
But Adrian did not meet them.
He canceled the entire marriage arrangement.
Harrington Group also suspended all projects with the Vale family for review. Not long after, the legal department discovered several suspicious investments connected to Cassandra’s side.
It turned out she had not only wanted to become Adrian’s wife.
She had also worked with outsiders to access Harrington assets through the marriage contract.
The engagement party became a scandal.
Cassandra lost her position, her reputation, and all the people who had once surrounded her with flattery.
But what concerned Adrian most was not Cassandra.
It was Emma.
After the party, Emma resigned.
She handed Malcolm her resignation letter the next morning. It was handwritten, the letters neat and careful.
“Thank you to the Harrington family for giving me the opportunity to work here. But after what happened last night, I think I am no longer suitable to stay.”
When Malcolm gave the letter to Adrian, he was silent for a long time.
“Where is she?”
“She is packing in the staff quarters.”
Adrian immediately went to find her.
Emma was folding a few old clothes into her suitcase. Her small room was as clean as it had been on the day she arrived. On the desk, only one card remained, drawn by Leo: a girl in an apron standing beside a boy holding a camera.
Underneath were messy words:
“Miss Emma is a hero.”
Adrian stood at the door and knocked softly.
Emma turned around, slightly startled.
“Sir.”
“Are you really leaving?”
Emma lowered her eyes.
“I think it would be better.”
“Better for whom?”
That question made Emma fall silent.
Adrian stepped into the room, his gaze stopping on the old suitcase.
“You were the victim last night. You are not the one who should leave.”
Emma gave a sad little smile.
“But I understand my position. Places like this are not meant for people like me.”
Adrian frowned.
“What kind of person are you?”
Emma lifted her head.
For one brief moment, everything she had held back since last night appeared in her eyes.
“The kind of person who can be slapped in front of hundreds of people and still has to kneel down to pick up broken glass. The kind of person who has to prove her innocence even when she did nothing wrong. The kind of person who, just because she is a little poorer and wears a lower uniform, can be treated as if others have the right to trample on her.”
Adrian did not speak immediately.
Her words were not loud, but they pierced straight through the silence in him.
He had grown used to using power to handle things after they happened. But he had never thought deeply enough about how it felt for the person who had to endure the humiliation before the truth was acknowledged.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
Emma froze.
Adrian Harrington, the man so many people feared, was standing before her and apologizing.
“It wasn’t your fault,” Emma said quietly.
“It was,” Adrian replied. “This is my house. You were insulted in my house. I allowed someone like Cassandra to enter this place, to make my staff afraid. I am responsible.”
Emma looked at him, unsure what to say.
At that moment, Leo rushed in.
“Miss Emma!”
The little boy threw his arms around her.
“Please don’t leave. Is it because I spoke too late? I’m sorry…”
Emma immediately knelt down and hugged him.
“It’s not your fault. You saved me.”
“Then please stay.”
Emma choked back emotion.
Leo buried his face in her shoulder.
“If you leave, who will listen to my stories? Who will remind me not to eat almond pastries? Who will tell me I’m brave?”
Adrian stood beside them, his heart heavy.
Emma stroked Leo’s hair.
“Leo, I can’t stay forever just because you want me to.”
Leo looked up, his eyes red.
“Then stay because you want to be respected. Uncle Adrian can do that. Right, Uncle?”
Adrian looked at the boy, then at Emma.
May you like
“Yes.”
That day, Adrian made a decision that changed the entire mansion.
