Chapter 253

Susan stumbled backward from the unexpected impact.

She instinctively dodged to the side, but the assailant still grazed her arm sharply. A burning pain spread instantly.

"My bag!"

A shrill female voice pierced the air. Susan looked up into the heavily made-up face of Heidi Young—a famously statuesque beauty in the entertainment industry and close friend to Nicole Capra and Candy Wilson.

A pink handbag lay in the muddy slush, its surface ruined by melted snow and dirt, its contents scattered across the ground.

Out of the corner of her eye, Susan spotted two glamorous couples standing nearby. Nicole's wrist was still bandaged, and Candy's fingers were splinted, yet both women clung happily to their respective partners. Andrew Lucas and Vincent King stood tall in their tailored suits like twin sentinels.

"You hit me on purpose?!" Heidi's voice rose sharply. "This is a limited-edition LX bag! Only two exist in the world!"

Susan smirked. She recognized it immediately as a counterfeit—the stitching was too crude, and the hardware's finish was off.

"You're the one who bumped into me," Susan replied coolly. "If you're going to stage a scam, at least make it believable."

Heidi's face twisted. She yanked a staff member forward. "Tell me—who hit who?"

The young man lowered his head, voice trembling. "It... it was Ms. Thompson who bumped into Ms. Young."

Another voice chimed in. "We all saw it."

"Five million. Not a cent less!" Heidi held up five fingers triumphantly. "This was a love token from Zack Howard!"

Just as Susan was about to expose the lie, a warm hand closed around her wrist.

A silver mask gleamed coldly under the studio lights, but the violet eyes behind it burned with intensity. Alexander Grant stood in full costume—his broad shoulders and narrow waist perfectly accentuated by the guard's uniform.

Susan's breath hitched. Today's scene involved an imperial concubine caught in an affair with a palace guard.

And Alexander was clearly playing the "lover."

The set fell dead silent. Everyone recognized the heir to the Grant conglomerate—even Heidi froze mid-performance.

"My woman isn't yours to bully." Alexander's voice was calm, yet it dropped the temperature in the room.

He bent down, picking up the muddied bag. With a flick of his fingers, the inner label was exposed—clearly displaying the logo of a wholesale market.

"Five million?" He chuckled. "This isn't even worth five hundred."

Heidi paled. Nicole and Candy's expressions stiffened. Andrew narrowed his eyes while Vincent studied the "adulterous pair" with quiet interest.

Susan's ears burned. She hadn't expected Alexander to appear like this—let alone publicly claim their relationship.

The scene hadn't even started filming, yet their "affair" was already confirmed.