Addison lifted her eyes to Lance calmly. There was no hint of pride for proving her point nor regret for the situation she found herself in. She simply stared at him, waiting for his response. Virginia, however, was panicking inside. She had been the one who tampered with the authorization letter, tricking Lance into tearing it up. Later, she pinned all the blame on Addison to narrowly escape the fallout. But now, to her dismay, the matter had resurfaced! She was at a loss. And worse, Addison was far more formidable than Virginia had anticipated. Virginia's mind raced as she frantically tried to devise a way to prevent her previous lies from being exposed. Addison noticed the change in Virginia's expression, and for the first time, a flicker of emotion crossed her previously serene face. She knew exactly what Virginia had done earlier—it was all an attempt to redirect everyone's attention to her. It worked. Now, everyone present firmly believed she had been unfaithful. There was no way for her to defend herself. As for the torn authorization letter, Addison was certain Virginia had been behind it. Lance wasn't the type to make such an impulsive decision without someone like Virginia pulling the strings. Now that the authorization letter had been brought up again, Virginia would undoubtedly be the first to panic. Raising her eyebrows, Addison's gaze turned icy as she locked eyes with Virginia. Virginia, aware of Addison's stare, had no time to engage in a battle of wills. Her sole focus was on finding a way to extract herself unscathed from this mess. "Lance, are you just going to stay silent?" Steven asked sternly. "There was indeed an authorization letter from Addison—" Lance began, but before he could finish, Virginia interrupted. Turning quickly to Steven, she exclaimed, "Mr. Steven, it was all because of me!"She decided to boldly admit fault now. Steven's eyes narrowed. "Because of you?" "Yes! It was a misunderstanding on my part that led Lance to believe the authorization letter was fake. It was because of what I said that he tore it up—" Steven's face darkened with anger. "Do you even realize what that was? That letter could have saved the Johnstons! How dare you!" Virginia noticed Lance's intention to speak and hastily cut him off. Fearing that he might reveal too much, she immediately added, "Mr. Steven, it was all a misunderstanding! A mistake on my part—" Steven scowled. "A mistake? Bullsh*t!" Virginia's heart pounded, but she pressed on quickly. "I received the authorization letter Addison sent and showed it to Lance. However, at the time, I already had another authorization letter that someone from Dr. Nancy's lab had given me. "I thought Addison's letter was a fake one ... " she explained remorsefully. "Someone from the lab gave you an authorization letter?" Steven asked. "Yes. Since I'm from the Daves, I know someone connected to Dr. Nancy's lab. I asked them to get an authorization letter for us. But I never imagined that the one they brought was actually a fake ... "Mr. Steven, it's all my fault! I never meant for this to happen ... "Please don't blame Lance! If anyone should take responsibility for the Johnstons' current plight, it's me. If you want to punish someone, punish me. I won't have a single complaint." Her eyes filled with determination as she gazed at Steven. Steven remained silent. Virginia seized the moment to add, "If this makes you refuse to let me marry into the Johnstons ... " Her voice faltered as her eyes glistened with unshed tears. Then, as if summoning every ounce of courage, she said, "So be it. But please, don't blame Lance. This was all my fault." Addison's sharp eyes narrowed as she wondered what game Virginia was playing. Virginia was taking all the blame onto herself and it was an unusual move for her. Normally, Virginia would have pointed the finger squarely at Addison, accusing her of misleading her and causing chaos. Why was today so different? As Addison was mulling over Virginia's peculiar behavior, Lance's voice cut through her thoughts. "Virginia didn't do it on purpose. There's no need to make things difficult for her," he said nonchalantly. "What's done is done. Dwelling on the past won't help. Instead of holding people accountable, let's focus on finding a way to get another authorization letter. That's what really matters." With just a few words, Lance had deflected the blame from Virginia. Relieved, Virginia shot Steven a hopeful look, waiting for his response. Sure enough, Steven's expression softened. Without much ado, he said, "Fine. I won't hold you accountable." Addison was surprised at the outcome. Virginia's little display of vulnerability had worked. In all her time with the Johnstons, Addison had rarely interacted with Steven beyond their usual pleasantries. She didn't know him well enough to gauge his character, and now she found herself unable to decipher his thoughts. Just moments ago, he had been furious, yet his anger had seemingly vanished in an instant. Virginia, emboldened by his words, broke into a grateful smile. "Thank you, Mr. Steven!" She turned to Lance with an appreciative glance as she secretly grasped his hand under the table. Earlier, Lance had assured her that Steven was a fair and principled man. With that in mind, she had gambled on confessing the truth, framing her actions as unintentional errors. Steven's personality, as Lance had described, made him more inclined to let go of grudges once things were explained. "But just because I'm not holding you responsible doesn't mean I'll let you marry into the Johnstons. "You can forget about it," Steven declared coldly and took a sip of water. Virginia's hand tightened into a fist. The joy she had felt moments ago was extinguished in an instant.Sensing her disappointment, Lance glanced at Steven. "Let's not discuss this now," he said, clearly trying to comfort Virginia. He then turned to Addison. "Since Addison is here, why not have Keith prepare another authorization letter for the Johnstons right now?" Addison was taken aback. His words were downright audacious. Not only had he shielded Virginia from blame, but now he wanted to use the situation to pressure her into providing the authorization. Addison smirked. Lance, you're quite the strategist, aren't you? Steven shifted his gaze to Addison, evidently agreeing with Lance's suggestion. "Addison, what do you think? "I know you went through a lot to secure that authorization, and it must have hurt to see Lance tear it up. But the Johnstons are in trouble now. I hope you can look past your grievances with Lance. "If you're willing to help the Johnstons, you'd be our savior." Steven's tone was sincere, devoid of any condescension. His humility was evident. Addison lowered her gaze. She understood the importance of this authorization to the Johnstons. It could be a matter of life and death for them. "I—" Addison hesitated, biting her lip. Wasn't it Lance who had chosen to tear up the authorization? If he had made that decision, he should have been prepared to face the consequences. She had already helped the Johnstons once. She wasn't inclined to do so again, especially not under the guise of moral coercion. "I can't do it," she said with a straight face. Virginia was the first to react. "You can't? Or you won't? You just want to see the Johnstons fall so you can gloat, don't you? "What a cruel and heartless person." Her eyes were full of contempt as if she utterly looked down upon Addison."Mrs. Johnston, are you seeing this? This is your so-called perfect daughter-in-law. When the Johnstons are in trouble, she chooses to stand by and do nothing." Marilyn's eyes widened in disbelief. Why would Addison do this? Why wouldn't she help? Doesn't she have a close relationship with Keith? He had even bought her an extravagant diamond ring worth billions? Could Virginia's accusations actually be true?