"Sir, I'm fine. I can still work for the Thompsons for many more years!" Ms. Taylor hesitated for a moment, then begged. She had been working here all her life, and had treated Diana's mother like family, and then took care of her four children, especially Diana. She was reluctant to leave her.
"Ms. Taylor is only fifty years old, far from retirement. Moreover, if she leaves, who will take care of these chores in the future?" Diana put down the clothes in her hand and frowned.
As soon as she finished speaking, Serena said, "I think June can take over Ms. Taylor's position. She is intelligent and reliable."
Sure enough... Diana sneered inwardly. Was Serena so eager? She pursed her lips and showed an unhappy expression, "So Ms. Stewart means to kick Ms. Taylor out?"
Andrew and Colin heard the commotion and came over. Andrew pushed his glasses and said, "If it's Diana's things that were damaged, how to handle it is her decision. Let's just follow her lead."
Colin also said, "Ms. Taylor has been arranging everything in the villa, big and small. She has been doing a good job, so it would be too harsh to drive her away."
"I know Ms. Taylor has been here for many years, but she made such a big mistake. If we don't punish her, what will the other servants in the house think?" Serena spoke gently, but she hit Ms. Taylor's sore spot.
Ms. Taylor also knew that she would never be able to pay for the price of the dress she ruined. Her eyes turned red and she took the initiative to say, "Madam is right, I made a mistake and should be punished. I...I will go and withdraw my savings to compensate for it, but please don't drive me away."
After a moment of silence, James spoke, "You have been working for the Thompsons for so many years, so you don't need to compensate for the dress. However, you can leave the work in your hands to June. You just need to focus on taking care of Diana."
James' words were a forgiveness to Ms. Taylor. Not only did he not ask her to compensate, he also let her stay, which was the greatest tolerance. For a while, no one spoke. Ms. Taylor also breathed a sigh of relief, "Yes... sir, thank you so much."
Upon hearing this, June was delighted, "Sir, rest assured, I will work hard in the future!"
"That won't do!" Diana leaned against the door and suddenly spoke, causing everyone to pause for a moment.
"Diana, your father has already said to let Ms. Taylor stay. Why aren't you satisfied?" Serena looked at her with some reproach. Although James didn't drive Ms. Taylor away, June took over her work, making it more convenient for Diana to arrange things in the future. Although she was a little dissatisfied, it was better than before.
"I think Ms. Stewart is right. If someone makes a big mistake, they should pay the price! We can't just turn the page after a few words!"
"Diana, are you saying that Ms. Taylor should leave?" James widened his eyes in surprise.
Even Andrew and Colin were stunned. Colin tugged on Andrew's sleeve, "What's wrong with Diana? Did she get upset with John?"
"...I don't know if Diana was upset or not, but I'm a bit upset now," Andrew covered his chest. He couldn't believe that his sister, who had finally returned to normal, was now once again blindly following Serena.
Serena was even more delighted, "Since Diana thinks so too, husband, what do you think..." Serena looked at James expectantly.
James was also slightly surprised. But since his beloved daughter said so, he acquiesced and nodded. Serena immediately said, "Ms. Taylor, you can start packing your things tomorrow. Considering how long you've served the Thompson family..."
"Ms. Stewart, what are you doing?" Diana blinked, "I mean, the person who broke the clothes should leave the Thompson family, but it's not necessarily Ms. Taylor who did it. Why are you so eager to drive her away?"
"Diana, what do you mean by that? Ms. Taylor has admitted it herself. If it's not her, then who else could it be?" Serena furrowed her brows in annoyance.
"Perhaps there's someone else involved," Diana's gaze shifted between the few people present, finally landing on June's face.
June quickly waved her hands, "It's not me! I haven't touched the wardrobe these past few days!"
"Diana, even if you want to protect Ms. Taylor, you can't just accuse someone without any evidence," Serena interrupted.
James looked serious, "Diana, we can't just make baseless accusations." Although he understood that Diana wanted to defend Ms. Taylor, he couldn't let others take the blame.
"I'm not making baseless accusations!" Diana crossed her arms and pouted, "If it was Ms. Taylor who damaged the clothes, we will find out soon. It's just that..." Diana's gaze shifted again, "If someone else did it, Ms. Stewart, what do you suggest we do?"
At the mention, Serena's heart skipped a beat. According to Diana's words, could it be June who damaged the clothes? She looked at June in confusion, but received a denial from her. Without Serena's instructions, June wouldn't dare to act recklessly. Upon receiving June's response, Serena cleared her throat, "Of course, we have to kick them out of the Thompson house. What's the point of keeping someone who can't do their job properly?"
"You're absolutely right!" Diana nodded, "I've checked the areas where my clothes were damaged, and it's clear that someone deliberately tore them apart. Ms. Taylor is always extremely careful and it's definitely not her who did this!"
"Perhaps it was just an accident," Serena was starting to get impatient, "Diana, I know you don't want Ms. Taylor to leave, but we need evidence for everything."
"Of course, I have evidence," Diana said with a mysterious smile. She then ran to the wardrobe and retrieved a surveillance camera hidden in a corner. She pulled out the memory card from it and said, "Whoever ruined my clothes, we can check the surveillance camera to find out!"
Serena was shocked and asked, "Diana, why did you install a surveillance camera in your wardrobe?"
"My clothes are so expensive, what if someone envies them and steals them? Isn't it normal to install a surveillance camera?" Diana replied confidently.
Serena furrowed her brows and wondered who would steal Diana's clothes. She suspected that Diana had a hidden agenda. However, even with the surveillance camera, only June and Ms. Taylor had been in the room to tidy up. Since June was innocent, it must be Ms. Taylor who ruined the clothes. Finally, they decided to watch the video and catch Ms. Taylor in the act. Su Yaoqing sneered inwardly at the little girl, thinking that she would soon fail miserably and regret it.
Colin brought the computer, and they immediately started to review the surveillance footage. After a short while, they found something suspicious. To their surprise, someone unexpected appeared on the video!
It was Olivia! In the video, Olivia opened Diana's wardrobe and then suddenly grabbed her ivory-colored dress. She tore it apart with a ferocious expression on her face before nonchalantly hanging it back up. As she left, a cold smile flashed across her face. After watching the video, everyone's face turned grim except for Diana.
James's eyes flashed, and he shouted, "Where is Olivia? Bring her to me!"
"Husband, please calm down. I will go and call her," Serena said, also shocked by the revelation. It was always her responsibility to handle Olivia. However, she had been preoccupied with taking care of Maddie and had not let Olivia do anything suspicious. That fool! She acted on her own and made a mess of things!
"Diana, it's your niece who did this! Is she crazy? How could she ruin my clothes!" Diana shouted dramatically.
"Diana, there might be some misunderstanding. I had no idea about this. I will definitely scold her severely later!" Serena hurriedly distanced herself from the situation.
"Ms. Stewart, it's your niece! Has she gone mad? She tore my clothes!" Diana exclaimed dramatically.
"Diana, this is...probably a misunderstanding. I had no idea about this. I'll scold her thoroughly later," Serena hurriedly distanced herself from the incident.
The servant quickly brought Olivia over. Olivia had just finished her dinner and was quite happy when she heard that Serena wanted to see her. She thought she would finally get a new job assignment and get rid of her current situation. However, as soon as she arrived upstairs, she felt that the atmosphere was not right. The Thompson family was all there, and they all had a serious expression on their faces. When she got closer, she saw Diana's off-white dress on the bed, and her face suddenly changed uncontrollably.
Andrew keenly caught her expression and said coldly, "It seems that you already know what mistake you have made."
"I...I don't know. I didn't ruin that dress!" Olivia quickly denied. She still wanted to marry Andrew and become the wife of the Thompson family's big young master. She couldn't admit to doing something like this!
Diana was about to burst into laughter at her, "Strange, how did you know the dress was ruined?"
Olivia's face turned pale. Serena was so angry that her eyes twitched. This fool! How could she be so stupid! Colin impatiently said, "The surveillance is here. Olivia, how dare you tear Diana's dress? What were you trying to do!"
"I, I..." Olivia's face turned white as she stammered. Why was there surveillance! That crazy Diana, what was she doing with surveillance equipment in her wardrobe!
"Speak!" James was really angry. This servant dared to be so audacious that he wanted to slap her!
Olivia was trembling with fear. She grabbed Serena's sleeve and pleaded, "Auntie, please help me plead for forgiveness! I was foolish and thought Diana was targeting me, and I acted impulsively out of anger! I won't do it again!" Olivia had thought that no one knew about the incident, and even if her torn dress was discovered, she could easily blame someone else. However, the surveillance camera had captured everything.
Serena shook off Olivia's grip and scolded her, "How could you do such a thing! Olivia, I was wrong about you. Don't bother taking your salary for this year. Go back and reflect on your actions!" Serena then turned to Diana and said in a gentle tone, "Diana, Olivia was indeed in the wrong. Rest assured, I will make sure she is punished accordingly."
Previously, Diana had always listened to Serena's coaxing, but today she frowned and showed displeasure. "Ms. Stewart, didn't we agree that whoever damaged my clothes would be kicked out of the Thompson household immediately? Are you now protecting Olivia?"
Upon hearing this, Serena turned pale. Why wasn't her usual tactic working this time?! She instinctively looked towards James, who had an ice-cold expression on his face. "Having someone like this in our Thompson household is a disgrace!"
At this point, Serena knew that she couldn't protect Olivia anymore. She was about to speak when she heard Diana ask, "I remember that I only gave my key to June, so... Olivia, how did you get into my room?" June, who had been anxious on the sidelines, suddenly felt a sinking feeling in her heart. Why was it always coming back to her?!
"Ms Thompson, I don't know. I live with Olivia, and she probably took the key while I was asleep," June said, secretly gesturing to Olivia. They both worked for Serena. Olivia had already made a huge mistake, and now if she took the blame, she could still be saved.
But Olivia was enraged when she heard this. "You're talking nonsense! You clearly gave me the key yourself, but you didn't keep it safe, and now you're blaming me!" Olivia then turned to Serena and said, "Auntie, this is all June's fault. If she had kept the key safe, I wouldn't have entered Diana's room. She bears the primary responsibility for this!"
Serena's blood pressure skyrocketed. She regretted bringing this idiot into the Thompson household in the first place!
"Olivia, you're talking nonsense. You clearly tore Ms. Thompson's dress, but now you're trying to blame me. How shameless!" June couldn't believe that Olivia not only didn't speak up for her, but also turned on her and started to yell back.
Diana watched the dog-eat-dog drama unfolding before her and clicked her tongue. "Ms. Stewart, are these your hardworking and diligent niece, and the clever and intelligent June?" The sight of the two women trying to shift the blame onto each other was ridiculous to everyone present.