Chapter 10 Cripple Your Hand

"If neither of you has any objections, then contestant Claire will perform first."

The host passed over the microphone.

Claire took a deep breath and said, "The piece I'll be performing is 'White Sails'."

Hearing this name, Elizabeth's expression instantly darkened.

"White Sails" was the first cello piece she had learned as a beginner.

It was also the piece that had made Claire an overnight sensation on this variety show stage in her past life.

Back then, Claire had fabricated her background, falsely claiming this piece was her own composition written to encourage herself through difficult times. With that story, she earned sympathy from the entire internet and was celebrated as a genius girl wronged by fate.

In contrast, she herself had been maliciously smeared by Claire and portrayed as a vicious person who would stop at nothing.

As old memories surged up, a trace of coldness flashed in Elizabeth's eyes.

Since Claire insisted on using this piece to put on an act, she would use this very piece to fire the first shot of her revenge.

Claire sat down and adjusted the cello, raising her right hand. After the earlier drama, her mindset was frantic and her movements were particularly stiff.

The bow fell, and the first note sounded.

The tone was dry and harsh, completely lacking in charm.

Elizabeth sneered inwardly—this level was even worse than Claire's usual practice sessions.

What should have been a melodious and graceful piece was played so harshly and chaotically it sounded like sawing wood.

The audience below whispered among themselves, their faces full of disappointment.

"This level and she's fighting for first chair? That's ridiculous."

"Wasted my sympathy on her. She's just playing the victim, her skills are terrible."

Claire gritted her teeth and barely managed to finish the entire piece.

As the last note fell, the entire venue was dead silent, without a hint of applause.

Claire stood and bowed, her eyes instantly reddening.

"I'm sorry, I didn't perform well. My hand hasn't healed yet, it hurt the whole time I was playing."

She gently rubbed the scar on her palm, pretending to be in unbearable pain, and ran off the stage crying.

Aaron immediately grabbed the microphone and glared at Elizabeth, questioning her publicly, "This is all your fault!"

"If you hadn't injured Claire's hand, how could she have performed so poorly!"

"You knew she had a competition and still struck so viciously—your heart is too cruel!"

Lonnie also frowned at Elizabeth, his eyes full of disappointment, "You've really let me down. Even if you want to win, you can't hurt your own sister like this."

The two worked in tandem, immediately swaying public opinion.

The audience's eyes toward Elizabeth instantly turned hostile, with discussions rising one after another.

"No wonder she played so badly, her hand injury hasn't healed."

"Elizabeth will really stop at nothing to win."

"Too vicious, actually destroying someone else's future."

The live stream chat completely exploded.

The hashtag #ElizabethDeliberatelyHurtHerSister# rapidly shot to the top of trending topics.

Countless netizens who didn't know the truth flooded her Weibo with abuse, and the comment section completely collapsed.

[Vicious woman, get out of the music industry!]

[Harming people for a first chair position, disgusting.]

[Demand the production team disqualify her!]

[Feel so bad for Claire, bullied by her own sister.]

At the side of the stage, Claire hid behind Aaron, secretly scrolling through the trending topics, a smug smile playing at the corners of her mouth.

So what if Elizabeth was more skilled? As long as she firmly pinned this smear on her, netizens would only sympathize with herself and condemn Elizabeth.

Watching this familiar routine of turning black into white, Elizabeth only felt it was incredibly ironic.

In her past life, she had been completely destroyed by the Wilson family using these exact tactics.

But in this life, she would never again let anyone manipulate her.

Elizabeth picked up the microphone and walked slowly to center stage.

She coldly swept her gaze over Claire, Aaron, and Lonnie, her voice clear and firm, carrying throughout the entire studio.

"Done performing? Done talking?"

"Claire, you insist that your hand injury affected your performance."

"Just show the evidence. Hospital diagnosis, doctor's certificate, surveillance footage from the living room on your birthday—any one of these will do."

"As long as you can prove I injured you, I'll withdraw from the competition immediately and never play the cello again."

"But if you can't produce evidence, this is public slander. I'll report it to the police directly and pursue your legal responsibility."

Her tone was firm, without any room for compromise.

Claire panicked inside, instantly losing her composure.

She had no evidence at all. The birthday surveillance had long been deleted by Steven, and the so-called injury diagnosis was forged—it couldn't withstand verification at all.

Once the police investigated, all the lies would be exposed, and her fake heiress identity would be completely revealed.

This was a result she absolutely couldn't accept.

Claire bit her lip, crying even more miserably, showing weakness and backing down, "Elizabeth, I know you hate me and don't want me to compete. I won't fight with you anymore, I'll withdraw from the competition, okay?"

Aaron felt heartbroken watching this and immediately protected her while angrily rebuking Elizabeth, "Claire has already backed down, don't go too far! You're the one who should withdraw!"

Lonnie also chimed in, "Claire is already like this, and you're still pressing her—what's the point?"

Watching the three of them work together to turn black into white, Elizabeth only felt disgusted.

"I don't want anything except the truth."

"If you can't produce evidence, it proves everything was lies and false accusations from you!"

"Now, it's my turn to perform."

With that, she ignored them and walked straight to the cello and sat down.

Elizabeth closed her eyes and took a deep breath, calming her emotions.

The bow fell, and melodious notes slowly flowed out.

The melody was sorrowful and graceful, yet contained an unyielding resilience, extremely infectious.

The entire venue instantly quieted down, everyone immersed in her music.

The piece ended.

After a full ten seconds of silence, thunderous applause suddenly erupted.

The audience shouted her name in unison, the atmosphere heated.

"Elizabeth! That was beautiful!"

"This is a real genius, this level deserves first chair!"

Elizabeth stood and bowed slightly to the audience below.

Claire watched the spotlight-bathed Elizabeth, her eyes red with jealousy, full of resentment.

Why was Elizabeth better than her at everything, able to win everyone's favor?

She gritted her teeth and sent Steven a WhatsApp message: [Steven, suppress the trending topics quickly! Don't let Elizabeth steal the spotlight, and absolutely don't let her real heiress identity be exposed!]

Steven received the message and immediately arranged for people to control public opinion and suppress related buzz.

Claire looked at her phone and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

After the competition recording ended, Elizabeth packed up her things and prepared to leave. She avoided the crowded main entrance and chose the less-trafficked back door of the TV station.

She had barely walked far when several dark figures suddenly rushed out from a side alley, directly blocking her path.

Leading them was Aaron.

"Elizabeth, stop right there!"

"Apologize to Claire immediately, or you're not leaving here today!"

Elizabeth looked around at the people surrounding her, her expression cold, "Apologize? Why should I apologize?"

"Claire's skills weren't good enough and her performance flopped—that has nothing to do with me."

"Is this the only kind of dirty trick your Wilson family knows?"

These words completely enraged Aaron. Veins bulged on his forehead, his face full of hostility.

"Elizabeth, you're asking for it!"