They acted quickly.

While Candace and I were at home eating her birthday cake, their post went viral. They must have spent serious money boosting its popularity.

The hashtag 'Kept Man Insults Waiter In a Restaurant' left both of us stunned.

They really knew how to bend the truth.

The earliest and most viral video was posted by that waiter called Ethan Fawn.

In the video, he portrayed himself as an underpaid employee being bullied by the rich. He looked exhausted and wronged as he accused me of mistreating him.

"I'm just a regular waiter. I only want to make an honest living. I never expected him to be so mean. Right after ordering, he called me a pauper. Maybe it's because I don't wear designer brands like him that he looked down on me.

"But every dollar I earn comes from my own hard work. It's clean money. Unlike him, living off a rich woman just because of his looks.

"Luckily, our manager is a reasonable person and stood up for me. Otherwise, he might have even gotten violent with how aggressive he looked."

As if that wasn't enough, he posted another video to prove his claims.

Our restaurant equipped every staff member with a body camera. It was meant to protect employees from unreasonable customers and to protect their legal rights.

Ironically, it gave Ethan the perfect tool.

He edited the footage from his body camera, carefully cutting it to show me angrily calling him a pauper. It looked like I was insulting him out of nowhere. He then added clips of me supposedly harassing him.

With both witness testimony and video evidence, netizens began expressing their anger by criticizing me in the comment section. They were determined to stand up for Ethan.

[I hate guys who live off women and ruin society. It's unfair to people like us who work ourselves to the bone for a few grand a month.]

[This video pissed me off. What gives this guy the right to act so arrogantly? Dating a rich woman doesn't make you better than everyone else. What a joke.]

[Throwing in some foreign language too. It's probably only one of the few phrases he knows. He just wants to sound educated. Who's he trying to fool?]

They even dug up my social media account.

My posts showed off gifts from Candace like luxury watches and sports cars. These only reinforced their belief that I was a kept man.

My posts and inbox were filled with insulting comments and messages.

Among them, I spotted messages from Ethan.

[So, how does it feel, you pathetic kept man? That's the price you pay for messing with me at the restaurant. I bet being cyberbullied doesn't feel good.]

[Here's a deal. Post a public apology, and I'll forgive you. I'll even say a few nice things for you.]

[But it better be sincere. Kneel in front of the camera, bang your head on the ground, and slap yourself a few times. Maybe then I'll stop feeling angry.]

I replied with a blank expression.

[Who are you to act this arrogantly? Mandy, that manager of yours? You do realize you've already committed a crime, don't you?]

I had already looked into it. Mandy Lindt was the daughter of my mom's distant cousin.

He replied instantly.

[Haha! Our manager was personally appointed by HQ. What do you have to fight us with, you loser?]

Whether she was appointed by the headquarters or secured the position through family connections, I knew the truth better than anyone.

To put it bluntly, Ethan was barking up the wrong tree.

I didn't reply to him. Instead, I immediately texted my mom, Martha Keele. I didn't explain what happened. I just asked for access to the restaurant's surveillance footage.

This incident was too minor to involve her as the group CEO. The moment she stepped in, all her subordinates would know this wasn't a trivial matter.

Less than five minutes later, the restaurant's real-time cloud surveillance footage was sent to my phone.

I tapped on my phone. It started showing live surveillance footage. The restaurant was packed. Most of the customers had clearly come to show support after the viral incident.

Revenue had skyrocketed. In less than six hours, the branch had already made what it usually earned in two months.

I originally checked the footage to gather evidence for the police, but what I saw shocked me even more.

In the staff lounge, Mandy was bragging to her mother about her achievements, while Ethan stood behind her and eagerly massaged her shoulders.

"Mom, our revenue increased several ten-folds. I skimmed 435 grand from it. You and Dad can just enjoy your vacation."

After a few casual remarks, she hung up.

Ethan immediately leaned close to her ear. He lowered his voice and spoke in a charming tone.

"Mandy, this surge in revenue wouldn't have happened without me, right? Don't you think it's time you gave me that Porsche you promised?"

Mandy was clearly in a great mood. She reached back and caressed his face.

"You really are my lucky charm.

"But I'm planning to buy a luxury apartment in Westonia this month. It costs around 580 grand. Based on current revenue, I'm still a bit short–"

Seeing this, Candace, who was the Chief Legal Officer at Sylas Group, couldn't help but snort.

"Abusing their position to embezzle company funds, and in such large amounts. That's a criminal offense. They'd receive a minimum sentence of three years. They've got some nerve."

I hummed in agreement. This was no longer just defamation.

Since it had gone this far, we'd settle everything at once.

Ethan grinned greedily.

"If I manage to get the remaining 90 grand, you'll add my name to that apartment."

A sly glint appeared in Mandy's eyes.

"Of course."

After the promise was made, the two of them tumbled together onto the couch in the lounge.

Thirty minutes later, I received another message from Ethan.

[I'll give you one more chance. Transfer 90 grand to me right now, and I'll tell everyone you're not a kept man.]

Candace snorted again.

"Extortion on top of everything else. First time I've seen someone so eager to add years to their own sentence."

I smirked and replied.

[I'll give you the money, but I need to make sure you'll keep your word. Tomorrow morning, let's meet at the restaurant. We'll deal in person.]

At the same time, as the company's regional CEO in Hawthorn, I sent a message to Yvonne Lindt.

[I've heard your branch's revenue has increased several tenfold. I'll personally inspect it tomorrow. Pick me up at the office.]

That very night, Yvonne hastily returned on a flight.

The moment she landed, she headed straight to the office.

As soon as she saw me, she bowed slightly to me and smiled.

I handed her a black briefcase filled with cash.

"This is 90 grand. It's for the employees at the branch."

She beamed.

"Oh my, the branch's performance has been great, but such a big bonus isn't necessary. Mr. Keele, you're too generous."

I smiled without saying a word.

On the way to the branch, Ethan messaged me again.

[There's a higher-up visiting this morning. Don't come. We'll talk this afternoon.]

Yvonne must have already warned Mandy about it.

I ignored him. Whether I showed up or not wasn't his decision to make.

Thirty minutes later, Yvonne and I arrived at the restaurant.

All the staff were lined up to welcome us, but Mandy was nowhere in sight.

I knew she was scrambling to erase the evidence of her embezzlement.

Ethan turned his head. The moment he saw me, his eyes widened in shock.

Ethan stormed up to me with a face full of fury and shoved my shoulder hard.

"Who told you to come now? Get the hell out!"

He then barked at the other male waiters behind him.

"What are you all standing around for? Get over here and drag this broke loser out! The manager said the executives' car is already downstairs. If this guy causes any trouble, we won't be able to pay for it with our lives!"

Yvonne trembled in rage. She stepped forward and slapped Ethan across the face.

"Who do you think you are, talking like that? You're fired!"

Ethan didn't recognize Yvonne. He glanced at the black case in her hand and assumed she was someone I had hired to back me up. Without hesitation, he slapped her back.

"You old hag, who the hell do you think you are? How dare you hit me? Someone get over here. Throw these two out!"

Several waiters immediately ran over, grabbed Yvonne and me, and pinned us down near the entrance.

"Ouch! My back–"

I hadn't expected Ethan not to recognize Mandy's mother.

"Ethan, open your eyes and look carefully. I'm the executive you mentioned!"

I stated my identity outright, but it only made them burst into laughter.

Ethan grabbed my collar and punched me hard. He then followed up with several slaps.

Held down by multiple men, I couldn't move. Blood immediately seeped from the corner of my mouth.

"Pathetic loser. Take a good look at yourself. How dare you pretend to be Mr. Keele from Sylas Group? You have no idea how much trouble you're in!"

"Ahh! Mr. Keele!"

Yvonne screamed in a trembling voice when she saw me being treated like this, but Ethan shoved a filthy rag into her mouth to silence her.

"What are you all waiting for? Beat that old woman up! Teach them a lesson before the executives arrive, then dump them in the alley trash bins!"

At Ethan's command, they started slapping Yvonne as well. It turned into a full-blown assault.

That was when Mandy finished handling things and hurried out.

"What's all this noise? Mom!"

She ran forward and forcefully pushed the waiters away.

"How dare you hurt my mom? Do you have a death wish?"

Gasping for breath, Yvonne snapped angrily, "These are the wonderful employees you hired? They even dare to hit your own mother!"

The waiters' faces were all drained of color.

"N-No. It wasn't our idea. Ethan told us to do it!"

Ethan was so shocked he started stuttering.

"T-That's your mom? I-I didn't know. I thought she was with the kept man–"