When Rebecca saw the man standing in front of her, she smiled widely. "Ethan! What are you doing here? Aren't you afraid of being recognized and mobbed by your fans?"Ethan had clearly disguised himself by stuffing his shirt so that his broad figure appeared plumper. He wore a tousled wig that looked like it hadn't been washed in days. For what it was worth, he looked like a regular office worker who had been working overtime for several days. Even so, Rebecca recognized him instantly, and she had no doubts that his fans would too. Ethan looked unconcerned as he settled into the seat across her and sipped his coffee. "I heard from Sam that you came here to have cake. It's been an hour, so I came to check on you," he said, avoiding her other question. His clear voice didn't suit his current appearance at all."I was going to head back after I finished eating, but I got too engrossed with my phone," Rebecca replied apologetically. If she kept looking at her phone at home, Sam would n
Daniel had only messaged Sylvia to try his luck, not expecting her to reply. Therefore, when he received her message in return, he could hardly believe it. It took some time for the surprise to truly sink in. He quickly scheduled a time for her and picked two locations so that she could choose where she wanted to meet.F: "How about this Sunday? As for the place, would Four Seasons suit your palate or Abimael at GW Plaza?"Like the Four Seasons, Abimael was a major attraction in Riverwood, famous for their pizzas. Both restaurants were expensive, but more importantly, the taste and quality of the food were the best. It was clear that Daniel truly wanted this meeting to happen, and it didn't take long for him to receive a reply.Sylvia: "I prefer pizza."Those three crude words showed just how haughty Sylvia was, just what Daniel expected from a woman who blocked him without mercy. It reminded him of Rebecca for some reason. Daniel frowned and pushed the thoughts of her from his m
"Am I supposed to believe you?" Daniel's voice was cold.He was expecting to meet Sylvia. Even if she refused to continue working with the Winston Group, he still wanted to know why. He was willing to apologize to her if he had offended her in any way while they were working together or even express his gratitude for her help three years ago. He never expected to see Rebecca. At that moment, his heart was heavy.Rebecca hadn't expected that Daniel wouldn't believe her either, but she could see where he was coming from. Sylvia had signed an exclusive contract with the Johnsons, which meant they were close; Rebecca knew Sam well, whose company was also working with Sylvia, so it was highly probable that she knew Slyvia through him. With that, it wouldn't be impossible for her to pretend to be Sylvia just to make a fool of him. Even so, it was still amusing. Rebecca smiled. "Why are you so sure that I'm pretending to be Sylvia? Why won't you believe that I'm really her? Daniel, ar
Daniel frowned at Rebecca, clearly not expecting that. Rebbeca had pushed her sunglasses to the top of her head, revealing her pretty face with exquisite makeup. Her red lips stood out in contrast to her fair skin, while her bright eyes were fixed on him, filled with amusement.Daniel's breath caught in his throat at the sight. For a moment, he was lost for words, unwilling to disrupt the beautiful picture in front of him.Unfortunately, Rebecca was far from being a silent painting. She nudged him with her elbow, destroying whatever atmosphere had been in the air just a second ago. "Hey, I'm talking to you. Aren't you going to say anything? You said if I asked nicely, you'd go and finalize the divorce with me today. You have to keep your word."Frustrated, Daniel averted his gaze and ignored her, his lips tightly pursed.Rebecca was relentless. She lifted her wrist to check the time. "It's still lunchtime now, so I think no one's in the office. We can have lunch together, then head
Daniel was non-responsive.He leaned heavily against Rebecca's shoulder, his head burrowed into her neck. His warm breath paralyzed Rebecca. She would've collapsed under his weight if it weren't for the wall behind her. Gritting her teeth, she pushed him upright so that she could stand properly. "Daniel?" She peered up at him. "What's wrong with you? Can you hear me?""It hurts …" Daniel mumbled in a low voice. Rebecca could feel his damp forehead against her shoulder. He looked like he was in pain, trapped in a nightmare that was pulling him into the abyss. He clung to Rebecca so tightly that it seemed as if he was trying to keep himself from drowning.Rebecca couldn't move. She felt as if she was trapped by his aura. His breath warmed her shoulder as he continued to mumble into her ear, "Don't … don't leave me …"Rebecca curled her fists lightly and closed her eyes.She could just push him away. It wouldn't be any of her business if he died here today. It would finally free he
For a moment, neither of them reacted. They froze in the same position as the light from the phone shone between them. Rebecca stared into Daniel's deep eyes, feeling the damp warmth on her hand, and gulped.The action snapped her back to reality. Ripping her hand out of his grip with more force than necessary, she turned her back to Daniel. She didn't need to mirror to know how red her face was at the moment—her ears felt like they were on fire.Breathing deeply, she reprimanded herself silently, "What the heck, Rebecca? You just touched his hand! It wasn't like you were fondling his chest just now." As her mind raced a mile a minute, she heard Daniel's voice from behind her. He sounded wide awake now."Are you blushing, Rebecca? Weren't you just touching me when I woke up?""Shut up!" Rebecca interrupted irritably. She turned back to glare at him.Daniel laughed. Under the light of the phone, his eyes seemed to soften with mirth. "I was right, wasn't I?""Just shut up," Rebecca
Rebecca turned toward the sound. Barefoot and disheveled, she looked like the very picture of poignant beauty, a damsel in distress. The fact that she didn't realize how alluring she looked only fueled Daniel's anger even further, or maybe it was just because Sam was with her. "I mean, I don't mind if you really want to pay for my shoes," Rebecca said, not understanding the source of his anger. She brushed her hair behind her ears, looking bemused. "You could go to the mall and get me a pair right now. I really don't care as long as they're new."Sam, on the other hand, could see where the animosity came from. He glanced at Rebecca, then took off his jacket and wrapped it around her. "In that case, Mr. Winston, get going. You wouldn't want Rebecca to be barefoot when we leave, would you?" He gave Daniel a look. When their eyes met, sparks flew. "With you? She's my wife. She's not going anywhere with you," Daniel snorted coldly.Everyone around them had their ears perked, but none
Karen didn't seem to have expected his prompt answer. She was stunned for a minute."Mom, what happened?" Jessica asked anxiously when she saw Karen's expression, fearing the worst. Karen did a double take on Daniel's message and breathed a sigh of relief. "We did it!" she laughed. "Daniel said he'll be here soon. Don't forget what I taught you; act as pitifully as possible. Men love that stuff." Jessica nodded in relief as well. "Yes, Mom," she said obediently. "From now on, I'll listen to you. I won't act on my own again." As long as Daniel was willing to see her, she still had hope. She didn't want to be tormented by that demon again.Karen didn't know what was on Jessica's mind. She just felt sorry for all the bullying Jessica had been through online lately. "That's okay, my darling daughter. I'm sorry you had to go through all this," she said, hugging Jessica. "I'll help you with whatever you want, and I'll seek justice for you when you're mistreated. Okay?"Jessica leane
Penny didn't have much free time over the past three years.As she had envisioned, during the first year, she honed her acting skills amidst criticism while also working as a translator.Later on, she felt that acting didn't hold much appeal anymore. Moreover, realizing that there weren't any roles left for her, she gradually gave up and moved toward working behind the scenes.She had some work during this period.It seemed that a daring reality show, not caring about potential risks, decided to capitalize on her controversial popularity and invited her to participate in one of their programs.The reason Penny agreed to participate was because the show's first season had a good reputation, and the payment offered was reasonable.Continuously doing translations could be quite tiring. After discussing with Cecilia and weighing the pros and cons, she eventually signed up for this TV show.Unfortunately, she had underestimated the darker side of human nature.The show's production
"Really?" Zane blurted out, staring incredulously at Sam, who nodded calmly. His unruly and carefree demeanor was restrained, and his composed attitude showed that he wasn't joking.Zane fell silent again, furrowing his brow as he intently observed Sam.It was as if he thought everything through in an instant, giving up without hesitation. He didn't even remind Zane of the request from years ago to take care of Penny. Instead, he said this would be the last time he would help out.Logically speaking, this should be a satisfactory outcome for Zane. After all, from any perspective, the Lowe family's scion would only be a burden to Sam.Looking again at Sam's attitude, it seemed he didn't want Penny to know he was the one quietly spending money to handle things behind the scenes.Since there was no plan to meet her, he didn't need to worry about anything after that. If that was the case, it would be better to just end it early.That way, if Sam saw Penny falling in love, getting mar
All those old scoundrels from the Lowe family undoubtedly ranked the highest. Then there was Jessica, the entertainment industry's national goddess, who also played a significant role.Besides them, there were a few minor celebrities who didn't really make the cut.However, as Sam's partner and someone who watched him grow up, Zane privately hoped Sam could find a better girl.So, he advised, "There are plenty of socialites in Riverwood, and Amdale has no shortage of beautiful young ladies, either, and Rookfort isn't much different."You and the Lowe family's daughter haven't even officially met…""Who said I haven't met her?" Sam interrupted him without a second thought.He had even seen her twice. How could Zane say they hadn't even met yet?The first time, she gave him all the money she had. The second time, he spoke up to help her get that role.After these interactions, they could be considered acquaintances.Zane choked up and couldn't find the words to refute.He was s
Because Penny declined his offer, Zane didn't insist. After a bit of small talk, he ended the call.He politely mentioned that if she needed any help, she could call this number again. If he could assist in any way, he certainly would.However, Zanw knew very well that, given Penny's temperament, she would rather give up what she had than actively seek help from a stranger.Yes, to Penny, Zane was just a stranger. He was a person she had met once but didn't really know.This time, Penny didn't respond as coldly as she did when she was 18. Instead, she exchanged a couple of polite pleasantries, mentioned that she would reach out if needed, and then hung up the phone.After that, she let out a long sigh of relief and lay on the lounge chair on the balcony, gazing at the view outside the window.There were fluffy white clouds in the azure sky and the greenery visible in the neighborhood. Sparrows were chirping persistently as they darted through the forest, and the cicadas loudly bu
Although the other person said only one word, Penny could still tell he didn't have any ill intentions.Because of that faint sense of familiarity, Penny didn't hang up the phone immediately. "Hello? May I ask what this is about?"The unfamiliar and distant tone probably made the man on the other end of the phone pause for a moment. It was only after a brief silence that he responded."Young lady, don't you remember me? It's Zane Moran."His voice carried a laugh, with a hint of teasing.Only then did Penny remember who he was, but she wasn't happy at all.Zane meant no harm when that incident happened back then. But despite that, over the years that had passed, he became one of the people and things Penny would rather not recall.Whether it was the exam she missed, the incident where Spencer took her to the hotel against her will, or Zane, who gave her 30 dollars for a taxi ride.She just wanted to hide all of them deep in her memories.The recent events had particularly made
"I'm fine. You all don't have to look so worried. You're making it seem as if something bad is going to happen to me."Penny looked at the two people at the door who were showing a range of expressions, feeling speechless.Cecilia was provoked by her words, and her eyes turned red."We're worried about you. You have no idea what you look like right now. You're almost like one of those disheartened protagonists in novels who hated the world."Penny clicked her tongue twice and said, "Aren't you exaggerating?"She didn't believe it. She was just worried about money. It wasn't like she had become disillusioned with life.Besides, she didn't dislike this world at all. On the contrary, she really liked it.Whenever Penny came across posts online suggesting that all humans should just die, she always felt like rolling her eyes. If they wanted to die, they shouldn't drag others with them.When searching for her own role in movies, TV dramas, and novels, Penny particularly preferred re
Penny's way of clarifying things was to simply tell the truth.Sometimes, trying to cover things up would just lead to needing 100 more lies to continue the cover-up. That would often end up making things worse and more ridiculous.It was better to tell the truth about the situation.To answer the question of why she lashed out at the Lowe family, she briefly explained her experiences over the years.Why didn't she attend the final paper of the college entrance examinations? She personally reopened that old wound.As for that man in the hotel, Penny didn't have much of an impression of him anymore. She only remembered not taking his business card and accepting 30 dollars from him.Why did she show up at that man's hotel room? She wrote it down truthfully—it was her father who personally took her and left her at the hotel, wanting to trade her like a commodity.Every single word was carefully considered and written by Penny.She didn't share much of these things with Cecilia. Th
Once the official statements were released, Penny's career being ruined became a certainty.The only surprising thing was probably that after the film crew issued their statement, the largest investor also requested to withdraw.The film crew was completely shocked, but there was nothing they could do. The scion was willing to lose money just to withdraw his investment, so what could they do?The amount of money in the compensation was nothing compared to the amount that the scion planned to invest. The production team would incur a significant loss.With one less investor, the project's status was essentially downgraded. They had much less room to manipulate their gains now, too.One would understand why the scion was doing this if they used their brain a little.However, the protests from the audience couldn't be ignored, and compared to the investors, it was clearly more important to keep the show going.After all, they could always attract more sponsors, even if the amount o
In addition to the widespread backlash caused by the phone recording, Penny's academic credentials were also scrutinized and exposed.Before the college entrance exam, she had always been the top student in her school and had never ranked anything else.However, in the college entrance exam, she barely passed the minimum mark for key institutions, far below her usual performance.Some people speculated that she had been cheating during regular exams and that her actual abilities were much worse.However, the exam results could be checked online, and the fact that Penny scored zero on the last exam was surprising.It was even more shocking that she was admitted to a top-tier university despite missing an exam. It was truly exceptional.But few people paid attention to this information.After all, the achievements attained through hard work couldn't be faked. Even if the results weren't as expected, it was undeniable that she was stronger than many others.Regarding this topic, t