“You said you love acting, love becoming different people, experiencing different lives,” Kim’s voice was gentle and soothing as he wrapped Maria in his arms.
“You said you would work hard for this dream, to eventually stand at the top. But Maria, don’t these things have to be experienced in order to reach the top?”
Kim felt Maria’s body tremble slightly as he stroked her long hair for comfort.
“If something small like this can bring you down, then that’s not the Maria I first met.”
Maria pouted and her gaze shifted lightly. “But I’ve caused so much trouble already.”
“If you feel guilty about these troubles, then remember this day. Work harder and defeat all rumors with your strength.”
“You’re a star and those media outlets want to know your secrets. If you let them defeat you because of these rumors, then aren’t you just accepting their behavior?”
Upon hearing this, Maria was taken aback.
Suddenly she wanted to slap herself hard – why did she have such a fragile heart?
There were so many stars in the entertainment industry who had it worse than her but they never gave up. Why should she give up?
“And Maria, don’t you think some things are aimed directly at you?” Kim spoke slowly. “You told me before that this press conference was organized by your company. Now they’re promoting you heavily – how could someone like that get into the venue?”
Although Kim was a doctor by profession, he grew up in the Ragsdill family where he saw plenty of business competition from an early age which was why he chose medicine over business.
But what happened to Maria now clearly showed someone targeting Star Entertainment.
“Their goal is to use you against Star Entertainment,” Kim analyzed calmly.
“That’s right!”
Maria sat up straight suddenly and looked seriously at Kim. “You’re right! Jane has done so much for me before but now I’m choosing to run away instead of fighting alongside her – I’m really heartless!”
She knocked herself on the head with frustration.
“So my little princess has figured it out?” Kim smiled teasingly.
Maria nodded firmly with a determined thought already forming in her mind.
She had to work even harder to make all the rumors disappear with her own strength.
“And… if I don’t continue acting, how can I face my fans?”
Maria smiled and hooked her hand under Kim’s chin.
“So when will you release another work?” Kim leaned closer, his tone softening a bit.
“Just wait and see.” Maria’s eyes flickered slightly.
“Can you give some benefits to her fan first?” Kim tightened his hand around her waist, smiling.
Maria curved her lips and thought for a moment. “Seeing how hard you worked today, I’ll give you a reward.”
With that, Maria leaned forward and lightly pecked Kim’s lips.
But she saw disappointment in Kim’s expression. He blinked pitifully and looked at Maria.
“What should we do? I suddenly feel so tired. I did surgery for so long this afternoon.”
So Kim began his path of self-pitying himself, but naturally Maria knew what he was thinking about in his heart.
“Well…” Turning her gaze lightly, Maria prepared to kiss him on the cheek but didn’t expect that Kim would suddenly turn his head and directly capture Maria’s lips before pressing her down onto the sofa.
“Kim!” Maria called out softly but all of the following words were swallowed up by their lips.
…
“Okay, got it.” Jane hung up the phone with a slight glint in her eyes.
She had sent someone to investigate Florence’s whereabouts and indeed received news that the Doyle family was planning on sending Florence abroad soon.
Florence had been kept by the Doyle family for quite some time now; besides Peter, she seemed not have anyone else she could contact.
But if it was Peter doing this, Jane didn’t think he would go through such trouble without any benefit.
At that moment, the door of Jane’s office was knocked, and she responded with a “come in.” Her assistant walked in with a stack of documents in hand.
“These are all the information on that journalist,” the assistant said, placing the documents in front of Jane. Jane was a bit surprised when she glanced at them.
She had heard of the entertainment magazine where the journalist worked before. They specialized in digging up celebrities’ privacy and even intentionally spreading rumors to attract attention. It had caused quite a scandal once.
The journalist had taken advantage of the distraction and sneaked into the venue. She only raised her hand to ask a question when she realized the last entertainment journalist hadn’t shown up.
It seemed like there was no one directing her from behind.
Seeing Jane’s expression, the assistant quickly said, “According to what the journalist said, I checked the surveillance footage of the venue and found that she did sneak in alone.”
Jane gently rubbed her fingertips together, pursing her lips. Could it be that she was overthinking things after all?
But as she thought about it, Jane couldn’t help but sigh. She realized she didn’t enjoy dealing with these company-related issues. It made her suspicious and paranoid when she dwelled on them for too long.
“How is the online public opinion now?” Jane put the documents aside and asked about a more important matter.
“The PR department took immediate action yesterday. They have been promoting the new drama and suppressing any negative mentions. Fortunately, Maria’s public image is still relatively good, so there hasn’t been a significant impact,” the assistant replied earnestly.
Jane nodded, feeling somewhat reassured about the company’s PR department.
“Now that we have investigated the background of this journalist, let’s make her and her company apologize immediately,” Jane ordered, and her subordinate acknowledged before promptly preparing to follow Jane’s instructions.
Glancing at her wristwatch, Jane realized it was time to leave work. She tidied up her belongings and prepared to leave the company.
However, when she arrived at the parking lot, Jane couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was following her.
Remaining composed, Jane took out her phone. Since she couldn’t determine how many people were following her, she didn’t dare to make any rash moves.
As the person behind her got closer, Jane deliberately stood in a place where the surveillance cameras could capture them. Just as she was about to take out her car keys, a hand reached out from behind.
Jane reacted quickly, grabbing hold of the wrist and twisting it forcefully. Just as she was about to execute a shoulder throw, she heard a loud shout from behind.
“Don’t! It’s me, it’s me!”
The voice sounded somewhat familiar to Jane. When she turned her head, she saw a familiar figure kneeling on the ground, looking rather pitiful.