And those official websites were the first to receive the news, posting pictures and videos of Jane’s award on their sites. In no time, Jane was taken seriously by many official websites.
With this award coming out, those netizens who didn’t think highly of Jane were all proved wrong. For a while, no one dared to say whether Jane’s carving competition was a coincidence or not.
Just then, another public opinion emerged and caught everyone’s attention.
“Have you heard? A few days ago, wasn’t Jane going to be a judge for Vermilion Brush Society competition? Just got the latest news that Isabella rejected that competition. This is enough to prove that Isabella’s painting skills are better than Jane’s.”
This statement undoubtedly attracted the attention of many netizens and suddenly changed public opinion.
Jane looked at the online comments but didn’t care about them since they were beyond her control anyway.
Just when she decided not to pay attention anymore, Isabella tweeted again with a “clarification”.
Jane frowned and clicked on it to read it through:
“Don’t misunderstand me. I am also an apprentice under our master just like Jane. Let us not divide ourselves into who is stronger or weaker; it is not good for any of us.”
After reading this tweet from Isabella, she stroked her forehead as she could see through what Isabella was thinking: On one hand she did not want to admit that she was inferior compared with Jane; on the other hand she did not want people knowing if she had refused Vermilion Brush Society’s invitation as judge either – which only led people misunderstanding her intentions even more so now they believed that indeed happened!
Isabella’s clarification further fueled public opinion:
“I knew it! How could anyone believe that someone like Jane can become so talented overnight? She just picked up what others don’t want! Some people here are shameless!”
Various offensive words came rushing in, originally this matter didn’t attract much attention, but Isabella publicly “clarified,” pushing Jane further into the spotlight.
Jane shook her head, placing her phone aside, deciding to figure out how to deal with Isabella later.
On the other side, Patrick also saw the public opinion on Twitter.
At first, he didn’t pay much attention, but Isabella’s words made him realize that something was wrong.
Even Patrick could see that Isabella was openly and subtly belittling Jane. He didn’t know if she had really declined the judging panel, but her statement of not wanting to be compared to Jane herself sparked speculation.
This undoubtedly misled many netizens, and their rationality followed the public opinion. Now that this incident had occurred, they felt free to hurl insults at Jane.
Patrick furrowed his brow, realizing the seriousness of the situation. He instructed someone to find Isabella’s contact information.
Soon, the contact details arrived, and Patrick had his assistant make the call.
“Hello, is this Miss Griffiths? Our CEO would like to meet you.”
Isabella frowned on the other end, “CEO? I don’t know any CEO.”
“It’s Mr. Pansy from Pansy Group. Our CEO is waiting for you at the café near the entrance.”
Before Isabella could reply, the assistant hung up the phone.
Isabella stared at the darkening phone and felt a tremor in her heart.
Patrick, what kind of person was he? If he was coming to find her now, he must have figured out the meaning behind that tweet.
What would happen if she didn’t go to meet him?
Isabella could hardly imagine. In her anxiety, she quickly packed her belongings and hurried towards the café.
On the way, Isabella’s mood was turbulent. She was worried about what Patrick might do to her, so she made a preemptive call to a paparazzo.
Revealing Patrick’s name, unsurprisingly, the paparazzo immediately became interested upon hearing it.
She disclosed the location and instructed him to be discreet, not to be discovered.
The paparazzo readily agreed, boasting about their experience in the field, confident they wouldn’t be caught.
After hanging up the phone, the car parked in front of the café.
With the paparazzo watching her back, Isabella felt somewhat relieved, but she was still unsure of what actions Patrick might take. There was still a lingering uneasiness in her heart.
Nervously, she entered the café and gently opened the door. She immediately caught sight of Patrick, his face heavy with an oppressive aura.
Isabella took a deep breath and cautiously approached Patrick. “Mr. Pansy, you wanted to see me.”
Upon hearing her words, Patrick looked up, his gaze sharp enough to make Isabella avoid direct eye contact.
“Sit.”
Patrick pointed to the chair in front of him, and Isabella obediently pulled it out and took a seat.
“You have a good relationship with my wife?”
Patrick asked directly, which caught Isabella off guard.
Her pupils slightly contracted, and Patrick was undoubtedly telling her not to get too close to Jane if they weren’t familiar.
“No, we’re not close.”
Isabella pretended not to understand, giving Patrick a partial answer to his question.
Patrick squinted his eyes slightly, examining Isabella from top to bottom.
He had invited Isabella here just to test the waters. If she didn’t understand even this question, she probably wouldn’t have posted that tweet.
“Aren’t you from the same master as my wife?” Patrick asked again, referring to what Isabella had mentioned on Twitter. “Or are you saying you’re more capable than my wife?”
“No, how could I dare to be…”
Isabella’s voice grew quieter and quieter. She lowered her head slightly, unable to breathe loudly in the face of Patrick’s skepticism.
“Oh?”
Patrick narrowed his eyes, stood up, and leaned toward Isabella. He pressed his body in her direction. “I want to hear the truth.”
Isabella closed her eyes, seeing Patrick leaning closer. She dared not move and remained seated in place.
After a while, Isabella felt the presence in front of her dissipate. She opened her eyes and realized Patrick had left.
Once Patrick was gone, she took deep breaths, wiping off the cold sweat that had formed on her forehead.
At that moment, the paparazzo emerged from the corner.
“Not bad, Miss Griffiths. You brought me such explosive news!”
Isabella pretended to smile calmly, nodded, and before she could even look at the photos the paparazzo had taken, she left without turning back.
The paparazzo didn’t mind. He looked at the photo of Patrick “kissing” Isabella and felt elated.
“Today, it’s another headline.”
He hurried back to the studio, typing a line in the Twitter headline, “Patrick suspected of cheating,” and then added the photos and text. With a smug smile, he uploaded them online.
In no time, Patrick’s scandal was once again spreading.