There was still half a month before “Revenge and Love” started filming. During this time, Elisa, while familiarizing herself with the script, also searched for a new house.
“Revenge and Love” was to be filmed in Bankshire, a place Elisa was accustomed to, so she decided to buy a house there. Renovations would take quite some time, at least a year before she could move in.
Elisa rented a spacious two-bedroom house in Bankshire, around 120 square meters, which was perfect for raising a cat.
With money, everything was convenient. Elisa’s schedule was tight, so she arranged for someone online to help her find a house and a moving company to pack up her belongings in the small apartment, which took less than half a day.
After the rented house in Bankshire was cleaned and organized, Elisa moved in with Mimi.
In the blink of an eye, a week had passed, and the first episode of “Weekend Show” officially aired, receiving great feedback. It trended and had the highest viewership.
Because of the incident involving Filippa, Elisa, and Sebastian trending in the past two weeks, many viewers came out of curiosity to see what the whole show was about. Was Elisa’s acting really so impeccable?
“Weekend Show” aired on prime time at 8 p. m. on Saturday, and after it aired on TV, it was rebroadcast on Fruits TV at 10 p. m.
Elisa had an early dinner at 7 p. m., took Mimi for a walk around the neighborhood, and returned just in time for the show at 8 p. m. in her newly rented house, where she had bought a large sofa. She and Mimi usually enjoyed lounging on it. The sofa was soft, and it served well as a bed too.
Elisa turned on the TV and cuddled Mimi to watch the variety show.
Mr. Usoro was indeed a master director in the variety show industry. The editing alone was quite captivating, and the camera work was excellent, magnifying the subtle expressions of the artists, easily drawing the audience in.
Watching herself on TV, Elisa touched her own face, feeling somewhat strange but not repulsed. It was a peculiar sensation.
Her face seemed as if it naturally belonged on screen, just as the director had mentioned.
With over sixty artists present on the set, as the camera swiftly panned through, Elisa was undoubtedly the one who caught everyone’s attention at first sight.
Some people were just born to be the center of attention, even if she sat in a corner, daydreaming, never looking at the camera.
Elisa rarely watched this kind of variety show. In her past life, she probably could count the number of times she watched such shows on the fingers of both hands. She hadn’t even watched the annual Spring Festival Gala.
The Spring Festival Gala was meant to be watched with family to truly feel the festivity.
For Elisa, this was an unattainable luxury.
As she watched the variety show, Elisa scrolled through Twitter. Almost all the hot topics tonight were dominated by “Weekend Show,” so all she saw were discussions about herself.
“On Elisa’s acting in ‘Weekend Show,’ is it a moral decline or a distortion of humanity?”
Elisa was drawn in by the headline and clicked into the post, which already had 8000 comments, mostly mocking her.
“This show has many actors I like, and I really want to follow it, but when I see Elisa, I just want to cleanse my eyes.”
“Elisa’s acting trended just two weeks ago. It’s so embarrassing. Is her acting really as good as the netizens claim?”
“She just sits in the corner without interacting or greeting anyone. It’s really impolite.”
“This show already has two people failing. It looks like it’s going to flop. I feel sorry for Mr. Usoro.”
“Be rational about idolizing stars. Even if the incident that trended about Elisa last time was a misunderstanding, flies don’t cluster around an egg without a flaw. No matter how good her acting is, she can’t wash away her identity as a stage girl. Stay away from such morally corrupt artists.”
“Flies don’t only land on flawless eggs. Filippa and Sebastian are trash too. How can it be one person’s fault? If I slap you, will it make a sound?”
“Are you an obsessed fan of Elisa upstairs? I’m so scared. I’m being surrounded.”
“Elisa’s face is truly stunning. Even without makeup, she can outshine everyone in the room. The heavy makeup she wore before was simply a waste of her good looks.”
“I just want to see if Elisa really seduced Mr. White. If she dares to look at him for a moment, I curse her to go blind.”
“This post is so full ofbackhanded compliments. They’re already mocking Elisa before she even takes the stage. Aren’t they afraid of being proven wrong later, becoming the next Filippa?”
“This talk of being a stage girl, seduction, it seems like their manners have gone to the dogs, or rather, even dogs wouldn’t do that. It’s more like being eaten by flies and not even being aware.”
“This post seems like a coordinated attack on Elisa. Coordinated attacks are doomed to fail.”
“If you don’t understand, how did so many of Elisa’s fans end up in the comments?”
“Do people really think Elisa has no fans left? First, they provoke her, then they say she’s a stage girl. Do they have any evidence of her seducing people?”
“Upstairs, didn’t your main miss publicly apologize on Twitter? I have screenshots. Care to be proven wrong?”
“The artist’s Twitter is controlled by the company. As long as Elisa didn’t admit it, I don’t believe she would do such a thing in public.”
“Fans who blindly follow the artist are all brainless. They can never be awakened.”
Elisa was indifferent to the public’s gaze. What did their opinions matter to her?
Just a few days ago, this was how she had always felt. She wouldn’t do anything without being certain. She was used to planning everything in advance before proceeding step by step.
It was necessary to clear her name, but it wasn’t the most urgent matter for her at the moment.
However, when she saw someone speaking up for her in the comments, she suddenly felt a pang in her chest. It wasn’t for herself but for these kind-hearted people. They had never met her, yet they believed in her so much. How could she let them down?
When Elisa made her appearance on stage and performed her scene, the show immediately reached its climax.
The special effects, the lighting, Elisa’s clear and flowing lines, her calm adaptation to Sebastian’s impromptu lines, clutching her chest, falling to her knees, the stage lights slowly dimming-this night was destined to leave many people unable to calm their emotions. Even the leader of the black fans who had been against Elisa for two years had to admit that her performance was flawless, worthy of being written into textbooks as a perfect display of acting.
Regular viewers repeatedly watched Elisa’s performance.
Initially, Elisa had fans. They would affectionately call her Elisa and argue with the black fans, always standing by her side.
But with the exposure of the unspoken rules, double-dealing, and sacrificing herself for the script and the director, one by one these fans left her.
Even some who silently followed her also blocked her because of her controversial public image in recent years.
Tonight, these fans returned, they sat in front of the TV, covering their faces, hands damp, silently screaming. The Elisa they had longed to see had returned. The early fans were rejuvenated, Elisa’s support group, fan club, public relations team, all had disbanded seven months ago. The scattered fans gathered tonight, starting to tweet, edit videos, and compete for top comments. Without a team, they surpassed one.
“Elisa, welcome back.”
“Our Elisa is back. Clean your necks and wait to die, you bunch of rookies.”
“Elisa, your acting skills will dominate the entertainment industry.”
“With Elisa around, this circle is destined for chaos.”
“Today you look down on her, tomorrow you won’t be able to reach her level.”
“What gives you the right to look down on Elisa? Does she not have a pretty face? A good figure? Strong acting skills? You have nothing, yet here you are barking like a dog.”
“Hey haters, come closer. Your first sister [Elisa’s nickname] has slapped so many faces, she won’t miss yours. Stand up straight.”
“Elisa’s fans have gone crazy, haven’t they?” Apart from casual fans continuously watching videos that day, Hamish from Royal Garden, Finn from North Bankshire, and Louis from Bankshire Vaquita Bay were watching Elisa’s stage appearance over and over again.
North Bankshire.
Finn usually never watches variety shows. If it weren’t for accidentally overhearing the maid mention “Elisa”, he would have almost forgotten about Aoife. Aoife, for him, was a dispensable presence, just like trash thrown away without a second thought. He had only ever used Aoife, initially drawn to her because of her resemblance to Elisa.
He used various means to have a financial company sign her and send her to be with him, all to mold her into a perfect substitute. He tried to treat her well, arranging for a professional, Teacher White, to give her violin lessons. Aoife was obedient, but her personality differed greatly from Elisa’s. She was somewhat timid, perhaps due to her upbringing, lacking in confidence, crying secretly under her covers when faced with problems.
During her time practicing the violin, she cried the most, her eyes red almost every day, fingertips bleeding, nails cracked but still persevering. Finn was cruel by nature, enjoying tormenting others, yet oddly, he had no desire to torment Aoife, perhaps because she was too weak, and causing her pain brought him no sense of achievement.
When he thought about it, Elisa was better. He loved nothing more than breaking the spirit of someone full of pride. It was a pity that Elisa died. If only she hadn’t chosen death, but followed him instead. Then she could have witnessed the three years of suffering Hamish endured. It was a pity… too much of a pity.
No matter how perfect a substitute, they were still just that – a substitute. Finn thought he wouldn’t care about Aoife anymore, but when the maid mentioned her name, his heart stirred slightly. He turned on the TV to a rerun, skipping to the part where Elisa took the stage.
Looking at her face, he suddenly felt somewhat unfamiliar. Aoife had followed him for a year, and for a time he saw her face every day, even knowing about the small mole behind her ear. Finn thought he knew Aoife very well, but seeing the woman on TV, he couldn’t find even a trace of her.
Finn calculated the time, realizing that it had been so long… Aoife had left him a year ago. The Aoife in his memory shouldn’t shine so brightly. She was like a speck of dust in the darkness, disappearing with a gust of wind, despite her undeniable good looks, she always kept her head down. Even when sleeping, she always curled up in a corner, looking very insecure.
If we set aside her appearance, her only virtue was probably diligence. With her around, he didn’t need a maid. She had a strong ability to learn, understanding his habits, preferences, and tastes within three days, making every dish for him with great care.
In all honesty, no one had ever taken care of him so comfortably. He could think about taking a bath in the morning, and the tub would already be filled with hot water. Toothpaste would be squeezed onto his brush, even the face towel would be placed in a convenient spot. He didn’t need to think about anything in his daily life.
Aoife was like a tapeworm in his stomach, fulfilling his needs before he even realized them. He thought that if she couldn’t be a substitute, she could have been a maid.
The turning point came when Aoife, while tidying his room, saw a video of Elisa being tormented by him. She was terrified, locked herself in the room, and in the end, it was Finn who pbroke the door to get in. He kicked open the door to find the blanket on the sofa trembling, as if he could see a huddled figure inside. He lifted the covers and met Aoife’s eyes, red and frightened, clearly afraid of him.
“What are you afraid of?” he asked.
Aoife blinked, tears streaming down her face, wanting to look away but unable to, her forehead covered in glistening sweat.