Chapter 482 - 478: Just Which Big Shot Did You Offend?
Ryan was being savaged online by a huge number of fans who had turned against him over the "casting couch" incident with director Cecelia Willow.
For the past two weeks, he had been racking his brain for a way to clear his name and drag Nora Ainsworth down with him.
So, after much thought, he decided to hold a press conference. At the conference, Ryan implicitly suggested that he had been dating Nora Ainsworth at the time, making it impossible for him to have been involved in a "casting couch" incident with the director.
After the press conference.
It was only then that he was shocked to discover a topic sweeping across the internet: "During the filming of *Love when the sun comes out*, Ethan Ellsworth and Nora Ainsworth caught the director and Ryan in the act. To deflect blame, Ryan plans to slander Ethan Ellsworth and Nora Ainsworth." The post was even accompanied by the video Ethan had filmed at the time.
This topic had been trending even before his press conference.
Therefore, the press conference he held not only failed to clear his name but actually confirmed suspicions that he was deliberately trying to frame someone.
Seeing this topic, Ryan was absolutely livid.
Seeing the increasing number of hateful comments under his Weibo post, Ryan disabled the comments section.
Just as he was about to post a new message, his manager snatched his phone away. "Young, are you trying to be the death of us? Don’t post anything else. Don’t you know the internet is in an uproar right now?"
"Then what should I do?"
"Let’s just wait and see. Don’t say anything else for now. Someone was already making moves before your press conference. So, I have to ask you, which big shot did you offend to be targeted like this?"
Ryan thought for a moment. "Could it be Nora Ainsworth?"
Hearing this, the manager let out a groan, his face twitching with anger.
"Young, you..."
Before he could finish, the boss of the agency came over directly.
He kicked the door open, making the two people inside jump in fright.
He slammed a newspaper on Ryan’s head. "The papers are out. Explain to me what the hell is going on!"
"Cecelia and I..."
"Not that! I’m talking about this huge move online! Tell me everything, from beginning to end. Which big shot did you piss off?! Was it Ethan Ellsworth? Or Nora Ainsworth?!"
Ryan was terrified. He had never seen his boss this furious.
"It was probably... that bitch Nora who did it!"
"Nora Ainsworth... a bitch?" The boss took a deep breath, then suddenly kicked Ryan in the stomach. "Are you a fucking idiot?! Huh?"
Ryan let out a pained cry and didn’t dare to make another sound.
"Don’t you know Nora Ainsworth has the Grant Family backing her? Don’t you know who Quentin Grant is to her? Dammit! You’re going to be the death of me, you son of a bitch!" The boss was so angry he wanted to beat him to death.
"Boss... what do we do now?"
"What do we do? Hmph. For the show you were filming with Nora Ainsworth, they’ve already found another actor to reshoot your parts. You’ve been replaced. Don’t show your face anywhere for a while. Just stay home and reflect on what you’ve done. Whether or not you can make a comeback in the future will depend on your attitude."
With that, the boss left.
Ryan slid to the floor. ’Am I being blacklisted?’
His work was gone. How was he supposed to earn a living now?
His acting career was about to come to an abrupt end right here.
’I was too impulsive. Now it’s all over.’
Quentin Grant told Nora Ainsworth about the recording pen and let her listen to it herself.
Nora Ainsworth didn’t act rashly. Instead, she continued filming as usual. With only a few days of scenes left, she wanted to see it through to the end. She wouldn’t allow so many people in the crew to wait for her for an unknown amount of time because of her personal problems.
Besides, from the materials she had gathered, she was already studying the movements and speech patterns of Toby Dalton’s deceased wife. To convincingly become another woman, she had to truly believe she was her.
With only one week left, Nora Ainsworth was ready at all times.
’See the act through to the end, rescue my mother, and then we’ll have our happy reunion. No one will be able to threaten us then.’
She had been filming at the studio for many days without coming home, so her two little darlings at home hadn’t seen their mommy for days.
During the day, the two darlings had class. At night, they slept together and supervised whether their dear father was home when he finished work.
The last half of the class was a break.
The old professor sat in his chair. Somehow, by the time class was dismissed, he had fallen asleep with his chin in his hand.
His body swayed gently.
The three children shushed each other, tiptoed over to the old professor, and shouted in unison, "Professor!"
The old professor jolted awake. "You three little rascals, you’re going to scare me to death."
"Professor, class is over. You should go home now."
The old professor stood up, gathered his things, and nodded. "Yes. You three must do your homework. I’ll check it tomorrow morning."
When they reached the main gate, Ethan Ellsworth and Chloe Marshall were there to pick up Dorothy. Seeing the two boys, Ethan spoke up. "Dylan, Elmer, tonight is Dorothy’s aunt’s birthday. We’re going to the Seagull Hotel for dinner. Do you two want to come?"
"Okay. Then, Ellsworth, you should call our daddy and let him know."
Ethan Ellsworth nodded. "Alright, I’ll call him right now."
He took out his phone and quickly dialed Quentin Grant’s number. The call connected, and Quentin’s voice came through. "Miss me already?"
"Young Master Grant, don’t be like that. My wife is right here. Keep your voice down."
Quentin Grant hummed. "Who is this? I don’t know you."
The corner of Ethan Ellsworth’s mouth twitched. He glanced at his phone and said, "It’s fine if you don’t know me, as long as you know your two little treasures. It’s Zoe’s birthday today. Chloe and I are taking the boys to the Seagull Hotel for dinner."
"Okay. Take good care of the apples of my eye~"
Ethan Ellsworth replied, "They’re our darlings, you don’t need to worry. It’ll be fine."
After hanging up, he cheerfully picked up Dylan Grant. "Things have been so busy with the filming lately, I haven’t really had a chance to see you two little guys."
Elmer Grant said in a childish voice, "Ellsworth, is it because my brother is your son-in-law that you give him special treatment? Why aren’t you holding me?"
Chloe Marshall burst out laughing and bent down. "Our little Elmer is angry. Come here, I’ll hold you."
Dorothy Ellsworth said disapprovingly, "You’re such big boys already and you still want my daddy and mommy to carry you. Look at me, I can walk by myself."
She clasped her hands behind her back and strode proudly toward the car.
After being chided by Dorothy Ellsworth, the two boys got down and ran after her.
The sound of their laughter, like silver bells, filled the two adults’ ears. They exchanged a look, their eyes full of affection.
"Chloe, it looks like we’ll have to have another daughter to make things balanced."
Chloe Marshall huffed. "Boss Ellsworth is so greedy. You want both of these geniuses to be your sons-in-law?"
"And why not?"
Chloe Marshall replied, "Let’s not. If Zoe has a daughter, we can save one for her. One daughter is enough for our family. I want to give you a son."
Ethan Ellsworth took her hand. "I’ll love whatever we have. It’s not up to us anyway. It’s best to let nature take its course."
Chloe Marshall watched the two little boys and her daughter playing and roughhousing in the distance, as if seeing the shadows of handsome young men and beautiful young women years from now.
She didn’t ask for much; just for the children to be safe and sound was precious enough.
They got into the car, and it drove toward the hotel.
When they arrived at the hotel, everyone was already in the private room.
It was just the Ellsworth Family.
Mr. and Mrs. Ellsworth, Zoe Ellsworth, Ethan Ellsworth, Chloe Marshall, Dorothy Ellsworth, plus Herman Hawthorne and the two boys, just enough for one table.
The cold appetizers were already served. Seeing Ethan Ellsworth’s family arrive, Mrs. Ellsworth immediately told the waiter to serve the hot dishes in five minutes.
In the middle of the table was a large cake.
Zoe Ellsworth cut the cake and served everyone a piece. Everyone had a few simple bites before the rest of the cake was taken away, and the hot dishes began to arrive one after another.
"Come, a toast to Zoe for a happy birthday."
Everyone stood up, raised their glasses together, and then drained them.
Herman Hawthorne didn’t allow Zoe Ellsworth to drink alcohol, so she had to use a soft drink instead.
The atmosphere was joyous and harmonious. Sitting together, everyone was quite happy.
Just then, the door opened, and Jean Grant suddenly appeared in the doorway.
Mrs. Ellsworth was stunned for a moment, then said, "Jean? Come in, quick."
Chloe Marshall pulled Dorothy Ellsworth onto her lap, making a seat for Jean Grant.
Jean Grant had an awkward expression. She glanced at Ethan Ellsworth and his wife, said nothing, and then stood up again. "I was having dinner in the next room. When I walked by the door, I heard Zoe’s voice, so I came in to take a look. I’m heading home now. You all take your time."
"Jean, what’s the hurry?" Mrs. Ellsworth immediately stood up.
Jean Grant turned around. "I’m heading back, ma’am. My husband is waiting downstairs."
"Since that’s the case, I won’t keep you. Come visit us next time."
Jean Grant nodded and left the room.
Memories from long ago came rushing back, overwhelming her. Standing at the door of the private room, Jean Grant suddenly understood just how absurdly wrong she had been back then.
’If... if she had gotten together with Ethan Ellsworth from the beginning...’
’...none of this would have happened...’
’Could it be that from the moment she didn’t get together with Ethan Ellsworth...’
’...all her good luck had completely run out?’
She went downstairs alone. Nicholas Ainsworth wasn’t waiting for her at all; it had just been an excuse.
Nicholas Ainsworth had left that night and never returned. Every time she called, he said he was at the company, but when she went to the company to find him, she was barred from entering.
Jean Grant got into her car and leaned back against the seat, her mind a chaotic mess.
After sitting quietly for a few minutes, Jean Grant finally drove home.
She parked the car in front of the house and went inside, bag in hand. As she walked into the living room, she saw Mr. Ainsworth watching the news by himself. She said faintly, "I’m back."
Mr. Ainsworth immediately asked, "Have you eaten?"
"I have." After speaking, Jean Grant went upstairs alone.
When she reached Sharon Ainsworth’s door, she paused.
The door wasn’t closed; it was ajar. Inharmonious sounds came from inside. Jean Grant crept forward and stood at the doorway. Peeking inside, she instantly felt her face flush and her ears burn.
’You can do it like that, too...’
She quickly returned to her own room.
She closed the door and went to take a shower.
After her shower, she sat on the edge of the bed and called Nicholas Ainsworth, but he didn’t pick up. This kind of life was sheer torture.