Ch. 1311..1320
Mr. Ford Is Jealous Chapter 1311
Weston leaned closer to her ear and murmured, “But it would be best if you could kiss me, of course.”
“Get out of here!” Stella shoved him away.
“If you want anything else from me, just say the word, and it’s yours.”
Stella looked straight at him and asked, “What if I tell you that I want Ford Corporation in its entirety?”
She simply refused to trust a man’s sweet promises in the heat of the moment, certain that most of them would never be willing to do anything that would hurt their interests.
After all, men tended to sweet–talk their way into promising the moon, but their actions rarely ever matched their words.
Weston smirked, then looked at her plainly and asked, ” So it’s that simple, huh?”
“What do you mean?” Stella asked, suddenly getting a bad feeling.
“I agree,” Weston said, springing up to his feet. “So now
it’s your turn to deliver what you promised me—I’ll give you Ford Corporation, and you’ll be with me.”
It completely escaped Stella’s imagination that he’d agree so easily and casually. She was about to say something, but Weston had turned and left before she could utter a word.
He had just exited the door when he bumped into Lucas Quirk.
Lucas’s face darkened when he saw Weston’s mighty rush. He grabbed his shoulder, pushing him back. “What are you doing, running around like that? Have you forgotten how seriously injured you are?”
When the rescuers dug Weston out of Snow Mountain, Lucas found him on the brink of death.
How could he act so carelessly after such an incident? Why was he not taking better care of himself to let his body recover properly? Or did this man actually have a death wish?
But Weston did not even bother to look at him as he pushed him out of his way. “I’ve got something to do.”
“Is that thing more important than your own damn life?!”
Weston raised his chin and gazed in the direction of the ward.
Lucas instantly understood what was going on.
“Of course,” he sneered. “I almost forgot that your life is lying on the hospital bed in that room. Your own life means nothing to you now. That woman has completely possessed your heart, body, and soul.”
“I don’t have the time to quarrel with you right now,” Weston sighed. “I must go.”
Lucas had to chuckle and grit his teeth as he spoke while Weston was hurrying away. “Wherever you’re going, just make sure you don’t end up dead on your way! You can’t blame my medical skills when that happens! You can kill yourself for all I care, but don’t you tarnish my
reputation as a doctor!”
Yvonne was now behind him. She could not help but glance at Weston who was rushing away, and asked her husband, “What’s gotten to him? Why is he in such a hurry?”
“Who knows?” Lucas answered, massaging his temples as he was feeling a headache coming on. “In any case,
he
does look like he’s gotten much better. He never used to care about his body, and his condition has only gotten worse and worse. But now that he’s seen Stella Sealey for
a while, he seems to have found his vitality again. That woman really is his miracle drug.”
“Why do you sound like you’re bitter about it?” asked
Yvonne. “Don’t tell me that you actually harbor feelings for…”
Before she could finish, she suddenly yelped.
Lucas had picked her up in his arms and pinned her against the wall.
“Thought about the consequences before you started making wild accusations about your husband?” he asked as he looked straight at her.
“I wasn’t making any wild accusations! You clearly do
care a lot about Weston Ford!”
Lucas raised her chin and forced her to look into his eyes. “Is it because I haven’t been punishing you for a while now? Do you miss my punishments?”
Yvonne giggled, but they were then interrupted by the sound of Stella coughing in the room, so she quickly lowered her voice and told Lucas, “Let’s go inside before we make a fool of ourselves in front of Stella…”
Lucas chuckled before he let go of her, then he nibbled her earlobe and told her, “Tonight then. I’ll show you
how wrong your accusation was.”
“You’ve been ridiculously horny lately. Can you stop being so…”
Yvonne glared at him but hesitated to finish her sentence.
The two then pushed the door to the ward and walked in.
Yvonne completely dropped the subject and mentioned nothing about what they had been quarreling about.
“We’re here to see you,” she announced while smiling at Stella
Mr. Ford Is Jealous Chapter 1312
“How are you feeling?” Yvonne smiled and asked Stella as she tried her best to keep her composure.
“Much better,” Stella nodded. “My eyes are still a little
sensitive to light, though, and it feels uncomfortable sometimes.”
Seeing that Yvonne’s husband had come along, she invited the two to take a seat.
It had been a long time since she last saw the world so clearly. She had been missing this feeling for ages now. Delighted at the return of her sight, she fixated her gaze
on Yvonne.
“If you keep on staring at my wife like that,” Lucas
interjected, blocking her sight all of a sudden, “I’ll suspect that you’ve become a lesbian.”
“So what?” Stella raised her brows. “Perhaps if I do decide to pursue your wife now, she might even prefer me
over you.”
Lucas knitted his brows. Though he knew that she was only teasing, he was still unamused by that kind of joke. To him, Yvonne was his and his only, and it had been that
way since they were children. She had always followed him around, completely in love with him and no one else. He was sure that nothing could ever change that.
But Yvonne still played along with Stella and replied with a smile, “That’s right. Maybe I’m done putting up with your rotten temper and started to like women. What’s wrong with that?”
“Why don’t you try and see what happens?” Lucas warned, glaring at her severely.
Seeing that Lucas was really starting to get angry, Stella quickly changed the subject and asked, “Was Weston hurt? I asked, but he wouldn’t tell me.”
Only then did Lucas look away from his wife to sweep a cool glance at Stella. “Don’t worry. He won’t die.”
“Why are you acting so weird?” asked Yvonne, pinching his waist. “Stella asked you a question. Why can’t you just give her a straight answer?”
“Are you my wife or hers?” argued Lucas, still upset and moping about what just happened. “How can you defend someone else instead of your own husband?”
Stella was beginning to suspect that these two were visiting her because it gave an excuse for them to display
their mushy affection for each other.
She also had no idea why the couple still acted as if they were a young lovesick teenage couple with their
ridiculous lovers‘ quarrel when in fact, the two had been with each other for so many years.
Stella coughed lightly. Hearing this, Yvonne suddenly pulled herself away from Lucas.
“I’m glad that you can see now,” Yvonne said. “But do you still feel any discomfort?”
“No,” Stella replied. “All thanks to your husband for taking such good care of me all this time.”
“You don’t have to thank him. He’s only doing his job.
He’s my husband, after all, so it’s only right that he makes himself useful.”
Stella had no idea what to say to that.
((
Lucas glanced at her furtively and stood up, saying, Since you’ve seen her, I’m sure we can leave now, right?”
As he spoke, he pulled Yvonne up to her feet. She initially thought he would leave alone, but to her surprise, he was also trying to drag her away.
“But I’m not done chatting with Stella!” she protested.
“What else do you have to talk about? You can always meet her anytime.”
It was clear that Lucas was extremely possessive of Yvonne from the way he tried to stop her from spending
too much time with a friend, even if it was alone with another woman.
Stella sighed, oblivious if it was a good or bad sign.
Yvonne had no choice but to leave with her husband since
he was adamant about dragging her away with him, but before they left, she clung to the door frame and told Stella, “I’ll visit you again soon, but meanwhile, call Angelina to keep you company, okay?”
Stella nodded.
Mr. Ford Is Jealous Chapter 1313
Soon afterward, Angelina found out that Stella’s surgery was successful, and she rushed over to visit her.
She then arrived with Henry Moore following closely behind her.
Angelina seemed to pay little attention to him. She just sat down in front of Stella and sighed. “I’ve been so worried about you! I was relieved to find out that you were safe, but it turned out that you’d gone blind! I’m so glad everything turned out well in the end. Oh… when will Elias and Emma be back?”
She had been babysitting the kids for a while and had grown quite attached to them.
“They won’t be back for a while still,” Stella replied, smiling. “Once my eyes have healed completely, I’ll bring them home as soon as I can. In the meantime, though, I’m sure the Garcia family is taking very good care of them, so don’t worry.”
“That’s good to know,” said Angelina. She was just about to say something else when she noticed that Henry was listlessly toying with her hair.
“Stay away from me!” she snapped, swatting his hand away from her.
“How long are you going to stay mad at me?” asked Henry as he looked at her helplessly. “You know well enough that I’ve cut all contact with Guinevere Cohen!”
Stella froze a little when she heard the name, hit by a sudden realization of just how far she’d come since everything that had happened to her in the past.
Angelina quickly covered Henry’s mouth and glared at him. How could he not know how inappropriate it is to mention that name? Has he forgotten what happened between Guinevere and Stella? Unbelievable!
Henry took her hand and pulled it down, then gave her a meaningful look. “Don’t worry. Stella is not as fragile as you might think.”
He then glanced at Stella and added, “Am I right?”
The corners of Stella’s mouth twitched. Ignoring his obvious jibe, she merely said, “It looks like you get along with Guinevere really well. You seem to know everything about her. It seems that even the slightest thing about her can’t escape you.”
“Can you not ruin everything for me?” snapped Henry,
his face darkening as soon as he heard her. “Do you know
how hard it was for me to coax this stubborn woman?”
Angelina completely lost her patience when she heard this and didn’t want him there for a second longer. She looked downtrodden as if genuinely losing her temper
now.
“If you don’t leave now, then I’ll leave myself! I just can’t
let you stay here and be an eyesore to Stella!” she yelled.
Sensing that she was serious from her tone, Henry slowly
stood up. “Fine.”
He then snatched her handbag and told her, “I’ll be waiting for you outside.”
“Why are you taking my handbag?” she asked as she shot up to her feet.
“I don’t want you sneaking out without me behind my back, leaving me alone out there waiting for you like an idiot. So I’m taking your stuff as collateral so you won’t
bail on me.”
“You-”
Angelina was speechless, but she had no other choice but to just watch him as he walked out of the room.
Stella sighed as she observed her friend being visibly upset before she asked her, “What is going on between you and Henry Moore exactly?”
“Nothing,” Angelina replied. “He seems to be pursuing me, though.”
She then casually added, “I’m wondering if there’s something seriously wrong with him. He used to despise me in the past, but as soon as he found out that I have a child, he changed completely and started to follow me around everywhere, trying to woo me…”
She found his behavior very strange indeed, and it completely changed her impression of him. He couldn’t
possibly want her because he liked the fact that she had a child, could he?
Or perhaps he had a secret medical condition that made it
impossible for him to have his own children, so now that
he found out Angelina was a single mother with a child, could he be planning to seduce her so her child would be
his?
But none of that made sense to Angelina.
Stella felt conflicted. After a while, she reminded her
friend, “Do you remember the woman named Faye that I
told you about?”
Angelina paused, then said, “Yeah.”
“They say you look exactly like her… I’m just worried that Henry Moore might use you as a substitute…”
Angelina’s expression changed drastically, but she smiled and tapped her fingers on the table. “Actually, I have considered this, but didn’t they also say that the woman is already dead?”
Mr. Ford Is Jealous Chapter 1314
After hearing Angelina’s reply, Stella realized that no matter how much Angelina said she hated Henry Moore, the truth was that she had most likely developed feelings for the man, especially considering how calm she was even when told Henry might be using her as a substitute. This clearly indicated that Angelina had made up her mind about Henry.
And so, Stella dropped the subject and started talking about something else instead.
Not long after that, Henry knocked on the door and told Stella, “Someone’s looking for you.
He glanced at them and saw that they were still chatting happily. It was a sight that left him feeling bitter.
“It’s been over an hour now,” he grumbled. “Aren’t you leaving yet?”
“Why should I?” Angelina scowled. “It’s been so long since I’ve chatted so nicely with someone. If you can’t wait, you’re free to leave without me.”
Naturally, Henry wasn’t willing to, so after stepping aside for a woman clad in a neat power suit to go into the room,
he waited patiently by the door. The woman glanced at him as she passed him by, wondering why he would stand at attention at the door like some security guard…
“Good afternoon, Madam.”
Stella froze. She instantly recognized the woman as Tina Hampton.
“Ms. Hampton…” she watched in surprise as Tina took a seat in front of her, pulling out a stack of documents from her bag.
“Excuse me, Madam, but I need your cooperation with something. These are the details of Mr. Ford’s assets…”
As soon as she spoke, Stella stared incredulously at her and asked, “What’s going on here?”
She had assumed that Tina was here to visit her, but then
again, they were never even that close, to begin with. Tina was her lawyer three years ago, but it was also because of her that Stella realized she was fighting a losing battle. Due to that reason, she was led to confess to
a crime she did not commit.
Now, three years later, she never thought that she would ever meet her again, much less in this kind of situation.
“Hasn’t Mr. Ford talked to you about this?” Tina asked,
somewhat surprised to see Stella looking all confused.
It had been three years since the last time she took Weston Ford’s case. She had actually decided never to take on the man’s case ever again after what happened the last time, but he insisted that because Stella knew her, perhaps she would be more comfortable around her, so Tina decided to come over.
Besides, Weston had also paid her very generously.
The case three years ago had damaged her reputation slightly, but she managed to salvage it over time, so now that she was meeting Stella again, she decided to muster up her spirits and do her job.
“Mr. Ford told me,” she explained patiently after noticing her look of confusion, “that he is going to turn Ford Corporation over to you…”
As soon as she finished her sentence, Henry, who was standing at the door, jerked his head towards Tina and exclaimed, “Has he lost his mind?!”
Even Angelina was shocked. She quietly turned to Stella and stared at her face without blinking.
The tension in the silent room grew palpable.
Stella did not even dare to breathe out. After a long while,
she finally asked in a hoarse voice, “…what did you say?”
“Mr. Ford has given the order to transfer the whole of Ford Corporation’s ownership to you. Most of the properties in his name are here, but there are many more in my office because the number of properties owned by Ford Corporation is quite… substantial, so I’ve chosen the key properties for you to browse through. Then we can sign the papers for the rest later.”
Tina then casually set down the huge stack of documents on the table in front of Stella.
Stella’s whole body stiffened up as she looked at the thick stack of paper in front of her. [1
“Is he out of his mind? When did I ever…”
She then froze, unable to finish her sentence.
Mr. Ford Is Jealous Chapter 1315
Stella had indeed told him that if he gave her the entirety of Ford Corporation, she would get back together with him…
Realizing this, her countenance drastically changed.
She did not mean what she said. Besides, it should have been obvious that she was only joking and that she was only giving him a hard time to make him give up on her.
Who would have thought that Weston would take her so seriously?
Why did none of Ford Corporation’s execs stop him when he called Tina Hampton over to discuss the transferral of property ownership to Stella?
How could he be so impulsive?!
Seeing Stella’s shocked face, Tina knew that Weston must’ve not had her complete agreement before he did this. She heaved a sigh before telling her, “Mr. Ford had given the order to transfer everything to you, so why don’t we just move on with the process…?”
After all, this matter would greatly benefit Stella anyway,
so regardless of the grievances between Weston and Stella, Tina was sure that Stella could have no reason to reject the deal.
But Stella ended up shaking her head in refusal without even thinking about it.
“No, I never agreed to this. Just because he wants to give it to me doesn’t mean that I have to accept it. No, I don’t want any of this.”
“But Mr Ford has given me the orders, and he said that this is your own request…”
“It was my request, but I didn’t think that he would to it. I was only trying to make him give up on me.”
agree
“Even so,” Tina frowned, “accepting it won’t do you any harm, will it? In fact, it would only bring you incredible benefits. You must realize how many people would do anything to get Weston Ford’s shares…”
“I really have to hand it to you,” Henry suddenly interrupted her before she could finish her sentence, striding into the room suddenly and standing over Stella, peering down at her as he added, “Do you know how hard Xavier Ford and all those other directors fought to get the shares Weston owns? Yet each and every one of them failed. Meanwhile, all you had to do was say a few words and he instantly gave it all up to you…”
He spoke as if she had done something utterly unforgivable.
“Then go and tell him that I never wanted Ford Corporation, and that I never meant what I said,” Stella interrupted.
“Do you think he’ll stop just because you say you didn’t mean it? Weston has always been a serious man, you know. Since you’ve already made the request, he would stop at nothing to deliver you your desire.”
“Is there something seriously wrong with him?” Stella asked, clenching her fists tightly. “You’ve been his best friend all his life. Can’t you persuade him?”
“If I could persuade him,” he replied, “I would’ve persuaded him to be with another woman in the past three years. I wouldn’t have just sat idly, watching his life turn into hell because of you. Did you know that you almost killed him?”
“What are you talking about?”
Henry rubbed his forehead in exasperation, then turned to Tina and told her, “I think you’d better go back for now. She probably wouldn’t sign the documents today.”
“Sure,” replied Tina with impatience written all over her face, but she still managed to suppress her emotions and maintain a professional attitude. “In that case, I’ll go back and report Mr Ford about what happened and then we’ll see what we should do next.”
After that, she turned and left.
Henry closed the door and asked Stella, “Do you have any idea what Weston’s life was like in those three years when you were dead?”
“I don’t know,” Stella gripped at her blanket, looking visibly irritable and exasperated, “and I don’t want to know…”
The more annoyed she looked, the more Henry wanted to tell her, so he continued, “In those three years, at first he simply couldn’t face the fact that you were dead, and he even wanted to die with you. I once found him locked inside the house with all the gas hobs turned on… I rushed him to the hospital and they managed to save his life, but after that I noticed that he bought bottles of sleeping pills, so we had to have his stomach flushed, but then later we found him cutting his wrist in the bathroom
As he spoke, his eyes began to redden. He continued, “Do you know what eventually stopped him in the end? It was when a priest told him that committing suicide is a terrible sin. If he killed himself, he would never be able to see you again even in the afterlife. That scared him straight.”
“He’s never been religious,” Henry added. “But he was terrified that he might never see you again after his death … From then on, he started chain smoking and drinking heavily while occupying himself with work around the clock, all in the hope that he might destroy his health and see you sooner.”
Mr. Ford Is Jealous Chapter 1316
Weston had never once mentioned those things to her at all.
Stella fell silent for a long time.
Henry said nothing more after that. He noticed that Angelina had been staring gravely at him the whole time, but in the end, he managed to blurt out everything that was on his mind.
Angelina had simply turned away from him now, no longer in the mood to pay any attention to him.
The atmosphere grew tense and heavy.
In the end, it was Angelina who broke the silence and said, “Okay, let’s stop talking about these unhappy things. You’re getting discharged today, aren’t you?”
Stella nodded.
“The doctor said he wanted to observe my condition for a little longer, but I’ll be able to leave this evening.”
“Then why don’t we go out for dinner together later? Yvonne just sent me a message telling me she’d reserved a table at a restaurant.”
“Okay,” Stella replied simply.
Angelina was then satisfied enough to stand up and walk towards Henry, telling him, “Okay, we can go now.”
As she spoke, she grabbed his arm and tried to pull him out of the room.
As they passed the bed, Stella sat up and asked Henry coldly, “Was everything you’ve told me just now true?”
“Do I have any reason to lie?” Henry argued, pausing to shoot a glance at her. Stella’s empty eyes gazed vacantly at the blanket. He added, “I know many things have happened between you two, and I know he’s done so much to hurt you. But think about it, what would you have done if you were in his shoes?
“I’m not trying to help him here, but I just want to point out that perhaps he might not be the evil monster you think he is. At the very least, his feelings for you are genuine.”
After that, he quickly strode out of the room and left.
Though Angelina glared at him the whole time, he acted as if he didn’t see her. When they reached the hallway, Angeline shook his hand off unhappily and snapped, ” I’ve been shooting you looks, telling you to stop! Why did you have to tell Stella all those things about Weston Ford?”
“Because apart from you, there are others who are also important to me.”
He looked straight into her eyes and said, “Weston is the closest friend I ever had. I didn’t do anything that you wouldn’t want me to do. Besides, I’ve watched Weston waste away for years, and I can’t go on without doing anything…
“”
“Of course, you’ve always been such a loyal friend,” Angelina said. “Just as you are with Guinevere Cohen. You failed to win her heart, so you loved her like a sister instead, didn’t you?”
Henry’s face turned sullen. Angelina had once again brought up Guinevere.
“Haven’t you moved on?” he asked her. “I’ve completely severed ties with her. I didn’t see her even after her fall from grace. What else do you want me to do?”
“I don’t want you to do anything!” Angelina shoved his hand away, her face twisted with rage. “You did all that on your own accord! If you are unwilling to, however, you’re always free to stop!”
She then turned on her heels and left him.
Henry watched as she stomped away, himself accosted by a throbbing headache.
He had been too agitated just now and said something that he regretted.
“Wait!” he said, running after Angelina. “I didn’t mean it that way… “
Meanwhile, Stella lay in the private ward with her eyes closed, though Henry’s words wouldn’t stop swirling around her head.
She had never expected Weston’s life to be so miserable during the past three years. She had always assumed that his passionate feelings for her were all talk, that his life had been completely unaffected, and that he had moved on after her death without difficulty.
Never would she have thought that, in those three years, Weston had really fallen in love with her.
The corners of her mouth twitched. She chuckled wryly, as if she was mocking herself.
If only he had fallen in love with her sooner, they would never have ended up this way.
Mr. Ford Is Jealous Chapter 1317
What was the point of letting her know all those things after she had suffered so much pain and suffering at his hands?
Right now, she had no desire to love anyone or to even approach this painful emotion.
She had been through too much excruciating pain in the past, losing her first child and even almost losing her own life.
Stella was not sure if she could trust anything Weston
Ford said anymore. Perhaps it was best to just go with the flow and let nature take its course.
She was just too exhausted to think of these things now.
Yvonne had agreed to meet up with Stella at the shopping mall later that evening, but because Stella had just regained her sight, she decided to be there a little earlier to look around.
The mall was located in a new commercial district. After giving up on her training center, Yvonne changed course and opened a new mall in Fern City with her family’s financial backing. Surprisingly adept in managing the business, the mall became successful in no time, enough for her to expand into a chain.
One of the main reasons Stella wanted to come earlier was so she could see her friend’s achievements with her own eyes.
It seemed that there was an event going on here today. Wearing a mask and hat, she spotted the stage from a distance. Although she was not that well–known in Ahn City, she still took no chances in case someone might recognize her.
There was a cleared space near the stage, so Stella decided to turn around and walk in another direction, but then the place was gradually crowding up. Crowds of people had suddenly headed her way as if something interesting was happening. She turned around to see a grand piano on the stage. This piqued her interest. She stopped there, eager to see what kind of performance there would be.
Behind the simple stage was a tiny dressing room. The door to the room was closed, but it was not enough to mask the noise of the crowd coming from the outside.
Nicole Douglas was sitting there while a makeup artist was frantically doing her makeup.
“Why on earth would they send me to such a cheap place?” she grumbled with discontent. “I’m too good to be performing here!”
Now a minor celebrity, her management company had often assigned her to performances at a variety of events, but she would always complain that they were beneath her.
The last time when she returned from Snow Mountain, her management company had warned her to watch her behavior, and since then, she did actually listen to them and calmed her antics. Hence, she obediently decided to come here after being ordered to. After the cutting of the ribbon, she was scheduled to perform on the piano.
Still, Nicole did not even bother to find out about the event’s organizer. She believed it might have something to do with a piano shop and treated the job as a sort of extra–curricular activity. The truth, however, was that she was never that good at playing the piano in the first place.
Her management company had promoted her as a musically talented entertainer, but it was all just marketing, and Nicole was often sent to classes to brush up on her skills at the last minute. She only needed to appear talented anyway.
After all, the most important thing was to get her famous first, and even if she’d be criticized for her lack of talent, they could always remedy that by running a few PR exercises.
The organizer was now rushing her to get on stage. Reluctantly, she dragged her feet out of the dressing room and out into the crowd.
The sight of people moving freely in the mall solidified her opinion that this event was just not worth her time, considering her fame and talents.
She took a few steps further before her eyes latched on a very familiar figure in the crowd–Stella Sealey.
Nicole frowned. She followed her assistant as they walked toward the spot where Stella was standing.
Stella was a little surprised to see Nicole there. She pulled her hat down to hide her face and tried to leave, but then suddenly Nicole bumped into her-
“Ah!” Nicole squealed. “Excuse me, but I didn’t see you just now. Are you okay?”
“What is wrong with you?!” Stella grimaced and glared at her.
The smug, gloating smile on Nicole’s instantly vanished. Her expression changed as she petulantly complained to her manager, “That woman just yelled at me!”
“Forget it,” her manager replied. “It’s almost time to go on stage. Come on, let’s hurry…”
Mr. Ford Is Jealous Chapter 1318
“What do you mean?! She just yelled at me! How can you just leave it alone?!”
Nicole was losing her temper. She glared at her assistant and continued her rampage. “Do you know how much I’ve put up with you backstage? I rushed over to this worthless event hours before it started, yet I had to wait till almost dinner before they let me come on! I’ve wasted the entire day here, and now, this blind woman just bumps into me, and you do nothing? How useless of an assistant are you?”
The assistant was speechless at Nicole’s merciless undressing. She clearly saw how Nicole herself had accidentally bumped into the woman, so how shameless must she have to be to trouble the other woman for it?
“I’m sorry,” she told Nicole with a pleading look in her eyes. “But can’t we talk about this after the event? It’s almost time for you to go on stage… Let’s just get the job done first, then we’ll talk about this…”
“I’m not going!” Nicole snapped, turning around. “ They’ve been keeping me waiting for the whole day, so why should I just go on stage so easily?”
Her assistant had started panicking and was at a complete loss. She had no idea why she had to work with such a
megalomaniac that would throw tantrums at the worst of times. With much effort, she had finally managed to persuade her to perform today, yet now she just changed her mind again at the drop of a hat and refused to go on stage.
If Nicole ended up not performing today, the whole event would not be able to continue, and if that happened, her bonus would be deducted again, not to mention she might even lose her pay for the day.
Unlike Nicole, who could earn thousands of dollars even from a small performance like this one, she could
probably only earn a few hundred in expenses today at the very best, but even that would depend on how the entertainer performed. If the entertainer were dissatisfied with her, or made a complaint about her, then her pay would be cut in half. If the entertainer refused to go on stage, then it was highly likely that she would not receive a dime for her work at all.
“Why don’t you just go finish your job for now?” Stella asked Nicole while feeling very sorry for the assistant.” You’ve got no reason to trouble her, you know.”
“Ha!” Nicole paused and sniggered. “If you’re so kind, then why don’t you just replace her and be my assistant yourself?!”
Nicole despised Stella for her fake pretensions and hypocritical behavior.
“Didn’t you want to show that you’re a kind person?” she added. “I just can’t believe how fake you are! I’ve long known how cruel and heartless you actually are from the way you treated Weston. I simply refuse to believe that you have a single kind bone in your body! You’re just trying to fool these people, aren’t you?”
“Just think of it as an act, then,” Stella replied while glaring coldly. “What difference would it make if I pretended to be a good person my whole life? It might be fake, but unlike you, I still end up harming no one. So what if it was all just an act?”
Stella could not help but find Nicole’s mentality extremely laughable.
“Is someone of your type really better?” she asked Nicole. “Someone like you who’s so openly hostile and vicious towards others? Do you actually believe that just because you freely admit that you’re a horrible person, it’ll absolve all the harm you caused and that everything will be all right?”
If they had not been on a tight schedule, the assistant would have given Stella a hearty applause for taking her words right out of her mouth!
Everyone was an adult here, so why should Nicole be so mean when she could be considerate instead?
Besides, she had always done her job well, so she simply could not understand why Nicole liked to treat her so badly and make things so difficult for her, yet at the same time, never uttering a word of complaint when facing those of a higher position.
Had she not done her job well, it would make sense that Nicole would lose her temper. She would have even conceded, even if Nicole wanted to make things difficult.
She had clearly done everything in her power to make everything run smoothly for Nicole, but all she got in return was such horrible treatment!
All these thoughts ran through the assistant’s mind, but she dared not voice any of them.
“Fine!” Nicole stomped and gritted her teeth, realizing that everyone was against her now. “You think that she’s on your side, don’t you? Okay, I’m not going on stage then!”
“Please,” the assistant was on the verge of tears. “Don’t do that. Everything’s been set. If you don’t perform, I’d be the one to bear the consequences…”
“But it’s all your fault anyway! You shouldn’t have taken someone else’s side!”
“I wasn’t taking her side,” the assistant argued anxiously, so distressed that she could not stand still. “I was just…” “Hergh!”
Mr. Ford Is Jealous Chapter 1319
Nicole dumped everything in her hand and, without even looking at her assistant, stomped away from the stage.
The young assistant instantly burst into tears. She was at a complete loss of what to do.
Stella closed her eyes and sighed.
“What is the situation?” she asked.
“The organizer wanted her to give a short performance,” the assistant replied. “She was supposed to play the piano
Her words were interrupted by brief pauses because she was sobbing so hard, but Stella still managed to grasp the gist of what she said.
“So you’ll be alright as long as you get someone to go up there and play the piano, right?”
“Well, I guess…
>>
Nicole was not that famous after all, so it didn’t matter much if someone else performed in her place. But where on earth could she find another gorgeous lass who doubled as a piano player to replace Nicole?
“Do you have a dress or some other kind of costume?” Stella asked. “I’ll quickly change into it and play in her
place.”
“You?” the young woman looked at Stella with surprise.
She went on to observe Stella more closely and was a little
stunned. There was no doubt that this woman was very
beautiful indeed. She might not even need the makeup
because she was such a natural beauty, and her facial features were definitely superior to those of Nicole Douglas.
“But…” the young woman hesitated. “Can you actually play the piano?”
Evidently, she had been paying little attention to the classical music scene.
Stella felt a little helpless. She was indeed not so famous that everyone in this city could recognize her.
“Yes,” Stella assured her. “Just tell me what she was going to play.”
The young woman realized that she had no other choice but to give it a try since she desperately needed someone
to replace Nicole Douglas right now. At the very least, it
would be better than being publicly mocked and criticized.
And so she decided to agree to Stella’s plan.
“Okay,” she reluctantly replied through gritted teeth. The dressing room is backstage. Follow me.”
When Nicole noticed that Stella really was going to perform in her place, the anger that had accumulated inside her almost exploded. She scowled at Stella, anticipating for her to make a fool of herself.
“(
Stella swiftly changed into the costume and followed the young woman up onto the stage. She glanced at her watch and realized that she had just enough time to perform this song before dinner.
Once she was up there, the organizer grimaced and went offstage to ask the assistant, “What the hell’s going on? That’s not the woman who’s supposed to be performing!”
“I’m sorry, but something came up, and this lady stepped in just in time and agreed to help out…”
“But can she really play?” the organizer asked, full of
skepticism.
After all, even Nicole Douglas, who had been rehearsing here over and over again, could barely pass as palatable. It
was clear at a glance that she was a complete amateur
who only accepted the job for the money.
Because of that, he assumed that all these entertainers were the same–a vapid, unprofessional lot who got to where they were by relying on their good looks, skilled at hustling for freebies while lying to the public and their
fans.
Naturally, he assumed that Stella was no different.
The assistant shook her head. Her face grew pale.
It was not that she didn’t trust Stella, but in this situation, it was simply impossible that she didn’t worry about what was going to happen.
Stella glanced at the noisy crowd in front of the stage. She was completely calm as she placed her fingers on the piano keys and gently pressed them.
Mr. Ford Is Jealous Chapter 1320
Soon, beautiful music flowed out from her fingers.
Moments after she played the first melody, the noisy crowd in the mall suddenly fell silent.
It was like magic.
She was only playing a song that the organizer set, and the piano wasn’t one she was familiar with, but as soon as she played the first melody, it was as if she completely forgot where she was. She gently closed her eyes and completely immersed herself in the joy and pleasure of playing music.
Many people had described her talent to be so sublime that it was as if the piano was a very extension of her own body–effortlessly making the piano sound however she wanted anytime, anywhere.
The organizer initially watched her with a look full of doubt, but he quickly calmed down and quietly enjoyed Stella’s performance from then on.
Even the people on the second floor of the mall stopped what they were doing as they listened to her playing as if entranced by the music.
Gradually, more and more people gathered around the stage. Someone recorded Stella’s performance and posted
it online.
[Where is this? What a beautiful pianist!]
[She looks so familiar! Can a music expert comment on her playing?]
[She’s mediocre. Just another pretty face. Even my son
can start learning now and play like her within two years.]
[Is the commenter above delusional? I’m a professional
musician, and I’m pretty sure that her playing is at least
as good as the international masters!]
Those two comments quickly attracted more and more
people to the discussion. In no time at all, the video gained traction and then became viral.
Then someone finally recognized her…
[Isn’t that Cicily?!]
As soon as the name Cicily was mentioned, more people started to recognize her, and even more started to go crazy for her.
[Oh my god! It really is her!]
[She’s a national treasure! The only pianist from our country to be internationally recognized as one of the best pianists in history!]
[But why would she be playing at the mall? It can’t really be her, right? With her talents, she should at least be
playing at a famous music hall. She can’t really be performing at a tiny shopping mall, right?]
[Yeah, I don’t think that’s her…]
[But the playing is unmistakably Cicily! It just can’t be anybody else!]
The assistant was watching the video backstage, and
when she read through the heated discussion in the
comments, she was shaken to the core.
Then she wrote a comment and posted it anonymously .
[I’m a staff at the event. A minor celebrity was supposed to be performing today, but she threw a tantrum and refused to go on stage. She even made another staff
member cry. Luckily, Cicily was there, and she stepped in just in time to save the day…]
[Is this true? Is Cicily that kind?]
[I don’t know. It sounds a little fake to me…]
[But this is live, so if it’s fake, then why does it look so real?]
[I’m at the event right now, and I can tell you that it’s all true! That minor celebrity was Nicole Douglas. I saw everything with my own eyes!]
Apart from the livestream, there were many more passers -by who recorded the performance with their own cameras. Even some famous internet vloggers who never had any interest in classical music started to upload videos of the performance themselves, automatically announcing that they were at the event too.
Because of all this, everyone began to find that the whole thing seemed much more credible now.
[Oh my god! So it really is Cicily! I’m so jealous of you people! You guys get to watch a master pianist perform for free!]
[The tickets to her show abroad were incredibly expensive, you know! It’s nice to see that she’s so grounded and down–to–earth in real life!] In a short span of time, Stella had garnered countless new fans.
At the same time, the same amount of people began storming Nicole’s account, demanding answers about why she’d acted like such a pain in the arse at the event.