Faye Rhodes didn’t pay the slightest bit of attention to Zion Shawcross’s resentful expression.
He now suddenly regretted going against everyone’s advice to adopt her proposal.
’Is it too late to back out now?’
Of course, Faye Rhodes had no idea what he was thinking.
DING. The elevator arrived.
Faye Rhodes and Stella Sterling were chatting and laughing as they walked in with Ken.
The elevator doors slowly closed under Zion Shawcross’s resentful gaze.
As for Henry Wright, he couldn’t even wait for the elevator.
As soon as the contract was signed, he gave Stella Sterling a sincere apology and then bolted up the fire escape all the way to the 28th floor.
The moment he stepped onto the 28th floor, he was met with absolute chaos.
"What is wrong with you people? Do you even know how to select photos? You picked this one even though my face is totally distorted?"
"Is the photographer from the other studio really that good? Then how could he take a picture like this? I’m not satisfied. Tell them to re-edit it!"
"This is the final version of the video? Didn’t I tell you not to include this part? Make them re-cut it!"
"Did you feed your sense of aesthetics to a dog? How did you even pick this color grading? It makes me look three shades darker. Are your eyes working properly?"
The entire room of people was being berated by Catherine Linden, one by one, to the point that no one dared to look up.
Henry Wright’s head throbbed.
’I want to leave.’
But the studio staff had sharp eyes, and they looked at him as if he were their savior.
"Henry!"
Henry Wright: "..."
’Now I can’t leave.’
He nodded a little stiffly and walked in.
"It’s so early. What’s all this about? Why are you throwing such a huge tantrum?"
Catherine Linden walked over and linked her arm with his. "Henry, I think these people in the studio are getting more and more useless. Nothing they produce is to my satisfaction. They’re just collecting a paycheck without doing any real work. Get me a new team."
Henry thought to himself, ’My dear lady, why don’t you go ask how many people are actually willing to come work in your studio?’
Everyone at Vantage knew that the company’s internal artist studios were like heaven and hell.
If Zion Shawcross’s studio was heaven, then Catherine Linden’s was hell.
And as it happened, this heaven and hell were just one floor apart.
A thin layer of concrete decided the fate of a group of employees.
Henry Wright shot Catherine Linden a glare, then smiled at everyone. "Alright, back to work for now."
Only then did the staff return to their workstations and resume their tasks.
Henry pulled her into the conference room.
Looking at Catherine Linden’s face, which had hardly changed since she first entered the industry, and then at her eyes, which were now worlds apart, Henry Wright shook his head.
"Catherine, if you keep this up, who is going to put their heart into working for you? I told you, if you’re not feeling well, we can take a break for a while to readjust."
The warmth in Catherine Linden’s eyes vanished.
"What? I should take a break so you have time to manage a new talent? And then when I come back, you’ll have me sit on the bench?"
Henry Wright’s brow furrowed.
"What are you talking about?"
Catherine Linden just assumed he was playing dumb.
’It makes sense. I’m still popular right now. It wouldn’t do either of us any good to have a falling out at this point.’
She calmed down and softened her tone. "Henry, I really liked that web drama from before. Can you try to fight for it for me again? Please? I know I was ignorant before and offended President Rhodes. Isn’t President Jacobs good brothers with President Rhodes? Could we ask President Jacobs for help? Henry, you dote on me the most, right?"
Henry knew she hadn’t given up on that idea.
"Catherine, have you already forgotten what you’ve been through this past month? Do you really think President Jacobs did nothing? Otherwise, how do you think you managed to keep your leading role in that movie?"
Hearing this, Catherine Linden’s heart leaped with joy.
"Then that means President Jacobs still has some influence. Henry, you know it wasn’t easy for either of us to secure those resources before. If we just let them go, you might be fine with it, but I’m not. I won’t do anything else, I just hope President Rhodes can forgive me. If we can get all our old resources back, why wouldn’t we?"
’Besides, Henry might be thinking about scouting new talent now. I have to hold on to whatever I can get my hands on.’
Henry felt she had been completely corrupted by the great dyeing vat that was the entertainment industry.
The Catherine Linden of today was like a stone in a latrine pit—foul and stubborn.
It gave him a massive headache.
In the end, he still gave her a warning. "Don’t go looking for trouble with Owen Rhodes. I’m not kidding. He’s very protective of his wife."
To have warned her to this extent was to have done all he possibly could.
But Catherine Linden didn’t listen.
’Protective of his wife?’
’Then who was that woman today?’
She had specifically zoomed in with a camera and seen that while Owen Rhodes was wearing a wedding ring, the woman’s hand was bare.
’And the two of them were being so sneaky.’
’Hmph. Men... they’re all the same...’
...
Ken had driven his own car. After seeing Stella Sterling to her car, he left.
As Owen Rhodes’s car was about to leave, Faye Rhodes was still lingering behind, reluctant to see them go.
She actually wanted to chat a little longer with her aunt, but she couldn’t. Her uncle’s glare was too terrifying.
All she could do was wave goodbye with a smile from behind the car.
Seeing Faye Rhodes’s posture in the rearview mirror, which was comparable to seeing off a boyfriend, Owen Rhodes found it amusing.
"What kind of spell did you cast on her?"
Stella Sterling shook her head helplessly. "What can I do? My niece loves me too much."
Owen Rhodes paused for a second, then let out a soft laugh.
While Stella was still feeling secretly pleased, Owen leaned over to look at her left hand, which was in a sling.
"The swelling has gone down quite a bit compared to yesterday."
"It’s a good thing I listened to you and took the ring off beforehand."
Probably because she couldn’t move her arm, combined with the after-effects of having the bone set, Stella Sterling’s left hand had inexplicably swollen up yesterday.
Luckily, the ring had been taken off before that, or she would have been in a world of pain.
Stella quickly outlined her work schedule for the next month.
She sighed and turned to look at Owen Rhodes.
"Owen, from now on, can you wake me up every morning before you leave?"
One month, two paintings. The schedule was still a bit tight.
Not to mention, since it was for an album cover, she needed to provide several versions for the client to choose from. Even after she started painting, there would be subsequent revisions based on the client’s requests.
Although Vantage had given Stella Sterling a great deal of creative freedom, it was still restrictive compared to her usual unrestrained creative process.
So she was a little nervous.
Owen patted the back of her hand comfortingly. "Don’t doubt yourself. With your skills, you’ll definitely be fine. If it really doesn’t work out in the end..."
Stella followed up, asking, "What then?"
"Don’t worry. I’m here."
Stella blinked, a little surprised. "Don’t tell me you can paint, too."
’That would make Owen Rhodes way too versatile.’
Owen raised an eyebrow. "That’s a secret for now. I’m more inclined to believe you can finish it yourself. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Your health is the most important thing. You need to be well-rested to have the energy to work."
Speaking of which, Stella leaned in and asked in a hushed voice, "Then, to make sure I’m well-rested, should we sle—"
"No," Owen said with a gentle smile.
Stella: "..."
She had only uttered the first sound before being mercilessly rejected.