The plane landed safely back to Capital City Int’l Airport at about eight in the morning. As soon as their group stepped into the arrival area, Apple’s phone rang frantically. 

“I need to run back into the branch office ASAP so I’m leaving you all here. Will you be alright?”

Sena nodded her head, “No problem. Drive safely.” 

“I’ll make sure they get back home safe.” Nicholas was about to take Sena’s luggage from him when Apple deliberately moved it out of his reach.

“Thank you very much President Aiguille.” The Chief Secretary said with a smile that did not quite reach his eyes. “A busy person such as yourself need not bother with menial tasks like this. We understand that you also have a company to run so I have called for Miss’s driver to pick them up.”

For a moment there when the men stared at each other, lightning seemed to crackle and the air became tight.

Nicholas’ brow couldn’t help but twitch. “I have taken a proper leave of absence. Which is something I rarely do, by the way.” 

“How refreshing.” Apple said dryly. “But might this unprecedented break be a bit of a stretch? Missy here wouldn’t want to be in the way of your work.”

“NaNa—” he corrected himself just in time when he saw Apple’s murderous reaction to the affectionate nickname. “Erm, Sena knows I was never the kind to drop an unfinished job irresponsibly.” He then winked, seeking his sweetheart’s approval.

But before Sena could interject, she heard Apple snort. She could practically feel the chief secretary’s malice about to jump on her boyfriend. Should she call a priest? It looks like Apple got possessed by some nasty mother-in-law spirit! 

“Alright, you go ahead now.” She said steering Apple towards the exit. “After you finish with work, do me a favor and get a long rest. You had been running here and there non stop. I feel stressed just from watching you.” 

“I’m perfectly well, dear.” Apple said sweetly. “But are you sure you will be alright without me?” 

“Positive.”  

“Humph, say the one who got abducted into some shady backwoods cabin.” He muttered angrily. 

Sena: (^◇^；)

He’s obviously holding a grudge when she dropped him to Stella and ran off with Nicholas chasing the smuggled diamonds.

Apple need not to know the whole fiasco lest he explodes in another bout of fury so she told him Nicholas invited her to visit a friend’s place. As Apple disappeared into the crowd, the three of them were left there breathing a sigh of relief. 

“I feel like the chief secretary is at his boiling point. Gosh, that got me weak-kneed.” April muttered, wiping a sweat off her forehead. 

Sena could only smile wryly. 

“He doesn’t like me a little bit, does he?” Nicholas groaned. 

She smiled up and gave him a soft pat. He thought she was going to console him but then she playfully whispered, “You’ll get used to it.”

He angrily grabbed her cheeks and mashed them on his palms. “Witch.”  

“Ahem!” April’s cough interrupted the two. “I think we should also get going.”  

The airport is a hub for different kinds of people and they are starting to attract all kinds of eyes from the crowd. It so happens that there are a bunch of teenagers waiting outside waving placards and posters of a certain male idol. The fans who had been bored of waiting shifted their eyes somewhere and noticed their arrival earlier.

“Aside from a film studio, what are the odds of meeting  so many good-looking faces in one place?” A girl said, aiming her camera at the most beautiful couple she ever beheld. 

 

Back in Nicholas’ home, Secretary Jacob An waited for his president’s return along with the munchkin hairball that was pitifully left by its human. Dumpling stretched its chubby body and gave out a wide yawn. He became naughtier as it grew and gained weight. Under Jacob’s careful rearing, he fearlessly scratched the newly bought gaming chair, ripped several papers and chewed on his slippers. Jacob was already crying blood when Nicholas arrived.

“How is the kitten? Is it good?”

Jacob looked at the tiny pain in the butt and sighed, “President, the cat is well-fed and has no problem.” 

Would he dare to tattle on the creature spoiled by his boss’s girlfriend? Does he think his salary is high enough to support his retirement? No way! 

“Nothing unusual?”

Jacob hesitated, “It seems to… to have taken a liking to my chair at home.”

Nicholas understood. The kitten might have been restless because of the sudden change of environment. “I’ll triple your pay at the end of the month, keep it a secret.”

Jacob then realized that he was being offered hush money. He sniffled while bitterly looking at the tiny criminal. 

Michael’s sister Miss Layla came to borrow Dumpling for a few days but since her brother has allergies, she couldn’t keep him for too long whilst the little disaster fell on him. Fortunately, his president said he would triple his salary. Oh thank goodness, that chair was very expensive! 

Sniffing Nicholas’ familiar smell, Dumpling purred and behaved into his arms. 

“I was told you have been naughty.” He said softly and drove back to Paragon to meet its long lost mama. 

 

A two days after their return to Country H, Sena’s days had been hectic. Meeting with clients, magazine interviews and attending boardroom discussions. Ever since her decisive move on Stella Mine spread in the upper echelons, it also created a wave of legend among their subsidiaries. Aside from that, the news of her investments and taking part in the development of a new city shocked everyone. At her age she already holds shares of several rising companies in Asia and delved into profitable projects. 

Eventually, the shareholders who had doubts about her actively joining Nexus Global’s meetings finally eased their harsh view of her being young and naive. If before her merits came from being closely held by the chairman of the board Pascal Rossi, President Oslo Troy and President Situ Ye, she can now proudly say that she has risen on her own two feet. 

She had soared without the backing of ancestral wealth and can be considered a businesswoman of her own. By January, one of the biggest crises falling on Nexus Global had been wrapped up. Other variables that had a great impact on the company are being monitored carefully. As she returned to Capital City, she also had to face all the pending work she left behind such as the remaining endorsements she was signed up with, magazine interviews and appearances. Lastly, a new variety show. 

She was busier than a spinning top; she could hardly have a rest day. 

It was also through this bitterness that she realized that her life was no longer as dull and empty as it was last. Regarding her modeling career, though she wanted to remain freelance her growing fanbase disagreed so. Rather than declining as how it should have been, in just half a year she managed to make a mark in everyone’s heart and threatened to overtake many fresh celebrities. However, this flourishing career also caused her a lot of friction with some personalities. As fame grew, critics also followed. 

April was browsing through the web when she saw the hottest post. Her face instantly turned ugly. As quickly as she found the problem, she contacted Apple without a second thought. 

“Have you seen it?” The chief secretary asked in a grim tone. 

“She was turning the muzzle on Sena.” 

In the video Yuni wore a plain white dress with little makeup making her red and puffy eyes look prominent under the light. Unlike her usual flamboyant style, she looked rather simple here. In the magnified lens, her eyes were watery as she spoke of the injustice she suffered during an audition. 

“That was just a simple comment on my part, I did not expect that some people would hold a grudge against me and it would escalate to the point that it would affect my future.” She said, dabbing her face with a tissue.

Yuni took deep breaths before continuing on her revelations. 

“I did not want to make it public but as you can see I am at a disadvantage here. I also want to speak for those who had the same grievance as me, to those who had been oppressed by people with power.” 

Under the video, the comments of Yuni’s fans speaking for her piled up.

[Don’t worry, we support you. Don’t be afraid.]

[Isn’t it just mentioning about the donations? Some people are too narrow minded; they have to cut off a person’s chances.]

[That newbie director is a close friend of Sena Erde, isn’t it? Oh, those spoiled rich kids can really move!]

[What Yuni said might be true. The director used her audition to retaliate against Yuni.]

Yuni’s sad story was addressed first then, later more and more celebrities came out to reveal the same experiences of offending some high profile personalities and got shut down. As the numbers increased it was getting hard to distinguish facts from hype. 

Overnight, the issue reached the top trends. Under some manipulations all kinds of anecdotes about Sena sprang up and her background were once again dug up. At first they were only discussing her family and her career. Eventually it was directly distorted that she was using money to run rampant and lawless against her enemies. It was also hinted that she wanted to project an image of a rich beauty despite having no family backing. 

In short, it was another glorious mess. 

In the midst of it, Maya came to support her cousin’s fight against injustice in the entertainment industry. As a popular celebrity some clever netizen’s suddenly aimed their focus on her and found a large comparison. 

This was when Maya’s recent donation to the Children's Welfare Institute was found out. There was a long article praising her about her attendance to a private auction and her donation to the welfare institute. 

“So this was their plan after all.” April gritted her teeth angrily. 

“Maya’s fans did not need to be cued. As long as they saw the word ‘donate’ they all had the same person in mind to attack.” 

They can use this issue to make Maya’s name more fragrant while stepping on Sena at the same time. 

From the very beginning the Luz mother and daughter had been using Yuni as a catalyst to promote Maya’s participation in CWI. From a popular celebrity she also wanted to paint a beautiful picture of a generous lady. After all, being a philanthropist is a fast and sure way of gaining access in the gatherings of the upper circle. 

Even if Sena found out it was them who instigated it, what can she do? The mother and daughter did not directly mention her name. She also could not scold those celebrities and netizens who aimed for clout by making fun of her online. 

However, they did not expect that their plan would get ruined so soon. Sena’s connection is far deeper than they thought. 

“What do we do about it?” April asked Apple. 

“Leave the mother and daughter for now, Sena can deal with them on her own but the problem with the donation and Yuni’s conflict with Sydney must be cleared up.” 

It should be or everyone would think her boss is such a shallow person. April felt uncomfortable. Sena was the most generous and kindest girl she ever met. She couldn’t stand reading all these insults and abuse online. 

Bearing this high profile personality is not easy. You have to deal with several underhanded attacks every step of the way. Will Sena quit just because she couldn’t bear it? Highly unlikely. 

She can face several industrial sharks and does not rattle. If this tiny pool called entertainment industry crushed her, those megalodons sitting on top of Nexus Global would most definitely deem her unworthy. 

[Why is Sydney Waller not speaking out? Aren’t he and Sena Erde good friends?]

[Probably feeling guilty.]

[He must have found Yuni as an eyesore and denied her outright.] 

[There should be at least a move to clarify, don’t you think? But they remain silent.]

[The director is new and promising but he must not use his power to oppress new celebrities. It’s unfair!]

April was too worried she could not concentrate on her work at the office the next day. 

During coffee break, the agents’ lounge was unusually quiet. 

“Has the boss seen it yet?” Elia asked with a deep frown. 

Rui sighed on the couch, “I’m afraid not, you can see how busy she was. She barely had time to swipe through entertainment news.”

“If you ask me, that Yuni was just trying to push her luck.” Jue said with a snort. “She said she was kicked out of the audition because she offended Sena?” 

Everyone nodded. 

“It’s a well-known fact that Sydney Waller is a good friend to the boss.”

“There is no word from Sydney.” April rubbed the rim of her coffee cup. “He also had to deal with the storm it caused on his production team so clarifications take a while.” 

When Sena came over for water, she saw her agents pulling long faces. 

“What’s wrong with you?”  

Elia waved her phone and showed the link through Yuni’s crying video. Everyone was at the edge of their seat while observing her expressions. 

“Ah, well this is to be expected.” She shrugged. “You know I’ve had a few conflicts with other celebrities and most of my friends were also in that industry. Chances are, my relationship with those four will be constantly stirred up and used as an excuse whenever something goes wrong.” 

ヽ(ﾟ´Д｀)ﾉ  

Having influential connections can be a double edged sword. 

“But this is too hateful.” Katya exploded. “Are they going to say you block them every time they fail an audition?”

Sena laughed, “Relax, not everyone is an idiot. Besides, Sydney is not someone who will let himself be used.” 

In order to appease them, she checked her phone to get an update from the eggheads.  

Fortunately there are people ready to defend her. Speaking of which, Nancy sent her several messages apologizing profusely for the trouble she caused with the donations. 

[Nancy]: I’m so sorry sissy. I caused you a lot of problems because of my big mouth. It was me, I started all of this. ಥ_ಥ 

Sena had no idea what she was talking about until she read the messages from the eggheads.

When she entered the group chat she couldn't help but laugh out loud seeing that they had changed the group name from [Sena's Eggheads] to [Sena's Harem] and tweaked her nickname into Her Majesty. 

[AdviserSydney]: Fortunately, the donation issue was settled neatly. 

[SassyMinisterYuya]: Speaking of which, I heard that Yuni kicked up a fuss when she did not make it to your crew? She was crying live complaining how you dismissed her without a second thought.

[AdviserSydney]: I need an actress. Not a clown. 

[SassyMinisterYuya]: Hehe, you are indeed cruel. 

[No.1BeautyRamsy]: All this fuss, the strange thing was there was no answer from Her Majesty. Is this normal?

[MinisterYuya]: Ah, this we better ask Concubine Tang. He might know something. 

Sena spat out a mouthful of cold water after reading the messages. 

What the hell is with this nickname?! 

Suddenly there was a prompt from Chang'an. 

[ConcubineTang]: Sena's out of the country folks, I heard from my brother. 

[HerMajesty]: I’m back. How do you want to be punished?  

Sena typed in with a dark face. 

The four men on the other line felt their scalp tingle. 

[HerMajesty]: Who changed the names, are you looking for a beating?

[No.1BeautyRamsy]: Ahahaha~ there you are. It was just for fun since we are a bit bored these days.  

[HerMajesty]: Why is your nickname different? 

[No.1BeautyRamsy]: It’s because I’m the most good looking among us.

The three other men collectively rolled their eyes in disgust. 

A lot of things happened while she was away. She learned about Nancy's intention to raise funds for the disaster victims and how Yuni ridiculed her online for not answering the donation call immediately. Funny thing was, the crew of The Hermit clapped back on her behalf. Then another issue took place when Yuni accused Sydney of unfairness in the audition for a new movie when she did not make it to the casting list. She went live and cried out her grievances wanting to use public opinion to overwhelm Sydney and destroy the movie. She said he was taking revenge on Sena’s behalf because of a small mistake she made. 

[Sena to Nancy]: I wasn’t mad, don’t cry. It’s not your fault. I knew you meant well.

[Nancy]: I was careless sissy, I should have asked for your opinion first.

[Sena]: You wouldn’t be able to contact me anyway because I was out of the country these days.

[Nancy]: I still caused you trouble. If I hadn’t mentioned it, Yuni wouldn’t find any reason to haunt you. It’s embarrassing. 

[Sena]: Hehe, it’s okay. Besides, we intended to donate to the typhoon victims earlier.

The message made the little girl burst into tears. She had been worried to death these days because of the donation fiasco. The longer she hasn’t heard from Sena, the more down she becomes. She thought for sure the other would ignore her forever. 

The same is true with Sena’s agents, anxiety was written all over their faces but seeing her carefree attitude towards the problem they finally felt at ease. The boss doesn’t even take them seriously so what are you nervous about?