Chapter 186: Chapter 186: “I Have People Above Me Too.

Typically, the people running official social media accounts are cautious and reserved. But Chloe was no ordinary account manager.

It wasn’t just Chloe who was so “impulsive.” In fact, the entire staff of Apex Films, including their signed artists, were all rather “impulsive.”

“The people at Thorne Pictures are trying to sabotage us behind our backs, but we at Apex are straightforward and will never resort to dirty tricks! If they want a war, they’ll get one! Stop fabricating facts and let’s use this chance to show the netizens who’s truly the most shameless!”

“We’re taking down an old bastard, do we really need to be sneaky about it? We at Apex are nothing like the petty schemers at Thorne Pictures!”

“Of course we’re going to be open about it! We take responsibility for our actions and don’t play dirty. That’s how everyone at our company operates.”

Besides Chloe’s reply, many other Apex employees also chimed in in the comments and shared the post to boost its popularity.

In reality, the moment Apex Films’ official account published the post, the internet blew up.

It was the first time anyone had seen a company’s official account go after a rival—and a high-level executive, no less. It was a completely unprecedented move.

How could it not cause a stir?

Moreover, the evidence Apex Films presented was ironclad, with almost no loopholes for refutation. It was another thousand-plus page PowerPoint presentation. Just getting through all the drama from beginning to end would take a significant amount of time.

It involved hundreds of artists—both signed and unsigned—as well as non-celebrities. The sheer volume of information was massive, sparking endless discussion.

No one could get through that many PowerPoint slides in a short time, but the moment Apex Films posted it, many onlookers had already started taking sides.

“I’ve got to say, I admire Apex’s approach way more than all that behind-the-scenes scheming. If you’ve got a problem, deal with it head-on! None of this convoluted, sneaky nonsense. It just makes me start eyeing the schemers in my own office.”

“I agree, this whole thing really makes me like Apex Films more. I don’t know who the new boss is, but getting so many employees to share the post voluntarily says a lot. (I checked the profiles in the comment section—they’re all established personal accounts, used for years.) This new boss must have really won the staff’s loyalty.”

“Is it really that shady inside Thorne Pictures? Oh my god, a lot of my favorite artists are with Thorne Pictures! Suddenly I’m worried.”

By the time Jessie Sterling and Victor Morgan had returned home, the matter had still not died down. In fact, it was showing signs of escalating even further.

When Jessie returned to Sixi Courtyard, she first collapsed into bed for a good long sleep. She slept until the afternoon of the next day before she finally felt truly awake.

“I brought a lot of stuff back with me. I already had it shipped to you yesterday…” Jessie said to Lynn Jennings, who was on her phone screen, after setting the device on a stand.

“What did you buy this time? Don’t go overboard,” Lynn said.

“It’s not for you, it’s for my goddaughter,” Jessie replied. “It’s all baby stuff—a stroller, a car seat, things like that. The standards over there are different from here. Since I was abroad anyway, and Victor had to work, I had nothing to do but wander around, so I just picked them up.”

’As if Lynn didn’t know that even if Jessie was “just picking them up,” she wouldn’t have casually strolled into a baby store and bought such bulky items on a whim.’

’Picking things up “on the way” should mean small things like clothes or socks. Who buys a stroller “on the way”?’

Lynn chuckled. “Alright, fine. I’ll thank her godmother on her behalf, then.”

“Don’t mention it,” Jessie replied airily.

“So what’s your next move? With the whole situation between your company and Thorne Pictures, it’s obvious they’re going to protect that scumbag Leo Goodman. What’s your plan?” The main reason Lynn had called Jessie today was to ask about this.

’She knew some people played dirty. In a situation like this, it might not be safe for Jessie to be out and about.’

So, before Jessie could answer, Lynn quickly added, “Make sure you have extra security with you when you go out these days. You never know what people like that are capable of.”

’There were plenty of news stories about vicious crimes where desperate men, backed into a corner, decided to lash out at society, often targeting women and children. Jessie was now a target of that kind of hatred, and Lynn was genuinely worried.’

Jessie tapped her stylus on her tablet. “Ah, I know. The security here is pretty tight. This is the heart of the capital, after all!”

“Still, be careful.”

“Mm-hm.”

“So you’re going to keep going against them?” Lynn asked.

Jessie arched an eyebrow. “Of course. What else would I do? Actually, speaking of which, Arya Thorne sent word to me recently.”

Her expression turned secretive, tinged with a hint of pride.

“Hmm?” Lynn asked, peering at the screen. “Did she want a truce?”

“Exactly! But I shut her down immediately! Hahaha!” Jessie’s expression was smug, practically screaming, ’Aren’t I amazing?’ as if waiting for praise. “But you’ll never guess—Arya Thorne contacted me herself!”

“Oh?” That was genuinely surprising to Lynn. “What did she want from you?”

Jessie’s expression grew complicated as she recalled the phone call from Arya Thorne.

It was completely beyond her expectations that Arya Thorne had called to vent her frustrations.

“…She said she and Leo Goodman are rivals at the company, basically on equal footing, and that they absolutely can’t stand each other. She actually spent the whole time complaining to me. How weird is that?” Jessie chattered.

Lynn was stunned, too. She never would have expected Arya Thorne to vent to her own rival.

“She’s not trying to play the sympathy card, is she?”

“Who knows?” Jessie said, unconcerned. In any case, she had no intention of letting Leo Goodman off the hook so easily.

’She had a pretty good idea why Arya Thorne, despite being disgusted by him, had no choice but to protect him.’

’That father-in-law of Leo Goodman’s was a man with considerable influence.’

’Thorne Pictures owed much of its rapid success to him.’

’If Leo Goodman went to prison, it would be tantamount to severing Thorne Pictures’ connection with the higher-ups who handle their permits.’

’That’s why Arya Thorne had to hold her nose and clean up this mess for her corporate arch-nemesis.’

’Jessie almost felt bad for her just thinking about how frustrating it must be.’

’She was the grand heiress of Thorne Pictures, for goodness’ sake, and yet she was stuck doing this.’

“I’ve heard from my sources that someone high up is determined to protect Leo Goodman,” Lynn said. “If you can’t take him down this time, things could get difficult for you later. He’ll definitely hold a grudge. He might not cause trouble for you openly, but you can bet he’ll be playing dirty in the shadows.”

’A person’s fundamental character is hard to change.’

’You could tell from his past actions that Leo Goodman was the type who thought he was above the law.’

Jessie replied, “Don’t worry. He may have powerful people backing him, but so do I!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep