Chapter 36: Chapter 36: Public Apology

Wendy Lawson didn’t become the top star of an MCN agency on her looks alone; she naturally had other talents.

She didn’t blame the other party for making a fuss. Her actions had indeed infringed upon the person’s image rights and damaged their reputation. If someone wanted to sue her, it would be an open-and-shut case. There was no getting away from it.

Wendy Lawson still had the photos from the fashion show on her phone. In fact, after her work was done that night, she had looked over the pictures several times while preparing her Little Red Book post.

When Jessie Sterling appeared in the shot, she was impossible to ignore.

Wendy Lawson even remembered joking with her assistant that the random woman who’d unintentionally ended up in the corner of the photo could be a celebrity.

So, when she received the call from her boss today, Wendy Lawson knew exactly what it was about.

It was impossible to say she wasn’t frustrated. When she was about to post the photo, she had considered cropping the unknown woman out, but it had seemed like such a waste.

She never expected it would lead to such severe consequences.

The assistant sat beside Wendy Lawson, a new document already open on her laptop.

She was well-practiced in these matters, having been by Wendy Lawson’s side for several years. An assistant experienced enough to accompany her to international events was not someone who could be easily replaced.

Still, the assistant was very curious.

“Do you know who she is?” The assistant still had no idea who they were supposed to be apologizing to.

Wendy Lawson was busy dealing with the messages on her Weibo account.

Her Little Red Book account had been banned and the related hashtags scrubbed from the platform. People trying to find out what happened couldn’t find her there, so they flooded her Weibo page instead, demanding an explanation.

Wendy Lawson shook her head. Her boss had made it very clear on the phone. They didn’t know the woman’s name, but she was backed by the entire Morgan Group legal department. This showed she was definitely not some nobody. The woman didn’t want any information about herself online, and if it weren’t for the scandal blowing up, she probably wouldn’t have even bothered to contact the company or Wendy.

“I don’t know. The boss said she didn’t reveal her name, but we have to clean up the mess we made. Otherwise…”

Wendy Lawson trailed off, not finishing her sentence.

Her boss’s words were still ringing in her ears.

In all her years with the agency, it was the first time she had ever heard her boss speak to her in such a stern and furious tone.

Perhaps her boss had already vented his initial anger, because by the end of the call, she hadn’t detected much blame or fury directed at her. Instead, his voice grew much calmer, laced with a hint of resignation.

“Wendy, if we don’t handle this crisis properly, if we can’t satisfy her… even though you’re the face of our company, and I want to protect you, I won’t be able to. And even if you leave us, don’t even think about making a name for yourself in this industry ever again.”

Those were her boss’s final words—both a reminder and a warning.

Wendy Lawson had no time to waste pondering the woman’s identity. She just wanted to resolve this crisis as quickly as possible.

Otherwise, her career would be over.

The assistant sighed. “Wow, she’s really a mystery.”

Without looking up, Wendy Lawson said, “The truly wealthy are very low-profile.”

“Don’t think kidnappings don’t happen anymore; it’s just that ordinary people like us never hear about them.”

Cases of the wives and daughters of the rich being kidnapped aren’t rare, whether at home or abroad.

The assistant finished writing the apology and sent it to Wendy Lawson.

“Take a look, Wendy. If it’s okay, you can post it.”

Wendy Lawson checked it over, nodded, and posted it from her account without any changes.

“To the esteemed lady in the black dress from the fashion show: I, Wendy Lawson (Little Red Book account: @WendyLawson), posted a photo on the Little Red Book platform that included your image without your permission. The subsequent public discussion storming from this photo has caused a degree of damage to your reputation. This action was a serious infringement of your rights and has brought distress to your life and well-being…

“I now clearly recognize the error of my previous actions and wish to offer you this public apology—”

The assistant’s public apology was long, and judging by the text, the tone was sincere. There wasn’t a hint of defiance or passive-aggressiveness in it.

The moment Wendy Lawson posted the apology, the netizens and fans who had been following the “scrubbed hashtags” incident since the previous night were all stunned.

Ever since the topic feeds and hashtags had been completely wiped and Wendy Lawson’s account had been banned, both casual observers and fans had realized that something was seriously wrong.

The casual observers were watching the drama unfold, while some fans were still stubbornly refusing to admit anything was wrong.

Now, with Wendy Lawson’s pinned public apology, the comment section was instantly flooded.

“Damn, you’re publicly apologizing without even using a name? Not even a last name? It feels like you really messed with the wrong person this time.”

“Wendy, can you please explain how your Little Red Book account got banned? I’m a long-time fan, been following you for five years, and I woke up this morning and was shocked… Did you piss someone off?”

“Honestly, I feel like Wendy was just unlucky this time. She just wanted to post a pretty picture of some beautiful women, but then she ran into rabid, brain-dead fans from two different fandoms, which dragged an innocent bystander into it, and that’s why her account got banned. Wendy didn’t even say anything online. Such bad luck.”

“I said this on the topic feed before: that young woman was sitting in the very front row. Anyone who knows anything about fashion shows knows those seats are the best viewing spots, reserved for top VIPs. They’re on a completely different level from where your idol was sitting, lol.”

“I don’t know about the seating arrangements, but it’s obvious that the young woman in the black dress with the hime cut yesterday was stunning. She has that air of class that comes from being born into wealth. It’s really not something your average celebrity or idol can compare to.”

“So, with all this discussion, does anyone know who she is yet?”

After posting the apology, Wendy Lawson dialed the phone number her boss had sent to her on WeChat.

It was a landline.

A moment later, someone on the other end picked up.

Wendy Lawson shot up from the bench, her expression exceptionally serious. “Hello, this is Wendy Lawson…”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep