Chapter 34: Chapter 35: Turning the Tables

The next day, Lindsay Woods announced she was terminating her contract with Naomi Kenway, stating she would no longer handle any matters related to Naomi. The moment this news broke, it caused a massive uproar online, and its popularity skyrocketed.

[Lindsay Woods? Is that the same Lindsay Woods, the “gold-medal agent” who’s managed several award-winning actresses?]

[What’s going on? Our dear Naomi got dumped? Good on Lindsay, she finally ditched that worthless shrimp!]

[Did they have a falling out? Hasn’t Lindsay been protecting Naomi’s career for years? How could their relationship just shatter like that? There aren’t many agents in the entertainment industry who can compare to Lindsay. Won’t Naomi’s already-rocky career path become even more difficult now?]

[Why so sudden…? Naomi’s been doing so well recently. She’s been working really hard. Why would Lindsay terminate the contract?]

[Isn’t Naomi backed by some rich family? What’s this all about? Don’t tell me her mysterious sugar daddy went broke?]

…

Following the news of the contract termination, a few more trending topics shot to the top of the charts—this time, it was several negative stories about Naomi.

Naomi Kenway picked up the coffee from her desk and took a light sip. She casually scrolled through the trending topics, her beautiful eyes filled with an icy coldness. ’Lindsay is trying to pressure me, force me to compromise.’

A message popped up. It was from Lindsay Woods:

I’ve done all I can for you. If you change your mind now and do as I say, we can still talk.

Naomi couldn’t help but laugh. The phrase “done all I can for you” was ridiculous. She wasn’t some A-list celebrity; how could the news of her contract termination and the negative stories trend so quickly? Naomi could figure out who orchestrated this with her eyes closed. It was Lindsay’s style, through and through.

Talk to my ass.

After typing out those four words, Naomi immediately deleted Lindsay.

’Does she really think I’m her puppet? I’m not going to be stupidly manipulated by her ever again. A minor agent daring to threaten me?’

She found Ethan Shaw’s number and called him directly.

’With such a great asset right beside me, how could I not make good use of it?’

The phone rang for a long time before it was answered.

“Speak.”

Naomi Kenway cleared her throat twice and stated her purpose directly: “I want Lindsay Woods to disappear from the entertainment industry completely!”

“Are you ordering me around?” His voice was light, but the pressure it carried was immense.

Most people wouldn’t be able to withstand Ethan’s presence, but Naomi’s mindset was much stronger than before. “How could you call it an order? I’m just thinking of you. Lindsay deliberately pulled a dirty trick to harm me, and now my scandals are being furiously debated online…”

“What does that have to do with me? If you choose to be in the entertainment industry, you have to bear the consequences.” Ethan’s tone shifted. “I taught you that from the very beginning, didn’t I?”

“Just hear me out first. You sit in your office all day, so of course you don’t know how terrifying these anti-fans can be. You’re afraid I’ll ruin your reputation, so of course I’ll keep our relationship a secret. But those obsessive anti-fans who love to dox people don’t think that way. If they dig up your information, you’ll have to be disgraced right along with me. The great CEO of a publicly listed company…”

Naomi added, “And I have no intention of leaving the industry until my name is cleared.”

“Are you threatening me?” Ethan’s voice was tinged with a hint of gritted teeth. Naomi had gotten a little smarter than before, but also much more difficult to handle.

“Honey, I’m just looking out for you! I don’t care if they insult me, but I can’t stand it when they insult you!!”

“Fake.”

With that one-word assessment, Ethan hung up the phone.

Naomi stared at the screen, which had returned to her contact list.

’So… did it work or not?’

When Naomi refreshed Weibo, the news about Lindsay’s contract termination and her own scandals were gone. Not only that, but searching for Lindsay Woods’s name now returned a blank page.

’Ethan sure works fast!’

Naomi contentedly picked up a pastry and hummed a little tune.

’A rich, powerful sugar daddy who doesn’t even like coming home.’ Naomi thought, sizing up Ethan. For the first time, she felt that Ethan was perfectly suited to her tastes. ’He’s literally the lover of my dreams!’

Lindsay’s sudden disappearance from the internet also sparked a flurry of online discussions.

[What is going on? Hasn’t it only been like ten minutes? How did the trending topics just disappear? I can’t find any info on Lindsay Woods anymore…]

[Naomi’s sugar daddy is still standing, I can vouch for that!]

[Teacher Lindsay must have been blind to pick up such an ungrateful wolf. It was just a contract termination, but Naomi had to go and drive her to a dead end!]

[Poor Lindsay. Why did she have to pick a fight with Naomi? Everyone knows she’s famous for having connections.]

[Damn you, capitalism! Why do despicable people like Naomi always get their way? Suddenly, I feel so bad for Teacher Lindsay!]

…

A minute later, another trending topic exploded online. It was a collection of chat logs Naomi had posted between herself and Lindsay, filled with content showing Lindsay telling Naomi to deliberately embarrass herself for clout. In addition to that, there was also a recording of Lindsay threatening Naomi.

As soon as this topic started trending, the situation changed dramatically. Naomi went from being the ungrateful wolf who left no way out for others to being the victim.

[Oh my god, why is there so much tea to spill today?]

[I can’t believe Naomi was actually being manipulated. No wonder her performance on that kid’s variety show got better. Turns out it’s because she had a falling out with Lindsay.]

[I never thought Lindsay was that kind of person. I can understand her methods for gaining clout, but threatening people is just not cool, right? Congrats to Naomi on terminating the contract!]

[Lindsay’s methods for controlling her artists are disgusting. Forget Naomi, if I had the resources, I’d make sure Lindsay ended up on the streets!]

[Why is everyone defending Naomi all of a sudden? A person as terrible as her deserved to be threatened!]

[After watching *Super Mom*, I don’t think Naomi is necessarily that bad of a person. It’s very likely she was deceived by Lindsay!]

[No matter what, Lindsay is a gold-medal agent in the industry. For all her information to be scrubbed so quickly… the power behind Naomi is really something else!]

…

Watching the tide of public opinion turn in an instant, Naomi couldn’t help but let out a breath of relief. She had finally cleared her name, at least partly.

Seeing the topic’s popularity continue to climb, Naomi threw some more money at it.

’Since Lindsay deliberately used scandals to threaten me, I’ll just have to use her as a stepping stone to clear my name!’

*

Lindsay Woods walked out of the building, dejected. Just five minutes earlier, she had been fired.

’Naomi actually has this much power?’ She could hardly believe it.

Lindsay had been in the entertainment industry for many years and had plenty of connections. An award-winning actress she had previously managed had married into a wealthy family, and her husband was a high-level executive at Weibo.

After getting through on the phone, the actress agreed to do her this one favor.

Lindsay breathed a sigh of relief. Once she got her account back, she had to clap back at Naomi and turn the tables. She would make sure Naomi’s reputation was utterly ruined!

An hour later, the actress called back. “Lindsay, I really can’t help you with this. You should ask someone else.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep