Lily’s phone had been ringing off the hook, with top universities vying to recruit her, the state’s top scorer, by rolling out the red carpet.
They would have stormed into her home if it weren’t for Mayen Garden’s strict visitor policy.
After spending some time tutoring Pearl together, Ella and Rhett grew closer. As they chatted, their conversation soon became a heated recruitment- battle,” each passionately championing their university.
Ella said, “All our talking is pointless. After all, Aria’s already at Mandino University. Which one do you think Lily will choose?”
Rhett facepalmed. ‘Damn it! How could I have missed that?‘ he thought..
Ella smiled at Lily. “Lily, what major do you like?“.
“I’m pretty interested in physics,” Lily replied.
Rhett said excitedly, “If you’re into physics, you should come to Kanit University. Our physics department is the absolute best.”
Ella countered, “Mandino University’s physics department is excellent, too.”
“Not as good as Kanit’s,” Rhett retorted.
Ella argued, “There’s only a slight difference, but our physics labs have more advanced facilities and our research achievements are just as impressive.”
As the two bickered, Lily finally interrupted, “I’ve already made up my mind. I’m going to Mandino University.”
With Mandino University’s strong reputation, Lily didn’t need to go out of state for Kanit University.
Shortly after, Rhett’s advisor called to check in.
Rhett sighed and said bluntly, “Blame our university for lacking foresight. We didn’t recruit Aria to Kanit University early enough. Martin even worked as a security guard at Larkridge High School in Mandino City to win over a student. But look at Kanit University. We have no real action, thinking we could snatch students from Mandino University with a few words. That’s just too naive.”
There was silence on the other end of the line.
“You’d better hurry up and try to get the other top scorer. If you wait any longer, Mandino University might snatch that student away, too,” Rhett urged.
After all, all those dark horse students were in Mandino City, giving Mandino University a definite advantage. In the end, Kanit University only managed to recruit the other top scorer after much effort.
As high school students welcomed their summer break, the highly anticipated fifth season of “Cozy Screening Room” officially premiered.
Aria had planned to have Owen come over to watch “Cozy Screening Room” together. However, Lily and Pearl insisted that having an extra account would boost viewership, so they pushed Aria to go to Owen’s apartment instead.
Knowing they wanted her and Owen to have some/alone time, Aria didn’t bother being coy and headed straight to Owen’s place.
As soon as the show started, Owen skipped ahead. Aria glanced over, puzzled. “What are you doing?”
“If you’re not on, I’m not interested,” Owen replied.
Aria was momentarily speechless, then said, “I want to see Vanessa.”
“Alright then,” Owen replied, dragging the progress bar back to its original position.
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Chapter 489
When Arla first appeared on screen with a tight close up of her face, even Owen, who was used to seeing hat, was stunned to her bi
‘My Madelyn is a knockout, Owen thought.
The live chat exploded with excitement.
Someone asked: [Who’s this gorgeous girl? Total boss vibes!]
Its she a newcomer?] Another one asked.
[Get me all her info in 3 minutes!] A fan demanded.
Another one gushed: [Flawless even without makeup. I’m obsessed!]
[Thanks, everyone, that’s my wifey!] Someone declared.
Owen glanced at the live chat, leaned closer to Aria, and said, “They’re all complimenting you.”
Aria nodded with a smile. “Yeah, they think I’m gorgeous.”
Owen said with a grin, “Good thing you didn’t go into showbiz, or I’d never be able to compete with all your fans.”
He thought, ‘Heck, I could never be as bold as those fangirls, calling Aria their wife right out in the open!
Aria and Owen continued watching the show.
During filming, Aria found the game segments rather dull, but watching the edited version, she was surprised by how lively the atmosphere turned out.
‘Credit to the editor,‘ she mused. ‘It almost felt like Calista and I were becoming friends.‘
Halfway through the variety show, the hashtag “Calista got bullied” suddenly rocketed to No.3 on trending topics.
The hashtag “Calista and Luther are so ship–worthy” became the top trending topic.
The doctored footage slapped creepy filters on Aria’s face, with top comments screaming: [Capitalist pigs abusing celebrities, disgusting.]
Soon, influencer accounts jumped on the trend, posting videos with dramatic voiceovers that painted Calista as a pitiful underdog, while Aria became the villainous tycoon.
Clueless netizens who stumbled upon these posts would immediately fire off angry comments.
At the same time, promotional channels heavily emphasized Calista and Luther’s chemistry, leading many first–time viewers to check out the show, only to find themselves lost.
[Well… The show’s only been on for 40 minutes. Where did they get all these edited clips from?]
[@All the gossip mongers, check this out! They’re saying tycoon Aria is bullying a celebrity, and it’s already trending after just half an hour.]
[This reeks of conspiracy.]
Seeing the trending topics, Calista jumped up in shock and hurled her phone at her assistant. “How the hell did this get on the trending list already? Wasn’t it supposed to be tomorrow? Go find out what happened, now!” she yelled.
Editing these narrated video clips would take hours. There was no way they could finish it so quickly.
Calista had ordered them to release everything tomorrow, yet it had become a trending topic halfway through the show tell something was fishy.
Calista’s assistant soon returned with news. “They got the dates mixed up. They thought it was today.”
ne with half a brain could
2/3
Chapter 489
Calista’s plan was simple. She wanted to use those edited clips to create misunderstandings, then swoop in to defend Asia and cias friends.
That way,
she’d come out looking like a good guy, earn Aria’s gratitude, and have the perfect excuse to get closer to Luther.
Little did she expect a timing mix–up. The trending topics and marketing accounts surfaced a day early, and in the blink of an eye, she went from Ari I friend to her enemy.
Calista panicked and shouted, “Tell them to take down the videos and get the trending topics removed, now!”
But it was already too late.
Calista’s top fan accounts received instructions from her team, telling them to attack Aria after the topic hit trending. So they went all out, flooding the
discourse.
Other netizens soon jumped in.
[What the fuck? The show’s not even over, and it’s already trending? Trashing Aria while shipping Calista and Luther. Are you that desperate for clout?
[Calista’s fans, stay away from Luther. Keep your distance.]
Almost all of Luther’s fans knew that Calista was chasing after him.
Forced shipping wasn’t a big deal, but deliberately orchestrating online hate against an innocent civilian was downright malicious.
Everyone rushed to the third trending topic, abandoning the variety show, determined to push the topic to number one.
They decided to kick Calista while she was down. It was their chance to bury Calista and her fake “sweet girl” act for good.
