The woman sounded depressed but Jonas was unmoved by her words. If he was the same guy that he
was a couple of years ago, who knew nothing about love, he would have fallen for her tricks. But he
was different now.
If Jonas was truly in love with Emily, he wouldn't have remained calm.
"I won't be attending the promotion meeting. I've already arranged everything and I've asked the
casting group to prioritize you over others. I'm going to promote you and I've repaid my debt to you as
well."
Jonas heaved a sigh of relief and disconnected the call before Emily could say another word. He had
been confused about his feelings but he was clear now. A smile tugged at the corners of his lips when
he thought of Melinda.
He couldn't wait to see her beautiful face and her magnetic smile that had the power to heal everything.
Melinda was sitting on the small yard of the villa with paintings of Japanese cherry blossoms scattered
everywhere.
The faint sunlight bounced off her body, emitting a subtle glow. She looked peaceful as the wind ruffled
her hair.
Jonas walked into the yard and looked at Melinda intently, trying to study her expression.
"What made you paint today?"
Melinda jerked when she heard Jonas's voice. The little flaws in the paintings irked Melinda. She
glanced at Jonas, crumpled the painting into a ball, and threw it away.
Jonas understood that Melinda was still angry. He knew that it would take some time before she
became normal.
Emily's face turned red with anger when Jonas disconnected the call. She gritted her teeth and threw
the phone that collided with the floor and shattered into pieces. The assistant flinched and patiently
waited for Emily's anger to subside. She quietly picked the pieces and cleaned the floor.
"Miss Bai, we are going for the promotion meeting tonight. Should I call the stylist?" the assistant
asked, swallowing her fear.
"Yeah."
Emily was a sensible woman. She decided to make use of the TV show to gain popularity.
After perfecting the makeup and clicking a few pictures of herself, Emily went for the promotion meeting
with the crew. Once the meeting was over, Emily attended the party. She found that almost all the
investors were present, except for Jonas.
Emily's boss also attended the party to greet the director.
"Oh, I need to thank Emily for making a huge investment for my play. This play would not have possible
without the investment of, 30 million dollars, by Soaring Group. I would like to propose a toast to Emily."
The director grinned, raised the glass of wine, and downed the contents in one big gulp. Emily took a
sip of the drink as her boss eyed her with confusion.
The director inched forward. "What's the relationship between Emily and Jonas? He's always there to
support her," he asked, whispering in the boss's ear.
The boss didn't have an answer to his question, so he smiled awkwardly.
Emily was distracted during the party but she felt that it was a great chance to show off that she played
a big role in Jonas's life.
She intentionally made vague statements about their relationship, giving a chance for the media to
cook up interesting stories. Emily's plan seemed to work as the information piqued the interest of her
company's PR department.
The next day, news and gossip about Emily flooded on Weibo.
"Why did Soaring Group invest thirty million dollars on a TV show?"
"Are Emily Bai and Jonas Gu the new hottest couple?"
"Childhood sweethearts who have taken the internet by storm."
The PR department of the company that Emily worked for drafted numerous copies about Emily and
Jonas. The company deliberately mentioned the thirty million dollars that Jonas had invested and
thanked him for extending his support to Emily.
The PR department did a commendable job in crafting sensational news about Jonas and Emily. They
made sure to add public opinion to the stories. They would churn Emily's ambiguous statements into
juicy articles.
The news about Emily and Jonas was one of the top ten pieces of sensational news.
Emily was a famous star, and Jonas was the mysterious heir of Soaring Group. They were the talk of
the town and everyone wanted to find out who Jonas was.
Emily had taken the internet by storm. Her fans, haters, and just about everyone seemed to talk about
her probable relationship with Jonas.
Everyone began to look for interesting gossip about Emily and her fame rose to another level.
The company was happy with the result and the operational department had made an exclusive plan to
increase Emily's fame in China.
Emily's house was besieged by reporters. They didn't spare Soaring Group either. Fortunately, they
didn't gather around the Gu's mansion.
Many entertainment programs began to invite Emily as their guest.
Her agent specifically asked Emily to attend a popular program that could potentially lift her stardom.
William was worried. He didn't know how to handle the commotion. Jonas had cut all contacts with him
and William couldn't find him anywhere. Moreover, the hawk-eyed reporters were waiting to get a
glimpse of Jonas.
Since everyone was interested in Emily, the crew of the program asked the original guest to wait and
roped her in for the first session.
She was wearing a pink dress and white shoes as her silky hair cascaded down her shoulders. Emily
looked like a sweet, innocent girl.
The crowd broke into thunderous applause as soon as she entered the stage. The host walked into the
stage and greeted her. "Wow, look at you. You have all smiles for us."
"There are many people who love and support me, of course I'll be happy."
Emily's words made her fans scream with joy. Her male fans were particularly excited. "I love you,
goddess," a group shouted.
The atmosphere was hot and the host ushered Emily to take a seat. The first set of questions was
basic, formal questions about her, followed by a quick round of Q&A.
The host asked tricky questions but Emily was prepared and answered confidently. Everyone was
mesmerized by her wit and charm.
"This is perhaps the most exciting question. I'm sure all of you are eager, as much as I am, to know the
answer." The host smiled and winked at the audience before turning to look at Emily. "What basic
qualities do you look for in a partner or do you already have a boyfriend?"
This was the most anticipated question in every talk show. Almost every celebrity gave diplomatic
answers but fans continued to spread rumors, linking them with another big star.
"I like honest, mature men who make me feel secure. I'm like a little child around loved ones and I want
my partner to spoil me with love."
Emily bit her lip as her face flustered with embarrassment. "We can spoil you," the audiences
chorused, making her laugh.
"Look at how happy you are. Emily, many happy girls like you are spoiled by their parents. Is that the
case with you as well?" the host asked.
"Jonas has always protected me since I was a child. He has always been there for me." Emily smiled.
The host's face lit up as her answer was the highlight of the show. He knew that Emily's statement
would increase the views. He took advantage of her answer and probed further, "Are you talking about
Mr. Gu, the heir of Soaring Group?"
"Yes, we practically grew up together and have been best friends since childhood. I left the country to
start my career but I'm here now. Nothing has changed our relationship."
"That sounds wonderful, Emily. Could you tell us more about your childhood?"
"Sure."
"Awesome, tell us something we don't know," the host said.
The camera zoomed into Emily's face, capturing her expression. She was smiling fondly as her mind
raced back in time.
"I met him when we were young. I was the naughty one but he was always calm and composed like a
mature man. Some of the kids were afraid of approaching him but I've always been fond of him."
Emily had already prepared the speech and continued to passionately tell the audience about her
childhood. Her company had asked her to talk about it. Emily decided to disclose only the important
information as their friendship dated back to when they were kids and it would take forever to reveal
every detail about it.
She continued to talk about how they had grown up together, influencing each other's lives. Later,
Emily had left the country to expand her horizons and develop new skills.
She also spoke about her injury and how Jonas had flown back to China to see her, even though he
was on a business trip. She made sure to tell everyone that he had invested thirty million dollars to
ensure her safety.
"Looks like Jonas is a sweetheart even though he has a cold demeanor. Now, even I'm curious to find
out what he looks like," the host joked.
Emily pursed her lips and began to describe his looks, chuckling shyly.
"Are you shy, Emily? Okay, let's move on to the next segment: Photo album of stars."
This was the fan's favorite segment. Although people always checked millions of pictures of their
favorite celebrity online, this segment bridged the gap between fans and their idols.
Emily's phone gallery was displayed on the big screen. The first picture surprised the fans. It was a
picture of Emily when she was little with a cute boy beside her.
He looked at the camera with a grumpy look on his face.
"Is this Mr. Gu?" the host asked curiously.
The host's prompter blared as he heard the news about the increased views of the show. The crew
instructed him to catch the hot point.
"Well, that's a photo from our childhood."
That one picture spoke a million words, proving her relationship with Jonas. There were many pictures
of the two where Jonas frowned in most of them.
The last segment was rather dull. They talked about Emily's future projects. By the end of the show, the
viewership of the program was similar to that of popular shows that featured renowned celebrities.
The internet exploded with gossip about Emily. The pictures of her and Jonas became viral. Everyone
felt that they made a perfect match. Some of them envied Jonas for stealing their dream girl.
Jonas's private life had become public as fans seemed to spread information about him on the internet.
The paparazzi became more curious and continued to track Jonas. They knew that a snippet of his
face would cost them a fortune.
Nelson didn't want to tell the news to Melinda and upset her. But with the advancement of technology,
the news reached Melinda's ears in a matter of minutes. She watched the show at home.
She had seen the childhood pictures of Jonas and Emily. He wore a poker face in most of the pictures,
except for the ones he was with Emily.
Not many would have noticed this but Melinda couldn't miss this detail.
Melinda was aware that they had grown up together but she was hearing the story about their
friendship for the first time. Emily's version of the story seemed illogical to her.
The news of the couple hadn't died down yet. People came with different news and theories every day.
Jonas's every move was linked with Emily, while Melinda, his lawfully wedded wife, stayed at home all
day.
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