Chapter 262: Who Is the Real Bad Apple?

Scandals like this were common in the industry, but for it to happen on their own set was still explosive news!

My god, Quincy Usher was so brazen!

That was it, the final blow. Mjolnir had fallen. To think Joy Larson was that kind of person.

Joy Larson’s face was deathly pale. "You were the one who told me to go to the assistant director’s room to rehearse!"

Quincy Usher: "There’s no point in trying to argue now, is there? Are you really not afraid of me posting this online and exposing you two?"

Adrian Lancaster understood the situation by now. Although Quincy Usher’s methods were a bit reckless, Adrian also didn’t want this kind of thing happening on his set.

He wasn’t just the male lead in this drama; he was also an investor. If this blew up later, the show could get buried, and wouldn’t all his investment and hard work go down the drain?

"Teacher Larson, do you have anything else to say?"

Joy Larson heard the unspoken meaning in his words. She was silent for a moment. "I’ll leave. But you have to delete the photos!"

Adrian Lancaster: "Fine."

Jane Lancaster was speechless.

’Fine? What’s fine about it? Have you even figured out who the real rotten apple is?’

’This Quincy Usher guy is obviously bad news. He throws tantrums, smashes set property, and has zero professionalism. And you’re going to believe him?’

Adrian Lancaster: "..."

’So I shouldn’t believe the passionate Quincy Usher, but I should believe Joy Larson and her weak defense?’

’Besides, does she even know these two? Does she know them as well as I do?’

’Quincy Usher might be a bit reckless and impulsive, but he’s also enthusiastic, polite, respects his elders, and works hard. Is it wrong for me to want to give him a hand?’

"Well, there you go. She’s been forced out. Now you’re the big boss of the B-unit," Jane Lancaster said with a smile at Quincy Usher.

Quincy Usher struggled to force the corners of his rising lips back down. "What do you mean by that?"

"You caused this whole scene just to get yourself more screen time, didn’t you? Why are you even playing the third male lead? You might as well just play the main hero."

Quincy Usher was furious. "Outsiders, please leave. And you, what were you trying to do in front of Adrian’s trailer just now? You weren’t up to no good, were you?"

Jane Lancaster walked over and affectionately linked her arm with Joy Larson’s. "Joy, did you forget? I was there last night when he told you."

Joy Larson froze. She didn’t know this woman and couldn’t understand why she was suddenly doing this.

’Since Joy Larson said Quincy Usher notified her, but she’s not refuting his denial, she probably doesn’t have any proof. It must have been a verbal notice.’

’To avoid arousing Joy Larson’s suspicion, he probably would have told her in a normal tone of voice.’

’So it must have been in a public place. I’m guessing the hotel restaurant—that’s it!’

Jane Lancaster breathed a sigh of relief. She wrote the word "restaurant" in Joy Larson’s palm, and the other woman gave an imperceptible nod.

"I was secretly filming you at the time, and I happened to record that moment." Jane Lancaster handed her phone to Adrian Lancaster. "This video proves he was the one who told you to go to the assistant director’s room to rehearse."

Adrian Lancaster looked down at her phone. A line of text was on the screen: If you don’t want to get played for a fool by an idiot, do as I say.

"..."

She was so infuriating. And yet, he couldn’t help but agree with her.

He frowned and looked up at Quincy Usher. "Do you have anything to say?"

Quincy Usher started to panic. ’Was I really filmed?’ He had specifically checked to make sure no one was paying attention before he’d approached Joy Larson to say that.

"Adrian, you have to believe me, I really didn’t! She’s slandering me!" he insisted adamantly.

"Do you dare to swear that if you were the one who told her, you’ll voluntarily leave the production?" Jane Lancaster asked.

Quincy Usher’s confidence wavered. "I swear..."

"You’d better mean it. I hate being lied to more than anything," Adrian Lancaster said, giving him a deep look as he moved to play the video.

Panic seized Quincy Usher. He lunged forward, snatched the phone, and slammed it onto the ground.

Everyone was stunned. Even an idiot could see something was wrong with him.

Adrian Lancaster was deeply disappointed. "So it really was you."

Suddenly, Joy Larson found the courage to argue back.

"Quincy Usher, I’ve had enough! From the moment I joined this production, you’ve targeted me every single day, nitpicking everything I do, saying my acting is terrible and calling me a seductress. I put up with you for the sake of harmony on set."

"You deliberately groped my chest during the fight scene today. That’s why I hit you."

The crucial part was that he had done it cleverly, with his back to the camera. She had been too ashamed to say anything.

But then he’d turned the tables on her, claiming he had accidentally brushed against her chest and that she was so unprofessional that she’d actually hit him.

When the assistant director had spoken up for her, Quincy Usher acted as if he’d suffered a grave injustice, went on a rampage smashing things, and then ran off.

When she had come over just now, she had intended to smooth things over and had apologized first, thinking he would take the olive branch.

She never imagined he could be so shameless as to try and frame her for sleeping her way to the top!

Adrian Lancaster: "Then why didn’t you say so before?"

"And you would have believed me? He’s always bragging about how close you two are, that you’re the one who recommended him. Who would dare to cross him?" Joy Larson threw caution to the wind.

In truth, she wasn’t surprised. She had long been accustomed to compromising and giving in.

Children from poor families learn to be sensible early on. She was used to greeting people with a smile and avoiding conflict at all costs.

Once, during a show taping, she heard Adrian Lancaster mention an actress’s name that sounded identical to her own. Thinking he meant her, Joy Larson had anxiously gone to thank him.

It turned out to be a huge misunderstanding. He had been talking about another actress, Luna. Joy’s actions were then twisted into her being shameless, a clout-chaser—"not famous but loves to ride coattails."

When she took this role, Adrian’s fans, afraid she would try to "leech off him" again, flooded her private messages with hate mail every day.

She had come prepared for the worst. Quincy Usher was recommended by Adrian Lancaster, and he was very aggressive.

In comparison, she was clearly the easier one to get rid of. She should have been kicked off the set long ago.

Joy Larson had been ready to compromise with reality once again, but in an unexpected turn of events, someone had actually believed her and stood by her side.

"Adrian, I was wrong! Please, forgive me, give me one more chance!" Quincy Usher panicked. "I’ll focus on my acting, I definitely won’t betray your trust!"

He looked up and saw Jane Lancaster filming him with her phone. His eyes widened in fury. "What are you doing? You bitch, give me the phone!"

Jane Lancaster quickly backed away, hiding behind Adrian Lancaster. "Sorry, I need to keep this as evidence, just in case you try to turn the tables on me."

Adrian Lancaster blocked the lunging Quincy Usher. "Pack your things and leave the set right now."

Quincy Usher’s face was grim. "Adrian, you believe this bitch over me?"

Adrian Lancaster frowned. She was his own sister, after all. The guy had a foul mouth. "Shut up! She’s my..."

"That’s right. He does believe this ’bitch’," Jane Lancaster interrupted.

’This isn’t the time to reveal I’m his sister. I have a feeling this guy is about to stir up some trouble.’

Quincy Usher’s expression flickered as he looked at Jane Lancaster. After a moment, his eyes turned sinister. "Fine. Don’t you two regret this!"

With that, he turned and stormed off.

Adrian Lancaster’s brow twitched. He had a bad feeling about this.

Sure enough, half an hour later, a story broke and started trending: Quincy Usher had exposed behind-the-scenes drama, accusing the famous actor Adrian Lancaster of sleeping with an actress on set.