Chapter 306 - 305: Get Out of the Car

The car windows were soundproof, but the fans’ shouts were still audible, a testament to their passion.

They had been waiting since the afternoon, and most of them were young women. Joanna couldn’t bear it and said again, "You don’t have to stop the car. I’ll just say a few words."

Mindy was still hesitant, so Joanna pressed her palms together. "Mindy, please? I’m begging you."

At the young woman’s plea, Mindy relented. "All right, but just a few words. Don’t let it drag on, or you’ll get accused of pandering to your fans and putting on a show again."

Anti-fans could always find a reason to attack her. If she ignored her fans, she’d be called rude. If she was too warm, she’d be accused of pandering.

Joanna had been attacked over this several times, and she’d grown resigned to it. No matter what she did, it was wrong, so she might as well just do what she felt was right.

The car window rolled down, and the light shone on Joanna’s face. Her formal, stern banquet look was gone, replaced by a radiant smile. Her cheeks were flushed, like a rosebud on the verge of blooming.

"It’s getting late! I’m heading back now, so you should all head home soon too!" Joanna said loudly.

Afraid the fans wouldn’t be able to hear her, she even cupped her hands around her mouth like a megaphone to physically amplify her voice.

Not expecting her to do that, the crowd of shouting fans fell silent for a moment. When they saw the girl inside the car waving nonstop, the crowd seemed to snap out of it, and then erupted in even more excited and thrilled shouts.

"Jojo!!! AAAAAH, Jojo, you’re so beautiful!"

"Sweetheart, how can you be so cute!!"

"AAAAAAAH!! Jojo! WAHHH, I knew it would be worth the wait! WAHHH..."

Several celebrities had already left, their cars sealed so tight you couldn’t even see their faces. Fans didn’t know if their idols had gone or not, and they were all craning their necks, waiting.

They had thought they wouldn’t get to see Joanna tonight, but unexpectedly, Joanna didn’t just rush off like the other celebrities. Instead, she rolled down her window and urged them to go home.

This was something fans of other stars didn’t get. Seeing the envious looks from the other fanbases, Joanna’s Fans all seemed to stand a bit taller, feeling that their hours of waiting had paid off.

Joanna’s Fans were beyond excited, their hands clutching the light-up signs practically trembling, yet they restrained themselves from pushing to the front.

’Jojo cares about us, so we can’t cause trouble for her.’ When they saw her waving so enthusiastically that her hand was almost out the window, they were both touched and worried. It wasn’t clear who started it, but someone shouted—

"Jojo! Pull your hand back in, it’s too dangerous!"

The girl’s waving paused. Then, she obediently pulled her hand back inside, looking adorably pouty. Joanna’s Fans couldn’t hold back their laughter.

’She’s dressed like such a sophisticated woman, how can her little gestures be so cute? That contrast is to die for.’

The laughter drifted in through the window. Joanna felt a little embarrassed and said in an aggrieved tone, "Mindy, they’re laughing at me."

Mindy rolled her eyes. "Stop playing pitiful with me. Wipe that huge grin off your face before you talk."

Joanna: "......"

Joanna wasn’t embarrassed at all. Her face was flushed as she grinned widely. "Mindy, you really get me now, don’t you..."

Mindy rolled her eyes again.

’Joanna getting into a relationship nearly scared her to death. Her understanding of Joanna had indeed reached a new level. She wasn’t some career-driven heroine who was warm on the outside but cool on the inside; she was clearly just a clingy puppy.’

The window was already up, and Mindy could see in the rearview mirror that the young woman was on her phone, likely texting. She was typing away at lightning speed, a smile fixed on her lips the entire time.

Mindy cringed at the sight and quickly looked away. Out of sight, out of mind.

Joanna had no idea her image in Mindy’s mind had just undergone a seismic shift. She was busy replying to a message from Simon Lockwood.

Simon Lockwood had sent a text in the afternoon, another one around eight o’clock, and had just sent one more, asking if she was hungry.

The food at the banquet looked beautiful, but in reality, it didn’t taste very good. The people who attended these kinds of events weren’t there for the food anyway; they were there for networking and resources.

Joanna had barely eaten two bites of food, but she had downed a solid glass of red wine. She was still feeling dizzy now, though she managed to look sober.

She was hungry, her feet were chafing in her high heels, and she felt unpleasantly dizzy. Aching with all kinds of discomfort, she read his concerned words and was suddenly overwhelmed with a feeling of being wronged.

She sent several crying kitty emojis in a row, then replied to his message: [Hungry. Super hungry. Simon, the food at the banquet was awful......]

On the side of the road at a major intersection, a black Maybach was parked quietly under a streetlight.

The inside of the car was dark, lit only by the screen of a laptop. The faint glow from the screen illuminated the man’s face, making the lines of his features seem inexplicably softer.

A prominent brow bone, a high-bridged nose, lips that were neither too thin nor too thick—his face was handsome enough to put a whole host of male celebrities in the entertainment industry to shame.

His well-defined fingers tapped continuously on the keyboard. With each tap, the string of characters on the screen grew longer. On closer inspection, it looked something like code.

The Sinclair Family wanted to make a move against Joanna. If they did it once, they would do it again. As long as he didn’t go back, Old Master Sinclair would never give up. Simon Lockwood knew he couldn’t just sit back and wait for disaster to strike.

’Just having money isn’t enough. In this world, his own power is too insignificant. He needs leverage against the Sinclair Family—something to make them wary.’

’He had to get that "leverage" firmly in his grasp before the Sinclair Family made their next move.’

The phone screen lit up, and it began to buzz. Simon Lockwood’s typing paused.

He opened his phone and saw several unread messages on WeChat. Before he even clicked on them, his tightly furrowed brow relaxed, and the coldness in his eyes softened.

Through the little kitty emojis, Simon could almost see her pouting face, whining to him about being hungry.

’Picky little Joanie. She just can’t learn to take care of herself.’

Instead of replying immediately, Simon Lockwood exited WeChat and opened an unfamiliar app. The interface looked a bit like a navigation map, so precise that you could see the names of shops. On it, a small red dot was moving steadily, getting closer and closer to his position.

At the bottom of the app, a display read—ETA: five minutes.

*

After sending the message, Joanna waited eagerly for a reply. She waited for several seconds, which felt like several long minutes, before a reply finally came through.

When she saw the content of the message, Joanna froze for a second. It was as if she had anticipated it, and her heart began to beat faster unconsciously.

It was a real-time location share. She tapped on it, and the distance between their two avatars shrank until they were about to overlap. Just then, another message popped up on her phone.

Simon Lockwood (Boyfriend Edition): [Joanna. Get out of the car.]

"......"