Chapter 336 - 334: Prejudice

Blair left with an air of quiet confidence, never once looking back.

Cece Desire was fuming. If it weren’t for the special occasion, she definitely wouldn’t have let it go so easily.

"Cece, just sit down for now. We’ll deal with the rest later."

The assistant breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Blair finally walk away.

The event was about to start, and her seat was now available. Even though she was still seething, she swallowed her anger and sat down.

All the influencers kept their heads down, not daring to say a word. They quickly pretended as if nothing had happened and started chatting quietly in small groups.

"Do you know that girl from just now?"

"No. She was assigned to our table, so she must be an influencer too, right?"

"Then we should know her!"

"That manager was about to kick Cece out for her! If she’s also an influencer, who could possibly outrank Cece?"

A few influencers sitting a little farther away began to whisper, all of them puzzled by Blair’s identity.

But Blair was just a new influencer who had only been streaming for less than two months. It wasn’t strange that these top-tier influencers didn’t know her.

As they gossiped, they followed Blair’s figure with their peripheral vision. Everyone was curious why she had suddenly relented and given up the seat, and where the organizers were going to place her now.

Cece Desire, in particular, stared intently at Blair’s back.

When the event manager personally escorted her to an empty seat at the second table on the front right, the top-tier influencers all stared with wide, shocked eyes.

’She’s sitting at the celebrities’ table?’

The top influencers were secretly astonished. They were surprised but not necessarily jealous; after what had just happened, it wasn’t hard to guess this girl probably had some powerful connections.

As for Cece Desire...

Everyone turned to look at her, unable to hide their desire to watch the drama unfold. They saw that her eyes had indeed turned red with anger.

Although the other woman seemed like a nobody, the organizers’ attitude made it clear that she was more important than Cece Desire.

"Miss Blair, please have a seat here."

The manager thoughtfully pulled out a chair for her. Blair casually glanced at the people at the table. They were all handsome and beautiful, a significant step up in quality from the previous table.

Unfortunately, she didn’t watch dramas or follow celebrities, so she didn’t recognize anyone at the table. A few of them looked familiar, likely the very famous ones, but she couldn’t put a name to any face.

If Estelle had been here today, she probably would have screamed loud enough to tear the roof off the venue.

Because she didn’t know them, she felt no social pressure and sat down without any hesitation.

The atmosphere at this table was clearly completely different from the last one. These celebrities chatted openly. When Blair sat down, they all instinctively glanced at her, their expressions placid, showing no particular emotion.

She lifted her head slightly to look toward the center table and saw that she was indeed much closer to Cecilia now. Cecilia was chatting happily with some new friends, but she deliberately glanced in Blair’s direction.

Their eyes met across the room, and they shared a smile.

The center table was filled with successful men in suits, with Cecilia Sterling being the only young, beautiful woman. Yet, with her calm and composed aura, she didn’t look out of place at all.

She was a natural-born leader!

About ten minutes after sitting down, Cecilia was briefly introduced to the others at the table by James Lockwood.

Each of them looked at Cecilia differently. There were appraising glances, probing stares, and some unreadable gazes. In the eyes of a few, there was even undisguised disdain.

But Cecilia was long immune to such situations. This wasn’t the first time she’d experienced this, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last.

She knew that no matter how at ease a woman appeared in these settings, she would never receive the same courtesy and treatment as a man.

Especially not one as young and beautiful as her.

’Perhaps in their eyes, or in the eyes of most men, her success was built on shady methods and underhanded deals.’

’Even Mr. Young had suspected as much when they first met.’

"I hear Miss Sterling amassed an astonishing fortune through investments at a young age?"

The speaker was a portly man in his late forties with a round face and a beer belly. When James Lockwood made the introductions, he’d said this was Chairman Cross of Wanderlust Entertainment.

Wanderlust Entertainment was now one of the country’s top internet giants, a leader in new media and live streaming. It was also currently dominating the market in the short-form drama sector, leaving everyone else in the dust.

Chairman Cross was riding a wave of success, the kind of man who was surrounded and flattered by everyone at any event.

And today, a young, beautiful woman had appeared at their table. From the moment Cecilia sat down, his eyes had been glued to her.

Hearing this, Cecilia replied humbly, "I wouldn’t say an astonishing fortune. Director Cross, you overestimate me."

"Miss Sterling, you’re quite modest. Actually, I’ve heard your name before. President Lockwood has mentioned you to me more than once. I hear you’ve invested in several of President Lockwood’s top-tier projects?"

Director Cross’s gaze was heavy with implication as he said meaningfully, "That’s no small amount of money. Since you can afford to invest that much, Miss Sterling, it means your accumulated wealth is far greater. Wouldn’t you call that astonishing?"

Cecilia found it strange. ’Why is this Chairman Cross so curious about my wealth from the moment he opens his mouth?’

’What does his intense desire to know about other people’s money have to do with him, anyway?’

Cecilia maintained her smile, her expression unreadable. She glanced coolly at the other men at the table before slowly replying, "Compared to everyone sitting at this table, it’s certainly not what I’d call an astonishing fortune."

"Besides, President Lockwood and I get along very well. Whenever he has a good project, he always thinks of me, and I’m naturally happy to oblige. You could say we have a mutually beneficial relationship."

These words were music to James Lockwood’s ears. He immediately smiled and waved his hand in a self-deprecating manner. "Miss Sterling, you flatter me. It’s thanks to your willingness to invest that the company has been able to launch several projects recently. I’m very grateful."

Cecilia just smiled, then turned back to Director Cross. "Besides, if investing in a few projects was enough to put me in a tight spot, I wouldn’t be qualified to sit at the same table as all of you today, would I?"

The smile on her face was superficial, not reaching her eyes. Her tone and attitude seemed modest, but she wasn’t being the least bit deferential. In fact, there was a hidden undercurrent of flamboyance and arrogance.

Upon hearing this, the men exchanged glances, but the prejudice in their hearts was not dispelled.