Chapter 69 He Is Going Public with Stella Sutton

Chapter 69: Chapter 69: He Is Going Public with Stella Sutton

Sophie Winslow also furrowed her brows.

"Stella Sutton got a spot too?"

Ivy Hawthorne slumped into her chair, equally indignant. "Do you know who she’s representing? Longview! She’s representing Julian Sterling’s subsidiary company! Longview is full of capable and exceptional talents. Making a special exception for someone as inexperienced as Stella Sutton is just too blatant!"

But it was what it was. The program had selected ten medical enterprises nationwide. As a top-tier company, Longview was bound to make an appearance.

Sophie hadn’t expected Stella Sutton to be placed in Longview. Naturally, a steady stream of resources was being handed right to her. It seemed Julian really meant it when he said he was setting up a smart medical project for her...

Moreover, Stella Sutton was representing Longview this time. Longview was a leading enterprise in the smart medical industry. This was practically elevating her status.

"I just fought with the director to have you two join the live broadcasts at different times. If the two of you appeared on screen together, it would be a total nightmare!" Ivy still couldn’t stand the situation. She shot up and started messaging her boss on WhatsApp again.

Sophie felt no ripples of emotion. After all, this was her soon-to-be ex-husband’s business. The incident with the burned wedding photos had actually helped her adapt to her role as an ex-wife ahead of time. As long as it didn’t affect her private life, they could show off their affection however they pleased.

Ivy’s frantic persistence paid off. The director was probably annoyed to death by her and directly agreed to swap the roster for the first episode, letting Stella Sutton appear first.

Ivy immediately found a new reason to be dissatisfied. "Why does she get to appear first?" She postured as if to message her boss again.

Sophie hurriedly stopped her. "We shouldn’t push our luck. It’ll be bad if your boss gets annoyed with you."

Ivy tapped the desk. "It’s all because Stella Sutton has Longview backing her! The boss is just playing favorites based on status!"

Sophie knew this clearly. Although Helios was at the forefront of the industry, it would indeed be placed second when up against a top-tier enterprise like Longview. After all, Stella Sutton was riding on Julian Sterling’s coattails.

"Since I’m not appearing in the first episode, I’ll stick around and observe your work environment." Sophie had intentionally cleared her schedule today, and she rarely got a glimpse into Ivy’s day-to-day work. Now, she was quite interested. Progress at Kingsford University was stalled anyway, so she was in no rush.

Ivy grinned. "Sure, experience it for yourself! Today, besides Stella Sutton, there are several highly respected seniors from the medical field. She has the least experience among them, so when the time comes, I’ll have the perfect excuse to give her the least amount of screen time. It’ll piss that show-off off!"

Since Stella Sutton was using Julian’s Longview privileges to participate, Ivy, as the chief coordinator, had the right to cut her screen time. With the seniors present, she couldn’t just let Stella steal the spotlight, could she?

Sophie raised an eyebrow in amusement. "Abusing your power for a personal vendetta?"

Ivy scoffed. "Exactly! This is why it’s so important to hold power in your own hands. Girl, focus on your career! When you have power and capability, you have a voice. Men? You can’t rely on them for a lifetime."

Sophie agreed with this profound truth. In their twenties, people were always trapped in the whirlpool of emotions, their vision easily confined to a small corner of the world. Habitually relying on others was a slow poison. It gradually dismantled one’s sense of self—addictive yet illusory. Once the other person pulled away, it resulted in a world-collapsing disaster. By then, rebuilding would require fighting against doubled hardships.

In the recording studio, the staff members were all rushing about. Yet, Sophie inexplicably liked this atmosphere. Everyone was striving for themselves.

Ivy held a walkie-talkie, arranging everything methodically. Sophie sat beside her, watching her slip effortlessly into work mode.

Before long, an assistant came running over in a hurry. "Ivy, Miss Sutton is here."

Ivy waved a hand dismissively. "So she’s here. What is she, the emperor? Am I supposed to go greet her?"

The assistant then said excitedly, "No! It’s not just her. Mr. Sterling, the big boss of Sterling Corp, is here with her! Higher-ups just sent down a new arrangement. They said Mr. Sterling is willing to grace us with his presence and appear on screen alongside Miss Sutton!"

Sophie’s hand, which was flipping through the schedule, paused. A flash of astonishment crossed her eyes.

Julian had never liked these kinds of public events. Countless people racked their brains trying to secure an interview with him, only to find it as difficult as scaling the heavens. Now... he was actually willing to come to Stella Sutton’s program? To accompany her, complement her, and act as her foil?

Ivy’s expression changed. She had guessed exactly what Sophie was thinking. Gritting her teeth, she spat, "What is Julian trying to pull?"

Sophie lowered her eyes. Her fingertips brushed against the schedule, but her gaze fell on her ring finger, stripped of its wedding band. She had worn it for seven years. Even though it had been off for a while, there was still a faint ring mark at the base of her finger. It hadn’t completely faded yet, constantly reminding her of a certain humiliation.

"He makes sure he knows everything about Stella Sutton, including the programs she’s appearing on," Sophie reasoned quietly. "He likely knows you’re the coordinator and guessed you might cut her screen time to limit her opportunities to show off. So... he came along. With him holding down the fort, the station will treat this with the utmost importance, giving her preferential treatment and plenty of long shots."

Sophie had always been smart. She pieced the logic together almost instantly. How could a man as brilliant as Julian Sterling not have considered this? But doing this... was practically hinting to the public that they had a deep relationship.

"I’m going to find the director!" Ivy shot to her feet.

Sophie took a deep breath and grabbed her hand. "It’s no use. Everyone knows how valuable an appearance by Julian Sterling is. You’ll only get rejected, and it wouldn’t be good if it resulted in you losing your position in the production."

Ivy turned back, her eyes filled with both stubbornness and heartache. "But what about you? This program has a massive audience. It’s even a video resource incorporated into many schools’ curriculums. Lydia’s school will definitely show the kids these national medical facts. Grandpa might even see it..."

Were they going to let Sophie’s closest family watch her not-yet-divorced husband parade his mistress around for the whole world to see? That would be too devastating for Sophie!

In truth, Sophie no longer cared about how affectionate Julian and Stella Sutton were with each other, but Ivy was stating facts. Lydia would very likely see this live broadcast. The child was growing up. Once this footage was preserved, Lydia would inevitably come to understand her mother’s tragic, dirty, corrupt, and unbearable marriage. This would be incredibly detrimental to shaping the child’s worldview as she grew.

Sophie squeezed Ivy’s hand silently. She turned and asked the assistant, "Where are they now?"

The assistant recognized Sophie as Ivy’s best friend, so she didn’t hide anything. She pointed in a direction. "Over in the dressing room. All the guests need to get their hair and makeup done. Mr. Sterling is accompanying Miss Sutton."

Ivy looked at her with concern. "What are you thinking?"

Sophie rubbed the ring mark at the base of her finger, as if she could scrub it clean. "I’m going to have a talk with him."