NovelEnglish
Chapter 381
Robert gave Daphne a once-over before he shifted his gaze toward Leanna. Then, his facial
expression shifted into one of derision as he mocked, "Oh, what's the matter? Are you guys having a
celebratory dinner here too?"
Leanna just nodded slightly out of courtesy and basic respect.
However, Robert's attitude only worsened as he snorted disdainfully, "That makes sense too. After all,
you probably will never be the winner in this life, so you might as well celebrate getting second place
now. Otherwise, who knows if you'll even come close to even earning a spot next time."
Unlike Leanna, who had to keep her tongue in check due to reasons that she would love to kick to the
curb but couldn't, Daphne didn't have such problems. So, she didn't hesitate to put the pompous little
man in his place as she crossed her arms in front of her chest and retorted, "Who the hell let this weird
and crazy foreigner out of captivity? Excuse me. Are you not ashamed to be barking at us with your
not-so-fluent Chiojan? Didn't your Chiojan teacher teach you how to speak the language properly?"
Robert shifted his attention from Leanna to Daphne at her insult. His facial expression had gotten a
little cold as he sized her up. Daphne Shirley—she's no stranger to me, considering her face is in the
posters of advertising endorsements all over the major shopping malls. As far as I know, she even
endorses quite some luxury brands.
Queenie immediately chose this opportunity to butt in, "Miss Shirley, you don't need to attack Mr.
Debauche like this verbally, do you?"
When Daphne heard Queenie's voice, she turned her attention to Queenie and inquired lightly, "And
you are?"
At once, Queenie's facial expression stiffened at Daphne's slight. Then, just as she was about to
answer, Daphne added, "Never mind. I'm not interested in getting to know you either. You're just a
nobody to me. Besides, how could you say that I was verbally attacking this guy? I was clearly
reprimanding some disrespectful seniors that clearly enjoy taking advantage of their qualifications and
have some issues with their speech. But I can't help it if you want to assume that I was referring to
you."
Queenie was infuriated by Daphne's remarks. "You—"
Finally, Leanna couldn't bear to see her friend being attacked from all sides as she looked at Robert
and said flatly, "I respect you and tolerate your brashness the best I can because you're a senior.
However, I'm also quite grateful to you for letting me understand the principle behind the saying,
'people make the government'. Indeed… some students do naturally take up their teacher's traits, don't
they? It matters not to me that I have lost the competition today. Still, I do hope you two can show this
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtsame offensive behavior as you have now when you two compete in the actual international
competition later."
After she finished saying those words, she tugged on Daphne's hand and left hand-in-hand.
When they got to the bathroom, Daphne asked, "Why did we leave? Why did you drag me away? I
wasn't finished with them."
Leanna glanced at Daphne and replied, "It's useless to talk to people like them." Her father's corpse is
still waiting to be picked up in the mortuary, yet Queenie is still here throwing a gala. Come to think of it.
It's somewhat ironic, isn't it?
After she washed her hands, she turned her head and asked, "What's up with you and Louis? Did you
two fight?"
Daphne was perplexed by her questions. She was stunned for a while before she answered, "No, we
didn't."
"Why is the atmosphere between the both of you so awkward then?"
Daphne didn't react. Instead, she smiled as she said, "Well, I don't know him very well. So, it's normal
for us to have an awkward relationship, is it not?"
However, Leanna didn't buy it. Therefore, she pressed for answers and asked, "But aren't you two
filming in the same production?"
"Yeah, that's true, but we don't have many scenes together. Plus, we're mostly in different crews. So,
we don't interact much with each other," explained Daphne. After she finished washing her hands, she
took out a piece of tissue paper. As she wiped her hands, she continued, "Don't tell me that you
actually think Louis and I are close like friends."
Although Leanna didn't know about the situation on Daphne's side, she was aware of what was
happening on Louis' side.
So, she stopped probing for questions as she curled her lips upward into a smile and thanked Daphne,
"Regardless, thank you for taking care of Louis during this period."
"You're welcome. It's what I should do." Daphne threw the crumpled tissue paper into the trash can and
suddenly asked, "By the way, did he tell you anything about the thing that came up?"
Leanna was puzzled by the sudden topic change, "What thing?"
When Daphne saw that Leanna didn't seem to know anything, she swallowed the words that she was
about to blurt out and swiftly changed the topic again. "Never mind. It's none of my business. Maybe
he'll find a chance to tell you about it himself."
Just like that, they ended their topic of conversation. Leanna also didn't bother trying to clarify things
despite her immense curiosity.
Nonetheless, the two didn't expect they would bump into Lewis, the person in charge of the party, on
their way back.
When Lewis saw Leanna, he approached her and asked, "McK, can I talk to you for a moment?"
Leanna nodded slightly, then said to Daphne, "Why don't you return to the private room first?"
"Okay."
Lewis and Leanna made their way toward the hotel's balcony after Daphne left.
He had a regretful look on his face as he lamented, "Your work is truly superb, but I'm afraid there's
nothing much I can do. So I guess we can only say that each judge has their respective criteria when it
comes to judging."
Leanna didn't intend to make things difficult for him as she merely smiled in understanding. "I
understand, and I'm especially grateful to you for giving me this opportunity."
Lewis sighed. "You have to believe that you still have a long way to go. Getting second place doesn't
mean that you're lesser than anyone. At the end of the day, people with skill and talent will always get
their chance to shine."
After the two chatted for a while, he spoke again, "I'm not sure if this is too much to ask or if the timing
will be convenient for you, but I would like to arrange a special show for your brand for this year's
International Fashion Week. If you were to participate in this event, I'm sure that you would be able to
present your works to a bigger audience."
Perhaps she didn't expect to be given such an opportunity, so she was momentarily too stunned for
words after hearing Lewis' suggestion.
After all, only highly remarkable designers would receive the offer to have a special show for their
brands at the International Fashion Week. So, frankly, it was logical to assume that Lewis should only
discuss this with her if she were the competition's winner.
In other words, Leanna felt that only the winner was qualified to receive such a fantastic offer.
Therefore, she didn't understand why Lewis brought this up with her but not to Queenie.
Naturally, Lewis sensed her hesitation and explained with a smile, "Didn't I just say that be it the winner
or the second place, it doesn't signify anything? We value unlimited potential more in the designer
industry than rankings, and I think you are the best candidate."
When she heard his reassurance, she wanted to agree to his offer so badly. After all, this golden
opportunity came straight knocking at her door. Hence, it was impossible for Leanna to decline it. Even
so, she wasn't sure whether she had the spare time to put in the effort it deserved if she took the offer.
At once, Leanna fell into a dilemma. The daily workload in the studio is already taking up a significant
portion of my time. But, on the other hand, since it's a special show for my brand, I am bound to devote
more time and energy to the project if I agree to participate in the International Fashion Week. I'm
afraid that I won't be able to do well for both sides when that happens.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmSuddenly, Lewis' voice sounded again as he said, "It's fine. There are still a few days left since I have
to go back to prepare the contract and related matters too. So you can take your time and think over
my offer."
Leanna lightly breathed out a sigh of relief at that. "Thank you."
"In that case, I won't bother you anymore for today. Please consider my offer. There's no rush, so you
can just get in touch with me after you have made up your mind."
"Sure."
Queenie only came out of the corner after the two had left. She lowered her gaze to her mobile phone,
pressed the pause button, and stopped the recording.
When Leanna returned to the private room, Zoe immediately asked, "Where have you been? The food
is getting cold."
"Something came up."
Then, just when everyone was about to take a cab and head to a karaoke lounge for a karaoke
session, Daphne suddenly said, "You guys go ahead and have fun. I'm not joining as I still have work
tomorrow and have to get up early."
Leanna swiftly responded by saying, "Is that so? In that case, Louis is leaving soon too. Let him drive
you back."
Louis furrowed his brows and was about to say something before he was cut off, "I—"
She ignored his protest, pulled him up, and said, "Didn't you tell me just now that something came up at
school, and the administration requested you to return to the campus? Well, this is perfect timing. You
can send Daphne back to her place and head to campus. So hurry up and go."
He pursed his lips and got up. However, just after he took two steps forward, Daphne abruptly turned
her head and smiled, "It's okay, Louis. You don't have to drive me back. My driver is already waiting
downstairs. So you guys just go ahead and enjoy the night."
As she spoke, she waved goodbye to Leanna and Zoe. Then, she took her belongings and left.
In the meantime, Louis remained frozen on the spot, not moving a muscle.
Leanna whispered, "What's the matter with you? Didn't I ask you to apologize last time? Did you not do
so?"
The corners of Louis' lips moved slightly. But, alas, just as he was about to speak, Zoe leaned in and
asked, "Louis is returning to campus? Why didn't I hear anything about this? So, is Louis not joining us
for karaoke?"
Leanna laughed awkwardly and tried to sweep the matter under the rug. "Nothing. He suddenly
changed his mind and decided not to return to campus."
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