3

The fact that the Best Actress award meant for Josephine had gone to some obscure third-rate actress caused an uproar online. Whether it was criticism or praise, or speculation about who her powerful backer might be, In any case, Winifred became an overnight sensation. When Josephine woke the next morning, her phone was flooded with headlines about Winifred. She glanced at them briefly before starting to pack her things. Just then, Elijah knocked on the door. “Why are you packing?” he asked, frowning. Josephine's face remained expressionless. “What else? I'm going to work.” Hearing this, Elijah seemed to relax. “That's great. Winnie is currently very popular and she's not yet familiar with this circle. You bring her along. ” Josephine paused. “Why should I?” The moment the words left her mouth, Elijah's expression hardened. “Could you stop being so petty? She's my sister-in-law—and yours too. It's only right that you take better care of her. " “Sister-in-law?” Josephine scoffed coldly. “I've never seen anyone kiss their sister-in-law.” Elijah's face darkened. “I already explained—I mistook her for you when I was drunk. Can we stop this nonsense?” “Why don't you learn from Winnie and be a little nicer?” Hardly had he finished speaking when Winifred came over, rubbing her eyes. She leaned against him very naturally. “Josie, are you going to the variety show? My agent just called me and said I'm going to join you too..” “I'm so nervous. Take me with you.” Josephine glanced up at her. You had to admit, she was quite suited to acting. She put on a great act. One face in public, another behind closed doors. When Elijah wasn't around, she wasn't nearly this polite to Josephine. Josephine couldn't be bothered to engage. Winifred actually had the nerve to tag along with her. Backstage at the variety show, everyone saw them walking together, sparking endless speculation. Winifred even insisted on dramatically linking arms with Josephine, putting on an act of closeness. Josephine couldn't shake her off no matter what. Soon, the show began recording. One segment required pairs to cross a “rope bridge.” Coincidentally, Josephine and Winifred were assigned to the same group. Winifred volunteered, “I'll go first!” But just as she reached the middle, she froze. Felt terrified, she screamed and swayed violently. Josephine nearly lost her balance several times and kept urging, “Could you please stop moving? Keep going forward! We're going to lose!” The next instant, Winifred's foot slipped. She fell. In that split second, she grabbed Josephine and dragging her down with her. Unfortunately, Josephine's wirework loosened and she crashed directly onto the thin cushion four or five meters above the ground with a "bang". The huge impact force made her hurt so much that she couldn't recover. Through the dizziness, she saw a figure suddenly appear out of nowhere, leap over her and cradle Winifred in his arms. Elijah holding the unharmed Winifred, roared furiously: “Who designed this stunt? Get out here!” The show's director and producer immediately swarmed around him, apologizing profusely: “We're so sorry, Mr. Jones! We'll investigate this thoroughly and give you a full explanation.” They bowed and scraped, and it was obvious that Elijah had undoubtedly poured a fortune into this variety show. He really went to great lengths to make Winifred famous. Winifred looked utterly terrified, curled up in his arms like a frightened fawn and sobbing. Meanwhile, Josephine, who was dragged down by her, remained sprawled on the ground, unable to rise. Elijah didn't spare her a single glance. A sharp pain stabbed at her chest. When the on-site medical staff came to check on her, they were alarmed: “Call an ambulance fast! She might have broken ribs!” Only then did Elijah spare her a glance. It was merely a slight furrow of his brow. Josephine's assistant was heartbroken for her and couldn't help but confront Winifred: “Josie couldn't have fallen! Why did you keep pulling her?!” Winifred nestled into Elijah's embrace. “Josie, you shouldn't have kept pushing me. If you hadn't, I wouldn't have fallen. You made me so nervous—what else could I do?” The moment she opened her mouth, it was all Josephine's fault. The young assistant tried to argue back. Elijah shot her a cold, piercing glance. “If you hurt yourself, go to the hospital. Whenever there was a problem, she would shift all the blame onto Winnie. Josephine, she's really a great assistant you've taught her!” Josephine was too weak to argue back. The pain made her body shake violently, leaving her utterly speechless. Lying on her back, she stared up at the overhead lights. A single tear, unable to hold back, spilled from the corner of her eye.