I Read Their Tragic Fates, and My Family Reads My Mind?

The corner of Caspian Rhodes’s mouth twitched. He was at a loss for words.

They weren’t his employees, so why was he feeling this inexplicable secondhand embarrassment?

’As for this Director of Public Relations, he’s an interesting one.’

Caspian Rhodes and Eloise’s ears perked up instantly. They knew that whenever Arabella Donovan found something "interesting," it was usually the key to the whole affair!

’Just like Ken Young’s brother-in-law, he’s gotten into gambling and has already racked up huge debts. The so-called "robbery" was just him running into his creditors coming to collect. The creditors chased him for several blocks just to get a little bit of money back, so of course, they beat him up to vent their frustration.’

Veins bulged on Caspian Rhodes’s forehead. He never should have held out any hope for the employees at Solara Corporation. Each one was more unreliable than the last!

’This must be the protagonist’s halo at work. The Director of Public Relations was afraid the company would fire him if they found out the truth, so he lied, claiming he was robbed on his way home after working late at the office. But, as fate would have it, on the night it happened, Cassandra Lynch and her boyfriend—the male lead, Ian Jennings—were on a date nearby and saw the whole debt-collection chase.’

’The two of them used this to threaten the PR Director, forcing him to work for them, or else they’d expose the whole thing and get him fired. Oh, and I forgot to mention, Ian Jennings’s family also runs an entertainment company. I guess you could call them a rival to... Radiant Entertainment?’

Caspian Rhodes was startled to hear this. He hadn’t expected Cassandra Lynch to have already connected with someone inside Solara Corporation so early on.

Most importantly, they had been completely unaware!

After finishing his account of the recent staff changes, Zane Lynch paused, then switched the topic to the company’s artists.

"Two months ago, one of our rising artists let something slip during a livestream. It led to him being exposed for faking his academic credentials, and his career collapsed."

Arabella Donovan’s eyes brightened slightly. She understood the crux of the matter in an instant.

’Here we go. And this is the payoff for getting the PR Director on their side, isn’t it?’

Caspian Rhodes wasn’t a fool. Once he learned that the PR Director had become a mole for Cassandra Lynch and Ian Jennings inside Solara Corporation, many of his questions were answered.

The public relations department occupied a strange space in the company—not exactly big, but not small either. Though it usually operated on the periphery and went unnoticed, its role was actually crucial.

This was because the people in this department often knew the most secrets about the company’s artists, which allowed them to formulate the fastest possible response if those secrets were ever leaked.

It also meant that if the department was infiltrated, the company’s artists would be completely exposed, vulnerable to being targeted at any moment.

Take the artist Zane Lynch was talking about, for example. Since they knew his scandal trigger was faking his credentials, all they had to do was arrange for a few audience members to ask him pointed questions about his school during a livestream.

Ask enough questions, and he was bound to slip up. At that point, they just needed to keep nudging curious viewers to dig in that direction, and they could easily unearth the truth and kick him out of the entertainment circle.

"A month ago, another artist was exposed for being secretly married and committing domestic violence. And then just a few days ago, on Best Actor Donovan’s set, Edward Pierce was exposed for his messy private life..."

At first, Arabella Donovan would mutter a critical comment or two, but by the end, she was truly speechless.

’Even though Cassandra Lynch and her boyfriend are stirring up trouble behind the scenes, your company’s artists are really something else. Faking credentials, domestic abuse, "group activities"... next you’ll tell me there’s a bit-part actor who’s a stand-in for his sugar daddy. This place is a real menagerie of hidden talent. It’s hard not to think that the people targeting you are just performing a public service.’

Caspian Rhodes: "..." ’Isn’t that the truth?’ He had assumed Edward Pierce was just an isolated incident, but it turned out to be the norm.

Sure enough, when you see one cockroach, it means there’s already a whole nest of them in the company.

Arabella Donovan stared at Zane Lynch with a complicated expression for a long moment. She tried to hold her tongue but finally couldn’t help but ask, "Doesn’t your company do background checks when you hire people?"

Zane Lynch froze, suddenly feeling a little guilty for some reason.

"My subordinates usually handle that stuff; I only glance at it occasionally. If it weren’t for all the recent incidents, I would’ve had no idea when all these shady characters joined the company."

Arabella Donovan barely managed to stop herself from rolling her eyes at him. ’Geez,’ she thought, ’he’s a completely hands-off boss.’

’No wonder every trap Cassandra Lynch set later on worked perfectly. I bet your hiring staff are spies sent from a rival company!’

Caspian Rhodes: "..." ’That’s not impossible.’

"So, you asked me to come here today to ’examine’ your company’s artists to prevent them from getting exposed and having their careers collapse?"

Perhaps the disdain on Arabella Donovan’s face was too blatant, as Zane Lynch quickly waved his hands. "No, no, no! I was hoping you could help me see if the company’s Feng Shui is bad or something. Why do we keep signing artists who are so prone to scandals? Of course, if you could also help us evaluate the character of our current artists, to help us adjust their future career plans, that would be even better."

In short, he wanted Arabella Donovan to determine if any of them were on the verge of a career-ending scandal so they could cut their losses in time.

Arabella Donovan’s expression finally softened a little.

’Now that’s more like it!’

"In that case, could you have someone show me around the company? It would help me take a look at your company’s Feng Shui layout. As for the matter of the artists, that’s a much more involved issue. Even I can’t make any guarantees, but I’ll do my best."

It was just an excuse to get the two of them to the company for a meeting, so Zane Lynch didn’t have high hopes and readily agreed.

Driven by his desire to spend more time with Eloise Donovan, Zane Lynch canceled all his morning appointments and personally gave Arabella Donovan and her companions a tour of the company.

Along the way, Zane Lynch subtly tried to get closer to Eloise Donovan. Although Arabella Donovan was quite satisfied with this development, she still couldn’t ignore a certain someone’s overly conspicuous presence.

’Sigh, Zane, you should stop smiling at my sister. Assistant Collins is giving her a look that could kill. You really can’t hide it when you want to stab someone!’

Eloise Donovan, who felt daggers in her back the entire time: "..."

’Tsk, his glare at my sister is so fierce, but the moment he turns to look at Zane Lynch, it immediately becomes all mournful. With a look like that, anyone who didn’t know better would think Zane had seduced and abandoned him!’

Eloise Donovan also noticed the change in his expression. She felt a cold sweat break out on her back and goosebumps erupt all over her skin.

’This is why they say nothing good comes from a gay man falling for a straight one. Even an outsider like me has noticed, but the person in question is completely clueless. Then again, the guy is as straight as an arrow. The kid from his first love is already grown. Of course, he’d never in a million years guess that the male assistant who follows him everywhere is secretly in love with him.’

Eloise Donovan’s pupils contracted. Without thinking, she yelled at the man fawning all over her, "You’re actually straight!!!"