Possessed No More: The True Star Returns to Claim Her Throne

Chapter 165: Whitney Valentine

It was only then that everyone remembered. Oh, right, Riley Perry was an actress. Her line delivery was so good—it was truly unexpected.

[Not every actor has that kind of talent. I mean, isn’t there one standing right next to her who listened for fifteen minutes and still can’t remember a thing?]

[I want Riley Perry’s memory!]

[As a junior in liberal arts, I want it too.]

[If I had Riley Perry’s brain, would I still be stuck in this crappy community college? I’d be at an Ivy League school by now.]

[Hype, hype, hype. Go on, keep singing her praises. So what if she’s capable? Someone with no class like Riley Perry shouldn’t be in the entertainment industry. Who knows how many kids she’ll be a bad influence on!]

[We didn’t turn into bad people from watching actors play murderers in movies. We didn’t turn into bad people from watching them play tax evaders. We didn’t turn into bad people from watching them play hit-and-run drivers. We didn’t turn into bad people from watching them commit financial crimes. But we’re going to be corrupted because Riley Perry called out a green-tea bitch? Please. Us "kids" have basic critical thinking skills. We’re not that dumb!]

To be honest, a minor celebrity like Holly Summers had never landed any major roles, but her fans were incredibly loyal. This was all thanks to Sandra Holloway. From the very beginning of their careers, she had dedicated staff manage fan groups for the artists under her, even sending gifts to top fans from time to time. As a result, even though Holly’s reputation had taken a hit over the three days of the livestream, very few fans had actually left her.

The remaining fans spammed the livestream chat, trashing Riley Perry. Of course, in their eyes, Riley was genuinely in the wrong. After all, no one had ever seen a celebrity openly tear into another guest during a live broadcast.

Having passed the challenge, Riley Perry went over and collected their flag. The day’s mission was now complete.

All four teams gathered at the summit, their backpacks bulging with supplies. Riley Perry was also carrying a chicken.

"Who got the flag first?"

Victoria Koenig announced proudly, "Ria, it was me and Rhonda."

Riley Perry smiled. "Way to go, Cole! You’re doing great this episode!"

Roxanne Fulton waved her over. "Hurry, the director said we can head down as soon as everyone’s here. Let’s get going and take the cable car down."

The four teams rode the cable car down the mountain and returned to the farmhouse courtyard. The guests pooled the ingredients they had found.

Riley Perry set the chicken down on the ground. "I’ve been carrying this thing the whole way. It wasn’t tiring, but it kept my hands full. Now we need to figure out the best way to cook it. I’ve also got ham sausages and beef in my bag."

Best Actor King said, "We found a bag of rice and a bundle of greens. I thought we were going to have a vegetarian lunch, but I didn’t expect you to get all meat."

Chloe Sterling added, "We found two bags of mushrooms and a bag of garlic."

Everyone pitched in what they had, and surprisingly, they managed to gather enough ingredients for a full meal.

The only one who hadn’t found anything was Holly Summers.

Not that anyone cared, though.

"As it happens, Grandma Dixon gave me some cured sausages yesterday. I can make clay pot rice for lunch. Anyone here not a fan?"

"I’m good with that."

"Me too."

No one objected.

Riley Perry nodded. "Alright, I’ll get started on the cooking. Victoria, you handle the chicken."

"You got it, Ria."

Roxanne Fulton said, "I’ll wash the vegetables then."

Ethan Shaw gazed at Roxanne Fulton with a suggestive look in his eyes. "I’ll help."

’There are only two bunches of vegetables. One person can handle that just fine, you know?’ all the other guests thought as they turned to look at the two of them.

Best Actor King offered, "Then I’ll handle the beef. How about stir-fried beef with scallions?"

Riley Perry, who was about to wash the rice, was the first to approve. "Oh, yes! That’s one of my favorite dishes."

"What about the glass noodles and mushrooms? How should we cook those?"

"That’s easy. We’ll stew the mushrooms with the chicken and make hot and sour glass noodles."

Everyone was hungry and eager to eat, so they all pitched in. Even those who couldn’t cook found tasks they could handle. Before long, a table laden with food was ready.

Just as the guests were about to eat, Director Warren came out to scrounge a meal, making the atmosphere even more lively.

Iris Weldon, watching the livestream, had her kitchen staff add two more dishes to her meal: hot and sour glass noodles and chicken and mushroom stew. They couldn’t make the clay pot rice, however, because they didn’t have any cured sausage at home.

There were four people in her family, but her son and husband were both in the military, and her daughter spent all her time at the company. So, she usually ate lunch by herself.

She was enjoying her meal when her phone, which was in the living room, rang. A maid quickly retrieved it and brought it to her.

She glanced at the screen—it was her niece. She answered the call. "Whitney, is something wrong?"

"Auntie, I’ve been thinking about getting into the entertainment industry for fun. Could you talk to my cousin and have her set me up with the best manager at Stellux?"

Iris Weldon replied, "Why the sudden interest in the entertainment industry? If I’m not mistaken, you’re twenty-seven this year, aren’t you? Isn’t that a little late to be starting?"

Her niece’s wheedling voice came through the phone. "Oh, come on, Auntie, please help me. It’s not like it matters who my cousin promotes, right? Giving resources to her own family isn’t a waste. And with my looks, I’m sure I’ll make a ton of money for the company!"

Iris Weldon frowned. ’As if a pretty face is all it takes to make it in the entertainment industry,’ she thought.

"Do your parents know about this?"

"Of course they do. I talked it over with them before calling you."

"Then you should just talk to Dawn directly. I don’t get involved in company business."

"Oh, come on, Auntie. If I talk to my cousin, she’ll just follow company policy to the letter. She’s so rigid, everything has to be by the book with her."

Iris Weldon found this amusing. ’There can be no order without rules. Is my daughter wrong for being principled?’

’If a company doesn’t operate according to its own rules and regulations, how can it possibly survive?’

"I see what you’re getting at. You want to join the company, and you want special treatment, is that right?"

On the other end of the line, Whitney Valentine rolled her eyes. ’My aunt is as blunt and annoying as ever,’ she thought. ’She never minces her words!’

"Auntie~"

"Stop that whining. If you really want special treatment, you could just start your own studio. Have your father put together a proper team for you, and then you can take any job you want. Wouldn’t that be better than joining your cousin’s company?"

"You know how Dawn is—she’s all about the rules. Even if I were to ask, the most she would do is bump you up one tier in terms of treatment. Anything more than that is impossible."

To her surprise, Whitney Valentine was actually tempted. Her aunt had a point. Dawn York was like a woman who had time-traveled from some feudal dynasty.

In Dawn’s presence, she’d get a long lecture for taking slightly too-large steps. Dawn would preach about things like ’smile without showing your teeth’ and ’walk without looking back.’ She would even get called out for simply crossing her legs.

If Whitney dared to talk back, Dawn could list a hundred health hazards of crossing your legs and wouldn’t stop unless someone cut her off.

’Seriously, how was a person like that even raised?!’ she fumed.

She had wanted to join Stellux for its resources, but even without Stellux, given her status as the second young lady of the Valentine Family, wouldn’t resources be hers for the asking?

"I’ll talk it over with my father then. Sorry to bother you, Auntie."