She turned over and climbed down from the sofa, straightening her clothes: "Mr. Landon, since you can't sleep, why don't we go for a walk?"
He glanced at the time, it's two in the morning.
Oliver Gale was also awake at this hour, standing by the window, through the hazy moonlight, he saw a car driving out of the garage.
There was a trace of surprise on his usually impassive face, he checked the surveillance and was surprised to find that the people going out at this late hour were Durrell Landon and Quiana Sutton.
Honestly, he's never been able to guess what those two were thinking from beginning to end.
So he decided not to care.
The two of them arrived at a mountaintop, Durrell Landon gave a casual glance around:
"Is this the fun place you mentioned?"
All around was desolate, not even a patch of wild grass, the only thing worth admiring was the expanse of stars in the sky.
He spoke calmly:
"Surely you didn't come out at this late hour just to look at the night sky? There's no meteor shower tonight, can't you see the stars from Imperial View Manor?"
Quiana Sutton didn't respond, she just opened the car door and stepped out.
She walked slowly beneath this silent night sky, and Durrell Landon had never imagined there would be a day, in this endless darkness, when someone would appear in his sight making him inexplicably full of courage wanting to grasp everything before him.
His gaze deepened, he opened the car door and also stepped out.
The two of them stood at the edge of the cliff, neither spoke a word.
It's unclear how much time passed, the night dissipated, and dawn began in the east, a ray of light bathed the two people, their previously indistinct figures becoming clear. After a long silence, Quiana Sutton finally spoke:
"I'm not here to see the stars, but the sunrise."
It was Durrell Landon's first time witnessing a sunrise from a mountaintop, it felt as if he could reach out and touch the sun not far away.
The cold air wasn't as scorching as he'd imagined.
He tilted his head to glance at Quiana Sutton, bathed in soft light yet not becoming gentle, instead maintaining her usual indifference and distance, as if no sun's heat could melt her. Still, there was an irresistible urge to get closer, feeling that even if it meant going down in flames together, it would be worth it.
He hadn't thought that this dream-like scene would become unforgettable from then on.
...
After watching the sunrise, the two of them returned to Imperial View Manor, where Oliver Gale was unceremoniously having breakfast.
Seeing the two of them walk in together, he calmly put down his teacup, a gentle smile on his face:
"Did you two enjoy yourselves last night?"
Durrell Landon glanced at him, knowing what kind of gossip he was thinking about: "We just watched the sunrise, don't overthink it."
Oliver's smile froze a little on his face, indeed the thoughts of these two were never something ordinary people could guess.
Setting off at two in the morning to watch the sunrise on a mountain, just how unusual does one's mindset have to be for that.
Quiana Sutton ignored him and just sat down to start her breakfast.
She hadn't eaten more than a few bites when the phone rang. She glanced at it, seeing it was Grace Sutton's call. She leisurely wiped her hands before answering.
As soon as she answered, a roar came through from the other end.
"Quiana, where did you go last night?"
She had been to many places yesterday, not quite sure what Grace was referring to.
"Is something the matter, Sister Grace?"
Grace replied irritably: "See for yourself what's trending."
Quiana opened the trending topics, glancing at them, it was a picture of her smoking, accompanied by a glaring headline—
[Smoking in the Nightclub, Pure Image Crashes]
The person who took the picture had some skills, as even through the hazy smoke, it was clear that it was her.
She nonchalantly said:
"It's just a smoke, I didn't commit any crimes or engage in tax evasion, why so worked up."
Grace felt her career as a manager was hitting a low, helplessly saying:
"That's because your previous image of demure gracefulness now suddenly has a smoking picture, doesn't that slap your own face? Haven't you seen the comments? They're all scolding you."
"I saw them, it's not the first time I've been scolded, why be so worked up. Besides, I didn't even want my previous image anymore."
"What kind of image do you want then?"
"I don't want any image right now, I just want to be willful for once, to be myself."
Grace: "..."
She felt a slight toothache coming on.
Durrell Landon looked at the online criticism of Quiana Sutton, an air of absurdity wafting across his brows.
[If her image crashes, it crashes, it's not like she's the only celebrity in the entertainment industry to have a setback.]
[I could tell early on, she has that femme fatale look, how could she possibly be that innocent.]
[The last commenter makes sense. There's probably not just smoking behind the scenes; there could be many men too. Her acting is terrible yet she keeps getting roles, she's definitely slept her way to some sponsor's bed.]
[Don't you think that's a bit much? She's only acted in a few idol dramas; how is that getting resources? Even if her acting is bad, she's really good at singing, isn't she? Besides, don't idol dramas just need a pretty face?]
This statement was irrefutable even by her anti-fans.
They could criticize everything about her but not her looks.
Among a sea of outstanding celebrities, her face still managed to stand out above the rest, with some jokingly suggesting Quiana Sutton's looks were the handiwork of a showoff creator.
Precisely because she was given such an incomparable face, her subpar acting was often offset by periodic scandals for balance.
...
As the argument continued, someone posted a thread:
[Sister's smoking posture is so cool; mind being in a relationship?]
Even the original poster didn't expect his casual post to make it to the trending list.
After seeing the post, everyone fell silent.
They had to admit, the pose was indeed cool.
That untamed arrogance, shrouded in misty smoke, like an Immortal and yet like a demon. The combination of two such opposite auras on a single person seemed impossible, yet Quiana Sutton blended them brilliantly.
By the end, netizens unanimously agreed that this was a marketing strategy by Quiana Sutton's agency to reshape her image.
After reading through the comments, Shen Yi almost smashed her phone in anger.
She had spent her own money to launch a smear campaign against Quiana Sutton, only for it to backfire, actually gaining her more fans.
And a crowd chanting "Sister, marry me."
Grace Sutton was continuously monitoring the online developments, Quiana Sutton's turbulent nature truly lived up to its reputation. Just one photo of her smoking caused a nationwide stir.
Unexpectedly, and quite unbelievably, netizens actually believed this was a marketing event organized by the company to change Quiana Sutton's image.
Since Quiana had expressed interest in participating in the reality show "Outdoor Survival Challenge," the company had indeed been considering revamping her image, but before they could start, today's unforeseen incident occurred.
She put down her phone, massaging her temples in frustration, resigned to regard today's accident as a warm-up phase.