Chapter 153: The Better the Image, the Stronger the Backlash
Isabella pouted, wiping away her tears, but her eyes remained red.
"I didn't lie to anyone," she said. "I wasn't a homewrecker, and I wasn't playing the victim. I... I really didn't know Lika was her."
Isabella's tears fell again. She seemed to wipe them forcefully, but couldn't get them clean.
"I joined this show just to give strength to people who are sick. That's all."
"You might think I wronged her, but I don't know what to do, because I didn't know anything."
"I didn't know she was on the show."
"I didn't know the person bidding against me for the tanzanite at the auction was her."
"I also didn't know the tanzanite was hers..."
A water balloon exploded on the ground nearby.
The splashing water soaked Isabella's shoes.
"Just tell us now - do you admit to interfering in someone else's marriage or not!"
The scene descended into chaos, with countless people screaming.
Before, they had heard Isabella say she wanted to speak up for sick people and that she would never be a homewrecker, so they had given her their sympathy and supported her.
Now some of them were finally catching on.
Amelia had competed in disguise and been targeted everywhere, while William had been seen with Isabella multiple times, with countless scandals between them.
There were also tons of messages online trashing Amelia.
Isabella was the most likely culprit.
Those who had previously supported Isabella and attacked Amelia felt they'd been used as pawns.
Now they demanded an explanation!
"I didn't."
Isabella cried out loudly: "Whether you believe me or not, I didn't!"
"If you don't like me, then I'll just quit."
But the crowd was too worked up - no one cared what she said.
Finally, she "fainted."
The scene became even more chaotic, but The Sound of Heaven production team was afraid something would happen, so they finally sent people to maintain order.
Isabella was hurriedly taken back to her van.
As soon as the others left and the car door closed, Isabella opened her eyes.
She was so angry she swept everything off the seat beside her.
"Amelia!"
Isabella's voice and eyes were full of hatred.
Carl's call came through again. Isabella forced down her anger and answered the phone.
...
As The Sound of Heaven ended, the buzz didn't die down - instead, the online discussion grew even louder.
On one hand, there were various interviews with several people as they left, ending with Isabella's fainting.
Then some contestants took advantage of the attention to start live streams and chat.
But most of all, there were reviews of Lika's performance.
Countless bloggers began analyzing Lika's stage design.
"Lika's use of the stage this time was absolutely brilliant. I dare say, for years to come, no one will be able to replicate this performance!"
After all, during the live broadcast, people didn't know Lika was Amelia yet. They were too busy boycotting to think about it.
But now, working backwards from what they knew...
When they rewatched Lika's performance now, it was completely different!
The entire song was actually about how everyone's opinion of her changed, both inside and outside the venue.
You could say she had accurately predicted every action and reaction.
Even the reactions of countless online users were calculated.
How could anyone replicate this stage?
No one could do it.
This was truly an unrepeatable performance!
"After knowing Lika is Amelia, looking back at her five performances..."
"Every song, every performance was incredibly shocking. Before, I wondered what this singer had been through to write and perform these songs and stages so well. Now I know - she's Amelia."
"I can't imagine what she felt performing on stage, seeing Isabella as a judge, with William in the audience specifically there to support Isabella."
"From these songs, I can feel she really loved William, and was deeply hurt."
"Don't say anymore, I'm about to cry..."
...
Online, major bloggers and users were buzzing with discussion.
Soren just had the Adams Group people fight back, clearing up everything about Amelia, without directing people to cause trouble for Isabella.
It was the users who felt they'd been used as pawns who went to Isabella's page to make trouble on their own.
This was the backlash.
The better the image, the harsher the backlash when it collapsed!
Actually, Amelia and the others were currently at a celebration dinner, too busy eating to care about Isabella's situation.
"This time we're eating in a private room at the restaurant - William and his people can't bother us!" Jeffrey said.
Clearly the last celebration of Amelia's single status had left a deep impression on him.
Everyone was quite happy.
"Congratulations on winning!" Jeffrey was first to raise his glass.
His eyes were full of admiration for Amelia.
Now that she was divorced from William, could he maybe make a move later?
Besides, he'd learned to be more steady lately, controlling his temper a bit.
But... Jeffrey hesitated, sneaking a glance at Amelia's smiling profile. He still needed to observe carefully - he didn't want to end up unable to even be friends.
"Congratulations to Amelia on winning!" the others raised their glasses together.
Amelia stood up.
She had already changed into regular clothes and removed her makeup.
She raised her glass and, without many words, drank it all in one go.
"This past month has been the lowest point of my life," Amelia said.
Her eyes held a hint of tears.
She didn't like superficial sentimentality, but she was truly moved.
"Thank goodness I had you all with me."
"Helping me, supporting me."
"This victory doesn't belong to me - it belongs to us!"
Amelia said with a smile. The feeling of being alone in the depths had been too hard to bear.
Thankfully, she still had her friends.
From now on, it would be a new beginning.
Everyone nodded, and Mia rushed over to hug her.
This journey...
Had really not been easy.
Everyone's eyes felt hot.
"Let's eat, we should be happy," Amelia wiped her eyes and said with a smile, "From now on, we'll all be happy!"
"Right!"
Mia made a fist: "We're happy, which means someone else won't be."
"You're smiling like a villain hahaha!"
"I want to be the villain."
They started playfully fighting.
At that moment, someone passed by outside the private room. He smiled and said something to the person beside him.
After a while, there was a knock on Amelia's room.
A server came in, pushing a small cart.
"Mr. Jenkins heard you were celebrating here and specially sent some of our restaurant's finest wine!"
Meanwhile, at Isabella's house, Isabella looked at the comments from users that Carl had once directed toward Amelia, now all turned against her instead, and she was furious.