Chapter 118 Public Opinion Erupts
However, even though Arthur and Evelyn were working hard to control the situation, the incident of Julian saving someone kept fermenting.
Multiple domestic media outlets called him a model youth of the new era, and gradually, things started to take a turn for the worse, with many controversial voices beginning to emerge.
Some netizens kept questioning the authenticity of the incident, and there were even malicious comments claiming that the foundation was using the child for marketing purposes.
[I thought it was strange from the start. How could such a young child possibly save someone? It feels more like a deliberate show, using the child to advertise their activities!]
[I have the same feeling, and it just happens to be Arthur and Sarah's child. If this wasn't intentional, I wouldn't believe it!]
[Their scheming is really too much. I can practically hear the abacus beads clicking!]
The public opinion became increasingly harsh, and even Evelyn's work email was bombarded with messages from outside.
Clare, the assistant handling her email content, was also overwhelmed and anxiously said to Evelyn, "Sarah, these people are going too far with their words. How could you and Mr. Collins possibly do such a thing!"
Everyone had witnessed how much Evelyn valued the four children, yet the outside world was putting such a label on Evelyn's head, which was truly shocking.
"Don't mind them," Evelyn shook her head, trying hard to calm herself down. "They just want attention, that's why they're saying such things."
Hadn't she experienced this kind of thing enough? It felt like every so often, a public opinion war would break out.
After Evelyn finally finished her work and returned home, she found the house in chaos, with even Theodore sitting on the sofa.
"Theodore?"
Evelyn was surprised. She put down her purse and quickly walked over. "Why are you here too?"
"The school said the media showed up and blocked the school gate, wanting to interview the children. They originally wanted to notify you and Arthur to pick them up, but couldn't get through to either of your phones, so they contacted me."
Theodore answered with a serious expression, gently pinching the bridge of his nose.
Evelyn immediately sighed and took out her phone. "There were just too many harassing calls, so I had to turn it off. Arthur probably did the same."
Good thing they had left an emergency contact. She felt more at ease with the children in Theodore's care.
"It's not just Julian being surrounded by media; John and James have also been affected."
Theodore continued with a cold face, "Things have developed to an uncontrollable state. Evelyn, are you and Arthur just going to sit there and do nothing?"
Evelyn immediately retorted, "Of course not. Theodore, I'll discuss with Arthur later and see what we plan to do next."
She chatted with Theodore for a while and saw him off, then coaxed the children to sleep before returning to the bedroom and opening the news comment section.
[I think Arthur and Sarah are just using their own child, packaging Julian as a youth genius just to promote themselves!]
[I've never liked them. The whole family loves to create hype!]
These harsh comments made Evelyn fall silent. She even saw a post digging deep into their family's information, not even sparing the four children.
She wanted to look more closely, but when she clicked on it, the post had already disappeared, so she had to give up.
On the other side, Arthur's PR team was working hard to delete posts and control comments under Arthur's instructions.
Arthur sat in his office chair, his expression particularly grim.
Because these people had reached out to his family, which had crossed his bottom line.
However, even though the PR team was working hard to delete posts, the negative comments were appearing far faster than they could control.
"Mr. Collins," The PR manager wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and explained, "This must be deliberate; otherwise it wouldn't be possible for negative reviews to appear on such a large scale."
But as for who was manipulating things behind the scenes, they had no clue for the moment.
Arthur nodded with a dark expression, glanced at the time, and then said, "Keep investigating. I want to know who's behind this!"
He dropped these words and got up to go home, not staying any longer.
When he got home, Evelyn still hadn't slept and was sitting on the balcony in a daze.
"Evelyn?"
Arthur took off his suit jacket, draped it over the back of the sofa, and quickly walked to her side, squatting down. "Are you okay?"
Looking at the expression on her face, she obviously already knew about the news explosion. But of course, how could she not know? Even his own phone had been blown up with calls, and he was equally disturbed.
"Arthur, it's not just us; even the children have been affected."
Evelyn told him everything that had happened, her heart full of worry. "If it weren't for Theodore, I really don't know if the children could have gotten home safely."
Arthur couldn't help but worry after hearing this. He held her hand and said, "I'm already handling the negative reviews. I feel like someone is controlling things from behind the scenes; otherwise, public opinion wouldn't have deteriorated to this extent. As for the children, I'll also strengthen the security system and not let anyone harm them."
Evelyn turned to look at him, feeling a bit more settled. She knew how much Arthur valued this family, and he would do anything for the children.
"Arthur."
She leaned into Arthur's embrace and couldn't help but let out a long sigh, "Why do we encounter so many problems? Why are they targeting us?"
She really couldn't understand. She had come this far step by step, relying on her own abilities, yet she was still being targeted and wrapped up in public opinion.
"Evelyn, this isn't our fault."
Arthur hugged her and gently comforted her. "You don't need to take this to heart either. You just need to know that no matter what happens, I'll be by your side and the children's side. No matter how big the problem, I'll find a way to solve it!"
His words were like a reassuring pill, making Evelyn no longer anxious. She nodded and hugged Arthur, as if holding onto a pillar of support.
Outside, the wind and rain were fierce, but at least in this small family, there was someone who would shelter her and the children from the storm and resist all attacks for them.
"What about the children? Are they okay?"
Arthur asked with concern.
"They've gone to sleep, but they were scared too."
Evelyn answered helplessly, "The media has already tracked them to the school. I feel that for a short time, they won't be able to return to school for normal classes."
"It's fine, staying at home is good too, as long as they're safe," Arthur nodded solemnly, "Everything else is minor."
Evelyn shared the same view as him. The two of them were so in sync that they didn't need to say much to make the same decision.