Chapter 142: The Woman York Fancies, Who Could She Be
At The Sound of Heaven live broadcast venue, the audience was gradually filing in.
Not far from William's seat, several members of the Jenkins family had already sat down.
The three of them were chatting about something.
Some of their conversation drifted into William's ears.
"...York, keep pretending. What if she doesn't like you this way?" It was Otis's voice, teasing about something.
Otis said, "After all, you know what type she used to like."
"How do you know I'm pretending?" York responded in a relaxed tone.
Otis made a gagging gesture and glanced at Xyla.
Xyla also rolled her eyes, looking at York with exasperation.
"York, you're not joking, are you? What you're saying is so shameless!" Otis said helplessly. "Before, when you wanted to see her, you dragged me along as a shield. When I asked you about it, you said you had a plan. I think your plan is just to get her!"
Xyla nodded too, pointing accusingly: "You're a wolf in sheep's clothing! I'm definitely going to expose your true colors to her someday."
In response, York let out a light laugh.
As if he didn't care, yet also as if he had everything under control.
William glanced at the three people in the nearby seats, but then he noticed York was looking at him.
York was leaning back in his chair, looking relaxed and at ease. Seeming to notice his gaze, York smiled and nodded at him.
William thought for a moment and nodded back.
Then he looked away.
But his thoughts began to wander.
Who were they talking about?
It seemed like they were saying York had fallen for some woman.
What a rare thing.
He wondered who this woman was that could catch York's eye.
William looked at the empty seat beside him, thought for a moment, and sent Amelia a message.
William: You should be on your way, you're going to be late.
But like before, this message sank without a trace.
This made William frown slightly.
Nearby, Otis and Xyla kept winking at each other, signaling with their eyes, looking at William then at York, quietly pointing at this one and that one, making all sorts of gestures.
Finally, York cleared his throat lightly, and the two stopped.
On the other side, Isabella kept looking in this direction.
After seeing the empty seat next to William, her hands clenched tightly.
William had mentioned to her about inviting Amelia, and even said that if she minded, he would give Amelia a regular audience seat.
To maintain her image, Isabella had of course told William to arrange for Amelia to sit nearby.
"Even after divorce, we're still friends," Isabella had said with a pale smile at the time. "Besides, I don't have much time left. In the future, she'll be the one keeping you company."
But now...
Isabella looked away.
"Amelia, you'd better not show up if you know what's good for you. Otherwise, you'll be sorry!" Isabella murmured softly.
Thinking this, Isabella seemed to remember something and turned to walk toward the host.
...
As time passed, the live broadcast soon began.
The host took the stage and had the special guest for this event, Hestia Sharp—already a master-level singer at just 28—perform the opening number.
Soon, the atmosphere at the venue was energized.
Although Hestia deliberately chose a more lyrical and gentle song to avoid stealing the spotlight from the contestants, it was still incredibly impactful.
As Hestia bowed slightly, the venue erupted in applause.
After she left the stage, the host brought out the judges.
"All judges, please come on stage in order," a staff member said.
First, Isabella and the other three regular judge guests took the stage to give their final speeches.
Amelia and the others waited backstage for the upcoming performances.
"Time really flew by. Today is already the final competition," Isabella said with a smile when it was her turn to speak, her eyes slightly red. "I really can't bear to see it end."
Everyone nodded.
"Although my life has almost reached its end, I believe that when the day comes for me to leave, as long as I think back on all these days with everyone, I'll still be moved to tears."
Isabella continued, "During the commercial break, I'll be giving out 50 invitations on my social media account."
"If anyone is willing, please use the invitation to attend my funeral in a few months."
With that, Isabella bowed deeply with reddened eyes.
"I hope everyone who comes will dress up beautifully, because I want everyone to live strong and brilliant lives."
She smiled sadly again: "I hope you won't think it's unlucky."
The audience began crying, and some people shouted loudly—"We won't, we won't think it's unlucky. Isabella is so pitiful."
Online discussions were buzzing too.
Many of Isabella's supporters expressed sympathy and wondered how to get the invitations.
"Why only 50? I don't know if I can get one."
"Isabella doesn't want to make too big a deal of it, and she's worried we'll think a funeral is unlucky, so she's only inviting 50 fans."
"She's really too kind."
"Amelia, come out! Look at what Isabella is doing. How can you live with yourself?"
Someone even commented—"I'd rather trade Amelia's remaining life for Isabella's safety!"
This comment became the top-liked comment on the related topic.
After Isabella finished speaking, she stepped down to let others speak.
Her gaze swept across the audience section, confirming that the seat near William was still empty.
She lowered her head to adjust her clothes, a gleam of satisfaction flashing in her eyes.
[Amelia, you'd better show up now. I'd like to see how you handle this.] Isabella thought.
And the real Amelia was backstage in the waiting area, calmly watching Isabella's performance.
She noticed Isabella occasionally glancing toward the audience section, at the seat next to William.
Amelia knew that was the seat William had saved for her.
This whole act was prepared for her when she went to the audience section, wasn't it?
She had to admit, Isabella's marketing team behind the scenes was really quite capable.
Every few days they seemed to come up with different new ideas for causing trouble.
However...
Amelia smiled indifferently. Isabella's plan was destined to fail.
She wouldn't appear in the audience section.
Instead, she would appear on the contestant stage.
Amelia glanced at William over there.
His gaze was on the empty seat beside him, his brow slightly furrowed, seemingly lost in thought.
Not far from William, Otis and Xyla were conspiring about something, their heads together. York sat in the shadows, where no one could see his expression.
"Alright, now let's welcome today's first contestant, Eloise, to perform!"
As the host's voice rang out, the competition between contestants officially began.