Chapter 156 Stirring Up Public Opinion
The crowd in the plaza gradually dispersed, and the space became empty.
Cecilia still stood in place, her gaze focused intently on the large title displayed on the big screen.
"Shattered and Whole."
This title unexpectedly awakened her buried memories.
Wasn't her past life as Cecilia the ultimate "shattering"? Misunderstood, hurt, stripped of her identity as a mother, her loved ones, and her hope to live. In the end, even her flesh and blood turned to ash in a fire.
That was complete, irreversible destruction.
And in this life, she was reborn filled with hatred, using Amelia's body to stand on this spotlight stage, raising the blade of revenge against those who had once destroyed everything Cecilia had.
Could this be considered another kind of "becoming whole again"?
No, this wasn't becoming whole again.
This was rebirth from ashes.
It was crawling out from the ashes, a new life bearing burning pain and scars.
Cecilia's expression gradually changed, from initial confusion and reminiscence to sharp and determined, finally settling into a calm that saw through everything.
She thought of the first time she reunited with Rufus after her rebirth.
Rufus, suddenly awakened and filled with regret, tried to find the past through her, this "substitute," seeking some self-moving redemption.
How ridiculous he was!
Even if shattered relationships were forcibly mended, the cracks could never disappear. What's more, he was the one who personally smashed the mirror to pieces.
Her design shouldn't depict that kind of fake, self-deceiving "wholeness."
What she wanted to show was the power of being shattered itself. The determined and sharp beauty bursting forth from within the cracks.
A clear idea gradually took shape in Cecilia's mind.
Cecilia stopped looking at the screen and turned to walk toward a corner at the edge of the plaza. There was a row of benches for resting, next to a small patch of shade where sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows on the ground.
She sat down, took out her sketchbook and pencil that she carried with her, but didn't start drawing right away.
Cecilia just sat quietly, closed her eyes, feeling the breeze brush across her cheeks, listening to the rustling sound of leaves.
She was emptying her mind, letting all the surging emotions settle down, keeping only the core spark of inspiration.
This scene fell completely into Stefan's eyes not far away.
He sat in the shadows of the viewing area, watching her the whole time.
He saw her deep in thought before the screen, saw the changes in her expression, saw her peaceful state now under the shade.
She had a very unique quality about her, both the sensitivity and fragility of an artist, and a composure and resilience beyond her years. These two seemingly contradictory traits merged perfectly in her, forming a fatal attraction.
The photographer beside him noticed Stefan had been staring in her direction and tactfully aimed a telephoto lens in that direction.
In the lens, the tree shadows were dappled. She sat quietly on the bench, the lines of her profile soft and beautiful, the breeze lifting a few strands of her hair. The scene was as beautiful as a carefully composed movie frame.
And the focused figure in the corner of the frame perfectly illustrated that saying: "You stand on the bridge watching the scenery, while someone watching scenery watches you from the building."
The photographer captured several shots, and the more he looked, the more stunning they were. He couldn't help but whisper to his colleague nearby: "This feeling is so right—the light and shadow, composition, the subject's mood... it's just perfect."
He couldn't resist. He picked the best-looking one, added a very artistic caption, and posted it to his personal social media account.
[No artist can help but fall in love with their muse. #DesignCompetition #ShatteredAndWhole]
This photo, along with that suggestive text, quickly stirred up ripples across the internet.
[This atmosphere! It's Number 108!]
[What a beautiful scene? She's just sitting there doing nothing, but you can feel she's full of stories.]
['No artist can help but fall in love with their muse'—this sentence has so much hidden meaning! Who's the artist? Who's the muse?]
[Wild guess it's Mr. Hensley! He went to the venue again today! Sitting in the back watching her!]
[The way he looks at her is just so adoring! I thought something was off when I saw the backstage conflict video!]
The internet's focus once again shifted from the competition itself to a carnival about romance.
Stefan's assistant Garth quickly detected this wave of public opinion.
Garth walked to Stefan's side and reported in a low voice: "Mr. Hensley, some romantic speculation about you and Ms. Thorne is starting to appear online. The buzz is rising. Should we have PR handle it?"
Stefan was watching intently. Hearing this, he raised an eyebrow and took the assistant's phone to scroll through it.
When he saw the line "No artist can help but fall in love with their muse," the smile at the corner of his mouth could no longer be hidden.
"Handle it?" Stefan returned the phone to Garth, his tone full of pleasure. "Why would we handle it?"
Garth was stunned.
"Tell the team not to worry about it." Stefan lazily leaned back in his chair. "Not only don't worry about it, but buy up the buzz."
Garth fell silent.
Stefan personally stirring up his own romantic rumors?
This was Garth's first time seeing Stefan act this way. Could there be some deeper reason Garth hadn't figured out?
After brief consideration, Garth quickly understood Stefan's intention.
This wasn't just Stefan expressing personal feelings—it was a brilliant move!
As the company's chief designer, Amelia's popularity was already tied to the company.
Making Stefan and Amelia's relationship completely "official" and binding them together could both protect her in the competition, intimidate those petty villains, and further provoke Rufus.
This was Stefan's most brilliant strategy!
Garth took the order and left to make arrangements.
And while fans online were celebrating and Stefan was strategizing, an expensive car quietly stopped at the competition venue entrance.
The car door opened, and Rufus stepped out.
He had changed into black casual wear. The injury on his face had been treated and wasn't as obvious, but the gloomy, cold aura around him was even more frightening than yesterday.
That humiliating fight at the cemetery and the shattered jade pendant constantly reminded him of his defeat and shame.
So after handling accumulated company matters, Rufus rushed over almost immediately.
Rufus came both to see her and to...
Give Stefan a surprise.
It was the mid-competition break, and some contestants who were halfway through their concepts came out of their studios for air.
Isadora was among them.
She spotted Rufus walking in immediately, and her eyes lit up instantly.
"Mr. Chapman, why are you here?" She immediately tidied her appearance and walked up to him elegantly in her heels. "The injury on your face—is it okay? I heard about yesterday. Amelia and Mr. Hensley were really too much."
However, Rufus only glanced at her indifferently and responded perfunctorily.
His gaze passed over Isadora, passed over the scattered people in the plaza, and landed precisely on that figure in the shaded corner.
Cecilia had finished her meditation and was now bent over, quickly sketching something in her notebook.
Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting flickering spots of light on her. Her expression was focused and peaceful, as if she existed in her own world, shutting out all the noise from outside.
Rufus's expression became incredibly complex in that moment.
There was jealousy, unwillingness, regret, and a kind of longing even he hadn't noticed himself.
Isadora followed his line of sight, and her heart instantly sank to the bottom.
Amelia again!
She, Isadora, had dressed carefully and taken the initiative to be friendly, but in Rufus's eyes, from beginning to end, there was only that damned bitch Amelia!
Why?
What did she lack compared to Amelia?