Chapter 58 Daddy's Money Makes You Untouchable?
"Stop!"
Seeing the wooden stick in the second male lead's hand about to strike James's knee, Amelia's heart nearly stopped. Without thinking twice, she rushed forward and grabbed the stick.
She glared at the male actor. "Are you filming or committing murder?"
"Who the hell is that!" Seeing an outsider burst into the shot, the director jumped up in fury. "We're filming here! Where did this random person come from?"
"I want to see exactly what kind of filming this is!" Amelia snatched the stick from Leandro McCall's hands and threw it to the ground.
The wooden stick hit the ground with a loud clang that made the director freeze. He hurried over to pick up the stick and examine it carefully.
Then he exploded in anger, shouting at the crew, "Props team! What the hell is going on? Why are you using a solid wooden stick?"
Everyone fell silent, not daring to speak.
Leandro shrugged casually, unbothered. "Director, don't we need to use real props for authentic acting? Even though this is just a web series, how much money was invested in it? You're hoping to use this series to build a good reputation and transition to TV dramas, right?"
The director pressed his lips tightly together, unable to argue.
It wasn't that he truly cared that much about reputation—it was that Leandro's background was complicated.
Leandro came from a well-off family, had decent looks, and wanted to use the web series as a stepping stone to become a film actor.
They were just a small production crew. If they offended Leandro, forget about making TV dramas in the future—they might not even be able to survive in the web series industry.
Sensing the tension, the female lead, Electra Ross, approached as well.
Her eyes were rimmed red, perhaps still caught up in the emotions from the scene, but her gaze was filled with resentment as she stared at Leandro. "Last week, you slapped James during filming, and this week, you switched to a solid wooden stick. You're deliberately targeting him."
"So what if I'm deliberately targeting him?" Leandro remained indifferent, his emotions churning as he looked at Electra. "My dad is the investor for this series! I can act however I want!"
Amelia helped James to his feet, shooting Leandro a vicious glare. "You're pretty arrogant, aren't you? What gives you the right to be so domineering here, bullying James so recklessly?"
Thank god she'd rushed forward to stop him just now; otherwise, James might have ended up with a broken leg like Sophia had years ago!
Even worse, he could have been injured more severely than Sophia back then, possibly losing the ability to walk normally forever.
Leandro snorted coldly, glaring maliciously at James, who was too pained to stand straight. "You sure do have luck with women! Too bad, no matter how good-looking you are, you're still just a poor nobody!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a figure swept in like lightning.
The sound of the slap was crisp and loud, the force so great it knocked Leandro's head to one side, a red mark immediately appearing on his face.
Before Leandro could react, the person grabbed the wooden stick and struck his shoulder hard.
Leandro clutched his arm, grimacing in pain, his brow furrowed so tightly it could crush a fly. "What bitch dares to hit me? Do you know who I am? Cross me and my dad won't let you off!"
Sophia remained composed, her tone cold, "I'd love to see just how much money your family has to make you this arrogant."
Everyone was stunned. Amelia and James were especially wide-eyed, their expressions filled with disbelief.
The situation was spiraling out of control. The director hurried forward to mediate, knowing he truly couldn't afford to offend Leandro—if the investor pulled funding, the company would never forgive him!
"Everyone, please stop fighting. Shouldn't we go to the hospital for a checkup first?"
The director assumed James wouldn't want to offend Leandro either.
But James remained silent. Instead, the girl who had struck Leandro spoke in a voice so cold it sent chills down everyone's spine, "James was deliberately targeted and beaten to serious injury during filming. If this matter isn't resolved properly today, you can forget about being a director ever again."
Though no one knew this girl's identity, she emanated an indescribable aura of authority that made the director's hair stand on end.
Could she be another powerful figure they couldn't afford to cross?
He plastered an awkward smile on his face, lowering his voice sheepishly, "Miss, this is the son of Luminary Press CEO Pax McCall. Mr. Pax McCall is the investor for this series, so we're really in a difficult position. How about this—let's send James to the hospital for a checkup first, and our crew will definitely cover all medical expenses!"
"Luminary Press?"
Sophia raised an eyebrow, turning to look at Amelia questioningly. Amelia shook her head in confusion and quickly sent a message to their group chat.
Amelia: [Does anyone know Pax from Luminary Press?]
Wayne: [What small company? Never heard of it.]
Others quickly replied as well. Some had heard of Luminary Press but didn't think much of it, while others had never heard of it at all.
Perfect. No one knew them, proving they weren't important players.
Seeing Amelia shake her head again, Sophia pulled out her phone and dialed Zane's number.
He answered almost immediately.
Sophia ignored Zane's various pleasantries and got straight to the point, "James is being deliberately targeted by an investor's son on set, beaten with a solid wooden stick, and seriously injured. Send me Pax McCall's contact information."
Without waiting for a response, she hung up.
Meeting the director's stunned gaze, Sophia said casually, "Let me introduce myself. I'm Sophia, the largest shareholder of Stellar Cinematics. James is my brother."
The director's eyes visibly widened rapidly, then his legs gave out, and he collapsed to the ground.
She... she was actually the legendary Sophia!
Before filming began, he'd heard rumors that the brother of Sophia had joined the cast, but he hadn't been able to identify which actor it was. He'd always thought it was just gossip.
Leandro still hadn't grasped the severity of the situation, sneering maliciously at Sophia, "So what if you're Stellar Cinematics' largest shareholder? This series is invested in by the McCall family, so we call the shots! Stellar Cinematics is just the production company—you take money and do the work!"
Sophia still hadn't put down the wooden stick.
Watching Leandro provoke her so recklessly, Sophia raised the stick and struck him again.
Leandro ran around with his head covered, trying to escape.
Getting tired, time for a break. Let Amelia take over.
Sophia handed the wooden stick to Amelia and took over supporting James.
Amelia naturally wouldn't let Leandro off easy. James was so gentle and considerate, and he cared so much for Sophia—seeing him bullied like this, she had to vent this anger!
Unable to afford offending either side, the director stood there like a wooden post, keeping his mouth tightly shut while trying to minimize his presence.
Sophia glanced at him, "Bring over a chair."
"Yes! Right away!"
The director adopted a subservient attitude, bowing and scraping as he went to move over to his most comfortable director's chair.