Chapter 9 Who Had Changed

Richard had been sitting in the back row. When he passed by the desks at the front, many of the young girls in his class stuck their heads out to get a look at him.

It was no surprise that the moment he entered the school, the name "Richard Nalan" had spread all throughout the freshman area of the campus.

He was Jonny's younger brother and he looked like a star himself, although a little more childish and undisciplined. Numerous girls had squeezed into his classroom during orientation to see him. He was the most handsome boy in the school.

He walked up and stood on the platform. Adela was shorter than he was and stared at him blankly.

She then gave him a playful look and said, "Go ahead."

He was good-looking for sure, but he looked a little arrogant as well.

He leaned over, looked at Adela and touched the screen.

The identification device beeped in confirmation.

Adela thought to herself that she would probably be able to recognize such an outstandingly handsome student even without needing the device.

She was on the platform and was supposed to be taller, but he leaned over and spoke in a voice too low for anyone but the two of them to hear, "You should ease up a little, Miss. You'll never find a boyfriend if you're that strict."

Adela frowned, ticked off. She was about to lose her temper when he had already begun chuckling. He put his hands into his pants' pockets and strutted back to his seat.

"What did you say to her?" Neal asked curiously.

"Aren't you afraid she'll call your name and punish you for talking in class? Maybe she'll even flunk you," Richard responded sarcastically.

"Well, everyone's finished scanning their faces. I'm going to assign seats to every one of you. Please sit according to the arrangement I have laid out," Adela announced.

The seating plan came up on the screen. Neal exclaimed and patted Richard furiously, "Richard, she's made you sit in the first row!"

"I'm not blind. I can see that!" Richard growled through gritted teeth, shrugging his hand off.

'Son of a bitch! How dare you?' He decided he would teach this witch a lesson!

"Hurry up!" Adela shouted. She looked at this unruly, handsome student and couldn't help but want to give him a hard time. He seemed the type to have been a problem student in middle school.

"Richard, are you deaf? He hasn't come yet, has he? Maybe he's not here. I guess he's flunking out then."

"Old woman!" Richard cursed. He reluctantly made his way down to the first row, kicked the chair for all to see, seemingly making certain it made a loud bang as he struck it.

He looked at Adela aggressively and sat down in front of her slow and steady.

"Richard... It's a good name. I wonder though, if it's a name that will find it easy to pass the exam? Or will it find it easier to fail?"

Richard pursed his lips when he heard this. He was growing increasingly frustrated with this woman. Would she die if she didn't speak?

In addition to Jonny, Cherry was also responsible for a male group. It was a group of five young men, all talented. They were all slightly feminine in appearance and had a good popularity. However, such a group had added a lot to Cherry's workload. It would take a lot more than working with Jonny, who had been acting for a long time.

The new comers knew nothing. They were spoiled and didn't know the meaning of hard work. They even complained when they had to shoot an advertisement outdoors. Even a superstar like Jonny had to take this kind of work seriously.

If they didn't work hard, how could they expect to get the part?

She looked at these rookies in the rehearsal room through the transparent glass window, with a worried and distressed look on her face.

They were rehearsing for this weekend's business show. There were only four from the group of five there.

Their rehearsal was in a mess, and what was more, there was one missing. They were hopeless.

Cherry couldn't stand it anymore. She pushed the door open and barged into the rehearsal room.

When they saw her come in, they immediately stood at attention. Even the dance instructor lowered her hands and greeted her respectfully, "Miss Cherry."

"How long have you been rehearsing? Haven't you finished yet?" She was annoyed. "There are only three days left. Do you want to make fools of yourselves in public?" She sighed with dejection, "Don't blame me for being harsh. Only when your show succeeds can I work hard to get you more jobs. If you don't get jobs in this industry, you become irrelevant and that's it for you!"

"We understand." The four boys lowered their heads shamefully and apologized, "We got up too late, so..."

"Where's the other one?" Cherry glanced at them, searching for an answer and said, "Call him over here right now!"

"Well..." The others hesitated for a moment. "Well, He... He... He... He..."

"Speak!"

"He... He went to a dinner party with a big boss last night, he'll be back on the weekend!" the eldest of them said in a hurry.

Of the five of them, the absent member was the best looking and the youngest.

Even so, Cherry had not expected this sort of behavior before they were even famous.

"This is ridiculous! Does he think that boss can support him for a lifetime?" she whispered in a sullen voice.

"It was Mr. Jonny that asked him to go. That's what he told us. He said that's what we should tell you if you asked," the man stammered nervously.

"Well, you can go on rehearsing." Cherry couldn't stay here any l

onger. She decided she had to go straight to Jonny to sort this out.

If he didn't want to do it, why was he asking other stars to do it?

She knocked on Jonny's room door and saw a beautiful woman sitting on his lap.

Seeing they had company, she wiped the anger from her face. She still showed her respect and said calmly, "Jonny."

Jonny patted the woman on her buttock and she walked out of the office.

She shot a defiant look at Cherry as she passed.

Jonny was embarrassed and tried to act casual. "Cherry, have a seat. What's up?"

She didn't sit.

There was a pink lipstick stain on the inner side of his shirt that burned through clearly for anyone's eyes to see.

She kept her eyes trained on it until Jonny lowered his head and found what she was staring at.

He took out a piece of tissue and wiped it off hurriedly. "Where did you ask Rex, the lead singer of the Best-Boy group, to go?" she asked indifferently.

"Rex?" Jonny was still wiping his shirt and could not seem to remember who he was. "What seems to be the problem?"

"He didn't show up to dance practice. They said he went to a business dinner."

"Oh." Jonny then remembered and sighed helplessly, "I introduced the five boys to this boss. That young one is indeed the most cunning. He will soon... Well, he will have a good future. The boss told me that he will help Rex. Don't worry about his business. It's fine."

"He's not even 20 years old!" Cherry bit her lower lip and said, "That boss is also a man! Jonny, you can't destroy a child like this!"

"No, I didn't," Jonny frowned. He rarely pulled a long face at her, but now he did. "This was his own choice. He was the one who initiated everything. I didn't force him into anything. Cherry, do you think I'm some sort of pimp?"

"You weren't. Now you are!" Cherry sneered, "Don't tell me that it's the only way to become famous. Jonny, I have refused a lot of these kinds of things for you since you started your career! I don't want others to take advantage of you, but now you... "

She was so disappointed she didn't know what to say or do.

It seemed Jonny would do anything to achieve his own goals now.

He had changed.

"How can you blame me for this? How is that fair, Cherry?" Jonny was getting angry now. "Anyway, I've told you what happened and it's done. I won't explain it anymore. If you can find him and change his mind, then go. I won't interfere!"

His temper had boiled over. He had had enough of this.

She was scolding him for acting as a pimp for a guy from nowhere.

'Humph, to hell with her,' he thought to himself.

"I will!" Cherry stormed out of the office without wasting a second.

She called Rex over and over again, but he did not pick up.

"Do you know where Rex is now?" she asked the other boys.

They exchanged strange looks with each other before finally, someone told her. "Rex said that that boss had given him a villa to stay in. He should be sleeping over there right now."

They gave her the address and she memorized it.

She had been there before.

That villa was known as a place for partying and all manner of debauchery.

Cherry had been there with Jonny some time ago.

It was a place where one was surrounded by beautiful women and drank wine all day and night.

It was a night of luxury for the rich people.

She felt sick and hesitated when she pulled up.

She made it to the gate of the villa but wanted to turn back and leave.

Others would laugh at her childishness, Jonny had done that already.

But she couldn't just stand by and watch her star being destroyed. Her conscience wouldn't allow it.

If he didn't work, did he think he could get everything just by sleeping with the rich?

She bit down hard and rang the doorbell.

A security guard waltzed up and opened the door.

"Mr. Rex is upstairs." After knowing what she was here for, he let her in.

Cherry thanked him and made her way across the garden.

She came to a dark hall and walked down it.

She didn't dare close the door behind her. Even still, she could not shake her discomfort from stepping out of the bright sunshine into this dreary dimness.

The curtains were shut and on the luxurious leather sofa in the center of the room were red cigarette butts glowing through the darkness.

Cherry stopped and said, "Mr. Gavin."

She had not expected him to still be here.

Gavin Yue turned around and offered her a kind smile. "Miss Cherry, are you here for Rex?"

"Yes." She lowered her eyes, trying not to give him too much attention. "Is he here?"

"Yes, he is. But it may not be convenient for you to see him right now." He grinned and slowly got to his feet.

He was tall and strong, almost six-foot in height and at least a hundred kilograms in weight.

Cherry couldn't help but take a step back. She forced a smile, uncomfortable as it was, and said, "Well, since you're here, it's clearly inconvenient. I'd better come back another day."

The man's eyes made her feel scared and uneasy.

"Why are you in such a hurry?" Gavin Yue tapped the cigarette leisurely and let the ash fall. "You seem to think of me as a beast that hungers to feast on people that come through here."

"No, no," Cherry objected. She knew he was a bad guy, but she did not dare offend him so easily.

"That's good," he laughed, "Have a seat. I'll ask him to come here. You are his agent after all. How could he be so impolite as to not meet you? He is a good boy. Please take good care of him for me."