Chapter 21

Kererkoew knew that Phoebe had taken a minor in mechanical engineering during college. Still, he was somewhat surprised that she could fix so many appliances.

Jamat, on the other hand, had no idea that his younger sister had this skill. She had been living with them for over a year and had never mentioned it.

Bat he didn’t consider that even if Phoebe had brought it up before, the Jenkins family would think it wasn’t something worth mentioning and might even lecture her to learn something more respectable.

Sanna secretly cursed Phoebe for being too good at hiding her abilities at home. No wonder she was even coming to this show. What a scheming bitch!

Angered by the pile of food on the table, she couldn’t help but compare it to their meager provisions, feeling both envious and unbalanced. What if she knows how to fix some appliances? It’s not that impressive. Phoebe is only enjoying her moment of glory for a couple of days. When there are no more appliances to fix, let’s see how she could steal the spotlight, she cursed inwardly while staring at the pork and chicken.

“You guys truly made a big catch today. Can you finish them all?” she started with a smile. “It’s hot, and we don’t have a fridge here. I wonder if the meat will go bad by tomorrow.”

They spent most of the day picking fruit, but their reward didn’t include any meat. The stingy family only gave them a dozen eggs, some wheat, eggplants, cucumbers, cabbages, and potatoes.

By saying this, she hoped that Phoebe would share some of the meat with them. After all, if the meat was not finished, it would spoil, which was wasteful. And if Phoebe didn’t give it, she might leave an impression of stinginess, which was also fine for Sienna.

Of course, Phoebe could detect her hidden implications. She flashed a beam, replying, “It won’t spoil. An old lady taught us to put the meat in a basket and hang it in the well for freshness. There happens to be a well in our courtyard.”

Hearing Phoebe, Sienna was momentarily stumped, thinking, She’s definitely doing this on purpose. And she spoke more bluntly, “So much meat, you can’t possibly finish it all, right?”

“That’s none of your concern,” Phoebe raised an eyebrow, shooting a look at Sienna.

Maddox proudly added from the aside, “This is what Phoebe earned by repairing appliances.” Then, with a half-smile, he looked at Sienna. “If you’re greedy for meat, you should earn it yourself. Stop relying on ours.”

Even if they fed the meat to the snakes, they wouldn’t give it to the Jenkins siblings.

Sienna didn’t expect him to be so rude, cursing inwardly, Wait, what? We’re greedy for meat? Maddox is really going too far. He clearly knows I’m not. How could I be greedy for some meat?

Actually, she just happened to learn several meat dishes while learning to cook. So, she wanted to show off her cooking skills during dinner to divert the audience’s attention away from Phoebe.

But Maddox’s words sounded as if Sienna had an insatiable appetite.

Sarrina’s eyes reddened slightly. “I wasn’t planning to eat it, nor was I eyeing it.” Then, with a look of being wronged, she added, “I just noticed you have a lot of meat, so I reminded you that it might spoil.”

However, this did not evoke any sympathy from Maddox, who rolled his eyes. “Don’t take me for a fool just because I’m not well-educated. I can still pick up the insinuations in your words.”

From childhood to adulthood, Sienna had never been publicly retorted like this before. Especially by a man she had a crush on and wanted to win over.

She was so wronged that her voice trembled with tears. “I really didn’t mean it.”

Seeing his sister being bullied, Jamar naturally couldn’t stand by. He glared at Maddox. “Since you know, stop picking on girls!”

Chapter 24

You know you’re not well-read; keep your mouth shut!

Maddox chuckled at this. “Yes, yes, I’m not well-read, not on par with you siblings who are academic prodigies. And I just like to speak the truth. I don’t pick on girls. Don’t slap false labels on me.”

Phoebe also sided with Maddox, saying, “What, are you not even allowed to speak the truth? Jamar, you’re too domineering and too hypocritical.” She was more than willing to join forces with Maddox to taunt the scums.

Jamar was fuming with anger. “Phoebe, which side are you really on!” His own sister actually sided with the person he didn’t like; it was too much.

“I stand on the side of whoever is right, of course,” Phoebe said straightforwardly.

Maddox pointed at himself. “Did you hear that! She stands with the right one.”

Seeing the three of them bickering, the director was almost laughing out loud. “Keep fighting. Who stipulated that a variety show has to be all about unity? Or that even if you don’t like someone, you still have to pretend to be harmonious? Conflicts make things real!” he said inwardly.

He was not worried about Phoebe and had always known that she was very smart and rational. If she started off standing against the Jenkins siblings and Reece on the livestream, she must have her reasons.

He didn’t think she was doing it for infamy but believed there was a good chance something would turn around later. If he guessed correctly, it would be another explosive moment and traffic boost for the variety show. So he wouldn’t stop it; in fact, he’d be happy to watch the two teams clash and argue.

On the livestream chat, fans of Jamar and Sienna started cursing Maddox and Phoebe. Fans of Maddox and Phoebe were now annoyed by this brother–sister duo, seeing one as brainless and the other as an angelic bitch.

[She clearly wants the meat and doesn’t admit it even when pointed out, so fake.] [Jamar is blindly protecting his sister, just like the woman next door.] [He’s a bit scary.] (If Jamar ever gets a girlfriend and she fights with Sienna, who would he side with?) (He’d definitely side with Sienna!) [Maddie isn’t as well-cultured as Jamar. But he was only fifteen when he was specially admitted early to a top foreign music academy.] [Yes, he isn’t well-cultured. He only managed to complete all his credits and graduate with honors two years early. Then he came back to play games and won a world championship a year later, way too unproductive…] [I remember Maddie is said to be proficient in four foreign languages, but his cultural literacy is… a bit lacking.] [Told him to read more books, but he just won’t listen.] [Maddox’s fans were self-deprecating, effortlessly pushing Jamar’s fans down.]

Then someone caught onto a question. [What did Jarnar mean just now? Why did he think Phoebe should be on his side?] [Phoebe previously spent time alone with him practicing dancing, which was dug up and exposed by the paparazzi.] [Their relationship must be anything but simple.] [Did the two of them have a secret romance before? Was Phoebe dumped by Jamar?] [It doesn’t seem like it. From the start of the show, it’s always Jamar who actively approaches Phoebe.] [Phoebe just looks like she wants to be left alone, not like someone who was dumped.] [But there must be something between them, either a relationship or some kind of conflict.] [Paparazzi, go dig it up.]

Among those watching the livestream, there was actually someone who owned a paparazzi company. Seeing the comments, he also felt that the relationship between Phoebe and Jamar was worth digging into. If they were to dig up anything, it would definitely be a huge scoop. So he instructed the paparazzi in his company to get moving right away.