Chapter 284
After Sienna’s failed attempt at playing the cello and dancing, she and Cain returned the equipment to the production team. She had overheard some people talking earlier; they mentioned that Phoebe and the others were on the next street, and the guy there was insanely good. That got her curious. “Who is this guy? And more importantly, how is Phoebe planning to make money this time?”
So, she suggested to Cain that they walk around and see if there were any chances for them to make some money. With that, she led him toward the next street.
Meanwhile, the live-stream chat was on fire. Aren’t you supposed to be putting Maddie in his place? This is it?
LMAO, this ending is gold. Maddie was right all along. There are tons of people here who can play the cello and dance better. Sienna, stop embarrassing yourself.
Sienna, you don’t listen to advice, and now look what happened.
Maddie must be so tired. Trying to reason with someone who won’t listen is exhausting.
See? Maddie always knows what’s up.
This twist is hilarious. Where are the people who were trash-talking Maddie earlier? Silent now?
They really did this to themselves. Instead of embarrassing Maddie, they made fools of themselves. If things had gone their way, they’d be gloating right now.
I respect Maddie. He’s real and knows his limits. If you don’t like him, just stay away. Why should he cater to a fake girl?
Maddie has always been like this. Y’all just catching on.
Our Maddie has a sharp tongue and zero patience. Tell Sienna to keep her distance next time.
Maddox had never bothered sugarcoating anything since stepping into the entertainment industry. He roasted himself, and his fans joined in. But when anti-fans came for them, he had their backs. After all, he wasn’t just building a fanbase, he was raising an army. And right now, that army was fighting back. The ones who had trashed Maddox earlier were now on the receiving end. His own supporters had…
No one expected things to play out exactly how Maddox predicted. The worst part, Sienna had flopped so hard that even her own supporters had nothing left to say.
When Sienna and Cain reached the street, they immediately noticed a huge crowd up ahead. There was even a long line of people. Curious, they walked over to see what was going on. But instead of watching the new guest play the cello or Reece on the flute, these people were gathered around Phoebe, all waiting for her to do their makeup.
Cain raised an eyebrow at the scene. “This actually works! I mean, listen to that guy, his playing isn’t that different from yours! Or is he just this popular because there are so many girls watching?” He was trying to comfort Sienna, but at the same time, he was also stirring things up for the live-stream audience.
Sienna’s face turned slightly red. She felt awkward. She had actually trained in the cello, so she could tell, this new guest was seriously good. Way better than she had expected.
Cain’s words only made things worse. She forced a calm response. “I’ll admit it. He’s better than me.” Then she added, “The new guest they brought in is pretty impressive. No wonder he is drawing such a crowd.” A subtle way of implying that Phoebe was only doing so well because of him.
Still, Sienna couldn’t help feeling a little jealous. “How is Phoebe always this lucky? A random guest turning out to be both talented and good-looking.” He should’ve been on my side instead. What a shame.
Cain nodded along. “Yeah, they got really lucky.” After a moment of thinking, he suggested, “Sienna, why don’t you try doing people’s makeup too? You could make money that way.”
Sienna just stared at him, wondering if he was serious or not. No way was she copying Phoebe; that would be way too embarrassing. Besides, she only knew how to do her own makeup, not anyone else’s. She sighed internally. Cain’s EQ was seriously way too low.
“It will look bad if we just copy them. Let’s think of something else,” she said. “Why don’t we find Maddox and Lexie? We’re all in the same group anyway, so we should stick together.”
She still had to work on getting closer to Maddox. Watching Phoebe and her group gain more money and popularity was irritating. She couldn’t stand it. She just knew, if she could take Maddox away from Phoebe, all of Phoebe’s so-called luck would finally run out. Just like when she snatched Reece and her five brothers back then.
She hyped herself up; sure, Maddox had beaten her plenty of times, but that just made it more of a challenge. The harder it was, the more determined she felt. She glanced at the new guest, taking in his good looks. Hopefully, he had enough sense not to be completely blind.
Cain, on the other hand, wasn’t exactly excited about finding Maddox. They never saw eye to eye. However, since this was his first time on a variety show, he had no idea how to play the game. “Alright, whatever. I’ll go with you.” With that, they left the street to look for Maddox.
After asking the production crew, they tracked him and Lexie down at a restaurant. Turned out, the two of them were working as waiters to make money. The place was packed with tourists, all eager to be served by them.
Maddox had just finished delivering an order when he spotted Sienna and Cain. His smile instantly faded. ‘Why are these two here!’ Not wanting to deal with them, he turned toward the kitchen, but Cain stepped in front of him. “Maddox, what are you doing?”
Maddox shot him an annoyed look. “What does it look like?”
Cain scoffed. “Seriously? You’re making money by serving food.”
Maddox raised a brow. “And? What’s wrong with that! I’m earning my own money, not taking yours.” He crossed his arms. “Work is work, whether it’s using your brain or physical effort. There’s nothing shameful about it.” And he meant it. Sure, he was born rich and had made a name for himself in entertainment, but he respected people in all kinds of jobs. As long as they made a living on their own terms instead of leeching off others, it was something to be proud of. Which was exactly why he couldn’t stand Cain’s smug attitude. Of his pretty face.
Cain, who had been pampered his whole life, probably wouldn’t even know how to carry a tray properly. He was just here because… Cain felt the jab but wasn’t about to admit it. “That’s not what I meant. I was just wondering why you guys picked this job, that’s all.”
Maddox smirked. “We need to eat and have a place to stay. As long as I can make money, does it really matter how?” Then, he gave them a once-over, his smile turning smug. “So, what’s the deal! You guys already hit rock bottom?” Cain clenched his jaw, barely stopping himself from throwing a punch. Maddox always had a way of rubbing salt in the wound. However, for Sienna’s sake, he forced himself to stay calm. “We heard from some tourists that this city has free cello recitals and dance performances every few days. There’s not much money to be made from performing.”
He straightened up, trying to sound confident. “So, instead of wasting time, we figured we should team up. That’s why we came to find you.”
He tried his best to save face, but Maddox just let out a dry laugh. “Oh, come on. No need to sugarcoat it for the live-stream. Everyone knows what’s really going on.” His tone was sharp. “I warned you before, this is an ancient city. There are plenty of skilled performers here, but you didn’t listen.”
Chapter 254 (Note: There seems to be a numbering error. This chapter number is out of sequence.)
“And now you wanna switch to waiting tables! Go ahead. If you can handle it, jump in. If not, don’t waste my time. I’ve got work to do.” He felt with these two slowing them down, he and Lexie were really out of luck.
Maddox walked off after throwing his jab, leaving Cain boiling. He was about to snap, but Sienna grabbed his arm. “Cain, let it go. Let’s just ask the owner if we can work here and make some money.”
If Maddox and Lexie could do it, they could too. Cain let out a frustrated sigh but followed her to the restaurant owner, clearly annoyed. Since they were in the same group as Maddox, the owner didn’t turn them away and let them work as temporary waiters.
Cain loathed every second of it at first. But after being mocked by Maddox and Lexie, he couldn’t stand the idea of looking weak. So, despite his pride screaming at him, he forced himself to suck it up. Unfortunately, his half-hearted attempts at working only made things worse; viewers in the live-stream were already tearing him apart.
Phoebe checked the time and told Jamar to stop letting more people line up. It still took them over five hours to get through everyone already waiting. If they hadn’t cut the line off earlier, it would’ve just kept growing. By the time they were done, they had made almost 600 dollars.
After packing up, they headed to the restaurant where Cain and the others were working to grab some dinner. On the way, Phoebe turned to Kaylan. “You’re seriously good at the cello.” Watching him play, she couldn’t help but think he looked like some noble from centuries ago. And his skill was easily the best she had ever heard. That was no joke. She had been curious about his level before, and now she knew, this guy definitely came prepared.