The Trending Topic Herself: The Villainess is the Superstar!-Chapter 66: Vying for Favor

"Mr. Rowe has achieved so much at such a young age, it truly makes us bow our heads in admiration! The Valerius Group has grown even stronger under his leadership, and it’s no exaggeration to say it has become the leader of the Kyston business circle. It seems that I, as an old man, will have to learn a lot from Mr. Rowe in the future!"

"That piece of land in the west of town was looked down upon by everyone initially. Who would’ve thought, after Mr. Rowe’s nephew bought it, its value would multiply over a dozen times in just a few years. Remarkable!"

"Valerius Group seems to have a trend of expanding recently. It seems that in the future, there will be no rival to match it. The once genius of holdings was already intimidating enough, and now Mr. Rowe’s skill in running the company is equally impressive, truly commendable!"

...

The praises from those around never ceased, making Maya Monroe feel dizzy, but a glance at Ian Rowe beside her, and his face was always adorned with a perfectly curved smile.

"I was just lucky a few times, my experience couldn’t compare to everyone present here."

Neither arrogant nor impetuous, he was adept at handling situations, never revealing his true thoughts, making others follow his lead.

Given Ian Rowe’s wealth today, he could be as arrogant and domineering as any petty tyrant, yet no one would dare criticize him, but he chose to maintain a humble facade, leaving others with enough respect.

His cold sharpness was perfectly controlled, maintaining a leisurely ease, which Maya found particularly intimidating.

His words were beautifully spoken, predictably drawing another round of flattery from those around.

Maya stood irritably for a while, while Ian was still chatting with others.

How come there are so many people? After arriving at the banquet hall, they barely moved, almost submerged by the enthusiastic crowd.

Maya couldn’t stand it anymore. She leaned over to Ian’s ear, "Honey, my feet are numb from standing. Can we sneak out first? This is so boring."

The warm breath by his ear made Ian stiffen for a moment, instinctively glancing at her fair calves.

"Don’t go too far, message me if needed."

Maya nodded and squeezed through the crowd.

Reaching the area with snacks, Maya couldn’t take a step further.

She had just stuffed a piece of osmanthus cake into her mouth when a noble-looking lady walked over, "You must be Mrs. Rowe, right?"

Maya had only been by Ian’s side for a short while and usually didn’t attend such events. She didn’t expect to be recognized, "Yes, that’s me."

She continued chewing her snack, indifferent to how others might view her.

"I don’t know if you remember, but we met at a banquet before."

"I don’t remember." She answered honestly.

Yvonne Hall looked at Maya’s face, almost unable to link the dazzling beauty in front of her with the "shrew" who caused a scene at a previous banquet.

Maya might seem a bit casual in her actions, but she wasn’t off-putting. Instead, people appreciated her authenticity and natural demeanor. With such a face, it’s hard for anyone to dislike her.

Especially her slightly puffed cheeks with cake crumbs at the corner of her mouth, making her look somewhat... adorably silly.

No wonder, from afar, she noticed such a significant change in Ian’s attitude toward her, and now, up close, it was clear why.

"I recall the currently popular ’Wandering Beyond the Horizon’ stars Mrs. Rowe, right? I’ve been watching a lot of episodes, and I must say, Mrs. Rowe’s acting skills are impeccable!"

Yvonne smiled softly. She was genuinely a noblewoman, always exuding a graceful aura.

Mentioning Wandering Beyond the Horizon always reminded Maya of a heap of troubles, so she just nodded perfunctorily.

Yvonne handed over a business card, "I’m truly impressed by Mrs. Rowe’s... no, should I say Ms. Monroe’s acting skills. We should definitely collaborate sometime."

The term "Mrs. Rowe" suggests a connection to the Rowe Family, whereas "Ms. Monroe" purely expressed admiration for Maya’s talents.

Maya extended her slender fingers to take the card, still holding a piece of cake in the other hand.

Whoa!

The cake in Maya’s hand almost slipped out.

Yvonne... isn’t she Kiki’s big benefactor? Yvonne Hall is as famous as Shane Morgan, a major director who, in the storyline, recognized Kiki’s talent, went against all objections, and chose her as the lead for her new film, earning Kiki her first Best Actress award.

Wasn’t Yvonne supposed to appear later in the story? Yet, she appeared so quickly.

In another perspective, the task world is still a well-structured universe. While the protagonist narrates the story, the existing characters still have their arcs. In that sense, encountering Yvonne at the banquet wasn’t surprising.

But what does Yvonne want with her card? Admiring her acting is absurd. Maya knew her situation well, gaining popularity through hype but her acting... She wasn’t even clear on the concept of acting grades, only sure that as a novice, she had no acting skills to speak of.

Ian becomes the center of attention at the banquet, so was Yvonne trying to approach him through her?

Yvonne wasn’t aware Maya’s thoughts were all over the place, maintaining her smile.

Maya stuffed the card into her bag, "Thanks."

Just symbolically taking the card, sure that Yvonne won’t genuinely offer her a role since she wouldn’t take it anyway.

Having achieved her purpose, Yvonne smiled, "I won’t disturb you anymore, I’ll take my leave."

Maya had long wished she’d leave and immediately nodded.

Wondering how Kiki was doing at the annual event, and if she had met Joel yet...

In spare moments, Maya pondered the plot direction, still hearing Joel’s voice, perhaps hallucinating. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

"Enjoying those snacks, aren’t you..."

Maya cursed under her breath, turning to find Joel’s grinning face.

"...Why’re you here?! Aren’t you supposed to be at the annual event!!?"

Plot-wise, Joel should be falling for Kiki at the annual event by now!

Joel raised an eyebrow, chuckling, "Am I so unwelcome? I attend the annual event every year and am quite bored of it."

Bored my foot, the event is where your true love is, how could you mess it up midway!?

Maya silently grumbled countless lines.

Maya advised him, "You can still make it to the annual event. There’s no ’bored’ or ’not bored’, what if you miss something great! You’ll regret it, but it’ll be too late by then!"

Joel squinted, smiling, "What scheming do you have this time? You want me at the event, so I won’t go!"