Chapter 1

After Scarlett became a top celebrity, she lashed out at fans, and had an ambiguous relationship with her male co-star.

I was her secret lover and also her manager, yet I heard her say to others:

"Zoran should be thankful he discovered me."

"Without me, he'd still be slaving away on some assembly line, clueless."

She forgot how I drank myself into stomach bleeding to secure roles for her, forgot her vow to love me for a lifetime.

No matter. If a star won't behave, just replace them with a new one.

1

While I was discussing Scarlett's new show with Director Belmont, my assistant Yael called me.

"Zoran, there's a problem with Scarlett. It's already trending."

During the break, I hurriedly checked my phone.

Seeing the trending news, my mind went blank.

Scarlett had lost control again and personally attacked fans.

The reason was that fans felt her new show's styling was too sloppy, unlike the high-profile promotions, and said they would collectively demand an explanation from the production team.

Scarlett blew up at these comments."One by one, you're all poking your noses where they don't belong. I chose the styling team, and I think it looks beautiful!"

Not satisfied with just that statement, she added another line below.

"Stop guessing. I posted it myself. Now go to bed, all of you!"

These two sentences solidly ignited the fans' anger.

One fan club leader posted a long message saying they were quitting the fandom and disbanded several fan groups.

I sighed and called Yael back.

"Get in touch with them. First, remove it from the trending topics, then have the PR team come up with a plan."

Yael said they were ready to proceed with the PR strategy as planned, but Scarlett found out about it. She wouldn't let PR compromise, and no amount of coaxing would work. Now the situation was at a standstill.

I looked up and sighed, "I'll head over once I'm done here."

Scarlett had become a hot commodity after starring in two TV series. At just 25, she became a top actress after winning the Best Actress award at the Emmy Awards.

As her star rose, she grew more distant from me.

Her temper got worse, often not answering my calls. She started taking on roles and business deals on her own, routing everything through her personal studio's accounts.

We were supposed to be secret lovers, but she deliberately avoided any hint of our relationship.

I'm not stupid. How could I not notice her growing distant from me?Despite that, as soon as we finished discussing the collaboration, I immediately drove to the film set to find Scarlett.

Yael looked incredibly relieved when she saw me arrive, and quickly led me towards Scarlett's trailer.

"Thank goodness you're here, Zoran. Scarlett listens to you the most."

I gave a wry smile.

Just as we were approaching the trailer, Yael received a phone call and stepped aside to answer it.

I was about to open the trailer door when I heard voices talking inside.

"I heard your manager has only ever represented one artist."

"He's not very experienced, is he?"

It was a man's voice.

Then came Scarlett's melodious voice.

"Zoran just got lucky when he discovered me."

"Without me, he'd still be some factory worker."

The man laughed.

"He really hit the jackpot, managing just one artist who became a top star."

I felt a chill run down my spine.

In the industry, I'm known as a top-tier manager, but I've also heard plenty of people snidely remark that I just got lucky, managing only one artist who became a A-list celebrity.

I don't usually care when others say this, because only Scarlett and I truly know the hardships we've endured on our journey together.At the time, I was just about to start my journey in the entertainment industry, while Scarlett had been in the business for two years with only two minor roles under her belt.

To save money, we lived in a basement apartment. I drank myself into a stomach ulcer just to help her land roles, and she endured being suspended by wires for hours on end to perfect her performances.

I never imagined Scarlett would talk about me like that behind my back.

I yanked the car door open violently.

The two people inside the car looked at me in terror.

The man was Dane, the lead actor in this series.

A rising star who had recently skyrocketed to fame with one hit show.