CHAPTER 308
“A wealthy wife should be home, serving her husband—not meddling in the workplace.”
Clark’s gaze lingered on Arianna with a look of disdain, as though she was out of her element in this setting. Arianna caught his stare and calmly turned to meet his eyes, her smile growing wider, almost challenging him.
Clark felt a flicker of unease. Why was she still smiling? A nagging doubt crept into his mind.
Arianna addressed the room in a clear, confident voice.
“Before I proceed with my self-review, I’d like everyone here to take a moment to review a recent news article. Only then, I believe, will you all be able to evaluate whether I should even be giving a self-review at all.”
Clark immediately interjected, his tone sharp.
“What are you trying to pull, Arianna? We don’t have time for your games.”
Unfazed, Arianna continued, addressing the room with steady composure.
“Let me remind everyone: a person cannot be deemed guilty until proven so. Until then, they are merely a suspect with every right to defend themselves. I firmly believe that the punishment I was given—the demand for a public self-review—is unwarranted. Therefore, I am requesting a moment to present my side of the story or a kind of retrial.”
“I’m only asking for three minutes,” she added, her gaze holding steady on each face in the room.
“That’s all it would take for everyone here to read a piece of news I think is relevant. Just three minutes to consider my rebuttal—is that too much to ask?”
Clark’s face flushed with frustration. He hadn’t expected her to play her cards now, and he certainly hadn’t anticipated this bold move. His mind flashed back to how she had seemingly accepted his punishment with no resistance.
All along, she had been planning this very moment, waiting for a stage like this to turn the tables. Here, with every significant figure at Starlight TV watching, she could finally speak her truth—and there was little he could do to silence her now.
Just as the general manager opened his mouth to speak, Elizabeth leaned forward, intrigued. She tilted her head, a slight smile forming, and spoke up before anyone else could.
“Alright, Arianna. You may have three minutes. Tell us, what’s the news you’d like us to see?”
Clark stiffened, but he held back, forced to remain silent as he watched her gain the floor. His carefully laid plans felt as though they were unravelling right before him.
The general manager, noticing Elizabeth’s approval, had no objections.
“Thank you,” Arianna said with a gracious smile, taking her phone and tapping a few times before projecting its screen onto the large display at the front of the room.
The familiar GossipNet landing page appeared, and with a few more taps, she opened a recent post on the account of a well-known figure, Selby.
Just a minute ago, Selby had posted: *“Over the past days, I’ve been relentlessly pursued by reporters from multiple media outlets. This has severely impacted my daily life and strained my physical and mental well-being. While I understand that people are curious, I cannot endorse media outlets that sensationalize stories purely for traffic, often at the expense of truth. These practices undermine genuine journalism.
However, there is one exception among them. Starlight TV stood out in its approach, showing true sincerity and respect. They approached me with empathy, unlike the others who only sought a story. Therefore, I’m officially announcing that I’m granting Starlight TV an exclusive interview. Thank you all.”*
A murmur of surprise spread through the room, especially among the press and photography departments, whose reporters had also been trying to secure a story with Selby for days—unsuccessfully.
Selby was well-known for his elite background and was not someone easily swayed by typical journalistic tactics, whether through promises or pressure.
Many in the room considered him notoriously difficult to work with.
Yet here he was, publicly declaring that he had chosen Starlight TV for an exclusive interview, outmanoeuvring every other media company in the competition.
Clark could hardly believe that Selby had agreed so readily to an interview with Starlight TV, leaving him momentarily speechless.
Taking advantage of his stunned silence, Arianna addressed the room once more, saying,
"Professor Cornwell has officially agreed to give an interview to Starlight TV. So, any claims that my approach disrupted his work or interfered with other anchors seem unfounded. Isn’t it a bit unreasonable to demand a public self-review under these circumstances?”
Clark snapped out of his shock and began to protest,
"Those are separate issues—"
But the general manager swiftly cut him off.
“Since there’s been no negative outcome, the need for a self-review is unnecessary.”
Clark’s face tightened as he attempted to respond, but the general manager continued, his gaze steady and firm.
“The entire media landscape is watching us now that we’ve secured exclusive interview rights with Selby. I expect everyone involved to handle this professionally and capitalize on the opportunity.”
He then fixed his eyes on Clark, adding with emphasis, “I’m counting on you, Mr. Clark, to make this a success.”
Under the weight of his superior's words, Clark swallowed his objections. It was clear the general manager intended to settle the matter then and there, and challenging him was out of the question.
Clark forced a nod. “Understood, sir. I’ll make sure we exceed your expectations.”
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
