Noelle nced out the door and fell into deep thought.
Perhaps it was time to end everything. ording to the old ke she knew, he would never let it go if she kept refusing to admit her so-called mistakes.
Now that she''d gotten clues from Donovan, there was no need to keep ying it safe.
That night, they filmed an outdoor night scene at an abandoned building. The scene involved the supporting female lead luring the protagonist over and putting thetter in danger, only for the male lead toe to the rescue.
After filming, Noelle waited on the side to remove her makeup, but the makeup artist ignored her. She could tell that the crew was holding a grudge against her.
There was no doubt that Xenia had been adding fuel to the fire to tarnish her reputation, but she didn''t care. She had no interest in staying in the entertainment industry anyway.
When most people had left, she had no choice but to grab some makeup remover herself, clean off her makeup, and leave.
"Noelle, stop right there!"
ke red at her with a thunderous expression, and his eyes were dark and dangerous. "I heard you''ve been collecting dirt on me. You''re nning to expose me and ruin my career, huh?"
Noelle''s gaze flickered to the stun baton in his hand. She instinctively took a few cautious steps back and asked, "Who told you that?"
"It doesn''t matter who did, but I''m going to teach you a lesson today. You better not run, or you''re doomed for."
Noele turned and ran. She noticed ke wasn''t alone; he''d brought ten tattooed men. Most of the crew had left, and no one woulde to the abandoned building now.
"You can''t escape, Noelle. Just behave and apologize to me, and I''ll go easy on you. But if you insist on running, I guess I''m not showing mercy," ke taunted as he walked.
Noelle ran for a while and soon found herself surrounded by tattooed thugs, so she had no choice but to turn and face the approaching ke. "Looks like you haven''t changed all these years, ke. The moment something doesn''t go your way, you resort to violence."
"When you misbehaved as a kid, I hit you for your good." Gripping his baton, ke stepped closer at a slow, deliberate pace.
There was a chilling smirk on his face. "Go on and run. Why aren''t you running? Why did you stop?"
Noelle''s voice grew high-pitched. "You''re a star now. Aren''t you afraid of ruining your reputation by doing this?"
"My reputation will stay intact as long as you don''t expose what you have. I''m doing this to teach you a lesson since you''ve caused so much trouble at home while I was away.
"Tell me, do you admit to your mistakes?" ke was standing right in front of her now.
"I did nothing wrong." As Noelle spoke, ke swung his baton at her.
Noelle raised her arm to block, but the impact sent her crashing to the ground. She clutched her arm and red at him. "They''re the ones who broke thew; what does that have to do with me?"
"You always think we''re biased, Noelle. But have you ever reflected on what you''ve done?"
She let out a coldugh. "All I know is that I was the top scorer in the college entrance exam, yet y''all forced me to stay and attend an ordinary university. Is that what you mean by love?
"If that''s what love is, why don''t you take it for yourself? Would you want it?" Noelle questioned as she locked eyes with ke.
"How dare you talk back. We shouldn''t be this petty and calctive as a family, and it looks like you do need a lesson." ke didn''t hesitate this time. He raised the baton again and struck.
He''d been waiting for this moment for too long. Raising her arms to protect herself, Noelle cried out in a trembling voice, "Please stop... It hurts."
"Oh, you do know it hurts. Toote. Weren''t you acting all tough?"
"Fine, I''ll listen! I''ll do whatever you say. I can drop out of Yole University and
Noelley curled up on the ground and shielded her head as if she waspletely surrendering. Hearing her beg for mercy, ke felt an overwhelming sense of satisfaction.