?<strong>Chapter 444:</strong>


    Carrie pulled up a chair and sat down with a shrug. “Well, they say any publicity is good publicity.”


    Not long after, Lise took to Twitter, writing, “I have a deep admiration for Ms. Spencer’s work. I feel partly responsible for this giarism, as I didn’t rify things clearly enough. I had mentioned to the scriptpany that I appreciated Ms. Spencer’s style, but the screenwriter misunderstood my intentions. I assure you, this script will not be filmed, and I kindly ask everyone to stop targeting the screenwriter online.”


    I also encourage all creators to honor originality.”


    Her statement was a textbook example of subtle maniption. While it seemed like she was defending the screenwriter, she effectively confirmed the giarism. Carrie wasn’t concerned about the online bacsh; she doubted even Lise had foreseen this kind of mess. But with Lise involved, she wondered how Kristopher would choose to deal with it.


    Carrie lowered her eyes, hiding the worry she felt. She knew that Kristopher’s usual approach would be to handle the situation in a vague manner. Lise had always been his weakness. Without meaning to, Carrie thought of Daxton. If she treated Daxton the way he treated Lise, how would he react? The thought barely crossed her mind before she quickly pushed it away, reminding herself that Daxton was innocent.


    After a few light conversations, everyone got back to filming. With most of the major scenespleted, the remaining tasks were easy-going. For lunch, there was fried ribbonfish, said to have been caught by Soren himself the night before, making it incredibly fresh and crispy. Carrie, who loved seafood, was excited to try it. But just as it neared her mouth, the strong fishy smell hit her nose. Was it really that fresh? It still smelled overwhelmingly fishy.


    She wrinkled her nose but forced herself to take a bite. The moment she swallowed, a wave of nausea hit her, and she quickly set down her fork, rushing to the side to gag. Seeing this, everyone set down their utensils and rushed to her side with concern.


    “Carrie, are you alright?”


    Carrie took the water Asher handed her, rinsed her mouth, and after a moment, waved her hand dismissively. “I’m fine. Maybe the fish wasn’t cleaned properly, and that bite just had an extra strong fishy taste.”


    Someone else took a bite of the fish and said, “It doesn’t taste fishy at all.”


    “It’s actually quite sweet.”


    Carrie remembered how poorly she had slept the night before and told everyone, “Maybe I just didn’t get enough rest. My stomach’s off, and I’m not really hungry.” No one suspected anything more and quickly advised, “Don’t push yourself too hard. You can separate scriptwriting from filming.”


    Soren, with his usual authoritative tone, casually offered, “If you’re in a bind and need money fast, just give me a script title. I can pay you sixty percent upfront, and you’d have a year to finish it. Avoid taking on projects that could cause problems. Creativity should be fueled by inspiration, and squandering it on trivial,mercial work isn’t worth it.”


    Carrie nodded. “Got it. Thanks, Mr. Rodgers.”


    Soren waved off her thanks. “No need to thank me. Your scripts are a guaranteed investment, always a smart buy. If anyone should be grateful, it’s me for getting the chance to work with you.”


    They exchanged polite words, both agreeing on the matter.


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