Billy scratched his somewhat sparse hair, "I came up with the idea, and Louise gave her approval. I thought the sewer could be a pretty eerie place, and it has appeared in movies quite a bit. Who knows, maybe the boss will shoot something here someday?"
"Nicely done," Laila nodded at him approvingly. "I'll make sure to commend you to Louise."
"Thank you, Boss!" Billy was excited. This was exactly what he had been waiting to hear, right?
Originally, Laila had planned to have someone lead the group from their concealed location, a spot similar to a staff entrance, to another area. However, with the unexpected discovery of a sewer passage, their movements became even more convenient.
After giving Billy a few more instructions, Laila, accompanied by Demi, left the closed-off area of the park.
As soon as she appeared, the journalists who had been waiting outside immediately surged forward. They displayed an intense desperation that made one wonder whether they were giving away free dollars ahead or if it was an unlimited supply.
Having witnessed this scene before, Demi was taken aback, though it was her first time facing it directly. She quickly stood in front of Laila, blocking her. It was fine if they crowded her, but if they ended up crowding the fragile Laila, things could get out of hand!
However, there was no chance for her to step in. Park staff members had already positioned themselves to shield Laila from the journalists.
"Director Moran, may we ask if you're here to play or if there's something new happening at the park?" a clever journalist squeezed his way to the front and, not waiting for others to speak, jumped in with a question.
Laila glanced at him and calmly responded, "No comment."
Things easily acquired are often undervalued. Laila understood this principle well and knew how to keep the journalists' curiosity burning brighter.
"Why can't you say? Why is the park closed? Are there people inside?"
"Is it your boyfriend?"
"Is it..."
The questions from the journalists flowed like a torrential river, rushing toward Laila.
Despite being protected by her employees in the center, Laila's expression remained unchanged as she repeated, "No comment."
Seeing the park staff escorting her towards the back, the journalists stubbornly followed. They knew that her appearance here was not for leisure, and suggesting the presence of a boyfriend was merely a probe. When they noticed her secretary accompanying her, it was clear that she was there for work.
So the real question was, what kind of work was she doing?
If it was merely about park maintenance, there was no need for the behind-the-scenes big boss to show up in person. But if it wasn't...
There seemed to be only one explanation that made sense – she was here for a new movie!
Following the tradition of building a film studio at the park for each new movie, the likelihood of her starting a new film project here was quite high. Don't forget, except for those that haven't been released yet, each of her films has grossed over $300 million globally.
The journalists were well-informed, knowing that major film studios were vying for her. If they didn't know she had taken on a project to promote Victoria's Secret, they would have probably sent their scripts her way already.
Now it seemed highly likely that she was gearing up for a new film project. How could the journalists possibly remain calm? If they could uncover the details of her upcoming film, it would be a high-priced scoop! If they were lucky enough to get an exclusive, they might even be able to afford a bigger house!
However, as Laila and her group entered the hotel within the park, she didn't utter another word beyond "no comment."
Unable to extract information from her directly, the journalists resorted to digging for clues from other angles. To their surprise, they managed to find some interesting details. For instance, a certain area of the park that hadn't been developed yet was sealed off, and there was quite a bit of activity going on.
What were they building? What else could it be? The journalist who managed to uncover this piece of information was exhilarated. Not only did Director Moran make a personal appearance, but there was also construction happening in a new area. It was obvious that a new film was in the works!
Regrettably, the staff member who had provided this information was merely a low-ranking employee and wasn't privy to more details. However, this was enough to fuel the journalist's excitement for an exciting report!
Similar scenes played out in various parts of the theme park. The journalists got the information they desired, the staff members received a small fortune from the journalists, and Laila's carefully selected tidbits of information were skillfully released.
"Boss, is this okay? Shouldn't we turn over that money?" Billy appeared in front of Laila after receiving news that the journalists had left.
"No need, it's just everyone's hard-earned reward." Laila didn't think much of such a small sum.
"Those journalists are generous. The most I got was $1000!" Billy chuckled, "Those young guys outside are over the moon. Even the least they got was a few hundred bucks."
By simply following the boss's instructions and saying a few words, one could easily earn so much money. Even he felt envious! Unfortunately, his position was too high, and the junior journalists who had arrived didn't influence him to dig anything out of him.
Laila raised an eyebrow and looked at him, "Don't worry, you'll have your chance. If someone wants to buy you off, just follow my instructions."
"Hehe, that's great," Billy's eyes lit up with excitement. Who could ever complain about having too much money?
"By then, if you earn too little, it won't be acceptable," Laila smirked, her smile taking on a slightly sinister edge. "This is heavyweight news we're dealing with!"
She believed that the journalist who "won the jackpot" would probably think that the money spent was well worth it, right?
Watching her boss's gleeful expression and Billy's laughter, Demi couldn't help but shiver.
Even though she had seen her boss playing the journalists like puppets many times before, she still felt pity for those reporters deep down. Clearly, they were buying news with their hard-earned money, but in reality, all of it was carefully orchestrated and strategically released by the boss. They wanted to dig up stories, yet they ended up becoming unpaid promoters for the boss.
What was truly pitiable was that they had no clue about this. Those journalists who thought they had "acquired" information were probably feverishly writing news articles at this very moment. If they were to discover that all the information they "uncovered" had been deliberately leaked by Laila, would they feel as if their lives had lost all meaning?