Laila is the behind-the-scenes boss of FB. Those in the background monitoring data saw this information spreading rapidly and immediately reported it to her.
She actually didn't want this news to be known to the public. Perhaps gaining sympathy from the masses after it's revealed would be expected, but she genuinely dislikes that kind of pity. It's embarrassing.
Being insulted in such a manner only makes her feel like she's brought disgrace to her family. Moreover, if her family were to find out, it might cause unnecessary trouble. She doesn't want to involve her family in her affairs, especially something as unseemly as this.
Regrettably, her good upbringing prohibits her from using foul language. Otherwise, she would have loved to use the essence of Eastern curses to verbally thrash Cole, guaranteeing a three-day tirade without repeating a single insult. Compared to the rich vocabulary in the East, the Western lexicon is undoubtedly overshadowed.
However, since the matter has been exposed, she has no intention of suppressing it. She just instructs her subordinates to ignore it. If they rashly handle it, whether by deletion or promotion, it will attract a crowd of speculators, adding fuel to an already troublesome situation.
She wants to stir things up, but not her own problems. A single Downey has already exploited all her experiences.
Just as she was preparing to help Downey in court, suddenly, she received word that the other party had withdrawn the lawsuit.
This wasn't news she liked. With the movie's release date approaching and relying on this incident for publicity, why suddenly withdraw the lawsuit? If it's withdrawn, how will she carry out the previously arranged "fire-boosting" methods?
Upon inquiring, she learned that Cole personally withdrew the lawsuit. He didn't state the reason, but according to internal rumors she heard, it seemed that he was in a bad condition at the time, with a bandage on his nose and an unnatural bruise on his face, as if he had been beaten.
Beaten...
Laila's immediate reaction was whether Roy had gone to seek revenge?
This wasn't baseless speculation. A good friend was harmed, and considering that guy's personality, not rushing over immediately to beat someone up made her think he had indeed matured a lot.
However, when she heard that Cole had been beaten, she couldn't help but suspect that Roy had done it, or how else could he suddenly withdraw the lawsuit right after being beaten? Terrified, she immediately called Roy, subtly asking for a while, ensuring he hadn't gone to physically harm anyone. Fortunately, Roy was unaware of her thoughts; otherwise, he would have felt even more wronged. He had already grown gentlemanly enough; please don't treat him like an impulsive 20-year-old.
Since it wasn't Roy, Laila felt relieved. Perhaps it was someone else who had been provoked and decided to take matters into their own hands, dragging him into an alley for a beating.
Regardless, the withdrawal of the lawsuit was a certainty. But she didn't want the matter to end like this. Firstly, she still needed this incident for the movie's promotion. Secondly, she hoped to whitewash Downey's image and make him a true hero in the public's eyes.
Most importantly, there was the word "roll." Every time she thought of that situation, it felt like a bomb had exploded in her heart, igniting a deep-seated resentment. If she didn't reclaim the situation for herself, she feared this knot would trap her in the future.
So, she quickly formulated a new plan: You've withdrawn the lawsuit, haven't you? Fine, then I'll sue you now!
Fighting is one thing; she wanted to sue him for inappropriate intentions toward a minor. She wanted to see if, after being accused by her, the young master of the West family could still be as arrogant as before.
What she didn't know was that Cole couldn't be arrogant anymore, all thanks to his father. Old West had cut off all his cards.
The only way to retrieve the cards was to apologize to Laila, obtain her forgiveness, and eliminate the anger the Moran family harbored toward the West family due to this incident.
Old West's intention was correct—let the one who dug the hole fill it. Unfortunately, he underestimated his own troublemaker's temperament. Originally, he wanted to cut off Cole's cards, forcing him to apologize to Laila with no money. Little did he know that Cole would choose to be stubborn, preferring to have no money rather than apologize to Laila.
He thought he was clever, and even though he didn't apologize in person, he secretly withdrew the case. According to his thinking, Laila should see the case withdrawal as a goodwill gesture, and everything should naturally settle down.
He had suffered too little hardship, making him naively believe that this would work. Even he knew how rude his previous attitude was; how could the other party forget it just because he withdrew the case as a gesture of goodwill?
So Laila's response was to hand over everything she had to lawyer Walton, letting him put Cole behind bars to repent.
In Eastern terms, this was "using the same method to deal with the same person." How poetic, isn't it?
After receiving the case, Walton couldn't have been happier. Lawyers at his stage weren't concerned about making money; they wanted fame, reputation, and influence. Is there anything more attractive than Downey's case right now? He could already imagine how many people would know his name and how his image would appear in numerous media reports after taking on this case.
As Walton began preparing the lawsuit, the news of Cole's withdrawal was also dug up by the all-knowing paparazzi. It wasn't much of a secret; anyone with a bit of curiosity could find it through their channels. The main reason Cole felt embarrassed was that he had done this surreptitiously, and not many people saw it.
Once this matter was exposed, comments surrounding Downey's case started circulating again.
Some people thought it was good. Downey could proceed with his publicity, and the movie could be released as scheduled. Many of Laila's fans had been worried that the movie would be delayed due to the case, and they were delighted to hear this news.
They were staunch fans of Laila; they didn't care who she cast or whether the actors were criminals or beggars. They just wanted to see the movie she made, believing that only she could create what they most wanted to see.
On the other hand, some people expressed harsh opinions, believing that the Moran family had used their influence to interfere with judicial justice, letting a villain like Downey escape legal punishment.