The moment Matthew saw the blonde woman, he quickened his pace, nearly running. As he got closer, he saw her clearly.
Different from Brittany's sweet and sexy demeanor, this woman's style seemed rebellious. She had large circular earrings dangling from her ears, a piercing on the left side of her nose with a smaller ring, and several blue tattoos visible on her left arm from her elbow to her backhand, which Matthew guessed were temporary.
If she had a cigarette in her mouth, she would perfectly fit the image of a misguided young woman.
"Brittany, do you know what it feels like to win a Grammy?" the blonde woman's voice reached him. "I have both the Best New Artist and the Best Female Pop Vocalist Gramophones... oh, sorry, I forgot you don't have any, so you wouldn't know the taste of Grammy Awards."
She suddenly lit a cigarette, took a puff, and blew the smoke towards Brittany.
"Christina Aguilera!" Brittany's voice was filled with anger, struggling to find a comeback, resorting to her usual retort, "You bitch!"
"Ha, what a joke!" Christina Aguilera looked at Brittany and quickly said, "Oh, sweet little Britney, the pure and sexy sweetheart! Brittany, huh! The media and the public don't know what you really are, but don't I know? You're just a whore pretending to be innocent and cute!"
Brittany stood up abruptly, her face twisted in anger. At that moment, Matthew reached her and gently tapped her arm.
Seeing Matthew, Brittany seemed to find her anchor, immediately calming down.
Pretending not to see Christina Aguilera, Matthew waved his hand in front of his nose, commenting on the strong perfume coming from across, "What's that smell? So pungent."
Christina Aguilera knew he was referring to her perfume and was about to speak when Matthew rubbed his nose and added, "It's really unpleasant! Like a mix of moldy hot dogs and cheap perfume from a dollar store!"
Brittany couldn't help but laugh, her smile radiant.
"You..." Christina Aguilera glared at Matthew, "Who are you to speak here?"
"I'm Miss Spears's bodyguard," Matthew casually lied, then continued as if Christina Aguilera hadn't spoken, "I know I have no place to talk to Miss Christina Aguilera..."
Brittany looked at Matthew curiously, knowing this wasn't his style.
Sure enough, Matthew added, "But when I heard Miss Christina Aguilera ignoring basic facts and blatantly lying, I couldn't help myself!"
Pointing at Brittany, he said, "If a young, beautiful, and vibrant girl like Miss Spears isn't a good girl, then please tell me..."
Pointing at Christina Aguilera's strange attire, he continued, "Does someone with tattoos, nose rings, cursing, and smoking like you qualify as a good girl?"
Brittany's smile brightened.
Christina Aguilera's eyes widened, and she extinguished her cigarette, asking, "What are you, to judge me?"
"Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself properly." Matthew maintained a cultured demeanor, "Actually, being a bodyguard is just my part-time job. My main profession is an internationally renowned character assessor, the only one with an international license for bitch detection!"
Christina Aguilera was momentarily confused, not understanding what Matthew meant.
Brittany, at first puzzled, then caught on and laughed so hard she could barely stand straight.
"Bitch detector?" Christina Aguilera asked reflexively.
"Exactly," Matthew said, looking straight at Christina Aguilera with utter seriousness, "My professional skills allow me to instantly recognize who the real bitch is."
Even the slow-witted Christina Aguilera understood the implication.
Pointing at Matthew, she demanded, "Who are you calling a bitch?"
"Did I say you were one?" He nudged Brittany, who, catching on late, quickly shook her head, "No."
Before Christina Aguilera could respond, Matthew continued, "Miss Spears, do you know what wears nose rings in my hometown?"
Brittany shook her head, "No idea."
Ignoring Christina Aguilera, Matthew told Brittany, "In my hometown, only bulls wear nose rings!" He mimicked pulling a ring, "You pull the nose ring, and the bull does whatever you want."
Brittany couldn't contain her laughter, bending over with mirth.
Bang—
Christina Aguilera, unable to hold back any longer, slammed the table.
Quickly, Matthew addressed her, "Miss Christina Aguilera, please don't misunderstand. I was talking about bulls wearing nose rings, not you."
"Which security company are you with!" Christina Aguilera fumed, "I'm going to complain about you, you..."
Matthew spread his hands, repeating, "I told you, being a bodyguard is just my part-time job. My main profession is the only internationally certified bitch detector!"
"You... you..."
Christina Aguilera, wanting to say more, was again cut off by Matthew, "What? You still want to compare yourself to Miss Spears?"
He was blunt this time, "Miss Christina Aguilera, it's important to know oneself! Compared to Miss Spears, you're inferior in height, beauty, album sales, concert audience size and influence, popularity, fame, income, and your position and future in the pop music industry. Not to mention!"
"I really don't understand..." Matthew acted as if he was ashamed for Christina Aguilera, "how someone so inferior to Miss Brittany Spears dares to boast in front of her. Isn't that embarrassing?"
His words not only defended Brittany but were also meant for her to hear.
Upon arrival, Matthew saw clearly. Despite Brittany's usual bravado, she seemed no match for Christina Aguilera in a verbal duel.
Moreover, whenever Christina Aguilera's name or presence came up, Brittany, who could be somewhat scatterbrained in daily affairs, would become even more agitated.
There was no need for such reactions. Apart from two Grammy awards, Christina Aguilera had nothing to boast about in front of Brittany.
Christina Aguilera, her arguments stifled, knew Matthew spoke mostly the truth, irrefutable facts.
She gave Matthew a deep look, said nothing, grabbed her purse, and left.
This unexpected behavior surprised Matthew; Christina Aguilera wasn't as bad as Brittany described, clearly more emotionally intelligent.
"Matthew!" Brittany exclaimed excitedly, "You were amazing!"
Clearly, she hadn't absorbed Matthew's message.
Matthew felt a headache coming on and asked, "How did you get into a conflict with her?"
"I don't know." Brittany pointed towards the restaurant entrance, "Shortly after you left to answer your call, she entered the restaurant, saw me, and started mocking me..."
"Dear, do you remember what I told you?" Seeing Brittany's confused expression, Matthew reiterated, "You don't need to care about people like Christina Aguilera. You're currently leading her in every aspect. Your target should be Madonna, the next Queen of Pop in America!"
Brittany's mood dipped, "But she has two Grammys."
"Grammys don't define everything!" Matthew encouraged her, "Madonna isn't a favorite of the Grammys either. How many has she won? Yet, she's recognized as the number one female singer in American pop music!"
Brittany nodded seriously, "I understand."
Matthew had said a lot, unsure how much Brittany absorbed. The waiter brought their meal, and Brittany shifted the topic to the food, leaving Grammys and pop music behind.
After dinner and more conversation, Brittany had to leave. Matthew escorted her out, then returned to the hotel lobby to check out and leave the Hilton Hotel.
In the following period, Brittany became busy again with the upcoming MTV Music Awards, running a relentless schedule.
Matthew continued his planned life, gradually showing the results of his fitness training, especially in boxing. Perhaps due to his exceptional athletic talent, he made significant progress in boxing after nearly two months of training.
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