Chapter 80: Chapter 80

The production team for "Food and Love" scheduled Anna Thornton’s recording from three to five in the afternoon, and she arrived half an hour early.

Since the show is recorded indoors, they rented and renovated a restaurant on the first floor of a building downtown as their studio.

Anna Thornton thought the restaurant’s style looked quite unique on the show, but she wasn’t familiar with the setup outside the camera’s view. Casually pushing open a door that seemed to be a props room, she found two staff members sorting ingredients inside.

"Hello, I’m Anna Thornton, here to prepare for this afternoon’s recording." Anna introduced herself first.

After all, her career in the country hadn’t launched yet, so she didn’t expect them to recognize her.

The two staff members, both male, stared at her dumbfounded, taking a moment to react. "Oh, so you’re today’s female guest. Just go right when you leave this room; someone will guide you to the dressing room."

Anna backed out of the props room, taking an extra glance at the words on the door.

The place for storing ingredients being called a props room seemed both right and odd at the same time, kind of strange.

After she left, the two staff members inside exchanged knowing looks and began to discuss, "Great figure, this episode’s going to be interesting."

"I saw her news, heard she’s quite open-minded since returning from abroad!"

"We better prepare the ’props’ well for her."

Following the directions of the staff member, Anna went to the right, but didn’t encounter anyone to lead her.

She had even walked out of the restaurant area and was just about to turn back when she ran into Conrad Sterling and Ethan at the elevator entrance.

"Miss Thornton!" Ethan was the first to greet Anna.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" Anna asked him.

"President Sterling is here to meet a client at the teahouse upstairs; didn’t expect to run into you! By the way, Miss Thornton, why are you here?"

"I have a food-related variety show recording today."

"A food-related variety show? Is it called...’Food and Love’?" Ethan realized.

"You know about it, have you watched it?" Anna asked him.

"I haven’t seen it yet, but I and President Sterling came today..."

Ethan didn’t expect to meet Anna here; he was clearly excited and was babbling. Only when Conrad heard him talk to Anna, he turned back slowly, interrupting him with Ethan’s clueless expression: "Having a chat, are we? So much free time?"

Once reprimanded by President Sterling, Ethan immediately quieted down, sensing being a third wheel, silently stepping back.

Conrad then seriously looked at Anna. Today, this woman gave him a different feeling.

Normally sporting bright red lips, as Anna walked with a flamboyant star style, fully armed striving to be the most dazzling one in the crowd.

But today, since coming over to have the show crew do her make-up and styling anyway, she opted for the simplest outfit.

T-shirt, patterned skirt, paired with canvas shoes, the lack of make-up instead made her look purer and fairer, like a lively university student.

Indeed, she is just twenty-two!

"Did the male guest who’s participating with you change?" Conrad suddenly asked.

"Hmm, no." Anna shook her head. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ novel~fire~net

"You know what kind of person he is, yet you’re still going on the show with him?"

"Is it so strange, President Sterling? As a small actress without background or backing, currently being suppressed by my own agency, the resources I have at hand are just a few. If others want to invite whoever they want, want to mess with me they can, it isn’t up to me to refuse, right?" Anna always analyzed her situation rationally, mixed with a bit of grievance.

After complaining, she quickly smiled at Conrad: "I find you seem to care about me quite a lot, to even remember which male guest is participating on the show with me."

"I have a good memory, just hearing once by chance is enough, it has nothing to do with you."

"If you’re free after seeing your client later, would you like to come to the set? This is my debut in a variety show," Anna asked him.

Conrad didn’t say if he’d go, or not go.

He turned and gave Ethan a look, the time for the client meeting was approaching.

Wait, so who exactly is the male guest coming to the show today?

Ethan didn’t really understand what President Sterling and Miss Thornton were discussing just now.

However, he seemed to realize something else.

The time and place for today’s client meeting were all decided by President Sterling, so actually...But seeing President Sterling maintaining such a proud exterior in front of Miss Thornton, he’d better pretend like he didn’t know anything.

Anna also turned back walking in the direction she came from, realizing the staff from the props room told her the wrong direction. Going back, she found where the dressing room was.

"Miss Thornton, here’s the outfit prepared for your recording today."

Just as Anna finished her makeup, a staff member brought the prepared clothes to her.

She glanced back, a short grayish-blue dress, looked quite nice but was a bit too short.

This shortness wasn’t just in the hem, but the entire dress was short, with a very low neckline. With her size, it would reveal nearly half of her chest.

Anna had previously filled in for a few episodes; she noticed the female guests on this show mostly wore cool outfits. However, if this dress wasn’t given an important role, she was being bullied.

But Anna didn’t say anything, she smiled at the person who brought the clothes: "Thank you."

"Hurry and change, the male guest has arrived too. The recording starts in fifteen minutes, be ready and come over quickly."

After sending others out of the dressing room, Anna carefully checked the dress prepared for her.

She found the straps had problems, the spot where the back connected to the dress showed signs of being torn apart intentionally, there was already a risk of it falling off. Relying on two thin strings to hang on her shoulders was not secure, and with a two-hour recording, she doubted it would last an hour before the straps would break.

Even if she wanted to catch the eye, it didn’t have to be through such lowbrow methods. Truly having a wardrobe malfunction on stage, her career wouldn’t necessarily end, but she would be mocked forever because of this.

However, it probably wasn’t the production team’s doing. Previously pushing boundaries was one thing, but a true wardrobe malfunction would prevent this episode from airing, unless they wanted to be banned.

So, is it someone else hiding and pulling strings in the dark?

Marilyn Ford? Or Jane Jennings?

No matter who did it, this problematic dress definitely couldn’t be worn, Anna’s top priority was to change clothes immediately.

If she asked the production team to change outfits, there was a possibility the second dress sent to her could still have issues.

And if this time they were more cautious and she didn’t discover any problems, what then?