Searching Every Flame, Still Not Finding You

Blurb:

Joanna Stone chased Ethan Quinn for seven years, suffering cold looks and humiliation, just to complete the system mission and resurrect her true lover Liam White.

One week before the wedding, Ethan's old love Serena Blair returned to the city.

He ruined Joanna's career for Serena, forced her to apologize in public, and even let Serena try on the wedding dress she designed herself.

Joanna endured it all because she just wanted the wedding to go smoothly.

But on the wedding day, Ethan abandoned her in public for Serena, destroying her last hope with his own hands.

After the mission failed, Joanna completely disappeared.

Later, Ethan learned that the woman he had never cherished had never come to love him from the beginning.

"Welcome to my food livestream channel. Today I will show you one of Graybridge's hardest-to-book fine dining restaurants..."

Joanna Stone showed her iconic smile to the camera, with several exquisite and picturesque dishes in front of her.

As a leading food streamer with over 10 million fans on the Internet, her livestream online audience instantly exceeded 100,000.

Just as she was about to take her first bite, the private room door was suddenly pushed open.

There was a burst of chaotic footsteps and joking laughter.

"Well, if it isn't Mr. Quinn's shadow. What, he doesn't have time for you today, so you came here to smile for money?"

Joanna's hand holding the knife and fork paused, and the smile froze on her face.

The visitors were several well-known wealthy men from Graybridge, and the one in the middle was her fianc whom she had been chasing for seven years and who was about to get married in a week Ethan Quinn.

Ethan was wearing a neatly tailored black haute couture suit, with a stern look on his face, and undisguised indifference and boredom in his dark eyes.

He just glanced at her, as if looking at a cheap ornament.

"Ethan, your fiance is so down-to-earth. The bride-to-be of the Quinn family is not ashamed to advertise the restaurant online every day." The person next to him deliberately raised his voice.

The livestream barrage exploded instantly.

[What is going on? Anna is engaged to the president of Quinn Group?]

[These people are awful. Since when is being a food streamer shameful?]

[Look at Quinn's face. He clearly can't stand her. Is she the one clinging to him?]

Joanna took a deep breath, ignored the harsh taunts, and just looked at Ethan quietly.

"I'm working." Her voice was soft but enough for everyone to hear clearly.

Ethan walked up to her and looked down at her condescendingly.

He stretched out his slender fingers and pressed directly on her phone holder, with a cold tone: "Turn it off."

"I have signed a contract for this promotion, and the penalty fee..."

"I told you to shut it down." Ethan cut her off, anger flashing in his eyes. "Joanna, have you forgotten who you are? The Quinn family does not need someone chasing attention online."

A sharp pain stabbed through Joanna's chest, like a cluster of fine needles.

Joanna pursed her lips, looked at his cold face, and finally reached out and forcibly cut off the livestream in front of 100,000 viewers.

The moment the screen went black, the room burst into laughter.

"Hahaha, Ethan really trained her well. So obedient. He says turn it off, and she turns it off."

"Since the livestream is off, why don't you serve us today, Ms. Food Streamer? We haven't eaten yet. Clear this table and serve us again."

This blatant humiliation made Joanna's fingertips dig deep into her palms.

She looked up at Ethan, trying to find a hint of protection in his eyes.

No.

Ethan just walked to the main seat and sat down, leaning against the back of the chair lazily, and coldly uttered two words: "Pour the wine."

He acquiesced in their humiliation.

In fact, he was the leader of this humiliation.

Joanna felt a little sore in her eyes, but she held it back.

She stood up, picked up the decanter on the table, walked to Ethan, bent slightly, and slowly poured the red wine into his glass.

"That's right. Know your position." The young master next to him laughed more and more crazily.

Joanna was like a soulless puppet, mechanically pouring wine and serving dishes for them, and listened to their bottomless belittling of her career and origins.

[Ding]

A mechanical electronic tone suddenly rang in her mind.

[Host, mission progress has reached 99%. As long as your wedding to Ethan is completed in one week, you will receive the final reward.]

Hearing this sound, Joanna's tense body miraculously relaxed.

It doesn't matter, she told herself.

As long as she can get through this week, as long as the wedding goes smoothly, she can complete the system's mission.

She didn't care how Ethan humiliated her, nor did she care whether he loved her or not.

She did all this, endured all the injustice and followed him for seven years, just in exchange for the only reward resurrecting her true lover, Liam White.

"Enough. Looking at you ruins my appetite." Ethan suddenly set down his glass with a sharp clink.

He stood without sparing her another glance. "Go settle the bill, then get out."

Joanna lowered her head and responded softly: "Okay."

She turned towards the bar and settled the six-figure bill.

When she walked out of the restaurant, it started to rain heavily outside.

The cold rain hit her face, but she didn't hide. She just looked at the countdown on the screen of her phone.

Seven days left.

Liam, wait for me.

The villa was eerily empty and unpopular late at night.

Joanna took a hot bath, put on clean home clothes, and sat on the sofa in the living room to wait for Ethan.

Today is their third engagement anniversary.

On the coffee table were cakes she had made by herself, as well as a table of completely cold dishes.

She waited until two o'clock in the morning, but there was no movement at the gate.

She picked up her phone and opened her chat with Ethan. The last message was still the one she had sent that afternoon: [Come home early today. I made your favorite dishes.] There had been no reply.

Just when she was about to throw away the cold meal, her phone suddenly vibrated.

It's not Ethan's message, but a push that the social platform pays special attention to.

She clicked on the screen and what came into view was a high-definition photo taken secretly at the airport.

In the photo, Ethan, who has always been mysophobic and doesn't like to be touched by others, is holding a woman wearing a white windbreaker tightly in his arms.

His eyes were full of enthusiasm and lost treasure that Joanna had never seen in the past seven years.

The woman was wearing sunglasses, but Joanna recognized her at a glanceSerena Blair, Ethan's first love, and the old obsession in his heart that he couldn't touch or forget.

Three years ago, Serena dumped Ethan without mercy and went abroad to study in order to pursue her dream of dancing.

Ethan stood in the heavy rain all night with a high fever. Joanna took care of him sleeplessly for three days and three nights.

Later, he agreed to Joanna's proposal.

Everyone said that Joanna finally warmed up the iceberg after seven years of humility.

But only Joanna knew that he was just angry.

Now, Serena is back.

Joanna looked at the photo quietly, and there was no heartbreaking feeling in her heart as she expected, only a kind of numbness that finally fell to the ground.

There was a beeping sound from the door combination lock.

Ethan walked in with a chill, his suit jacket hanging on his arms, the collar of his shirt slightly open, showing a rare mixture of exhaustion and excitement.

Seeing Joanna sitting on the sofa, the emotion on his face instantly calmed down and returned to his frosty look.

"Why haven't you slept yet?" He said calmly.

"Waiting for you." Joanna stood up and pointed to the cake on the table, "Today is the engagement anniversary."

Ethan's eyes stayed on the cake for a second, then moved away, and said impatiently: "I forgot. I'm very tired, so I went to take a shower first." He didn't explain or apologize.

"Ethan." Joanna stopped him, "Serena is back, right?"

Ethan's steps suddenly stopped.

He turned around and his eyes instantly became sharp, as if he was examining a prisoner who had crossed the line: "Are you investigating me?"

"You guys have become a hot topic." Joanna raised her phone.

Ethan saw the photo on the screen clearly. Instead of being embarrassed by being exposed, Ethan sneered confidently: "Since you saw it, I won't hide it from you. Serena has just returned to this city and is not emotionally stable. I will spend more time with her during this time."

"What about our wedding?" Joanna asked the question she was most concerned about.

"The wedding is as usual." Ethan tugged on his tie, with a pity-like compensatory arrogance in his voice, "Joanna, you should be content. Mrs. Quinn's position is yours. For the rest, you'd better not expect anything else, and don't disturb Serena." After saying that, he went upstairs without looking back.

Joanna stood there, looking at the exquisite cake on the table, and suddenly felt a little funny.

She picked up the knife, cut a piece of cake and stuffed it into her mouth.

It's so sweet that it tastes bitter.

Ethan thought she loved him so much that she had no dignity, and thought she couldn't live without him.

But he didn't know that what she wanted was never his love, nor the position of Mrs. Quinn.

[Host, emotional fluctuation detected in the male lead. Please stabilize the plot and make sure the wedding proceeds smoothly.] The system's voice sounded at the right moment.

"I know." Joanna swallowed the bitter cake and poured the rest into the trash can.

As long as he didn't cancel the wedding, she didn't care who he accompanied or who he loved.

After washing and lying on the bed, Joanna closed her eyes, and Liam's gentle and jade-like face appeared in her mind.

"Anna, when I get better, we will go to the beach to watch the sunrise." Those were the last words Liam said to her before he died.

For this promise, she endured seven years in this cold world.

Come on, Liam.

Six days to go.

In the early morning, she was awakened by a series of phone calls from her agent Maya Reed.

"Joanna, look at the social media platform! The producer of the global food documentary "Flavor Search" that you have been preparing for half a year suddenly and unilaterally announced a replacement!"

She sat up suddenly, no longer feeling sleepy.

"Flavor Pathfinding" is the most important part of her career.

In order to win the position of the resident host, she did not rest for more than half a year. She traveled to many countries to test dishes and write plans. She even suffered from acute gastritis due to overwork.

The producer just confirmed the final contract with her yesterday, so why did she suddenly change her?

She quickly opened her social media platform, and the first one on the hot topic list was: #Serena Blair airborne flavor search#

Click on it to see the latest official announcement released by the producer. The picture is of Serena Blair wearing a white dress and smiling innocently.

The comment section was in an uproar. Her fans were frantically defending their rights, while Serena's fans were mocking her for not having enough status and saying that Internet celebrities should not touch porcelain artists.

Her fingers were trembling slightly, and she immediately dialed the number of the producer's chief director.

"Director Harris, what on earth is going on? Hasn't our contract already..."

"Ms. Stone, I'm really sorry." Director Harris' tone was helpless and flattering, "This is not something we can decide. Quinn Group suddenly fully acquired the production company last night, and Mr. Quinn personally said that he would give this position to Miss Serena."

There was a bang.

Her mind went blank.

She hung up the phone, took a taxi and rushed to the Quinn Group headquarters without even changing her clothes.

Arriving at the executive's office unimpeded, she pushed open the door to Ethan Quinn's office.

In the office, Ethan Quinn was sitting on a large leather chair, while Serena Blair was sitting on the sofa next to him, holding a cup of coffee in her hand, and the two were talking and laughing.

Seeing her barging in, Serena immediately put down her coffee cup and shrank behind Ethan.

"Ethan..." Her voice was delicate.

Ethan's face instantly darkened and he stared at her coldly: "Who taught you the rule of not knocking when you enter?"

"Why?" She ignored his scolding and walked straight to the desk, staring at him. ""Flavor Pathfinding" is the hard work I have been preparing for half a year. Why did you give it to her with just one sentence?"

Ethan leaned back in his chair, his eyes contemptuous: "I am an investor." He stood up, walked to Serena, patted her shoulder gently, and when he looked at her again, there was only coldness in his eyes.

"Serena has just returned to this city and needs a program with a wide audience coverage to regain her popularity. As a blogger of a broken shop, what is the use of such resources? It's just to eat and Drink."

"Potan shop blogger?" She laughed angrily, but her eyes were red, "Ethan Quinn, that is my career! It was the opportunity I bought after spending countless late nights and getting rejected! In order to please her, are you going to destroy my hard work?"

"Watch your words." Ethan frowned and said in a serious tone, "Serena is a classical dancer, and her temperament is more suitable for this kind of high-end documentary than you. If you want resources, I will ask my assistant to arrange the promotion of several big-name skin care products for you. Don't make trouble here."

"I don't want promotion, I just want "Flavor Pathfinding"." She looked at him stubbornly.

At this time, Serena gently pulled Ethan's sleeve, her eyes were slightly red: "Ethan, forget it, since Ms. Stone likes it so much, I will just give it back to her. I don't want to affect your relationship because of me."

"Don't give in." Ethan held Serena's hand in his hand and looked at her sharply.

"Joanna, do you have to be so fussy about it? Serena has suffered a lot abroad. What's wrong with me compensating her with a show? As my future wife, you don't even have this generosity?"

What ridiculous logic.

He used her hard work to compensate for his obsession with his old love, and blamed her for not being generous enough.

She looked at the two people's clasped hands, and her heart seemed to be clenched tightly by a big invisible hand, which was so painful that she couldn't breathe.

This is the man she has been conquering for seven years.

Cold-blooded, selfish, trampling on her dignity and hard work.

"Okay, I'm generous." She took a deep breath and pushed back the tears in her eyes.

She looked at Ethan and said word by word, "Ethan Quinn, I gave this program to her."

Ethan was stunned for a moment, as if he didn't expect that she would compromise so easily.

He looked at her eyes that were so calm that they were almost lifeless, and he felt inexplicably irritated in his heart.

"You know what's going on." He snorted coldly.

Without looking at them again, she turned and walked out of the office.

The moment she closed the door, she leaned against the cold wall, gasping for air.

It doesn't matter, she told herself again.

Five days to go.

Once the mission is completed, she will no longer have to suffer this kind of torture.

The storm of substitutions in "Flavour Pathfinding" has not subsided yet, and an even bigger storm is following.

That afternoon, Serena Blair posted a photo of herself on an IV at the hospital, with the caption: [My first big meal after returning to this city, and I ended up spending it in the ER. Everyone, please be careful about restaurant hygiene.] In the background, the takeout bag from a well-known private restaurant was faintly visible.

And this private restaurant was the one she had strongly recommended in the livestream the day before yesterday.

Serena's fans immediately rushed into her social account like sharks smelling blood.

[Shameless blogger! She took dirty money to recommend a trash restaurant and gave our Serena food poisoning!][People like this will promote anything for money. This is practically attempted murder for profit!][Ban Joanna! Make her disappear from public view!]

In just two hours, the terms #Joanna Stone Fake Store Visit# and #Serena Blair Food Poisoning became hot topics on social platforms.

The reputation she had accumulated for seven years was about to collapse in an instant.

She immediately contacted the owner of the restaurant and verified the monitoring and meal delivery records of the day. All ingredients had strict inspection and quarantine certificates, and there was no possibility of food poisoning.

This is a complete frame-up.

She had just compiled the clarification evidence and was ready to release it when the door of the villa was pushed open violently.

Ethan Quinn strode in with violent anger, grabbed the laptop from her hand, and smashed it to the ground.

There was a loud "bang" and the screen shattered instantly.

"Ethan Quinn, why are you crazy!" She stood up and looked at him angrily.

"Am I crazy?" Ethan grabbed her chin with such force that he almost crushed her bones, his eyes were scarlet.

"Joanna, do you dare to say that Serena's food poisoning was not caused by you? Because I gave her the show, you held a grudge and deliberately recommended that unclean restaurant to her!"

"I didn't!" She was forced to raise her head, tears welling up in her eyes because of the pain, "There's nothing wrong with that restaurant, it's her who is acting!"

"Bang!" A hospital diagnosis report was thrown hard on her face, and the sharp edge of the paper scratched her cheek, leaving a thin trail of blood.

"It says acute gastroenteritis in black and white, and you still dare to quibble!" Ethan's voice was as cold as ice. "Joanna, I only thought you were clingy and humble before, but I didn't expect you to be so vicious!"

She didn't read the report. She knew that with Ethan's methods, it would be easy to get a fake medical certificate.

He didn't care about the truth at all, he only cared that Serena had been wronged.

"What do you want?"

Her voice was as light as a gust of wind, revealing deep weakness.

"Apologize."

Ethan let go of his hand, took out a handkerchief and wiped his fingers in disgust, "Start a livestream immediately and apologize to Serena in front of the entire network. Admit that you took the black money and made false publicity."

Her eyes suddenly widened and she looked at him in disbelief.

Admitting to false advertising would have completely ruined her career in the content industry.

The credibility she has accumulated step by step over the past seven years will be destroyed in one day!

"Ethan Quinn, you are forcing me to death." She was shaking all over.

"You owe her this." Ethan showed no mercy. "If you don't do it, I will have the entire local media ban you tomorrow. Guess whether the penalty fee you face will make you go to jail?"

He is threatening her with what she cares about most... More importantly, if she is banned from the entire network or even faces a lawsuit, the wedding in a week will definitely be affected, and the system's mission will fail.

Joanna looked at the man in front of her who she had loved for seven years but was so cruel to her.

The last spark in her heart went out completely.

"Okay, I apologize."

Ten minutes later, she started the livestream.

She had no makeup, there was a faint bloodstain on her cheek, and her face was as pale as paper.

Millions of people flooded into the livestream instantly, and the barrage was full of unsightly abuse.

Ethan stood outside the camera, watching her coldly.

She bowed deeply to the camera.

"I'm sorry. It was me who accepted sponsorship from the restaurant and carried out false publicity, which caused Ms. Serena's physical harm. I am here to solemnly apologize to Ms. Serena and all the fans who trust me."

Every word seemed to linger in her soul.

She personally tore her seven years of hard work into pieces in front of everyone.

The comments in the barrage were loud and loud, and the rate of followers dropping was visible to the naked eye.

Ethan looked at her obedient look, but his heart was not as happy as he expected. Instead, he felt as if he was blocked by something and felt uncomfortable.

After the livestream ended, she slumped on the chair, like a rag doll whose soul had been drained.

Ethan walked up to her and said condescendingly: "Recognize the reality early and stop doing these little tricks. Just wait and be your bride."

She didn't look up, just looked at the countdown to the wedding on her phone.

Four days to go.

Liam, she's so tired.

But for you, she can endure anything.