One month later.
Los Angeles Television Station.
Today, the first episode of "The Voice of America" was being recorded here.
Frank Castle stepped out of the taxi, looking up at the imposing and magnificent television station building. A slight sense of emotion stirred within him. He had never imagined, when working behind the scenes as a songwriter, that he would one day come here as a singer.
Frank walked up the steps. The revolving door spun open, and a round-faced girl with twin ponytails bounced out, her eyes lighting up when she saw Frank.
"Hello, Mr. Castle! I'm Lily Chen, and I'm responsible for assisting you. Please guide me!" The young girl extended a delicate hand, her slightly chubby, round face bearing a touch of baby fat, her twin ponytails swaying. Her eyes were clear, clearly that of a newcomer to the professional world.
Frank smiled and extended his hand, "Hello, Ms. Chen. I'll be troubling you then."
"No trouble at all, Mr. Castle! I'll take you to the recording studio!"
Lily enthusiastically led Frank into the television station, taking the elevator to the fifth floor. All the way, Lily chattered away, explaining various things to note during the recording.
Exiting the elevator, they walked along the corridor to the backstage area of Studio One. Lily said: "Mr. Castle, this is it. Please go on in." The young girl made a fist and placed it over her chest, "Good luck!"
"Thanks, you too!" Frank smiled and nodded, then turned and walked inside.
"Mr. Castle seems like a nice person, not as bad as they say online, right?" Looking at Frank's retreating back, Lily tilted her head, a bit confused. She was a recent college graduate who had joined the network, and her first assignment was a big project like "The Voice of America." Lily cherished this opportunity.
"The director assigned me to such an important artist; he must be planning to groom me! Lily, you have to work hard and not disappoint Director Miller! Yeah!"
Frank walked into the recording studio. Many people were already inside. At a glance, more than half of them were faces he had seen on TV or online. Those able to participate in "The Voice of America" were all well-known figures in the music industry, even if past their prime, they had once shone brightly.
However, Frank's appearance immediately drew everyone's attention. A young woman instinctively gasped: "The abusive guy?" She immediately clapped a hand over her mouth, looking utterly embarrassed.
Everyone else's expressions were also peculiar – surprise, doubt, disdain. Thanks to Amelia Quinn and Liam Reed, Frank's name was currently infamous: "jealous, incompetent husband," "abusive man," "scumbag Castle"... all sorts of nicknames were thrown around. In terms of "black popularity," no one present could hold a candle to Frank.
"No, this is a singing competition for artists. Why is Frank Castle here?"
"Right, he's not even a singer!"
"Is the production team trying to go for 'black fame' too?"
The singers whispered amongst themselves. Everywhere Frank went, everyone automatically kept their distance. Frank's reputation was too tainted now; no one dared to associate with him.
Frank didn't care, he found a corner and sat down alone, closing his eyes to rest.
"Hey, you're in my seat."
Just then, a delicately featured young man walked over and coldly addressed Frank.
"It's Alex Stone! From Twilight Studio!"
"Alex Stone's idol is Liam Reed. Is he sticking up for his idol?"
"No, Liam Reed and Amelia Quinn are just business partners. What standing does Alex Stone have to pick a fight with Frank?"
Frank opened his eyes. He recognized the effeminate young man before him. Alex Stone was a new artist signed by Amelia's studio last year. Though a bit effeminate, his songwriting talent was indeed commendable. Alex Stone greatly admired Liam Reed, to the point of harboring hostility towards Frank, his "idol's rival," though he never dared to act on it openly. Now that Frank and Amelia were divorced, Alex Stone finally had an opportunity to vent on behalf of his idol.
"Please get up. I was sitting here a moment ago." Alex Stone looked down at Frank, his delicate features attempting to convey a cold expression, which looked somewhat ridiculous.
Frank chuckled, pointing to a seat opposite: "Kids go to that table."
"What did you say?!" Alex Stone's "pretty face" flushed scarlet, and he started to ramble: "Liam is the man who truly deserves Amelia. You should have been swept out long ago!"
Frank suddenly stood up. Alex Stone flinched, taking a step back: "What do you want?"
Frank said coldly: "With a mind like yours, it's only fitting that your idol is a manipulative schemer who wants to be a homewrecker."
"You, you, you..." Alex Stone was so flustered he couldn't speak, his face flushed.
The others also looked awkward. No matter how much of a "scumbag" Frank was made out to be, he and Amelia were legally married. Liam constantly engaged in "shipping" with Amelia even before their divorce, which did seem a bit manipulative.
Alex Stone's face was beet red, and he angrily retorted: "Liam is a recognized talent! You can't even sing. What right do you have to insult him?"
Frank smiled: "I came to this show to sing, didn't I?"
Alex Stone finally found a point of leverage: "You? Don't even mention Liam; even I can easily crush you!"
Just then, Director Miller and several assistant directors walked into the recording studio. The singers immediately fell silent. Director Miller had a receding hairline, wore glasses, and sported a slight paunch – a typical middle-aged, somewhat unkempt appearance. However, his speech was crisp and efficient. After a brief self-introduction and detailing the recording specifics, an assistant director came over to say that the live audience for the recording had begun checking in.
Director Miller nodded and said to the thirty-six contestants: "The show starts recording in an hour. Everyone, please prepare well."
Everyone obediently replied in unison: "Thank you, Director Miller!"
Director Miller was about to leave when several more people walked in from outside. The two leading them were one dazzlingly beautiful and one strikingly handsome, clearly a perfect match.
"Liam! Amelia!" Alex Stone exclaimed in surprise, while the others instinctively turned to look at Frank in the corner.
Amelia Quinn and Liam Reed wore gentle smiles. Liam said to Director Miller: "Hello, Director Miller. We arrived a bit early and thought we'd come say hello."
Amelia and Liam worked together seamlessly. She continued: "We also picked up some coffee and pastries on the way. Please, everyone, help yourselves." With that, she personally handed out coffee and pastries to the staff and contestants.
The divorce had affected Amelia somewhat, and she wanted to seize every opportunity to build a compassionate and thoughtful image. This would make more people believe she was the victim in that failed marriage. However, Amelia noticed that while the contestants who took the coffee politely thanked her, their expressions were somewhat strange. Amelia felt something was off but couldn't quite figure out what.
She turned, took the last cup of coffee from her assistant, and walked towards a contestant sitting in the corner. Maneuvering past others, she finally got close enough to see the contestant clearly.
The next second, Amelia froze.
"Frank?"
Frank smiled and stood up, his expression calm amidst the countless strange gazes around him. "Ms. Quinn, hello. Not planning to give me the coffee?"
Amelia's smile vanished instantly, her face turning pale. She rigidly handed the coffee to Frank. Frank, however, was completely at ease, taking the coffee. "Ms. Quinn, how thoughtful of you."
Amelia looked at his familiar smile, momentarily dazed. A cough from Liam behind her brought Amelia back to reality, her voice dry: "You're welcome."
The PR stunt became incredibly awkward due to Frank's presence. Amelia and Liam hastily left the backstage area. A moment later, Director Miller also left, leaving only an assistant director in charge of the contestants.
The contestants couldn't help but whisper: "I can't believe Amelia is a mentor. Is this fate's cruel joke?"
"Ms. Quinn's face went white when she saw Frank just now. Was she really beaten at home often?"
"Ex-wife as a mentor, ex-husband as a contestant. This is so intense!"
"Ms. Quinn will probably give Frank zero points every episode, right?"
Alex Stone snorted coldly, looking at Frank sitting not far away. "If some people had any male dignity, they'd withdraw now."
Frank looked at the effeminate Alex Stone: "Male dignity? You women wouldn't understand."
"You!" Alex Stone's "pretty face" flushed scarlet, pointing at Frank, unable to speak.
Frank ignored him, stood up, and walked out of the backstage lounge, intending to go to the restroom. Just as he walked past the outer corridor, a familiar voice came from behind:
"Frank."
Frank turned, seeing Amelia looking coldly at him. "We need to talk."
Frank said indifferently: "What's left for us to talk about?"
Amelia glared at him, her voice filled with anger: "Frank, you promised not to cling to me! What is this now? You've even chased me to this show. We're not in the same world anymore. Can you please just leave me alone?"