Chapter 225: The Mysterious Woman - She Really Is My Good Sister~
Erica looked at her husband's impotent rage and disapproved, but knew she couldn't add fuel to the fire, so she turned to leave.
"Wait, I have a plan!" John Foley, watching his wife's departing figure, was very annoyed, but suddenly an idea struck him and he called out.
"What plan?" Erica turned back, looking at him with a headache.
She would rather her husband be incompetent and raging than see him try something foolish and bring disaster upon himself.
John Foley smiled smugly and revealed his revenge plan.
"..." Erica's lips twitched after hearing this, and she retorted, "What's the point of all this besides annoying him? Besides, he's not an ordinary person—he might not even care!"
"I don't care if he feels it or not, as long as I feel it's insulting to him, that's enough," John Foley laughed. "Besides, the result is easy to verify."
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Erica finally couldn't help but remind him. "I thought we had already decided to compromise. If you pull this stunt afterward and anger him, what's the point of everything we've done now?"
John Foley's smile faltered for a moment, but he quickly smiled again. "How does he know it's me? I just won't upload it to my website."
Erica was speechless.
At this moment, who else but you would do this?
But she was too tired to persuade him anymore; she couldn't handle a husband like that.
"It's me. I'll provide you with a script; you should find someone to film it as soon as possible..." John Foley became more and more smug, dialed a number, and, full of inspiration, recited a script, asking for arrangements to be made for filming.
As a seasoned user with stakes in several adult websites, he naturally knew professionals.
What he didn't know was that, far away in a secure location, someone drawn to Chuck's activities had already included him in their surveillance, witnessing everything.
An adult film production location.
A beautiful woman in a well-tailored suit was watching a video online. It showed a woman revealing details of her encounter with a powerful figure. Unlike Hollywood actresses who could cry on command, the woman in the suit covered her face and feigned sobs, exclaiming dramatically, "Oh my God, I can't believe it..."
"Are you alright?" A man in a similar suit beside her closed his laptop and put his arm around her. "This isn't your fault."
"No, it's definitely my fault. Didn't you hear what she said? It's because I refused to do that that he went to her," the woman in the suit leaned against the man, feigning tears. "But I'm a good wife and mother, not a call girl like her. How could I do that?"
"I know, I know," the man in the suit reassured her. "She's far inferior to you. If you were willing to do it, I believe no one could resist your charm."
"Really?" The woman in the suit looked up at him, a hint of hope on her face. Their eyes met, and the atmosphere suddenly changed.
After a straightforward, adult-film-style scene, the woman suddenly cried out in exaggerated regret, "No, I can't do this!"
The man nodded reluctantly, "Sorry, it's all my fault."
"Who cares!" The woman walked to the door, her expression suddenly changing, as if she had made up her mind. "I'm a good wife and mother, but I'm also just a woman. Someone has to know that I'm no worse than that woman..."
"Cut!" The director suddenly yelled. "We have a new script."
"The 'Good Wife' parodies are incredibly popular right now. What new script could be better than this?" the cinematographer asked, voicing everyone's doubts.
That's right! Ever since the former Illinois State's Attorney and his wife became famous, the "good wife" had become a cultural phenomenon. It had not only resonated with many women, making them feel a strong sense of identification, but also attracted a large male audience with particular interests.
The market demand immediately fed back to the production side, and all sorts of parody films sprang up.
The rougher ones simply borrowed existing storylines, made slight changes, and released them directly.
A more meticulous approach involved thoroughly researching the entire case to capture the devoted wife's mindset, requiring slightly skilled actors to deliver convincing performances.
The most professional approach involved meticulously tracking every detail, conducting deduction and speculation, and then finding someone with decent acting ability and suitable appearance to deliver a performance. Well, there was no other way; at best, they could only find someone with moderate acting skills.
Those with truly exceptional acting skills were either already in Hollywood or, even more powerful, wielded considerable influence in the real world and wouldn't be involved in such productions.
This particular production was more professional, depicting the relationship between the devoted wife and her law firm boss, and capitalizing on the latest scandals.
After Peter Florrick officially announced his re-election bid for Illinois State's Attorney, a media storm once again swept over him and his family.
Women he had previously been involved with, at the instigation of certain parties, also began making public appearances, revealing secrets on television and announcing books, all detailing insider information, truly igniting everyone's interest once more.
The scene they just filmed was based on these real events. As for the plot involving the boss, that was creative collaboration by the director and team.
This was sure to be a hit—guaranteed to be massively popular.
"A detective?" When the director revealed the new plot's focus, everyone was unimpressed. What was so interesting about that?
"How about a detective plus the good wife angle?" The director hesitated. "Would that be profitable?"
"Sure!" the cinematographer laughed. "The good wife angle is gold right now, and a detective already has some buzz."
So everyone started brainstorming again.
Meanwhile, "Is that all?" Jane, hearing that John Foley had agreed to pay a staggering $12 million in compensation, truly felt the surreal nature of the world.
When did billionaires become so easy to persuade? It's unbelievable!
"It's resolved," Alex's expression was complicated.
"What are your plans now?" Jane looked at Alex with some sympathy. Experiencing something like this would probably leave a psychological scar she'd never forget.
"Go back to the company first and process my resignation," Alex smiled bitterly. "Then take some time off and think carefully about what to do next."
"You can ask Chuck," Jane couldn't help but look at Chuck.
"Do what you like, but stay away from professions with a lot of conflict," Chuck said. "I'll send you a list of things to avoid. After you eliminate those, then you can seriously consider what you like."
"..." Alex and Jane were speechless. They exchanged a glance and both understood the meaning behind the wry smile in each other's eyes.
They both knew all too well what Chuck's so-called list meant.
It meant something incredibly detailed. Not to mention the complexity of following the list, eliminating things according to it meant there was almost no room for free choice.
"Okay," although she knew, Alex still agreed immediately.
This time, it was obvious she had held Chuck back; otherwise, Chuck wouldn't have clashed with a billionaire just to make her feel better.
She was naturally pleased that Chuck had gone to such lengths for her, but secretly told herself this was the first and last time.
She wanted to take care of Chuck, not be taken care of by him.
"Chuck, should we go back now?" Jane asked Chuck.
"Yes," Chuck nodded. Having finished their business, it was time to head back.
The next day, Chuck and Jane flew back to New Jersey, while Alex returned to her company.
As their plane soared into the sky from Chicago airport, an ordinary-looking man disembarked. After checking into a five-star hotel and freshening up, his phone chimed. He opened it to find an encrypted message. He stared at it intently for a moment, then deciphered it: a sentence and a photo. "John Foley, accident."
The photo was of John Foley, the owner of Encounter.com. A few seconds later, the message disappeared.
The man was used to this; it was standard procedure.
London. In a stately manor, an elegant woman with classical features was writing at her desk. Suddenly, her phone chimed. She opened it, a knowing smile playing on her lips, and muttered to herself, "Just as I thought—she really is my good sister."
Lost in thought for a moment, the elegant woman put down her phone, shook her head with a smile, and resumed writing her unfinished letter.
A few days later. Encounter.com headquarters.
"Are you sure you can handle it?" John Foley called the professional director to inquire about the progress of the detective parody. The reply was that their team had been in a minor car accident while celebrating, but everyone was alright and needed to recover for a while, so filming couldn't continue.
"We have excellent ideas and the ability to execute them. We'll start filming as soon as we're better. I guarantee you'll be satisfied," the director assured him confidently.
"Okay," John Foley thought for a moment and agreed to postpone filming.
At this point, he felt a delay wasn't so bad; it would minimize the chances of Chuck targeting him.
In his opinion, with Chuck's style, he'd probably forget about him after a while, and by then Chuck would have angered countless other enemies. It was a win-win situation—annoying Chuck without immediate consequences.
It was just a pity he couldn't vent his anger immediately, but then he thought about how delayed gratification is supposedly more satisfying, and now he was going to experience it.
Thinking of this, in high spirits, he walked to the bookshelf, took out his Bible, then his hidden escort directory, and began flipping through it, looking for the right contact. Thinking of his wife, he stopped on a page with someone matching her description, then started making a phone call.
Whistling, he descended the private elevator to the garage, drove to his private residence, and prepared to act out his fantasy.
Little did he know, another car was following him.
Several hours later, a scream rang out, and an ambulance arrived. The paramedics, upon hearing it was a suspected stroke, made crude jokes on the way. Only after resuscitation failed and he was pronounced dead did they realize the gravity of the situation: the person who had died was none other than billionaire John Foley.
When Erica learned of this, she couldn't hold back her tears, but was also filled with doubt and uncertainty.
She felt it was too much of a coincidence.
Her husband had always been experienced, having done this countless times without incident. How could he have suddenly suffered a stroke while trying to annoy Detective Chuck?
However, after the preliminary investigation results came out, she had to accept that it might be an accident. The excitement was too much for someone his age with his lifestyle, and this was bound to happen eventually. She also thought that Chuck had been gone for several days, so it couldn't be him.
And even if it were him, Chuck, with his reputation and methods, was someone she wouldn't dare offend.
So, she accepted all of her husband's assets, immediately transferred the $12 million compensation to Andrew Morse's family, completely forgot about the matter, and entered a new era where she had complete control over the dating website.
The group of adult film professionals recuperating in the hospital were stunned upon hearing this news.
"Director, are we still filming?" the actress asked.
"Director, maybe we shouldn't film it?" the male actor playing opposite said with lingering fear. "I have a bad feeling about this. We were just about to start filming when we all got into a car accident, and now even the one who commissioned it has died... I don't want that to happen to me!"
"What's the point of filming!" the director gritted his teeth. "After we're discharged from the hospital, we'll film according to our own ideas, not listen to others."
"Director is wise," everyone else echoed with relief.
They were superstitious even when making adult films.
Monica's apartment.
"Phoebe, why are you dressed like that?" Ross felt extremely uncomfortable, avoiding direct eye contact with Phoebe, who was wearing a business suit.
"What's wrong? Why can't I dress like this?" Phoebe asked with a grin, tilting her head.
"Didn't you hate corporate conformity and see wearing suits as selling out?" Ross's eyes flickered. "Now, suddenly dressed like this, I'm not used to it."
"Really?" Phoebe was a little skeptical, but she didn't know what was wrong. She looked at Ross for a while, puzzled, before smiling and explaining. "Joey asked me to do a small role, an office worker. Although I don't like corporations, I do like acting."
Pfft! Ross spat out the soda he was drinking.
"What's wrong with you?" Monica immediately looked over, cleaning up while complaining.
"Nothing, nothing," Ross didn't dare explain why he reacted that way after hearing Phoebe mention acting, so he could only cover it up.
At this moment, Joey walked in with a strange expression.
"Joey, how did it go? How did it go?" Phoebe, who was excited about her role, was looking forward to it.
"Sorry, Phoebe, your scenes were cut," Joey looked apologetic, hesitant to speak.
"No! Why?" Phoebe said unhappily.
"This, this..." Joey didn't want to say anything, but under pressure from Phoebe and Rachel, she had no choice but to tell the truth. "Someone recognized you and said you looked like someone in those parody films..."
"What?!" Everyone was confused, then Ross's eyes flickered.
"Ross, do you know something?" Rachel, with her sharp eyes, immediately noticed Ross's unusual behavior.
"I don't know," Ross quickly lowered his head, denying it.
Under Rachel's questioning, Joey realized something, her eyes widened, and she pointed at Ross. "I can't believe it, you're still watching Ursula's films!"
"What?!" Everyone exclaimed in unison.
Ursula was Phoebe's twin sister, a troublemaker who worked as a waitress while making adult films. She was somewhat known in their area. Everyone only found out about this after someone mistook Phoebe for Ursula.
Because Phoebe and Ursula looked exactly alike, after accidentally seeing Ursula's work together, everyone decided that they would never watch Ursula's films again, so as not to affect their relationship with Phoebe.
It was obvious that Ross was only paying lip service; his actions betrayed the group.
With the recent surge in popularity of "Good Wife" parodies, Ursula had naturally made one too. Ross's reaction to Phoebe's sudden appearance in a business suit made sense after watching it.
Unable to deny it, Ross could only admit he had indeed accidentally watched Ursula's parody film, earning him a severe scolding from everyone.
"You know, Chuck went to Chicago, and I heard he met with Lockhart & Gardner, and the real 'Good Wife' works at that firm," Chandler teased. "If I'd known you were so obsessed, I would have insisted on going with Chuck and gotten you an autograph!"
"..." Ross glared at Chandler for kicking him while he was down. But then, remembering that Chuck had met the real person behind the phenomenon, he felt a surge of envy and jealousy.
(End of Chapter)
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