The phone call infused Xu Mei, who was in despair, with newfound strength.
She was reborn.
Why should she die? She needed to live well, to live better than those who wronged her!
A fierce determination ignited within Xu Mei, but the two new girls had no idea.
They were terrified, seeing her standing so precariously close to the edge!
They only saw her on the phone, unaware of what she said. Wanting to approach but too scared to move closer, they were relieved when the company’s security finally arrived.
Xu Mei ignored the guards’ attempts to persuade her.
When a guard moved to pull her back, she leaned further over the railing, startling him into freezing.
Everyone urged her to stay calm.
General Manager Guan was the third to arrive.
When he first heard the news in his office, he thought it was a rumor. He and Station Chief Duan had just finalized their plan, and Xu Mei was in the room listening. Now she was about to jump?
“We just said we’d issue a clarification statement for her. What’s she making a fuss about?” Guan grumbled, annoyed at Xu Mei’s lack of composure.
Duan frowned tightly. “…She can’t jump!”
If she died, it would be a dead end. Xu Mei wasn’t some unknown nobody. Alive, her fame might be limited, but dying at the height of this scandal would draw massive attention.
If Xu Mei died to prove her innocence, Duan would never wash off the stain. False rumors would become truth—especially since Duan wasn’t exactly clean.
Fang Ping’s heart pounded.
“Hurry, let’s go see!” she urged.
Duan hesitated, unwilling to show his face.
He gave an excuse: his appearance might upset Xu Mei further.
“It’s normal for her to be emotional. She should voice her demands, not resort to something so extreme. Who’s she threatening? But don’t blame her now—wait till she calms down!” Duan instructed Guan earnestly, urging him to handle it well. Meet her demands if possible; if not, pretend to agree.
Guan and Fang Ping rushed to the rooftop, where the two new girls found their anchor.
“General Manager Guan.”
“You’re here!”
Guan nodded. “You two head downstairs. It’s no big deal. I’ll handle it.”
The girls hesitated, but their agent arrived and ushered them away.
“With General Manager Guan here, what are you two sticking around for? You’re just watching, making it hard for him to talk to Xu Mei!”
It made some sense.
Maybe Xu Mei just wanted air. Even if she’d been impulsive earlier, she might’ve reconsidered. With so many people on the rooftop, how could she step back gracefully?
The company leadership took over, and the girls couldn’t help by staying. Reluctantly, they left, turning back every few steps. The agent warned them not to talk, saying it was Xu Mei’s personal issue with the company, and spreading it would make things harder for her.
“But… why hasn’t the company clarified things for Sister Xu Mei?” one girl asked pointedly.
The agent’s face darkened. “Who said we’re not clarifying? The leadership has a plan. It takes time to execute. You’re new and don’t know the industry’s rules.”
Fine, they didn’t know.
But Xu Mei’s state earlier was truly frightening!
…
Only Guan, Fang Ping, and the guards remained on the rooftop. Guan signaled the guards to quietly approach Xu Mei.
They were still a few meters away when Xu Mei, as if with eyes in the back of her head, turned and gave a mocking smile.
“I heard falling from a building this high shatters your organs. If you don’t die instantly, you suffer unbearable pain before you go. That’s how it’s shown in movies, right? Do people who die like this become vengeful ghosts? I wasn’t famous enough alive, failing the company’s expectations. Maybe this path could make me a star. Imagine the media frenzy—what a spectacle!”
Guan initially thought she was just throwing a tantrum, but her words chilled him.
The company had crafted an intellectual image for Xu Mei, with her usually in soft colors. Today, she wore a rare red dress and red shoes. In the office, Guan hadn’t noticed, but now, with her talk of movie tropes and vengeful ghosts, his eyelids twitched.
Red dress, red shoes, jumping to a gruesome death—a classic Hong Kong ghost movie setup.
And media frenzy? Was Xu Mei planning to make a spectacle of her death?
Guan felt a chill, and Fang Ping couldn’t bear it, torn between fear and guilt.
“Xu Mei, don’t scare us. Talk this out. I promise we’ll clarify things for you!” Fang Ping said.
Xu Mei’s smile grew more sardonic.
“You clarify for me? Are you even qualified?”
Before Guan and Fang Ping arrived, Xu Mei had reflected deeply, dissecting herself.
She was vain, jealous, fame-hungry, naive, and too trusting.
She had flaws.
She’d even supported Pan Li’s plan to report *The Princess’s New Clothes*.
But that was because the show had real issues. If it was flawless, Xu Mei wouldn’t have framed anyone.
Not a saint.
But not a villain either.
Her wrongs paled compared to Guan, Duan, or even Fang Ping!
These were the truly ugly, hypocritical ones who made her sick.
Fang Ping flushed red from Xu Mei’s retort.
Guan started to speak, but Xu Mei spread her arms, the wind lifting her skirt as if she’d fall any second. His throat felt choked, his words stammering, “X-Xu Mei, tell us what you want—”
She couldn’t jump.
If she did, it wouldn’t just ruin Duan—Guan’s career would be over too!
And Liang Dan—she’d never let him off.
The company.
The talent show.
Everything he and his wife built would collapse!
Guan’s clothes were soaked with cold sweat. Fang Ping was at a loss. When Cao Bo arrived, they looked at him like a savior.
Cao Bo didn’t disappoint. Xu Mei was willing to engage with him.
Their relationship had faded, true, but they’d dated long enough that Cao Bo couldn’t bear the thought of her jumping.
Especially when Xu Mei turned, her fragile beauty struck him. Something about her—her eyes, her demeanor—seemed transformed.
Cao Bo thought she wanted to talk feelings, but her voice was cold: “I know you’ve wanted to break up. I have one demand. Buy a ring and propose to me now.”
Cao Bo was stunned.
Was Xu Mei threatening suicide to force a proposal?
Was she insane?
He wanted to break up, not get engaged!
Guan, meanwhile, felt relief.
—Liang Dan won’t blame me now. This is Xu Mei’s emotional mess, Cao Bo’s fault.
—How outrageous, dragging everyone into her drama by staging a jump on the company rooftop!
As Cao Bo reeled and Guan secretly rejoiced, Liang Dan arrived, having heard Xu Mei’s demand on the stairs.
“Cao Bo, agree to her,” Liang Dan said.
Xu Mei gave Liang Dan a coy smile. “Sister Liang, I don’t just want a proposal. I want news of my engagement to hit the papers and TV tomorrow—and I mean the company, you, notifying every media outlet!”
