Chapter 3: I’ll keep you, the kind where there’s nothing left of you when you die.

As she lifted her foot to take a step, Yu Ling felt a dark, vicious gaze fixed upon her, carrying an endless chill. It felt as if that stare had installed a tracker on her, following her like a persistent, malevolent spirit.

Yu Ling shuddered in disgust, yet she hummed a cheerful tune nonetheless.

"Little Red Riding Hood took her basket to Grandma’s house. The trees were green, the flowers red, and the birds sang, tweet-tweet, tweet-tweet, but your grandma has disappeared~"

"Why did she disappear? Because she ran away with the seven dwarfs~"

The thought of Lin Mianmian fuming in rage made Yu Ling happy—the kind of happy that made her want to rush to the front of Rotten Orange Entertainment and set off a few strings of firecrackers.

Rotten Orange Entertainment—a nickname Yu Ling had given the company herself. It was a gathering place for all sorts of scum and trash; wasn't it fittingly "rotten"?

The barrage of comments scrolling rapidly before her eyes caught her attention. Yu Ling quickened her pace; she needed to find a place to sit down and focus on extracting important information from this phenomenon. If this thing were merely a fleeting illusion that suddenly vanished, she would have nowhere to turn to vent her grief.

As she walked, Yu Ling multi-tasked, watching the road while observing the comments out of the corner of her eye.

[Lin Mianmian! I’m so angry, so incredibly angry, I’m dying of rage! Can someone let me transmigrate into the book and beat her to death?]

[My sweet daughter, Mom is truly in tears. You’ve finally been clever once; stop being kind and helping everyone indiscriminately!]

Yu Ling blinked. A system? Wasn't that something that only appeared in novels? No, that didn't seem to be a "thing" as such. *Sweet daughter?* Was that referring to her?

Due to Lin Mianmian’s targeting, Yu Ling’s status in the industry had plummeted. No one cared about her at events, and the organizers had assigned her to the smallest, most remote corner for a lounge. Ignoring the cold stares and ridicule of others, Yu Ling walked to her lounge and sat down.

The lighting was dim. She stared at her empty wrists and sighed. Truly, when a tiger falls to the plains, it is bullied by dogs. How pathetic.

However, a moment later, a sweet smile appeared on Yu Ling’s face. Fortunately, heaven had not treated her too poorly. She still had a boyfriend of one year who had remained by her side through thick and thin. Yu Ling caressed the diamond ring on her right ring finger. Though the diamond was small, it still shimmered faintly under the light, brightening her heart.

Seeming to find the courage to face her hardships again, Yu Ling looked up into the air.

[Sigh, Yu Ling treasures that ring from the scumbag so much. If she knew he picked it out of a trash can, how heartbroken would she be?]

Yu Ling’s eyes narrowed abruptly. She stared in disbelief at the text flashing across the screen, then looked down at the ring on her finger. On her birthday, Mu Chenbei had acted all mysterious before kneeling on one knee to propose.

He had told her that he had worked overtime for a month and eaten instant noodles for a month just to save enough money to buy it. Though the diamond was small, the sentiment was precious. Yu Ling had been deeply moved and had worn it ever since, taking it off only to bathe, treating it with the utmost care.

But... the comments claimed Mu Chenbei had fished it out of a trash can.

[Could that deadbeat scumbag be any stingier? If the diamond were any smaller, you’d need a magnifying glass to see it.]

[My heart aches for Yu Ling. That scumbag truly has no heart.]

[To the person above, you already called him a scumbag—how could he have a heart? His conscience was eaten by dogs long ago.]

Yu Ling paused for a moment and clenched her right hand.

[Mu Chenbei doesn’t love you at all; he only loves your money, baby! Now that you’re broke, he’s about to show his true colors and get tangled up with Lin Mianmian.]

Yu Ling fell silent. Actually... was it possible that she still had plenty of money? That was a little secret of hers. However, Mu Chenbei had indeed been acting strangely lately. He used to be doting, but now he was indifferent, ignoring her. He had even forgotten to give her a gift for their third anniversary, and after Yu Ling had cooked a massive feast, he hadn't even come home all night.

Yu Ling frowned, temporarily pushing these thoughts aside to continue reading the comments:

[I can’t fathom what kind of author would write such a disgusting novel. If it weren't for my attachment to Yu Ling, I would have dropped this story long ago.]

Yu Ling’s eyes scanned the word "novel" scrolling by. Connecting it to the previous messages, she quickly recalled a short story she had read before bed last night. The female lead in that story seemed to have awakened only after seeing these comments.

Yu Ling felt numb. Was she actually a character in a novel now? And one who could see the comments? For a moment, she didn't know whether to cry or laugh. After a brief struggle, she chose to laugh.

Was she about to awaken, gain a god’s-eye view, find a ray of hope, and embark on a path to success?

Yu Ling excitedly picked up the water glass beside her, intending to take a sip to steady her nerves.

[Sigh, Yu Ling probably never imagined that by being soft-hearted and helping that little assistant, she would be branded a scheming woman that everyone in the industry despises. Her fans would collectively turn into haters, her resources would plummet, and she would be forced to leave the entertainment industry.]

Yu Ling’s hand shook, and most of the water spilled onto the floor.

[That’s not all. Yu Ling will be tricked into acting in trashy films, assaulted by a director, and in her utter despair, guided by that scumbag to jump into the sea to end her life. Little does she know there are sharks in that water; she’ll end up in their bellies, leaving no corpse behind.]

Yu Ling: "..."

Her hand shook again; she couldn't even hold the glass steady. Which heartless bastard was plotting against her? She, Yu Ling, was a law-abiding, dedicated professional who loved nothing more than to stand up for justice—why would the damn author treat her this way?

Tears burst forth. Feeling incredibly thirsty, Yu Ling tremblingly brought the glass to her lips.

[Don't drink it, sweet daughter!]

[The water has been drugged by that scumbag Mu Chenbei. In the novel, this is where Yu Ling gets drugged and is sent to the bed of a business partner. He uses Yu Ling’s blood to climb the ladder, eventually building a massive business empire and getting his happy ending with Lin Mianmian—a story for the ages.]

[Ugh, what "story for the ages"? I’m going to throw up.]

[The author is a complete fraud. How miserable must their real life be to write something like this? It’s just a carnival for the vicious male and female leads.]

[It’s over. Yu Ling already drank the water. I can’t bear to watch the rest of the plot...]

*There are always treacherous people trying to harm me!*

Yu Ling’s scalp tingled. She frantically spat out the water in her mouth, wishing she could slap herself twice. *What was the point of being thirsty and drinking water for no reason?* She threw the glass away; it rolled on the ground and came to a stop.

"Mu Chenbei," Yu Ling spat the name through gritted teeth.

In a flash, she yanked the ring off her finger and threw it onto the floor. The near-violent action left her knuckle bright red.

Yu Ling had only one thought in her mind: *I want to kill someone.*

The deadbeat man! Eating her food, spending her money, and still trying to ruin her? Love? That was total bullshit.

Just last night, the man had been pretending to coddle her: "Lingling, once I land this contract, I can buy you a big house. You won’t have to go out and face the public anymore; I’ll provide for you!"

Yu Ling’s feelings were complex and beyond words. So, *that* was what "I'll provide for you" meant: *I'll provide for you until you have no corpse left.*

Absurd. Bizarre. Unheard of.