Chapter 35 Demand

Chapter 35: The Ultimatum

Just because she has a mental illness doesn't mean she's a fool. Does she think killing the female lead means the shares would just fall into her lap? She's not the female lead's husband.

Then again, the thought is terrifying. If the female lead hadn't handed over the shares, who knows if the male lead might have done away with his wife for them?

True love? What true love? Could true love make someone willingly become the other woman? Only someone as brain-dead as the female lead would believe such nonsense.

Just as she was about to go back and stand guard in the mourning hall, she heard some commotion in the fire escape. Glancing around, she quietly approached.

Through a crack in the door, two arguing voices filtered out.

"Ruan Ruan, tell me you were forced. You had to be, right? It must be my brother who forced you. How could you possibly love him? Tell me, it's all fake!"

The male voice carried a hint of desperation, followed by the female voice's characteristic sob. "I'm sorry, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have deceived you, but... I genuinely have feelings for Qi Yun. Blame me, it's all my mistake."

"No! That's impossible! How could you possibly like my brother? Then what am I? If you like him, why did you agree to get engaged to me?! Am I really that insignificant in your eyes?"

"I'm sorry, it's all my fault..."

As the stairwell door was pulled open, the female lead, red-eyed, suddenly ran out. She was startled to see someone outside. Then, remembering her sister hated it when she cried, she immediately covered her face and ran back into the mourning hall.

Su Mi glanced into the passageway. Sure enough, Qi Xi was punching the wall repeatedly, his face filled with anger and frustration, as if unsure who to blame.

She gave a slight, mocking smile. "Women are drawn to power. Nobody wants a deadbeat. You can't even inherit the family business. You'll be living off an allowance your whole life. How could Ruan Ruan possibly entrust her future to you?"

Qi Xi's anger finally found a target when he saw her. But a flash of memory about his missing tooth made him step back instead, and he retorted, "You think Ruan Ruan is anything *like* you? She's not that kind of person!"

Su Mi frowned, stepped forward, and bopped his forehead. "Like me? If she had half my brains, she wouldn't be playing the other woman. The sight of her turns my stomach. All you people do is talk about love, love, love. Can love put food on the table?"

"Use your head. If your brother really gave a damn about her, would he have let her be his mistress all these years? At the birthday banquet, he didn't even dare to speak up. He's either a coward or selfish. Would you actually trust someone like that with Ruan Ruan's future?"

Qi Xi, covering his forehead, stammered, "My brother isn't that kind of person. He... he was just forced into it..."

Hearing this, Su Mi sneered. "Forced? You're a man too. Put yourself in his shoes. Would you let Ruan Ruan be treated that way?"

"Of course not!" Qi Xi denied without hesitation.

"Exactly. What's your brother really like? You must have some idea. If you really like her, go and win her back. That's what a real man should do, not wallow in helpless rage here!" she said with disgust.

Hearing this, Qi Xi showed a hint of conflict, looking defeated. "But... Ruan Ruan likes my brother. What can I do?"

As he spoke, he punched the wall again, as if frustrated by his own powerlessness.

Su Mi resisted the urge to roll her eyes and continued, "Compete with your brother for the family fortune. If your brother gives up Ruan Ruan for the company, it proves he's unworthy of her. If he's willing to give up the company for love, then his feelings are genuine. Right now, only you can plan for Ruan Ruan's future. Don't you understand that?"

Hearing this, Qi Xi frowned again. "But... I..."

"You need to figure out your next move. Start by getting a position in the company. Your parents will likely support you. But if your brother deliberately undermines you, it proves he's no good. How could someone like that be worthy of Ruan Ruan's lifelong commitment?"

Su Mi glanced at him coldly. "I'm not helping you. I just can't stand seeing the two of them together."

Seeing Qi Xi's wavering expression, she turned and returned to the mourning hall. Stir up trouble among the enemy first; then she can take advantage of the chaos. Once she inherits the company, she can join forces with the third female lead to bring down that pretentious jerk.

And that creep villain—he's definitely one of the original host's hangups. Every last one of them will pay.

But for now, she needs to accumulate enough fortune points. She still needs over a hundred to convert into financial management talent. Triggering tasks is getting harder and harder these days.

Back in the mourning hall, her mother said it was time to take the ashes to the cemetery. Knowing she disliked holding the urn, her mother had her carry the photo instead.

Her mother was probably worried she might have an episode on the way and scatter the old man's ashes.

She wouldn't go that far. After all, she inherited ten percent of the shares. She still has some bottom line.

Since the female lead was no longer part of the Su family, she could only blend into the crowd. The funeral procession then drove to the cemetery.

As the last direct descendant of the Su family, she stood at the front during the ceremony. Looking at the old man's photo, she silently mourned for three seconds in her heart, then bowed three times.

Afterward, her father returned to the company, looking depressed. Due to the share changes, a board meeting was held today. As the owner of ten percent of the shares, she was now a board member and naturally needed to attend.

Sure enough, as soon as she got in the car, she saw the female lead sneaking off toward the cemetery, clearly intending to pay her respects to the old man in secret.

This was her first time at the family company. Before even entering the meeting room, she could hear noisy arguments from down the hallway. It sounded less like a meeting of high society and more like a group of shrews quarreling.

As the meeting room door opened, the noise gradually subsided. Everyone sat there red-faced and thick-necked, drinking water. Those with manners greeted the chairman.

Su Min sat expressionlessly at the head of the table and looked at the others. "Everyone has received the notice about the share changes. This is my daughter, Su Mi. Starting today, she officially joins the board."

The latter maintained a slight smile and nodded, then found a seat.

The board included not only Su family members but also veterans from the company's founding days. According to the original story, once the old man was gone, these people, forgetting past favors, caused all sorts of trouble and created many problems for the company.

The male lead's approach was to set traps to purge these people from the company and send them to prison. But many hadn't broken any laws; they were just unwilling to side with the male lead and got caught in the crossfire. These domineering CEOs only care about looking cool and don't give a damn about the NPCs' lives.

"I heard she has a mental illness. You're not planning to hand the company over to her to manage, are you? If so, don't blame me for speaking harshly as your uncle," an elderly man with graying temples said with a frown.

Others chimed in. "Set up a foundation for her, let her collect a monthly allowance. Letting her join the board is a joke. This isn't child's play."

Su Min's expression changed slightly. Just as he was about to speak, his daughter suddenly spoke up. "Which of your presbyopic eyes saw that I have a mental illness? I haven't even said you have dementia. If you old folks who are one foot in the grave can be on the board, why can't I?"

"What's wrong with me inheriting the company? Shouldn't my family's company be inherited by me? Or do you think you, an old man, should inherit it? You wish. You'd better go to the hospital and check for dementia. All you do is babble like a shrew."

Instantly, everyone's faces flushed red with anger. Stammering, they could only direct their accusatory gazes at Su Min and the other Su family members.

Yet the Su family members, who usually argued over every word, now all hung their heads in silence, as if deaf to this rude tirade. Normally, these people would have jumped up to pick a fight, but now none dared to make a sound!

"You... you're outrageous!" One old man slammed his hand on the table.

Another directed his angry gaze at Su Min. "Listen to what she's saying! We're her elders, after all, and she's cursing us with dementia!"

Su Mi shot him a cold glance. "And you can curse me with mental illness? Who's more vicious? I tried being polite, but you didn't appreciate it. Elders? If you don't cherish the young, why should I respect the old?"

"Outrageous? What's your standard of propriety? Is it going abroad for affairs with mistresses, getting exposed by paparazzi, and causing the company's stock to plummet? I think you're all spies sent by our competitors, each more malicious than the last!"

Hearing her words, the other Su family members kept their heads down in silence, seemingly accustomed to her outbursts. Staying quiet now was an emergency precaution; otherwise, if this niece had an episode, everyone might get slapped.

"You... you..."

One old man, enraged, suddenly stood up and stormed out in a huff.

Su Min sat there coughing repeatedly. Everything his daughter said was true; it was just that no one usually stated it so bluntly. So he didn't know what to say.

One followed another, and soon the rest left one after another, as if unable to accept someone with mental issues joining the board.

With so many people gone, the meeting couldn't proceed. Su Min could only announce the board meeting canceled, to be rescheduled.

The other Su family members watched the spectacle. After all, they never believed a mentally ill person could take over the company. Eventually, someone from another branch would have to step up.

On the way back, Su Min instead comforted his daughter. "Your grandfather usually spoke harshly. Now it's all in the past. From now on, if you're unhappy about anything, you can tell Mom and Dad. If you feel wronged, you don't have to endure it. In life, your own happiness is what matters most."

Su Mi nodded from the car seat, "I know what to do. No need for you to feel pressured either. I'm not sick; I'm completely normal."

Su Min nodded repeatedly, "I know, you're not sick. It's just that those people speak too harshly. Dad's been sick of them for a long time—a bunch of old-timers who flaunt their seniority and only know how to cause trouble."

Sensing her father still didn't quite believe her, Su Mi didn't explain further. After returning home, she asked the butler to schedule an appointment at the psychiatric evaluation center. Once she obtained a certificate proving no mental disorders, those old men would have no excuse to spout nonsense.

However, taking over the company couldn't be done overnight. The most urgent task now was to boost her luck points. She was just a little short of surpassing the female lead and needed to trigger tasks as soon as possible.

Moreover, surpassing the female lead wasn't enough; she also had to convert financial management talent points. That would surely require a lot of luck points later, but now that the second male lead wasn't even scolding her anymore, triggering tasks was becoming increasingly difficult.

Seeing the show's ratings climb higher and her fans grow in number, with the comment section filled with nothing but praise, she couldn't feel happy at all.

Suddenly remembering something she'd overlooked, she logged into her account and posted a brief statement.

Su Mi v: Due to irreconcilable differences with someone, we have now ended our relationship. [smiling face]

StrawberryCube: Aaaaaah, the CP I shipped actually broke up!!!

Lalala: The first couple in C-ent to break up less than half a month after going public. [crying-laughing emoji]

Silently: Hahahahaha, not surprised at all since it's Sister Mi. [crying-laughing emoji]

Blink Blink: Is it because he's average, so sis couldn't take it anymore? [dog head]

Maroon Screen: Sis's breakup announcement is so formal; I'm actually a bit unused to it. [crying-laughing emoji]

Dislocated: Hahahahaha, as expected of my Sister Mi, never dragging things out. [crying-laughing emoji]

Rabbit City: Who said my Sister Mi was clinging to a big shot? She just kicked the man to the curb. [smiling face]

Will: How did they split so fast? [runny nose]

Oh OK: It was surreal when they announced it; it's even more bizarre now that they've broken up. [crying-laughing emoji]

False Eyelashes: So what's the use of a man being good-looking? If the performance isn't up to par, it's still useless. Anyway, my sis won't put up with this kind of nonsense. [dog head]

Since the news of the old man's death had been exposed, and whether rival companies had hired trolls or not, they kept bad-mouthing her company. Diverting netizens' attention now was naturally good, so she specifically asked Sister Zhou to buy the top trending hashtag.

After getting up early for the funeral, she took a nap and didn't get up for dinner until evening. Probably having long been fed up with the old man, her mother's spirits were quite good; she even drank an extra bowl of soup at night.

But Su Min dropped another piece of news, "The Qi family sent over a wedding invitation today, saying they'll hold the wedding for Qi Yun and Ruan Ruan in two months."

Hearing this, even Su's mother couldn't help but turn cold, "If she wants to sink so low, no one can save her."

Sending a wedding invitation on the very day of the other family's grandfather's seventh-day memorial was an obvious move by the Qi family. They clearly intended to piss them off, feeling that their previous police report had damaged the Qi family's reputation, so now they were deliberately returning the favor.

Since they had long since burned all bridges, who cared about maintaining appearances anymore?

Yet the female lead was actually willing to marry the male lead, even though the old man's body wasn't even cold yet.

Su Mi didn't want to make any statement either. If the female lead wanted to marry, let her. After all, it wasn't her who'd end up chopped up later.

"The Qi family's actions clearly show they don't take us seriously. Ruan Ruan is no longer a member of our Su family, and we have no obligation to attend and congratulate her. She'll come to her senses one day after hitting a wall." Su Min said calmly while drinking his soup.

Hearing this, Su's mother turned her gaze to her daughter, "Since you've already broken up with Lin Yue, I'll arrange some introductions for you later, and you can pick from them."

Su Mi's expression turned a bit strange. It seemed her mother also hated the old man to the core, setting up blind dates for her right after he died.

"Alright, then remember to find someone with a good figure, broad shoulders, a narrow waist, eight-pack abs, a total pushover, gentle, considerate, and good-looking. That's my only little requirement." She said seriously.

Su Min suddenly choked on his soup. He initially wanted to say it was a bit early to bring this up right after her father's death, but hearing his daughter's requirements, he felt they were a bit demanding. Other points aside, he definitely needed to find someone sturdy for his daughter; otherwise, they might end up in the hospital after just a couple of hits.

"I'll... keep looking." Su's mother nodded with a smile.

"Isn't Xiao Lin exactly that kind of person? He used to be your coach, so he must be durable. People like that are rare nowadays." Su Min seemed to recall something.

Su Mi shook her head, "He's after my money, so definitely not."

If he wasn't after her money, why would he pretend to be a coach to deceive her? Did he think a few nice words would make her let bygones be bygones? That was wishful thinking.

"The Lin family is on the rise now, far better than the Qi family's. It shows Xiao Lin is capable, and not every man is that mercenary." Su Min said softly.

Su Mi suddenly looked up, "Then give me an example of one who isn't mercenary."

"..."

Su Min seemed to choke, thought it over, and simply stopped talking. He had tried his best. Young people's matters were best left to young people themselves. If he said any more, his position as a father might be in jeopardy.

Marriage, marriage—so many couples around her were married, yet Su Mi couldn't see a single happy one. Either the man cheated and kept a mistress, or he was a mama's boy and a coward.

Take the original host's adoptive father, for example. He seemed honest and simple, but marrying someone like that would probably lead to dying from breast cancer within three years because all the anger was bottled up inside.

Or take Su Min. On the surface, he seemed like a model husband, but in daily life, he still obeyed whatever the old man said. Who knows how much grievance he made her mother suffer in private? Otherwise, why would her mother arrange blind dates the moment the old man died?

Then there was that scumbag Lin Yue. Her father now spoke in his favor because he had encountered version 2.0 of Lin Yue. If he had met version 1.0 with all its pretentiousness, he probably wouldn't even mention him.

So, what good can men possibly be? Finding one who meets the passing grade is already a rarity, let alone that pretentious male lead. If the female lead dared to resist, she'd probably instantly turn into an abused female lead locked in a dark room.

But sometimes, thinking about it was quite frustrating because she had a thing for men. Not playing with men felt like missing out on something.

Returning to her room, she messaged Sister Zhou again. After the lawsuit with the male lead went to court next week, regardless of the outcome, she should first plant some stories. That way, she'd make the most of the traps she'd set in advance.

Once the backlash hit, the other company's stock would definitely be affected.

But when she logged into her account, she saw tens of thousands of new comments under her breakup post. And the top trending hashtag at the moment wasn't hers, but an advertisement tag from Huamao Tech.

Clicking into it, she saw they had just released a new product and taken the opportunity to lower its price.

Huamao Tech: The boss lady doesn't want the boss anymore. On this sorrowful day, the N18 originally priced at 4199 is now tearfully reduced to 3899!!!!

Here it comes: Hahahahahahahaha, marketing genius.

Blue-Pink Shirt: Is this a stab at the boss's main artery?

Longed-for Pistachio: Even with the price cut, I won't buy it because the "performance" is mediocre. [smiling face]

Flying Coconut: Such a cunning man, definitely trying to win back my Sister Mi. [smiling face]

Heeheeheehee: Mediocre appearance, mediocre performance, mediocre camera too. [dog head]

Bunny: Don't bother with all these flashy tricks. First, tell your boss to improve the performance—I mean the phone's. [dog head]

Scarf: Sorry, even with mediocre performance, I'll still buy it because the appearance is too good. I'm a looks person. [tears]

Who Who Who: Hahahahahahahaha, netizens these days are too wicked. [crying-laughing emoji]

Commission: Damn it! I ordered it at 4199 a few days ago, and today you drop the price?! No wonder Sister Mi returned it. [smiling face]

This scumbag really knew how to play the victim for marketing, not letting any bit of traffic go to waste. He just wanted people to think she was the one who didn't want him, so he wouldn't be labeled negatively and could even capitalize on the pity to attract attention.

They're all schemers, but in front of her, they pretend to be head over heels.

Su Mi didn't indulge him either. She logged back into that gossip account and started posting.

OP: Today, let's spill the tea on the story between L and actress S that everyone's curious about.

S, knowing how treacherous high society can be, specifically hired a world champion to teach her martial arts (for fitness). That's when she met L, who was passing himself off as a coach. As for why L, a CEO with a packed schedule, would pretend to be a coach—only he knows.

Later, S felt something was off, but L, relying on his looks, often hit on her. So even though S sensed something was wrong, she didn't expose him. As for why L hit on S—again, only he knows. I won't say more to avoid getting the post deleted.

Eventually, L wasn't skilled enough to teach S anymore, so she cut him off cold turkey. There was probably some chemistry between them, but likely nothing substantial, since in the video, L left the room in less than five minutes—he couldn't be that fast.

The video was released by S's rival, part of a power struggle among the elites. Their public announcement was just a temporary alliance for mutual benefit, but S didn't want to drag it out, so she announced the breakup in less than half a month.

#1: So L is such a player, still milking the situation now. I actually believed they were together!

#2: L hit on S? I can't quite picture that [crying-laughing emoji]

#3: Thinking about L lasting less than five minutes, I'm more inclined to think they were never together [crying-laughing emoji]

#4: Could L also be fortune-hunting? That seems unlikely—his family is already rich.

#5: Who says no to more money? Trusting men brings a lifetime of bad luck!

#6: No! I'm still firmly shipping my CP!!!

#7: No wonder the video seemed off. If they were together, L wouldn't have kept his hands so far away when entering, like he was deliberately maintaining distance. What couple is that distant?

#8: Then why did S say L was average? They must have had something going on!

#9: S said it herself—she had her fun. Maybe it's because L was average, so S didn't want to take things further.

#10: Hahahaha, feels like the comment above hit the nail on the head!

#11: His nose is quite tall, though. How could this happen [tearful emoji] How am I supposed to find a man now [tearful emoji]

#12: A tall nose just means the hardware is fine, but that thing needs flexibility. Let's just say L isn't gifted, wasting good hardware [smirk emoji]

#13: S is truly my role model! If something doesn't suit her, she cuts it off without hesitation. If it were me, I might have tried to... train him a bit more [shy emoji]

#14: Other female celebrities are vague about scandals, but this sister goes so far she almost got banned [crying-laughing emoji]

#15: Why did L pretend to be a coach to deceive S? Could it have been love at first sight?

#16: Kick that lovestruck commenter out!

#17: I suddenly remembered S beating up that singer—turns out she really did learn martial arts [crying-laughing emoji]

Su Mi decided to plant a time bomb. If Lin Yue ever turned on her, she'd have another trick up her sleeve, setting it off to crush him in the court of public opinion first.

No matter who it is, having a backup plan is never wrong. She couldn't trust a man just because he stopped putting on an act.

The post wasn't taken down, but soon, her phone buzzed with a message.

Lin Yue: Sorry, but I swear on my future—I really didn't hit on you [pouting emoji]

Su Mi frowned and shot back a reply.

Su Mi: You didn't hit on me? Then why did you wear such tight clothes—wasn't it just to flaunt yourself?