After Transmigrating into the Book, I Bent the Heroine O - Chapter 4

After dealing with Jia Qimei, He Lingxing pulled up the status panel to check the numbers.

“The heroine’s friendship value toward me is… negative fifty? 520, how is this calculated?”

She clearly hadn’t offended Shu Minglan yet, right?

【It’s like this, Sister Xing. The heroine Shu Minglan’s impression of you is based on the identity of “He Lingxing,” the original host, not you personally. Shu Minglan has severe face blindness; she didn’t recognize you as “He Lingxing” at the bathhouse, and from her perspective, she has no idea you helped her tonight.】

He Lingxing clicked her tongue. She wasn’t the type to do good deeds anonymously; the feeling of putting in effort behind the scenes without being recognized was quite irritating.

However, now was clearly not a good time to tell Shu Minglan the truth, because in the actress’s mind, CEO He was likely still a villain.

After a moment of hesitation, He Lingxing returned to her car and drove toward the company. She hadn’t lied to Jia Qimei about one thing: she really had come to talk business with the head director, though the conversation took less than half an hour. Even though Director Zhu was an Alpha, it was still impolite for a man and a woman to stay alone together late at night.

The drive was short; without midnight traffic, it took only twenty minutes. Looking at the tall buildings swallowed by the night, He Lingxing felt a sudden impulse. She snapped a photo of the company building and sent it to Shu Minglan via WeChat with the caption:

【Moving bricks (working) late at night is the most lethal.】

Shu Minglan replied quickly: 【Still working overtime?】

【Yeah.】

【By the way, which department are you in? I don’t think I’ve seen you much before.】

To keep the act going, He Lingxing thought of departments that might realistically work late. She sent back a vague: 【Logistics.】

There were many logistics-related roles in an entertainment company, and she couldn’t think of a specific one, so she kept it broad. Shu Minglan didn’t push for details. She sent a cute cat emoji and said goodnight, mentioning she had to wake up early for filming.

The reply speed was fast; it seemed Shu Minglan hadn’t gone to Director Jia’s room at all.

In the original plot, Shu Minglan was supposed to go to Jia Qimei’s room against her will, but before anything happened, Jia Qimei would be called away by an emergency call. He Lingxing had a decent impression of this heroine and couldn’t bear to see a clean girl forced into such a situation. She had timed her warning to Jia Qimei perfectly, but it turned out Shu Minglan hadn’t followed the script anyway.

This was going to get interesting.

Without the mental burden of having stood someone up, Shu Minglan slept soundly through the night. A night mask left her skin looking translucent and smooth, with no signs of fatigue—so much so that her assistant couldn’t help but look surprised the next morning.

The actress stood before the mirror adjusting her collar, revealing her pale, smooth collarbones. What surprised the assistant wasn’t the enviable skin, but the total lack of “marks” on her body.

Although Shu Minglan was famous for her good temper, she couldn’t help but speak up when the assistant’s meaningful gaze lingered on her face for the third time. Her naturally soft Omega voice carried a hint of coldness: “What are you looking at?”

The assistant instinctively denied it, but her attention was caught by a notification popping up on Shu Minglan’s phone. Even though Shu Minglan picked it up quickly, the assistant was sharp-eyed and saw the contact name.

“Xingxing?”

Now the assistant had a reason to pry. She instinctively reached out to snatch the phone, but Shu Minglan nimbly dodged, causing the assistant to stumble and nearly hit the cabinet.

Facing those puzzled, beautiful eyes, the assistant suddenly grew angry, her voice louder than usual: “Are you in a relationship?”

Artists sign privacy contracts when joining the company. For young, beautiful stars, the company generally forbids dating. The assistant felt humiliated by Shu Minglan’s dodge and decided this was the perfect time to exert control: “Dating is a breach of contract. I think you want to—”

“You’re fired.”

The assistant thought she misheard. “What did you say?”

“You are fired. From now on, you don’t need to follow me.”

Shu Minglan repeated each word clearly. Her red lips parted, her gentle voice carrying an indisputable firmness. Seeing the assistant’s shocked expression, she felt a wave of relief. She had truly been too easy-going in the past, allowing these people to walk all over her.

The manager held the lifeline to her career, so she couldn’t move against her yet—though she planned to leave after filming was over. But firing a minor assistant was something Shu Minglan could definitely handle.

“Are you crazy?!” the assistant yelled. Shu Minglan’s temper had always been so good that people thought she was weak. The assistant cursed, her face flushed with rage as she called Sister Bai. Shu Minglan ignored her and strode toward the set.

At the same time, He Lingxing, who was eating breakfast while reviewing new design proposals, felt her phone vibrate.

【Shushu】: There’s a breakfast shop in the West District. Their corn and shrimp congee and beef egg-drop congee are delicious, and the portions are just right. If you don’t like meat for breakfast, they have vegetarian options. I’ll send you the address; you can order delivery.

He Lingxing had sent Shu Minglan a photo of her breakfast earlier. She wasn’t picky about food; she was just trying to build rapport. However, seeing Shu Minglan’s proactive reply improved her mood, and the frustration of working early dissipated.

She replied: 【I’m not used to delivery. We can go together when you’re free.】

She waited a while, but there was no reply; filming had likely started. However, just after He Lingxing finished a call regarding a new project, she received a strange notification.

【System Warning: The heroine’s current friendship value toward you (He Lingxing) is -60.】

【The heroine’s current friendship value toward you (Xingxing) is 60.】

One right after the other—one positive, one negative.

The massive gap between the two left He Lingxing annoyed. She had no idea how she had offended the heroine again. 520, having worked with her for a long time, knew her temper and hurried to explain:

【It’s like this: Today on set, Bai Mu (the manager) scolded her and used your name to threaten her. Shu Minglan likely associated Bai Mu’s bullying with you and took her anger out on you by extension.】

The way 520 said “taking anger out” was a bit hesitant, which made He Lingxing realize there was more to it. While she had the original host’s memories, sorting through twenty years of data was impossible for a human brain. She took the chance to ask the System:

“What did ‘I’ do before?”

As the morning passed between calls and emails, He Lingxing pieced together the list of misdeeds the original host had committed. It included assigning the most treacherous manager to Shu Minglan, diverting her resources to others, and forcing her into a “fake couple” publicity stunt with a young male idol that resulted in Shu Minglan being brutally harassed by his fans without any PR support.

In the original script, the event where the “Male Lead marks Shu Minglan” was a turning point. After that, the original host’s dislike turned into pure hatred. She began targeting Shu Minglan obsessively, even attempting to hire Alphas to assault her. He Lingxing had arrived just before the accidental marking, before the original host had reached that level of madness.

He Lingxing let out a long sigh. Even with just the past actions, if she were Shu Minglan, she wouldn’t like “He Lingxing” either.

【Does the host plan to…】

He Lingxing raised an eyebrow, took out a bottle of nail polish, and carefully touched up her nails. “We’ll see. I’m here to do a mission, not to coax a woman.”

She only needed to play matchmaker at the key moment to ensure a Happy Ending; she didn’t necessarily have to use the “He Lingxing” identity to do it. She had been overthinking things.

Jia Qimei’s revenge came faster than expected.

After stopping the harassment incident, He Lingxing had warned Director Zhu to look after her artist. Director Zhu had a good character and followed through; Shu Minglan wasn’t bullied on set and even managed to change her assistant.

He Lingxing had also decisively transferred the manager, Bai Mu, away and replaced her with normal staff, earning a tiny bit of favor. But a few days later, she received news that the company’s stock was sliding. Simultaneously, scandalous “black material” about several company artists appeared on the trending searches.

The heat was high. It was clearly Jia Qimei’s doing.

Jia Qimei wasn’t necessarily scared of He Lingxing; she had just been momentarily cowed by her aura. Once she processed it, that fear vanished. Yaoxing Entertainment was already showing signs of decline; many talented artists had been poached, and those left were coasting on past fame. Jia Qimei, who held shares in a larger company and had connections to powerful bosses, found it easy to target them.

He Lingxing’s phone was ringing off the hook. Her eyes first landed on the 18th trending topic: #Shu Minglan Murong Feng.

Clicking in, she saw a GIF from a marketing account showing an awards gala. Shu Minglan looked pure and seductive in a black lace dress and retro red lips. She was talking to Murong Feng, a tall and handsome man. She smiled and briefly touched his sleeve. That tiny gesture, fueled by the marketing account’s spin, triggered a wave of verbal abuse from Murong Feng’s extreme “girlfriend fans.”

He Lingxing frowned. This man was the “stallion” protagonist of the original harem novel—the one who would torture Shu Minglan after marking her. In the script, Murong Feng was a self-made man who crushed anyone who looked down on him. At this point, his career was taking off, and this was the start of his intersection with Shu Minglan.

【Detection: Male Lead Murong Feng is about to appear. New plot unlocked!】

【”Shu Minglan and Murong Feng are reported as a couple by the media. Murong Feng remembers the woman who stunned him at first sight and has unconscious feelings for her.” Please complete the following task to trigger the male lead’s awareness of his feelings.】

【Task: Lead the heroine to the banquet, intentionally make things difficult for her to give the male lead a “hero saves the beauty” opportunity. You can appropriately make the male lead jealous. PS: Do not break character.】

“Make him jealous?” He Lingxing paused. “Shu Minglan and I are both women. How am I supposed to make him jealous?”

【That depends on your performance. 520 can provide support upon request.】

He Lingxing: “…” Fine. There happened to be a banquet in three days.

Under He Lingxing’s command, the scandals of the three artists were quickly clarified. The PR department was faster than usual, and a new wave of marketing accounts countered the smear campaign.

Shu Minglan, who had been in the industry for years, knew how this worked. When she heard He Lingxing had visited Jia Qimei, she felt even more uneasy. What were they plotting?

But the situation wasn’t following the usual logic. If Jia Qimei wanted revenge, she would target Shu Minglan specifically. Dragging other artists into it meant she was openly clashing with He Lingxing. Only a fool would miss that.

Unless…

Thinking of the fired manager and assistant, a wild but logical thought formed in Shu Minglan’s mind. Why was He Lingxing helping her? The “script” in her head didn’t say this would happen.

Before she could think further, a WeChat message popped up. “Xingxing” had been chatting with her lately—not too often to be annoying, but enough to stay in touch.

Xingxing was asking if she was free in two days. Shu Minglan checked her schedule; she had no scenes those days. She was about to decline until she finished filming, but then she received a business card from the other person.

The three words she least wanted to see were right there.

【Xingxing】: CEO He wants you to add her. She said she has something to discuss with you.

【Xingxing】: What is it? Something about a banquet.

Shu Minglan braced herself and added the formal work account. The reply was fast, but every punctuation mark seemed cold and awkward.

He Lingxing was logged in on both her phone and computer, switching between accounts with flying fingers.

【Xingxing】: Huh? I’m not sure what her goal is.

【Xingxing】: Why did she say “dress beautifully”? Probably…

He Lingxing gritted her teeth and hammered on the keyboard.

【Xingxing】: Probably because she wants to chase you.