WBSGVS Chapter 85 V2

Or maybe it was because the last time she looked at him with such sorrowful eyes, only to turn away pretending not to care.

Or maybe it was just because they hadn’t seen each other in a long time, both avoiding one another. But his parents kept mentioning her to him, saying that she was the one who suited him best.

There was a brief silence on the other end of the phone, and the conversation between the two of them paused for a moment.

At this moment, as Ye Minheng turned a corner, a car came at him, nearly hitting him. He calmly swerved the wheel and hit the brakes, though his heart was still pounding wildly.

“What’s wrong? If you’re upset, I’ll hang up,” Ye Minheng said casually, covering his chest with one hand while smiling lightly.

Su Tang’s voice came sweetly from the other end, “Hey, what are you talking about? I’m your sister, right? Tell me, what’s going on? Let’s see if I can help you.”

Ye Minheng explained what had happened that evening and sighed helplessly, “What do you think I should do? I’m really under a lot of pressure because of her, and she still doesn’t understand me. Is work really that important?”

On the other end of the phone, Su Tang’s voice, sweet and cheerful as always, was laced with a hint of sarcasm as she responded, “Well… actually, it’s not so bad. Maybe she doesn’t understand the situation you’re in yet. After all, your wife’s family…”

“I just said that casually. I didn’t mean her family is bad; it’s just… what I meant…” She trailed off, growing quieter, seeming a little embarrassed but unsure how to explain.

Ye Minheng, however, didn’t feel offended and frowned, “That’s true. I understand.”

“Ah—” Su Tang let out a big sigh of relief, then smiled, “Why don’t you try talking to her seriously? I know having a career is important, but her career doesn’t seem to be going well. Maybe, if you weigh things carefully, she’ll agree.”

Ye Minheng thought for a moment and suddenly asked, “What if it were you?”

Su Tang’s voice immediately became lighter, sounding as if she was enjoying herself: “Ji Yan treats me well. I’ve already decided to take a half-step back from the industry. Once we get married, I’ll retire completely.”

Then she added with a playful tone, “Anyway, I’m already half-famous for being blacklisted, so retiring won’t matter.”

“That’s nice…” Ye Minheng, feeling a bit of bitterness, couldn’t help but laugh when he heard her last line. He sighed, “It’s nice.”

She, as the eldest daughter of the Su family and its only heir, could easily give up everything. But why couldn’t Ah Li be more like Su Tang and understand him?

That night, Ye Minheng didn’t come home.

Qing Li didn’t mind; it was better that way. She wanted a divorce, but they hadn’t yet reached the point where a divorce was necessary, so she had intentionally brought it up earlier. Ye Minheng didn’t care.

For now, she would focus on solving the original host’s career issues before considering a separation.

Qing Li quickly came up with a plan and relaxed to sleep.

However, to prevent Ye Minheng from returning in the middle of the night and coming into the room, she locked the door and slept soundly.

During the night, Qing Li tried sleeping with the lights off. Unexpectedly, this body’s fear seemed even more intense than she had imagined. Even though her soul had changed, the body’s instincts were still in place.

When the lights were off, her heart raced like a drum. She wasn’t truly scared, but she couldn’t control her physical reactions, feeling anxious and restless.

The next morning, as she woke up and saw the nightlight had been on all night, she frowned and hesitated. What if she felt like this during the recording?

But soon, her frown relaxed.

Fear could be dealt with in its own way.

After all, she was recording a variety show, not some competitive game.

They didn’t have any servants at home; the two of them lived together, and the original host usually handled the cooking. Though she wasn’t famous, her work had slowed after marriage, and she spent most of her time at home.

So, when it came time to prepare breakfast for her agent, it was Qing Li who took care of it.

She got up early, contacted her agent to confirm the arrival time, and started preparing. By the time Zheng Yue arrived, a fragrant bowl of egg and shredded pork noodles was ready.

Zheng Yue was surprised and took a couple of bites, praising her: “Wow, your cooking skills are getting better and better.”

Qing Li smiled, “You get used to it after doing it a lot.”

Zheng Yue gave a thumbs-up, sipping the savory soup, then slurping up a big mouthful of noodles. She asked, “Are you going to participate? You can still back out, there’s been so much hate online. You lost two thousand followers on Weibo this week, and you only have about five hundred thousand active followers.”

“I’m participating,” Qing Li replied firmly. Seeing Zheng Yue’s worried expression, she added, “I’ve already prepared myself. I just need your cooperation, and I’m sure we’ll be able to gain back the followers we lost.”

“How do you want me to cooperate?” Zheng Yue asked seriously.

Qing Li explained her plan, and Zheng Yue hesitated before asking, “Do you think this will work?”

Qing Li replied confidently, “It will work, trust me!”

Zheng Yue looked at her sympathetically, “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure it works!”

Qing Li’s agency was a small one, and her income wasn’t much. She only had one agent, with no assistant.

Zheng Yue had a double workload, driving Qing Li to the city where the show was being recorded.

Escape rooms were very popular with young people, with experience centers in every major shopping district. But bringing a terrifying escape room to the screen was a first.

Since it was designed based on player preferences, it was both a puzzle-solving game and highly terrifying. The second episode was about to start, and the guests had already gathered. They were chatting and getting their makeup done.

When Qing Li arrived, the guests from the previous episode, who had been delayed because of her and caused the recording time to go over, looked uncomfortable for a moment but still greeted her politely.

Qing Li smiled sweetly and greeted them one by one, “Hello, Wei Ge, Meng Jie, and Xiang Ge. I’m sorry about last time. Please forgive me, I promise it won’t happen again this time.”

She then gave a deep bow.

Since this was a new type of program, and many people feared looking bad on camera, the show’s producers had guests with excellent reputations.

Wei Pingnan and Meng Ke were both actors in their thirties.

The former was the funny one, lively and full of jokes; Meng Ke was gentle and also not very brave, though she wasn’t as afraid as Qing Li.

Xiang Yifei was a singer, 27 years old. The first two were the brains of the group, while Xiang Yifei was the physical powerhouse. Although he wasn’t very good at solving puzzles, his strength, built from years of working out, came in handy in many situations.

The original host had been quite timid, unable to contribute any intelligence in such an environment, and was often considered a hindrance. When she was criticized and trended online, the top comment was: “Please get her out of the escape room!”

The three of them were genuinely held back by her, and at the time, they didn’t speak up on her behalf. However, now that they saw how sincerely she was apologizing, their expressions lightened significantly.

Meng Ke, who was emotionally intelligent, stepped forward and smiled, “Hey, I can understand. I was so scared I almost couldn’t think straight. You, Wei Ge, aren’t afraid, so just stick behind him this time, okay?”

“Mm!” Qing Li nodded obediently, glancing toward Wei Pingnan.

Wei Pingnan laughed cheerfully and patted his chubby belly. “This cushion of fat is safe. Don’t worry, little sister!” Then, he put his arm around Xiang Yifei’s neck and said, “If it gets too bad, let this guy carry you out!”

“Hahaha, sounds good, I’ll let you know in advance, thank you,” Qing Li said with a relaxed smile.

After a few teasing remarks, the mood lightened, and everyone was laughing, creating a harmonious atmosphere.

At this point, the show’s makeup artist arrived to do the makeup for everyone.

The theme of this horror escape game was ‘The Moving Vampire Castle,’ and just from the name, it was clear it had something to do with vampires. Everyone’s makeup was done with a bit of pale white coloring.

In addition to the live broadcast, there was also an edited version of the show, though the edited version was usually funnier, while the live one could sometimes get boring over time.

After the last episode, this one’s live audience only increased by a few thousand viewers compared to the first episode.

The director of the show looked at the backstage data, his face turning green with frustration. “Who the hell decided to sign Qing Li with such a high penalty for breaking the contract? She’s not even a big star!”

The producer, who knew the inside story, lowered his head awkwardly.

It was already past midnight.

“Start!” the director shouted, and all the cameras were ready.

The guests had already been placed in a room, dimly lit with blue lights that made it look like the gates of hell had opened. Red flashes occasionally passed through to add to the atmosphere, and the sealed space was filled with a faint, eerie wind.

Wei Pingnan, usually the boldest on camera, jumped in surprise and kept shouting, “Oh my god!”

When the live audience opened the stream, they were greeted by the image of the castle.

The castle, with its European-style architecture, was covered in vines and looked completely isolated, surrounded by trees and plants, with no signs of life anywhere.

There were also red marks set up by the production team around the area, looking like bloodstains. Despite the bright sunlight, it still gave off a chilling feeling, making it feel like a haunted house.

The audience was immediately startled, their heart rates increasing. The bullet screen flooded with comments: [Ahhh, this is so scary!]

[Wuwuwu, I just wanted to watch Qing Li mess up, and instead, I got hit with a jump scare the moment we entered?!]

Then, the camera cut to the escape room, showing each of the four guests in turn. However, the dim lighting only made the audience feel more anxious, not more at ease.

After recovering from the initial shock, the four guests snapped back to their senses. Wei Pingnan laughed and said, “Let’s check out today’s mission.”

He opened the invitation letter that the staff had handed him when he got out of the car.

It was printed on white paper in black ink, but in such dim lighting, it looked eerie. It was hard to read, but after focusing, one could make out: “The Vampire Castle, which disappeared for many years, has reappeared. The great Duke Dar, for safety, led a troop to investigate, but never returned.”

“Well, great, the guy led a whole army and didn’t return, and now we’re here, a bunch of weaklings… emm…” Wei Pingnan couldn’t help but make a sarcastic comment, his face full of worry as he felt like he was about to meet his end.

Meng Ke laughed, his earlier fear dispelled by Wei Pingnan’s words. He playfully hit him and said, “Hurry up, keep reading.”

The audience, who had been tense after seeing the castle earlier, finally began to relax, and the comments shifted: [Haha, don’t worry, you guys have the golden finger! The director won’t let you get hurt!]

[Director: Don’t worry, I can’t afford to pay the penalty!]

Wei Pingnan continued, “Now the four greatest explorers in the country have come together… please rescue Duke Dar! Don’t worry, Duke Dar has left clues behind for you, just follow his instructions, and you’ll make it!”

Finally, the production team gave them a boost of confidence.

Xiang Yifei cracked his knuckles and said, “Alright, let’s go! We can do this! So, what’s the next step?”

He looked to his companions.

Qing Li forced a smile, though her face was pale and frightening. “Sorry, I’m a little scared. I can’t think right now, you guys go ahead.”

Seeing that she wasn’t screaming in fear like last time, the others felt a bit reassured and didn’t mind: “Alright, let’s check it out…”

The first level was usually the easiest. Qing Li stood quietly in place, not disturbing anyone, while the other three searched for a while and found a clue. The door to the first level opened with a “ding” sound.

The bullet screen, which had been discussing how to solve the puzzle just moments before, paused as the audience felt lighter. They saw Qing Li just standing there, doing nothing, and the comments began to flood in: [I have no idea what she’s doing here? No sense of variety show presence!]

[Standing there like a block of wood, I’m done with her!]

[If you’re scared, don’t come here, you’re just dragging the team down… ]

[Honestly, the first level went by much faster, which means Qing Li’s improving. But she doesn’t belong here!]

The comments flooded the screen—praise for the other three guests, along with criticism of Qing Li. However, since they got through the first level much faster than last time, the criticism wasn’t as harsh as it had been on Weibo.

At this moment, the four guests lined up in a row, with the bravest Wei Pingnan leading, Qing Li following behind, then Meng Ke, and finally Xiang Yifei at the rear.

The door opened, and the outside was still pitch dark, with only the faint outline of a corridor visible. As they stepped out, a figure with long white hair appeared in the dim light and rushed toward them.

“Ahhh—”

“A ghost!!!”

A shrill scream echoed among the four guests, and the bullet screen froze for a moment from the shock. Even Wei Pingnan, the boldest one, who was facing the ghost, crouched down in terror, holding his head.

“Ahhh—” Qing Li jumped in fright. Her heart wasn’t racing from fear, but her body couldn’t control itself, and she screamed, her legs turning to jelly.

But for the sake of her plan, Qing Li gritted her teeth and forced herself to remain standing, her eyes fixed on the creepy doll.

“Sss!” The director, watching the scene from the control room, couldn’t help but take a deep breath. “Get the doctor ready for emergency assistance, I think she might be—”

Before he could finish, the ghost-like figure with white hair was about to strike Qing Li. She shut her eyes, took a deep breath, and suddenly reached out to grab it!

With a “crash” sound, the lights flickered and turned on.

The world became bright!

The director stared at the screen in disbelief: “???”

The three other guests, just as frightened as Qing Li, looked up in surprise as the lights came on. “Was that… a hallucination?”

The audience, who had been covering their eyes from the fright, peeked through their fingers to see Qing Li bravely closing her eyes and holding onto the white-haired doll: “!!!”

After a few seconds of stunned silence, Wei Pingnan was the first to react, speaking weakly, “Qing Li, it’s okay, the lights are on now.”

Qing Li finally opened her eyes, her limbs shaking. But her face remained expressionless. Once she saw the bright world, she relaxed, letting out a soft, weak smile and letting go of the doll.

With a “click,” the lights went out again.

Qing Li’s heart jolted, and she screamed, “Ahhh!”