Jiang Jiusheng plucked a few strings on the guitar. “I don’t care whether we have a keyboard player or not,” she said. “I have been more than generous to her.”

Mo Bing did not disagree. Since the keyboard player was not a critical part of the band and Liu Xu’s technique was, at best, mediocre, her presence was redundant.

Speak of the devil…

“Sheng.”

Mo Bing turned her head. There was Liu Xu, standing at the door, tears streaming down her face. It was a great loss to the film industry that Liu Xu wasn’t an actor; she could get into character so naturally…

Putting down the guitar, Jiang Jiusheng asked, “Have you come to apologize?”

About to burst into tears, Liu Xu said, “It’s not what you think. Let me explain.”

Explain? What was there to explain? With all the evidence online, it was clear that she was just trying to dig herself out of the hole she was in.

Jiang Jiusheng, who was usually mild-mannered, grew uncharacteristically impatient. “Liu Xu,” she said coldly, “just because I overlooked all those petty little things you did in the past, it doesn’t mean you can take me for a bloody fool.”

Tearing up again, Liu Xu bit her lip as she muttered, “Sheng…”

“I will send someone with the termination contract once it has been completed,” said Jiang Jiusheng in an unhurried tone. “I will pay you double the compensation amount. Consider it…” Pausing, she tapped her finger on the table and added, “Payment for your service.”

A service fee.

To put it bluntly, she was the employer, and Liu Xu the hired help; that was the nature of their relationship. After three years of a prima facie relationship, it wouldn’t have been appropriate to suddenly declare their undying devotion to each other.

Liu Xu stood there, looking downcast, her fists clenched at her sides. She didn’t have to defend herself. Someone was there to do it for her.

“Sheng, you mustn’t be swayed by the manipulating instigators,” Zhang Nai pleaded. Standing behind Liu Xu, he exuded righteousness and chivalry, looking every bit the fearless warrior protecting his beloved princess. “Xiao Xu is not that type of person.”

A man blinded by love. How stupid and pitiful.

Jiang Jiusheng didn’t bother to refute him. Instead, she simply asked, “So, what type of person is she?”

Zhang Nai was cornered and could not come up with anything to say.

To be fair, it was no small request to ask him to accurately describe a selfish yet beautiful chameleon like Liu Xu. Then again, they complemented each other perfectly—one the master, the other the slave.

Not wanting to waste any more of her time, Jiang Jiusheng walked out of the office.

Liu Xu stood rooted to the spot, staring at nothing and sobbing. Clutching Zhang Nai’s hand, she wailed, “Sheng does not believe me anymore. Zhang Nai, what do I do now?”

She looked desolate and lost, and Zhang Nai couldn’t bear to see his beloved crying so miserably. “Well, I believe you, and I will help to clear your name,” she said to console her. “I will ask Ranran and Fanglin for help. Don’t worry. All will be well.”

Tsk, tsk, tsk… What a lovey-dovey couple!

Crossing her arms, Mo Bing circled past them and, unexpectedly, remarked in all seriousness, “Liu Xu, the film academy owes you an Oscar.”

At 11:00 that morning, Liu Xu posted her first response to the incident, instantly attracting a slew of comments from interested observers.

LiuXu V: I have nothing to say. Please do not follow me anymore.

Posted along with the message was a paparazzi shot.

Zhang Nai, a member of TheNine, responded in an instant.

ZhangNai V: we—are—a—team! @LiuXu V

Everyone knew who TheNine belonged to, so Jiang Jiusheng’s fans were not at all happy that the lead guitarist had dared to post a supportive message when the boss hadn’t commented at all.

Reply@ZhangNai, do you know your place?

Zhang Nai clammed up.

The Sheng fans were up in arms, posting sarcastic comments and veiled insults. In the paparazzi shot, Liu Xu had managed to look pale and weak, a picture of helplessness. The netizens were, however, not taken in by her play for sympathy as a victim.

YourTheFake: Quite the actor! @LiuXu V

Crispy_Balls: Death to anyone who crosses my Sheng Ye. @LiuXu V

Guilty_As_Sin: Silence means guilt. @LiuXu V

Leo_Cookie: Liu Bitch, time to exit the entertainment industry! @LiuXu V

He-Ho-Hum: Go get your eyes fixed! @ZhangNai V

Jogger_Wang: Long live Sheng Ye! @LiuXu V, get on your knees, shout allegiance and respect for my Sheng Ye. Then I will stop criticizing you.

ShengYe’s_SecretLover: Evil Couple! @LiuXu V @ZhangNai V

ShengYe’s_SecretLover …

Li Ranran recognized the tag when she logged on. It belonged to a diehard fan of Sheng’s who was aggressively protective of her reputation, active on the major blogs, and reputed to have shut down more than ten blog posts that had tried to defame Sheng.

Using her official ID, Li Ranran gave ShengYe’s_SecretLover a big Like.

Zhan Fanglin, tuning his guitar by her side, saw what she was doing and said in exasperation, “Stop messing around.”

The company’s official stance on this incident was that the members ought to maintain their silence and swap Liu Xu out, since it had been confirmed that she had outed Jiang Jiusheng’s smoking habit and planted trolls. No further comments were needed.

Refusing to let it go, Li Ranran retorted, “It is our duty to rid the world of evil!”

Zhan Fanglin surrendered, having no response to that.

A bare 15 minutes after Liu Xu’s post, Zhang Nai called Zhan Fanglin’s cell phone, which was picked up by Li Ranran.

Zhang Nai got straight to the point. “Fanglin, can you log on and help Liu Xu out, please? Xiao Xu couldn’t have done something like this. She has nothing to gain by outing Sheng’s secret. We are bandmates and have been friends for many years. Surely you know her better than that.”

There was silence on the phone.

Desperate, he urged: “Fanglin, you—”

He was interrupted by, “Uh-huh.”

Zhang Nai was shocked when he realized that it was a woman’s voice.

Rolling her eyes, Li Ranran played with a drumstick and said, “We all know very well what she is like, but we can’t help it if someone is oblivious to it all.”

Silence.

The phone went dead. Looking apologetic, Li Ranran said, “Sorry, my love. The phone slipped. Got cut off.”

Laughing, Zhan Fanglin kissed her.