The More Tragic I Act, the Stronger I Get — My Fans Beg Me to Stop Killing Off My Roles-Chapter 243: Mom’s Got Your Back

This contract became the focal point of the entire sales center.

The female salesperson who had been dismissive earlier, upon seeing the manager personally hand over the contract, swayed on her feet, almost losing her balance.

A younger colleague beside her, a girl, quietly tugged at her sleeve and said with a hint of schadenfreude.

"Lili-jie, that person... isn't that the actor Jiang Ci who's been super popular online recently? The one starring in 'Palace Conspiracy'... you just now..."

The girl didn't finish her sentence.

But the saleswoman named Lili's legs had already gone completely weak.

Jiang Ci?

That Jiang Ci whose single glance shattered hearts across the entire internet?

Her mind went completely blank, leaving only the manager's crystal-clear words echoing inside.

"Regarding the process for the full payment of the premium penthouse unit..."

Full payment.

Three point five million.

It's over.

...

Inside the elevator, Chu Hong held Jiang Ci's hand, her palm slick with sweat.

Her body was stiff with tension. From the moment she stepped into the elevator, she hadn't been able to utter a single word.

Until the elevator doors chimed open with a "ding".

The sales center manager pushed open the heavy, double doors carved with subtle patterns.

Sunlight, all at once, poured in without reservation.

The living room was absurdly spacious. Beyond the enormous floor-to-ceiling windows was an expansive river view and the silhouette of distant, rolling hills in the distance. A gentle breeze lifted the white gauze curtains. Everything felt unreal.

Chu Hong stood at the doorway, unable to take a single step forward.

"Mr. Jiang, Auntie, this is our premium penthouse unit. The entire home uses a smart home system imported from Germany. Look over here..."

The sales center manager began her introduction with a professional and gentle tone, detailing the apartment's layout advantages, premium renovation standards, and material quality.

Chu Hong didn't hear a single word.

Her mind was filled only with a vast, bewildered emptiness.

She stared blankly at this place, which was easily three times larger than the staff housing unit she currently lived in, the one that had carried half a lifetime of her joys and sorrows.

Jiang Ci paid no attention to the manager's spiel.

He pulled his still-dazed mother and walked straight to the balcony.

The balcony was shockingly large, even with a reserved area of soil.

Jiang Ci pointed at that empty patch of ground and said to Chu Hong.

"Mom, we can fill this with flower stands here."

"Didn't you always say the balcony at home was too small, and the flowers you raised couldn't stretch out properly?"

"From now on, you can plant whatever you want."

Those words instantly opened the floodgates of emotion Chu Hong had been holding back the entire way.

Her eyes reddened without warning.

The sales center manager, adept at reading the room, immediately found an excuse and tactfully withdrew, gently closing the door behind her.

"Mr. Jiang, you and Auntie take your time looking around. Call me anytime if you need anything."

In the vast living room, only the mother and son remained.

Chu Hong finally couldn't hold it in any longer.

She stood there, her shoulders beginning to tremble violently. Tears fell, pattering down, blurring the unrealistically bright scene before her eyes.

Jiang Ci panicked a little.

He had acted in so many heart-wrenching tragedies, made countless audiences weep for his characters, but what he feared most was still his own mother's tears.

Flustered, he fumbled a tissue from his pocket and handed it over.

"Mom, don't cry. This is a good thing. Why are you crying?"

Chu Hong shook her head, took the tissue, and wiped her face haphazardly, her voice broken by sobs.

"I know... I know how much hardship you must have endured outside to earn all this..."

"You silly child... how could you... how could you be so foolish..."

"This money... you should keep it for yourself... for when you get married in the future, for living expenses..."

A mother, faced with the sudden, immense surprise bestowed by her son—a surprise beyond anything she had imagined in her entire life—her first reaction wasn't joy, but an overwhelming wave of heartache and guilt.

Her heart ached for the unknown amount of suffering and hardship her son must have endured outside.

She felt guilty that as a mother, not only had she been unable to help in any way, she had instead become his "burden."

Jiang Ci crouched down, looked up, and gazed with utmost seriousness at his mother's tear-streaked face.

"Mom, I didn't suffer, really."

His comfort was clumsy and feeble.

"I just acted in a few dramas, then shot an advertisement. This money came very legitimately. Don't worry."

Chu Hong wiped her tears, looking at him through blurred vision.

Suddenly, she asked.

"What about you, then? Where do you live?"

Jiang Ci smiled.

"I have a place to stay in the capital, arranged by the company. It doesn't cost anything."

"Mom, this apartment is for you. From now on, you can live here if you want, or if you want to go back to our hometown, it's just over an hour's drive."

Chu Hong fell silent.

Looking at her son, tears still flowing.

A very, very long time passed.

She finally stopped crying, slowly walked to the edge of the balcony, and looked at the expansive river view in the distance.

The wind stirred a few strands of white hair at her temples.

"If your father were still here..."

She said softly.

"...how happy he would be to see you so accomplished now..."

Jiang Ci walked up behind her, quietly keeping her company.

Sunlight fell on the mother and son, warm and peaceful. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

In this moment, all the Heartbreak Value KPI, the Life Countdown, no longer seemed important.

...

Going downstairs to sign the contract.

The entire process was unbelievably fast.

Jiang Ci signed, swiped his card, and confirmed procedures throughout, his expression impassive.

The sales center manager accompanied him the whole time, enthusiastic and attentive, arranging every detail perfectly.

In the main hall, the saleswoman named Lili from before stood in the distance, watching from afar the young man being treated like a star surrounded by the manager and finance staff.

She was filled with bitter regret.

Just moments ago, the manager had called her into the office and scolded her harshly with a severity she had never heard before.

This month's bonus was gone, completely wiped out.

She didn't dare imagine—if that young man today hadn't been Jiang Ci, but just an ordinary, plainly dressed client with real financial capability—how large a commission she would have missed out on.

She had paid the most direct price for her arrogance and prejudice.

...

On the road back to their hometown.

The atmosphere in the car was no longer as heavy as on the way there.

Chu Hong leaned against the passenger seat, her head turned to watch the scenery speeding past outside the window, silent.

She was still processing everything that had happened today.

Just as Jiang Ci thought she would remain silent all the way home, Chu Hong suddenly sat up straight and spoke.

"Xiao Ci, isn't 'Three Lifetimes Tribulation' about to be released?"

Jiang Ci's hand on the steering wheel paused for a moment before he nodded.

Chu Hong turned to look at him, her expression unusually serious.

"Don't think I'm just an old lady. I've gotten pretty good at using Weibo now."

"In that drama this time, you're playing a relatively important role, right?"

"I've seen it on Weibo. Lots of young girls talk about you every day in the super topic."

Jiang Ci was a little surprised.

He hadn't expected his mother to have already found her way to places like "super topics."

He answered vaguely, "It's alright. I'm playing the Fourth Male Lead."

Chu Hong, however, seemed to ignore his modesty. She started planning on her own.

"When the movie is released, I'll go see it right away."

"I'll also call Xiao Li from across the hall. That girl tells me every day she's your number one fan. We'll go together then, make her happy too."

Jiang Ci smiled.

"Alright, I'll arrange the movie tickets for you."

Chu Hong nodded in satisfaction, then seemed to remember something and added.

"Oh, right, that thing of yours... what's it called again? Ah, yes, the fan support club. Do they need to buy tickets to boost box office sales? Mom still has a bit of money here..."