Chapter 40 The Suicide Spectacle
On the screen was Zoe's tear-stained face, set against what appeared to be a rooftop backdrop with wind howling in the background.
Next to her was a large transparent pool, with a faucet slowly filling it with water, the water level gradually rising.
The live viewer count had already reached one hundred thousand and was still climbing rapidly.
Nicholas's face instantly darkened.
He turned and strode out without hesitation, moving so quickly he created a gust of wind.
No second thoughts whatsoever!
Within just fifteen minutes, Zoe's livestream had broken through one million viewers, with the numbers still skyrocketing.
Zoe wore a white tunic and pants, sitting on the edge of the mansion's rooftop with her legs dangling gently.
Behind her was the massive transparent pool, water rushing into it with a constant splash.
The livestream camera focused on her pale face, night wind tousling her long hair!
She said nothing, only cried silently, staring into the distance with hollow eyes.
The chat exploded.
"What is Zoe doing?"
"Is she going to kill herself?"
"Zoe, don't do it! We'll still support you!"
"Publicity stunt! Definitely a publicity stunt! Harrison Group is practically ruined because of her, and she's still trying to grab attention!"
Curses and pleas flooded in like a tide, but Zoe remained oblivious, sitting on the rooftop railing with her long legs swaying.
The water gradually reached halfway up the pool.
She slowly stood and walked toward the camera, her voice choked with endless despair.
"Nicholas, I'm sorry. I can't take it anymore."
"If I hadn't left Emerald City three years ago, would our ending be different today?"
"I'm sorry I dragged Harrison Group down today too."
"If we hadn't met at sea that day, maybe we'd each have our own wonderful lives."
"I'm truly exhausted!"
"Thank you for taking care of me all these years. No matter what I do, you'll forgive me, won't you?"
She glanced at her phone screen as a new message popped up. She quickly wiped the tears from her face, seeming to make a final decision.
After speaking, she turned and walked step by step into the cold pool.
The water quickly reached her waist, then her chest, and finally over her head.
The white dress on her body spread out in the water like a lily blooming and withering silently in the darkness.
The livestream chat went completely insane.
"Oh my God! She actually jumped!"
"Call the police! What's the address?"
"Psycho! This woman is completely insane!"
"Boo-hoo, even though she has all that dirt on her, she looks so pitiful."
"This has to be scripted, right? This is someone's life!"
On the water's surface, the bubbles she exhaled became fewer and fewer, then disappeared completely.
She slowly closed her eyes, her body floating limply.
Just then, a figure rushed into the frame.
It was Nicholas!
His face showed unprecedented panic and fury. Without hesitation, he jumped into the pool, scooped up the unconscious Zoe, and quickly laid her on the pool's edge.
He checked her breathing, his face ashen, then bent down and immediately began CPR, even giving her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation himself.
After several compressions and breaths, Zoe suddenly coughed up water and weakly opened her eyes.
Seeing Nicholas's face so close to hers, all her accumulated grievances and despair exploded instantly. She threw her arms around him and burst into tears.
"Nicholas! Why won't you let me die! I don't want to drag you down anymore!"
"Was it wrong for us to meet in the first place?"
Nicholas held her trembling body tightly, his voice low and firm: "Don't talk nonsense."
"I won't let anything happen to you."
Zoe cried even harder: "I don't want to ruin your marriage. You know I've never climbed into your bed. I respect you, I don't want to put you in a difficult position... but I still dragged Harrison Group down."
Nicholas cut her off, his tone filled with heartache and self-blame: "You silly girl."
"You didn't drag me down!"
"I'm the one at fault for not being by your side immediately."
He looked into her eyes, speaking each word clearly and firmly: "Sweetheart, don't talk. I'm taking you to the hospital!"
Zoe was stunned, then hugged him even tighter, tears streaming down her face.
Nicholas said nothing more, carefully lifting her up and turning to leave the rooftop.
The livestream didn't cut off.
This scene once again broke the internet.
Zoe's stunt directly pulled in tens of millions of viewers.
She was truly the undisputed queen of traffic.
Even with no one left in front of the camera, curious viewers couldn't bear to leave.
The comment stream was flying by at breakneck speed.
"OMG! Mr. Harrison came! Knight in shining armor!"
"So Mr. Harrison and Zoe are true love? Zoe just said she never slept with Mr. Harrison!"
"Then what does Mr. Harrison's marriage to Emma mean? Business arrangement? Or is Emma the real homewrecker?"
"Too much information, I can't process this!"
"What's going to happen to Mrs. Harrison now?"
"Unbelievable! This plot twist is insane!"
The internet exploded once again, with wild speculation and discussion everywhere.
Meanwhile, after watching this livestream, Evelyn and Emma saw public opinion immediately shift.
"This is straight out of a movie!"
"Only an idiot like Nicholas would believe her."
"She definitely timed that jump perfectly. If she'd jumped even a minute earlier, she'd be dead for sure!"
Evelyn cursed angrily and threw her phone aside.
Emma, however, seemed unaffected—perhaps she was used to it by now.
"Evelyn, help me with the discharge paperwork. I want to go home."
Evelyn reached over to feel her forehead again, confirming she had no fever.
"Fine, better than running into that bitch at the hospital!"
Just as she was about to leave, Charlie walked in carrying a food bag. "Ms. Rodriguez, here's your dinner. Mr. Harrison had me bring your favorite beef Wellington and cream soup."
It was from Le Ciel Étoilé—had he been the one delivering food last time too?
He'd also upgraded her room. Did that mean he knew about her condition?
Did he know about the baby she'd lost?
Emma suddenly fell silent, her brow furrowing slightly.
"Nicholas sent you to order this?" Evelyn narrowed her eyes at him.
"Of course. Mr. Harrison thinks about Ms. Rodriguez constantly." Charlie smiled, carefully unpacking the food item by item.
"Throw it out! Emma doesn't like this anymore! And you can get lost too!"
Evelyn glared at him, pointing toward the door.
Charlie's smile froze awkwardly.
What was going on? What had happened?
Seeing his confused expression, Evelyn got even angrier. "Charlie, didn't you watch the livestream?"
"Livestream? What livestream?"
Charlie pulled out his phone and scrolled through it. Videos of Nicholas rescuing Zoe were going viral all over the internet.
This Nicholas never let anyone rest easy—how could he... how could he do this?
"Get out of here and stop being an eyesore. We're checking out."
Evelyn rudely threw him out!
Charlie quickly tried to curry favor: "I'll handle Ms. Rodriguez's discharge paperwork."
"No need. You should go wait downstairs—Nicholas will probably be calling you to handle Zoe's admission paperwork soon."
Evelyn deliberately shoved past him toward the door.
Charlie stepped forward, wanting to say something good about Nicholas.
Suddenly, his phone rang. The caller was indeed Nicholas.
Emma said calmly, "Go take care of business."
Charlie nodded and quickly turned to leave.
Emma and Evelyn left through the underground parking garage, carefully avoiding the reporters.
After all, Zoe had once again thrust her into the eye of the storm.