Author: Momo Chan

On my wedding day in my previous life, the man I had waited over 20 years for held his secretary’s hand and forced me to accept them: “It’s just a wedding ceremony, what’s wrong with three people doing it together? Emily has no objections, so who are you to refuse?” I was so angry I felt dizzy. Thankfully, my parents were there to support me. But when they arrived, they rushed over to the secretary instead: “We’re so sorry you suffered all these years because of the hospital mix-up. Don’t worry, we’ll give you everything a daughter could want!” “Olivia! Hurry up and bow to your sister! Know your place!” The shock of their betrayal caused my weak heart to give out, and I died right in front of them. When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to my wedding day. The fear of death suddenly overwhelmed me like a tidal wave. My agonized screams from my final moments seemed to still be echoing overhead. The three people I had trusted most in my life were shielding the one who had caused my death. They frowned at me: “Can you stop making a scene? Do you think pretending to be sick will make us feel sorry for you? If you’ve got the guts, why don’t you really die?” A sharp pain struck my chest. I could only watch helplessly as my body collapsed. “No!!!” I jolted awake with a gasp, breathing heavily. Strangely, that awful scene from my past life didn’t play out. I was lying in my own bedroom, looking at the familiar decorations around me. My mind raced as an unbelievable thought struck me. I had been reborn! Had the heavens taken pity on my tragic fate and given me another chance? Suddenly, a glass came flying at my head. If I hadn’t reacted quickly, it would have smashed into my skull. I turned back angrily to see Ryan looking at me coldly: “What are you standing around for? The guests will be arriving soon. Hurry up and go greet them!” I looked at his face looming so close and suddenly smiled: “You’re right, I should go greet the guests. You should rest up too.” In the past, my love for him had been blind and absolute. I would have done anything he asked, even dying for him without hesitation. I couldn’t even bring myself to say a harsh word to him. He was used to me being so submissive: “Sigh, I’m doing all this for our family. If you were as understanding as Emily and could help me with work, I wouldn’t be so exhausted every day.” I was astounded at how low a person’s morals could sink. In my past life, I had trusted him so completely that even when intimate photos of him and Emily were sent to my phone multiple times, I still firmly believed they were just boss and employee. It wasn’t until they confronted me at the wedding ceremony, admitting they had been secretly sleeping together and demanding a three-way marriage in front of all the guests. I adamantly refused, originally hoping my parents who had doted on me since childhood would stand up for me. But who could have guessed that when the two of them rushed over, not only did they not support me, they took Emily’s hand and announced to everyone that she was their real daughter. And I was just a baby that had been switched at birth. In an instant, the betrayal of both my love and my family caused my already weak heart to give out. Actually, if they had just sent me to the hospital promptly, I still would have had a chance at survival. But they didn’t care if I lived or died, and kept pressuring me to agree to this absurd wedding. My life ebbed away bit by bit as I lay writhing in agony on the ground. But they surrounded me, berating me for being selfish. In the end, I was literally dragged to my death on what should have been my wedding day. I died at the hands of my cruel loved ones. Thinking of their frenzied expressions, I couldn’t help but shudder in fear. I was clearly the biggest victim, but not a single one of them felt sorry for my tragic fate. After my death, Emily smoothly moved into my home, spending my parents’ money and sleeping with my husband. Meanwhile, I was left to rot, not even given a proper burial. Wasn’t it all so unfair?! In this new life, I would never allow that to happen again.

I knew Emily was waiting for Ryan downstairs. His excuse about needing to work was just a cover to go have sex with her. How ridiculous – the wedding ceremony was starting in just a few hours. He abandoned his bride to sleep with another woman. He truly didn’t see me as a human being at all. Instead of arguing like I used to, I patted his hand sweetly: “I saw your assistant waiting for you downstairs for a while. You should go check if there’s some urgent matter.” He was taken aback by how understanding I was being. In the past, I would fly into a jealous rage at any mention of Emily and force him to choose between us. But now I was suddenly so mature? He wasn’t stupid. He eyed me suspiciously: “You’re okay with me going to see her? You’re not planning some new way to bully her, are you?” I lowered my head, unconsciously touching my beating heart. This new life was precious. I couldn’t make the same mistakes again. With that in mind, I forced an understanding smile: “Don’t be silly. I trust you wouldn’t do anything to hurt me.” “Besides, Emily has worked for you for so long. If there was something between you two, it would have happened already.” Ryan had been anxious to go to Emily. Seeing me give him an out, he grew even more excited: “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of things there and be right back. It won’t delay the wedding.” After confirming I wasn’t angry, he finally rushed downstairs to drive off and meet Emily. Once I had finally persuaded him to leave, I collapsed weakly into a chair. Thank goodness. Thank goodness. Everything could still be salvaged. In my past life, my trust in them had sent me straight to hell with my own hands. Now I no longer hoped for love from him or my parents. I just wanted to live this life safely and peacefully. My parents weren’t here either. I guessed they had gone to get the DNA test results with Emily. Thinking of the home I had lived in for over 20 years, no matter how reluctant I was to leave, I knew I had to go. After all, this place was no longer my sanctuary. But I didn’t expect Ryan to return so quickly. And with him were my parents. Seeing their tearful eyes fixed on Emily, I knew. They had already acknowledged her as their daughter. When they saw me, they actually looked a bit uncomfortable. Emily boldly stepped forward: “Olivia, you know Ryan and I truly love each other. If I can’t marry him, my life would be meaningless. You understand that feeling, right?” I really couldn’t understand. The world of mistresses was too bizarre. To so brazenly provoke me. But I didn’t get angry. I just calmly looked at Ryan: “What does she want?” Ryan frowned, speaking carelessly: “Emily graduated and started dating me right away. I have to take responsibility for her.” “You just wanted a wedding ceremony anyway. The three of us can hold the ceremony together today. Emily is even willing to let you enter the family. You should be grateful!” My parents nodded along: “Olivia, in terms of looks, figure, and knowledge, you can’t compare to Emily. It’s already a blessing beyond your wildest dreams that Ryan still wants you. Hurry up and…” “I agree.” Before they could finish, I had already agreed to their proposal.

Under everyone’s incredulous stares, I spoke calmly: “Since you two are truly in love, and I truly love Ryan, I can only agree…” My grace and understanding stood in stark contrast to the three of them’s unreasonable demands. They probably hadn’t expected me to love him so much that I would tolerate such a humiliating arrangement. Ryan fell silent for a moment. He looked at Emily, his lips moving, but ultimately said nothing. Emily panicked when she saw his expression change: “If you hadn’t stolen my identity and husband, why would I have to resort to this? You’re the real third wheel between us!” The hall instantly erupted in an uproar. I was clearly Ryan’s original fiancée – what nonsense was she spouting? Emily’s face went pale under everyone’s strange looks, but she still refused to back down: “None of you understand! Ryan’s heart truly belongs to me. If it weren’t for worrying about all you relatives gossiping, we would have gotten married long ago!” How stupid. If Ryan really loved her, why didn’t he break up with me earlier and give her proper status? In the end, he just couldn’t let go of my parents’ substantial financial backing. Now that she had been acknowledged as the real daughter, of course Ryan would immediately abandon me for her. This man didn’t truly love anyone but himself. I put on a sad expression: “I understand. Let me use the restroom first, then we can hold the ceremony for the three of us when I get back, okay?” Ryan couldn’t wait for me to agree. He impatiently waved me off: “Hurry back! Don’t delay the auspicious day!” I’ll be back my ass. As soon as I left the bathroom, I saw Ryan gazing lovingly at Emily on stage. Professing his devotion to her. At such a romantic moment, it would be a shame not to add to the atmosphere. Five seconds later, the balloons tied to the stage curtains suddenly burst. A foul stench filled the entire banquet hall. The guests turned green, covering their noses as they fled outside: “Who the hell farted in here? It’s disgusting!” “Who else could it be? Heaven itself couldn’t stand by and watch anymore. I told you being a homewrecker never ends well!” Emily was in the middle of her heartfelt vows on stage when she was suddenly assaulted by the stench. She nearly fainted from the shock: “It must be that bitch Olivia’s doing! I knew she wasn’t really okay with this!” My best friend, who had been looking for me, happened to overhear: “Who are you calling a bitch?!” She ran on stage and grabbed Emily’s hair, the two of them descending into a catfight. The calm surface finally erupted into turbulent waves. I may have been able to tolerate the insults, but my best friend couldn’t. I angrily rushed forward and slapped Emily hard across the face: “You never fucking know when to quit, do you?!” As I was “breaking up the fight”, I managed to land several solid punches on Emily, leaving her face swollen like a pig’s head. When Ryan saw his beloved being beaten, he panicked and roughly shoved me away. There were various wedding implements behind me. My body slammed into their sharp edges. Suddenly the world was spinning. The guests pointed at me and screamed: “Blood! There’s so much blood!” Blood was gushing from between my legs. The fear of death from my past life enveloped me once again. Ryan was terrified: “I just pushed you lightly! Stop pretending! He moved to help me up. I shoved him away without mercy. I didn’t want to say a single word to this man now. My friend was shocked, her face streaked with tears: “Olivia, what’s wrong?! Let’s go to the hospital! Quickly!” I wanted to say I was fine, but my head was spinning badly. I could only lean against her. This farce finally ended in this bizarre way.

The hospital hallway was in an uproar. Mr. Parker was shouting outside the door: “You can’t blame my daughter for everything! If they hadn’t run their mouths off recklessly, how could things have turned out like this?!” Ryan hadn’t expected things to go this way. He stammered out an explanation: “That’s…that’s right! Who knew she’d be so vicious as to deliberately sabotage my wedding day? Of course I had to teach her a lesson!” Go to hell. Shameless bastard. The doctor saw that I was awake and hurried to support me: “Miss, don’t move around. Sigh! Try not to be too upset. You can still have children in the future. You’re still young…” Children… What children? Seeing my blank expression, the doctor looked at me even more sympathetically: “You didn’t know? You were pregnant…” In my past life, I had already died by this point. Of course I never had the chance to know I was pregnant. I instinctively touched my belly, thinking of that unborn child. My heart was a jumble of emotions. Never mind. We weren’t meant to be. It’s better that it wasn’t carried to term. If it had actually been born, it would have been a complication for all of us. Ryan hurriedly chimed in: “Olivia, we can still have children in the future…” Just hearing him speak made me nauseous: “Shut up!” This was the first time I had ever yelled at him. He was stunned. I ignored him, slowly turning to look at my foster father: “Uncle, have you forgotten that it was your daughter who destroyed my family on my wedding day, not me? Do you think I haven’t compromised enough?” “My child is gone now. Who do you think is more pitiful?” Hearing me call him “uncle”, Mr. Parker’s expression flickered: “How can you call me uncle…” He was helping outsiders bully me, yet still expected me to call him dad? My friend couldn’t stand it anymore. She laughed coldly: “What a bunch of shameless scum.” Ryan stepped forward, trying to soothe me: “Don’t be angry. I really didn’t expect things to turn out like this. It was just an accident. If you hadn’t tried to ruin the wedding, how could you have gotten hurt?” I laughed bitterly: “You’ve got some nerve. You were the ones who ambushed me with your demands without my knowledge. What’s wrong with me retaliating?” Ryan coughed awkwardly, wanting to come check on my injuries. But Emily collapsed to her knees first, clutching her chest: “Ryan, I think my asthma is acting up again. I’m sorry…I’m so useless…” Seeing Emily looking so weak in his arms, Ryan’s veins bulged in panic: “What are you all standing around for?! Quick, find a doctor! If anything happens to Emily, I won’t be able to go on living!” His wife had just lost a child and he couldn’t even be bothered to pretend to care. But his dear mistress has an asthma attack and he’s running around like a chicken with its head cut off. My heart filled with desolation. In his heart, Emily had always been number one. I only regretted not realizing it sooner in my past life. The doctor came in for his usual rounds. But Ryan grabbed him first: “Doctor, please look at Emily first. She suddenly fainted for no reason!” The doctor’s face darkened: “Don’t be ridiculous! I’m not an internal medicine specialist. Move aside, the patient needs her dressing changed urgently. Any delay could cause complications!” But Ryan wouldn’t listen: “How is that possible?! You’re a doctor, surely you can handle anything! She just lost a baby, but Emily actually fainted! Obviously Emily’s condition is more serious!” The pain in my abdomen was getting worse. My back was drenched in cold sweat. I struggled to my feet: “No…take care of me first!” Emily had been perfectly fine a second ago, now she suddenly faints? Who would believe that? But Ryan refused to listen. He dragged the doctor towards the door: “If you won’t treat Emily, I won’t let you treat Olivia either!” He was treating a matter of life and death like child’s play. I was truly disheartened! I looked at Ryan, but he avoided meeting my eyes: “Olivia, I’m doing this for your own good. If anything happens to Emily, you’ll be implicated too. You understand, right? Stop being difficult. It’s just a lost baby, you’ll get over it soon enough.” How could this be tolerated? Just as they were about to disappear out the hospital door, as I was about to pass out from the pain, I fell into a warm, strong embrace: “Olivia Parker! Open your eyes and look at me!”

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Four years after my death, my blind ex-girlfriend returned from overseas. She brought back the luxury car worth millions and the multi-million dollar dowry I had once demanded. But she said she no longer loved me. She just wanted to see the regretful face of a heartless man like me. What she didn’t know was that I had already passed away from liver cancer four years ago. The corneas she received as a donation were the only remnants I left in this world. I saw Lily Chen again in the fourth year after my death. Her black Maybach stopped in front of my family’s run-down house. Dressed in luxurious attire, she gracefully stepped out of the car. Her eyes were cold as she looked disdainfully at my aging mother. “Where’s Jack Thompson? Tell him to come out and see me.” As she mentioned my name, a clear hatred spilled from Lily’s eyes. My mom’s body stiffened, and her originally nervous expression turned sorrowful. “Lily, Jack has passed away…” I thought Lily would be grief-stricken upon hearing of my death, or at least shocked. Unexpectedly, Lily just let out a cold laugh. “This heartless man, is he regretting abandoning me and now faking his death to deceive me?” After saying this, Lily clapped her hands. A group of men in black suits swarmed into our cramped yard. The men in black were each carrying briefcases. They opened them in unison, revealing stacks of crisp cash totaling several million dollars. Neighbors gathered at our door to watch the scene, letting out sighs of astonishment. “Back then, Jack Thompson despised me for being blind and complained I couldn’t provide a dowry. Today I’m just here to show him that I, Lily Chen, can definitely afford it!” Lily crossed her arms and looked down at my mother haughtily, continuing: “Tell Jack Thompson to come beg me on his knees. I might forgive his past actions. Otherwise…” Lily’s threatening tone was obvious. She then turned to address the neighbors. “Everyone, please bear witness. Jack Thompson wasted my youth, bullied and insulted me. Isn’t it understandable for me to seek revenge on such a scumbag?” The neighbors began whispering among themselves. “He always seemed like such a polite young man. How could he do something like this?” “Come to think of it, we haven’t seen that boy in about four years. Did he really strike it rich with some wealthy woman?” “Their family always seemed so honest. I can’t believe they’d do something so despicable.” The unbearable voices reached my ears. I saw my mother’s sunken eye sockets darken. When I died, my family was left penniless from my medical bills, so we couldn’t even hold a funeral. Most people didn’t know about my passing. But what pained me most was that Lily hated me so much. Still, I could understand. I’d rather the girl I loved hated me than grieve for a lifetime! Clearly, Lily enjoyed seeing me under the pressure of public opinion. After hearing those comments, she seemed satisfied and left without further action. The commotion quickly died down. I was also relieved… If Lily had walked in further, she would have seen the framed photo of me my mother kept. My mom was still shaking from the shocking scene. After everyone left, she collapsed weakly to the ground, murmuring: “My son, was a woman like that really worth it?”

My thoughts drifted back to when Lily and I were together. Lily wasn’t born blind. She lost her sight in an accident as a child. Her family favored boys over girls, so they never bothered to treat her eyes. My first encounter with Lily wasn’t particularly romantic. She ran a small flower shop. I went to buy flowers for my mom on Mother’s Day. You could call it love at first sight. Amidst the sea of flowers, the girl’s pure face was hidden among the petals. Though her gaze was empty, they were the most spirited eyes I’d ever seen. I remember thinking then what a pity it was for such a beautiful girl to be unable to see the world. I didn’t put much effort into pursuing Lily. I guess she was starved for affection since childhood, so she easily surrendered to my advances. But I didn’t take her for granted just because I won her over easily. On the contrary, we were saving each other. I found a sense of home in Lily, while Lily experienced unprecedented love from me. The unexpected happened four years ago when I was suddenly diagnosed with late-stage liver cancer. Afraid Lily couldn’t accept it, I made up an excuse to break up with her. I still remember the day we broke up. It was snowing heavily. Lily stood across from me. When I said, “I’m sorry, but I need to find a woman who can help advance my career,” Lily bit her lower lip hard. Snow had piled up thickly on her head. Her nose was red, and her shoulders were shaking. “So you’re abandoning me too?” Those words were like a knife, carving out a piece of my heart as the icy wind rushed in. I gritted my teeth, clutching my test results tightly. I tried to keep my voice normal, but it still trembled. “You can’t even provide a few thousand dollars for a dowry. What use are you to me?” I couldn’t bear to look at Lily’s face any longer. I was afraid I’d lose control and hug her tightly the next second, so I turned and left coldly. But I was still worried about Lily, so I secretly followed her. That day, on a path that should have only taken 10 minutes, Lily fell several times and took a full hour to walk back. Each time Lily fell, it tugged at my heartstrings. I hated that I couldn’t tell Lily the truth, but I also couldn’t selfishly let her suffer through the rest of her life. Now seeing Lily return successful and famous, my heart was filled with mixed emotions – joy tinged with sorrow. My spirit followed behind Lily. Fortunately, I could see after death. To my surprise, the second place Lily went after returning was her old flower shop. The door chimed as it hit the wind chimes. A young girl turned and greeted Lily warmly. It felt like a lifetime ago. That girl looked just like Lily used to – pure and innocent. The flower shop hadn’t changed at all either. A wave of nostalgia washed over me. Most of the time Lily and I spent together was here. This flower shop held all my beautiful memories. It meant so much to me. Lily carefully surveyed her surroundings. Maybe I was imagining things, but I saw Lily’s eyes redden. “Can I help you with anything, miss?” the girl approached and asked. Lily collected herself and casually bought a bouquet of lilies before leaving. But as she reached the door, Lily’s expression turned cold. She turned back to her assistant and said, “Buy this place no matter the cost, then tear it down.” Her tone was so calm, yet it sent chills through me. “But this place seems to be doing good business…” the assistant said, puzzled. Annoyance flashed across Lily’s face. “This place is my shame!” My heart clenched. So Lily despised me to this extent. In just a week, Lily bought the flower shop. She came in person to watch as bulldozers razed it to the ground bit by bit. I stood at the shop entrance, arms outstretched trying to block them, screaming myself hoarse.

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I never doubted Gabriel’s love for me. On our fifth wedding anniversary, to celebrate this special day, Gabriel bought all the fireworks and roses in the city. As fireworks lit up the night sky and roses covered our estate, he gently kissed the corner of my lips and said with deep affection, “Lily, I love you, till death do us part!” However, the next day, I saw Isabella, the scholarship student Gabriel was sponsoring, carrying a limited edition handbag identical to mine on Instagram. Out of curiosity, I commented: “Isabella, are you sure you weren’t scammed?” Soon after, Gabriel called me, berating me harshly: “Why are you scaring Isabella for no reason? The poor girl has been crying for hours because of you!” Isabella grabbed the phone and apologized tearfully: “I’m sorry, Lily. I won’t carry the same bag as you anymore.” I could hear Gabriel’s continuous words of comfort on the other end of the line. I knew then that this man’s heart had changed. When Gabriel stepped through the front door, I had just returned from the luxury authentication service. This day was the day after our fifth wedding anniversary. It should have been a time of lingering sweetness, but I had encountered news that struck me like a bolt from the blue. It turned out that the limited edition handbag Gabriel had given me on our anniversary was a high-quality fake. And the man who had sworn his undying love to me just yesterday had given the authentic one to his scholarship student. If it weren’t for that unexpected phone call, I would never have imagined that Gabriel, who claimed he was going to work, would be by his scholarship student’s side. “Honey, what are you thinking about? What do you want to eat today? I’ll cook for you!” He still spoke to me in that doting tone, as if everything was normal, ready to comply with my every request. A high-powered CEO coming home to cook for his wife should have been a heartwarming scene, but I felt a mix of emotions. After a moment’s hesitation, I finally declined Gabriel’s offer. “Never mind, I don’t have much of an appetite.” Hearing this, Gabriel immediately crouched down in front of me, his face showing a hint of apology. “Honey, is it because of what happened with Isabella today? I’m sorry for my bad attitude earlier. I only spoke harshly because I saw Isabella crying so hard. Can you forgive me just this once?” He had gotten so angry at me for the sake of a scholarship student. In the past, I might have forgiven him. But now I realized that whenever Isabella was mentioned, Gabriel became talkative and interested. “Isabella did really well in her exams this time and even won a national scholarship, so I rewarded her with a bag.” At this point, Gabriel glanced at me cautiously, afraid I might notice something amiss. “But don’t worry, honey. Her bag is fake. The real one is with you.” I kept a straight face, but my heart felt heavy. He assumed I wouldn’t authenticate the bag, so he lied to me without hesitation. I wonder how many times he’s deceived me over the years. Seeing no reaction from me, Gabriel went to the kitchen and busied himself preparing a table full of delicious dishes. Unfortunately, every dish was sprinkled with a layer of green onions, making it difficult for me to eat. Gabriel placed a piece of spare rib in my bowl and said softly, “Honey, why aren’t you eating? Have some spare ribs. Eat some green onions, they’ll make you smarter.” I sighed deeply in my heart. This phrase was something Isabella had said. In the first year we sponsored her, to celebrate her admission to college, Gabriel and I took her out for dinner. Because I’m allergic to green onions, I never touch them. Isabella had playfully said, “Eat more green onions to become smarter.” Gabriel had strongly agreed with this statement. And over the years we’ve been together, green onions hadn’t appeared in our home for a very long time.

If Gabriel hadn’t mentioned it today, I would have almost forgotten about this incident. It seems he must have had many meals with Isabella over the years. To the point where he had forgotten about my allergy to green onions. “Gabriel, you forgot I’m allergic to green onions.” His face suddenly showed panic. As if he had just remembered something and snapped back to reality. Looking at the table full of dishes sprinkled with green onions, his face couldn’t hide the fluster. “Honey, look at my memory. I was so busy with work today that I completely forgot about this. I’m such an idiot!” He slapped himself on the face several times without holding back. “I’ll make you a new batch right away.” In the end, I wearily stopped him. “Forget it, I’m not hungry anyway. Let’s just leave it.” He kept saying he was too busy with work. But Gabriel seemed to have forgotten that he hadn’t even gone to the office today. After he made that phone call to me, I asked Gabriel’s assistant. The fact I got was that Gabriel hadn’t gone to the office all day, but had spent the entire day with Isabella. Yesterday was our wedding anniversary, and today he went on a date with his scholarship student. He must have been really worried that Isabella would get jealous and angry. I returned to the bedroom somewhat absentmindedly and just lay down on the bed to rest. Gabriel followed me closely. He carefully massaged my neck. His technique was practiced, and it felt very comfortable. I have severe cervical spondylosis. Every time it flares up, my whole body aches and feels uncomfortable. Gabriel, concerned for me, had specially learned this massage technique from many traditional doctors to alleviate my cervical spondylosis attacks. “Honey, are you angry?” he asked. For a moment, I didn’t know how to voice my thoughts. After all, these were just my suspicions, without any concrete evidence. “No, I’m just not feeling well,” I replied. Gabriel looked at me with furrowed brows for a long while, his hands continuing their motions. Suddenly, he slipped his hand under the hem of my dress, slowly exploring upwards, a pleased chuckle escaping his throat. “I learned some new tricks last time. Shall we give them a try today?” Unfortunately, I wasn’t in the mood for such honeyed games. I grabbed his increasingly invasive hand. “Another time. I really don’t feel well today. I want to rest early.” Gabriel’s brow finally relaxed a bit. He didn’t seem to mind my rejection. “Then let me help you take a bath and give you a good massage before you rest.” After the massage and bath, as I lay drowsily in the bathtub, Gabriel gently carried me to bed, then quietly went to the bathroom himself. Before leaving, he took his phone with him. I wasn’t sleeping deeply and could hear his low laughter. Even with the sound of the shower, it couldn’t completely mask his joyful groans. That kind of sound was something Gabriel only made when we were intimate. I instinctively moved closer to the bathroom, pressing my ear against the door. “Isabella, you’re so tender.” “What’s the use of being tender if there’s nowhere to use it?” “Gabriel, I’ve prepared a surprise for you. Are you sure you’re not coming over?” I could almost see Gabriel swallowing hungrily. My hands and feet turned ice cold, and I suddenly stumbled, scraping a layer of skin off my knee as I fell to the floor. Gabriel was startled by the sound. I hurriedly ran back, pretending to have fallen out of bed in my sleep. That man, his face still flushed from his recent pleasure, rushed over and picked me up from the floor, looking somewhat worried. “Honey, how can you be so careless? You’re a grown woman, how can you fall out of bed?” Despite my efforts to hide it, Gabriel still noticed my knee, which was red and bleeding. He anxiously went to get the first aid kit. I wanted to tell him not to bother, but just then, his phone rang. Gabriel instinctively turned away from me. But even so, I could still see his shoulders shaking with laughter. “Okay, I’ll be right over.” Gabriel put the first aid kit by my feet. “Honey, there’s something at the company I need to handle. You wait at home, and when I’m done, I’ll take you to the hospital to check your wound.” He finally couldn’t resist anymore. He found an excuse and left. His heart was no longer with me. Gabriel was very clever. In our five years of marriage, he had deceived me countless times, but I had never once deceived him. But this time, even such an obvious and clumsy lie from me could fool him. I waited all night, but Gabriel never came back. After thinking for a while, I took out my phone and called my best friend. “Help me draft a divorce agreement.” When she heard the news of Gabriel’s infidelity, my friend was shocked. “Lily, are you sure you’re not mistaken? Gabriel, of all people, cheating?” I was also very unwilling to believe this fact. But it was all true. Except for me, Gabriel had always kept his distance from other women. Once, when a receptionist at the company tried to seduce him, she was transferred to Africa the very next day. My friends had often envied me, saying I had found a good husband. But now it seems he had just hidden it very, very deep. “Lily, I think you should consider this carefully. After all, divorce is not a small matter. We should have evidence.” The evidence of infidelity, of course, would be catching them in the act. I knew where Isabella’s dorm was. I also knew that Gabriel had rented an apartment near her school to make it easier for Isabella to study. At the time, I had argued with Gabriel about this. “She’s just your scholarship student. Don’t you think you’re treating her too well?” Gabriel accused me of having no sympathy, saying I was cold-hearted. “Honey, you’re too unfeeling. Isabella has already suffered so much. Since we have the ability, we should help her more. She even has to work part-time on weekends. What if she comes back to school late and the dorm is closed? At least this way she has a place to stay!” I often felt guilty, thinking my awareness wasn’t high enough. Now I see, it was just to give them a good place to meet. I drove to Isabella’s school. But after circling around several times, I couldn’t find any trace of them. I couldn’t even see Gabriel’s car. Until the wound on my knee started hurting more and more, I had to go back home. In the underground parking lot, I found that Gabriel’s car had already returned. But when he came home and didn’t find me, he didn’t even call me? Just as I was about to press the elevator button to go upstairs. Faint sounds came from the nearby stairwell. The sound was somewhat familiar, and I instinctively walked in. In the dim light, there were two figures intertwined. “You little vixen, you’re ambushing me now? Wasn’t three times last night enough for you?” “How could three times be enough? I want to drain you dry, so you can’t even keep that old hag company when you go home.”

The shadows on the ground clearly showed Gabriel spanking Isabella’s bottom hard. I stood frozen in place, as if struck by lightning. Gabriel’s voice suddenly turned very cold. “I’ve warned you not to let my wife find out about all this!” Isabella didn’t take it to heart at all, quickly wrapping herself around Gabriel’s neck. “Don’t worry, Gabriel. I saw Lily’s car isn’t here, she must not be home.” Gabriel quickly got back into the mood. “You’d better behave. Apart from the position of Mrs. Gu, I can give you everything else. Otherwise, I won’t let you off easy!” “How will you not let me off? Unable to get out of bed for three days? Or seven times?” “You little vixen, you dare to provoke me!” Soon, the shadows began to produce rhythmic collision sounds. After that, I couldn’t bear to listen anymore. I went home in a daze, sitting blankly on the sofa. Suddenly my phone flashed. It was a message from an unknown number. [Lily, you saw everything just now, didn’t you? Why do you think Gabriel loves me so much? He can’t even leave me. If I were you, I’d divorce him as soon as possible. You can still save some face. Otherwise, when you’re kicked out in the end, you won’t even have any dignity left!] I gripped my phone tightly, my face cold and expressionless. [Isabella, you homewrecker! You’re really shameless!] [The unloved one is the mistress. Lily, do you think you can compete with me for a man with that old face of yours? I’m better than you in knowledge, looks, and figure. The only thing you’re better at is having old bones. How can someone like you be worthy of being Gabriel’s wife?] [Moreover, I’m already pregnant with Gabriel’s child!] My mind suddenly went blank. Isabella was pregnant? So she has more right to marry Gabriel than me? If we’re talking about status and position, I indeed don’t have the qualifications to marry Gabriel. I only gave him a hand when Gabriel was at his lowest point. I lent him a sum of money to tide him over. But he also put half of the company’s shares in my name. I originally didn’t want this half of the shares. It was him who, countless nights and days, held me and whispered sweet nothings. “Lily, what’s mine is yours. You must accept this half of the shares.” I didn’t think much of it, and never imagined I would come to this day with Gabriel. When Gabriel came back, he saw me sitting on the sofa in a daze and quickly panicked. He hurriedly hugged me, asking over and over again. “Honey, what’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?” Smelling the pungent female perfume emanating from Gabriel’s body, I could no longer hold back the nausea rising in my stomach and ran to the bathroom, vomiting until I was dizzy. Until I threw up bile, I finally felt a bit better. Looking up, my pale face appeared in Gabriel’s eyes. He was terrified and, without saying a word, prepared to carry me to the hospital. But at this moment, his phone suddenly rang. The face that was just terrified immediately broke into a smile. He hurriedly sent a message. Gabriel put me on the sofa and prepared to leave in a hurry. “Honey, something urgent came up at the company. Wait for me, I’ll be right back.” He didn’t even wait for my response before leaving. Even now, he’s still lying to me! I had clearly seen that the person messaging him was Isabella. [Gabriel, I think I’m pregnant!] [Really? I’m going to be a father? Isabella, wait for me, I’m coming right over!] I slowly looked around, my face gradually turning cold. So many years of love, ultimately wasted. The facts were right in front of me. I no longer held any hope. This position of Mrs. Gu, whoever wants it can take it. I had my friend send over the divorce agreement. “That bastard Gabriel dares to cheat, he should be left with nothing in the divorce.” The clause about leaving him with nothing was eventually changed. I only wanted what was rightfully mine, not wanting to have any more entanglements with Gabriel. After packing all my belongings, I sat quietly on the sofa waiting for Gabriel to come back so we could have it out. But I waited for a long time, and there was no news from Gabriel. During this time, I called him many times, but none of the calls went through. Later, Isabella sent me a photo. Gabriel was accompanying Isabella for a prenatal check-up, unable to hide the smile on his face. [Lily, stop struggling. Do you still think you can turn things around now? Let me tell you, whoever has the child is the winner of this battle! Gabriel can only be mine! You’re destined to be my stepping stone!] I ignored Isabella and headed straight to the hospital. Since Gabriel wouldn’t come home, I’d go find him! Perhaps it was just a coincidence. I had barely entered the hospital lobby when I saw Gabriel and Isabella. Isabella was clinging to Gabriel’s arm like a little wife. Seeing me, Gabriel hurriedly distanced himself from Isabella. He was so flustered that he didn’t even notice when the pregnancy ultrasound report fell from his hand. I picked up the report, curiosity briefly flashing across my face before settling back into calmness. “Congratulations, Gabriel. You finally have a child.” In that second, I saw a mixture of shock and fear in Gabriel’s eyes. These emotions quickly turned to anger. He hadn’t expected me to suddenly appear at the hospital. “Lily, you don’t trust me, so you followed me?” he accused. I hadn’t expected Gabriel to be so skilled at turning the tables. Although I had come specifically for him, I didn’t say it directly. “Let’s not talk about whether I followed you or not. Even if I did, so what? You cheated and had a child behind my back, and you still dare to talk about me trusting you?” Gabriel’s face turned ashen, but he couldn’t say a word. “Moreover, if I had been following you, I wouldn’t have only appeared now. But it seems the timing is just right to witness Mr. Gu’s passionate love affair with this mistress and celebrate Mr. Gu’s joy at having a son.” “By the way, it seems Mr. Gu has never spoken a word of truth to me. It seems even if I don’t trust you, it’s justified.” After my sarcastic words, I threw the divorce papers I had prepared at Gabriel. His face gradually showed despair, with an undercurrent of madness. “Honey, what… what are you doing?” he stuttered, fear evident in his voice. “Mr. Gu, surely you’re not illiterate. These are divorce papers, prepared especially for you. I’ve already signed my part, the rest is up to you.” Before I could finish speaking, Gabriel, his face contorted, declared it impossible. “Honey, I won’t divorce you! Don’t even think about it! The position of my wife will always be yours!” I suddenly laughed mirthlessly. He still had the nerve to say such things. It was mine, but I no longer wanted it. “Mr. Gu, you’d better save those words for your mistress standing next to you. She’s carrying your child, scheming to take the position of Mrs. Gu. You’d better not let her lose heart and abort the child!” I glanced at Isabella standing to the side. Judging by Gabriel’s stance, without Isabella’s help, it would be difficult for me to break free. “That way, you’ll never have a child!” With that, I walked to the registration counter and stood in line. Gabriel’s body shook, and he quickly looked at me, about to run over, but Isabella held him back. “Oh, Gabriel, my stomach hurts so much! Don’t leave me!” He was flustered now, unable to pay attention to me anymore, and hurriedly supported Isabella. His heart was split in two. Even so, he still managed to ask me a question. “Honey, what’s wrong? Why are you registering? Are you feeling unwell somewhere? I know some specialists at the hospital, I’ll contact them right away.” I looked at him as if he were an idiot, also stopping him from contacting the doctor. “Mr. Gu, surely you haven’t forgotten that my knee is injured too. I came to the hospital this time to check on the wound.” “If you have the energy, you’d better pay more attention to your mistress who’s carrying your child.” Gabriel’s face turned pale. He had been so preoccupied with Isabella these past few days. Only now did he remember that it had been two days since I injured my knee. He regretfully slapped himself, apologizing to me. “Honey, I’m sorry, it’s all my fault, I—” “Enough!” I finally couldn’t contain my anger anymore. “Gabriel, stop calling me ‘honey’ over and over. I’ve given you the divorce papers. If you know what’s good for you, get a divorce immediately. Don’t make me lose face and sue you for adultery in court, leaving you with nothing!” A crowd quickly gathered in the hospital lobby. Everyone was discussing in hushed tones. Gabriel’s thin lips were pressed into a straight line as he pleaded with me. “Hon— Lily, listen to my explanation. Let’s go home and talk slowly. I can explain everything clearly.” I forcefully suppressed the anger in my heart. “If you want to explain, explain here. Let everyone judge whether there’s any justification for cheating.” This time, Gabriel shut his mouth.

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Sophia and I grew up together. Her family owned a large company, and she was set to inherit it one day. “Let’s get married after you graduate,” she once told me. “I can’t wait to be your wife.” I believed her without question. That is, until the day a man burst into our bedroom, and I realized Sophia already had a fiancé. I was thrown out of the house and left to fend for myself in a strange city. Five years later, they came begging for me to return. “Jack, there’s a letter for you in your mail,” my roommate called out. A letter? Who even sends those anymore? My roommate shrugged and went back to his video game. I picked up the unmarked envelope, feeling oddly apprehensive. As soon as I read the first line, I knew who it was from. “Jack, Grandpa is very ill. The doctors say he doesn’t have much time left. He wants to see you one last time.” Grandpa? I thought he had disowned me years ago. I took a deep breath and tossed the letter in the trash. I had worked so hard to move on from my past. Why did they have to show up now and drag me back? That night, I woke up from a nightmare, my throat parched and raw. How long had it been since I’d had dreams like this? In the dream, Sophia and I were together again. She was kissing me, whispering sweet nothings in my ear. “Let’s get married after you graduate,” she said. “I can’t wait to be your wife.” I believed her. Then the bedroom door burst open. A strange man stood there, his hand covering his mouth in shock. Behind him was Sophia’s grandfather – the man I had called Grandpa for so many years. It wasn’t until later that I learned the truth. The man was Sophia’s fiancé. They had gotten secretly engaged while I was away on a trip to England. I wiped the sweat from my brow and lay back down, but sleep eluded me. So Grandpa was sick? I remembered how energetic he used to be, always walking faster than me. On our daily walks, he would speed ahead on purpose, making me jog to keep up. When I was out of breath, he would stop and laugh heartily at me. He used to say I was the most handsome young man in the world. He said he would watch me grow up, see me get married, even help take care of my children someday. I pulled the covers over my head, trying to block out the memories. The next day at work, Sophia was waiting outside my office building.

Sophia had always been exceptional, both in looks and academics. Even now, she stood out in the bustling crowd. I spotted her immediately. She saw me too and waved with a smile. “Jack!” It wasn’t until she walked up to me that I realized this was real, not another dream. “Jack,” she said again. I nodded numbly. “I called your boss. He said you can take a few days off.” I checked my phone and saw a missed call from my manager. “Time off?” Sophia’s face fell. “Grandpa is sick. He hopes to… to see you.” She reached out to pat my head like she used to, but I dodged her touch. She awkwardly lowered her hand. “Grandpa has missed you so much these past few years.” Missed me? Was he missing me when I was struggling to survive abroad? “Will you come home with me? Please?” I nodded. My mother’s death anniversary was coming up anyway. Sophia visibly relaxed when we boarded the plane to Ashton. “Do you hate me?” she asked quietly. My heart clenched painfully, but I kept my face neutral as I shook my head. “I didn’t know how else to repay your family for taking me in. I guess this was my way of doing that.” Sophia took a sharp breath, about to speak, but I had already closed my eyes to rest. My head was pounding from lack of sleep the night before. I thought Sophia’s presence would keep me awake, but I slept through the entire flight. Adam, the family’s butler, was waiting to pick us up at the airport. He had aged quite a bit. I remembered how he used to dislike me, always interrupting when Sophia and I were alone together. Now he was surprisingly polite and respectful. I felt the credit card in my wallet – the one Adam had secretly given me years ago. He must have known the family intended to abandon me abroad. That card had saved my life. After returning to the country, I had added more money to the card. Now was my chance to return it to Adam. The family estate hadn’t changed much, though there were fewer staff around now. Grandpa was lying on a lounge chair in the courtyard – the same one where he used to hold me and read me stories. “Jack,” he called out eagerly before I even reached him.

Grandpa looked small and frail now. His hair had turned completely white, his face lined with wrinkles. But his sunken eyes still shone with affection. I stared at his bony fingers. Those same hands had once slapped me across the face, calling me shameless just like my mother. “You’re home, my boy,” he said softly. I gave a slight bow. “Mr. Parker.” Sophia shot me a reproachful look, then went to Grandpa’s side to rub his chest. “Are you still angry with me?” he asked. I shook my head. “Not anymore. I’m grateful you gave me a home after my parents passed away.” “I mainly came back to visit my mother’s grave. Her death anniversary is coming up.” He started coughing violently. “I know you resent me,” he wheezed. He gestured for me to sit beside him, but I didn’t move. Grandpa closed his eyes in pain. A tear slid down his cheek. “How could I have been so cruel?” I instinctively touched my ribcage, where two bones had been broken. He had done that with his own cane. “I should have at least let you heal before sending you away,” Grandpa choked out. He seemed to be talking to himself as much as to me. Adam stood nearby, looking at me with a hint of sympathy in his eyes. He was the one who had taken me from the hospital to the airport just three days after my surgery, against the doctor’s furious objections. I smiled at Adam, but he quickly lowered his gaze. “It’s all in the past,” I said. “Please don’t worry about it. I’m doing well now.” Grandpa looked at me. “I tore you and Sophia apart. I know you both hate me for it.” I turned to Sophia, meeting her eyes for the first time that day. I had always loved Sophia’s eyes. They were like the clearest lake. So many times, she had come to comfort me in the dark: “Don’t be afraid. It’s just thunder. I’m here.” It was on a rainy night that I saw my mother jump from the roof. Lightning illuminated the sky for an instant, searing the image of her broken body into my memory forever. Sophia knew about this. Everyone in the family did. But she was the only one who truly comforted me and cared. Even now, her eyes held that same tenderness. But I was no longer afraid of thunderstorms. Grandpa looked at me pleadingly. “Jack, could you call me Grandpa one more time? It’s been so long since I heard you say it.” I stood in silence for a long moment before slowly replying, “I’m sorry. I can’t do that.” His hand fell limply to his side. “I drove my own grandson away.” I smiled sadly. “I’m not your grandson. Sophia is your only grandchild, your flesh and blood.” “You only have one granddaughter. You never had a grandson.” As Sophia walked me out, Grandpa kept trying to make me stay. He brought up happy memories from the past, insisting on his love for me. He wanted me to call him Grandpa again, to sit by his side and keep him company in his final days. But I couldn’t do it. I agreed with what he had once said – family without blood ties is just a tool to ease loneliness. In his heart, that’s all I had been. Someone to chat with in his free time, to give him a taste of family life. But as soon as trouble came, I was the first one thrown to the wolves. Grandpa had done it. So had Sophia. “I’m sorry,” Sophia said quietly as she dropped me off at the hotel. I could handle her apology, but I didn’t want to accept it. She gripped my wrist tightly. “Can we start over?”

The day after I visited my mother’s grave, I received news of Grandpa’s death. Adam told me over lunch. I had invited him out as a thank you. “The family business isn’t what it used to be,” he sighed. I kept my head down, eating silently. Adam continued, “After you left, Miss Sophia married Mr. Nathan. But his family’s company went bankrupt soon after. The investment from the Parker Group was lost overnight.” “Miss Sophia… she divorced him the very next day.” “She wanted to find you, but got caught up trying to save the company. If she hadn’t worked herself to the bone these past years, I’m afraid Parker Group would have collapsed too.” My throat tightened, but no tears came. “How have you been all this time?” Adam asked gently. I looked up to see him watching me with concern. I took off my watch, revealing an ugly scar on my wrist. “This… this is…” Adam stammered. I put the watch back on and smiled. “It doesn’t hurt anymore.” Adam’s eyes grew moist. He had watched me grow up after all. There was some affection there. That evening, I saw Sophia’s car parked outside my hotel. I knew Adam would tell her everything. I suppose they deserved to know a little about my pain.

I packed my bags and went downstairs first thing in the morning. Sophia was still there. As soon as she saw me, she ran over. The first words out of her mouth were “I’m sorry.” “I… back then…” Her hands trembled, wanting to touch me but not daring to. She looked so pitiful like this. “Didn’t you already apologize?” I said. She hung her head in defeat. “No amount of apologies can make up for what I did.” At least she understood that much. “Jack, stay with me. Let me take care of you, let me make it up to you.” I gave a soft laugh. “Miss Parker, do you really think I would dare stay by your side again?” I sighed and looked into the distance. “You don’t need to make anything up to me. This was all my own fault. It’s punishment for being so stupid back then.” That was truly how I felt. If I hadn’t been so foolish, how could I have believed so easily when she said she would marry me? How could I have thought she was just putting on an act when she accused me of seducing her in front of everyone? “Sophia, if you had shown up earlier, I really would have forgiven you. If you had come to find me in America back then, I would have returned with you without hesitation.” “If it was then, maybe we could have started over.” Sophia bit her lip, holding back tears. “Do you still love me?” I thought for a moment, then nodded. “Yes.” Tears streamed down her face. She wiped them away and smiled brightly. “As long as you still love me. As long as you still love me.” Is that so? I wanted to laugh. I had never seen Sophia so humble before. She started to say something else, but my phone rang. I glanced at the number and stepped away to answer. “Why did you go back to the Parkers?” a sweet voice demanded.

Emma’s voice came through clearly. Suddenly I felt a wave of guilt wash over me. “You’re scolding me,” I pouted. She gave a low laugh. “Trying to change the subject, huh?” “No, you really did scold me just now.” She finally gave in and apologized, then asked again: “So why did you go back to the Parkers?” “Just had some business to take care of.” “Jack. Lin.” I cringed and quickly said I’d explain everything when I got back, then hung up. I turned to find Sophia watching me with a hurt expression. “Who was that?” I shrugged. “A friend.” “A woman?” Seeing my frown, she didn’t press further. Over the next few days, she took me to our old school and places we used to go on dates. She probably thought it would bring back happy memories. Unfortunately, she didn’t realize that all those good memories inevitably led back to that one terrible night. That was the true end of our happy times together – betrayal, insults, being thrown out like garbage. As Sophia cheerfully pointed out which buildings had been torn down and which restaurants had closed, I understood that she could never truly comprehend my pain from back then. “Are you not happy?” she asked cautiously. I shook my head. “I’m remembering that night.” She lowered her head guiltily, fidgeting with her fingers. “You still remember?” “You don’t?” I sneered. “I guess you’ve never had nightmares about it all these years. That’s the difference between us.” “Because I was the one who was betrayed. I was the one thrown out on the streets. I was the one who nearly died. So you’ll always think of it as just the past. You keep telling me to move on, but no matter how fast I run, those nightmares still catch up to me.” Tears fell onto the back of my hand. “I can’t help it. I think I’m sick, Sophia. I’m sick.” Sophia threw her arms around me, holding me tight as she let out a pained whimper. “I’ll make you better,” she vowed. She was still so confident. Of course I could get better. But she wasn’t the one who could heal me. I left for Brighton without saying goodbye to Sophia. As soon as I walked in the door of my apartment, I saw my roommate sitting ramrod straight on the couch like a statue. “What’s wrong?” I asked. He pointed to my bedroom. That’s when I noticed the suitcase in the living room. I quickly set down my things and rushed to the bedroom. Emma was curled up on my small bed.

I tiptoed over, not wanting to wake her. She looked so docile asleep, without her usual ferocity. I gently brushed a stray hair from her face. To my surprise, her eyes suddenly flew open. She yanked me onto the bed and kissed me fiercely. Her kisses grew more and more forceful, like a punishment. “So. You. Finally. Came. Back?” she said between kisses. I blinked in response. “Why did you hang up on me that day?” I caught my breath before answering. “What do you think? You were so fierce, who wouldn’t be scared?” She leaned down and kissed me hard. “Liar. Why were you in Ashton?” She glared at me accusingly. “Were you trying to get back with…” I quickly covered her mouth. “I went to visit my mom’s grave,” I said soothingly. “And to see Mr. Parker one last time.” Emma clearly didn’t believe me. “Of course, I also wanted to make them feel a little guilty. They’ve been living too comfortably all these years.” She looked at me suspiciously. “Really?” I held up my hand solemnly. “Really. I swear.” She smiled slightly and buried her face in my chest. “I can’t leave you alone for even a second. I have to keep an eye on you at all times.” Emma had always been very possessive. I had gotten used to it over the years. If it wasn’t for her, I might still be living miserably in America. She and Sophia had grown up together. When I first came to live with the Parkers, Emma bullied me constantly. Whenever I saw her, I would clutch Sophia’s clothes in fear and beg her to take me away. Later in high school, even though Emma had already graduated, her reputation as the school’s toughest girl still lived on. When I heard about it, I became even more terrified of her. But the Parker and Stern families were close, so I still saw her from time to time. Two months after I arrived in America, I was robbed of all my money and my phone. I had already lost all hope for my life and was contemplating suicide when an elderly Chinese couple found me and took me to the hospital. When I woke up again, Emma was sitting by my bedside, looking haggard. After learning I had been sent away by the Parkers, she had been searching for me. If I hadn’t been hospitalized, it might have taken her much longer to find me. She brought me back home and has kept me hidden from the Parkers all these years. Emma gave me a second chance at life. I hugged her arm a little tighter. She sensed it immediately. “What’s wrong? Another nightmare?” I looked at her helplessly. “I’m not even asleep yet.” She patted my waist awkwardly. “So what’s the matter?” Emma rarely showed her softer side, especially around me. I grinned at her. “I just really, really like you.” The tips of Emma’s ears turned red at lightning speed. She rolled her eyes at me. “As you should.” That night, the three of us went out for dinner. My roommate was still a bit afraid of Emma, mainly because of her fierce expression. But as soon as we stepped out of the building, we saw Sophia waiting there.

Sophia’s eyes were filled with anger when she saw Emma and me come out together. Her lips parted, but no words came out as she stared at our clasped hands. Emma pulled me slightly behind her, positioning herself in front. She gave my hand a reassuring squeeze. Seeing this, the fury in Sophia’s eyes intensified. She strode up to me and demanded loudly: “Jack, explain yourself.” I smiled faintly. “What explanation do I owe you?” Sophia was taken aback. “I don’t think you understand your position here. What right do you have to come questioning me?” Sophia’s throat bobbed as she swallowed hard. She glared viciously at Emma. “Some friend you are. So this is where you’ve been hiding all these years?” Emma’s face was taut as she stared coldly back at Sophia, not saying a word. Sophia grew even more enraged at her silence. She raised her hand to slap Emma. Emma didn’t flinch at all. She simply pushed me further away as Sophia’s blow sent her stumbling to the ground. “Emma!” I cried out in alarm. Sophia wasn’t done. She raised her hand to strike again. I rushed over and shoved her away, then slapped her hard across the face. “What gives you the right to hit people?” Sophia stared at me in shock, a flicker of pain in her eyes. “Jack, you hit me? For her?” My chest heaved as I took deep breaths. I should have slapped her years ago. Emma got to her feet and came to stand beside me, a smile playing on her lips. I looked at her worriedly. “Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?” Especially her head – what if she got a concussion? Emma had already done so much for me. I would feel terribly guilty if she was injured because of me. The thought made me even more anxious. I asked loudly, “Does anything hurt?” She gently took my hand. “I’m fine.” Emma’s smile deepened, her eyes softening as she gazed at me. But when she turned back to Sophia, her eyes were as cold as ice. “Consider that slap payment for how I’ve wronged you. We’re even now.” She linked her arm through mine. “From now on, you and Jack have nothing to do with each other. Don’t come looking for him again, or I won’t let you off so easily.” Sophia let out a short laugh. “You won’t let me off? How do you plan to do that? With your pathetic little company?” She turned to me. “Jack, do you really think she can protect you? Her company is on the verge of bankruptcy.” “If it wasn’t for the Stern family propping her up, she’d be nothing but a brainless thug. She can’t keep you safe.” She flashed me an arrogant smile. “You can come back to me anytime. As long as you’re willing to return, I’ll forgive everything.” Forgive everything? I almost thought I had misheard, or that Sophia had used the phrase incorrectly. The smug look on her face made me feel sick. But she didn’t linger. She turned and walked away confidently, as if she had already foreseen Emma’s defeat. I couldn’t help but worry. “You didn’t win the bid this time either?” Emma glanced at me, then quickly lowered her head. “No.” I was shocked. “It went to Parker Group again?” She shook her head. “The final decision hasn’t been made yet, but Parker Group is in the running.” A suspicion formed in my mind. “Did Sophia know about us for a long time?” No wonder she hadn’t seemed surprised at all to see Emma and me together. The last few bids had all gone to Parker Group. I had seen their proposal – it couldn’t compare to Emma’s. And yet, Emma’s company still lost.

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Mom decided to remarry, and I followed her to our new family. My brother Ethan chose to stay with Grandma, eagerly waiting to inherit the massive family fortune. But Grandma only treated him like a delicate flower, never mentioning a word about the inheritance. On the other hand, under Mom’s guidance, I became a popular young actor, and my fiancée was even a well-known rich heiress. Later, Ethan was bullied and oppressed by our father’s illegitimate son, becoming paralyzed. He couldn’t accept his paralysis and was driven mad with jealousy towards me, blaming everything on me. So, he opened the gas valve, dragging me along to death. After the explosion, we both somehow returned to the day Mom was about to leave home. This time, he chose to leave with Mom, while I stared at the mansion, lost in thought: “Finally, it’s my turn to inherit this massive fortune!” Mom was a faded TV star. After Dad passed away, she decided to remarry. Grandma had made it clear early on: “You can remarry, but the children must stay.” Years ago, to marry into the wealthy family, Mom had signed a prenuptial agreement with Dad. Even after Dad’s death, she couldn’t get a penny, but Ethan and I had inheritance rights to the family fortune. For the sake of the huge fortune, Mom made a huge fuss, forcing Grandma to agree that if anyone was willing to go with her, she could take one child. She looked at Ethan and me, completely unsure who to choose. Ethan obediently walked up to her, hugging her and crying pitifully, trying hard to express his desire to go with her. “Mom, I can’t bear to be without you. I’m willing to endure any hardship as long as I’m with you!” “Please, don’t leave me behind, okay?” Mom looked at me with an overly apologetic expression, and I thought to myself: “No need for that.” In the end, Ethan held Mom’s hand as they walked out of the mansion, while I obediently stood beside Grandma. Ethan flashed me a bright smile: “Brother, living with our stepfather would mean being a guest in someone else’s home. You’d better stay with Grandma and continue being the young master of a wealthy family!” I also smiled cheerfully: “Sure thing.” Seeing me smile so happily, Ethan frowned and said: “Lucas, you won’t be smiling for long!” I smiled even more brightly. That remained to be seen! In my previous life, Ethan refused to go with Mom. I was moved by Mom’s tears and left with her. Grandma was furious and immediately kicked me out of the list of heirs. At that time, Ethan naively thought this meant he would get all the family assets. Just when Ethan was happily waiting to inherit the family fortune, Dad’s illegitimate son showed up. The paternity test results came out quickly. The illegitimate son was acknowledged by the family, started working in the company, climbed the corporate ladder step by step, and became the sole heir. Grandma passed away soon after, and the illegitimate son smoothly inherited all the family assets, while Ethan was left with nothing. To curry favor with a billionaire, the illegitimate son actively introduced Ethan to his daughter as her lover. Unfortunately, it didn’t last long. The billionaire’s son-in-law showed up with his men. In the scuffle, Ethan was beaten and left disabled by the billionaire’s son-in-law. The illegitimate son, however, magnanimously stated that Ethan was at fault to begin with, and being beaten into disability was what he deserved. To please the billionaire’s family, the illegitimate son even held a press conference, forcing Ethan to apologize to the billionaire’s son-in-law. The incident quickly trended on social media. I only learned how miserable Ethan’s life had become when I saw the news. Thinking about our blood ties, I rushed to his side overnight to support him. With my efforts, I successfully fought for a considerable compensation for him, enough for him to live comfortably for the rest of his life. I was able to do this because at that time, I was a popular young actor, and my fiancée was a well-known rich heiress. However, Ethan felt no gratitude towards me. Looking at his paralyzed legs, he couldn’t accept the reality of his disability. He believed that I had stolen his original destiny, and out of jealousy, he blamed everything on me. That night, he opened the gas valve, taking me along to death. Unexpectedly, we both came back to life, returning to the day when the wheels of fate began to turn. I watched his departing figure, laughing heartily. Ethan must have thought fate had given him a chance to start over. What he didn’t realize was that this was actually my opportunity for revenge.

I turned to Grandma, feigning innocence, and asked: “Grandma, why does Mom insist on taking Ethan? Doesn’t raising a child cost a lot of money? But Mom doesn’t even have a job, where will the money come from?” Hearing my words, Grandma stared at me deeply for a long time. She didn’t answer my question, but muttered to herself: “I didn’t expect the one who stayed would be the one who uses his brain.” After Mom took Ethan away, Grandma immediately contacted the lawyer. Ethan’s name was completely erased from the list of family estate heirs. In my previous life, Mom remarried an unknown director named Steve after taking me with her. After their marriage, I was quickly packaged as a celebrity and debuted. Although I was only seventeen, I was marketed as a sexy male star. Combined with my status as the heir of the He family, I attracted a lot of attention as soon as I debuted. With my innocent puppy face and toned body, plus excellent singing, dancing, and acting skills, I quickly grew into a popular young actor in just a few years. I had endless acting offers and so many product endorsements that I couldn’t keep up. I became the cash cow for Mom and Steve. Besides filming and attending events, I also had to participate in various dinner parties and social gatherings. There were always some creepy rich women at these parties who would say all sorts of vulgar things to me, and some would even get handsy. After the news of Ethan apologizing to the billionaire’s son-in-law at the press conference went viral, their behavior became even more outrageous. They would say things like: “Why did your grandma kick you out of the family? What shameful thing did you do to the rich family?” “Your brother could be a rich man’s boy toy, what’s stopping you? Too bad I haven’t played with rich brothers before.” “It’s just a bit more expensive than regular male celebrities. Name your price, how much to sleep with me for a night?” It was through their mouths that I learned about Ethan’s recent situation. I originally went to help him out of brotherly love, but I didn’t expect to be dragged down the path of death by him in return. As I was dying, I cursed the heavens for being blind, for my good intentions had not been rewarded. Now that I’ve come back to life, I want to apologize to the heavens for my words. Who says good intentions aren’t rewarded? Who says the heavens are blind? The heavens have excellent vision indeed! After Mom took Ethan away, just like in my previous life, he was quickly packaged as a celebrity and debuted. Perhaps because Ethan was too young, Mom arranged for him to go with a pure and innocent boy image. At his debut press conference, with his young face and wearing revealing clothes that showed off his chest muscles, his every move exuded a flirtatious aura. He said: “Although I come from a wealthy family, I really love the entertainment industry.” “I hope that through my own efforts, I can encourage boys to confidently show off their bodies.” “Grandma also supports my choice. I hope everyone will support and pay attention to me in the future!” Hmm, exactly the same lines they had prepared for me in my previous life. Thinking carefully, whether it’s a bad boy image or an inspirational boy image, these lines could work for either. It’s really a case of changing faces but keeping the same script. “He family young master debuts” and “Breaking clothing shame” quickly became trending topics. Ethan’s debut press conference received extremely high attention. I smirked while holding my phone, then turned and walked towards Grandma’s room. Grandma was old and had little contact with the online world, so she naturally wouldn’t know what kind of farce Ethan had staged. The people below her wouldn’t dare to tell her about this kind of news either. In my previous life, when Grandma found out that I had become a male star with a sexy image, she was furious. But by that time, I had already made a name for myself in the entertainment industry and had considerable commercial value. I also had a very professional PR team around me. With their help, even when Grandma issued a statement claiming to sever ties with me, I was able to counter it effortlessly. Grandma was portrayed as an unreasonable and old-fashioned rich old lady, while I became the brave grandson who refused to bow down for the sake of his dreams. Plus, when Mom jumped out to say how many rules Grandma had and how difficult she was to get along with, how she kicked us out and stripped me of my inheritance rights, so I had to work hard to earn money to support the family, etc., deliberately creating a disadvantaged position to gain sympathy from netizens. Under the guidance of the PR team, I became the epitome of the “poor little rich boy”, and my popularity soared even higher, making my image even more relatable. But now, Ethan had just debuted and absolutely couldn’t withstand Grandma’s heavy blow.

However, Grandma calmly watched Ethan’s debut press conference without even furrowing her brow. I waited for a long time but didn’t see any reaction from Grandma. I could only bite the bullet and cautiously opened my mouth: “Grandma, Ethan is still a grandson of our He family after all. We can’t just watch him ruin himself like this, can we?” But Grandma replied tepidly: “That’s his own business. He chose his own path, so he has to walk it. It’s none of your concern.” Seeing that I couldn’t provoke Grandma’s anger, I could only change direction to express my concern: “But Ethan said you support him, and your support means the He Group supports him. Some netizens have already posted saying our company has poor values.” “They even said that companies like this should be boycotted. Nowadays, netizens are really powerful. A little wind and grass movement can make a century-old enterprise collapse in an instant.” I even gave Grandma several examples, all typical cases of “success and failure by the same token”. Grandma glanced at me and casually instructed me to handle this matter. In her eyes, I seemed to see a hint of approval. I quickly issued a personal statement from the chairman in the company’s name, first stating my opposition to Ethan’s debut. It pointed out that at his young age, he should focus on studying well, and shouldn’t lie about the family elders supporting his activities in the entertainment industry. Then it hinted that Ethan was brainwashed by Mom to go down the sexy route. He was too young and lacked the ability to discern, hoping he would return to the He family soon and focus on his studies. Finally, it stated that if he really liked the performing arts, the family would support him to pursue an artistic path, apply to art schools, and would also be willing to provide opportunities during winter and summer vacations. This statement quickly gained support from netizens, mainly because Ethan’s image was problematic. Ethan was only fifteen years old, going for a pure and seductive boy image – there must be something wrong with his head! It wasn’t difficult to find several provocative and suggestive photos among the ones he released. Even if it was tied to the name of breaking clothing shame, those few photos taken out separately still gave people a very inappropriate feeling. The reborn Ethan, hindered by his miserable ending in the previous life, naturally wouldn’t return to the He family because of a statement. After failing to call Ethan back, Grandma (I) was extremely disappointed and angrily denounced Mom online for taking Ethan away with ulterior motives. And what these motives were, everyone could guess without saying – naturally Ethan’s inheritance rights. So, to force Mom to let go, and also to get Ethan back to school, with Grandma’s consent, I continued to use her name to reluctantly announce the revocation of Ethan’s inheritance rights. Everything fell into place naturally. How could any netizen not say Grandma had good intentions? As high as Ethan’s popularity was when he debuted, now there were just as many netizens who thought he was digging his own grave. Just like that, he became a problematic youth in the eyes of netizens. When people mentioned Ethan, they would only say: “Oh, that ungrateful rich young master.” Ethan’s image instantly changed from a brave and thoughtful rich young master to a rebellious youth with a not-so-clear mind. Debuting with such big controversy, many people who originally wanted to cooperate with him stepped back, deciding to wait and see. The saying goes, “the first push is vigorous, the second is weak, and the third fails.” This applies in any field. His debut’s first fire burned in a mess under my interference, but that was far from enough. I used the company’s PR department to send the topic “Can underage male stars go the sexy route” to the trending list, creating public opinion and attracting the attention of relevant departments. Two days later, Ethan was directly banned by the authorities, with the reason being promoting incorrect values and bringing bad influence to society. Mom and Steve’s plans hadn’t even sprouted before I nipped them in the bud. Grandma didn’t intervene throughout, just observing. I was a bit nervous, not knowing if she would blame me for not considering brotherly affection. Grandma didn’t express any opinion, but instructed me to intern in the company’s PR department. She said: “Work hard, if there’s anything you don’t understand, come back and ask me.”

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After taking paternity leave when my wife gave birth, I returned to the company to find my desk occupied by my apprentice, Lily. My sales champion trophy had been destroyed, and my personal poster on the publicity board was torn down. She clung tightly to the resources and connections I had given her, and mocked me in front of the whole company: “Which would you choose – sales performance or family? Rather than being laid off, why don’t you just quit on your own?” She didn’t know that with just one word from me, even the CEO would give up his seat for me! “Employee information not detected. Please scan again.” Just as I was about to enter, my access card wouldn’t work no matter how I tried to swipe it. I had always kept this access card in good condition. How could it suddenly stop working for no reason? As I was puzzling over this, Jenny, my former work buddy, happened to pass by. Seeing me, her eyes lit up with surprise: “Jack! What brings you back to the office today? How’s your wife recovering after giving birth?” “Everything’s good. I just couldn’t stop worrying about work, so I thought I’d come back and check things out.” After exchanging a few pleasantries with her, I prepared to return to my familiar desk. But she stopped me, stammering: “Um, your desk… Lily’s taken it over.” Just then, a shout came from the nearby meeting room: “I’ve told you, do everything exactly as I say! Jack’s old methods are outdated!” Jenny was startled, her expression turning unnatural. She told me that since I went on leave, Lily had become the company’s second top salesperson. She had even taken over my former desk, saying I didn’t deserve the position. Vice President Harris saw her outstanding performance and had her mentor the new hires to help them quickly adapt to the work environment. Relying on her newly elevated status, she berated and even hit the new employees, calling it “pressure training” and “failure education”. How else would they learn to handle customers if they weren’t toughened up first? After hearing this, I couldn’t help but sigh inwardly: “What a case of nurturing a tiger that will turn on you! She’s even trying to ride roughshod over me now!”

Lily was a new hire I had originally brought in. At the time, I saw she was struggling to make it on her own in the big city. My heart softened, and I decided to mentor her hands-on. When I was pursuing sales leads, she would observe and learn from the side. Afterwards, she would review with me the little tricks for winning over clients. She learned quickly and acted very obedient in front of others. She was the most promising new hire I had ever seen. Before I went on paternity leave, I wanted to try handing over my resources to her temporarily, giving her space to work independently. She could always return them to me later. But when I came back, she was no longer willing. She even tried to turn the tables on me. Thinking of this, I couldn’t help but clench my fists. Just then, the half-closed meeting room door suddenly opened. Lily walked out holding an iced Americano, followed by a group of ashen-faced new hires. I took a good look – she was completely unrecognizable from before. Where had that fresh-faced young girl gone? Now she wore bright red lipstick, earrings bigger than her cheeks, with an oily sheen on her face. It was more nauseating than eating greasy pork knuckles for days on end. Seeing me, her jaw nearly dropped to the floor: “Jack! When did you get here? I’ve missed you so much!” Before I could speak, she pounced on me in a bear hug, clinging so tightly I could barely breathe. I peeled her off and smiled back: “Well Lily, you’ve certainly grown into your role in just a few days!” “You’ve even taken over my desk now. Talk about making yourself at home.” Hearing my words, a flash of embarrassment crossed her face, quickly replaced by fawning: “Oh Jack, I just wanted to bask in your aura a bit. Besides, a desk is just a desk, right?” She led me to a rather secluded corner where there was a workstation. I reached out to wipe it, and my fingers were covered in a visible layer of dust. The desk was also cluttered with random junk, making my mood just as messy. “You mean for me to sit here?” I asked. She blinked her big innocent eyes at me and said: “Yes, Jack. Is there a problem? It’s nice and quiet here.” I laughed bitterly to myself. Not only was it isolated, the air conditioning didn’t even reach this spot. This was clearly an attempt to sideline me. Suppressing the anger about to erupt, I said to her sternly: “Lily dear, I only took a short leave. No need to be so… accommodating. Those big client accounts I handed over to you – I’ll be taking those back to follow up on myself.” But she suddenly shrieked: “What’s wrong with you? Are you insane?”

I was stunned by her words, momentarily at a loss. Seeing my reaction, her voice suddenly took on a tearful tone: “Jack, you never said that before! You want to have your cake and eat it too! What’s wrong with letting me take on all your resources to gain experience?” “Jack, I know you’re not what you used to be. Don’t worry, you don’t need to fear me taking your position.” I was dumbfounded by this blatant twisting of the facts. I hadn’t expected her to be capable of such shameless behavior. Before I could respond, she ran downstairs crying, losing a shoe in the process. The words died on my lips. I couldn’t find a way to voice them. I could only start tidying up the desk, taking out a cloth to wipe down the drawers inside and out. But when I opened the bottom drawer, my gaze froze. Inside lay my sales champion trophy. But now the trophy was just an empty base, The trophy shape on top no longer intact. My heart felt like it was blocked by a huge stone, the ripples of emotion dissipating as they hit it. Just then I heard snippets of gossip from somewhere nearby: “I can’t believe Jack is that kind of person. No wonder he’s always been the top salesman – turns out he’s been monopolizing all the resources!” “Coming back to the office so soon, and already fighting with his star pupil! He must be worried about losing his position since he can’t devote as much energy to work now!” I said nothing. People’s preconceptions are like a mountain – once they come crashing down on you, there’s no moving them. Afterwards, I went downstairs for a bit. When I came back, I was carrying several large bags of bubble tea. I had ordered them on my phone earlier, thinking of treating my former colleagues to a cool drink. I didn’t disturb anyone, just quietly delivered the drinks to each person’s desk with a nod and smile before leaving. When I got to the gossipers, they finally shut their big mouths when they saw me, pretending to work while sneaking glances. I paused for a moment, then placed a few bubble teas in front of them. At first they pretended not to notice, but when they couldn’t keep up the act any longer, they turned to me and said: “Oh Jack! Sorry, I was so focused on work! Thanks!” I smiled and gave them each a firm pat on the shoulder. They cried out in pain, drawing stares and a few snickers from everyone. I walked away without looking back, feeling quite pleased with myself. At some point, Lily had returned to her desk and was touching up her makeup in a small mirror. Seeing an opportunity, I quietly walked up beside her. When she finally noticed, she nearly jumped out of her chair. I waved a bubble tea in front of her face: “Lily dear, I was inconsiderate earlier. Let me make it up to you!” Her eyes lit up, clearly not expecting this gesture from me. I quickly pulled out the drink, twirled it around, and said in a puzzled tone: “Oh no, I accidentally ordered you a full sugar black sugar milk tea! I forgot you’re watching your figure. We salespeople need to maintain our image after all!” Seeing this, she quickly waved her hands for me to take it away. But I moved in closer, suddenly jamming the straw into her mouth: “Come on, it’s the thought that counts! Do me a favor!” This made her choke, her hands instinctively grasping the cup as her face turned red. But somehow, I “accidentally” let go, and the tea spilled all over her designer outfit. She immediately flew into a rage, screaming: “What the hell is wrong with you? What are you trying to do?” I firmly pushed her back down as she tried to stand, leaning in to whisper in her ear: “Sit tight! Don’t let a little bubble tea inflate you like a balloon. You might float away and fall to your death!” With that, I strode off, heading to the restroom to wash my hands. Her shouts of anger followed me. Hmm, with that high pitch she’d be wasted not trying out for a singing competition. But before long, Jenny informed me that Vice President Harris was calling a meeting in 5 minutes and told me to prepare. After gathering my materials, I entered the meeting room first. This home court advantage would be mine again sooner or later! But just then, the phone I’d left at my desk suddenly lit up with a message from a contact labeled: (Flashy Bro) CEO.

By the time the meeting room was almost full, Lily finally rushed in. She had clearly found another outfit to change into somewhere. But there were still traces of milk tea in her hair, making a few new hires snicker at the comical sight. She glared at them, and the room fell silent again. Vice President Harris glanced at her before clearing his throat and addressing us: “As you can see, after Lily, we’ve brought in another batch of new hires. Now that Jack is back, why don’t we have the two of them each lead a team, dividing up the work to tackle the tasks from above.” “If there are no objections, I’ll announce the team assignments…” Before he could finish, a new hire stood up and said quietly: “Mr. Harris, could I request to be on Jack’s team instead?” Harris looked displeased, just staring at her without speaking. But soon after, more people started requesting to join my team. Seeing this, Lily immediately blew up: “What’s the meaning of this? Is working under me a death sentence or something? The market changes in the blink of an eye – are you sure Jack understands the current situation better than me?” She turned to glare at me, her face twisted with anger. Perhaps intimidated by her intensity, a few of the women were struck speechless. Seeing they had something to say, I gestured for them to come whisper in my ear. From what they told me, I realized Lily was a complete fraud. She claimed to be mentoring her team, but in reality she just used them as errand runners – fetching tea, delivering packages, doing all sorts of menial tasks. When she finally deigned to share some so-called “experience”, it was all theoretical knowledge she had never actually put into practice. Whether any of it was actually useful, no one knew. The young women had no choice but to forge ahead with her methods. They managed to close a few small deals with great difficulty, only to have Lily snatch the credit for herself. In the end, all their efforts were for nothing. By this point, the women’s faces were filled with barely concealed resentment. Lily acted like she was drunk, pointing at them and yelling: “I’m going to steal all of you away to my team no matter what! How dare you rebel like this!” I turned to look at Harris. He just sat there with his legs crossed, watching the drama unfold with great interest. I said to him coldly: “Mr. Harris, Lily is my apprentice after all. Her poor people skills can’t be blamed on me! If you have any insights, I’m all ears.” Seeing this, Lily suddenly walked up to Harris. She clung to his arm, a hint of something unsavory flashing in her eyes: “Jack! Surely you don’t think Mr. Harris would just stand by and do nothing? Given my relationship with him, leaving you to struggle alone wouldn’t be a problem!” As she spoke, she clung even tighter. Her gaze flickered to me, clearly eager to see my reaction. Suddenly, Harris’ phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen and immediately sat up straighter. After stepping out for a few minutes, he returned to the meeting room looking frazzled and rubbing his eyes: “Why did the CEO have to choose today of all days for a surprise inspection? Talk about bad timing.” Hearing his words, my eyebrows involuntarily raised. I had to admit, the timing was impeccable.

Once the room quieted down again, Harris opened his laptop to share his screen. A large face suddenly appeared before us. It was CEO Leo. At that moment, he was overseas developing new business. He was dressed in a loud, colorful outfit. Seeing us, he opened with: “What’s up, bros?” Us: “…” Seeing we didn’t react, he wisely shut his mouth and said sternly: “Ahem… I happened to have some free time today. I heard from Harris that you’re launching a new product and assigning tasks, so I thought I’d check in.” With that, he gestured for Harris to continue, though his gaze seemed to drift towards me. Harris’ face darkened, but he had no choice but to start his introduction from the beginning. However, when he got to the team assignments, he suddenly paused. He said to CEO Leo: “Sir, Jack is our company’s top salesman. So his team only needs one or two people. As for Lily’s team…” Leo listened silently for a moment after Harris finished. After confirming the situation with Harris, he ordered all the new hires to join Lily’s team, then picked out a few “star players” from the roster to assign to my team. Lily immediately objected: “CEO, isn’t this rather unfair? My team is all newbies while Jack’s team is full of experienced salespeople. No matter how you look at it…” The CEO spoke up: “Lily dear, wasn’t Jack so good to you before precisely to give you a chance to prove yourself? Now if you can outperform Jack while leading a team of newbies, wouldn’t that be the perfect demonstration of your abilities?” “But Jack, he…” The CEO’s patience was clearly wearing thin. He slammed his hand on the desk and barked: “Are you trying to tell me how to do my job? Follow orders! If you can handle it, great. If not, get out!” With that, he turned off his camera and left the online meeting, leaving a sweating Harris behind. Lily hurriedly chased after Harris as he rushed out the door, grabbing his arm to ask: “Mr. Harris, how can you bear to see me like this? You know that Jack is so…” But Harris shook her off violently, his eyes bulging as he yelled at her: “The CEO has spoken. What else can I do? Even if I had incredible powers, do you think I’d risk my neck for you?” The meeting room door slammed shut with a “bang”. Lily was left kneeling on the floor alone, rubbing her reddened foot from the fall as tears streamed down her face. The sight was truly pitiful. But I only wanted to rip off her mask and expose her true face for all to see. As I stepped out of the meeting room, she let out a shrill cry with reddened eyes: “Jack, you think you’re so clever? I’ll make you regret this!” I paused for a moment, then turned to say: “Okay, noted.”

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Frank despised Mia for being a stay-at-home mom who only knew how to ask him for money. To prevent me from becoming like her, he decided to train 6-year-old me to earn money and support the family. When the neighbor’s kid became a child model, I tried too. Despite being dressed up like a prince, I was politely told I wasn’t cute or clever enough. When a friend’s child won an essay contest, I entered too. After chewing through three pencils, all I got was a certificate saying “Keep trying!” Frank beat Mia viciously. “The child you gave birth to is just like you – ugly and stupid.” I stood in front of Mom, feeling guilty and heartbroken. It was all my fault for making her suffer. I dropped out of school early to become the cheapest labor. I handed over all my wages, but by age 25, I had secretly saved up $10,000. I could finally take Mom away. My hands trembled as I tried to give Mom the bank card, when Frank suddenly burst in, his face twisted with rage. I tried to pull Mom away to escape, but she shoved me down instead. She proudly presented my wages to Frank. “Honey, beat this ungrateful brat to death. He not only hid money but dared to persuade me to divorce you.” I was beaten to death. Frank got off with a light sentence for manslaughter plus a letter of forgiveness. He was out in less than a year. I found myself back in time to when I first dropped out of school. Frank was viciously beating Mia again, berating her for giving birth to an ugly, stupid child just like her. Frank was a fitness trainer and former boxer. Mia was very supportive of his work and often sparred with him. At that moment, Mia lay sprawled on the floor, her neck craned stubbornly. Frank’s fist connected with a sickening crunch. Her piercing screams filled the air. Jason lounged on the sofa, munching chips and watching with interest. He occasionally offered commentary. “Not hard enough.” “Not fast enough.” I staggered to my feet, having just been thrown across the room for trying to shield Mom. My head was still ringing. As the scene before me came into focus, I suddenly realized I had been reborn. Mom’s increasingly agonized screams snapped me out of my daze. Frank was 6 feet tall and 250 pounds of solid muscle. His hammer-like fists rained down on Mom with increasing speed and force. She was soon covered in blood. I couldn’t help but laugh coldly inside. It seemed Frank was getting carried away with his performance, hurling insults at Mom and me non-stop. In my past life, whenever Frank raised his hand to hit Mom, I would immediately give in to any demand. It worked better than if he beat me. But the one time it involved my education, I refused to back down. So Mom volunteered to take the beating for me. In the end, I still gave in. But in this life, apart from hatred, I no longer harbored any illusions about family. I just wanted to live for myself. I could never forget how in my past life, after the violence ended, Mom would always wipe away my tears with her bruised face. She would say tenderly: “Lucas, don’t worry. This is just how your father shows his love for me.” I always thought Mom was just trying to comfort me. It wasn’t until my final moments that I realized she truly meant it. Mom loved it. The more he beat her, the more she loved him. As a filial child, I naturally couldn’t interfere with their love. I remained motionless. Frank’s blows grew increasingly vicious as he incorporated his boxing techniques. Mom soon coughed up a mouthful of blood. Jason giggled with glee, calling it spectacular. “Lucas, save Mommy! I’m doing this all for you.” But even three of me combined weren’t as thick as Frank’s arm. I cowered in the corner, looking utterly terrified. Blood pooled on the floor but she still didn’t get what she wanted. Mom finally started begging for mercy, but Frank was too worked up to stop. He grew more and more excited. “Mom, should I call the police?” Frank suddenly snapped out of it. Mom no longer looked on the verge of death. She wiped the blood from her face with her sleeve. “Your father was just playing around with me.” Under three scrutinizing gazes, I walked straight to the bedroom. I paused at the door. There was one point in Frank’s frenzied rant that I disagreed with. “Dad, don’t you know – like father, like son?” All the insults he had hurled at me instantly reflected back onto Frank. The bedroom door slammed shut with a bang, leaving the three of them staring at each other in bewilderment. I lay down on the bed. Within seconds, I heard the doorknob being frantically twisted and curses flying. I rolled over, ignoring it. My lack of security had long ago made me develop the habit of locking the door. Everything finally quieted down, but I was far from calm. In a moment of impulse, I had provoked Frank. All that awaited me now were even more severe consequences. Suddenly, the sound of keys jingling came from outside the door. ***This is the breakpoint***

Frank still couldn’t open the door. There were too many keys, and he had never been a patient man. He preferred the simplest, most brutal methods. A thunderous pounding on the door began, accompanied by a stream of vile curses. “You little bastard, think you’re so smart after a few years of school? Mocking your old man for being uneducated? You wouldn’t even exist if I hadn’t given you life and provided for you…” Is that so? In my past life, after Grandma died and I was brought back home, I learned they had adopted an older brother two years my senior. Frank gave Mia $200 a week for living expenses. His only requirement was that each meal have a mix of meat and vegetables, with different types of meat each time. She could spend any leftover money as she pleased. But Mia often ran out of money before the week was up and had to ask Frank for more. This angered him greatly. To punish her, he would often withhold the allowance even after a week had passed, making her kneel at the front door before throwing money in her face. A month later at the dinner table, Frank finally noticed me – but only because I reached for the meat dish in front of Jason. “Eat, eat, eat. All you two do is ask for money as soon as you open your eyes. Like mother, like son.” Mia felt wronged and vented her anger by scolding me, echoing Frank’s words. She didn’t expect this would earn her Frank’s approval for the first time. I could sense Mom’s excitement even with my head bowed. Her voice trembled slightly with disbelief. Greatly encouraged, she berated me using words I had never heard before, completely disregarding my reddening eyes. It’s okay. There’s no rule that mothers have to love their children. It’s enough that I love her. My embarrassment delighted Jason. Jason laughed, and Frank laughed along with him. That was the first time Frank praised Mia, the first time he acknowledged her. Mia had finally found her place in this family. To prevent me from becoming as useless as Mia in the future, Frank decided to start training 6-year-old me to earn money and support the family. When the neighbor’s kid became a child model, I tried too. Despite being dressed up like a prince, I was politely told I wasn’t cute or clever enough. When a friend’s child won an essay contest, I entered too. After chewing through three pencils, all I got was a certificate saying “Keep trying!” Frank beat Mia viciously. “The child you gave birth to is just like you – ugly and stupid.” In the end, I could only collect bottles and trash, spending my days begging on the streets with homeless people. I would return home filthy, digging crumpled dollar bills out of my shoes to proudly place in the collection box. I had to pay for my meals – the family didn’t support freeloaders, except for Jason. Jason threw a tantrum at the dinner table. “It’s so embarrassing! My classmates all make fun of me.” Because I had run into him on the street and tried to give him his favorite candy… “Bring me the axe,” came Frank’s enraged voice from outside. He was going to chop down the door. And after the door, who would be next?

Frank raised the axe. I opened the door voluntarily, but he didn’t stop. “How dare you disrespect your father. You might as well die.” Frank wasn’t well-educated. He had boxed since childhood. In his world, fists were everything. Moreover, in this household he was the law, with absolute control. So this life he had given, he could take back whenever he pleased. The axe blade stopped just an inch from the top of my head. At the critical moment, Mia threw herself at me and we dodged. But because we were so close, it grazed her scalp. The axe was razor-sharp. Even that light touch left Mia with a bald patch and a trickle of blood. She held me, sobbing dramatically. Hit them and then offer a sweet. I knew this routine well. She feared that if I died, there would be no one to share her burden. She would once again become the sole target. Frank moved to strike me again. The normally stubborn Mia crumpled with a light shove. Her face contorted with anguish as she wept uncontrollably. “Lucas, Mommy is so sorry. I can’t protect you. Just endure it, don’t fight back. It’ll be over soon.” I watched the scene before me with cold eyes. I knew very well that if I didn’t give them what they wanted, I might not make it out of here alive today. I knelt down and hugged Frank’s leg, my voice choked with emotion. “Dad, I’m sorry. I just didn’t want to let go of such an amazing father. Everyone here knows you’re my dad. They’re all afraid of you, so no one dares bully me.” “That’s why I want to be as strong as you.” I had always been obedient. Frank was taken aback, but soon couldn’t hide his pleased smile. “So that’s how it is. Dad was wrong to doubt you.” Mia’s expression was strange. Everyone knew Frank loved being flattered, but this was the first time she had seen him admit he was wrong. I silently observed everything from the corner. Mia still didn’t understand. The more someone lacks something, the more they crave it. Frank claimed education was useless, yet he forced Jason to study. What he cared about most was people saying he was all brawn and no brains. He was terrified of misunderstanding others, often checking the dictionary multiple times for a single phrase. In my past life, as soon as Mia was beaten, I immediately dropped out of school. I didn’t even finish middle school. Now, taking advantage of Frank’s good mood, I asked to finish middle school. It was only a few months difference. Frank agreed without hesitation. Those few months passed quickly. After graduation, I chose to work out of state, saying there were more opportunities. Frank was very supportive. On my first day there, a message came in the family group chat. Frank: When do you get paid? Frank: Never mind, just hand it all over at the end of the year. Me: Okay. The conversation ended there. I sent Frank a photo of a factory, then turned and walked in the opposite direction. Outside First High School, the grade director and homeroom teacher of Class 1 were eagerly waiting, wringing their hands in anticipation of the arrival of Lucas Li, the top scorer in the high school entrance exam.

I officially began my high school life. Right after the qualifying exam, I had contacted First High School. It was far from home and one of the top schools in the country. They offered excellent conditions – not only was tuition and board free, there were additional scholarships and stipends. People say they’d rather be a corporate slave than a high school student. Everyone claims high school is miserable, but I found it to be the most relaxing time of my life. My classmates were kind, my teachers attentive. My life was happy and fulfilling. By saving every penny and working part-time jobs, I managed to save up a decent sum after six months. It would be enough to hand over. To avoid suspicion, I bought gifts and local specialties for everyone in the family when I returned for the New Year. I also finally owned my first well-fitting piece of clothing that I actually liked. To save money, I took a 48-hour hard seat train ride home. When I finally arrived, I was greeted with a slap. “You little bastard, how dare you waste money on yourself? Don’t you have work uniforms?” Mia was overjoyed to see me. After Frank finished slapping me, she pulled me into her arms. “Lucas, you’re finally back. Mommy missed you so much.” I saw the bruises covering her body. Frank must have shown her a lot of “love” while I was gone. Now that I was back, the family had a new target. No wonder she was so excited. Mia quickly frowned as she looked at my jacket, her tone lecturing: “But Mommy still has to criticize you. Isn’t this a bit wasteful?” But apart from the jacket I was wearing, my entire suitcase was full of things for them. Yet they couldn’t see that, fixating only on what I had on. How ridiculous. In my past life, when I didn’t buy anything or new clothes, what did they say? “You went away and didn’t even think to bring back some local specialties for the family? So selfish, just enjoying yourself out there while your parents have never even left the state.” “You’re working now but can’t even buy yourself decent clothes? Always looking so shabby, it’s embarrassing.” Their hostile gazes only softened when I handed over the money. The next year, I bought a plane ticket without hesitation, deliberately scheduling it for two days later. This time I still brought back lots of gifts, but nothing for myself. As soon as I got home, they started inspecting my luggage and scrutinizing me. “Did you take the train back?” I nodded, even producing last year’s train ticket. This time they were finally satisfied. Seeing how obedient I was, they made the unprecedented move of inviting me to join them for the New Year’s Eve dinner. At the table, they wore brand new clothes. Jason sat in the middle, the picture of a happy family. I sat across from them in my wrinkled clothes, picking at the few vegetables on my plate. Next door came the sounds of a heated argument and crying. Mrs. Lee was yelling at her son again. “Go to college my ass! Pack your bags and go find a job to make money.” Mia happily placed a plate of meat dishes in front of me. Mrs. Lee and Mom had always been rivals. Their confrontations usually ended with Mrs. Lee having the upper hand. But the situation had reversed since I started working last year. Especially after Mom went to borrow soy sauce from her wearing new clothes that afternoon. It sparked the most intense argument ever in their household. After eating, they lounged on the sofa watching the New Year’s Gala, laughing non-stop. They didn’t notice me clearing the table, my expression dark as I held the half-full bottle of soy sauce. At the family gathering during the Lunar New Year. Mom hadn’t attended in nearly a decade, not since being mocked for dressing worse than my grandmother. But this year she got up early, excitedly dolling herself up in the trendiest outfit I had brought b

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My girlfriend won $300,000 in the lottery. That night, she threw all my belongings out of our apartment. She even yelled at me, saying I wasn’t even worth her ex’s toenail. Looking at my girlfriend and her mother showing their true colors, I grabbed my luggage and ran. Because I had also won the lottery. Not much, just $70 million. “I won!” I whispered, staring at the numbers on the ticket in my palm, comparing them to the winning numbers. I checked several times before I could believe it. The lottery ticket I bought on a whim had won $70 million! With trembling hands, I instinctively wanted to call my girlfriend and share this exciting news with her. I dialed her number, but no one answered for a long time. I couldn’t wait any longer. I immediately packed up my things and rushed home, forgetting about overtime work. Who cares about that stupid job now! It was already past midnight, but I couldn’t contain my excitement. I splurged on an Uber for once to get home. As soon as I opened the door, I called out eagerly. “Lily! We can afford your mom’s treatment now!” I called twice but no one answered. I figured Lily and her mother must be asleep since it was so late. I put down my bag and noticed the table full of dishes and a half-empty bottle of wine. I felt confused. Lily and her mother were usually very frugal. What special occasion were they celebrating? I casually pushed open the bedroom door. The scene before me shocked me. At that moment, Lily was lying naked on the bed with a man on top of her. Their bare bodies were pressed tightly together, a sight that made me nauseous. Anger surged through me. “Lily, what the hell are you doing while I’m not home?!” Startled by my angry shout, Lily hurriedly wrapped the blanket tighter around herself, her face full of panic as she tried to explain. “James, why are you back? This… this isn’t what it looks like… we…” She stumbled over her words, unable to explain. The man beside her deliberately provoked me by putting his arm around her shoulder and saying, “Baby, tell him about our relationship.” Lily instinctively wanted to explain to me. I rolled my eyes, grabbed her unfinished glass of wine from the bedside table, and threw it in her face. Lily stared at me with wide eyes as the wine dripped down her hair. The wine seemed to wake her up. The man beside her looked at me, and I immediately recognized him. He was none other than Jack, Lily’s ex-boyfriend she had always pined for. She spoke with a sob in her voice, “Lily, why are you afraid of him! Hit him back!” Hearing him say that, Lily’s gentle demeanor changed completely. She suddenly got up and grabbed my arm, trying to push me to the ground. But she wasn’t as strong as me, only managing to make me stumble back a few steps. I stood there, a sour feeling creeping up. Lily tugged at my clothes, pointing and cursing at me, “I’ve had enough of you all these years!” “Who do you think you are! I’m done pretending, I won $300,000 in the lottery! I’m a millionaire now! Get the hell out of here!” “You think you’re good enough for me? If I hadn’t seen you were stupid and willing to work hard, earning money for me to spend, I wouldn’t have even touched you.” “You’re not even worth Jack’s toenail!” After saying that, the man beside her leaned down and kissed her, his eyes full of smugness.

Hearing her words, I stood there stunned, unable to believe these words came from the woman I had loved for four years. I had been with Lily for four years, and she had always been good to me, gentle and caring. In our four years of dating, she had never been unreasonable or caused drama. Our love life could be described as peaceful with a touch of sweetness. We were even planning to get married early next year. Because I once thought meeting Lily was my blessing. I’m an orphan, grew up in foster care, so I’ve always longed for a family of my own. Lily’s family wasn’t well-off either. Her father died early, and her mother raised her single-handedly. Last year, her mother was diagnosed with stage 2 gastric cancer. Faced with expensive medical bills, I never thought about giving up on her and her mother. I paid the rent, supplemented our living expenses, worked four jobs a day just to support our little family. I even took out all my savings for her mother’s treatment. Now that she had won the lottery, the first thing she did was abandon me and go back to her ex? She even went to find her ex-boyfriend who had dumped her before, with bags of shopping, just hours after winning the lottery this morning. Looking at it now, those four years between us were truly laughable. I crouched on the ground, laughing coldly. I silently touched the lottery ticket in my pocket and looked up at her. “Does your mom know about you two?” I still had a glimmer of hope that someone would speak up for me. Lily’s mom had been good to me, always saying she treated me like her own son. I looked at Lily, only to see her nod. “My mom knows, she’s the one who told me to break up with you quickly.” I laughed bitterly. The familiar voice of Lily’s mother sounded from the living room. “What’s all this noise in the middle of the night? Can’t you let people sleep?” Lily’s mother had just woken up, probably because of the lottery win. She now looked radiant, with no trace of illness visible. She glanced at me on the ground, with contempt in her eyes that I had never seen before. Mrs. Zhang waved her hand, “Hurry up and kick this jinx out! Can’t you let people sleep at night?” Mrs. Zhang glared at me, her eyes almost rolling to the sky. “James, don’t blame auntie for being heartless. Look at your face and your fate, you’ve already caused your parents’ death, are you planning to curse me and my daughter too?” “It’s because of your bad luck that I got cancer! Get out of here now! You’re bad luck!” She was still cursing. “You jinx, you look poor, I’m afraid you won’t be able to give my daughter a good life in the future.” “Jack is much better.” I looked at the mother and daughter in front of me, feeling utterly unfamiliar. It was as if the two people who had been good to me and treated me as family never existed. So money has such great power, $300,000 can make people drop their masks and show their true faces. Since everyone’s done pretending, I’ll stop pretending too. I waved my hand, “Then I’ll be direct too. To tell you the truth, I also won the lottery, $70 million.”

Hearing what I said, the three people in front of me had disbelief flashing across their faces. Suddenly, they burst into laughter, as if they had heard some ridiculous joke. Lily reached out and patted me, “James, have you gone crazy? You think everyone is as lucky as me? $70 million, you couldn’t even win $7.” “Don’t think you can lie to win me back. Even if you won $700 million, I wouldn’t want you.” I didn’t say anything, a faint smile hanging on my lips. I casually picked up my bag and put it on my back, making up my mind. “Believe it or not, Lily. With your behavior, I was only with you out of pity before. Did you really think you were that beautiful? Look in the mirror!” “Let me tell you, from today on, Lily, even if you and your family die, it has nothing to do with me!” I turned and went back to the bedroom to take out my watch and put it in my bag. Although the watch wasn’t worth much, maybe $2,000, I wouldn’t leave anything of mine for them. Seeing me taking things, Mrs. Zhang panicked. “You thief! Are you stealing from our house!” I looked around at the 400-square-foot rental apartment. My things weren’t worth much. For the past two years, to pay for her mother’s treatment and to have a small home for us, I had been living frugally to save money. The clothes I bought for myself were of the poorest quality, compared to how I tried every way to be good to Lily and her mother. The only valuable thing on me was that watch, and she accused me of being a thief? Thinking about it now, I was really foolish and crazy back then! To be good to people like them. I shook my head, feeling nauseous at the thought of saying another word to these people. I held back the disgust in my heart, but Mrs. Zhang kept nagging. “You can’t take even a grain of rice from our house! Leave the bag here, who knows if you’ve stolen something from us!” Saying this, Mrs. Zhang reached out to grab my bag like a shrew. I laughed coldly, rushed into the kitchen, and took out a kitchen knife and an unprocessed butterfish. Holding the butterfish, I suddenly stepped forward and slapped Mrs. Zhang’s wrinkled face with it. Her mouth immediately swelled up. She covered her mouth and screamed. Jack came over to stop me, and I slapped him with the butterfish in my hand again, making the flesh on his cheeks jiggle. Holding the butterfish in my hand, I thought no one should escape. I used all my strength to stuff the now-broken butterfish into Lily’s cursing mouth. She suddenly ate a mouthful of raw butterfish, her face turning blue, and she bent over and vomited, holding her waist. The three of them were angered by me. I curled my lips and held the kitchen knife in my hand, pointing it at them. “Damn it, who dares to stop me! Who dares to take my things!” “I’ll kill you all! You want to act crazy? Let’s see who’s crazier!” Once I started acting crazy, they didn’t dare do anything to me. They could only back off reluctantly. The three of them stood aside, not daring to stop me as I walked out aggressively. Walking out of the house, I called the landlord. “I’m not renewing the lease. Ask Lily for the rent for the first half of the year.” Not only that, I took out the medical bill from my bag, tore it into pieces, and threw it into the trash can. Damn it, fortunately, I hadn’t paid Mrs. Zhang’s medical bills for the past six months. Let these bastards pay it themselves! I kept all the previous transfer records and payment records. I’ll get everything back even if I have to go to court! What’s mine, these dogs shouldn’t think of taking a penny!

That night, I booked myself a five-star hotel. I was about to become a billionaire, so I might as well enjoy it properly. I quit all four of my jobs, lay down on the hotel’s big bed, and slept until noon the next day. When I woke up, a pre-ordered feast was waiting for me. The next day, I found some common sportswear, and prepared a head cover, hat, and sunglasses. Dressed like this, no one could recognize who I was. Fully armed, I took my relevant documents and went to the lottery center to claim my prize. As soon as I walked into the lottery center, I saw a group of reporters interviewing several people, saying someone had won the lottery, winning millions. I took a closer look and found that the interviewees were none other than Lily and her family. The three of them stood in front of the camera, gesticulating excitedly, eager to announce this to the world. Lily was wearing a dress, dressed up glamorously. She started bragging to the camera, “For me, actually, our family has quite a lot of assets. $300,000 is nothing to me.” Mrs. Zhang’s eyes were full of smiles, “Yes, my daughter has been lucky since she was young. Whatever she does, she succeeds. $300,000 is just pocket change.” Jack beside her was dressed in a suit and tie, and he took out his phone to show his TikTok account to the camera. “Everyone can follow my account. We will often give gifts to our followers. $300,000 is just small change. The red packets we give out in one live stream are more than this.” “Remember my account, make sure to follow.” Seeing their boastful appearance, I couldn’t help but laugh coldly. I knew that only fools would be so ostentatious. Winning the lottery is something that should be kept as quiet as possible, especially for someone like me who had won tens of millions. Only by keeping a low profile can I ensure my safety. While everyone’s attention was focused on Lily’s family, I quickly found a staff member and entered the work area to exchange the lottery ticket. I got the redemption slip from the lottery center and hurried to leave. That day, I cashed in at the bank. That night, after paying taxes, over $50 million was deposited into my account. Looking at all those zeros in my bank account, I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. My life as a rich man was finally about to begin.

After getting the money, I immediately bought a slightly smaller unit in One57 with full payment, spending $12 million. It was enough for me to live alone. With the bank card in my hand, I first urgently customized various suits and daily clothes, and bought several watches by series. I deposited the rest of the money in the bank. The monthly interest alone was nearly a million, directly achieving financial freedom. Back home, leaning on my sofa and looking at my 4,000-square-foot apartment, I felt satisfied. I casually picked up my phone and glanced at my social media feed, only to see Lily showing off her wealth. She posted a selfie. In the selfie, she was wearing an outfit full of logos, sitting in her newly bought BMW, pretending to casually show off the brand-name bracelet and ring on her wrist. Caption: Just an ordinary BMW, I’ll buy a Mercedes tomorrow. Any recommendations? Seeing her ridiculous appearance, I suddenly became interested, finding it quite amusing. I found Jack’s TikTok account directly based on his plea for followers to the media today. His TikTok was identical to Lily’s, all about showing off wealth. One photo showed a newly bought watch. Caption: My wife insisted on buying it for me. He had shown off quite a few luxury goods on his homepage recently, all probably bought by Lily. But with just $300,000 from the lottery, at this rate of spending, they probably won’t last until next month. And Lily’s mother’s illness was a bottomless pit, $200,000 would barely be enough. I thought for a moment, that won’t do! Although I’m now a billionaire, every penny I spent on their family during the four years I dated her can’t be less. I immediately found a lawyer and gave him all the organized transfer records and the medical bills I paid for her mother. I even calculated the $3 or $5 I spent on groceries. When I calculated, I was shocked. In four years, I had spent over $300,000 on Lily. After subtracting what she spent on me, she still owed me $310,000. Thinking about it now, was I under some kind of spell during those years? Now she shouldn’t think of shorting me a single cent. Expensive lawyers are indeed efficient. In just a few days, everything was handled, and a lawyer’s letter was sent directly to her home. If they don’t pay, they can wait to be sued to death! As soon as the lawyer’s letter was sent, I received a call from Lily that night. As soon as the call connected, Lily’s cursing voice came from the other end of the phone.

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I was born with superhuman strength, which made my mom hate me and favor my younger brother Kevin from the start. But when my father had an affair, Kevin was the first to rush out and say he’d always wanted a new mom anyway. Kevin rolled his eyes at our mom busy in the kitchen and said to me, “That old hag has no use anymore. Dad’s new wife said she’d help me marry a rich girl. Why don’t you hurry up and get rid of her for me?” My father was having an affair. I saw it with my own eyes. I rushed home, fuming with anger. Mom was cooking dinner. Without hesitation, I blurted out, “Mom! Dad’s cheating on you. I saw it myself!” She froze for a few seconds. Kevin burst in right after me, “That’s not true! Mom, Jack is lying. I was with Dad all day.” Mom didn’t hesitate for a second. Her eyes turned cold as she looked at me. Before I could question why Kevin was lying, a loud slap landed across my face. The sound echoed through the room, leaving my head spinning. “Mom…” I held my stinging cheek, staring back at her in shock. “You deserve it!” Kevin smirked, adding fuel to the fire. “Mom, I think Jack did this on purpose. He’s just trying to cause trouble because he’s miserable and wants our family to fall apart!” Mom instantly believed him, nodding along. “Well, well, Jack. I see that year away at college has made you forget your place!” Without another word, she grabbed a metal hanger and started beating me with it. Childhood fears came flooding back as the hanger whistled through the air, landing hard on my back. “You really are an ungrateful monster!” Mom’s blows were merciless, her eyes filled with hatred. “I should never have given birth to you!” I saw Kevin grinning smugly behind Mom’s back. All I could do was cover my bruised arms helplessly. “Mom, I really did see it…” When Mom got tired, she tossed the hanger aside. “That’s enough. No dinner for you tonight. Go to your room. I can’t stand the sight of you.” Seeing I didn’t move, she glared at me again. “What are you waiting for? Get out of my sight!” Then she turned and gently took Kevin’s hand. “Come on, I made your favorite beef stew. You haven’t been home in so long, you need to eat up.” It seemed I had always been the outsider in this family.

My father really was having an affair. Today I saw him with his arm around a strange woman on the street. Their intimate body language left no doubt in my mind. I grabbed Kevin’s hand. “You saw that too, right? We have to tell Mom!” Kevin yanked his hand away nervously. “Tell her what? You want to upset her even more? What if it’s just a misunderstanding?” I stood there speechless, pointing at our father. Unfortunately, we made eye contact. Soon enough, the three of us – plus one smiling woman – were seated around a table. Before Dad could say anything, Kevin jumped in. “Dad! Is this our new mom?” “You – Kevin, have you lost your mind?” I slammed the table as I stood up, yelling at him. “Jack!” Dad’s face darkened as he glared at me coldly. “As the older brother, how can you be even less mature than Kevin?” Kevin smiled apologetically and pulled me back into my seat, trying to smooth things over. From their brief conversation, I gathered that Kevin was quite pleased with this potential new stepmom. He thought she was prettier, younger, and wealthier than Mom. I listened in disbelief as he lectured me, “Jack, don’t be stupid. Mom’s getting old – what can she do for us anymore?” “But this stepmom is different. She knows lots of rich girls. If I marry one, think of all the connections and opportunities we’d have!” He gripped my hand tightly, his smile fake. “Jack, you absolutely can’t tell Mom about this. Otherwise, Dad and I won’t let you off easy.” “Besides…” He patted my cheek. “Mom wouldn’t believe you anyway.” I splashed a glass of water in his face and stormed home, determined to tell Mom everything. But now… My cheek still stung from where Mom had slapped me earlier to defend Kevin and preserve this fake family. Thinking about it made my blood run cold. It had always been like this. No matter when or where, Mom only had eyes for Kevin. She never saw what I did, never heard what I said. In her eyes, I was just a freak. But Mom, this time, you’re going to regret it.

The next day, my face was swollen. As I held an ice pack to my cheek, Mom marched over with Kevin trailing behind. She got straight to the point. “I heard you got a scholarship. $500, right?” She stated matter-of-factly, “Transfer it to your brother. He’s almost out of money. You’re such an inconsiderate older brother.” My temple throbbed as I struggled to contain my anger. “That’s for my living expenses next semester!” She refused to pay my tuition, so I relied on part-time jobs and scholarships to cover my costs each year. Mom snatched the ice pack and threw it at me. “How dare you say that? Have you no shame? Don’t think I don’t know – that scholarship was supposed to be Kevin’s!” From her scolding, I finally understood what lies my dear brother had told Mom. He claimed he lost the scholarship because someone reported him for cheating, and I was the one who reported him. What a joke. The professor made the decision based on security camera footage. Cameras don’t lie. “Why don’t you ask your precious son about how the whole school knows he cheated? What do you mean it was ‘supposed to be his’? Is he learning to be as shameless as my cheating father?” Mom was furious. She raised her hand to slap me again, but I easily caught her wrist. It seemed she’d forgotten – I was grown now, and still had my superhuman strength. Mom winced in pain, glaring at me with anger and fear. She yanked her hand back but didn’t dare try to slap me again. “To think this came from my own flesh and blood!” “You still consider me your flesh and blood?” I stood up abruptly. With a light push, she nearly fell over, then scrambled out of my room like she was fleeing the plague. “No matter what, you have to share that scholarship money with your brother! You’re his older brother, it’s your duty!” Seeing the fear and hatred in her eyes, I tasted the satisfaction of fighting back for the first time. Kevin, who had been watching from outside, was caught off guard by my reaction. But he still tried to act tough. “Oh Jack, what good are your grades anyway? You still ended up at this crappy college with me.” His words hit a sore spot. The truth was, I shouldn’t have been at this third-rate school. According to my high school teacher, I had a real shot at a top university. Back then, I naively thought going to college meant I could finally escape my brother. But Mom secretly changed my college application to match Kevin’s school. When I confronted her, she jabbed her long nails into my forehead, saying, “You need to go take care of your brother, Jack. Don’t be so selfish.” And now Kevin was gloating, “What’s the point of you studying so hard in college? In the end, your scholarship money is still mine.” My brother’s eyes were full of malice. “Oh right, I forgot to mention – I told Mom I wanted to go to the same college as you. She’s so good to me.” He laughed arrogantly. Hearing this, I was filled with rage. I couldn’t hold back anymore and slapped him hard across the face. The force of it sent Kevin stumbling back several steps until he fell onto the floor with a thud. His face swelled up quickly. He stared at me in shock for a few seconds before letting out a loud wail. “Moooom!” I stood there panting, feeling a rush of satisfaction at the sight of my brother’s pitiful state. I stepped forward and delivered another resounding slap that left him speechless. Mom rushed in just in time to witness this scene. “Have you lost your mind, Jack?” She shoved me roughly. My lower back slammed into the bookshelf behind me, causing intense pain. But Mom only embraced Kevin, glaring at me with hatred. “You really are a monster!” Yes, I’m a monster. I was born with superhuman strength. Because of this, my mom especially despised me, always viewing me as a stain on her life. Thankfully Kevin was born later, and I was abandoned to my grandmother’s home in the countryside. But Mom, I never asked to have this strength. And I’m certainly not the monster you claim I am.

At dinner that night, I sat down at the table but there was no place setting for me. Mom and Kevin completely ignored my presence. This was one of Mom’s usual tactics, but this time was different – because I wasn’t going to take it anymore! I grabbed Kevin by the collar and yanked him out of his seat, then sat down in his place. Kevin squealed like a pig as I tossed him aside. Mom dropped her utensils, ready to come at me, but froze when I slammed my fist on the table. “From now on, neither of you gets to push me around in this house.” I pointed at Mom, enunciating each word. “Weren’t you always afraid of my strength? Well, I’ve realized something – what you saw as a flaw is actually my gift. Got it?” “Get out of my house! Get out!” Mom screamed, pointing at the door. I clenched my fists, but held back from actually hitting them. “I’m not 18 yet. Kicking me out would be illegal. Understand?” As the three of us were at an impasse, I heard a soft voice calling from outside. “Jack!” I looked out to see my girlfriend Lucy. She held up some takeout containers. “I brought you dinner!” That’s right – I had a girlfriend in college now. Seeing Lucy’s silly grin made me smile too, though it hurt my bruised face. I certainly wasn’t going to eat the food at home – my girlfriend’s cooking would be much better. I put on my jacket and slammed the door in Mom and Kevin’s stunned faces. The next day, I overheard Kevin and Mom whispering outside my bedroom door. “Mom, look how Jack’s gone crazy. He doesn’t respect you at all or consider your feelings. We can’t let him get away with this!” I flung the door open and glared at them both. Kevin immediately shut up. “Enough.” Mom didn’t get angry or agree. She looked up at me calmly. “Jack, come out with me this afternoon. I’ll treat you to a meal to make up for things.” That surprised me. I nodded hesitantly. “Okay.” “Mom!” Now Kevin was upset. He glared at me. “If you don’t do something about Jack, he’s going to be completely out of control!” “Mind your own business!” I walked over to pour some water. Kevin flinched, not daring to say more. Mom watched me thoughtfully.

I had a glimmer of hope for my relationship with Mom, but that hope vanished when she forcefully sat me down at a restaurant. Across from us was a woman in her late 40s with a permed hairdo, wrinkled face, and yellowish teeth. She was as round as a barrel, smiling as she looked me over. “So this is your older son? He’s quite handsome.” “Oh, not really.” Mom smiled politely while gripping my wrist under the table to keep me from leaving. “My younger son is much better looking.” “Then why didn’t you bring him instead?” I could barely contain my anger. I had truly believed Mom realized her mistakes and wanted to make amends when she offered to treat me to a nice meal and showed concern. But she suddenly changed tunes. “Jack, you’re at that age now. It’s time for you to start meeting potential wives.” She acted like this was perfectly reasonable. “You’ll have to get married eventually. And since your brother is short on money right now, it would be good if you could marry someone well-off to help support our family.” Seeing my silence, she grew irritated. “Jack, I gave birth to you and raised you. Is it too much to ask for you to do this one thing for me?” Is it too much? I looked at the woman across from us. She was 47, twice divorced, with a son two years older than me. And this was who my mom wanted me to marry. Mom exchanged a look with the woman, thinking I didn’t notice, then excused herself to leave. Within a minute of Mom stepping away, the woman scooted closer and started pawing at me. “What are you doing?!” I shoved her hands away. She frowned, unsatisfied. “Don’t act all high and mighty. Let me tell you – your mom agreed to this marriage a year ago, as soon as you turned 22. But then you went and got yourself a girlfriend?” “Good thing your mom is sensible. She told us everything and brought you here to make it right.” As she spoke, she leaned in close. Her breath on my face made me want to vomit. I couldn’t take it anymore. Using my full strength, I shoved her away hard. Given my power, her shoulder and collarbone were likely fractured, if not shattered. By the time Mom rushed back at the commotion, the ambulance and police had arrived. The woman clutched her shoulder, wailing as she slumped over the table. I was surrounded by police officers asking what happened. Mom immediately started cursing at me. “Jack! Are you trying to get yourself killed?!” On a snowy day, I was locked out of the house and not allowed inside. Mom said if she couldn’t control me, she’d let nature take its course.

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My roommate Jack asked me to test his girlfriend’s loyalty. I thought it sounded interesting, so I agreed without hesitation. But his girlfriend couldn’t resist the temptation. After just a few messages, she was already trying to hook up with me. Jack felt humiliated and used this as an excuse to break up with her. I tried to explain everything to his girlfriend, but she refused to believe me. She showed up at our apartment building and stabbed me eighteen times. As I lay bleeding on the ground, I clearly heard Jack’s voice: “Great! I can finally get rid of that psycho for good!” When I opened my eyes again, I found myself back on the day Jack first suggested I test his girlfriend. “Adam, can you help me test my girlfriend?” Jack asked, tilting his head in an attempt to look cool. I looked at his ridiculous pose and felt nothing but disgust. “Sorry, I’m not interested in ruining other people’s relationships,” I replied curtly. But Jack persisted: “It’s just a harmless test! How could it possibly ruin our relationship?” “Come on Adam, don’t tell me you think my girlfriend would fall for you after just one conversation?” I ignored him, so Jack turned to our other roommates with an exaggerated expression: “Guys, when did Adam become so full of himself?” “I just asked him to help test my girlfriend, and he said he doesn’t want to ruin our relationship.” “Is he really that confident my girlfriend would definitely fall for him?” I shot Jack a cold glare and snapped back: “What are you talking about? I meant I don’t want to cause any misunderstandings between you two. When did I ever say your girlfriend would like me?” “Besides, your girlfriend is 5’9″, covered in acne, and built like a linebacker. The thought of her makes me sick!” Jack stood there dumbfounded, a look of shame flashing across his face before he turned and ran out. In my past life, I had agreed to Jack’s request. I added his girlfriend and sent her some flirty messages. To my surprise, his girlfriend couldn’t resist the temptation. After just a bit of flirting, she was already eager to hook up with me. Jack felt humiliated and lost face. In the end, he made up an excuse, accusing me of having secretly seduced his girlfriend behind his back for a long time. Later, he used this as a reason to break up with his girlfriend Lucy. “My roommate Adam is rich and good-looking. Since he likes you, we should break up,” Jack told her. “His family is loaded. You’ll have a much better future with him.” “Adam’s just shy and got embarrassed when I caught him sending you love messages. That’s why he’ll probably make up all sorts of excuses to deny it.” “But don’t worry, as long as you keep pursuing him, he’ll definitely agree to be with you soon!” Lucy believed every word Jack said. She started stalking me outside our apartment building every day. I was at my wit’s end, trying to explain to her why I had sent those flirty messages in the first place. But Lucy refused to believe anything I said. One day, Lucy saw me walking with a female classmate and completely lost it. She stabbed me eighteen times, screaming as she did it: “You bastard! You seduced me and made me break up with my boyfriend, and now you’re trying to deny everything and hook up with other girls? How dare you play me like this! I’ll teach you a lesson!” “You say you don’t like me, but you kept all the gifts I sent you. There’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world!” I couldn’t dodge in time and collapsed in a pool of blood. After I fell, I saw Jack hiding in the crowd. Unlike everyone else’s horrified expressions, Jack’s face was filled with excitement. Amidst the screams, I clearly read Jack’s excited lip movements: “Perfect! Adam’s dead and Lucy’s going to jail. I’ve finally gotten rid of that psycho Lucy for good!” It was only then that I finally realized – from the very beginning of that so-called “test”, no, even earlier than that, Jack had already set a deadly trap for me. Thinking back on everything that had happened, I was filled with endless regret, but there was nothing I could do. I could only stare in Jack’s direction as I slowly lost consciousness. Another roommate’s words snapped me out of my memories: “Adam, you did the right thing. Jack’s girlfriend is always eyeing other guys. It’s best not to get involved in stuff like this.” “Getting mixed up with that Lucy chick would be a nightmare!” I nodded. It wouldn’t just be a nightmare – it would literally be the death of me! Lunchtime arrived. I was in a bad mood today and didn’t have any afternoon classes, so I decided to go to the mall to do some shopping and clear my head. As I was browsing clothes, I suddenly heard a familiar voice. “Baby, thank you for buying me so many things!” “I knew you loved me the most!” I frowned and was about to walk away when I realized the woman hanging on Jack’s arm wasn’t Lucy. I stopped in my tracks and quietly followed behind them.

Jack led the woman into a lingerie store. The two of them browsed and tried on various items, walking out with quite a haul. At one point, Jack even held up a strappy thong against himself and asked: “Honey, do you think I’d look hot in this?” As he posed, he even thrust his hips suggestively, completely shameless and oblivious to the stares from other shoppers. “I can’t decide which one looks best on me. What do you think, babe?” Jack continued to flirt shamelessly with the woman. The woman waved her hand dismissively: “It’s too much trouble to choose. Let’s just buy them all!” Jack grinned like a fox who’d gotten into the henhouse. I smirked as I looked at the video I’d captured on my phone. In my past life, I had consistently rejected Lucy’s advances. But Lucy stubbornly saw me as hers. Just walking with a female classmate was enough to make her explode with jealousy and stab me. This time, her official boyfriend was shopping for kinky lingerie with another woman. I wondered how she would react! I created a new SnapChat account and added Lucy based on my memories from my past life. Then I sent her the video before quickly blocking her. I pretended nothing had happened and continued shopping at the mall. When I got back to our apartment, Jack still wasn’t back. This time, I secretly reported to the dorm supervisor that he hadn’t returned for curfew. The next day, Jack returned to our room with a face full of bruises that shocked us all. My roommates and I rushed over to express our concern, but Jack seemed like a walking corpse. He grabbed my hand and pleaded: “Adam, my girlfriend beat me up. She beat me so badly I almost died. Can you help me report it to the police?” Seeing the situation, my other roommates quickly backed away, clearly not wanting to get involved. Jack was clinging to me and I couldn’t shake him off, but my guard was fully up. “Jack, I’m not involved in this. It’s not right for me to report it. You should just call the police yourself.” Jack blurted out: “I can’t report it myself. If Lucy finds out I called the police, she’ll definitely retaliate against me!” “You don’t know how vicious she can be when she hits people! She could literally beat someone to death!” I forcefully shook off his hand: “If that’s the case, why are you asking me to report it for you? Are you trying to throw me under the bus?” “Jack, what did I ever do to offend you? Why does it feel like you’re always trying to get me killed?” I stared at him intently, my eyes full of suspicion. He finally realized he had said the wrong thing and quickly tried to backtrack: “Adam, that’s not what I meant. Lucy doesn’t know who you are, so even if you report it for me, you won’t be in any danger.” “She checks my phone, so even if I delete the call history she can still find out.” “If you don’t want to report it for me, can you at least lend me your phone so I can make the call myself?” My roommate behind me was shaking his head vigorously. I coldly looked at Jack: “No way. Either you report it yourself, or you just deal with it!” Jack stared at me in disbelief: “Adam, I’ve been beaten so badly. How can you just stand by and do nothing?” I leaned in close and said slowly and clearly: “Even if you get beaten to death, what does that have to do with me?!” “Besides, you were just trying to set me up. How dare you come ask me for help now?” Jack could no longer maintain his pitiful act. His eyes were filled with malice. I didn’t care. No matter what I did, he was determined to see me dead anyway. He glared at me viciously, a cruel light flashing in his eyes: “That’s right. How could someone as privileged as you understand the struggles of us common folk?” It was only then that I realized why Jack had been so fixated on me. It was all jealousy. He was jealous that I came from a good family. But he never stopped to think – if I didn’t have a well-off family, how could I afford to constantly lend him money? I shot back: “You’re right, I don’t understand the struggles of ‘common folk’ like you. So why don’t you pay back that $500 you borrowed from me last month!” Jack started playing the victim again: “Adam, I’m in such a bad state, and you don’t feel any sympathy for me at all? You only care about getting your money back?” In the end, Jack still didn’t report it to the police. He nursed his injuries alone. Meanwhile, Lucy kept messaging my burner account asking who I was, but I never replied and eventually blocked her. Lucy was the type to become extremely vigilant at the slightest hint of something amiss. I didn’t need to remind her – she would keep a close eye on Jack on her own. That day, Jack suddenly called out to me from downstairs. “Adam! Let me introduce you – this is my girlfriend, Lucy.” “Lucy, this is my roommate Adam. He’s from a wealthy family!” “Lucy, Adam was just asking about you the other day!” Normally, this would just be an ordinary introduction. But with my memories from my past life, I immediately realized Jack was hinting to Lucy that I was interested in her. Lucy eyed me lustfully, pretending to be shy as she said: “Oh really? Adam is so curious about me? Why don’t we add each other on SnapChat? I’ll scan your code.” I shook my head and quickly backed away: “So you’re the girlfriend Jack said beat him up.” “I’m not curious about you at all. The other day I only brought you up because Jack wanted me to help him report you to the police, but I refused.” Lucy’s expression immediately turned ugly: “Report to the police? What report?” Jack anxiously tried to signal to me with his eyes: “There’s no police report! Lucy, don’t listen to Adam’s nonsense!” I pretended not to understand Jack’s meaning and looked at him in confusion: “Jack, didn’t you come back crying and sniveling the other day, saying your girlfriend had almost beaten you to death? You were too scared to report it yourself and begged me to do it for you, remember?” “Good thing I didn’t agree to help you. Just the other day you were dramatically threatening to break up, and now you two have made up.” “If I had actually reported it for you, wouldn’t that have really messed up your relationship!” My words easily provoked Lucy’s anger. She spun around and slapped Jack hard across the face: “I hit you because you were cheating, buying strappy thongs with other women! How dare you not mention that?” “If you hadn’t begged for forgiveness on your knees, would I still be with you?” “So this is how you talk about me behind my back? You really need to be taught a lesson!” With that, Lucy dragged Jack away. Jack was terrified but didn’t dare call for help due to Lucy’s intimidating presence. But the look he gave me was even more hostile. Not that I cared. To my surprise, Jack came back not long after. Apart from some slap marks on his face, there were no other obvious injuries. I was quite disappointed, but Jack came to confront me: “Adam, what’s your problem? Why did you bring up the police report in front of Lucy?” “You did that on purpose, didn’t you? You deliberately provoked Lucy to hit me?” “What did I ever do to offend you? Why are you trying to hurt me like this?” I pretended not to understand: “Jack, what are you talking about? I was just going along with what you said.” “You’re the one who told your girlfriend I had mentioned her in our room. The only time I brought her up was that one instance.” “I thought you were deliberately bringing it up to warn your girlfriend. Was that not your intention?” Jack was furious: “Of course that wasn’t my intention!” I replied nonchalantly: “Oh, then I misunderstood. But what exactly was your intention?” “Why did you say I’m always talking about your girlfriend? Were you trying to make your girlfriend think I’m interested in her?” Jack suddenly couldn’t act arrogant anymore: “I didn’t mean anything by it!” I smiled indifferently: “Oh, that’s good. Otherwise, I would have thought you were trying to set me up behind my back!” Jack’s scheme had been exposed, but he didn’t dare try to explain himself. He could only return to his bed resentfully. I pondered to myself – letting Jack off twice in two days, Lucy must have gotten something in exchange from him. But what could that bargaining chip be? I had no way of knowing, but it never hurts to stay cautious. After these two incidents, logically, my relationship with Jack should have gotten worse and worse. But that wasn’t the case. Jack’s attitude towards me actually got better and better. He seemed to have realized his mistakes and sincerely apologized to me. He often took the initiative to fetch water for me and do my chores. It was as if we were still good friends. But one can never be too careful. I never drank the water he brought and would throw away the water bottle directly. I also refused to let him do my chores. I’m not helpless. Jack seemed very hurt by my complete rejection of his efforts, but he didn’t push it. “I know I made mistakes before. It’s understandable that Adam is angry.” Then he changed his strategy. Not only did he pay back the $500 he owed me, he also started giving me gifts. But I suddenly remembered what Lucy had yelled as she stabbed me to death in my past life: “You say you don’t like me, but you kept all the gifts I sent! There’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world!” I looked at the gift Jack was holding out to me, my heart aching.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “295947”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #浪漫Romance #现实主义Realistic #励志Inspiring #重生Reborn #惊悚Thriller #校园School