Author: Momo Chan

The day of my C-section, my husband, Simon, burst into the operating room. Defying doctors and my family, he violently pulled me out. “Iris, you can’t have this baby!” he yelled, his voice strained. “If you want to live, come with me!” I had no idea what had gotten into him. But he was holding a knife, and I was too terrified to resist. I just let him drag me onto a train. Later that afternoon, a notification popped up on my phone, and my blood ran cold. Within ten minutes of us leaving the hospital, every single pregnant woman in that hospital—except for me—was dead! My face went ashen. I tried to ask him what the hell was going on, but he just pointed to the window behind me, a look of pure terror on his face. “Don’t look back! We have to get off this train, now!” 1 Simon and I had been married for almost three years. He was even more excited about this baby than I was. He’d even booked my C-section himself. But now, he’d suddenly changed his tune, forbidding me from having the child? Seeing the fruit knife in his hand, I was scared rigid. “Simon, do you even know what you’re doing?” I whispered, trying to reason with him. He glanced nervously at the doctors and nurses around us. “Iris, I’m perfectly clear-headed!” he insisted, his voice low and urgent. “If you want to live, you absolutely cannot have this baby today!” My father, hearing the commotion, rushed in, furious. He raised his cane, ready to strike Simon. “What in God’s name are you thinking? You won’t let Iris have the baby? Do you want her to die, taking the child with her?” Simon glared at my father like he was the enemy. “I’m saving her!” My mother’s face flushed crimson. “Simon Hayes, I’ve already called the police! If you don’t want to go to jail, just…” She didn’t finish her sentence. Simon shoved her aside and pulled me towards the operating room. “Mom!” I cried, seeing her fall to the floor. I tried to wrench my hand free, but he held me tight, his expression grim. “I’m your husband! I wouldn’t hurt you! Come with me!” He completely disregarded my pregnancy, dragging me forward with all his might. Only when we were safely on a train did he finally relax. Fuming, I slapped him. “Simon Hayes! You’d better explain this to me, or we’re finished!” The chill in his eyes slowly receded, but a hint of vigilance remained. “Iris, don’t ask why. Knowing too much won’t do you any good.” Our argument quickly caught the attention of a flight attendant. He glanced at my belly. “Ma’am, you’re very pregnant! You shouldn’t be getting angry right now!” As soon as he spoke, countless passengers turned their heads, openly staring at my swollen belly. “What are you looking at?!” Simon snapped, pulling my hand tighter. He then led me towards another carriage. I could tell he was terrified. He seemed so afraid of anyone discovering I was pregnant that he even took off his trench coat and tied it around my belly. “What are you so afraid of?” I couldn’t help but ask him. He shushed me, his voice bone-chillingly cold. “Shhh, don’t talk! Don’t ask why!” My phone suddenly rang, its jingle jarring in the quiet carriage. Simon pulled out his phone, and his face instantly turned ghostly white. I leaned in to look, and my blood ran cold. ‘Local Maternity Hospital: 208 Pregnant Women Die Mysteriously from Cardiac Arrest…’ Wasn’t that the maternity hospital Simon had dragged me from just moments ago? Simon had been telling the truth! Besides me, all 208 pregnant women at the hospital today had died! I snatched the phone, frantically scrolling through the photos in the post. Only when I saw the body of my best friend, Chloe, did I finally break down crying. Just before my surgery, she’d been cheering me on, and now she was a cold, lifeless corpse. Trembling, I grabbed Simon’s collar. “What the hell is going on? Why did they all die?!” 2 He looked utterly tormented, unwilling to answer my question. He just kept apologizing. “Iris, I’m sorry! I couldn’t save that many people.” I wanted to call my parents, to ask them what was happening. The next second, their call came through. “Iris! Are you okay? Where are you? We’ve been worried sick!” I couldn’t hold back my tears. “Dad! Mom! I’m okay!” “I saw the news! Chloe died, and all the other pregnant women at the maternity hospital. Do you know why?” My dad’s voice, full of confusion, came through the phone. “Iris, what are you talking about? Chloe just gave birth, she and the baby are perfectly fine! All the other mothers are okay too!” After he spoke, someone else snatched the phone. “Iris, it’s Chloe. You need to tell Simon to bring you back right away! You can’t delay having this baby!” I was certain it was Chloe’s voice! She really wasn’t dead. But what about the news photos I’d seen earlier? I was about to ask Chloe when Simon quickly snatched my phone. “They’re lying to you! Don’t trust anyone!” Lying to me? I tried to find the news story again, searching frantically, but it was nowhere to be found. The article seemed to have vanished, as if it had all been a trick of my mind. Simon looked surprised, too, but quickly regained his composure. “It’s all a hoax! Iris, the only person you can trust is me!” I had no idea what he was talking about. All I wanted to do at that moment was get off the train. But the train entered a tunnel, plunging the carriage into darkness. “Iris, you can’t get off this train! And you can’t go back! Because…” He stopped mid-sentence. I looked at him and saw his face had turned ghostly pale again. “Simon! What’s wrong?” His eyes, wide with terror, were fixed on something behind me. Through his constantly shrinking pupils, I could faintly make out a blurry shadow. But there was only a window behind me. Was there something outside the window that had frightened him? Out of instinct, I wanted to turn my head to look. But Simon reached out and pressed my head forward. His lips trembled, and he spoke in a voice I’d never heard before. “Don’t look back, run!” I could distinctly feel his hand shaking; he was clearly terrified. At the same time, a cold draft blew across the back of my neck. The next second, he pulled me from my seat. He dragged me, running, without stopping even when he bumped into several people. Only when the train fully emerged from the tunnel, and light appeared above us, did he slowly stop. But his hand was shaking even more violently. I looked up and realized that all the passengers in the train were staring at me with strange eyes. More precisely, they were staring at my belly. It was a blank, lifeless gaze. They weren’t doing anything, but I instinctively felt a chilling dread. As if at any second, they would rush towards me. Thankfully, the train pulled into a station, and Simon immediately pulled me off. Once we were off the train, that strange sense of fear dissipated. I looked at Simon. “Simon, what did you see just now?” His expression of extreme terror was still vividly etched in my mind. It felt as if we would have died a horrible death if we had been even a second slower. What was he so afraid of? What was he hiding from? Was it that blurry black shadow? He didn’t answer me. He just hailed a taxi. “It’s not safe on the ground anymore. We’re going to the airport.” I was pushed into the taxi again. On the way, the driver struck up a conversation. “Ma’am, you’re in great shape! I saw you from a distance, running with that big belly, and you’re perfectly fine now!” His words made me realize something. Ever since Simon had dragged me out of the hospital, I’d been running as if my life depended on it. But as the driver said, I hadn’t felt the slightest discomfort. This baby seemed unnervingly resilient. 3 Every time the baby was mentioned, Simon became incredibly sensitive. He warned the driver, “It’s none of your business. Don’t pry.” Just as he finished speaking, my mother’s call came in again. I reached for my phone, but Simon, sitting beside me, turned and warned me, “Don’t answer! We can’t trust anyone right now!” The driver shot us a strange look. I ended up not answering the call. But a minute later, Chloe called me. Simon glared at me again. “Don’t answer!” I couldn’t take it anymore. I started arguing with him in the car. “Simon, what do you even want? You won’t let me have the baby, you won’t let me go home, and now you won’t let me contact anyone?” “That news report…” He looked at me, his expression grim, about to speak. But then, a deafening explosion ripped through the air behind us! I turned to look, and saw the train we had just gotten off had derailed, crashing into a mountain. “This…” The shockwave from the explosion rushed towards us, making the driver stomp on the accelerator. I was still reeling from the immense shock. But then, Simon’s chilling voice echoed in my ears. “That’s why.” “Everyone who looks back dies! We must never look back.” If the news report earlier had been a figment of my imagination, then this train crash, right before my eyes, was undeniably real. We drove in silence until the taxi safely pulled into the airport. Then, I suddenly realized. “We need to call the police! How can we just run when something so big has happened?!” The driver gave me a scrutinizing look. “Ma’am! What happened that requires calling the police?” “The train crashed into the mountain just now! Didn’t you see it?” He furrowed his brow, then said something that made my blood run cold. “Ma’am, are you having a nightmare? We came out of the train station a while ago, and nothing happened on the way here.” His expression was natural, not at all like he was lying. So he didn’t remember? But it had only been twenty minutes! How could he suddenly have amnesia? I looked at Simon beside me; his face was still pale and drawn, but he showed no intention of speaking. Something this big had to be in the news. I pulled out my phone again, frantically searching for information about the train. Nothing? I directly dialed 911. I told them about the accident with the train. But the police’s explanation was exactly the same as the driver’s. He even warned me not to make false reports or spread rumors! I was utterly desperate! What the hell was going on?! “Ma’am, you don’t look so good! You’re heavily pregnant; maybe you should go to the hospital?” the driver said kindly, glancing at my belly. Simon, as if not in control, shoved the driver and quickly pulled me towards the airport entrance. My phone in my pocket rang again. This time, it was my mother-in-law. Simon just glanced at it, then, with a look of fear, threw my phone into a trash can. Not just mine, but his own too. No tickets were available at this hour. I don’t know how he managed it, but he secured two tickets for a flight taking off in ten minutes. The destination was the Himalayas! “What are we doing going to the Himalayas?”

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My sister, Luna, was an influencer with millions of followers. I was her mukbang stand-in. For two years, I ate countless disgusting meals for her, until my stomach perforated. Then one day, clutching my abdomen, which felt like it was tearing apart from the pain, I begged her: “Luna, give me five thousand dollars for surgery. I’m dying.” She looked at me with disdain. “Is your life even worth five thousand dollars?” I wiped the blood from the corner of my mouth and smiled. No, it really wasn’t. But dragging you down to hell with me? That would be priceless. 1 The day I finally hit rock bottom, I knew I had to drag her down with me. That bucket of fiery, industrial-strength hot sauce felt like molten lead poured down my throat. My esophagus swelled instantly, a searing pain burning its way from my vocal cords straight to my stomach lining. I clapped a hand over my mouth, desperate to stifle any sound. On camera, my sister, Luna, was in the final throes of her performance. “Alright, my darlings! Today’s ten-pound Spicy Buffalo Wing Challenge is a success! I even drank all the sauce, wink wink!” She blew a kiss to the camera, pouting her lips, perfectly painted with expensive lip gloss. She looked like a porcelain doll, sweet and innocent. The comments section exploded. “Luna is amazing!” “That’s psycho-hot! My stomach hurts just watching, and Luna drank the sauce?!” “True Queen of Muckbang, respect!” Gift effects rained down, filling the screen with virtual fireworks and grand celebrations. Our manager, Kyle, sat behind the monitor, rubbing his hands together excitedly. “It’s blowing up, blowing up! We’ve hit a million in revenue today!” No one even glanced at me. I was curled up under the table, shrouded in the greasy haze of fast food, my back drenched in cold sweat. The excruciating pain in my stomach made my vision swim. “Cut! Live stream over!” Kyle yelled. Luna’s sweet smile vanished instantly. She kicked the table leg with disdain. “Dawn, are you dead down there? Get out and clean this up already. The smell of grease is making me sick.” I gritted my teeth, laboriously shifting my two-hundred-pound body, and crawled out from under the table. As soon as I stood upright, my stomach churned violently. “Ugh—” I couldn’t hold it in. A mouthful of sour bile mixed with undigested hot sauce surged up. But I clamped my mouth shut, forcing it back down. I knew that if I threw up on the carpet, Kyle would dock my entire week’s pay. “So disgusting.” Luna covered her nose, stepping back, her eyes full of revulsion. “Sis, can you please try to maintain some kind of image? Thank goodness the stream ended. Otherwise, my immaculate reputation would be ruined.” Kyle walked over and slammed a data report onto the table. “Today’s performance was good, but that last bit, drinking the sauce, Dawn, your swallowing was too loud. We almost got caught. Be more careful next time, don’t sound like you haven’t eaten in a hundred years.” I leaned against the wall, my fingers digging into the wallpaper, knuckles white. “Kyle, my stomach hurts… Can you send me to the hospital?” This was the first time I had ever asked them for anything. Before, no matter how much pain I was in, I just endured it. Because I was the older sister, the unwanted orphan, the “utility player” adopted by the Hayes family. Kyle frowned, sizing me up. “Stomach ache? Just drink some hot water. Dawn, no offense, but with all that extra weight, you’re built tough. Don’t be so delicate.” Luna, removing her makeup, glanced at me in the mirror. “Exactly, sis. You eat so many good things every day, and now you want to go to the hospital? Do you know how much a hospital visit costs? That’s my hard-earned money.” Good things? Those insanely spicy concoctions, industrial chili extract, expired canned foods – in her mouth, they were “good things.” The cramping in my stomach grew more intense. I felt something tearing inside. “It really… hurts…” My vision went black, and I slid down the wall. Before losing consciousness, I heard Luna’s impatient voice. “So annoying. Who’s she trying to fool by playing dead? Kyle, drag her out. Don’t let her delay my outfit-change video shoot later.” 2 I woke up again in the emergency observation room of a hospital. The air was thick with the scent of disinfectant and alcohol, mingled with the cacophony of urgent voices. An IV dripped cool liquid into my veins, slightly taming the fiery sensation within me. A young male doctor stood by my bed, holding my test results, his brow deeply furrowed. “Awake?” I opened my mouth, my voice raspy as if I’d swallowed sand. “Doctor… I…” “Acute gastric perforation, accompanied by severe esophageal burns, along with severe fatty liver and high blood pressure,” the doctor stated sternly. “What on earth have you been doing? Your stomach wall is as thin as paper, filled with chili oil and undigested grease. Are you trying to die?” I managed a bitter smile, which pulled at a raw spot on the corner of my mouth. “Work… required it.” “What kind of work requires drinking industrial chili extract?” The doctor slapped the papers onto the bedside table. “You need immediate surgery. Inform your family to sign the consent forms.” Family. I fumbled in my pocket, pulling out my phone with its cracked screen. Only five percent battery left. No missed calls, no messages. I had been unconscious for at least three hours, and they hadn’t even sent a text to see if I was dead. I dialed my adoptive mother’s number. It rang for a long time before she picked up. The clatter of mahjong tiles echoed from her end, followed by my adoptive mother’s boisterous laughter. “Royal flush! Pay up, pay up!” “Mom…” I croaked weakly. “What now? Out of money again?” My adoptive mother’s voice instantly turned cold. “Dawn, let me tell you, we fed you, clothed you, raised you all these years. Don’t be ungrateful. Luna works hard for her money; don’t always try to squeeze money out of her.” “I’m in the hospital… The doctor says I need surgery… gastric perforation…” There was a second of silence on the other end. Then an impatient click of her tongue. “Gastric perforation? How delicate can you be? Back in the village, we ate scraps and never got a stomach perforation. How much is the surgery?” I looked at the doctor. He gestured with his hand. “At least five thousand dollars, follow-up treatment is extra.” “Five thousand,” I said. “What?!” My adoptive mother’s voice shot up. “Five thousand? Are you robbing a bank? Five thousand for a little stomach ache? Do you think you have a golden stomach?” “It’s real… Mom, I’ll die if I don’t get surgery…” “You won’t die! All that extra weight is your best protection. Alright, stop playing the victim. Get back to the studio. Luna has a late-night dessert segment waiting for you to assist with.” Beep—beep— The call ended. I clutched the phone, listening to the cold dial tone. Tears finally spilled, falling onto the back of my hand. The doctor looked at me, his eyes filled with a mix of pity and the hardened indifference of someone who had seen it all. “No money, no surgery. I’ll prescribe some painkillers and stomach protectants for you. Finish your IV, then go raise the money. Delaying it will be life-threatening.” I nodded, burying my head under the covers. These were my family. This was the sister I had risked my life to protect. 3 I was an adopted child of the Hayes family. At the age of five, I was abandoned at the orphanage gates, and Mr. and Mrs. Hayes took me in. Back then, they didn’t have children of their own, and they treated me reasonably well. Then, two years later, Luna was born. Everything changed. I became the unwanted one, the nanny, the punching bag. “Older sisters should always give way to younger sisters.” That was the phrase I heard most often. The best food went to Luna, new clothes went to Luna, and I was the one who got yelled at and hit. But I always remained grateful. After all, they had given me a roof over my head. Two years ago, the live-streaming industry took off. Luna was beautiful and wanted to be an influencer, but she couldn’t handle hardship, especially not eating all those attention-grabbing junk foods. So, I, weighing just over a hundred pounds at the time, became her “stand-in.” On camera, she was the “Big Eater Beauty” who could devour anything without gaining weight. Off camera, I was the “slop bucket” who wolfed down everything. She was responsible for looking pretty; I was responsible for eating. To match her streaming schedule, I lived a nocturnal life, binge-eating everything. To create sensational content, I drank chili oil, ate raw offal, and swallowed live squid. My weight skyrocketed from one hundred pounds to two hundred, and my body completely broke down. And she? She became a goddess adored by the entire internet, living in luxury mansions and driving sports cars. Me? I lived in the studio’s storage room, with only two hundred dollars a month for living expenses, and they still complained about how much I ate. After finishing my IV, I pulled out the needle and dragged my heavy body back to the studio. As soon as I entered, I heard cheers from inside. “Cheers!” Kyle raised a wine glass, his face flushed. Luna, wearing a custom-made gown, sat like a princess in the middle of the sofa. My adoptive parents were there too, counting money with a calculator. “The data from this ‘Hot Sauce Challenge’ was incredible! The brand just added fifty thousand dollars for promotion!” Kyle yelled excitedly. “Fantastic!” Luna sipped her red wine. “I knew that fat pig was still good for something. Oh, by the way, where is she? We have a whole roasted lamb review tonight.” I stood in the shadows of the entryway, looking at this happy family of four. The table was laden with exquisite French dishes: steak, foie gras, truffles. Not a single trace of the hot sauce I had just consumed. The excruciating pain in my stomach flared again, more violently than ever before. I suddenly understood something profound. In their eyes, I wasn’t even human. I was just a money-making machine that ate things. If it broke, they’d fix it; if they couldn’t fix it, they’d throw it away. “Oh, you’re back?” My adoptive mother, sharp-eyed, spotted me. She walked over, fanning her nose with disgust. “You reek of hospital disinfectant; it’s disgusting. Go wash up quickly. Don’t pass on your sickness to Luna.” I didn’t move, my gaze fixed on her. “Mom, I need surgery.” My adoptive mother paused, then rolled her eyes. “Here we go again. Didn’t they give you painkillers? The doctor let you come home, which means you’re fine. Don’t try to scam us.” “I need five thousand dollars,” I repeated. “It’s what I’ve earned these past two years.” “Earned what, you little brat?!” Kyle walked over, slamming his wine glass onto the table. “Dawn, get your facts straight. You eat our food, drink our drinks, live in our house. Without Luna, you’d be starving on the streets. Now you’re asking us for money? Have you no conscience?” “I’ve done sixty purge streams for her, drank twenty gallons of chili oil, eaten countless junk foods!” I pointed at my stomach, screaming, “Every pound of this two-hundred-pound body was earned for you! Now I need to save my life, and you won’t even give me five thousand?!” Luna put down her wine glass and walked over elegantly. She was half a head shorter than me but looked at me with a condescending gaze. “Sis, you can’t talk like that.” She extended a slender finger and poked my fleshy shoulder. “Look at yourself now, fat and bloated, greasy and disgusting. Besides eating, what else can you do? If I hadn’t given you this opportunity, you wouldn’t even earn two hundred dollars. You should be grateful to me, understand?” She leaned closer to my ear and whispered, “Besides, is your life even worth five thousand dollars?” At that moment, I heard something shatter completely inside me. Not my stomach, but that last shred of familial affection and fantasy. I looked at her exquisite face and suddenly laughed. “Alright.” I nodded, my eyes terrifyingly calm. “I won’t get the surgery.” “That’s more like it.” Kyle patted my shoulder in satisfaction. “A wise person knows when to yield. For tonight’s whole roasted lamb, perform well. The brand said if this one goes well, they’ll push for that ‘Hell-Level Devil Spicy’ special next.” I lowered my head, concealing the cold glint in my eyes. “Okay,” I said. “This is the last time.”

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “582287”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

I’m a drama queen. In the middle of the night, I absolutely had to have strawberries. I forced my boyfriend, who was running a high fever, to brave a storm to buy them for me. Half an hour later, the doorbell rang. I opened the door, about to ask for the strawberries. Then I saw the pop-up comments. “Strawberries? Dude got hit by a car on the way. The guy at your door is a real ghost.” “This evil female lead is really going to kill herself. When does she finally die?” “Don’t worry, soon, soon. In three days, the anomalies descend, and the male lead becomes the King of Anomalies. He’ll go after the evil female lead first.” I trembled like a leaf. I grabbed a towel from the table and draped it over my boyfriend’s head. Softly, I said, “You’re drenched! It breaks my heart to see you like this.” 1 Under the dim yellow light, Liam’s face was as pale as paper. His hair was soaking wet, drops of water dripping from the strands onto the floor. The towel in my hand was soaked with rainwater, and his palm felt icy. The comments section exploded: “Wait, isn’t the next scene supposed to be the female lead, furious about not getting her strawberries, slapping the male lead across the face?” “Why is Sarah suddenly having a conscience?” “Probably realized she’s about to die. Trying to make amends, a last-ditch effort.” … Those dense, scrolling comments sent shivers down my spine. Yes, I was Sarah, the “evil female lead” they were talking about. Outside, it was pitch black, as if the darkness itself was trying to swallow everything. This wasn’t normal. Combined with the comments about anomalies descending in three days, it seemed this was really happening. 2 I carefully used the towel to dry Liam’s rain-soaked hair. He remained utterly still, unreactive, letting me do as I pleased. Just as I wondered why, a comment popped up, explaining: “Male lead’s first day as an anomaly, consciousness not back yet. Just acting on instinct.” “Sarah only has three days to run wild. Once Liam’s consciousness and memories return in three days, good luck to her.” I shivered in fear. My wrist was suddenly grabbed. Liam’s hand was icy, and his voice was cold. He said, “I couldn’t get the strawberries.” The moment he said that, I was filled with regret. Idiot! Why did you ask for strawberries?! Now his life is gone! Before I could speak, Liam had already gathered his bedding. “I’ll sleep on the living room couch.” This was my usual punishment for Liam. Any slight deviation from my wishes, and he’d either be on his knees or subjected to my yelling and hitting. The couch was a standard punishment. Sarah, Sarah, I cursed inwardly, you really are a monster! My heart softened, but then I remembered Liam was now… not human. It was probably better to keep my distance. Thinking this, I yawned and went to bed. When I opened my eyes, those persistent comments were still there. I didn’t expect them to invade my mind even when I closed my eyes. The comments section was buzzing, all about how tragic my fate would be. They showed absolutely no consideration for me, the person experiencing it. Comments: “This female lead gets it rough later. When the anomalies descend, she’s repeatedly attacked by the anomalies Liam sends. She barely clings to life, only to encounter the black-hearted Liam. She thinks he’s still in love, slaps him, and he just chops off her hand.” What the hell?! My eyes, which had been closed, snapped open. I quickly touched my perfectly intact hand. Comments: “Wait, why did Sarah suddenly open her eyes? Scared me.” I’m the one who’s scared stiff! Isn’t my fate supposed to be miserable? Although I was a bit of a beast before, I didn’t deserve that, did I? But thinking back to my time with Liam, I had never shown him a kind face, always yelling or hitting him. Before, perhaps because I hadn’t “awakened” and was just a paper doll following a predetermined plot, I hadn’t felt anything. But now that I was aware, recalling my actions… Yes, I was a terrible person. But did I deserve such a tragic death? Thinking of this, tears streamed down my face. Question: How do I reverse my tragic ending in just three days? The comments were still buzzing with activity. “Don’t even get me started on how satisfying it gets later. And Liam doesn’t kill her immediately. Instead, he locks her up and tortures her daily. It takes almost a month for Sarah to finally die.” “OMG, the male lead is so ruthless! Doesn’t he have any humanity left?” “Ruthless? He’s an anomaly now, of course he’s lost most of his humanity.” “You’re right. It’s all Sarah’s fault. She’s getting what she deserves.” The more I read, the more terrified and shaky I became. The more I read, the colder the room felt. Finally, I abruptly sat up in bed. These cursed comments were chilling me to the bone. No, I couldn’t sleep alone; it was too terrifying. 3 So I quietly slipped out of bed. I pushed the door open just a crack. It was dark outside; Liam must have been fast asleep. I tiptoed to the sofa. Using the faint light from my phone, I illuminated Liam’s face. He lay peacefully, like a corpse. Well, he was one. Okay, sleeping next to a corpse right now wasn’t the smartest idea. But I really didn’t want to fall asleep alone, trembling with fear. So I quietly lifted a corner of the blanket and slipped in. Thankfully, the sofa I bought was large enough. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have fit two people. I turned over, coming face to face with a pair of dark eyes. The surprise made me lose my balance, almost falling off. Thankfully, Liam caught me by the waist. His voice was devoid of emotion. “Why are you sleeping out here?” I didn’t know how to explain, so I just buried my face in his chest. “I missed you.” The comments exploded: “Wait, why are they suddenly getting intimate?” “Upstairs, they’re a couple. This is normal.” “Not normal at all! Zero people want to see their love story.” I was buried in the crook of Liam’s neck, barely daring to breathe. After all, the current Liam was no longer the same. There was no trace of a living person about him. 4 The comments started chatting again: “Honestly, this female lead is such a stereotype. Facing a boyfriend with an eight-pack and top-tier looks, she just keeps her heart locked up, treating him like a spinning top all day. So abstract, she practically has ‘I’m the evil female lead’ written on her face.” “Agreed with the above. I was so confused when I watched. They clearly had no real conflict, and the male lead never did anything overboard, but she just acted like a lunatic, finding ways to torment him all day.” “That’s normal. The author got lazy, just wanted a character to boost the male lead’s dark evolution. The interaction between the male and female leads later will definitely be shippable, looking forward to it!” These comments actually reminded me. That’s right, what was it about Liam that I used to dislike so much? His face? Liam’s face was top-tier. If he hadn’t been with me, he probably could have found a rich older woman and never worried about money again. His body? His body was also top-notch: an eight-pack, smooth and refined skin. Thinking about it like that… Oh my God! I’ve been set up! The old me was practically blind! Having such beauty and not indulging, just focusing on acting like a drama queen—this plot was truly harmful! As I thought this, my eyelids grew heavier and heavier. The sofa, though not small, was still a bit cramped for two people. As I relaxed slightly, I felt myself starting to drift downwards. Liam’s hand was resting on my waist, occasionally pulling me closer. His fingers were terrifyingly cold, even waking me from my drowsy state. I instinctively frowned. “Take your hand away, your hand is so cold…” But then I suddenly remembered my tragic fate. I quickly grabbed his hand instead. “Why is your hand so cold?” Liam moved a little closer, our breaths mingling. “I don’t know.” Perhaps it was lust emboldening me. I, possessed, placed his hand on my chest, then pressed it against my neck. “I’ll warm you up, and it won’t be cold anymore,” I said. The veins in my slender neck pulsed with heat and strength. His cold, large hand trembled slightly. Liam froze. His dark eyes watched me unblinkingly, as if trying to swallow me whole. The comments section nearly erupted into a brawl. “What the hell? Why did they suddenly get all lovey-dovey?” “Gotta say, it’s kinda shippable.” “Upstairs must be starving for content, shipping anything? Are you a Stockholm Syndrome victim?” “Seriously, look what the male lead went through. Just let the female lead die already, okay?” “But I actually feel like the male lead is kinda enjoying it right now…” 5 I slept soundly through the night. Early in the morning, before I was even fully awake, I smelled the aroma of food. I twitched my nose, then rolled over and fell off the sofa. Liam had woken up early and, driven by instinct, had prepared a table full of food. All my favorites. I was delighted. I picked up my fork and tasted a bit of the roasted chicken. Enjoying it, I praised him, “Today’s meal is so rich and delicious!” Comments: “Of course! It’s her last meal; it has to be grand.” “Let the female lead enjoy this last bit of happiness. Later, on the run, she won’t even have a cracker. The one piece of bread she finds will be moldy.” “Thinking about it like that, she’s pretty miserable, isn’t she? Serves her right, she brought it on herself.” I quietly put down my fork. Damn these comments, they can’t even let me eat in peace. Liam noticed my action. “No appetite?” he asked. Perhaps because he was now not human, his voice was still cold, utterly devoid of emotion. I forced a bitter smile. “Maybe it’s because I didn’t sleep well last night; I’m a bit under the weather.” Liam tilted his head. His voice finally held a hint of emotion. “Is it because I couldn’t get the strawberries?” Why is he bringing up strawberries again?! Comments: “Poor male lead, dead and still trapped in the past, still thinking it’s his fault.” “Everyone, just one more day, and Liam awakens! It’ll be so satisfying when his memories return!” “Argh, I really hate this female lead! She caused his death just over some strawberries!” The comments made my nose sting. I couldn’t even remember why I had insisted on strawberries last night. Perhaps, as the comments said, the author just needed an excuse to drive the plot. But the strawberries were ultimately my request, and I was the one who caused Liam’s death. Thinking this, guilt washed over me like a tide. I stood up and, under Liam’s watchful gaze, hugged him. Liam’s body was stiff, like a cold wall. I mumbled into his shoulder, “I’ll never eat strawberries again.” Strawberries aren’t delicious at all! Liam didn’t move, letting me embrace him. “Why? Don’t you like them?” I hugged him tighter. “Because I don’t.” Liam said, “Then what do you like? I’ll get it for you.” I said, “I like you.” Liam said nothing more. His body subtly shifted for a moment. Then he raised his arms and hugged me tightly. Comments: “Wait, I’m actually starting to ship them. What’s going on, the male lead seems to be regaining consciousness?” “Liam isn’t going to awaken early, is he? If he does, fine, just kill Sarah already. I don’t want to see their romance.” “How does this feel both sweet and angsty? Also, does this relationship line really need to be written in such detail?”

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At my grandmother’s eightieth birthday banquet, my hands trembled from a severe somatic depression flare-up, and I knocked over a teacup. My own mother slapped me across the face, her eyes filled with disgust. “You ill-mannered brat, how dare you bring bad luck on a day like this?” The room full of relatives snickered, watching the spectacle. My aunt, my father’s sister, remarked sarcastically, “Honey, don’t be mad. She’s mentally ill, you know. Clumsy hands are normal.” I felt icy all over, trembling as I fumbled in my purse for my diagnosis paper, trying to explain. But my father snatched it, tearing it to shreds, then grabbed my hair and dragged me towards the balcony. “Are you addicted to faking illness? Go to the balcony and reflect. You’re not allowed back in until you can smile!” The biting wind howled. The seventeenth-floor balcony had no enclosed windows. I watched the joyous sounds of clinking glasses from inside, saw them take a heartwarming family photo that conspicuously left me out. This time, I really smiled. I swung myself over the railing. Before my body completely lost its balance, I dialed 911. “Officer, I’ve committed a murder. I’ve killed myself. The culprits are right here in the room.” My phone plummeted with my body. With a sickening thud, my head burst open on the concrete below. The banquet’s merriment ceased. … 1 At Grandma Eleanor’s eightieth birthday banquet, the private room was stiflingly hot from the heating. I huddled in a corner, my heart clutched tight, each beat a sharp stab of pain. It was a somatic symptom of my severe depression. I wanted to throw up, to run away, to find a place where I could cry my heart out alone. “Alice, are you just going to stand there like a statue? Go raise a toast to your Uncle Robert!” My mother’s sharp voice cut through the air. Her eyes pierced me with a look of utter disappointment. I swallowed hard, suppressing the nausea, and shakily picked up a glass. “Well, look at those hands shaking like she has Parkinson’s. Alice, are you still half-asleep?” My Aunt Carol, Robert’s wife, quipped, cracking a pecan, her eyes full of mockery. The surrounding relatives roared with laughter. “College kids, so delicate.” “I think she’s just spoiled. Probably had it easy at home.” I clenched my jaw, trying to control my trembling hands, but my body refused to obey. “Smash!” A crisp sound. The glass slipped from my grasp, shattering on the floor, wine splashing onto Uncle Robert’s pant leg. The room fell silent. All eyes converged on me. “Alice!” My father, David, slammed his hand on the table and rose to his feet. He strode towards me, raised his hand, and slapped me hard across the face. “Crack!” My cheek burned, my ears rang. I staggered back a few steps, bumping into a chair behind me. “You good-for-nothing! You can’t even manage a simple toast. What can you do?” I clutched my face, tears welling in my eyes, but I dared not let them fall. Because they had told me that crying was bad luck, crying was an embarrassment to the family. “I… I’m sorry…” I mumbled, my voice barely a whisper, head bowed. “What’s the good of ‘sorry’? Look at your dismal face. Today is Grandma’s big day; are you deliberately trying to upset her?” My mother, Eleanor, rushed over, pointing her finger at my nose and scolding me mercilessly. “How could I have given birth to such a burden? Look at your cousin, Clara, so well-behaved and thoughtful. And look at you, always wearing that gloomy face. Who are you putting on a show for?” Clara was my cousin, Uncle Robert’s daughter. At that moment, she was nestled beside Grandma Eleanor, smiling brightly, clutching a crisp dollar bill from a freshly received gift. Hearing my mother’s words, she raised an eyebrow, feigning surprise as she looked at me. “Oh, Aunt Eleanor, don’t blame Alice too much. Maybe she’s just not feeling well. After all, Alice usually doesn’t talk much. It’s normal for her to be a bit withdrawn.” “Withdrawn? I say she’s just being dramatic!” Aunt Carol interjected, her tone dripping with sarcasm. “These kids nowadays, always claiming to be depressed. Really, they’re just lazy, just trying to shirk responsibility.” My heart felt as if something had violently stabbed it, bleeding profusely. My trembling hand reached into my purse and found the crumpled diagnosis paper. It was the result of a secret check-up I’d had last week. Severe depression, accompanied by severe anxiety, with an urgent recommendation for inpatient treatment. I wanted to tell them, I wasn’t being dramatic, I wasn’t lazy, I was truly sick. I pulled out the paper. “Dad, Mom, I’m not faking it. I really am…” “Rip—” Before I could finish, my father snatched the diagnosis paper, not even glancing at it, and tore it to shreds. “Don’t try to fool me with this garbage! Last time it was a stomachache, this time it’s depression. Next time, will it be cancer?” My father violently threw the paper shreds at my face. “Alice Hayes, I’m telling you, today you will be happy! If you dare to ruin your grandmother’s mood, I’ll break your legs!” My vision blurred. The paper shreds landed on my hair, on my shoulders, like a death sentence pronounced on my life. It turned out that, in their eyes, my life was less important than their public image. “To the balcony! You’re not coming back in until you can smile!” My father grabbed my collar, dragging me towards the balcony like a dead dog. 2 The balcony door slammed shut, locked. The biting wind howled, rushing into my collar, stripping away the last of my body heat. This was the seventeenth floor. The hotel balcony was semi-open, with only a railing less than three feet high. I leaned over the railing, looking at the traffic below. Inside, the sounds of clinking glasses and laughter drifted through the glass door. “Come on, let’s keep drinking, don’t mind that crazy girl.” “Exactly, these kids just need discipline. A couple of missed meals will fix her.” “Clara, darling, sing a song for Grandma. Grandma loves your singing most.” They laughed so happily. It was as if the person who had just been humiliated and scolded by them didn’t even exist. The glass door reflected their joyous figures. My father, all smiles, toasted my uncle. My mother was holding Clara’s hand, complimenting her beautiful dress. What a perfect family photo. If you didn’t count me. My heart stopped its frantic pounding, slowly calming. That calm was like the surface of the ocean before a storm, unfathomably deep. I pulled out my phone. On the screen was a photo of me with my parents. It was taken five years ago when I got into a prestigious high school. Back then, they smiled with such pride, loving me so much. When did it start to change? Was it when my grades slipped? Or when I became quiet and withdrawn? Or perhaps, when they started to see me as a burden? I opened my contacts, my finger hovering over “Dad” for a long time, but ultimately sliding past it. There was no need. No one would answer, and if they did, it would just be another torrent of abuse. I dialed the number I’d only ever seen on TV. 911. “Hello, this is 911 emergency. How can I help you?” I looked down at the hard concrete pavement below, a stiff smile tugging at the corner of my lips. “Officer, I need to report a crime.” The person on the other end clearly paused, their voice becoming urgent. “Please calm down! Can you tell me what happened? What is your exact location?” “Seventeenth floor of the Imperial Hotel, in the Magnolia Ballroom.” I took a deep breath. “I’ve committed a murder.” The operator on the other end was visibly taken aback, their tone growing more urgent. “Ma’am, please calm down! Who is the victim? What’s the situation at the scene?” “The victim is myself.” I looked through the glass door at my mother, who was cutting the cake for Grandma. She looked so beautiful when she smiled, much more beautiful than when she smiled at me. “The culprits are inside the room. They’re eating cake, celebrating their glamorous lives.” “Hello? Hello! Ma’am, please don’t do anything rash! Whatever you’re going through, it can be resolved! Please listen to me…” The police officer’s anxious shouts sounded so faint in the cold wind. I hung up the phone. I took one last look at this world. The gloomy sky, so oppressive it stole your breath. Just like my past twenty years. “Alice! Are you dead out there?! If you’re going to jump, just jump! Don’t stand there trying to scare people!” Through the glass door, my father saw me standing by the railing, pointing and yelling. His face was flushed with drink, his eyes full of contempt. My mother also looked over, frowning, mouthing for me to come inside. I smiled. This time, it was a genuine smile. “Dad, Mom, as you wish, I’ll never embarrass you again.” I swung myself over the railing. In the moment my body lost balance, I felt no fear. Instead, there was an unprecedented sense of liberation. The wind roared in my ears. From the seventeenth floor, the fall would only take a few seconds. “Thud!” Excruciating pain, followed by endless darkness. The world, finally, was quiet. 3 I thought I would simply vanish. But I didn’t. I floated in mid-air, looking at my own body, shattered on the ground. Blood spread across the pale concrete like blooming scarlet lilies, a horrific sight. The Alice who had worked so hard for praise but never received it, the Alice who had lived so cautiously, walking on eggshells, was finally dead. A crowd quickly gathered downstairs. Screams and gasps erupted one after another. “Someone jumped!” “Oh my God, it’s a young girl!” “Call an ambulance! Call the police!” I watched silently, my heart devoid of any ripple. Upstairs, in the ballroom, the festivities continued. The soundproofing was truly excellent. So good that even the sound of a human life ending was completely shut out. Until the hotel manager frantically burst into the Magnolia Ballroom, his face ashen, shouting. “It’s terrible! That young lady… she jumped!” In that instant, the air in the ballroom froze. Aunt Carol’s pecan fell from her mouth. Grandma Eleanor’s birthday cake rolled to the side. My mother’s hand, which had been cutting the cake, jolted, the sharp knife slicing her finger. “What did you say?” My father paused for a few seconds, then sneered. “Jumped? That useless girl has the guts for that? She’s probably just hiding somewhere trying to scare people! Manager, don’t let her fool you, she’s a master actress!” The manager was sweating profusely, pointing frantically out the window. “It’s true! She’s right below! Her brains… her brains are splattered out!” “I don’t believe it!” My father shoved the manager aside and rushed towards the balcony. He leaned over the railing to look down. With just one glance, his body seemed to deflate, collapsing to the floor. “How… how could it be…” My mother also rushed over. When she saw that blinding red puddle below, she let out a gut-wrenching scream. “Ah!!!” She hammered frantically on the glass door, trying to rush downstairs, but Uncle Robert and Aunt Carol held her back tightly. “Don’t look! Don’t look! Calm down, Eleanor!” “Let go of me! That’s Alice! That’s my Alice!” My mother cried hysterically, her makeup completely smeared, looking utterly disheveled. Just minutes before, she had been pointing her finger at me, calling me a burden. Now I was dead, the debt cleared, so why was she still crying? Such hypocrisy. “I told you that girl had problems!” Aunt Carol patted her chest, a look of profound relief on her face. “Today is Mom’s birthday, and she had to choose this time to die. Isn’t that just asking for bad luck? What a jinx, can’t even rest in peace after death!” Clara huddled in Grandma Eleanor’s arms, covering her eyes, afraid to look. “Grandma, I’m scared…” Grandma Eleanor’s face was ashen. She slammed her rosary beads onto the floor. “What a sin! How could our respectable Hayes family produce such a disloyal wretch!” You see? Even in death, in their eyes, I was still a disloyal wretch, a jinx. No one asked why I jumped. No one cared if I was in pain. They only cared that my death had ruined their mood and disgraced them. The police arrived swiftly. The piercing wail of sirens cut through the city air, and through the last shred of dignity for the Hayes family.

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“I had a vasectomy three years ago. That ‘seed’ in your belly? Must be borrowed, wouldn’t you say?” At the research findings presentation, my professor husband publicly waved a surgical certificate, each word a dagger to my heart. The room gasped, and countless cameras, filled with scorn, focused on my face. And my husband, who had tenderly stroked my belly just last night, was now thoughtfully draping his jacket over a fragile junior colleague, a former student. I finally understood. He wanted to preserve his pristine reputation, to openly care for his “ailing” first love, and to do that, he had to utterly destroy me, his wife. “James Thorne, remember your words today. From this moment on, this child’s life and death have nothing to do with you.” I publicly tore up our marriage certificate, grabbed my suitcase, and vanished into the rainy night. Six years later, a prodigy hacker, my son, crashed his company’s system. He coolly rejected James’s high-paying job offer. James, eyes red, tried to force a reunion. The boy scoffed, a mocking tone in his voice: “Sir, your vasectomy certificate was publicly notarized across the entire internet back then. Are you trying to admit that you were lying all along?” … 1 “Professor Thorne, the system is back online, but the hacker left a message.” The assistant wiped cold sweat from his brow, not daring to look at the man at the head of the conference table. James Thorne stared at the massive red ‘X’ on the screen, his face ashen. Six years ago, he was a brilliant rising star in academia. Six years later, he was the powerful head of a top tech company. But just moments ago, the company’s core defense system was breached in three seconds by an anonymous hacker. A line of arrogant small text flashed on the screen: “Do people who get vasectomies also suffer brain atrophy?” James abruptly stood up, his fingertips trembling with rage. This secret, besides those present at that fateful presentation, no one knew. “Investigate! Find me this person’s IP address!” he roared, his tie askew. Just then, the conference room door opened. Chloe Sterling, in a simple white dress, stood weakly, leaning on the doorframe. “James, don’t be angry. Be careful with your health.” The fury in James’s eyes instantly melted into tenderness. He quickly went to her, supporting her. “Chloe? What are you doing here? I told you to rest at the hospital.” Chloe coughed faintly twice, tears welling in her eyes. “I heard something happened at the company. I was worried about you.” James thoughtfully draped his jacket over her shoulders, the gesture chillingly practiced. This scene perfectly mirrored six years ago. That’s how he’d been then, publicly waving a vasectomy certificate, accusing the child in my womb of being a “borrowed seed.” Then, in front of everyone, he’d walked towards this “ailing” junior colleague. “Mr. Thorne, we found it.” The assistant’s voice broke the tender moment. “The person is at the Cloud’s Edge Café in the city center. They didn’t hide their address.” James sneered, his eyes dark and menacing. “How audacious. Take the team over there.” I hadn’t expected our first meeting since returning to the country to come so quickly. In the café, I was slowly sipping my latte. Caleb, across from me, his slender fingers danced rapidly across a tablet. He had a face strikingly similar to James’s, especially those cold, almond-shaped eyes. “Mom, the fish took the bait.” Caleb closed the tablet, a hint of mockery playing on his lips. The café door was violently pushed open. James, accompanied by bodyguards, stormed in, his presence menacing. The moment he saw me, he froze, as if someone had pressed the pause button. “Sophia?” His voice was hoarse, filled with incredulous shock. I set down my cup, looking up at him with a slight smile. “Professor Thorne, long time no see.” His gaze lingered on my face for a long time, finally settling on Caleb. Caleb’s face was practically a miniature version of James’s. James’s expression instantly became a kaleidoscope of emotions: shock, anger, absurdity, finally settling into deep disgust. “Sophia, you actually dared to come back?” He strode to the table, staring down at me. “Is this bastard the evidence of your betrayal back then?” Caleb stood up. Though his height only reached James’s waist, his aura was no less formidable. “Sir, misidentifying relatives is a sickness that needs curing.” James scoffed, laughing angrily, pointing at Caleb as he addressed me. “Is this the kind of child you raised? Just like that adulterer, completely ill-mannered.” I stood up, shielding Caleb behind me. “Mr. Thorne, please show some respect.” “I am the Chief Technology Officer of DeepBlue Tech. I’m here today to decline your job offer.” James froze. He had indeed been offering a hefty sum to a top hacker codenamed “S” recently. But he never expected that hacker to be me. Or rather, the child behind me. 2 “You’re S?” James’s eyes were full of doubt. In his mind, I would always be the housewife who hid behind him, managing his household. I didn’t speak, but Caleb sneered. “I am.” The little guy pulled out a specially designed ID badge from his backpack and slammed it onto the table. James’s pupils constricted violently. The assistant behind him gasped, whispering, “Mr. Thorne, the tech department confirmed that the hacker is indeed a child…” James’s face went from green to white, then from white to red. This feeling of being humiliated by his own son (though he wouldn’t admit it) clearly stuck in his craw. “Sophia, to get back at me, you actually taught your child to be this kind of sneaky scoundrel?” He glared at me, gritting his teeth. “Crashing the company system—was that just to get my attention?” His narcissism made me laugh. “Mr. Thorne, you’re thinking too much.” “Crashing your system was just because your job posting smelled so bad it offended my son’s eyes.” Chloe then walked up, delicate and frail, pulling on James’s sleeve. “James, don’t be like this. Sophia must be desperate, given her circumstances.” She turned to me, a flicker of jealousy in her eyes, but her face was filled with sympathy. “Sophia, if you need money, you can tell us.” “After all, you left so abruptly back then, without even settling the marital assets. James has always felt he owed you.” Her words were expertly crafted. In a few sentences, she cemented my “cheating and fleeing” crime from back then, and subtly asserted her current status as the lady of the house. James snorted, looking at me with even greater disdain. “Owed? A loose woman like her deserves to talk about being owed?” Caleb suddenly spoke, his tone cool and clear. “Auntie, your acting is paler than your complexion.” Chloe’s expression froze. Caleb continued to twist the knife. “And Mr. Thorne, your vasectomy certificate was publicly notarized across the entire internet back then.” “Since you are infertile, how could this child possibly be yours?” “Since he’s not yours, how can there be any talk of betrayal?” “Are you trying to admit publicly that your certificate from back then was falsified?” The coffee drinkers around us turned their heads, hushed whispers erupting. James’s face instantly turned as black as soot. This logical loop left him unable to refute. Admit the child was his, and he would be a liar who defrauded and tricked me into marriage. Deny the child was his, and he would have to watch his biological son call someone else Daddy. “Sophia, what exactly do you want?” He lowered his voice, a hint of threat in his tone. I picked up my bag, taking Caleb’s hand. “Nothing, just for you to stay away from us.” “After all, a ‘dead man’ doesn’t need a son.” I walked out of the coffee shop with Caleb. The sunlight warmed my skin, but I felt no comfort. On that rainy night six years ago, I walked the streets with my suitcase. Back then, I swore I would make him pay. Now, the game had just begun. Back at the hotel, Caleb deftly opened his laptop. “Mom, Chloe’s medical records are fake.” He pointed to a series of fluctuating data on the screen. “She doesn’t have heart disease at all. All those medical reports came from a private hospital under James’s name.” I looked at the data, a cold smile in my heart. Just as I suspected. Back then, to protect Chloe, James didn’t hesitate to accuse me of attempted murder. He claimed Chloe had developed congenital heart disease because I pushed her down the stairs. Now it seemed it was nothing more than a play they had orchestrated together. A play to ruin my reputation so they could live happily ever after. “Keep digging. I want to know who issued that surgical certificate back then.” I stroked Caleb’s head. “Okay, Mom.” Caleb’s eyes held a maturity beyond his years. Just then, my phone rang. It was an unfamiliar number. After I answered, James’s angry voice came through. “Sophia, bring the child. Go to City Central Hospital for a paternity test.” “Now, immediately!” 3 “Mr. Thorne, have you forgotten?” I held my phone, standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the city lights. “You are ‘vasectomized.’ Taking a paternity test would be like slapping yourself in the face, wouldn’t it?” Heavy breathing came from the other end of the line. James was clearly furious. “Stop the nonsense! That child looks exactly like me. Do you think I’m blind?” I let out a soft laugh, my voice as cold as ice. “Many people look alike. If Mr. Thorne wants to be a father, he can adopt a child from an orphanage.” “My child’s last name is Hayes.” After that, I hung up the phone and blocked his number. The next morning, I received an invitation to an industry summit. As the CTO of DeepBlue Tech, I had to attend. And James, as a local tech magnate, would naturally be there. The summit was packed with luminaries. I put on a sharp black suit, my hair pulled back, radiating confidence. Caleb, acting as my “special assistant,” wore a miniature suit and walked beside me. The moment we appeared, we became the center of attention. “Is that S from DeepBlue Tech? She’s so young and beautiful!” “That child next to her, why does he look so familiar?” Whispers erupted all around. James walked over with Chloe. Chloe was wearing a pink gown today, making her appear even more fragile. When she saw me, a hint of malice flickered in her eyes. “Sophia, is it really appropriate to bring a child to an event like this?” Her voice wasn’t loud, but just enough for everyone nearby to hear. “After all, this is a high-level academic exchange. If the child gets noisy, it would be an embarrassment to DeepBlue Tech.” The atmosphere instantly grew subtle. Before I could speak, Caleb interjected. “Auntie, if you can understand this paper on quantum encryption in my hand, I’ll leave immediately.” He pulled a paper from his folder and handed it to Chloe. Chloe glanced at it, her face instantly turning a spectrum of colors. The dense equations on it were like an alien language to an art student like her, who had risen through connections. Laughter rippled through the crowd. James’s face was ashen. He snatched the paper. He had intended to rescue Chloe, but when he saw the content, he froze. It was the core algorithm he had been researching for six months without a breakthrough. And a six-year-old child had just casually written it out? “This… you wrote this?” James stared intently at Caleb. Caleb shrugged, his tone nonchalant. “I was bored last night, just doodled it.” James’s breathing quickened, a flicker of fanaticism in his eyes. He was a man who valued academia above all else, and a shrewd businessman. His gaze at Caleb was no longer disgust, but as if looking at a priceless treasure. “Sophia, we need to talk.” He looked at me, his tone holding an undeniable command. I raised an eyebrow. “Mr. Thorne, there’s nothing to talk about between us.” “Regarding the child, I believe I have a right to know the truth.” He lowered his posture, even with a hint of pleading. I scoffed inwardly. Truth? The truth back then was that you personally pushed me into the abyss. “You want the truth? Fine.” I leaned close to his ear, speaking in a voice only we could hear. “Tomorrow at 3 PM, go to the hospital where you supposedly had your vasectomy.” “I’ll personally deliver the ‘truth’ to you.” James froze. Chloe, sensing something was amiss, quickly grabbed his arm. “James, don’t listen to her nonsense. She’s definitely trying to trick you.” But James pushed her hand away. In his eyes, for the first time, he showed suspicion towards Chloe.

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It was my birthday night, and my wife, who worked for a highly sensitive agency, wired me five thousand two hundred dollars. “Happy Birthday, darling. Got called in for an urgent overtime shift. Can’t celebrate with you tonight.” The moment I saw that message, I watched her and her adoptive brother, Kyle Jensen, walk arm-in-arm into the agency building. “This is the last time I’m indulging your whims.” I heard her say. “Next year, no matter what, I’m celebrating my husband’s birthday.” Kyle Jensen, her adoptive brother, laughed, holding up a box of ultra-thin condoms. “Our first time was in the company conference room, wasn’t it?” “So our last time should end in the same place.” I clenched the coffee cup in my hand, my knuckles white. Then, I sent an email to every employee except Kyle Jensen. “Urgent notice: Client requires early contract signing.” “Meeting in the company conference room in twenty minutes.” If they liked thrills so much, I’d give them a show they’d never forget. … “Hey, can you remotely activate the conference room camera from the backend?” “Of course, I want to record this historic moment.” “Good. Please connect it to my phone.” I hung up, my teeth gritted, and opened the app on my phone. The hot zone where Olivia Sterling and Kyle Jensen were getting intimate was the very center of the large conference table, directly beneath the camera. “Liv, what do you think your husband would do if he knew?” Kyle’s voice, smug and taunting, filled my ears. “That every birthday gift you gave him, I’ve tried on and stretched out beforehand?” “Would he be so humiliated he wouldn’t know where to hide?” Seeing the brand and style of the underwear Kyle was wearing—identical to the ones Olivia had given me for years—my stomach churned, and I nearly vomited bile. Olivia and I had been married for six years. Every year on my birthday, she’d be absent for one reason or another. I’d always assumed it was due to the sensitive nature of her job. But it never once crossed my mind that each time I blew out candles alone, wishing for us to grow old together, she was hiding on the conference table with Kyle, committing acts of betrayal against our marriage. The cold wind made me shiver uncontrollably. Then, a colleague’s voice from behind startled me. “Mr. Davies, the social media influencer you asked for has arrived.” “With this live broadcast, the public will be able to witness our successful strategic partnership with UnityCorp. This will undoubtedly be a huge boost for our company’s future development.” I smirked, taking the bottled water my assistant offered to rinse my mouth. “To ensure our employees aren’t uncomfortable, keep the cameras hidden.” “The live broadcast will officially begin in fifteen seconds. No matter what happens midway, it must not stop.” After making all the arrangements, I led the entire staff to wait for the company’s two major shareholders: Olivia’s father, Mr. Sterling Sr., Kyle’s adoptive father, and my mother. Seeing them arrive with the client, I personally pressed the elevator button for them. “Dad, Mom, Mr. McKinnon, please come this way.” The moment they stepped into the elevator, a dark blue suit jacket fell to the floor. Without a word, I picked it up and draped it over my arm. Approaching the conference room door, two red-soled dress shoes lay casually on the ground. A black silk stocking hung from the doorknob. As I frantically tidied the mess, my mother, Mr. Sterling Sr., and Mr. McKinnon all looked at me, their expressions questioning. My shirt sleeves were haphazardly rolled up, and I was wearing disposable slippers. Mr. McKinnon, seeing this, looked awkward, mixed with a hint of resignation. “It seems working overtime on a Friday night is truly brutal.” “Liam, we old folks haven’t interrupted your… fun, have we?” Just then, employees who had taken the public elevator also arrived at the conference room door. I forced a smile and shook my head. With all my strength, I pushed open the conference room door. “The public caught-in-the-act drama is about to begin.” The next second, the door I had just managed to push open was shoved back from the inside. Olivia, disheveled, slipped out through the crack. Her flushed face was filled with shock and dismay. “Dad, Mom, isn’t—isn’t today Friday?” “W-why are you all here?” Seeing the black silk stockings in my hand, violently torn by Kyle, and the hundreds of employees behind me, Olivia shamelessly stepped forward and snuggled into my arms, feigning annoyance. “Liam, if you were having a meeting, why didn’t you tell me beforehand?” She tiptoed, bringing her lips close to my ear. “Everyone’s watching. Play along.” “It’s not what you think. I’ll explain everything later.” Seeing her almost frantic demeanor, I pushed her out of my embrace, discomfort clear on my face. “My apologies, everyone. Please excuse the sight.” “Dad, Mom, please escort Mr. McKinnon to the reception room to rest for a few minutes. I’ll have someone clean this up immediately. The meeting will start on time in five minutes.” Hearing this, Olivia visibly relaxed. The next second, she almost blurted out, accusing me, “Liam, when did you become so inconsiderate?” “How can we make Mr. McKinnon wait for us?” “Doesn’t the company have a smaller conference room? I think we should use that one for today.” As she spoke, she shot a glance at her father. Father and daughter played along with practiced ease. “Exactly, Liam, Olivia’s right. Let’s use the smaller one today.” He nodded obsequiously, shaking Mr. McKinnon’s hand firmly. “My apologies, Mr. McKinnon. The younger generation is clueless. Please excuse the spectacle.” Saying this, he tried to pull Mr. McKinnon towards the smaller conference room. He wanted to get everyone into the small conference room so Kyle, currently hiding in the large one, could escape? Dream on! “Dad, it’s understandable Olivia doesn’t know the situation since she doesn’t work here, but how can you blindly go along with her?” I frowned, gesturing to the hundreds of employees behind me. “The small conference room can only accommodate fifty people at most.” “We can’t have the remaining dozens of people standing in the hallway for the meeting, can we?” Then, I deliberately teased Olivia. “You, just look at you. I was just tired from working overtime and changed into comfortable clothes. As soon as I heard Mr. McKinnon and the others arrived, I didn’t have time to tidy up.” “But you? You didn’t even bother to put these clothes away, causing everyone to misunderstand.” I smiled, leaning closer to Mr. McKinnon, inviting him into the conference room. “Uncle McKinnon, let’s go in and start the meeting.” “Even though it’s temporary overtime today, I promised everyone five times the overtime pay. But if we delay any longer, it might damage my image as general manager in the eyes of the employees.” Just as everyone was about to turn and enter the large conference room where Kyle was hiding, Olivia again recklessly tried to stop them. She practically pleaded with me. “Liam, just listen to me this once. Let’s switch conference rooms, okay?” Seeing my face visibly darken, my mother, who was standing nearby, seemed to realize something. With a hint of irritation, she playfully chided Mr. Sterling Sr. “My dear, what’s so peculiar about this conference room? So much so that you two are repeatedly blocking everyone from entering?” Her expression unchanged, she pushed open the conference room door and strode in with purpose, her heels clicking. “The way you’re both hiding something, someone might think Olivia has a secret lover stashed away in there!” The words hadn’t even fully left her lips when a pair of glaring underwear caught everyone’s eye. My mother, without a second thought, slapped Olivia, knocking her to the ground. “You little hussy! How dare you betray our Liam?” She gritted her teeth, slapping the other side of Olivia’s face again. “Tell me, who’s that man you’re sneaking around with?” “From the moment we got into the elevator, I knew something was off. That jacket, and those shoes, they’re definitely not Liam’s style.” She kicked off her heels, ready to continue, but Mr. Sterling Sr. desperately held her back, trying to calm her. “My dear, don’t be impulsive.” Olivia, knowing she was in the wrong, scrambled awkwardly to her feet. She snatched the underwear from the chair and fumbled under the table for a pink tote bag. “Mom, you’ve misunderstood. This is a gift for Liam.” “I just accidentally knocked it off and didn’t have time to pick it up.” She looked at me expectantly. “If you don’t believe me, ask Liam.” “Darling, for six years of marriage, haven’t I given you one of these for your birthday every year?” Seeing Olivia shamelessly spout such nonsense, the last shred of my affection for her completely vanished. I suppressed my disgust, took her so-called gift, and, along with the clothes I’d picked up earlier, threw them all into the trash can. “Mom, don’t be angry. Olivia’s right.” After arranging for everyone to sit down as planned, I meticulously scanned the entire conference room, searching for Kyle’s hiding place. Kyle would be completely naked right now. Looking around the entire conference room, the only place to hide a person was under the table. But I had already secretly checked when Olivia knelt to retrieve the tote bag. Aside from the bottom of the table, the last place where someone could conceivably hide was behind the printer, in the utility box at its base. To confirm my suspicion, I feigned an accidental approach to the printer. The next second, cold sweat beaded on Olivia’s forehead. She tightly clamped her arms around my waist. “Liam, I sent you a five thousand two hundred dollar transfer. Did you get it?” “What transfer?” I feigned ignorance, about to pull out my phone, but she quickly cut me off. “It’s fine if you haven’t seen it. Let’s celebrate your birthday after the meeting.” “Don’t you want to go to the Sky Garden restaurant to watch the fireworks? I’ll go with you as soon as this meeting is over.” I suppressed my disgust, forcing a smile. “Okay.” Once I was certain Kyle was hiding in the printer’s utility box, I motioned for my assistant to stop working. “Mr. McKinnon, I apologize. There’s an error in the project proposal. It’s a mistake made by our subordinates, and we will deal with it severely.” “Please give me ten minutes. I’ll have someone print it again here on-site.” The words hadn’t fully left my mouth when Mr. Sterling Sr. and Olivia, who was listening in, simultaneously blurted out, “No!” No? I doubt you have a choice. If I wasn’t mistaken, Mr. Sterling Sr. had already recognized Kyle’s suit jacket in the elevator. And the silk stockings and shoes at the conference room door only confirmed his suspicions. The only reason they remained so composed was their certainty that I would prioritize the reputation of both the company and the Sterling-Davies families. But what they didn’t know was that while I usually appeared mild-mannered and unassuming, once someone crossed my bottom line, I would be meticulous and retaliate fiercely. I meaningfully glanced at my mother. She immediately understood, publicly stating, “Mr. McKinnon, don’t worry. We guarantee a correct and accurate project proposal within ten minutes.” The Sterling father and daughter wanted to say something, but my assistant was already rushing people towards the printer where Kyle was hiding. “Wait!” At the same time, the Sterling father and daughter again simultaneously tried to stop them. Mr. Sterling Sr.’s face was ashen, and he sternly questioned the assistant. “Is this the only printer in the entire company?” “Why aren’t you taking people to print elsewhere?” “If you disturb Mr. McKinnon, who can bear the responsibility?” He then offered a ingratiating smile, handing a cup of tea to Mr. McKinnon. “My subordinates are clueless. Mr. McKinnon, please don’t take offense.” The assistant’s raised hand froze in mid-air. She looked at me hesitantly, while my mother, with a knowing smile, teased Mr. Sterling Sr. “Old man Sterling, why are you so agitated?” Seeing this, I added fuel to the fire. “Exactly, Dad, Olivia, why are you both so unusual today?” “Could it be that Olivia really has something she’s hiding from me?” I scoffed, crossing my arms. I deliberately faced the influencer’s pinhole camera, elaborating, “Could it be, as Dad just said, that you’re hiding a secret lover in the conference room?” I shook my head, turning a few circles in place. “Mom, you’re really fantasizing.” “The layout of this conference room is completely open. Where could anyone possibly hide?” I stared pointedly at the utility box behind the printer, every word deliberate. “Could it be that he’s hiding inside the printer?” At these words, Mr. Sterling Sr.’s face turned green. Olivia, still stubbornly denying, swore to me, “Darling, heaven is my witness, I haven’t betrayed you.” “You, you’re just not serious when you joke.” “Even though Uncle McKinnon watched us grow up, he’s the client today. You’re being too inconsiderate.” Even at this point, Olivia still dared to put on a brave face?

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When I had a miscarriage after a car accident, Liam Lennick was picking up his ex-girlfriend’s child. Seeing me bleeding profusely on the ground, he merely covered the little girl’s eyes, saying with utter disgust, “Lexi, don’t look. It’s absolutely filthy.” That night, a thunderstorm raged. His ex-girlfriend cried on the phone, and he didn’t hesitate to drive to her house. The next day, I signed the divorce papers and called my lawyer. “I’m certain about the divorce. Let’s proceed with the asset division.” 1 “Liam, I’m scared…” A woman’s faint sobs drifted from the balcony. Liam Lennick lit a cigarette, his handsome brows furrowed. Even with the storm raging outside, he preferred to stand on the cold, damp balcony, talking to another woman on the phone. “Just wait, don’t be afraid, I’ll be there soon.” He quickly hung up, stubbing out the cigarette. Coming in from the balcony, he saw me lying weakly in bed. He said coldly, “Audrey, stop faking it. The doctor said you only have a few scrapes, why are you pretending to be dead?” I lowered my eyes, my fingers curling weakly. Yes, my legs had scrapes. But the miscarriage, that was a child truly lost. I had only half-finished speaking on the phone when he impatiently cut me off. “Anyway, it’s fine as long as you’re okay. I’m still driving.” From the other end of the line, a girl’s cheerful voice could be heard asking, “Uncle Liam, is this mousse cake for Mom?” Before the man could answer, he hung up with a series of beeps. The words, “I had a miscarriage,” remained stuck in my throat, unspoken. Mousse cake, it must be very sweet. This morning, when I found the customized mousse cake on the table, I naively thought it was a gift from him to end our months-long cold war. But he just slapped my hand away. “Who told you to touch it? This is for a friend.” It wasn’t for me. It was for that “friend.” And who could that friend be, if not his divorced ex-girlfriend? When we first started dating, he knew I loved mousse cake. He would insist on buying from the most expensive shop in the city every day. After almost a month, I finally got tired of it and asked him to stop. He dotingly licked the cream from the corner of my mouth, pinching my cheek. “I have money to buy it, are you afraid of getting fat? I’ll love you even if you weigh 200 pounds.” Five years into our marriage, I rarely ate sweets, only to maintain my figure, so he wouldn’t change his mind. But if he didn’t love me anymore, would he care if I got fat? Now, let alone mousse cake, he would find it too much effort even to brew me a bowl of medicine. My thoughts returned to the present. Liam’s tone was still impatient. “Also, Lexi is just a child. You were bleeding so much. What if she saw it and got scared?” I endured the pain in my lower abdomen, a faint smile on my lips. “Yes, it’s a shame you’re not Lexi’s father, otherwise you’d probably want to kick me a couple more times.” Liam walked to my bedside. He forcefully swiped the bowl off my nightstand. The bowl shattered on the floor, spilling the medicine the doctor prescribed for my miscarriage. He suppressed his anger. “Audrey, don’t push your luck.” I continued to smile at him, saying coolly, “Mr. Lennick, aren’t you leaving?” Liam paused, surprised. “What?” “The thunder is so loud, your friend must be truly terrified.” The anger on Liam’s face flickered. Finally, he gave a sinister laugh. “Audrey, if you weren’t injured, I’d rip your mouth off.” I didn’t respond. But as he opened the door to leave, he coldly added, “Don’t wait up for me tonight. Just close the windows tightly when it thunders.” Yes, I used to be afraid of thunder too. Hiding in his arms would only lead to him pushing me away and calling me melodramatic. Yet, on this stormy night, Lisa Harris would receive his tender, whispered comfort. 2 The next day, when I arrived at the office, the atmosphere was strangely odd. As I went to get coffee, I overheard two young women whispering in the breakroom: “Mr. Lennick is too much. He berated and fired the assistant Ms. Lennick assigned, then brought someone else in.” “Yeah, Ms. Lennick’s protégé had excellent qualifications and capabilities. He was definitely better than that woman who can’t even use Excel.” “I heard that woman is divorced with a child, but she’s Mr. Lennick’s ex-girlfriend, so she didn’t even need an interview to start work.” “Ex-girlfriend? Even an ex-girlfriend shouldn’t be like that! Business is business, personal is personal. Ms. Lennick and Mr. Lennick have been married for five years, and she’s never been as shameless as that woman!” My hand, holding the cup, suddenly lost its grip. The cup clattered to the floor with a thud. It didn’t shatter, but the coffee spilled everywhere, filling the air with its bitter aroma. “Ms. Lennick!” The two interns finally noticed me, their faces sheepish. Their eyes, however, betrayed pity and sympathy for me. In that moment, I felt a faint ache in my abdomen again. I smiled softly, waving them off. “I’m fine. You two go back to work.” Back at my desk, I opened my alt account on social media. Lisa Harris had posted a side profile of a man, clearly looking serious at work. The caption read: “First day working with the big boss, made a small mistake but got spoiled by him! Thanks, big boss!” Liam Lennick replied below: “Work hard, and there’ll be a reward after work.” I casually ‘liked’ the post. Right after, Liam called. I answered. “Audrey, there’s a small issue with Mr. Miller’s client. Go handle it.” My tone was flat. “Isn’t Charles supposed to handle client relations? Did he mess up?” His voice on the other end was slightly annoyed. “Why so many questions? Charles was as dense as a brick, so I fired him. He dropped his work halfway and left, so aren’t you supposed to clean up his mess?” I scoffed. Whose mess was I cleaning up, exactly? More like cleaning up that woman’s mess. My heart felt heavy. I almost impulsively wanted to run into his office and confront him, but the thought of seeing that woman in his office filled me with irritation. I replied calmly. “Liam, I don’t feel well. I want to go home.” He paused. He probably hadn’t expected a strong woman like me, who would stay at her desk even with a fever or stomach ache, to say she wasn’t feeling well and wanted to go home. He let out a cold snort. “It’s just a minor car accident, a few scrapes. Still being melodramatic! Don’t you want that big contract from Mr. Miller?” I softly hummed. “No, I don’t. Money isn’t as important as my health.” “Audrey!” I hung up. At the same moment, Liam angrily kicked open his office door. I had already packed my bag and was ready to leave. Liam strode to my desk, questioning coldly, “Did I give you permission to leave?” “Mr. Lennick, I’m also a director. Why can’t I leave when I’m not feeling well?” Suddenly, numerous eyes focused on us. Liam felt his pride wounded. He pulled me into his office. From a corner, a woman’s surprised gasp. “Mr. Lennick, what’s wrong?” I looked at Lisa Harris, forcefully pulling my hand free from Liam’s grip. Liam’s voice softened. “Lisa, please step outside for a moment. I need to speak with Director Lennick.” Lisa’s eyes darted between us. She slowly walked to Liam’s side, clinging to his arm like a delicate bird. “Oh, Liam, don’t be angry! If Director Lennick has a work problem, we can solve it later! If she’s not feeling well, just let her go home and rest. The company won’t be without people if she’s gone…” Liam’s expression softened considerably at her sweet voice. Ignoring my presence, he playfully flicked Lisa’s nose. “You, you’re just too soft-hearted.” Then, turning to me, his face hardened again. “Since Assistant Harris is making excuses for you, then get out.” On the way home, I bought a mousse cake. Sitting in the car, I ate the cake bite by bite. The cake was indeed sweet, slowly neutralizing the bitterness in my heart. It turned out that the cake I bought for myself was just as sweet. But it was a truth I only understood now. 3 When I returned home, it was already late. Liam still wasn’t back. My mother, however, called. Her voice was as warm as ever. “Audrey, how are you and your husband doing these days?” I looked at the document in my hand, momentarily speechless. It was a divorce agreement. Her voice on the other end was still filled with warmth. “I wonder if you two will come visit us for the holidays this year. I’ve prepared so many of your favorite dishes!” “And also, when will you give me a grandson or granddaughter? Your father and I are so bored staying at home all day. How wonderful it would be to have a grandchild…” Suddenly, my nose stung. Neither a grandson nor a granddaughter. The child’s father would rather save another woman’s child than his own. It was that child’s misfortune not to come into this world. But perhaps it was for the best; if he came into this world, he would have to compete with other children for his father. Better not to come at all. “Mom, if I get a divorce, will you blame me?” Mom was silent for a long while. Finally, she asked cautiously, “Did you two argue? Spouses fight, but they always make up…” “No, there’s no turning back this time. Mom, will you blame me?” Mom sighed deeply. “I won’t blame you. All I want is for you to be happy. If you’re not happy, what’s the point of being married?” I laughed then. Tears streamed down my cheeks, wetting the dimples formed by my smile. “Okay.” I signed the divorce agreement and called my lawyer. “I’ve decided to divorce. Let’s proceed with property division.” As soon as I hung up, Liam called again. “Audrey, I’ve been drinking. I can’t drive. Come pick me up!” He bossed me around as if I were his personal assistant. Just bear with it a little longer, Audrey. From the other end of the line, there was another sickly sweet female voice. “Liam, it’s all your fault! Lexi hasn’t been picked up yet. She must be so scared…” Liam apologized to her, then said to me coldly, “Pick up Lexi on your way. It’s on your route anyway.” I softly said okay. At the school gate, I picked up Lisa Harris’s child. She sat in the passenger seat, expressionless, too mature for a child. “You’re Uncle Liam’s wife, aren’t you?” Lexi asked, feigning casualness. I smiled, counter-questioning, “Why, do you want to be Uncle Liam’s child?” The underlying meaning: Do you want Lisa Harris to be my husband’s wife? Lexi choked for a moment. I lightly tapped the steering wheel. “Kid, you’re not as smart as your mother. At least your mother is better at pretending to be dumb, and men just love to depend on their dumb women.” Lexi looked a bit embarrassed and raised her voice. “So what? Uncle Liam likes my mom!” I narrowed my eyes. “Kids are just naive. Liking someone doesn’t put food on the table.” I thought of the divorce agreement, where the property division was crystal clear. If we divorced, I wouldn’t lose out. On the contrary, Liam would lose both wealth and people. Lexi pouted, annoyed for the entire ride. I didn’t bother arguing with a child and had her wait in the lobby outside the private room. Just as I reached the door of the private room, I heard Lisa Harris’s sweet, soft voice. “Liam, you have a sensitive stomach, drink less…” Liam’s voice was deep and hoarse, a lazy, drunken chuckle. “What, you’re worried about me? Kiss me, and I’ll stop drinking.” Liam had Lisa sit on his lap. Seeing her shyness, he laughed and leaned in to kiss her lips. The two lingered for a long time before finally separating. I pushed the door open, startling both of them. Liam’s face was annoyed, but he didn’t push Lisa, who was still nestled against his chest, away. The private room was dimly lit. I placed the divorce agreement on the table in front of him. “A small company project. Just sign it.” Liam was somewhat drunk, his handsome brows tightly furrowed. He took the pen from my hand, signed it casually without even looking. “So annoying. Couldn’t you have waited until tomorrow at the office for me to sign it?” As I was leaving, Lisa called out to me. “Thank you, Director Lennick, for picking up Lexi for me. Usually, Liam… Mr. Lennick helps with pickups and drop-offs, but today he had to discuss business, so I troubled you.” Her words sounded like a wife thanking her subordinate for helping with her child. Lisa knew I was Liam Lennick’s wife, yet she deliberately spoke with such subtle malice. But my heart was already calm. From this moment on, I was no longer Liam Lennick’s wife. I was free. “Ms. Harris, I hope you enjoy the trash someone else didn’t want.” I pretended not to see her ashen face and turned to leave.

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“Garret, that woman’s face, after getting burned saving Lyra… it’s going to be so grotesque to look at.” Outside the hospital room, the brother’s jest was entirely undisguised. Garret Winters exhaled a puff of smoke, his voice dripping with undisguised disgust. “Ghastly. One look is enough to make me sick.” “If it wasn’t to ensure Lyra’s safe escape, why would I lie and tell her to rush into the fire? Once Lyra’s tour is over, a fat check will be enough to send that woman away.” The agonizing pain of changing the dressings on my severely burned back couldn’t compare to Garret Winters’s flippant words at that moment. I touched the blood seeping through the bandages on my face, forcing back tears. To save his beloved, I became this? I pulled out the IV needle from the back of my hand, dragging my injured body towards the heavily guarded, exclusive ward of the Sterling Corporation at the top floor of the hospital. The two well-dressed bodyguards at the door, seeing my appearance, immediately turned red-eyed. They straightened their backs and bowed deeply. “Chairman, the Young Miss has been found!” I leaned weakly against the wall, my voice cold. “Dad, take me back to the estate. It’s time for the Winters Group to disappear.” 1 The hospital room door was violently pulled open from the inside. My father, Chairman Sterling, rushed in. The moment he saw me, this decisive titan of the business world, the chairman of the Sterling Corporation, his eyes instantly welled up. Father extended his hands. They trembled uncontrollably, wanting to touch me, yet afraid to. I was draped in an oversized hospital gown, and the blood and bodily fluids seeping from my back had soaked through the fabric. Half of my face was wrapped in bandages, revealing only one eye. “Iris…” Father’s throat emitted a hoarse sound. “Who did this?” I opened my mouth, but no sound came out. Excessive blood loss coupled with a severe infection made my vision begin to blacken. My legs grew weak. I fell forward. Father caught me in his arms. The place where he touched me was scalding hot with blood. The chief bodyguard beside him, eyes red, clenched his fists. “Chairman, I’ll go cripple that beast!” Chairman Sterling gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead. “Summon the top global medical team, now!” I completely lost consciousness. In my delirium, the thick smoke from the fire again filled my nostrils. When the beam crashed down, Garret Winters had grabbed my shoulder and violently shoved me into the inferno. Using that recoil, he tightly shielded Lyra and rolled out of the burning building. Flames licked at my back. The smell of burning flesh filled my mind. I convulsed in pain, suddenly opening my eyes. I saw the ceiling of the Sterling Private Hospital’s exclusive ward. The wound on my back had been cleaned and covered with top-grade burn dressings. But that piercing pain still crept upwards through my bones. Father sat by the bed, his eyes red. Seeing me awake, he immediately stood up. “Iris, does it still hurt?” I shook my head. My phone screen lit up. It was a message from Garret Winters. I stared at the familiar name for a second. I reached out and tapped it open. Two voice messages popped up. I tapped the first one. Garret Winters’s impatient voice echoed in the room. “Amy Winters, where have you gone?” “Lyra’s appetite isn’t good tonight. She wants the dried scallop porridge from that old establishment in South City.” “Your injuries aren’t serious. Stop pretending to be dead in bed and go buy a serving and send it to room 802.” Father’s face darkened, his fists clenching. I expressionlessly opened the second message. “And.” “Wear a hood when you come. Cover that face of yours.” “You’re ghastly now. Don’t scare Lyra.” The voice messages finished playing. The room was silent. I looked at the screen, my eyes devoid of any ripple. Something in my chest was completely empty. I removed the SIM card from my phone. With both hands, I snapped the card in half and threw it into the trash can. I threw back the covers, propping myself up on the edge of the bed, trying to stand. Father pressed down on my shoulder. “You have severe full-body burns. The doctor said getting out of bed now could be life-threatening!” I looked up, meeting my father’s eyes. “Dad, I need to go downstairs.” “The jade pendant my mother left behind, I left it in room 802.” “That is the symbol of the Sterling Corporation’s matriarch.” “I must retrieve it myself.” Chairman Sterling stared at me for a long time. He released his grip. Turning, he took a black cashmere trench coat from the hanger and draped it over my shoulders. “Go.” “I’ll be right behind you.” I pulled the trench coat tighter, dragging my heavy legs, step by step, out of the exclusive ward. The elevator display at the end of the corridor flickered, stopping on the eighth floor. 2 The eighth-floor general ward area reeked of disinfectant mixed with cheap perfume. I walked to the door of room 802, which used to be mine. Laughter emanated from within. I raised my hand and pushed the door open. The bed sheets had been changed to pink silk, Lyra’s favorite color. Lyra, wearing a silk nightgown I had just bought but hadn’t had a chance to wear, leaned in Garret’s arms. He was peeling a grape, feeding it to her. Hearing the door open, both turned simultaneously. Seeing my face, wrapped in bandages and oozing blood, Lyra shrieked, startled, burrowing deeper into Garret’s embrace. “Garret, it’s terrifying! Why does she look so horrifying?” Garret abruptly stood up. The grape in his hand fell to the floor, crushed under his foot. Garret strode over, pointing at my nose and cursing. “Amy Winters, why are you running around? Don’t you know you’re ghastly right now?” “Didn’t I tell you to wear a hood? If you scare Lyra, can you afford the consequences?” I ignored him. My gaze swept past his shoulder, fixing on the jade pendant hanging around Lyra’s neck. Its edge was slightly blackened by the smoke from the fire. Engraved on it were my mother’s name and the Sterling family crest. I took a deep breath, my voice hoarse. “Give me back my property.” Lyra instinctively covered the jade pendant on her chest, her eyes instantly reddening, tears welling up. “Garret, this is the vintage necklace you gave me yesterday. I love it so much. Why is Amy trying to snatch my things?” Garret frowned, his eyes filled with disgust. He shoved my shoulder. “It’s just a broken piece of stone. It’s your honor that Lyra took a liking to it. I’ll transfer the money to you, just don’t make a scene!” Garret’s push was forceful. I was already weak, and with that shove, I stumbled backward, hitting the doorframe hard. The newly stitched wound split open. Blood gushed out, staining the hospital gown under my trench coat, dripping onto the floor from the hem. Drip. Drop. The hospital room filled with the scent of blood. Garret saw the bloodstains on the floor, showing no sympathy whatsoever. Instead, he covered his nose, recoiling a large step back in disgust. “How unlucky! She’s ruined the floor!” “Amy Winters, are you sick? Are you deliberately running to Lyra just to play the victim?” Lyra sat up from the bed. She tugged at Garret’s sleeve. “Garret, don’t blame Amy. She must be upset, being like this. Even if she used to serve us like a maid at home, it’s normal for her to have a bad temper now that she’s disfigured.” I leaned against the doorframe, cold sweat drenching the few remaining strands of hair on my forehead. I looked at Garret Winters. “That’s my mother’s relic. Hand it over.” Garret sneered. “You, an orphan who doesn’t even know who her parents are, where would you get relics from?” “I think your brain got burned, and you’re obsessed with money.” Garret stepped forward, grabbing my collar. “Apologize to Lyra immediately, then get out and clean up the blood on the floor!” Noises of footsteps echoed from the corridor outside. 3 Several people entered from outside the door, all friends Garret usually associated with. The one in front even carried a fruit basket. Seeing me, covered in blood and leaning against the doorframe, they paused, then burst into laughter. “Well, Garret, old man, the wife’s look is quite unique, isn’t it? Halloween came early? With her face wrapped up like a mummy, aren’t you afraid of nightmares when the lights are off at night?” Garret released my collar, clapping his hands as if to shake off something dirty. “Don’t even mention it. Bad luck. I sent her to buy a bowl of porridge, but she had to come here and scare Lyra.” One of them walked to the bedside, putting down the fruit basket. He gave Lyra a fawning smile. “Sister Lyra, you’ve been startled. The wife is also clueless, she should stay in her room after disfiguring herself. What’s she doing wandering around?” Lyra lowered her head, looking utterly wronged. Lyra picked up a freshly brewed hot tea from the nightstand. “Amy, don’t be angry. Have some tea to warm yourself up.” Lyra’s foot suddenly tripped. The scalding hot tea, along with the tea leaves, splashed directly onto my bleeding shoulder and chest. I let out a cry of pain. Piercing agony instantly shot through me. The hot water scalded the freshly torn wound. I grunted, my legs giving out. I fell to one knee on the floor, cold sweat pouring from my body. Lyra shrieked, the empty cup in her hand falling to the floor and shattering. “I’m sorry, Amy, I didn’t mean it. You were staring at me earlier, I was so scared I couldn’t hold it steady…” Lyra cried, throwing herself into Garret’s arms. Garret embraced Lyra protectively, patting her back. He turned, his eyes dark and menacing, staring at me. Garret raised his foot, kicking the IV stand next to me. The metal stand toppled, striking my back. I was knocked to the floor. “Amy Winters, how dare you scare her! Are you trying to die?” I lay on the floor, my nails digging into the tiles. Blood and tea mixed, spreading across the floor. I looked up at the man I had once loved with my life. I watched him trample my dignity and my flesh underfoot for another woman. I coldly uttered two words: “Divorce.” The hospital room fell silent for a moment. Garret stared blankly, then chuckled in anger. “Divorce?” “Amy Winters, what do you have to divorce me with?” Garret pointed at me condescendingly. “You’re an orphan with no parents, no decent job. Without me, you can’t even afford the medical bills for these severe burns!” Someone next to him chimed in. “Exactly, Amy, old man. Garret is a CEO worth hundreds of millions now. If you leave him, with your ghastly face, no one would even give you a dime if you begged on the streets!” Garret walked up to me, his dress shoe stepping on the blood-stained hem of my coat. “Apologize to Lyra on your knees right now. Beg her forgiveness for scaring her. Otherwise, I’ll stop your medication immediately and leave you to rot in the streets!” Garret bent down, reaching for my hair. 4 I suppressed the agonizing, tearing pain in my back, supporting myself with my blood-soaked hands on the tiles, slowly standing up. I slapped away Garret Winters’s outstretched hand, a cold sneer on my lips. “Make me kneel? Can you even handle it?” I stared intently at the jade pendant on Lyra’s neck. “That pendant bears the name of the Sterling family’s matriarch.” “Doesn’t Lyra fear shortening her lifespan by wearing it?” Hearing the words “Sterling family,” the people in the room froze for a moment. Then, they burst into even louder laughter. One person bent over, laughing. “Sterling family? The corporation that controls the global economic lifeline?” “I can’t anymore! The wife’s brain is really fried!” “If you’re the Young Miss of the Sterling Corporation, then I’m the richest man in the world!” Lyra hid behind Garret, timidly speaking, “Garret, is Amy having a mental breakdown? Maybe we should send her to a mental institution. It’s too dangerous to leave her out here.” Garret lost his patience. His face livid, he strode up to me, grabbed the few remaining strands of unburned hair on my head, and forcefully pushed my head down. “Today, I’ll teach you what discipline means!” A loud crash. The solid wooden door of the hospital room was kicked to splinters from the outside. Wood chips flew. The people nearby shrieked in fear, covering their heads and crouching down. Two rows of bodyguards in black suits and Bluetooth earpieces surged in, instantly sealing off the entire room. The air in the room solidified at that moment. Lyra’s legs went weak with fear, collapsing onto the floor. Garret’s hand, clutching my hair, froze in mid-air. His face was ashen, his body trembling. Heavy, authoritative footsteps sounded from the corridor. One step. Two steps. Father, in a tailored suit, wore the crest pin of the family patriarch on his chest. He stepped over the shattered wood, striding into the room. An aura of immense power emanated from him. Father’s cold, stern gaze swept across the room, finally settling on Garret’s hand, still clutching my hair. Father spoke each word distinctly, his voice echoing through the room. “Who did you call a low-bred bastard?”

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On my wedding anniversary, I slapped my sister Summer and she miscarried. Everyone called me a monster. “You must pay for what you’ve done.” My husband Tom and my parents forced me to sign divorce papers, then sent me to a detention center. I was released on Tom and Summer’s wedding day. I didn’t make a scene. I took a train and vanished. … Seven years later. We met outside a rural ER. Tom was there with his wife, who was threatening to miscarry. I was the doctor on duty. “Audrey?” He froze, eyes locking on the scar across my palm. “You…” He trailed off under my calm, detached gaze. “Family, wait outside.” My voice was professional, empty. After the emergency, I explained the aftercare. Tom nodded, distracted. Then he asked, “Why didn’t you come home? We were worried.” A child’s voice cut in behind me. “Mommy, I’m hungry.” Tom stared at the little face—so like his own—and his eyes reddened. “Is she…” 1 Just then, a nurse called for me. I gave Tom a polite nod, took my daughter’s fair little hand, and quickly left. “Mommy, who was that uncle just now?” My daughter looked back curiously. My voice was flat. “A patient’s family member.” “He seemed to be crying, and he kept looking at us.” I didn’t stop walking. “You saw wrong.” The nanny who usually looked after my daughter had an emergency, so I had no choice but to bring my daughter to the hospital. Thankfully, the nanny just called me. Her task was done, and she would be right over to pick up the child. That evening, emergencies kept coming in. I was busy until late into the night before I finally dragged my tired body back to my office. I hadn’t expected Tom to be waiting at the door. I frowned slightly. “Mr. Robbins, is there anything else?” The overly formal address made Tom falter for a moment. “Mr. Robbins, rest assured, Mrs. Robbins’s condition is not serious. After observing her overnight, if there are no issues, she can be discharged tomorrow morning.” My tone was no different from how I spoke to other patients’ families. Perhaps the words “Mrs. Robbins” struck a nerve. I clearly saw Tom’s eyes redden, emotions churning. It was as if he had a thousand words to say, but his lips quivered twice, and in the end, he only managed to say two words in a muffled voice: “Thank you.” “If Mr. Robbins has nothing else, I’m going off duty. If you need anything, you can find other doctors on call.” I nodded slightly, turning to leave. As I passed the nurses’ station, a young nurse gossiped, grabbing my arm. “Dr. Sterling, was that Mr. Tom Robbins, the most famous lawyer in Southwood?” I nodded. “Yes.” “I heard Mr. Robbins has never lost a case since he started practicing. He’s known as a legend in the entire legal world.” “Handsome, gentle, and wealthy. Mrs. Robbins must be so happy. I heard they came this time to pray for the baby in Mrs. Robbins’s belly.” As the young nurse spoke, her eyes were filled with undisguised admiration for Tom and undisguised envy for Mrs. Robbins. I smiled, saying nothing. The current Mrs. Robbins was indeed very happy. She had a loving husband, doting parents, and a baby on the way. She truly had everything. Almost no one knew she was the mistress who took the wife’s place. My phone vibrated, bringing me back to reality. [Sorry, an emergency came up at the company. I’ll be late picking you up.] I subtly curled my lips and replied: [You go ahead. I’ll take a cab home.] Almost immediately after I sent the message, I received a reply: [Be careful on the way. Remember to text me when you get home.] Putting my phone away, I noticed that snow had started to fall outside at some point. I waited for a long time, but my ride-sharing app remained unanswered. “Beep beep!” A car horn sounded behind me. A black Porsche Cayenne slowly pulled up beside me. I recognized it as Tom’s car at a glance. Only because his license plate number was my sister Summer’s birthday. And my birthday was only one day after Summer’s. The passenger window slowly lowered, revealing Tom’s sharply defined jawline. “Get in. I’ll give you a ride.” Looking at the ride-sharing app still spinning, I only thought for a few seconds before opening the back door and getting in, then stating my apartment complex’s name. I was truly tired today and wanted to get home to rest early. And with the sudden change in weather, the scars on my palm and abdomen were aching and itching. Since there was a ready car, why not take it? Tom had a strong sense of territory. I once wanted to put a small ornament in his car, but it wasn’t allowed. Now, the car was filled with Summer’s favorite gardenia scent. Everything in sight was Summer’s favorite pink decor. Seeing me sitting in the back, Tom gave a self-deprecating smile. “Are you really treating me like a chauffeur?” My voice was flat. “Just didn’t want your wife to misunderstand.” The words “your wife” acted like a mute spell. Whatever Tom wanted to say next was swallowed back. The car plunged into a suffocating silence. 2 I said no more, turning my head to look out the window. The changing light outside flashed, and in a daze, I found myself recalling that day seven years ago. The darkest day of my life. It was my third wedding anniversary with Tom. I, away on a business trip, had flown back overnight, wanting to surprise him. Instead, I accidentally stumbled upon Tom and my sister Summer’s affair. They were in my marital home, on my marital bed, engaged in passionate lovemaking. Both were so engrossed that they didn’t notice me standing at the door for a long time. Until Summer inadvertently turned her head. “Audrey!” Summer’s eyes widened, and she shrieked. I thought Tom, caught in the act, would at least be ashamed, if not panicked. But I was wrong. Tom didn’t rush to explain himself to me. Instead, he gently covered Summer with the blanket, hiding the glaring, intimate marks on her body. “You weren’t supposed to be back until tomorrow?” Tom, far from feeling guilty, spoke with a tone of blame. At that time, my temper was fiery, unable to tolerate even a speck of dirt. In that instant, resentment and fury almost burned away my sanity. I became hysterical, like a madwoman, attacking them with the most venomous words, smashing everything I could in the room. The room was a mess. Summer, terrified, cowered behind Tom, trembling. “Audrey, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean it. Tom and I just couldn’t help ourselves.” Summer’s voice was distinctly tearful. At that moment, her eyes were misty, like a delicate white lotus, innocent and helpless. She was completely different from the passionate, uninhibited woman in bed just moments before. Tom protectively shielded Summer behind him, looking at me with condemnation. “You scared Summer!” “Look at you now. What’s the difference between you and a madwoman?” I also felt like I was insane. I sent photos and videos of Summer and Tom to the family group chat. I wanted everyone to see their ugly faces. Who knew, just as the video was sent, my parents’ scolding calls came in. “Audrey Sterling, have you gone mad?” “Quickly recall those photos and videos! If others see them, how will Summer ever show her face again?” My parents had always favored Summer, ever since she was abducted on the street as a child. She wasn’t found until she was eighteen. To make up for years of absence, my parents were exceptionally indulgent and doting towards her. They even demanded that I always defer to my sister, and that Summer should always come first. Even our birthdays, because mine was only one day after Summer’s, my parents insisted that I celebrate a day early with her. But the birthday cake always had only Summer’s name on it. But I never expected that even in this matter, my parents would unconditionally defend Summer. “You and Tom should divorce.” My sister was having an affair with my husband behind my back. My parents not only didn’t blame her but forcefully demanded that Tom and I divorce. “Why?” I questioned unwillingly. Summer was clearly the one at fault, so why should I give my husband to her? My parents’ bias had no bounds. My chest felt crushed by a huge rock, making it hard to breathe, almost suffocating. “Summer is your sister. As an older sister, you should defer to her.” Apparently dissatisfied with my obvious question, Mom frowned, her tone extremely impatient. I instinctively looked at Tom, at the man I had once loved more than life itself. However, Tom just looked at me coldly, with no intention of explaining anything. Summer leaned weakly into Tom’s arms. “Audrey, Tom doesn’t love you anymore. We’re truly in love. Please, let us be.” “So you know he’s your brother-in-law?” “Do you have any sense of propriety or shame?” Enraged, I slapped Summer hard. 3 Summer swayed, hitting a nearby coffee table. “Ugh—” Summer cried out in pain, clutching her lower abdomen, her face a mask of agony. “Summer!” Tom’s expression changed abruptly. “My stomach, my stomach hurts so much.” Summer’s face was ashen, her voice trembling. Tom scooped up Summer and rushed towards the hospital. As he passed me, his eyes were as fierce as if I had committed some heinous crime. But I knew perfectly well that Summer had clearly thrown herself against it. It was then that I realized Summer and Tom had been secretly involved for a long time and that she was already pregnant. After several hours of treatment, the child still couldn’t be saved. “Are you satisfied now?” Father’s face was flushed red, furious. He raised his hand and slapped me hard across the face. This slap, Father used all his strength. My cheek burned, and my eardrum buzzed. However, the physical pain was less than a fraction of the pain in my heart. Everyone blamed me for causing Summer to lose her child, forcing me to kowtow and apologize to Summer. Of course, I wouldn’t agree. The consequence of my stubbornness was that Tom and my parents successively pressured the hospital where I worked, revoking my eligibility for promotion. My imminent promotion thus fell through. They even used this as leverage, forcing me to sign the divorce agreement. Subsequently, I was collectively sent to a detention center by the three people closest to me. “If you do something wrong, you must accept the punishment.” “We’ll pick you up when you realize your mistake.” I smiled bitterly in my heart. Home? What home did I have left? The moment I discovered Tom and Summer’s affair, my home was gone. Once inside, I was maliciously targeted. I ate stale food and drank swill. I also frequently suffered unprovoked beatings… While I was being tortured to the point of wishing for death, my husband and my parents were traveling abroad with my sister. It wasn’t until a month later, when they returned, that they heard I had almost died inside. After a full eight hours of emergency treatment, I was pulled back from the brink of death. When Tom and my parents rushed to the hospital, I had already been sent back to my room. However, seeing me on the bed, emaciated and unrecognizable from the torment, Tom’s first words were: “Do you realize your mistake now?” “Don’t forget you still owe Summer an apology. Use this time to recover and think about how you’re going to apologize to her. Because of you, Summer has been very upset and almost suffered from depression.” Tom’s voice was cold and hard, his tone so indifferent as if I were just an unimportant stranger. They say there’s no greater sorrow than a dead heart. If my heart died when Tom and my parents sent me to the detention center, then after hearing Tom’s words just now, my heart died even more completely. In that moment, I lost all desire to argue. My tone was flat, devoid of any emotion: “I realized my mistake!” I was wrong. Wrong for being blind in love, falling for a cold-hearted, ruthless man like Tom. Wrong for foolishly expecting love from my parents, even knowing their blatant favoritism. Tom occasionally glanced at me through the rearview mirror, several times appearing to want to speak but stopping himself. It wasn’t until the car stopped at the entrance of the apartment complex that I opened the door, got out, and politely said, “Thank you.” Just as I turned to leave, Tom finally couldn’t help but call out, “Audrey!” I stopped, turned around, and quietly waited for him to continue. “Why are you living in a place like this?” “These past few years, have you… not been doing well?” Tom spoke while looking around the neighborhood. The lights were dim, the rickety iron gate rusty. The building exterior was mottled and dilapidated. His eyes were red-rimmed, his voice hoarse: “Do you want me to help you…” “No, I’m doing very well. Thank you for your concern.” I didn’t understand. The man who had been so cruel and heartless towards me, who forced me to divorce him and sent me to prison, why was he now acting so genuinely concerned?

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1 Talent, it just doesn’t make sense sometimes. My mom, a world-class pianist, but my playing sounds like a bag of cotton balls. My dad, an uncrowned king of opera, but I can’t hit a single note in tune. My older sister, she composed a piece at six and had her solo concert at nine. Meanwhile, I was bawling my eyes out because my music teacher mocked me. Even our pet parrot can belt out La Traviata flawlessly. Luckily, this tone-deaf mess is still the family’s darling. I’ve become exceptionally good at just… chilling. On my eighteenth birthday, a young prodigy, fresh off winning the Junior Piano Gold Prize, publicly demanded a DNA test. He claimed I was a fraud, a cuckoo in the nest, and he was the real son. I knew it! I always felt like such an outsider; turns out, there was no blood connection at all! … Ever since I could remember, I thought I was the family’s balance. Everyone else had perfect pitch, but I was the lone discordant note in a symphony of talent—born with absolute tone-deafness. My mom, Rosalind, a genius pianist who debuted at six and won awards at sixteen. She could make a broken, out-of-tune piano sound perfect. My dad, Liam, was revered as a top tenor in both the East and West, once shattering a glass with his voice in a documentary. My sister, Lyra, a born composer, could instantly replicate anything she heard, then improvise on it. And me, Leo, truly unworthy of the ‘Leo’ (meaning ‘sound’ in a poetic way, though not directly in English) in my name. Just as I’d grown accustomed to being treated with affectionate pity, like a disabled loved one, a little hero descended upon us. “Get out! I’m the real Leo! I’m the true son of the Forester family!” Caleb stood at the side gate of our villa garden, one hand clutching the confession of a recently apprehended kidnapper, the other holding his phone, playing a recording from a competition he’d won last month. “The National Junior Piano Gold Prize! Vacant for two years, and I won it! I’m the true member of this family!” He glared, teeth clenched, at me, standing by the fountain, eating cake. For a moment, the cake in my mouth tasted even sweeter. See? I knew there was something off! I was never a Forester by blood! The air in the garden thickened. Dad, who was sipping a throat-soothing herbal tea, preparing to sing, set his cup down, his lips pressed into a thin line. Mom, laughing and chatting with students and teachers, turned, her eyes narrowing slightly. Lyra, seated under a tree, immersed in composition, put down her pen and rose, taking a deep breath. Caleb, assuming everyone was stunned and overjoyed, a smile bloomed on his face: “Dad, Mom, Lyra, that kidnapper snuck into the hospital and stole me away. Then, an unmarried pregnant girl found out, kept quiet, and swapped her own baby in.” “So, the fake Leo is tone-deaf. He doesn’t have our family’s genes at all! Eighteen years of meticulous education, wasted!” Meticulous education? I instinctively recalled being forced to listen to music, practice singing, learn notation, and play piano… until, at age ten, I nearly jumped from a window in despair. Hiss—I sucked in a cold breath. Some meticulousness you just can’t handle. “Great news!” I clapped first, loudly exclaiming, “Since the real son is home, can I leave?” I licked my lips, unable to hide my excitement. “I won’t have to memorize Beethoven’s scores anymore!” “And I won’t have to cry practicing piano every single day!” Caleb froze. Everyone turned to look at me. Dad’s expression softened as he walked over and patted my back. “You little rascal, what nonsense are you dreaming up?” He turned to Caleb, his face hardening. “Son, your so-called evidence requires further investigation. Until the truth comes to light, please watch your mouth.” “Investigation? The confession is right here!” Caleb’s voice was high with emotion, waving his phone, which showed him receiving his award. “I am your son! A musical genius capable of winning a Gold Prize!” Lyra rolled her eyes subtly. “Who doesn’t know that this year’s Gold Prize was a razor-thin win? It should be called the ‘barely-made-it’ award.” Caleb’s lips trembled with anger. But Lyra had won that very award at eleven, with the highest score. I sighed internally for Caleb. Poor kid, do you really think coming to the Forester family is paradise? Everyone here, except me, is a force of nature! 2 Mom immediately arranged for an expedited DNA test. The next morning, the report was out. Caleb was right. He was the real Leo, the Forester family’s prodigal son. And I? Just a little stray abandoned by a misguided girl. Caleb pushed open my bedroom door, triumphantly declaring, “Do you really deserve such a nice room? Get out! It’s mine now!” I swiftly got up and began packing my suitcase. “Alright, I’m out of here!” On the walls were Lyra’s monthly updated scores. It was almost the end of the month, her inspection time. Great, no need to memorize them anymore, haha. “Leo, what are you doing?” Mom walked in and gently placed a hand on mine. “The house has plenty of empty rooms, several of them.” I hesitated. “Uh… the real son wants to live here…” “I’ve raised you for eighteen years!” Mom said firmly. “Both of you are my children. Leo, just consider it like having a new brother in the house. Get along with Caleb.” Caleb gritted his teeth slightly, then forced a smile. “I don’t think we’ll get along. A tone-deaf person might infect my perfect pitch!” I wholeheartedly agreed. Exactly. I knew my own limits perfectly well! Lunchtime arrived. Caleb changed into a custom-tailored suit, looking incredibly sharp. But he didn’t realize that in the Forester dining room, it wasn’t about clothes; it was about something else. “This quail soup is quite good, have some more.” Mom elegantly took a sip, then asked, “Lyra, last night, Lady Serena wanted to replace the original triad with a C9. What do you think?” I nearly choked. Knew it! The music meeting! Lyra wiped her mouth with a napkin before replying, “While triads are simple and common, they’re also the most versatile. A C9 is more relaxed, so I think a concert-exclusive version would be more suitable.” Mom smiled. “That’s exactly what I told her. Pop music is fine for a casual diversion, but don’t forget your main craft. Maestro Carlo is asking about your solo recital again. He even suggested your dad could join…” Dad gave a knowing smile, cleared his throat with a sip of tea, and instantly launched into a segment of a drinking song. I, meanwhile, kept my head down, shoveling food. Ignore me, please, Amen. The next question, however, was directed at a keenly expectant Caleb. “Caleb.” Caleb quickly put down his chopsticks, giving Mom a confident look. “Yes, Mom?” “Since you won a Gold Prize, your musical literacy must be up to par.” Mom tapped the tabletop like piano keys, casually playing a short passage. “How do you think this passage could be improved?” Caleb’s expression froze. He stared at Mom’s hands and the dining table laden with dishes, sweat beading on his forehead. “This… this isn’t a piano, it’s a dining table. How can I tell?” Lyra let out a small snort. “I could understand it when I was nine.” Caleb bit down hard. Mom calmly announced, “It’s not too late to mend the fence. You’ve returned home, so you’ll naturally receive the same education as all Forester children.” My heart sank, and I quickly took a big gulp of hot soup. The Forester children’s education… that was a one-way ticket to hell! Caleb, you can do it! 3 Caleb was utterly confident. After his initial defeat at lunch, he was even more determined. “I’ve missed out on so much progress before!” He clenched his fist and shouted, “If it weren’t for that kidnapper, if I’d grown up normally, I’d be a thousand times more successful than Leo!” “I’ll prove my bloodline!” His cheeks flushed after the outburst. Just then, applause and laughter echoed from above. Caleb bristled, looking around. “Who?! The parrot? Get down here!” The parrot cocked its head, observing him from its perch. Seeing this, I quickly called out, “Flyer, don’t mind him. Keep eating!” Caleb spun around and snapped at me. “Leo! What are you showing off about? I’m the real son of this family! A pet, and I can’t even order it around?” I sighed. Idiot. Didn’t he know Flyer was like a flying hydraulic system? I was saving him! Besides, Flyer wasn’t just any parrot… A moment later, Flyer, fed and content, lifted its head and opened its beak. A familiar song filled the living room. It was eerily similar to the drinking song Dad had sung at lunch. Caleb’s jaw dropped. Flyer elegantly flew over his head, dropping a feather. He spat and brushed off the feather, then asked me, flustered and angry, “Can this bird sing opera?” I shrugged. “Your ears aren’t broken. Dad found Flyer when he was touring in the Southeast. He raised him from a hatchling, and he’s incredibly musical.” Caleb couldn’t believe it. He looked up at the bird, then down at me, his mouth opening and closing. Finally, he broke. “What the hell is going on?!” He shrieked, “Even a bird is a prodigy here! Leo! How have you managed to live peacefully until today?!” I sat cross-legged on the plush carpet, starting a game, and spared him a smile. “I just accept reality, accept myself.” “You’re shameless!” Caleb’s face was beet red, looking utterly disgusted. “You’ve taken my place since childhood, received so much education, yet accomplished nothing! You’re a piece of garbage! I refuse to live under the same roof as garbage and pollute the music!” He ran upstairs to find Mom and Dad. “Dad! Mom! Are you there? I have something to say!” Mom and Dad stepped out onto the terrace. “In the middle of the day, so loud. Don’t you worry about disturbing others? What is it?” Mom’s expression was displeased. Caleb pointed furiously at me. “Mom, now that your real son is home, there’s no reason for him to have privileges that I don’t!” “I want to go to the Conservatory, I want to become your personal disciple, I want to be the rightful heir of the Forester family!” He spoke with increasing indignation, gritting his teeth. “Also, your energy is limited. With a genius around, why bother with garbage?” “Leo is tone-deaf, any further training is a waste. All the lessons, instruments, and practice rooms assigned to him should be given to me instead!” I dropped my game, utterly thrilled. Really? Forester family lessons? For a tone-deaf person, that’s eighteen levels of hell! Music practice rooms? My sister’s domain. Every time I set foot in there, I’d crash and burn! “Yes, yes, give it all to him!” I jumped up and shouted. “Mom, Dad, Caleb is so motivated! Listen to him! He’s a genius; he’s the one who can truly absorb the nourishment of the lessons!” Mom shot me a quick, sarcastic glance. Dad, however, hesitated. “Caleb, are you sure about this? All the courses… they’re quite challenging.” “It’s not hard for me!” Caleb was resolute. “I’m a true genius, I can definitely meet all the Forester family’s demands!” 4 Caleb’s resolve made Dad nod slightly. Mom also smiled, as if she saw a diligently shining raw gem. “Alright,” she agreed. “If both you brothers have no objections, then so be it.” Dad happily said, “He is my son after all, good!” “Tomorrow, you’ll start your studies according to the Red Standard.” The Red Standard? My hand went limp, and the game controller dropped onto my leg. Lyra also looked over with a strange expression. That was the Forester family’s highest-tier training program, reserved for once-in-a-generation talents, intended to cultivate music masters who would dominate an era. Among our elders, only Uncle Arthur had endured it to the end; he was currently in a sanatorium, trying to channel music from the beyond, hoping to summon the spirit of Qin Shi Huang. Caleb knew nothing of this. His heart was brimming with the joy of victory. He lifted his chin high, haughtily telling me, “Do you see? The real thing is real, and a fake is a fake. I am the heir of the Forester family!” “As for you, just wait to pack your bags and get out!” I, filled with anticipation, clasped my hands together, bowing slightly. “Good brother, it’s all on you! Go for it!” I was genuinely sincere. If he couldn’t hack it, I’d probably go back to that difficult life. The next day, at 5:30 AM. The night was still deep when Caleb was woken by the intercom next to his bed: “Caleb! Wake up!” “Time for physical training! One hundred push-ups, one hundred squats, one hundred pull-ups!” Caleb’s eyes were blank, and he instinctively retorted, “I’m a musician, not an athlete!” The intercom replied, “You’ll be performing for several hours in a single concert. How will you manage without good physical stamina? Don’t get ahead of yourself and forget the importance of building a foundation. Hurry up!” Caleb grudgingly got out of bed and started exercising on the small balcony of his suite. Breakfast time. Caleb shuffled to his seat, his legs trembling. However, what awaited him was a thick stack of sheet music. Mom, watching his training video, said, “You only completed a third of your workout. Now, memorize the first piece in this large Spanish scorebook.” “I’ll check before lunch. No food if you can’t recite it.” Caleb’s fingertips trembled. “The first piece is thirty-two pages long! And what are those markings on it?” “Spanish,” Mom said nonchalantly. “Translations always miss some nuances. Master multiple languages, and you’ll be able to analyze the truest intentions of great composers as much as possible.” Caleb held back and held back, but seeing me casually eating steamed buns diagonally across from him, he couldn’t contain himself. “What about him?” Mom was calm and composed. “He’s tone-deaf, so memorizing is pointless. His requirements are lower.” “But you are a genius with perfect pitch. Sheet music is more important than food.” I happily picked up a shrimp dumpling, mumbling, “Delicious! Uh, why are you looking at me? Hurry and memorize it, don’t miss out on lunch!” Caleb’s face flushed red, but remembering his boastful words from yesterday, he remained silent and lowered his head to memorize the score. Today, time dragged on like years for him. Four hours of memorizing followed by eight hours of piano practice, and in the evening, he had to do music analysis with Lyra. At 1 AM, I finished my game and drifted off to sleep. Caleb, clutching a messy score, was sobbing. Mom slapped the ruler onto the table, disappointed. “It’s only the first day! Your sister proactively proposed this dual-track analysis method when she was eight, and you’re eighteen and can’t learn it? You still think you’re a genius?” “No, this is too advanced!” Caleb’s eyes were wide, tears streaming down. “Too advanced?” Mom crossed her arms, speaking coldly. “Leo is tone-deaf, but he never said learning music or notation was difficult!” “You look down on him, yet you’re not even as good as he is?” Caleb’s gaze sharpened. A hypothetical rival was more effective than a ruler. He wiped his face, bitterly saying, “How could I be inferior to him? I’m better than him in every way!” At this moment, I frowned and pulled the covers tighter. Caleb had no idea how outrageous the Forester family’s training methods were. He also didn’t know the greatest use of a slacker like me in the Forester family…

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