Category: English

Three years with terminal bone cancer. The ex I’d “abandoned”—now a detective—stormed into my apartment as I reached for morphine just to stay upright. He watched, coldly sneering, as I shook on the floor. “Seven years, and you’re a junkie now? Where’s that gold-digger pride?” Trembling, I pointed. “Please… the medicine.” Vincent laughed, snatched the bottle, and flushed it all. “Want it? Go to rehab.” Looming over me, he added, “Seems when you ran off, your bones rotted too.” Agony ripped through me; I curled up, shaking. “Am I… going to die?” He just filmed my suffering. “For the anti-drug campaign,” he said. 1 “Get the camera rolling,” Vincent barked at his subordinate. “Zoom in. Close-up on her face. I don’t want to miss a single, pathetic detail. This will be the most powerful lesson in our new PSA.” The flashbulb went off, blinding me as the lens focused on my sweat-drenched face. The pain was a living thing inside my skeleton, a million ants with fiery teeth gnawing at the marrow of my bones. It was an itch I couldn’t scratch, a fire I couldn’t put out. I tried to claw at my own limbs, but my nails only scraped against the cold linoleum, a sound like screeching metal. Vincent crouched down, the tip of his black baton forcing my chin up. His face was a mask of disgust. “Look at the state of you. Even the stray dogs in the alley have more dignity.” My vision blurred. All I could see was the sharp line of his jaw, a line I once loved to trace with my fingertips. “Meds…” I squeezed the word from my throat, a dry, desperate whisper, and reached for the hem of his pants. Just then, a figure in a white coat stepped into the room. It was Sophia. The squad’s medic. Vincent’s trusted right hand. And once upon a time, my best friend. Her eyes swept over me, lingering for a moment on the faint, scarred lump just below my collarbone—my chemo port. “Oh my god, Vincent, look at her arm,” Sophia gasped, her voice a perfect symphony of feigned shock. “Classic track marks from long-term IV drug use. They’ve formed a venous cord. Can you imagine the kind of addiction it takes to do this to yourself?” I opened my mouth, wanting to scream that it wasn’t a track mark, that it was a port for my treatment. But my throat was a desert, scorched raw by pain. All that came out was a dry, rattling hiss. Hearing Sophia’s “expert” diagnosis, the last flicker of complicated emotion in Vincent’s eyes vanished, replaced by pure, undiluted loathing. He kicked my hand away from his pants with a vicious snarl. “Don’t touch me!” The force of the blow sent me rolling into the corner. My bones hit the wall with a dull, heavy thud, and a new, blinding wave of pain exploded through my body. “Make the announcement,” Vincent’s voice echoed in the small room, cold and final. “The suspect, Clara Hayes, will be put under a twenty-four-hour mandatory ‘detox’ live stream.” “Let everyone see what drugs do. Let them watch how a once-beautiful woman can become this… this thing. Neither human nor ghost.” “Captain, that’s… that’s not exactly by the book,” a younger officer stammered. Vincent whipped his head around, his eyes bloodshot, his voice a low, furious growl. “For a dealer who treats human life like a joke, you don’t go by the book. You make an example. I want every potential user out there to see this. This is their future. If there’s any fallout, I’ll take the heat. All of it.” 2 As the pain threatened to drag me into unconsciousness, Vincent’s search continued. He was nothing if not thorough, tearing the place apart, determined to uncover every last piece of my “criminal enterprise.” Finally, he kicked the bed frame aside and dragged a dusty iron box out from underneath. My heart seized in my chest. No! Not that. Anything but that! The things in that box were more precious to me than my own life. “Don’t touch it!” I don’t know where the strength came from, but I scrambled across the floor toward him, crawling on my hands and knees. My frantic desperation seemed to amuse him. The sneer on his face deepened. He easily kicked me aside again and pried open the box’s latch. Inside was a diary, its pages worn and curled from countless readings, and a single police badge, carefully wrapped in a piece of red silk. Vincent picked up the diary and flipped through a few pages. My handwriting chronicled every chemo session, every spike in pain, every adjustment in my medication dosage. March 7th. Sunny. OxyContin, 80mg. Pain. March 9th. Cloudy. Morphine shot. Pain so bad I wanted to die. But I think I saw Vincent on the street today. He’s still so handsome. March 15th. Raining. They upped the dose again. Feels like my bones are going to snap. He laughed, a harsh, ugly sound. He held the journal up for the camera. “And what do we have here? An addict’s diary!” he announced, his voice dripping with theatrical scorn. He read the line about seeing him aloud, his tone mocking and cruel. “‘Saw Vincent today.’ Hallucinating from the drugs, were you? Still thinking about me? God, Clara, you make me sick.” With a flick of his wrist, he tossed the diary into the trash can in the corner. Then, he picked up the silk-wrapped badge. It was my father’s. My father, who had been his mentor on the force. The moment he saw it, Vincent’s eyes turned to ice. “You don’t deserve to have this.” He walked over to me, his presence a suffocating weight. “A hero’s daughter, and you end up as scum. What would your dead father think of you now?” I shook my head frantically, tears and sweat streaming down my face. “No… it’s not…” He wasn’t listening. He pulled a lighter from his pocket. Click. A blue flame shot up. And right in front of my eyes, he set my diary on fire. He slammed his foot down on the hand I stretched out to save it, grinding his heel into my knuckles. I heard a sickening crunch and screamed as the bones fractured. “Watch,” he commanded, forcing me to look as the flames licked at the pages, turning my final testament to ashes. “Why keep this? So people can know what a pathetic waste you were after you’re gone? Or so everyone knows that I, Vincent Vance, once had a junkie for a girlfriend?” The fire consumed the paper, but it felt like it was burning through my marrow. From the sidelines, Sophia added her own fuel. “You did the right thing, Vincent. Something like that is just pollution. Better to burn it and be done.” I lay on the floor, pinned beneath his boot, unable to move. I stopped struggling. I stopped crying. I just watched the fire until the last page turned to black soot. That diary was the last piece of proof I had in this world. The only thing that could clear my name. And now, it was gone. 3 Dawn was breaking when two officers hauled me out of the apartment. Twenty-four hours without morphine had left me without the strength to even stand. The twin tortures of cancer and withdrawal were burning through what was left of my sanity. Outside, a mob was waiting. A sea of reporters and gawkers, their cameras and phones creating a forest of flashing lights, blocking the narrow hallway completely. “That’s her! The junkie!” “She looks so normal. How can someone be so rotten on the inside?” Vincent stood at the front of the pack, his uniform crisp and immaculate, his face a grim mask for the cameras. “This,” he announced, his voice booming with authority, “is Clara Hayes, apprehended yesterday. A textbook example of how greed and vanity can lead a person into the abyss of addiction.” His words were a signal. Someone in the crowd threw a rotten cabbage, and it hit me squarely in the face. Then came more vegetables, rotten eggs, people spitting. In the chaos, someone yanked the wig from my head, the wig I wore to hide the hair loss from my chemo. My bald, pale scalp was exposed to the world. “Freak! She’s a monster!” The jeers and insults washed over me like a tidal wave. I just stood there, numb, as filth dripped from my hair into my collar. Suddenly, an old, furious voice cut through the noise. “What are you doing?! Stop it! Leave her alone!” It was Mr. Henderson, my landlord. He brandished a broom like a sword, pushing his way through the crowd to stand in front of me. “Clara’s a good girl! She’s not a criminal! She’s sick, you bastards!” With his frail body, he shielded me from the garbage still flying through the air. I saw egg yolk and wilted lettuce clinging to his white hair, and my heart felt like it was being squeezed by an iron fist. It hurt more than the cancer. “Mr. Henderson…” I whispered. Vincent’s brow furrowed. He gave a subtle nod to his men. “Get that old man out of here.” Officers moved in, grabbing Mr. Henderson and dragging him away. Sophia, ever the opportunist, stepped up to the nearest camera. “Please, everyone, don’t be deceived,” she said, her voice full of false concern. “Addicts are often masters of manipulation, playing the victim to win the sympathy of kind-hearted people like this gentleman. We’re removing him for his own safety.” Her words reignited the crowd’s fury, now directed at my only defender. “Senile old fool! Getting tricked by a junkie!” “He’s probably her accomplice! They’re all trash!” They shoved Mr. Henderson roughly. He stumbled, fell, and cracked his head on the pavement. Blood bloomed on his forehead. “Mr. Henderson!” I screamed, my voice raw with anguish. Vincent moved close, his voice a venomous whisper meant only for me. “You see that, Clara? If you don’t want to drag that old man down with you, if you don’t want him charged with aiding and abetting a felon, you will do exactly as you’re told.” My body went rigid. He was using the only person in the world who cared about me as leverage. What could I do? I lowered my head, surrendering completely, and let the filth rain down on me. In front of a thousand cameras, I stood like a condemned prisoner, trembling and broken, all hope extinguished. 4 They took me to the city’s central plaza. Overnight, a massive, transparent glass box had been erected there. A cage for displaying a monster. And I was the monster. I was shoved inside, and a ring of powerful spotlights flared to life, so bright they hurt my eyes. Outside the glass, a huge crowd had gathered, their faces a mixture of morbid curiosity, contempt, and excitement. A forest of phones and cameras was pointed at me, broadcasting my agony twenty-four hours a day. Without the morphine to dull the pain, the cancer was finally unleashed. It exploded through my body with a terrifying, exponential force. Pain. So much pain I couldn’t breathe. So much pain I thought I could hear the sound of my own bones cracking, splinter by splinter. I began to writhe on the floor, thrashing, curling into a ball, trying anything to escape the inhuman torment. I slammed my head against the hard glass walls, the dull thuds echoing in my cage. I just wanted to pass out. I just wanted to die. The crowd outside roared with a mix of shock and laughter. “Look! Look! She’s going into withdrawal!” “Tsk, tsk. Serves her right. What a pathetic display.” Vincent stood just outside the box, a microphone in his hand. “Look closely, everyone,” he announced, his amplified voice booming across the plaza. “This is what drugs do to a human being. Once you’re hooked, you lose all your dignity. You become nothing more than an animal, begging for its next fix. This is the price of throwing your life away.” His words pierced through my pain-fogged mind. My consciousness began to fray. I started to hallucinate. The Vincent outside the glass was no longer a cold-hearted detective. He was the Vincent from seven years ago, wearing a white shirt, smiling at me under a warm sun, holding out his hand. “Clara, don’t be afraid. I’m here to take you home.” “Vincent…” I sobbed, reaching for the phantom. I used the last of my strength to call his name. “Vincent… save me…” My desperate plea was just another part of the show for the audience. Sophia immediately grabbed the microphone. “As you can see,” she explained with a tone of clinical pity, “the suspect is now experiencing severe hallucinations. This is a clear sign that the drugs have completely destroyed her mind.” The live stream chat exploded with mockery and abuse. [This chick is a lost cause.] The beautiful illusion shattered, and the endless ocean of pain swallowed me once more. Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. The world went black. A bucket of ice-cold water shocked me back to consciousness. The public execution continued. I don’t know how much time passed. At the peak of another wave of agony, my body betrayed me completely. A warm liquid spread from my lower abdomen, soaking through my pants. I had lost control of my bladder. In front of the entire country. In that moment, the pain, the shame, the rage—it all vanished. All that was left was a profound, hollow numbness. My last shred of dignity had just been ground into dust. As my vision tunneled, I felt the glass door being thrown open. Someone stormed in and grabbed me by the collar. It was Vincent, his face contorted in rage. “Clara! Get up! Stop playing dead for sympathy!” He was so furious, he didn’t know his own strength. He shook me hard. A sickening snap echoed in the small space. It was my collarbone. Already eaten away by cancer, it had broken under his grip.

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Since kindergarten, Holden Sterling and I had never gone more than three days without seeing each other. But ever since our families discussed getting us engaged. He hid from me for a solid year. He blocked me on every contact platform; the security guards at his company stated that “unauthorized personnel and Elara Vance” were forbidden from entering. Whenever I appeared in his line of sight, he would immediately turn and walk away. Eventually, even his friends couldn’t stand it anymore and snuck me in to see Holden. When I arrived, Holden’s cold voice drifted through the crack of the private booth’s door: “She’s just a little toy that comes running whenever I beckon.” “No capability, no personality. Honestly, getting engaged to her feels beneath me.” 1 My hand froze on the doorknob. I didn’t push it further. Standing behind me, Carter immediately covered my ears. “Elara, don’t listen to Holden’s nonsense. He’s had too much to drink; he isn’t thinking straight!” “I’ll go in there and yell at him for you!” He made a move to push the door open. I tugged on Carter’s sleeve and shook my head. For so long, I just wanted to ask Holden why he was so resistant to our engagement, to the point of making a scene known throughout our entire social circle. I had called him “brother” for nearly seventeen years. But he wasn’t my real brother. We were going to marry someone eventually, so why couldn’t it be me? And now, I finally knew the answer. It wasn’t that I wasn’t accomplished enough, or pretty enough. It was that he had never seen me as anything more than a “pet” he’d raised since childhood. Something amusing? A way to pass the time? Or maybe just something pretty to keep around. Carter wiped my tears away with his handkerchief, muttering under his breath, “What are Ben and the guys talking about in there? None of them are reliable…” “It’s okay now, Carter.” I took a deep breath. “Can you take me home? I don’t want to find him anymore.” “Okay, alright…” Just as we turned to leave, the booth door opened from the inside. We froze, stunned, coming face-to-face with Ben, who had opened the door. Ben, unclear on the situation, grabbed my arm and pulled me inside. This drinking gathering was supposed to be their chance to persuade Holden to reconcile with me. Ben pulled me down to sit across from Holden. “Holden, even if you want to rebel against your family, don’t treat Elara like this.” “We’ve all watched Elara grow up. Just talk to her nicely. Don’t let your sharp tongue cause misunderstandings.” From the moment I entered the room, Holden hadn’t looked up once. But the veins on the back of the hand gripping his glass were bulging. Carter followed us in, shaking his head and signaling with his eyes to Ben. Before Carter could pull me back up, Holden finally spoke. “Elara Vance, why won’t you listen to me?” “Didn’t I say that until my grandfather and parents change their minds, we shouldn’t meet?” “Why are you so selfish?” I lowered my head, not knowing what to say. The atmosphere in the room stagnated. The last time Holden was this angry was when an older student he was on good terms with confessed his feelings to me. Carter sighed, walked over, and patted my head. Then he motioned for the other guys in the room to leave, letting Holden and me talk alone. 2 Holden distractedly took a sip of his drink. “Elara, can’t you have a little self-respect?” “I told you I’m not interested in you. I’ve never looked at you as a woman.” “Instead of clinging to me all the time, couldn’t you go improve yourself?” “All day long, you just revolve around men…” “Are you pathetic?” “When I fully take over the company later, I’ll be traveling for meetings constantly. I can’t just drag you around with me.” I felt like I was sinking into the icy depths of the ocean. My whole body went cold, drained of the strength to speak. So, for all these years, this is how he saw me. “So be a good girl and stay away from me. Grandfather will probably give up on the engagement soon anyway.” “I understand.” “You won’t pester Carter and the others to help you find me anymore?” “I won’t.” Images from my childhood flashed through my mind like a revolving lantern. I used to treat these memories as my most precious treasures. Now, it seemed I was just ridiculous. I had ignored Holden’s increasingly impatient attitude toward me since high school. I ignored his undisguised disdain for how I dressed. I ignored the subconscious comment he made when he found out his senior liked me: “Someone actually likes her?” … I looked up and gazed at Holden earnestly. “Holden, I am very grateful that you saved me when I was small.” “From now on, I’ll learn my lesson. I will never bother you again.” I stood up and left without looking back. 3 Back at the mansion, I turned on the lights. The entire house was, as usual, familiarly empty. My parents were rarely home, and Grandfather lived in the mountains focusing on his wellness. I heard from Holden’s mother that since I was born, only a nanny had taken care of me. When I was three, the nanny went out to buy groceries and forgot to close the door. I ran out of the mansion and fell in the middle of the road. Holden, who was playing in his yard, heard crying and brought me back to the Sterling house. For the next decade or so, I grew up trailing behind Holden. I went to the same elementary school, middle school, and even university as him. When I was bullied for being withdrawn, it was Holden who stood up for me. He taught me how to protect myself. Calculating it out, Holden had spent far more time in my life than my so-called parents. I was too dependent on him. So when he first started hiding from me, I panicked and searched everywhere for him, feeling like the whole world was terribly empty. A year isn’t long. But it was harder to endure than the previous dozen years combined. I sat in front of my computer, staring blankly at the acceptance email for my exchange student application. My therapist suggested a change of environment and cultivating new hobbies to shift my focus. I had originally wanted to tell Holden… Thinking of this, I let out a self-deprecating laugh. He was probably desperate for me to stay far away from him. When I left, I only sent a text message to my parents, even though they wouldn’t really care. … Touching down in Italy, I stumbled through the various procedures and renting an apartment. It wasn’t as difficult as I imagined. While waiting for school to start, I traveled to nearby cities to sketch. It was just as the therapist said. Getting out and walking around really does change your mindset. Habits change too. After being pickpocketed three times and harassed countless times, I decided to learn self-defense. No one would protect me in the future; I had to learn to protect myself. 4 Two months into the semester in Italy, I suddenly received a call from Carter. “Elara, why didn’t you tell us you went to Italy? We only found out because we bumped into a classmate of yours.” “Yeah, I just came abroad to study and clear my head. I’ll be back in a few months, don’t worry.” “How is your daily life there? Is the place you’re living safe?” “Everything is fine, very safe.” “That’s good. Shouldn’t you tell Holden? He has friends over there.” “No need. I’m doing great, I don’t need to trouble anyone else.” “Alright, well, if anything comes up, contact me… uh, or Holden immediately.” In the Sterling Corporation office, Carter waited until the call ended before locking his phone screen. “She’s growing up.” Holden twirled a lighter, his face dark. “Come on, man. You were the one who told her not to find you.” Carter sat slouched on the sofa, looking at Elara Vance’s exchange student application form. “Not finding me doesn’t mean she can’t make a call or send a text.” “Oh my god, look at your blocked list.” “You said you had to make it look real, so bam, you blocked her. How was she supposed to tell you?” “If it were me, I wouldn’t bother with you either.” Carter rolled his eyes. He was Holden’s childhood friend and had also watched Elara grow up. He knew a bit about the Vance family’s situation. Unloved by her dad, unloved by her mom, didn’t talk much, but just clung to Holden. But Holden didn’t have romantic feelings for her. Now that she was far away, he was clearly worried, but too stubborn to admit it. This whole mess… Let them figure it out themselves! After Carter left, Holden rubbed his temples. There was a frustration in his chest that wouldn’t settle. It was worse than when he saw all those portraits of himself in Elara’s art studio. Both grandfathers were applying combined pressure, wanting him and Elara to get engaged. Elara was just a junior in college, a kid who had never dated anyone. What could she possibly know? Holden swiped at his phone screen. After hesitating for a moment, he pulled the contact “Elara” out of the blocked list. Then he dialed the internal line for Ms. Davis, his secretary. “Mr. Sterling, you wanted to see me.” “Elara ran off to Italy on her own.” The corner of Ms. Davis’s mouth lifted, a smug look appearing for an instant before being suppressed. “This shows that the ‘tough love’ approach I suggested is working.” “Miss Vance grew up with no discipline; no one corrected her when she did wrong.” “She’s a junior in college and still only knows how to revolve around you all day. What kind of future could she have?” “For a girl with no sense of self like that, if you don’t speak harshly to her, she’ll never grow a backbone and walk independently.” Ms. Davis explained with a smile. “Besides, Miss Vance going abroad doesn’t necessarily mean progress. She might just be playing hard to get, learning tricks from romance novels.” “I’m a woman too; I understand these little games.” “To correct her obsession with relationships, you must maintain your distance.” Holden looked thoughtful. “But she’s never traveled far on her own before…” “Miss Vance is a junior in college; what could she possibly not know? When I graduated high school, I was younger than she is now, and I ran to a strange city for college. It’s not that difficult. Girls don’t need to be coddled so much.” Holden thought about it and realized she made sense. Elara had probably seen too few men, confusing her familial affection for him with love. It was time to let her fend for herself out there. He told Ms. Davis to cancel the flight to Italy he had just booked, and turned back to dealing with company affairs.

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My brother and his wife were known throughout the community as the perfect couple. They even waited ten years to have children, just for me. My parents died when I was eight. They took me in without hesitation, raised me, and put me through school. To give me peace of mind, they even swore in front of my parents’ grave that they wouldn’t consider having children until I got into college. But on the day I graduated from college, on my nephew’s third birthday, I kicked him into a raging river. His body was never found. I also threw my six-month-old niece from a high-rise balcony. As for the brother and sister-in-law who treated me like the apple of their eye? I poisoned their dinner and watched coldly as they ate it. My sister-in-law survived by a thread because she ate less and was rushed to the hospital by a neighbor. My brother died on the way to the emergency room. The neighbors stared at me like I was a monster, cursing me for having no conscience. I remained unmoved, quietly waiting for the police to arrive. 1 The screams rising one after another sounded particularly piercing in the quiet night. Mrs. Higgins, the next-door neighbor, was the first to rush in. She let out a shriek when she saw my brother and sister-in-law lying on the floor. Simultaneously, the approaching sirens pierced the night sky. “Nora! What did you do to them?” Mrs. Higgins’ hand trembled as she pointed at me, then threw herself onto my sister-in-law. “Hold on, the ambulance is coming!” Other neighbors rushed over upon hearing the news, blocking the doorway, pointing fingers at me. Two police officers pushed through the crowd and walked in, seeing the two people lying on the floor. “You did this? They are your family, why would you do this?” My expression didn’t change as I admitted it directly: “That’s right, I killed them.” Hearing this, the neighbors’ faces changed, looking at me with horror. Someone couldn’t control their emotions and questioned me: “Why on earth would you do this! After your parents died, David and Sarah took you into their home. Afraid you’d feel mistreated, they refused to have children for ten years after getting married.” “When you first arrived, you fell seriously ill. Your sister-in-law worried the hospital food wasn’t nutritious enough, so she ran home three times a day to cook and make soup for you. I can’t believe they raised an ungrateful wretch like you who bites the hand that feeds her.” As I was taken away by the police, the neighbors gathered at the door spat at me, calling me a murderer, an animal. In the interrogation room, the young officer slammed the table for the fiftieth time. He asked angrily: “Why did you kill them?” “I already told you, to set them free~” Seeing me give the same answer, he grabbed the taser beside him and rushed up to me. “Starting when you were eight, your brother and sister-in-law raised you and put you through school. Did all your education go to the dogs? They were your family, your benefactors, how could you be so cruel?” “Your niece was only six months old, she didn’t even get a chance to see this beautiful world~” I leaned back in the chair indifferently, smiling at him. “That’s exactly why I sent the whole family on their way together. Consider it repaying them.” “Besides, what’s there to see in this world? Dying early means reincarnating early, isn’t that better!” “How can you still smile after hurting such small children!” Just as the taser was about to touch me, the older detective beside him stopped him. “Your brother had stomach cancer, but to pay for your tuition, he never went to the hospital once!” I was a bit surprised, looking innocent. “I didn’t know that. But it doesn’t matter, everyone dies eventually. Isn’t it better to be free from pain sooner?” “And your nephew, he had congenital heart disease. To save money, your brother and sister-in-law didn’t take him for surgery!” I remained unmoved, “I didn’t decide that either? Besides, heart disease can’t be cured, why spend the money~” He was so angry he raised the taser high, glaring at me. “Don’t do anything rash.” Clang! He threw the taser violently. Just as he was about to walk out the door, I suddenly spoke. “Do you really want to know the reason?” He turned around suddenly, looking at me and nodding. “I want some walnut cookies from Joe’s Bakery!” “You’re playing me!” The young officer’s anticipation instantly turned into rage. “I can’t interrogate her, this person is impossible!” Bang! He slammed the door and left. Well, that was easy. Young people really have a temper. 2 The next day, the young officer was replaced. He held a box of walnut cookies from Joe’s Bakery and handed it over. “Bought these for you.” I looked up at him, a little surprised. It was my college classmate. “Long time no see, Nora!” I didn’t expect him to start working here right after graduation. And I was the prisoner he was interrogating. “Ethan, congratulations, you have a bright future ahead~” The old detective saw we knew each other and stayed silent on the side. “Can you tell me why?” His tone was as gentle as ever. I looked at him and the walnut cookies in front of me, lost in thought. He was the sunshine of our class, an existence I could never reach. On my way back to the dorm from a part-time job in college, I was stopped by two thugs. He was the one who passed by and saved me. He also helped me out of trouble many times. He was one of my few friends in college. “I don’t want walnut cookies anymore~ I want the spicy soup from the place at the crossroads!” “I’ll go buy it!” Watching Ethan leave, the old detective spoke. “You went to the same university as him, why destroy your future like this?” His eyes were full of pity. “Everyone dies, sooner or later~” But he refused to give up, staring at me with sharp eyes: “Every action has a consequence. If you confess honestly, maybe you can get a reduced sentence!” “Reduced sentence?” I couldn’t help but sneer: “Intentional homicide? Reduced sentence? Do you take me for a fool?” The room suddenly became very quiet. Ethan returned half an hour later. Looking at the steaming spicy soup, I took a sip. Pfft. I pushed it forward, “I don’t want to drink it anymore.” “What do you want to eat? I’ll go buy it for you!” Ethan gently wiped up the spilled soup and cleaned up. I listed several snacks in a row, and Ethan walked out without hesitation. When he returned, besides the snacks in his hand, there was someone following him. My college roommate, Mia. Seeing me, her tears immediately flowed. Still such a crybaby. “Nora, you are not this kind of person at all! I don’t believe you would kill anyone, let alone your brother’s entire family of four.” She hugged me, crying uncontrollably. “Tell them quickly, there must be a hidden story here, right!” I stared at the old detective behind them. “Since you could call her over, you’ve investigated me thoroughly?” “But I still say the same thing, killing them was to set them free. After all, dying sooner or later is the same, and it saves social resources~” I raised my hand and gently patted Mia. “Stop crying, you won’t be pretty if you keep crying like this!” Her face was pale, gripping my hand tightly. “I don’t believe it, you are not this kind of person!” “The facts are what they are, believe it or not.” 3 Mia took out her phone and held it out to me. “This is when we came back from part-time jobs, you said you wanted to earn money to treat your nephew’s illness, and wanted to take your brother’s family to the beach.” “And every month you bought lots of toys to send home. Not only that, but you also sent all the money you earned from part-time jobs to your brother and sister-in-law.” “I saw your love for them with my own eyes… You wouldn’t do this? Right!” Her phone played the future she and I had imagined together. I was stunned, then closed my eyes and stopped talking. Before Mia left, she cried and begged me to speak up. “Your case is heinous, public opinion is huge, everyone is applying pressure…” Watching Mia leave, I let out a long sigh of relief. “You win, I’m willing to tell the truth. But before I speak, I want to see my sister-in-law.” The old detective immediately went to arrange it. I saw my sister-in-law again in the hospital. Although she survived, the multi-organ failure was irreversible. She was currently confined to a wheelchair. Seeing me, she launched into a tirade of abuse. “All these years, even a dog would know to wag its tail at me. But raising you for over ten years, we raised a murderer!” She coughed violently in agitation, instantly attracting a crowd of onlookers. Seeing the crowd, she seemed to open the floodgates. “To put you through school, we didn’t dare ask for leave even when sick, still insisting on working. Afraid you’d be bullied at school, we picked you up and dropped you off every day from elementary school to high school, rain or shine!” The crowd gasped, “Pick up and drop off even in high school? They really cherished her!” Ignoring the crowd, Sarah continued. “When you were a sophomore in high school, to help you drive away that thug, your brother was stabbed by him and lay in the hospital for a month!” The crowd looked at me as if they wanted to swallow me alive. I stood calmly in place, continuing to listen to her. “Since your nephew was born, afraid you’d be unhappy, we specially moved to a rental near your university.” “Your brother even said he’d buy you a car for your birthday!” “But you didn’t even spare a six-month-old baby, you actually threw her off the balcony!” After saying all this in one breath, Sarah couldn’t help but cry loudly. The crowd pointed at me. “Such a good brother and sister-in-law, to raise such an ungrateful sister!” Someone spat at me. “Pah, why don’t you die! Truly a scourge that lasts a thousand years!” For a moment, I was hated by the onlookers. If not for the police blocking them, I probably would have been drowned in the crowd’s spit. 4 Seeing me standing opposite, showing no sign of admitting my mistake. An old man walked out of the crowd and strode up to me. He raised his cane and hit me. “I’m not afraid of going to jail, I’m this old anyway. An animal like you deserves to be beaten to death!” Saying that, he hit me harder. Thump thump, hitting my body. I looked at him with an unchanged expression. I hadn’t done anything to him, but because of Sarah’s words, I took this beating. The police didn’t dare be rough because of the old man, only persuading from the side. He was creeped out by my stare, grunted, and walked away. Sarah cried even louder. “Your nephew looked forward to your return every day, I didn’t expect you, heartless wretch, to throw him into the river, leaving no bones~” “Beat her to death, beat her to death, such an animal is a waste of resources alive.” The hospital security hurried over and barely stopped the angry crowd. Sarah cried uncontrollably, two older women next to her went to comfort her. “My husband was your own brother. When your parents died, other relatives didn’t want to care. We took you home and cherished you for more than ten years.” “If there was anything good at home, it was all for you. It was the same after your nephew and niece were born, how could you be so ruthless?” Thinking of my brother’s tragic death, she looked at me with vicious eyes. The older woman next to her spat at me. “You really are a demon! To hurt your closest kin~ People like you must die.” “Yes, people like this must die.” The police standing next to me looked at the crowd nervously. Afraid that the next second they would rush up and tear me apart. In this tense atmosphere, I suddenly laughed out loud. “Sarah, your ability to talk nonsense is still so amazing!” Sarah’s face turned pale, she stopped crying and asked me back. “Did you poison our food?” I nodded and admitted: “It was me.” “The facts are right in front of us, where did I talk nonsense? I didn’t expect you to treat us like this. If I had known… we shouldn’t have brought you home in the first place.” She sighed deeply, her tone resentful. Someone came up and grabbed my hair, pressing me to the ground. Fortunately, Ethan reacted quickly and stopped it immediately, otherwise they would definitely have beaten me to death.

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1 The year I was at my absolute rock bottom, I took on three capture missions at once. Target number one was a rising tech mogul. Target number two was a genius surgeon. Target number three was a titan of the legal world. Given how insanely busy they all were, I figured as long as I managed my time well, it would be a piece of cake. But I forgot one crucial detail: three alpha tycoons means three “ones that got away.” And so, my life became a living hell. In the morning, I’d be accused of stealing a bracelet by number one’s childhood sweetheart and forced to kneel for hours as punishment. In the afternoon, I’d be commanded by number two to donate a kidney to his old flame, warning me it was the only way I’d ever be accepted into his family. At night, number three’s “best girl friend” would take intimate photos of me and use them to slut-shame me, while number three told me to lighten up, saying she was “just joking.” Three missions meant I was being tortured 24/7. Utterly exhausted, I cried to the System, asking if there was an option to quit. The System replied: [Quitting is easy. You just have to die in this world.] So I took its advice. I faked my death to escape. But after I was gone, why did all three tycoons completely shatter? … I was dirt poor. So when the System told me I could earn a hundred million for completing a single capture mission, I was desperate enough to take on three without a second thought. After all, back in my own world, I was the ultimate grinder, used to juggling three jobs a day. I thought the missions would be about saving these damaged men, about falling in love. I never expected each of them to have an old flame, a “white moonlight,” lurking in the wings. For five long years, I was physically and emotionally abused by these three women. The Heartbeat Value monitors above the tycoons’ heads remained stubbornly frozen. My body and spirit, however, were on the verge of collapse. The moment the System told me death was my only escape, I was on my knees, being punished by my first target, Ethan. His childhood sweetheart, Claire, had just returned to the country and immediately lost a precious bracelet, which she, of course, insisted I had stolen. I denied it. Ethan, furious, slapped me across the face. “You were the only one who touched Claire’s purse. If you didn’t steal it, who did?” Claire stood beside him, her tears flowing like a spring shower. “Ethan, that bracelet was the only thing my grandmother left me. It’s all I have to remember her by. If I can’t find it, I… I’ll fall apart.” Her tears only fueled Ethan’s rage. He kicked me sharply in the knee. A jolt of agony shot through me, and my legs buckled, forcing me to the ground. “Sophie,” he snarled, “I’m asking you one last time. Did you take the bracelet? Where did you hide it? If you don’t talk, you can kneel here until nightfall.” It was the dead of winter. Even in the daytime, the temperature was well below freezing. Kneeling outside until evening would, at best, leave me crippled. At worst, I’d freeze to death. And knowing Ethan, it didn’t matter what I said. I was going to be kneeling all day regardless. I had endured this for five years. I couldn’t take it anymore. With a surge of adrenaline, I shot to my feet and screamed at him. “Fine, I stole it! I stole the damn thing!” “I deserve to die for stealing her bracelet! So I’ll just go and die! Are you happy now?!” Without waiting for their reaction, I turned and sprinted toward the villa’s man-made lake. Though artificial, it was notoriously deep. And Ethan was terrified of water. If I jumped, I would surely die. Reaching the edge, I didn’t hesitate for a second. But as I plunged into the icy water, I saw a second figure leap in right after me. “Sophie, are you insane?!” 2 Ethan was the first tycoon I met in this world. He was the illegitimate son of a wealthy family. When I met him, Claire had just dumped him for money, and his own family had cast him out after he was diagnosed with liver cancer. To complete my mission, I took him into my tiny apartment, cared for him, and worked myself to the bone to pay his medical bills. When we discovered our blood types matched, I even donated a part of my liver to him. With his health restored, I helped him build his business from the ground up, transforming him into a powerful CEO. And then, just as his Heartbeat Value for me reached 99%, Claire came back. She claimed she had never left him for money; she said Ethan’s family had threatened her. She spun a tale of suffering abroad, of how she never stopped thinking of him for a single day. Ethan didn’t say much, but I knew he was moved. On the very day she returned, his Heartbeat Value for me dropped to 90%. Then he brought her home to live with us. When Claire accused me of giving her the cold shoulder, his value dropped to 80%. When she framed me for pushing her down the stairs, it fell to 70%. For five years, Ethan’s feelings for me fluctuated, finally settling at a miserable 30%. I had given up hope of it ever moving again. So when I woke up in a hospital bed and saw his Heartbeat Value had jumped to 50%, I was shocked. It wasn’t just the number that had changed. His entire demeanor was different. As I sat up, he rushed over, placing a pillow behind my back. “Careful. The doctor said you have a mild concussion.” The lake had been frozen over. I must have hit my head on the ice. The pain was excruciating. But his gentle tone felt so foreign it was disorienting. He shifted uncomfortably under my stare. “They found the bracelet,” he said, looking away. “I was wrong about you.” “The maid took it. She said she mistook it for her own. I’ve already fired her.” “Sophie, Claire was just overly anxious and jumped to conclusions. I’ve already told her she needs to apologize to you.” Apologize? Claire was going to apologize to me? Before I could even process it, Ethan had pulled a reluctant Claire into the room. She shuffled to my bedside and mumbled a half-hearted “sorry.” Then, unable to resist a parting shot, she added, “Sophie, can we please just talk things out next time? You scared everyone half to death jumping into the lake like that. We’re all adults here; we can solve problems rationally.” In the past, to keep Ethan’s Heartbeat Value from dropping, I would have let it slide. But I was done pretending. “Who wasn’t talking things out? I told you from the start it wasn’t me, but you didn’t believe me. And you, Ethan, this is what you call an apology? When you wanted me to apologize to her, you were ready to make me kneel all night. Since she’s the one who wronged me, shouldn’t she take a turn on her knees?” Claire’s face went pale. Ethan frowned, but before he could speak, Claire launched into another performance. “Sophie’s right. I’ll go kneel right now, as long as it makes her feel better.” With that, she fled the room. Ethan turned to me, his face grim, but he refrained from his usual harsh words. “Sophie, how could you say that to her? Her health is fragile; she can’t kneel for that long. I’m going to stop her. Don’t make jokes like that again.” 3 After Ethan left, the System chimed in. [Host, that move was effective!] “What move?” I asked. [The dying move! Target number one’s Heartbeat Value shot up! Should we keep it up?] I refused. I attempt suicide, and his value only goes up by 20%? That proved he didn’t really care about me. Why bother continuing? Just as I was planning my next great escape, my phone buzzed. A text. “Empyrean Club, Suite 308. 30 minutes.” No name, no greeting. Before I could reply, the sender was gone. Unmistakably, it was my third target, Wyatt. Wyatt was a lawyer, and we only ever met at night. He suffered from severe insomnia and could only fall asleep holding me. At first, it was purely platonic. Then, one night, he came home drunk. He started getting handsy, and when I tried to push him away, he whispered, “I want you. I’ll take responsibility.” I’m no hopeless romantic, but Wyatt was ridiculously handsome—a movie star’s face on a personal trainer’s body. I simply made a mistake any woman would make. After that night, I finally remembered to check his Heartbeat Value. It was only 30%. But I wasn’t discouraged. I poured my heart into winning him over. I cooked for him, helped him heal his childhood traumas, and gave him anything he wanted. Just when I thought my devotion would finally move him, I overheard him talking to his friends. “Like her? Not really. She’s just a free lay. I have no feelings for her. The one I like is Hannah.” Hannah. His “best girl friend,” the adored princess of their little clique. After Wyatt brought me to one of their gatherings, she made me her personal target. Whenever we met, she’d make crude jokes at my expense and flirt outrageously with Wyatt right in front of me. At first, her tactics didn’t bother me. Compared to Claire’s physical torment, these verbal jabs were nothing. But when she realized her taunts weren’t working, she turned vicious. She had Wyatt take a series of intimate photos and videos of me. Then, whenever their group got together, they’d use my videos as betting chips in their games. Buy them with cash, or win them in a round of cards. The first time I found out, I was furious and threatened to call the police. Wyatt just laughed. “I’m a lawyer. Even if you call the cops, I have a hundred ways to get Hannah off scot-free. I can guarantee she won’t face any consequences. Can you guarantee your videos won’t end up all over the internet?” I couldn’t. And I still had two other tycoons to capture. Annoying their “white moonlights” just meant more abuse. If they found out I was juggling all three of them, they might actually kill me. I had planned to ignore Wyatt’s text, but then I had an idea. If they were going to release my videos, I might as well drag them all down with me. I grabbed my phone and walked out. I was ten minutes late to the Empyrean Club. As soon as I pushed the door open, Hannah’s smug face was in mine. “Sophie, you’re late. You know the rules. The price on your little photos just went up by another ten grand. Pay up, or we post them online.” She smiled, a triumphant glint in her eyes. Wyatt sat on the sofa behind her, watching with a look of indulgent amusement. Without a second thought, I said, “Fine. Post them.” 4 Hannah blinked, stunned. “What did you say?” “You all want to see my nudes, right? Don’t bother. I’ll post them myself.” I pulled out my phone, started a livestream, and began to strip right in front of the camera. “Hi everyone, my name is Sophie. I’ve been dealing with a little problem lately. A woman named Hannah has been blackmailing me with intimate photos of me and her ‘best friend.’ It’s so strange how she’s singled me out. Do you think maybe it’s because she’s secretly in love with him?” As I spoke, I shed my coat, my sweater, my thermal layers… Just as I was down to my last thin shirt, a black overcoat was thrown over my shoulders. Wyatt’s face was thunderous. “Sophie, are you out of your mind? Do you have a death wish?” It wasn’t just him. The entire room was frozen in shock. Hannah was as white as a sheet. I just smiled at Wyatt. “Yes, I think I do.” He stared at me, confused. “What?” Before he could react, I dashed to the window and swung one leg over the sill. A collective gasp filled the room. “Sophie, what are you doing? Get down from there!” Wyatt roared. “Wyatt,” I called his name. “After all this time together, I have just one thing to say to you.” As he stared at me, his eyes wide with panic, I delivered my parting words. “Go to hell, you absolute fool.” And then I jumped. Wyatt’s scream was much louder than Ethan’s. But unfortunately for me, I didn’t die this time either. When I opened my eyes, I was back in a familiar hospital room. Wyatt explained that a garbage truck had been passing by just as I jumped. I had landed in a pile of trash bags. All I had was a broken leg. Just a broken leg? I stared at my cast, on the verge of tears. I should have picked a higher floor. Seeing my crestfallen expression, Wyatt must have thought I was traumatized. He cleared his throat. “I know why you did this.” I looked up at him. His Heartbeat Value had climbed to 60%. “You’re angry that I’ve been siding with my friends over you all this time. Don’t worry, I’ve already confiscated all the videos. I told Hannah to stop with the ‘jokes.’ So… you should understand what I mean by now, right?” I stared at him, completely baffled. His face turned bright red. “Sophie, I will allow you to pursue me.” He tilted his chin up, a smug look on his face, as if expecting me to leap into his arms. The words “Who the hell wants to pursue you” nearly flew out of my mouth. Just then, his phone rang. It was Hannah. “Hey, stud, are you done with your hospital drama? We’re waiting for you to get online. Don’t you dare bail on game night, or you’ll have me to answer to.” Her voice was so loud I could hear every word. Wyatt shot me an awkward glance. “Go,” I said flatly. He hesitated for a moment. “I’ll just play one round and come right back. It’s Hannah’s ranking match tonight. If I don’t help, she’ll never let me hear the end of it.” And with that, he was gone. I still wanted to die. I dragged my broken leg out of the hospital and bought a knife. On my way back, I decided to stop by the front desk to settle my bill. I was about to die, after all; no need to leave behind any debts. And that’s when I ran into my second target, Liam, in the hospital lobby. He was with his own childhood flame, Julia, who was there for a check-up. He saw me and froze, his brow furrowing. “Sophie. Are you following me?” Before I could explain, his patience wore thin. “Actually, you’re just in time. Go get a full workup. Julia’s kidney won’t last another month. You’ll be donating yours to her in a couple of days.” He said it so matter-of-factly, I had to laugh. “You want a kidney?” I pulled the knife from my sleeve and pressed it against my side. “Don’t wait. I’ll give it to you right now!” “In fact, I won’t just give her my kidney. She can have my life, too!” I imagined a clean thrust, a spray of blood, a dramatic end. But before the blade could break my skin, a hand closed around the steel. I looked up into Liam’s eyes. The sight of blood welling up around his clenched fist shocked me so much I dropped the knife. It clattered to the floor. A wave of gasps went through the crowd of onlookers. The first to react was Julia, who screamed for a doctor. Liam’s grip on my arm tightened, his face pale. “Sophie, is this your new trick? Do you think this will make me let you off the hook? Dream on.” I wrenched my arm away. “This isn’t a trick. This is your last chance. If you don’t want this kidney now, you’ll never get one from me.” I bent down to pick up the knife, but Liam stopped me. “Sophie, what are you doing? Put the knife down.” “It’s none of your business!” I struggled against his grip. He frowned. “Is this because I asked you to donate your kidney? Don’t worry, I’m a doctor. You can live a perfectly normal life with one kidney. I’ll make sure you live a very long time. And besides…” He hesitated, a rare blush coloring his cheeks. “My sister-in-law said if you do this, she’ll convince my mother to let you into our family.” “To hell with your family! If it’s no big deal, why don’t you donate one of yours?” I bit down hard on his hand, but even as I drew blood, he refused to let go. Finally, exhausted, I softened my voice. “Okay, Liam. You’re right. I was just trying to get your attention. You saw through me. I won’t do it again. Now let me go.” He finally relaxed his grip, letting out a long sigh. “Sophie, don’t ever play these kinds of…” Before he could finish, I raised the knife and drew it swiftly across my own throat. Blood sprayed across his face. As I collapsed, I heard three distinct voices screaming my name. “Sophie!” The last thing I saw before my eyes closed was two other familiar figures pushing through the crowd, rushing toward me.

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Everyone knew I was the fiancée handpicked by Grandpa Sterling. Whoever married me would inherit the Sterling family fortune. At the engagement party, wearing a custom-made gown, I was ready to go on stage and announce the union between the Sterling and Reed families. But my fiancé, Ethan Sterling, interlaced his fingers with my adopted sister, Mia Reed, pulling her into the center of the crowd to stand by his side. “I am in love with Mia. My wife can only be her.” “Clara is too willful. She doesn’t deserve the position of Mrs. Sterling.” The person engaged to Ethan became my adopted sister. Everyone looked at me with pity or mockery. But he didn’t know that the reason Grandpa Sterling wanted me to marry him was because my mother is the heir to the reclusive and powerful King family. In the future, I will return to the King family and inherit their business empire. Since Ethan has made his choice, it’s time for the Sterling family to change its heir too. 1 Ethan tightly held my adopted sister Mia’s hand, pulling her to stand firm in front of everyone. Mia exclaimed softly, trying to pull her hand back. “Ethan, we can’t do this. Your engagement to my sister was decided by Grandpa Sterling himself.” “The person I love is you. I won’t agree to marry anyone else.” He firmly interlaced his fingers with Mia’s, looking at Grandpa Sterling sitting in the high seat. “Grandpa, the person I’ve always liked is Mia. I will only marry Mia as my wife.” The guests present looked on with pity and mockery. Everyone knew Ethan and I grew up together as childhood sweethearts, and I was the granddaughter-in-law internally decided by Grandpa Sterling. But now, in front of everyone in this circle, Ethan slapped me hard in the face. Ethan’s tone was unquestionable. “Although I grew up with Clara, I always treated her as my sister and had no other thoughts.” “Mia and I are in love and have long confirmed our relationship. In my heart, my wife can only be Mia. No other woman will do.” Ethan’s parents’ faces changed, nervously looking at the expression of the old man in the main seat. Ethan put his arm around Mia’s waist and looked at me. His gaze held a hint of sarcasm. “Clara, you should know I have no romantic feelings for you. You don’t want to marry a man who doesn’t love you and waste your life, right?” “Besides, Mia and I are already together. You can’t just rely on Grandpa’s favoritism to intervene and break us up, can you?” I glanced at the two of them and bowed to Grandpa Sterling. “Grandpa Sterling, since they admire each other, how can I be the one to break up a loving couple? Let’s fulfill their wishes.” “I wish my sister and Young Master Sterling a harmonious union and a lifetime together.” Hearing me say this, a trace of displeasure flashed across Ethan’s face. Mia, however, carefully held Ethan’s arm. “Ethan, your marriage to my sister was decided by Grandpa. Will Grandpa be unhappy now?” Ethan patted the back of Mia’s hand soothingly and coaxed softly. “No, Grandpa loves me the most. How could he be angry with me because of her?” “Besides, you are the true daughter of the Reed family, the heir to the Reed family. Originally, it was a marriage between our two families. Why care about her, an outsider?” Outsider? My identity is only known to my father and Grandpa Sterling. My mother is the heir to the reclusive King family. Initially, my father and mother only had a cooperative marriage, and I will inherit the King family in the future, so I took my mother’s surname. Moreover, he thinks Mia is my father’s biological daughter? Grandpa Sterling frowned upon hearing Ethan’s words. “Ethan, don’t fool around. Are you sure you want to marry Miss Mia?” Ethan firmly put the ring on Mia’s finger, then planted a devout kiss. “Grandpa, I’ve thought it through. I won’t marry anyone but Mia in this life.” Grandpa Sterling looked at Ethan with disappointment. If he simply changed the marriage partner, the old man wouldn’t have any opinion of him. But he deliberately chose to embarrass me in front of so many people today, which is enough to prove that he is unreliable. “Fine, have it your way then.” 2 Grandpa Sterling spoke, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Many business celebrities were invited to witness the marriage between the two families, and everyone wanted to know the outcome. Amidst everyone’s whispers, Ethan held Mia’s hand and announced to the guests who came to celebrate today. “Thank you all for coming to the engagement ceremony of Miss Mia and me today.” The guests present had different expressions. They didn’t expect the Sterling and Reed families to switch people on the spot. My father didn’t expect this either; his face turned dark instantly. My face wasn’t looking good either, but I still braced myself to straighten my back. Amidst the discussions, I raised my glass to offer a generous gift. “Young Master Sterling actually switched fiancées on the spot. This gives Clara no face at all.” “Didn’t Grandpa Sterling insist on Clara being his granddaughter-in-law? Why did he agree to the switch?” “Switching people on the day of the engagement party is really embarrassing to talk about. I wonder what she did to make Young Master Sterling make such a move on the spot.” The guests’ discussions were not quiet. Father glared at Mia and wasn’t very polite to Ethan either. “By doing this, how much gossip do you want your sister to endure?” “And you, you’re not young anymore. doing things without considering the consequences, do you want to slap my face?” Mia was scolded by Father and timidly wanted to take off the ring and give it to me. Grandpa Sterling waved his hand to stop Mia’s action. He touched my head guiltily and said in a deep voice. “Clara, don’t worry. Grandpa Sterling will make decisions for you. If you are willing, there are several good children in the Sterling family.” Ethan’s parents heard the old man’s words and thought he was comforting me, so they didn’t care. To their surprise, I pointed at the illegitimate son of the Sterling family who was watching the show in the corner. “Actually, I have always liked Julian. I hope Grandpa can fulfill us.” Several gazes fell on Julian, looking back and forth between him and me. Julian is the illegitimate son of the Sterling family’s eldest uncle. After Uncle Sterling passed away, he was not welcomed at home and didn’t live well. After all, he was a child of the Sterling family. Grandpa Sterling didn’t want others to say the Sterling family abused children, so he simply brought him to his side to raise. Father looked at me in shock and persuaded me in a low voice. “Clara, Dad knows you are unhappy, but he is an illegitimate child. The Sterling family doesn’t value him.” I shook my wine glass indifferently and toasted Julian. “It’s not like he chose to be an illegitimate child himself. I think he’s quite good. I’m willing to try with him.” Julian met my gaze, his attitude lazy. “Since Miss King likes me, let’s try then.” The crowd looked at me even more meaningfully. The news of the Sterling family switching people on the spot spread quickly in the circle. Just as the banquet ended, I received a text message from my mother. In the private room, Mom hugged me distressedly, looking at Dad with unkind eyes. “James Reed, you dare let my daughter suffer such a great grievance. I see you don’t want your job anymore!” I held Mom’s hand and shifted the topic to business. “Grandpa Sterling switched my engagement partner. His name is Julian Sterling. I quite like him.” Dad wiped the sweat from his forehead and sighed again. “He’s just an illegitimate son, a marginalized person in the Sterling family. Why choose him?” I looked at my parents’ confused eyes and spoke slowly. “Grandpa Sterling and my maternal grandfather decided on the marriage alliance. I definitely have to marry into the Sterling family.” “Although Julian is an illegitimate son, he is the most capable among the young generation of the Sterling family. From a commercial value perspective, he is the most suitable partner.” 3 “Besides, as an illegitimate son, if I marry him, the King family will be the foundation for him to establish himself in the Sterling family. He definitely won’t treat me badly.” Nowadays, Mia has become a figure everyone in the circle flatters and tries to befriend. Countless people rush to get to know her. After all, the Sterling and Reed families are a powerful alliance. If there is an opportunity to cooperate, one can definitely take their industry to the next level. I had no time to pay attention to these things, concentrating on completing the tasks Mom gave me abroad. On the day of Grandpa Sterling’s birthday, Mia specifically sent me an invitation and made several calls, so I had to go. As soon as I stepped into the Sterling family’s gate, everyone’s eyes fell on me. I wasn’t embarrassed at all, smiling as I handed the gift in my hand to the Sterling family butler. “Why is Clara here? Wasn’t the engagement partner changed?” “You don’t know yet? At that time, Young Master Sterling insisted on changing partners. In a fit of anger, she chose the illegitimate son of the Sterling family for the alliance.” “Even marrying an illegitimate son to enter the Sterling family, Miss King really goes all out.” Just as everyone was discussing, Mia appeared holding Ethan’s arm high-profile. Unlike her usual low-key and gentle attire, she wore a haute couture gown today, carrying several sets of intricate and luxurious jewelry, making her look bejeweled but somewhat tacky. Seeing me here too, she came over affectionately trying to hold my arm. “Sister, it’s simply wonderful that we sisters can marry into the Sterling family together. For the sake of sisterhood, I will definitely ask Ethan to promote brother-in-law more.” I almost laughed at Mia. Even now, she still thought what I cared about was marrying into the Sterling family. Ethan thought so too. In his eyes, I would use any means to marry into the Sterling family. He looked at me as if I were something dirty. I couldn’t be bothered with these two people. I turned to leave but saw a pair of excellent quality jade bracelets on Mia’s wrist. These were the Sterling family heirloom jade bracelets, always kept by Grandpa Sterling. I didn’t expect them to appear on Mia. Plus, she wore at least three or four bracelets on her arm, so I didn’t recognize them at first glance. The Sterling family heir hasn’t been determined yet; how could these bracelets be on Mia? I pointed at the bracelets on Mia’s wrist, my eyes holding a trace of inquiry. “Where did these bracelets come from?” Ethan had a moment of guilt, while Mia stroked the jade bracelets on her hand, her face showing a bit of grievance. “Sister, these bracelets were meant for you before, but now the one marrying Ethan is me, so these bracelets naturally should be given to me.” Ethan also nodded righteously. After all, in his heart, he was already the certain heir. Taking out the bracelets in advance for his lover to wear wasn’t unacceptable. “These are my Sterling family heirloom jade bracelets. I can give them to whoever I want to wear them. What does it have to do with you?” After speaking, he looked me up and down, taking a step back in disgust. “Don’t delusionally think you can pester me this way. I won’t like you; my heart only has Mia.” Ethan’s voice wasn’t quiet. Several gazes around fell on me. “Clara usually looks quite aloof. I didn’t expect her to try snatching her own brother-in-law just to marry into the Sterling family.” “Their hearts are connected; why is she still thinking of pestering him relentlessly?” Mia blushed, hitting Ethan shyly. “Don’t be so fierce to my sister. After she marries in, we will still be family. You have to help them more then.” Ethan glanced at me and pinched Mia’s cheek dotingly. “Fine, for Mia’s sake, I won’t fuss about it. But if you have any improper thoughts about me, don’t blame me for being ruthless then.” The two were still being affectionate when a voice sounded behind them. “Why would my wife have improper thoughts about you? Ethan, it’s too rude of you to speak about your future sister-in-law like that.” 4 Julian supported Grandpa Sterling as they entered from the door. He had a smile on his lips, and his look at Ethan held a bit more provocation. Grandpa Sterling glanced at the bracelets on Mia’s wrist, his gaze darkening. “Who told you to wear them? Take them off!” Grandpa Sterling was majestic without being angry. Mia shivered in fright and hurriedly took off the bracelets. Ethan muttered with some dissatisfaction. “Grandpa, I brought them for Mia to wear. Anyway, these bracelets will be mine sooner or later. What’s wrong with letting her wear them?” Grandpa Sterling didn’t speak, just gave him a cold look, then led Julian to the head seat. He cleared his throat, looked at the guests who came to the birthday banquet, and announced publicly. “Today, besides celebrating my birthday, this old man has a happy event to announce.” “This is my grandson Julian Sterling. In a few days, he will be engaged to Clara. Everyone is invited to come for a drink then.” As soon as these words came out, everyone’s eyes widened, scanning back and forth between Julian and me. Ethan froze on the spot, looking at Julian and me in disbelief. “Grandpa, what are you saying? Why is Clara getting engaged to Julian?” “Julian is just an illegitimate son, he…” Grandpa Sterling sternly interrupted Ethan. “Julian is also my biological grandson; he is also a Sterling.” After the engagement party back then, I privately asked Julian to meet. In the private room, Julian looked at me meaningfully, a teasing smile on his lips. “I’m just an illegitimate son. The Sterling family has so many young talents; why choose me?” I handed a document to him. “Because you need me, and similarly, I need you. Cooperation between us is the optimal solution.” He just glanced at the document without taking it. “What cooperation can we have?” I calmly pushed the document towards him. “To be honest, I have investigated you. You are a very capable person, so I want to cooperate with you.” “Moreover, if you have no thoughts about the Sterling family, why make so many small moves in private?” His look at me was wary, but I didn’t mind. Leaning forward, I stared tightly into his wild eyes. “Don’t you want to know why Grandpa Sterling said only by marrying me can one inherit the Sterling family?” He looked at me for a long time. Just when I thought he was going to refuse, Julian extended his hand to me. “Happy cooperation, my fiancée.” Sure enough, after I chose Julian, Grandpa Sterling also began to value this grandson. Julian was brought back quietly back then and wasn’t announced to the public. Presumably, Grandpa Sterling must have investigated this grandson before choosing to announce the engagement news at the birthday banquet, taking the opportunity to let Julian show his face. Ethan’s parents didn’t expect such a change and were stunned for a long time before recovering. After all, Grandpa Sterling announcing Julian’s engagement to me at this time was undoubtedly sending a signal that he wanted to support Julian. In Ethan’s parents’ eyes, I was just a burden born to Father and his ex-wife, and I even had the ex-wife’s surname. After graduation, Father didn’t arrange for me to work in the family company; instead, he let me busy myself with unknown things. This was undoubtedly a signal to them that I couldn’t inherit everything from the Reed family. So they chose to acquiesce when facing the switch. After all, between an idle eldest miss and a daughter who would inherit the Reed family, it goes without saying which one was more beneficial to them. Ethan’s father finally recovered from the news, his hands trembling, stroking his chest to catch his breath. Guests who came to celebrate gathered around Julian to toast him. Ethan, who was high-spirited just two days ago, was now squeezed to the edge by the crowd. Ethan seemed furious. He stared straight at me and questioned: “You’ve only met Julian a few times. Are you marrying him just to spite me?” Before I could say anything, Julian stood beside me, looking down at Ethan from above. Julian was not only a head taller than him but also suppressed him in aura. “Did you not hear clearly? Clara likes me. Why do you think she would like you?” I took a step forward, held Julian’s arm, and looked at Ethan with a hint of helplessness, as if looking at a child throwing a tantrum. “I’ve already said, the person I like is Julian. In my eyes, he is better than you in every way. Please stop flattering yourself.”

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To avoid inheriting the family conglomerate, I endured my teacher’s blatant favoritism. To avoid an arranged marriage with another wealthy heir, I endured bullying from certain classmates. Until, that is, the bully stole my guaranteed university admission. I instantly stopped acting. At the pre-exam assembly, I took the stage as the representative of the board of directors. The principal fell to his knees on the spot. 1 I made a bet with my parents. As long as I could secure a guaranteed admission spot on my own merit, I wouldn’t have to follow the path of a corporate heiress and could choose a life I loved. To achieve the freedom I desired, I burned the midnight oil and studied like my life depended on it. In the final joint exam before the college entrance exam… I didn’t let myself down; I ranked first in the entire city. But the admission spot that should have been mine was given to my homeroom teacher’s daughter, Chloe Chen. I couldn’t hold back anymore. I stood up from my seat. “Teacher, I was the one who ranked first in this joint exam!” My voice was resonant and powerful, without a trace of my usual feigned weakness. My homeroom teacher, Mrs. Chen, probably didn’t expect such a big reaction from me. After all, over the past semester… There were so many times she had controlled things single-handedly. The class monitor was supposed to be elected by votes. She still gave the position to Chloe. The top scorer of the midterms was supposed to give the speech at the assembly. She still gave the speech opportunity to Chloe. These were all trivial honors; I didn’t care who Mrs. Chen gave them to. So I never argued with her. But now, this was my guaranteed admission spot! She dared to openly give it to Chloe? Mrs. Chen clicked her tongue slightly, a flash of coldness crossing her face, before saying amiably in front of the whole class, “I was quite surprised too, but this admission spot for Harvard was designated for Chloe Chen by the university itself.” I stared into her eyes and asked, “Are you sure Harvard specifically designated Chloe for admission?” Mrs. Chen felt a chill under my gaze, her lips moving slightly. “I said yes, so of course it is.” Chloe also stood up from the best seat in the classroom, retorting angrily, “Lily Vance, is it so hard to admit others are excellent? Harvard values my extensive extracurricular experience, so they specifically asked for me. Look at yourself. Besides good grades, you have no hobbies or interests. Why would they want a nerd?” A nerd? Me? Heh! I’ve been learning violin, piano, ballet, ice hockey, speed skating, and golf since I was little. I’ve reached the top professional levels in all of them. Not to mention my specialty, martial arts. I’m a nationally certified first-class female martial artist! And what Chloe learned were just interest classes paid for with a little money… Let alone professional level, she probably wasn’t even qualified to take the grading exams. With her half-baked skills, Harvard would specifically ask for her? What a joke. I didn’t speak. I directly took out the phone I rarely used. Spent three seconds finding the number for the Harvard Admissions Office. Spent another three seconds dialing it. Three seconds later, it connected. I turned on the speakerphone and asked in front of all my classmates, “Hello, is this the Harvard Admissions Office?” The moment the call connected, Mrs. Chen and Chloe glared at me. 2 “Yes, this is the Harvard Admissions Office. How can I help you?” I asked word by word, “May I ask how many guaranteed admission spots your school has given to Hua Xin First High School this year?” The person replied, “One.” “Are you sure?” “Of course. Based on Hua Xin First High’s past performance, our school didn’t intend to give them any spots. But this year is special. A student from Hua Xin ranked first in the city in this joint exam. After discussion, we gave the spot to this student.” “Then may I ask, is this student named Chloe Chen?” The person hesitated. I heard the sound of a mouse clicking on a computer. Then they replied, “No, it’s Lily Vance.” When my name came out of the phone, the whole class went into an uproar. All the students’ eyes were fixed on Mrs. Chen and Chloe’s faces. And the voice from the Harvard Admissions Office continued. He said, “This student, Lily Vance, not only ranked first in total score in this joint exam but also ranked first in every subject. Especially in the final bonus question in Physics, she used a theory recently proposed by international physicists to solve it, which shocked our grading teachers. That’s why Harvard specially named Lily Vance for admission from Hua Xin First High.” “Thank you, teacher. Thank you for Harvard’s recognition.” “You? You are Lily Vance?” The voice on the other end became excited. “Did you already know you were admitted to Harvard, so you called to verify? Haha, we were actually afraid you wouldn’t come…” “No,” I interrupted him. Then, I explained, “My homeroom teacher said the Harvard admission spot was designated for a student named Chloe Chen. They said Harvard values overall quality more, and wouldn’t look at a nerd like me who only knows how to study.” The person was surprised. “Chloe Chen? Who is that? Harvard never intended to recruit this student. Besides… this name seems to have been disqualified from the joint exam for cheating!” Mrs. Chen and Chloe’s faces were already beet red. Especially Chloe. As arrogant as she was just now, she was that ashamed now. But she was still quibbling, “He’s lying! I-I didn’t cheat! I didn’t…” The classmates looked at each other, and various voices arose. “It’s one thing for Mrs. Chen to favor Chloe usually, but daring to openly steal an admission spot is shameless enough.” “Cheater. If someone like that can be admitted to Harvard, Harvard must be blind.” “Exactly. What is Chloe? If she weren’t the teacher’s daughter, she’d be nothing.” “Disgusting. If Chloe really got the Harvard admission, I’d report it to the Education Bureau immediately. There’s no justice.” Whispers ran rampant. I wasn’t sure if the person on the phone heard them. But his voice clearly became serious. He said, “Student Lily Vance, as an admissions officer, I promise you today that no one can take away your admission qualification. If they do, then that person, and the student you mentioned who was ‘admitted,’ will definitely receive appropriate punishment.” “Okay, thank you.” The call ended. I looked at Mrs. Chen again. Mrs. Chen couldn’t keep her composure, but the class was still going on. With so many eyes watching her, she could only bite the bullet and say, “Lily, there might be some misunderstanding here. What’s yours is definitely yours. I’ll clarify with the school later. Maybe I read it wrong.” “Really? My name doesn’t look like Chloe Chen’s.” I narrowed my eyes. Mrs. Chen coughed lightly twice. “Maybe I heard it wrong.” I didn’t let this opportunity go and pressed on, “Heard it wrong, huh? Then why don’t you just leave the mistake as is?” Mrs. Chen was stunned. “W-what do you mean leave it as is?” I smiled and said, “I don’t want this admission spot anymore. Give it to whoever you want! Anyway…” anyone other than me who gets the spot will be punished accordingly! 3 Mrs. Chen immediately understood what I meant. She was startled, her face changing color. “Lily, don’t cause trouble!” Cause trouble? Who caused trouble first? Weren’t you quite self-righteous at the beginning? Weren’t you lying without blushing or skipping a beat? I sneered and ignored her. I simply picked up my schoolbag and walked out. Mrs. Chen shouted from behind, “Lily Vance, if you leave here today, don’t even think about coming back!” Come back? Unless you kneel and beg me! Chloe looked at me resentfully, gritting her teeth hard. As I walked out the classroom door, I saw her mouth shape seem to say: “Bitch, I’m going to kill you”! Chloe’s mother was the homeroom teacher. Chloe’s father was the school principal. Chloe’s arrogance was entirely due to the contributions of these two. I was actually a little expectant to see how Chloe would “kill” me! I walked out of the school without looking back. In a short while, I arrived home. This was a two-bedroom apartment I bought casually with my pocket money. Because I moved in hastily, I directly used the old furniture left by the previous family. The whole house looked small and old, but it had a strong family atmosphere. After taking a shower, I lay in bed and received a call from my dad. “My darling baby, do you miss me?” “I miss you.” Then I asked, “Dad, aren’t you in Siberia discussing nuclear energy supply with their king? How do you have time to call me?” “Oh, we ran into a technical problem, so I wanted to ask you.” Then, my dad handed the phone to the project’s technical staff. It took the technician half an hour to explain their problem clearly. I thought about it carefully and checked a certain detail with him. He suddenly exclaimed, “Right, that’s it! I didn’t notice the parameter in this place, that’s why the problem occurred. Oh my god, Miss Vance, you are a genius!” “Uh…” I didn’t know how my two sentences touched him. But anyway, the problem was solved. After the conversation with the technician ended, my dad asked about my life. I sighed slightly and said, “Dad, life for ordinary people is really restricted everywhere. I suddenly understand why Shawn was like that back then.” Shawn was the child of our family’s servant. He was upright and smart. I could see almost all the beautiful qualities of humanity in him. But such a well-behaved and sensible child was eventually forced to jump from the 30th floor. Shawn… Thinking of him always made me a bit sad. He once said that if I hadn’t grown up in such a family, I would be like him, only able to suffer the injustice of this world. And the reason I chose this experience was to verify the injustice Shawn spoke of, to see to what extent it could be unfair. “If you want to give up experiencing the life of ordinary people, Dad has no objection. Dad just wants his baby to be happy. Shawn’s case was just an exception; you don’t need to prove anything for this society.” I nodded. After hanging up, I prepared to rest for a while. But messages from the class group chat kept bombarding my phone. I opened the group, intending to mute it. But I found they were discussing my stolen admission spot. Through my classmates’ chat, I learned that after I left school, the teachers from the Harvard Admissions Office came with leaders from the Education Bureau. They threw a huge temper tantrum in the principal’s office. And they pointed out that if it wasn’t me being admitted, Harvard wouldn’t accept anyone who got the spot. As for Chloe, who replaced me this time, she was blacklisted by Harvard. The Harvard Admissions Office would never allow a student who cheated to enter the school. This was the first time Harvard University had targeted a student with such fanfare. “Harvard is the top of the Ivy League. If Harvard doesn’t want Chloe, other colleges definitely won’t want her either. Chloe’s parents have accompanied her to the end of the road for the college entrance exam.” “Hehe, she usually struts around, wishing she could walk sideways in school. This time she ran into a tough one in Lily.” “To be fair, it’s because Lily has real skills. A robber who only knows how to snatch deserves this ending.” Watching these messages, the knot in my heart loosened a bit. Just then, I received a call from an unknown number. I hesitated for a moment and answered. I heard Mrs. Chen’s voice on the other end: “Student Lily, um, can you come to the principal’s office now? We… we have something to discuss with you…” I chuckled lightly: “Teacher, didn’t you tell me not to go back?” Mrs. Chen choked, then lowered her voice: “Lily, you know I’m your teacher. Come back quickly, or you’ll be waiting for…” I didn’t wait for her to continue. I hung up the phone with a “snap.” Then I blocked the number and went to sleep. They were already being roasted over the fire, yet they were still so arrogant in front of me. If I continued to spoil them, I would really be letting down the classmates who spoke up for me. 4 When I woke up again. It was already dark outside. The messages in the group had scrolled to 999+. I opened the messages and skimmed through them. It said that Mrs. Chen and the principal both received punishments from the Education Bureau. Mrs. Chen was fired. The principal was demoted. And the Harvard Admissions Office was looking everywhere for my address, determined to give me an explanation. It was also at this time that I noticed hundreds of missed calls on my phone. Mostly from unknown numbers. I guessed there should be calls from the Harvard admissions teachers in there. Just as I was about to call the admissions office proactively, another call came in. I answered, and the other party asked if I was Lily Vance. I gave an affirmative answer. “I’m very sorry, Student Lily. I am the director of the Harvard Admissions Office. I know this incident has hurt you greatly. We would like to meet with you to see if there is anything we can do to make it up to you.” I have to say, Harvard is truly magnanimous. A few sentences made me feel embarrassed. After some pleasantries, I agreed to their request to meet. We agreed to meet at a restaurant near my apartment complex. I tidied myself up and headed over, not realizing anything was wrong. Until I walked into the restaurant. The restaurant was empty. Several female delinquents walked out from the back kitchen holding iron rods. I frowned and became alert. Then, I saw Chloe hiding in the crowd. I realized that the phone call just now was a lie from Chloe. Chloe said to the blonde leader, “Sister Ma, it’s this damn girl who caused my parents to be reported. Teach her a lesson. My parents will definitely get you the high school diploma you want. Whether you want to continue school or go out to work, it will be useful.” At this moment, I had already pressed the recording button on my phone. Successfully recorded what Chloe said. The person called Sister Ma glanced at Chloe disdainfully: “Your parents have stepped down. Are you sure you can get me a diploma?” Chloe said firmly: “Of course. Even if my parents stepped down, a starving camel is still bigger than a horse. Without power, they still have money. Did you forget when you messed with Shawn? Whatever amount you said, my parents sent it to your house. This diploma is a small matter. Besides, even if I can’t get the diploma, I won’t short you on the money. Ten thousand dollars takes a long time to earn by working.” Sister Ma listened, her expression moved, and the iron rod in her hand moved up and down. And I focused on the name they mentioned… Shawn. I narrowed my eyes and asked: “What do you have to do with Shawn?” Sister Ma sneered: “What else? Didn’t we drive him to death?” Chloe tilted her head back, with the pleasure that I was about to meet my doom: “Shawn won first prize in the Math Olympiad and got a guaranteed admission to Harvard. I asked him to give the spot to me, but he refused and proved his will with death. So I could only fulfill his wish. But he didn’t die further away; he had to jump from my building. Bad luck… caused my house price to drop by a million.” Chloe walked out from the crowd, arms crossed, proud as a peacock. “Do you want to know how Shawn was driven to death by us? We, well, dragged him into the toilet every day after school, sprayed him with cold water, slapped him, pricked him with needles. I even asked Sister Ma to find thugs to force themselves on him. Shawn was good-looking; some perverts like his delicate skin.” She sized up my face. Then she said to me: “Your face looks ugly at first glance, but looking closely, your features seem even more correct than Shawn’s. Maybe throwing you to those thugs would let them have a good time too!” Listening to her voice, I had already clenched my fists. I had an impulse to tear her mouth apart. “Your phone is recording, right?” Chloe looked at me and smiled. A seventeen-year-old girl looked like a devil at this moment. She reached out and took my phone from my pocket, saw the recording interface, and laughed wildly and arrogantly. “Want to take this to the police station? Hahaha, dream on!” She casually smashed the phone on the ground, shattering it into pieces. I slowly raised my eyes and looked at the person who had been bullying me all along. She stole the speech hosting spot, the Math Olympiad qualification, the honors that belonged to me… I didn’t care. Because those medals and trophies already filled a wall in my home. Having more would just take up space. But not only did she feel no guilt towards me, she wanted to suppress me to death because of her dominance. She said in front of classmates that I was promiscuous; I ignored it. She said my family were garbage-picking paupers; I didn’t bother to argue. She said I started getting plastic surgery at a young age; I found it laughable. Even this time, when she snatched my admission spot, I just treated her as a stupid clown. She shouldn’t have, absolutely shouldn’t have let me know the truth about Shawn’s jump. So, it was she and Sister Ma who drove Shawn to death.

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I attended an academic conference and won a five-thousand-dollar award for my paper. Adrian, the new junior in our lab, demanded I hand over the prize money, declaring, “Results obtained using lab resources mean the prize money belongs to the lab.” What was colder was that my girlfriend of two years, Evelyn, nodded in agreement. “Those are the rules.” Adrian smirked triumphantly. To further undermine me, he had me removed from the core project and reassigned as an equipment maintenance technician. It wasn’t until the presentation for a national-level project that Evelyn, in front of everyone, pushed me towards the stage. “Go on, just like every other year.” I threw up my hands. “Dr. Lin, I’m just the equipment tech now. According to the rules, I can’t do presentations.” 1 I had just returned from a major academic conference, clutching the “Outstanding Young Scholar Paper Award” certificate and an envelope containing five thousand dollars in prize money. “Damn, Leo, you killed it again!” “Let’s see it! The academic prodigy of our lab strikes again!” A few of my lab mates gathered around, the atmosphere warm and celebratory. I smiled, showing them the certificate. “Just got lucky. The review committee said my model had some decent innovation.” In the midst of the cheerful noise, a dissonant voice cut in. “Leo.” Adrian, a junior who had only been in the lab for a few months, strode over, his face wearing a seriousness that didn’t match his age. Without any pleasantries, he snatched the certificate and the envelope from my hands. I froze. The chatter around us died instantly. A business-like smile touched Adrian’s lips. “Leo, according to Chapter Three, Section Seven of the lab’s management regulations, all academic achievements derived from the use of lab equipment, data, or a professor’s research resources, including all resulting honors and financial gains, are to be managed and distributed by the lab.” It took me a second to process his words. “Adrian, you might be mistaken,” I explained. “The core algorithm in this paper was something I developed myself during my PhD. It didn’t use any of the current project’s proprietary resources, and the data is from a public dataset.” This paper was the culmination of my entire doctoral career. The foundational idea for its core algorithm had taken root in my mind during my first year, refined through countless failures and iterations. The data I used was publicly available. Aside from having the lab’s name on it, the work was almost entirely my own intellectual property. “Did you or did you not attend the conference under the lab’s name?” he retorted aggressively. I nodded. “I did.” “And were your flight and accommodation reimbursed from the research group’s funds?” I frowned. “Yes, that’s standard academic support.” “Exactly,” Adrian said, slapping the certificate and envelope down on his desk. “The opportunity to attend the conference was given to you by the group. You, yourself, are the lab’s most important ‘resource.’ Therefore, this prize money must be turned over to the lab for collective management.” His gangster logic was so absurd I almost laughed. He was just a new master’s student. He wouldn’t dare act like this without someone backing him up. I called Evelyn. She was my senior in the lab, my girlfriend, and the one who actually managed the lab’s day-to-day operations under our professor. Her voice on the phone had a familiar, hesitant quality. “Leo, Adrian is just following the rules. We do have an unwritten rule about this, mainly to stop people from focusing on making money on the side. Look, I worked hard to get you the opportunity to go on this trip. When it comes to the results, we have to keep our personal and professional lives separate.” “‘Separate’?” A chill crept into my heart. “Evelyn, does your idea of ‘professional’ mean taking my personal earnings and handing them over to you and Adrian to ‘distribute’?” “Oh, don’t think of it like that, that’s not what I meant…” She tried to explain, but it was useless. I hung up. I didn’t want to hear any more. Everyone was staring at me. Some with pity, some with curiosity, and some with undisguised schadenfreude. I walked over to Adrian’s desk and said calmly, “You’re right. We should keep things professional.” Then, I turned and went back to my workstation. One week later, the lab received a notice for an urgent proposal submission for a national-level key research and development program. This was the most important event of the year, determining our funding and reputation for the next three years. Just like they had for the past five years, everyone in the lab automatically looked at me. After all, the core of every winning proposal they were so proud of had been written by me. I was in the middle of packing my personal belongings into cardboard boxes. Evelyn walked over, her tone taking my cooperation for granted. “Leo, stop sulking. The national project announcement is here. Put your things aside and take the lead on writing the proposal. We need the framework by tomorrow.” I looked up and gave her a professional smile. “I’m sorry, Dr. Lin. I’ve already submitted my application to the university to finalize my graduation procedures. As for the project proposal, I’m afraid you’ll all have to handle it yourselves.” She froze on the spot. 2 Evelyn didn’t take my refusal seriously. She thought I was just throwing a tantrum. She told me to cool down, sent a few half-hearted, placating messages, and when I didn’t respond, she assumed the matter was closed and I would go back to being her compliant workhorse. Let her think what she wanted. She would find out soon enough. The conflict didn’t just blow over with my concession. Some people seemed to mistake my silence for weakness. That afternoon, during a break, I stepped out of the lab for a moment. When I returned, I walked into a farce. Adrian was fiddling with my brand-new tablet, which I’d bought specifically for academic drawing and efficient literature review. He was showing it off to a few other graduate students, his voice exaggerated. “Wow, is this the top-of-the-line model? Over a grand? Leo must be loaded. I wonder if this was also bought with the ‘earnings’ from his conference trip?” A ripple of suppressed snickers went through the group. I saw familiar faces, their expressions gleefully stirring the pot. I even recognized one of them as the guy who had begged me to help revise the introduction to his paper just last week. I didn’t walk towards Adrian. Instead, I scanned the whispering crowd. “Catherine,” I said, calling out one of the senior students. “You went to a conference in Chicago last month. You came back with a new limited-edition mechanical keyboard. You said you snagged it at a local specialty shop, right?” Catherine’s face stiffened. “Jenna,” I turned to another. “That expensive simulation software license on your laptop… didn’t you get that in Hong Kong last time you went to a conference, using the meal allowance you saved up? You were bragging to all of us about it.” Jenna’s face turned beet red. “And you, Mark,” my gaze finally landed on a male student. “You said the best thing you got out of the Beijing conference wasn’t the content, but running into the professor you admire and getting a letter of recommendation. Does that letter count as a ‘personal gain’ obtained using the research group’s resources?” The room fell silent. Finally, I looked at Adrian, smiling. “According to your logic, shouldn’t all these ‘gains’ also be reported to the lab for you to distribute?” Adrian’s face went from red to white. He was speechless. In his flustered anger, his hand slipped, and the expensive tablet went crashing to the floor. CRACK! The screen shattered into an ugly spiderweb. Adrian snatched his hand back as if he’d been burned. “Oh my god! Leo, why didn’t you catch it?” I stared at him coldly. “There’s a security camera right there. Will you be paying in cash or by transfer?” Adrian’s eyes welled up. Before he could say anything, Evelyn rushed out from the inner office. Seeing the shattered tablet and the tense atmosphere, she immediately turned on me. “It’s just a tablet! Do you really have to be so petty with a junior? It’s not a big deal. Apologize to him, and we’ll forget about it.” “Apologize?” I almost laughed out loud. “Apologize for what? For him dropping my tablet?” “You!” Evelyn was at a loss for words. She lowered her voice. “Don’t make a scene in the lab!” I didn’t say anything. I bent down and picked up the broken device. The power button still worked. The screen lit up, the wallpaper a photo of Evelyn and me, smiling brightly. I held it up to her. “Do you remember this?” I asked softly. “You gave this to me last year when I won the university’s ‘Rising Scholar Award.’ You said it was a recognition of my hard work.” Evelyn’s expression became incredibly complicated. I didn’t give her time to react. I turned and decisively tossed the broken tablet, once a symbol of our shared memories, into the electronics recycling bin. “But none of that matters anymore,” I said, looking back at her. “Evelyn, we’re done.” I blocked her number and all her messages that day. The next day, I saw a post from Adrian on an academic social media platform. The title read: “A Positive Force in Academia: Lab Newcomer Bravely Confronts Senior Who Hoards Academic Resources.” In the post, I was painted as a greedy, selfish senior who exploited his juniors and treated the lab’s resources as his personal property. He, of course, was the brave hero who stood up to tyranny and defended the collective’s interests. What hurt the most were the familiar profile pictures that had “liked” the post. These were the same people who had once come to me, manuscript in hand, respectfully asking for my guidance. Now, they repaid my years of late-night, unpaid help with a single “like.” 3 I began to strictly enforce the principle of “keeping things professional,” only this time, I was the one defining the boundaries. Ten o’clock at night. The lab was still brightly lit. For graduate students, this was just the beginning of their workday. But I packed my bag, ready to leave. “Leo! Wait up!” A few lab mates surrounded me, holding laptops and printed drafts, their faces plastered with their usual ingratiating smiles. “Leo, you’re the best at experimental design. Can you take a look at my protocol and see if there are any logical flaws?” “Leo, my introduction is so dry. Can you help me polish it? The submission deadline is the day after tomorrow!” In the past, I would have found it hard to refuse. But now, I just looked up at them, not reaching for their papers. “Sorry,” I said with a smile. “Your research areas aren’t exactly my core expertise. Writing and revising your papers are your own responsibilities. I’m afraid I can’t help.” Their smiles froze. Just then, Adrian walked out of the inner office, arms crossed, a sneer on his face. “Everyone’s working overtime for the big project, and some people are already rushing off? If you’re so unwilling to contribute to the team, you can apply to leave the group. No one’s stopping you.” I glanced at him and pointed to the clock on the wall. “The lab’s official working hours are from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Adrian, since you’re so insistent that ‘achievements derived from lab resources belong to the lab,’ then any intellectual labor I perform outside of working hours should naturally belong to me.” I paused, my gaze sweeping over my anxious colleagues. “In the past, when I stayed here after 10 p.m. to help you revise papers and discuss protocols, that was my personal time, which I gave voluntarily. As of today, that volunteering has ended.” “But… but my paper is due the day after tomorrow!” one of the junior women exclaimed, nearly jumping out of her skin. I gave her a helpless smile. “I suggest you work ‘overtime’ yourself tonight and revise it properly. After all, it’s your paper.” Then, amidst their stunned, angry, and panicked gazes, I turned and walked out of the lab. 4 The atmosphere in the lab grew increasingly strange. I stuck to a strict 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. schedule. During the day, I worked on my own graduation thesis data. At 10 p.m., I left on the dot. No matter who asked for help, I politely declined, citing “outside my responsibilities” and “after working hours.” They soon felt the consequences. A long-term corporate partner wanted to sign a lucrative research project. I had been handling the technical proposal, and we were in the final stages of signing the contract. That afternoon, the company representatives arrived as scheduled, but Adrian couldn’t find the final version of the technical details. He was running around like a headless chicken. Finally, he cornered me as I was leaving the conference room. “Leo, quick, the clients are waiting inside. Go in and explain the technical details to them again,” he hissed, his tone demanding. I looked at him, then walked straight into the conference room. To the surprise of the company representatives and Adrian, I bowed slightly to the clients. “Gentlemen, I sincerely apologize,” I said earnestly. “I just reviewed our previous communication records and found that several discussions about the core technical proposal took place after 10 p.m. via my personal email. According to our lab’s principle of ‘personal ownership of work done outside of working hours,’ these communications were not compliant with our procedures.” The clients’ faces darkened. I continued, “To avoid any potential intellectual property disputes in the future, I personally suggest we postpone the signing of this contract. The lab should reassign a project lead and schedule a formal, compliant technical review meeting during official working hours, with proper minutes taken. This will provide better protection for both our parties.” Adrian was trembling with rage. “Leo, you!” The lead representative was clearly a man who valued process and risk management. He listened to me and then said to Adrian, his voice displeased, “This young man has a point. Our partnership must be built on a foundation of compliance. Mr. Chen, it seems your lab’s internal management is somewhat chaotic. Please contact us again when you have your house in order.” With that, he and his team left without a backward glance. A project worth nearly a million dollars was gone, just like that. Adrian’s eyes were red. He practically shrieked at me, “Leo! Do you have any idea how important this project was to the lab? You’re doing this for revenge!” I stopped and looked at him calmly. “Important? But I recall you saying that someone like me, who is ‘only good for taking petty advantages’ and ‘can’t separate personal from professional,’ would only mess up a core project. My actions just now were strictly in accordance with the lab’s management requirements, to prevent potential risks. I was helping you, and the lab, Adrian.” “You… you just wait!” he snarled, then ran off to tattle to Evelyn. Sure enough, less than ten minutes later, Evelyn stormed over to my workstation. It was already piled high with miscellaneous items she had allowed to accumulate there. She slammed a thick stack of research papers onto my desk with a loud bang. “Leo, what the hell are you trying to do?” she hissed. “Are you not happy until you’ve turned this whole lab upside down? Do you have to humiliate everyone?” I calmly tidied the papers she had scattered. “I’m just following the rules,” I said flatly. “To hell with the rules!” she finally exploded. “It was my idea to have Adrian co-manage the projects! By targeting him, you’re undermining me! Do you have any respect for me at all?” I looked up, meeting her angry, distorted face, and smiled. “Evelyn, you finally told the truth. So it wasn’t about the lab. It was about you.” 5 My uncooperative attitude finally provoked a more drastic response. At the regular Monday group meeting, our professor was away on business, and Evelyn was presiding. For the final item on the agenda, Adrian walked to the front, holding a printed “Disciplinary Action” notice. He cleared his throat. “After a review by the lab’s management team, the following actions will be taken against Leo for his recent series of violations of lab management discipline. “First, the five-thousand-dollar prize money Leo won at the academic conference will be confiscated in full and added to the lab’s team-building fund. “Second, an additional five thousand dollars will be deducted from his next research assistant stipend as compensation for the project losses caused by his improper conduct. “Third, Leo is required to make a public, in-depth self-criticism at this meeting for his failure to separate personal and professional matters and his insubordination.” A wave of murmurs went through the room. Confiscating prize money and stipends, and a public shaming… in academia, this was a deeply humiliating punishment. Evelyn sat at the head of the table, her face impassive, as if waiting for me to beg for forgiveness. Under everyone’s gaze, I slowly walked to the front. I picked up the microphone, my voice calm. “I am here to make a profound self-criticism.” The room fell silent. Even Evelyn and Adrian looked surprised. “First, I have deeply reflected on my behavior over the past five years. I have indeed severely blurred the lines between personal and professional, using a vast amount of my precious personal time to revise papers, design experiments, and process data for almost every member of this lab, free of charge. This is a serious violation of the sacred principle that ‘work produced during working hours belongs to the lab, and work produced outside of working hours belongs to the individual.’ I am ashamed of my past selfless dedication.” A stir went through the audience. Some faces showed embarrassment and unease. “Second, I failed to focus on my own research area, frequently overstepping my authority to help others with research problems that were not my responsibility. This not only drained my personal energy but also fostered a culture of academic laziness among some of my colleagues, leading to chaos in the lab’s management. I apologize to the management team for my past ‘helpfulness’.” My voice was steady and clear, each word landing like a hammer blow. “Therefore, I solemnly promise: from this day forward, I will strictly abide by the lab’s rules and regulations. First, I will strictly adhere to the 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. working hours and will not handle any matters related to the research group outside of these hours. Second, I will strictly perform the duties of the position newly assigned to me by the management team—” I paused and picked up the position change notice from the table, signed by Evelyn and delivered by Adrian. “—that is, the duties of ‘Lab Equipment Maintenance and Administrator.’ I promise that from now on, I will only be responsible for the daily maintenance of the servers and the checking in and out of equipment. I will no longer participate in any research project discussions, grant proposal writing, or paper advising that falls outside this scope.” The moment I finished, the room exploded. “What? What about my grant proposal? The core innovation part still needs Leo’s input!” “My simulation result figures for next week’s presentation are a mess, and no one has reviewed them yet!” “Equipment administrator? Are you kidding me?” Evelyn’s face had turned a furious shade of purple. She slammed her hand on the table and shot to her feet. “Leo! Is this a self-criticism or a threat?!” I put down the microphone and gave her a slight smile. “Dr. Lin, I am simply following the lab’s regulations and Adrian’s management requirements. I fully support the management team’s decision.” That afternoon, my workstation was cleared out and moved to a tiny corner next to the server room. I had officially been demoted from the lab’s “academic star” to its “equipment administrator.” As I walked past the main lab area, I could hear the hushed, excited chatter from within. “Serves him right. He should have known his place.” “Let’s see him act high and mighty now! This is going to be good. The academic star is now a machine janitor!” “But… who’s going to help us with our papers now?” 6 The final day of the countdown arrived. It was the day of the university’s most important annual event: the presentation for the “National-Level Key Research and Development Program.” Our lab, as last year’s winner, was determined to secure it again. Everyone was dressed in their best suits, sitting in the auditorium. Evelyn, as the project lead, sat in the front row, with Adrian, her “capable assistant,” right beside her, his face beaming with pride. As the “equipment administrator,” I was seated in a corner in the very last row. The presentation went smoothly at first. Evelyn handled the introduction and background, and it sounded plausible enough. But everyone knew the main event was still to come. Finally, the presentation reached its most critical stage: the explanation of the core technical proposal and the Q&A with the expert panel. The moderator announced, “Next, we invite the representative from the ‘Intelligent Sensing and Computing Lab’ to present the core technical proposal of the project.” Instantly, every eye in the room, including those of the esteemed professors and academicians on the review panel, flew over the front rows and landed on me, in my corner seat. For the past few years, I had always been the one to present this section. My presentations were known for being clear, rigorous, and incredibly persuasive. Evelyn turned around, mouthing the words to me: “Go on, Leo. Just like every other year.” After everything that had happened, she still expected me to be her workhorse. I didn’t move. I just glanced at my phone. The time on the screen was clear: 10:00 p.m. My workday was over. I stood up, but not to walk to the stage. “Mr. Moderator, esteemed experts, professors, everyone,” I began. They all thought I was about to start my presentation. “Before the presentation begins, I need to clarify a situation,” I continued calmly. “My name is Leo, and my research assistant employment contract with the ‘Intelligent Sensing and Computing Lab’ has, as of this moment, officially expired.” “According to the terms of the contract, all my work responsibilities have been fulfilled. Therefore, as of this minute, I am no longer a member of this lab, nor do I have the authority to represent the lab in any form of presentation or defense.”

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Late one night, I stumbled upon my wife and the heir to the Wynott fortune, locked in a passionate kiss. My wife, Mackenzie, froze in panic. The heir, Scott, was the picture of calm. I walked right up to them with a big, friendly smile. “Sis! Bro! Fancy seeing you two out here.” The next day, I was handed the deed to a 2,000-square-foot apartment in Manhattan. 1 My wife is exceptionally beautiful. We were college sweethearts. We got married right after graduation, moved to New York, and crammed ourselves into a tiny walk-up in Queens. I adored her. Just looking at her face, I could never bring myself to resent our poverty. I only hated my own inability to provide for her, to give her the life she deserved. I worked myself to the bone, but in a sinking economy, just not getting laid off felt like a victory. I was a failure as a man. Mackenzie and I scrimped and saved, dreaming of buying a place of our own. It’s the quintessential American dream, after all. But this was New York. The prices were astronomical. Our meager savings were a drop in an endless ocean. We were destined to fail. 2 Lately, I’d noticed Mackenzie was becoming even more beautiful. Being poor, I couldn’t tell designer brands from department store knock-offs. But I knew her clothes, her shoes—they all looked better, tailored to fit her perfectly. Her skin glowed. She looked like she did back in our freshman year of college. Mackenzie has always been the perfect woman: gentle and sweet by day, insatiable and alluring by night. Seeing her blossom like this, I finally felt like I was seeing a rose in its proper garden, not wilting in a forgotten pot. 3 My boss is Isabelle Wynott, a titan of New York society. Her younger brother is Scott Wynott, the heir to their family’s empire. I was just one of thousands of employees in their massive corporation. But one day, Scott showed up at my desk just to see me. He looked me up and down and said, “So, you’re Leo.” The cologne he wore was the same scent that had been lingering on Mackenzie. The chain around his neck was the other half of a matching set to the one Mackenzie had recently started wearing. That weekend, I told her I was going out shopping, but instead, I staked out a spot near our apartment building. Soon enough, a sleek sports car, utterly out of place in our rundown neighborhood, pulled up to the curb. Scott’s car. Mackenzie got in. I broke down and cried like a child. 4 I wasn’t angry. I was just heartbroken. Desperate. It was my fault. I was useless, so my wife had been lured away by the glittering world outside our cramped apartment. I knew I could make a scene. I could scream at her for betraying me, for wasting my youth. But what good would that do? Mackenzie was a kind woman. She was beautiful, and she had spent the best years of her life with me. Waking up to her face every morning, sleeping next to her perfect body—it was the greatest happiness I had ever known. What right did I have to resent her? Besides, she was too good. I couldn’t bring myself to blame her. I told myself that real love means forgiving everything. It means only blaming yourself. It means always feeling like you owe the other person more. I should be the one to set her free. A woman as beautiful as her was always destined to fly away from my impoverished nest. Like a flawless diamond, she was never meant to stay in a shack for long. It was fate. 5 But I couldn’t let go. What if Scott got bored of her? What if he cast her aside, and I had already divorced her? Wouldn’t she be all alone, feeling like the whole world had abandoned her? So I stalled, pretending I knew nothing. Until one night, I worked late and got home around 9 PM. There, right under the flickering streetlight in front of our building, I saw them. Mackenzie and Scott, locked in a deep, searing kiss. My mind went blank. I just stood there, frozen. My heart ached. My wife. I was destined to lose you. Mackenzie saw me. Her eyes, wide with shock, met mine. It hit me then. I’d forgotten to tell her I was working late. She must have thought I was already home. Damn. So much for plausible deniability. The sadness was overwhelming. Scott, however, didn’t flinch. Just as you’d expect from an heir. Cool as a cucumber, even in the face of disaster. I had to learn from him. 6 I walked forward, my voice booming with forced enthusiasm. “Sis! Bro! You guys out for a walk too?” Scott stared at me, completely bewildered. “What did you just call her?” I wiped a tear from my eye and said with utter sincerity, “Bro, this is my big sister.” Scott burst out laughing. He laughed so hard tears streamed down his face. To be so relaxed in the middle of a scene like this… I was genuinely envious. Mackenzie was still looking at me with a tragic expression, as if she’d been forced into this. “You’re a real piece of work,” Scott said, still chuckling. I shook my head quickly. “Bro, I’m just a poor guy.” Scott leaned in and gave Mackenzie another quick, possessive kiss. He was handsome, effortlessly charming. Mackenzie, pale and beautiful, looked stunning even in her distress. A perfect picture. She was being kissed by another man. And deep down, I felt a strange flicker of pride. That’s my wife. Good enough to be poached by the best. Scott got in his car and drove off. Even the exhaust fumes smelled like money. 7 Back in the apartment, Mackenzie stood before me, her eyes red. “I’m sorry, Leo. I was vain. I couldn’t resist the temptation.” Seeing her tear herself apart like that broke my heart. When you truly love someone, you have to think about their long-term happiness. I took her hands in mine. Her fingers were long, pale, and warm. I’d always loved holding her hand, loved the feel of her hands on me. She was perfect. I couldn’t even hate her. We sat down on the sofa together, and I apologized to her. “I’m the one who should be sorry. I couldn’t make enough money to give you a good life. Marrying me has made you suffer.” She shook her head. “No, it’s my fault. I have no ambition. I said I was studying for my certification exams, but I just went shopping and wasted time. I failed you.” “You’re so beautiful,” I argued. “If you hadn’t married a broke guy like me, you wouldn’t need to study for anything. It’s all because I’m useless.” We went back and forth like this for ten minutes. I realized it would never end if I didn’t stop it. “Mackenzie,” I said, my voice firm. “We need to talk.” 8 When we were young, we thought love was all we needed. Now, we had love, but our life was a constant struggle. My worldview had been shattered. I looked at her and said, “Mackenzie, since Scott likes you, you should be with him. He’s handsome, and I can tell he really cares about you. I’d feel better knowing you were with him.” She shook her head, tears welling up. “The one I truly love is you. Him… he… he spent so much money on me. Every time I was in trouble, he was the one who solved it… I just couldn’t resist…” She explained everything. Her father’s gambling debt—fifty thousand dollars that Scott had paid off. Her mother’s surgery—Scott had loaned her the money without a second thought. He was a good guy. He never forced her; he just gave and gave. Mackenzie had told me about her parents’ problems before. At the time, I felt like my world was collapsing. Not only could I not help, but my own negativity had made things worse. I had seen her parents as a burden. She was so kind, always thinking of others. We only had three thousand dollars in savings. It was nothing, but if she had given it to her parents, I would have been heartbroken. So she didn’t touch it. After that, I just buried my head in the sand and pretended nothing had happened. I was such a coward. Not long after, Mackenzie had told me cheerfully that her family matters were resolved. She even apologized for making me worry. I never knew it was Scott who had helped her. Comparing myself to him, the difference was stark. I was ashamed. “You don’t have to explain. I get it. I want you to have a good life. If he can make things easier for you, you should be with him. I love you, and that means I want you to be happy.” Mackenzie stared at me, stunned. The look on her face was killing me. I pulled her onto my lap. “Let’s get a divorce tomorrow. If he ever dumps you, you come back to me, and we’ll get remarried.” “Tonight… can you be with me one last time?” Mackenzie was silent. 9 I eventually convinced her. We went and signed the divorce papers. I told her she should let Scott know. His reply was a string of “hahahahaha.” I was starting to notice that was his favorite response. After we got the papers, I went back to work as usual. My mind was a mess of conflicting emotions. Happiness, because Mackenzie had found someone who could take care of her. Sadness, because I had lost her. Panic. My wife, who had been poor with me, was about to become rich. I was still a nobody. I felt the terror of being left behind. And grief. My love story had lost its battle with reality, and I had been the one to surrender. I was about to cry at my desk when I got a friend request on my phone. The profile picture was Scott’s confident, arrogant face. 10 I accepted immediately. I wondered what he could possibly want with me. He sent a single message: “Be at the realty office on Park Ave this afternoon. I’m gifting you a Manhattan co-op.” I rubbed my eyes again and again, making sure I wasn’t dreaming. Then I immediately sent him three bowing-and-scraping emojis. I quickly typed: “Bro, you’re too good to me! I freaking love you, man! Seriously, thank you! Your new brother-in-law won’t cause any trouble, I promise. My sister is amazing, but if she ever steps out of line, you just tell me, and I’ll set her straight. Oh man, am I texting too much? Sorry, you’re busy. I’ll be there on time. Bro, anything you need, just say the word. By the way, I’ve already packed her stuff. Should I drop it off at your place?” Scott replied with another long string of “hahahahahahahaha…” I took that as a good sign. So I texted my now ex-wife: “Sis, should I bring your luggage over to your new place?” Mackenzie: “No need. I’ve got it.” I was so jealous. That afternoon, I took my documents to the realty office and signed the papers for my very own place in New York City. 11 I started sending Scott two messages a day. In the morning: “Good morning, my Prince. A new day has dawned. Your humble servant is online and awaiting your command. Love ya, love ya, love ya!” Accompanied by a heart-eyes emoji. At night: “Good night, my Prince. Hope you have sweet dreams. Call me if you need anything. Your digital valet is always on standby.” I used to call him “bro,” but one day he said, “Calling me ‘bro’ makes me feel old.” So, I switched to “my Prince.” My devotion paid off. On the 19th day of my one-sided morning and evening greetings, he sent me a hotel address and a room number. He wanted me to buy him condoms. His exact word was: “rubbers.” You need a certain amount of life experience to understand slang like that. I shot out of bed like a rocket and raced to the pharmacy. I bought every brand, every size, every style. On my way to the hotel, I sorted them into different categories and even bought some emergency contraceptives, just in case. Safety first.

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While invigilating the college entrance exam, I suddenly went blind. After being rushed to the hospital, the doctor said no cause could be found. Because of blindness, my teaching career ended, and I was forced to learn blind massage to make a living. One day while working, two customers were talking, “That female teacher went blind at such a good time back then. While she couldn’t see, I secretly copied an answer to a multiple-choice question, exactly scoring two points higher, directly exceeding the first-tier score line that year. It’s been more than twenty years, don’t know how she is now. First High School, 2025, Exam Room 28, my youth.” The man next to him had a hoarse voice: “I’m clear about the reason she went blind. The murderer was right in the exam room.” I held my breath listening to their conversation, but after a few minutes of silence, a cold dagger was pressed against my neck. Opening my eyes again, I was reborn in the college entrance exam room twenty years ago. Looking around, I seemed to have locked onto the murderer. … 1 At this moment, I looked incredulously at myself reborn in the exam room, Where my gaze reached was clear and bright, Recalling what that man said before I died, I kept muttering in my heart, the murderer… who exactly is the murderer… And before I finally went blind, Who killed me? But before I had a chance to dwell, the familiar exam bell rang. Another teacher’s devil-like high heels sounded, step by step making me panic. Ten more minutes, and the me in the previous life would have darkness before my eyes. No, I absolutely cannot take such a risk again. But what if I fake illness and leave, and it happens to another teacher? Couldn’t care about disrupting order anymore. I shouted loudly: “Don’t invigilate in this exam room. The teacher invigilating here is very likely to be blinded by a student.” But immediately, I was taken away by the police for disrupting the exam room order. The moment I got into the police car, I breathed a sigh of relief. Let fate decide what happens next. Inside the school, the police interrogated me at a temporary point, Asking me why exactly I disrupted the exam room order. “We have conducted a secondary search on the candidates at the test center and found no abnormal items. What is your intention in slandering the students?” Because I was dazed thinking, the table in front of me was knocked violently by the police. I answered calmly: “That’s because before entering the exam room, I heard a student at the door saying it would be good if the teacher went blind,” “Because being blinded by a student while invigilating is too unworthy.” Obviously, the police were not satisfied with my explanation, “This kind of talk sounds like a joke. You are a teacher, how could you believe such words.” “This time, count yourself lucky. The exam hasn’t started yet. If you disrupt during the exam, wait to eat prison food.” Finally, I entered the blacklist of invigilators, Work might also be affected, However, compared to going blind, this is not worth mentioning. When being driven out of the school gate by the police, I still added a sentence: “Officer, what if what they said is true? If a teacher really goes blind, the loss outweighs the gain. You must investigate properly.” “Talk nonsense again, and I’ll arrest you directly.” Coming out of the school, I felt refreshed and went straight to the ophthalmology department, but received the same reply as in my previous life. “Your fundus retina is very healthy, and there is not even a bit of myopia or astigmatism, The sudden blindness you mentioned is impossible to happen.” I sat in the crowded hospital, Watching blind people navigating with canes. Thinking of my previous life, after going blind, not only did I lose the job I got through hard work in the civil service exam. But I was also dumped by my fiancé. I had no way to make money and went to learn blind massage. Often encountered wretched customers exposing disgusting parts for me to touch. Fortunately, I was reborn. At this moment, my eyes can measure this world clearly again. But the next second, crying at the entrance of the ophthalmology department attracted my attention, The female teacher from the same exam room was supported into the gate of the ophthalmology department. In the consulting room, she described her condition to the doctor: “Doctor, I was invigilating fine in the exam room, and suddenly I couldn’t see. My eyes are usually fine. What exactly is the reason?” 2 After some examination, the doctor sighed: “There is no problem with the fundus retina and cornea. We also can’t figure out why you can’t see now.” I froze in place, hands trembling uncontrollably, That female teacher from the same exam room actually went blind too. Why? I clearly already intimidated the murderer, How did he still dare. The doctor sat by the instrument muttering: “Strange, just now a lady also came for a check-up and asked me if sudden blindness would happen if there were no problems with the eyes.” Next second, the doctor discovered me and called my name. After realizing it was me, that teacher questioned loudly: “Are you the teacher from the same exam room just now? Did you come for a check-up because your eyes also went blind? You warned me in the exam room just now, do you know something? Which student wants to harm me?” Facing the other party’s questioning, I thought, if I said I was reborn, She would definitely not believe it. I moved out the rhetoric used to deal with the police just now: “Before the exam started, I seemed to hear a student at the door saying it would be good if the teacher went blind. But because there were too many students at the door, I only knew they all entered this exam room in the end, didn’t know specifically which one.” “I am timid, so I believed it. But looking at it now…” The blind female teacher was very excited: “Investigate! Must investigate! Who exactly used crooked ways on me!” I breathed a sigh of relief. As long as this matter blows up, there is a possibility of a thorough investigation. Unfortunately in my previous life, I didn’t wait for the chance to investigate at all, When I requested an investigation, parents rose against me: “You are ruining our children’s reputation. Being investigated by you, how can they go to college?” “Moreover, you yourself can’t find the cause. Who knows if you have physical defects? Pushing it onto children is a bit too nasty.” But in this life, protesting together with this teacher, Will definitely attract the attention of the police. Most importantly, I remember that person’s voice, As long as he speaks in front of me, I can find the murderer. I accompanied that female teacher to the police station to explain the situation. But the police checked again, candidates on the scene were already very dissatisfied, And still no abnormalities were found. “Wait until the exam officially ends in three days to investigate. Can’t affect the exam now.” But because of the inspection team suddenly thoroughly investigating students, Rumors flew everywhere, “Why only spot check students in our exam room? Who is suspected of cheating?” “What cheating? It has to do with that blind female teacher. Guessing now suspecting who among us poisoned the teacher.” I withdrew from this invigilation by lying about being sick. In the next three days, my eyes never had any abnormal conditions. Unfortunately, I learned that the teacher was close to collapse because she couldn’t see, She was an art teacher, But now let alone painting, even her own life is hard to guarantee. Like me in the previous life, Did various checks in three days, but running through major hospitals, still only got one sentence, no reason. Fortunately, the college entrance exam finally ended, As students gradually dispersed, I nervously opened the door of a room, 30 candidates gathered in one room. The police and the blind female teacher had been waiting for me for a while. “So you said, you heard a student say that day it would be good if the teacher went blind, right?” I nodded, “I remember his voice. It was a boy.” The boys in the audience were in an uproar. “All boys, line up, hold this printed paper, and read it to this teacher.” “Don’t be nervous, and don’t try to change your voice.” As students lined up one by one, finished reading, left, I held my breath, trying to find the voice that surrounded my ears at the last moment before I died. But as the last boy finished reading the last word on the paper. My heart sank to the bottom, I didn’t hear the voices of those two men from the previous life at all, More than twenty years, even if the voice changes, the tone and way of speaking will also have similarities. Being blind for so many years, I have long practiced the ability to recognize people by voice. When I closed my eyes and listened for the second time, I really found a loophole. There was a boy who deliberately changed his voice line, It was the boy who copied the multiple-choice question. Following the vine to get the melon, can also find the other boy. “I remember you seemed to talk to that boy at that time.” Hearing me say this, the blind female teacher was exceptionally excited: “Good, how exactly did you harm me to blindness? Must explain clearly to the police.” But after questioning, concluded that this child didn’t know anyone in this exam room. “Teacher, I really didn’t do anything, didn’t talk to anyone either. I just took advantage of that teacher going blind to copy an answer to a multiple-choice question.” As he explained, he was directly taken away by the inspection team, According to what he said in the previous life, he indeed wasn’t the murderer, It’s also possible that he didn’t know that person yet. At this moment, the most fatal thing is, where exactly is that person? 3 “Who exactly is this person? Why harm me to blindness? No enmity no grievance. Even if I go blind, there will be a new teacher to replace, still can’t copy,” Over there, the blind teacher was close to collapse again. She actually knelt down directly. “I beg you, tell me, how exactly did you harm me to blindness? As long as you tell the reason and cure me, I won’t pursue your responsibility at all. I still have children, give me a way to live.” This emotion, I can experience personally incomparably. Suddenly I recalled, when I was massaging that person, I once felt a small meat ball on the back of his neck. Next, ignoring everyone’s gaze, I directly and quickly pulled every boy and checked everyone’s neck. And with a shock in my chest, I closed my eyes, carefully stroking the meat ball exposed in my sight, Exactly the same as touched in the previous life. Facing the police, I reprimanded directly “It’s this boy. The person talking then was you, right.” “Quickly say, what exactly did you do? How exactly did you poison the teacher?” I questioned loudly, hands grabbing his shoulders trembling constantly, And face flushed, eyes teary, No one understood why my reaction was so big at this moment, But just when the police were about to interrogate him, He smiled evilly at me, mouthing: “Don’t think about knowing who the murderer is.” Then ignoring everyone’s shocked gaze, He rushed directly out of the room door, then jumped vigorously from the fifth-floor window. With a thud, he fell head first, Breathing stopped on the spot. Candidate suicide, this matter caused a stir. Police began to thoroughly investigate this case. But visiting the deceased’s home, his parents were both farmers, honest and dutiful, Most fatally, besides studying, Julian Zhou didn’t even have friends, Social circle clean, harm motive, clues, none at all. Regarding Julian Zhou as the murderer harming the female teacher, Even the motive for the crime couldn’t be written. But due to Julian Zhou’s abnormal behavior, the police still listed Julian Zhou as the first suspect. Because of losing the only son, Julian Zhou’s parents cried to heaven and earth, demanding I must give an explanation. “Julian Zhou studied hard for so many years, finally waited for the college entrance exam. Our whole family was waiting for the child to get into a good university. Just because of your one sentence, forced my child to death alive.” “You say, how did my child poison? In the exam room surveillance, my son didn’t have any abnormal behavior from beginning to end. Where exactly did he hinder your way.” Parents ran to my house to make a scene, But I remembered the name Julian Zhou, exactly the top scorer of the college entrance exam in the previous life. A top scorer, what exactly was he trying to hide, to not hesitate to jump off the building directly. But if he wasn’t the murderer, who exactly killed me in the room then, I suddenly thought of something, I can’t rely on what I heard, To judge the truth of the matter. What if, that child who said he just copied the multiple-choice answer lied. But the police contacted me at this time, The review for another candidate, Sean Qin, ended here. “Investigations these days, apart from him indeed glancing at someone else’s paper, there was no violation of rules in the exam room. That subject’s score has been voided.” “But if Julian Zhou is the murderer harming the teacher to blindness, we are also a bit confused, because there was no contradiction between the two, didn’t even meet. Why would a student who studied hard for years and finally could land do this.” I tried my best to prevent tragedy, but it still developed to this step, Disappointment in heart couldn’t be stopped, I came to the blind female teacher’s residence again. Her husband opened the door, As soon as I entered the room, she sat on the sofa with disheveled hair. Obviously completely defeated by blindness. Hearing my voice, she was emotional first. “Why exactly did he harm me? What exactly did I do! Now I can’t even see, what’s the difference from a useless person.” The child aside wanted to comfort mom, but was directly thrown off. “Get lost.” The child was scared crying loudly, My heart was uncomfortably sad. This feeling once followed me like a shadow, If not for rebirth, I would still be living painfully now. I hated the murderer again in my heart. Why exactly did he do this? After comforting Lydia Li for a while, I prepared to go home. But when going down to the unit entrance, I seemed to see a somewhat familiar figure. After blinking, it disappeared. Didn’t think much. After arriving at the door, I unpacked all the piled express delivery. Cardboard boxes were thrown directly into the corridor trash can. The weather was a bit hot. The sun outside was just right, When washing hands after unpacking express delivery, I washed my face by the way. But after wiping my face clean with a facial tissue, Opening my eyes again, darkness before my eyes. 4 I went blind again. Inside the hospital, after various instrument checks, I got the exact same reply again: “No reason, cause of blindness unknown.” However in this life, I haven’t been so collapsed anymore. Compared to my blindness, the most important thing is, The case began to become confusing again, Originally everyone had determined that Julian Zhou was the murderer. But now Julian Zhou is dead, yet I went blind again, Does it mean there is another murderer staring at me covetously where I can’t see. I proficiently picked up the blind cane. Returned home immediately. And when I touched inside the corridor trash can, the cardboard boxes I just threw three hours ago Were all gone. Uncle Li who collects garbage said he hadn’t come to take garbage today, Our building is full of young people, no one would take these cardboard boxes. So, I told this suspicious point to the police immediately. Police directly pulled the trash can away for testing, Also began to investigate all personnel entry and exit of the community today. Lydia Li rushed to my house immediately after learning I went blind. After my questioning, She recalled carefully, she once picked up a pen for a girl in class before going blind. “At that time not long after the exam started, a girl’s pen rolled to the position of the front few tables. After I helped her pick it up, she asked me directly to put the pen on her table.” “And!” Lydia Li was emotional, As if remembering something. “I remember, until I went blind, she seemed not to have touched that pen.” My expression solemn, continued questioning. “After picking up the pen, did you rub your eyes or wipe your face.” “Mm-hmm, I do have the habit of touching pimples, and there was indeed a pimple around the eye that day.” I recalled the previous life, The plot I encountered with Lydia Li was exactly the same, picked up a pen for a girl, Then probably there were problems with the pen and express delivery. “I remember clearly, that girl sat at number 25 in the first exam.” Inside the police station, Lydia Li and I heard that girl’s voice again. “Are the teachers saying there is a problem with my pen?” “This is my pencil case. All pens are inside.” The girl’s voice sounded a bit nervous. However, a girl of this age, suddenly summoned to the police station, being nervous is also normal. As the pen was taken away for testing, The police told me, those cardboard boxes I threw in the trash can were found. They were picked away by an auntie from the next building, Now sent for inspection together with the pen. The auntie doesn’t have any abnormal conditions now, can see Eyes also checked, very normal. Lydia Li and I held hands tightly. Anxiously waiting for the test results to come out. But the result shocked us both. No toxic substances on cardboard boxes, Neither on the pen. Lydia Li collapsed crying after knowing. “Is the pen already cleaned by you? Are my eyes blinded by you? You hurry tell me the reason for my blindness.” But the girl was scared crying loudly, Police could only send us two to separate isolation rooms first. Compared to Lydia Li’s collapse, I recalled in my brain again, Until I remembered another suspicious point. When I went home entering password lock, I seemed to touch some particle-like substances on the screen. But I didn’t think much, thought it was dust. Could it be… After I reported, the police inspected again immediately. And this time, finally didn’t disappoint us. A harmful substance was indeed detected on the lock, Although it had volatilized almost completely, causing no harm to human body, but after experimenting on mice, Mice still lost partial vision, while checking through instruments, eyes had no abnormalities. “This kind of poison looks very much like specially developed. Never seen this kind of poison.” Police investigated all surveillance videos in the community, but didn’t see any unidentified personnel entering or leaving at all, My lock, the ground at the door, even the whole building, had no suspicious footprints or unidentified fingerprints. Being able to poison the lock under this situation, Could it be a resident of this building committed the crime, But no enmity no grievance, what exactly for. All delivery guys, takeout guys were also investigated once, No motive or behavior for crime. But, if I lost vision because of poison on door lock. Then what about Lydia Li? At this time I suddenly recalled the familiar figure seen downstairs of Lydia Li’s unit.

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Genevieve and I were at City Hall, one signature—one final photo—away from legally becoming husband and wife, when her phone rang, and she was gone. She left me standing alone in the Marriage License Office, paralyzed and staring at the photographer’s empty backdrop. I called her phone. No answer. I sent a text. Nothing back. Finally, I called her childhood best friend’s number. Genevieve answered. “Liam, can you stop being so annoying? Brand twisted his ankle playing hoops, and I need to take him home and ice it down. Don’t keep calling and waking him up! We can just reschedule, okay?” My voice was a rough whisper. “This is the seventh time, Genevieve.” “So what? The office isn’t going anywhere!” A clerk looked at me with pity. “Sir, are you still going through with this?” I nodded, feeling the floor shift beneath me. “Yes. I am.” 1 I called my buddy’s older sister, a woman I’d met exactly once, and agreed to her outrageous proposition. I hung up, told the clerk I needed a few minutes, and stood there, the silence in my head deafening. It wasn’t long before Zara arrived. She rode a sleek, black Ducati, and when she walked in, peeling off her leather jacket and helmet, the entire office—staff and all—stared. She walked straight to me, hooked one long leg over the other, and grinned. “So, you finally decided? Ready to go through with this whole fake-marriage-to-shut-up-our-families thing?” I gave a small, defeated nod. It was initially just about getting my family off my back, but honestly, the most crucial part was Grandpa George. His health had been failing fast for the last six months, and every time I visited him in the hospital, he would ask when I was getting married. He wanted to see me in a tux. He wanted to know I’d be safe. He wanted to know someone would ‘cherish’ me after he was gone. That’s why I had been pushing Genevieve so hard to marry me all these months. We’d shown up here, at this very office, seven times. Every single time, Brand was the reason for the failure. The last time, Brand had a migraine, and she had to go home to make sure he took his meds. The time before that, Brand lost his keys and was locked out, and she had to drive across town to let him in. The time before that, Brand was craving the signature Lobster Roll from The Pier Cafe—clear on the other side of the city—and she had to rush to stand in line. Seven times. Every single one for Brand. Every single time, Genevieve threw me away without a second thought. The final, bitter irony? I gave her seven chances, and she wouldn’t even give me the five minutes it took to snap the photo. To be honest, I wasn’t that heartbroken by Genevieve’s final exit. Maybe I was just numb, or maybe I’d seen it coming. But the raw, physical grief hit me when I remembered Grandpa’s words from last week. “Liam, I don’t think I have much time left. I might not see you in that tuxedo. But even if you’re alone, you have to be brave. Don’t let anyone step all over you.” I had promised him I would be brave. And that meant no more compromises. Genevieve, you used up all your chances. All seven of them. The process with Zara was disturbingly quick. Everything went smoothly. But just as Zara and I were getting ready for our official photo, my phone buzzed. It was Genevieve. [Okay, Liam, stop being mad. I really couldn’t get away this time, but I made you your favorite dinner. Waiting for you when you get home! xoxo] Zara glanced at my phone, a look of cool detachment in her eyes. “Still going to do this?” I took a deep breath, my face blank. “Keep going.” We finished the paperwork. We took the picture. We walked out with a marriage certificate in my hand. Before she started her bike, I spoke. “Are you free tomorrow? There’s one more thing I need you to come with me for.” Zara swung her leg over the Ducati’s seat. “Call me. I’m sure my parents will need you to make an appearance sooner than you think.” Then, she was gone. Seven years of dating Genevieve—four years in college, three years after. A lifetime of history, broken. And now, I was married to my buddy’s sister, a woman I had met once. On the drive home, Genevieve sent another message, complete with a photo: the dining table laden with all the food she’d promised. [Seriously, where are you? Dinner’s ready. If you’re late, it’ll be gone!] She was true to her word. When I got back to the apartment, the dining table was a disaster. The food was scraped clean. Brand was sitting nearby, looking up at me with fake innocence. He spoke in a high, pitiful tone. “I’m so sorry, bro. I was just so hungry, I couldn’t wait.” Even I wasn’t stupid enough to miss the blatant smirk underneath the veneer of apology. He was provoking me. My blood turned to ice. I clenched my fists until my nails dug painfully into my palms. Brand and Genevieve were inseparable childhood friends. In her eyes, he was always the highest priority. It wasn’t always this way. In the beginning, our relationship had been easy. We rarely fought. Even when it was my fault, she’d take the blame immediately. My friends envied me for having a woman who cherished me that much. That envy ended six months ago, the day Brand showed up. Her affection for me vanished. “Liam, why are you just now getting back? I texted you hours ago.” Genevieve emerged from the kitchen, her eyebrows knitted in annoyance. She was used to me dropping everything and racing home the second she called. “I was delayed with something on the road. I’m late.” “What was so important that you missed dinner?” Her tone was flat, but edged with accusation. I had no intention of telling her about the marriage. I had decided to leave, and from this moment forward, Genevieve was a stranger. I was here for one thing: my luggage. “Nothing. The company needs me to travel. I’m here to pack my bags.” I didn’t wait for her response and walked straight to the bedroom. But the moment I opened the door, I froze. The bed I had neatly made that morning was tossed. The closet was open, clothes piled everywhere. I could ignore all that. But on the floor, next to the nightstand, lay the hand-built replica of the Empire State Building Grandpa and I spent months piecing together—the one he gave me. It was snapped clean in half. Shards of the plastic frame littered the rug. I couldn’t hold it in. I shouted her name. “Who was in this room? Who touched my things?” Genevieve walked in, frowned, and then shrugged, her face smoothing into indifference. “It’s just some craft project, Liam. I’ll get someone to glue it back together for you.” I stared at her. That careless tone—it was the exact sound of someone saying, you don’t matter. And because of that, I knew it had to be Brand. Only he was worthy of her complete, irrational protection. “Brand broke it, didn’t he.” My calm question ignited her. She immediately flared up, eyes narrowed. “Do you have proof it was Brand? Maybe it wasn’t secured properly and just fell over!” “Don’t you dare accuse people, Liam! Before you blame Brand, you need evidence, or I’ll sue you for defamation!” The soft flesh inside my cheek was almost chewed through. The sharp, metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. She was truly going to protect him. I was the one who was defamed, just for asking a simple question. The Genevieve I loved wasn’t like this. I remembered the rainy night I fell for her. I’d been in a car accident, and she’d run to me, without an umbrella, yelling at the other driver. This reserved woman had shed every ounce of composure for me, fighting anyone who threatened me. Where was that Genevieve? I didn’t fight it. As she said, I had no proof. I knelt down carefully, gathering the broken pieces of the skyscraper. Brand hobbled in from the doorway, his voice thick with fake tears. “Brother, please don’t fight with Genevieve because of me!” “Even if I didn’t do it, if you have to blame me, then blame me. No one ever liked me anyway, so it’s normal for you not to like me.” He intentionally limped closer and then knelt down in front of me. He pressed his bandaged foot onto one of the larger fragments and twisted it slowly. He leaned in, his voice dangerously low. “Yeah, it was me. What are you going to do?” Rage exploded in my skull, and I lunged, reaching to push him away. But before I even touched him, Brand conveniently stumbled, collapsing onto the ground. His wrapped foot then precisely hit the nightstand. A scream followed immediately. “Brother! I only wanted to help you!” Before I could process any of it, Genevieve had me by the hair. She was holding me with a grip I’d never felt, her eyes wide and terrifying, burning with a hatred that felt murderous. “Even if you don’t like Brand, you don’t have to hurt him! He’s an injured patient!” My head was yanked up, forcing me to look at them. A crushing bitterness spread from my tongue, tearing holes in my chest. “I didn’t even touch him!” The slap hit me across the face before I could finish the sentence. The red mark was instant. “You’re still lying? Liam, do you think I’m blind? I was standing right behind you! I saw you push him!” “First you accuse him, and now you knock him down. I never knew you were this cruel. You’re malicious!” My breath caught. I couldn’t argue. Nothing I said would change her mind now. She released me and looked down at me with cold disappointment. “No excuse, huh, Liam? You’re disgusting.” I felt a strange sense of relief. If I’d held onto one last flicker of hope for her, it had just been extinguished. Everything was quiet now. I didn’t defend myself. I didn’t try to explain. Brand, nestled in Genevieve’s arms, looked at me with smug victory. He mouthed one sentence, but I understood perfectly. “You’ll never be good enough for Genevieve.” Fine. You can have her. Genevieve panicked over Brand’s foot and rushed him to the hospital. I slowly stood up. The reflection in the mirror showed the angry, burning red of the handprint on my cheek. I could tell how much force she had used. I laughed, a dry, bitter sound, and wiped the slow bleed from the corner of my mouth. That slap shattered every illusion I’d ever held. I used the quiet time to gather everything in the apartment. All my clothes went into the suitcase. Anything I couldn’t take, I tossed into the trash. Before I left, I called a real estate agent and listed the house online. It was mine. Grandpa George had used his retirement savings to buy it for me as a wedding gift. Now, I didn’t need it. Dirty things. And I was done living in filth.

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