Category: English

Got married five years ago, and it took 99 requests before my husband finally agreed to a wedding ceremony. But that night, a fire broke out. I was nearly blinded by the smoke, suffered severe organ damage, and my daughter was critically burned and fell into a coma. Declan, devastated, rushed us to the hospital and ensured the arsonist was put behind bars. When I regained consciousness, I anxiously inquired about my daughter’s condition, only to accidentally overhear a conversation between the doctor and Declan in the adjacent room. “There’s still a chance to treat Ms. Cora and the child now. If you wait any longer, Ms. Cora might remain blind forever, and your daughter could die. She’s your own flesh and blood. Is risking so much worth it just for a ceremony for Adeline?” “The daughter isn’t particularly lovable, and there will be other children. If she’s blind, she won’t have to witness the wedding, which might prevent unnecessary complications.” “Adeline did me a great favor in the past. I just want to fulfill her last wish so her child won’t be labeled illegitimate. If our daughter dies and Ms. Cora goes blind, she’ll have to focus on taking care of Adeline’s child.” It turned out, an event I had longed for was so easily attainable for others. Over the years, what I thought was a happy home was actually a dark, damp prison. If that’s the case, then I should leave. 0

“Enough talk. Arrange the kidney transplant surgery as soon as possible. Adeline can’t wait any longer. I don’t want her to continue suffering. Increase the anesthesia to ensure Ms. Cora doesn’t wake up and find out.” The doctor hesitated momentarily but carefully replied, “The kidney can wait a bit longer. What if there’s a way to achieve both goals?” “But Adeline can’t wait! I can’t bear to see her undergoing dialysis frequently. That beauty-loving girl has lost all her hair.” “Then the scars from the transplant will eventually be seen. What will you say to Ms. Cora if your daughter really dies? She loves kids so much…” “Then burn that patch of skin, and she’ll think it’s from the fire. I’ll tell her medical technology was limited, and we weren’t meant to be with the child. I’ll adopt Adeline’s son to divert her attention.” I pinched my thigh hard to keep from crying and shakily took out my phone to record. The doctor listened with a slight frown, his tone mixed with reluctance: “Think about it again. Ms. Cora is already blind, and her future life will be inconvenient. If the child dies and she loses a kidney, not only will it be hard to get pregnant, but just an infection could be fatal.” Declan sighed, sounding helpless: “I’ll find the best medical team to keep her alive for the rest of her life. There’ll be children in the future. I can’t just watch Adeline’s last wish go unfulfilled.” “She saved me before. I owe her. Whatever she and her child want, I must give them. Little Cora loves me so much; she’ll surely support me.” The doctor shook his head slightly with regret. Before leaving, I heard him mutter, “As long as you don’t regret it, I hope Ms. Cora’s love won’t be exhausted.” On this side, Declan took out his phone and made a call, speaking seriously: “Compensate the arsonist nanny well and let her live in a different city or country after her release. I don’t want any news reaching Ms. Cora’s ears.” I slumped inside the ward door. Even though the physical pain was overwhelming, the heartbreak was worse, and tears flowed uncontrollably. The person who should’ve been my closest companion now seemed so unfamiliar, whether it was tears blurring my eyes or smoke from the fire. Hearing footsteps approaching outside, I shakily stood up, put away my phone, ignored the blood seeping from the scars on my body, and lay down on the bed. Thinking of my severely burned daughter, whose condition was still unknown, I felt a dull ache in my chest that wouldn’t go away. Such a beauty-loving little girl, how could she face disfigurement and pain alone? I covered my painful chest, suppressing the nausea rising in my throat, but couldn’t stop the tears soaking the sheets. That fire was orchestrated by the man I was so proud of. My daughter and I were just sacrifices paving the way for his beloved. Adeline’s last wish was paramount to him, while my daughter’s and my life meant nothing. These seven years of marriage were nothing but a joke. 0

Still engulfed in sadness, a pair of warm hands gently wiped away my tears and pulled me into an embrace. “Don’t be scared. I’m here. Is your wound still hurting? I had the doctor prepare a special painkiller for you.” “I found a top doctor who can perform skin graft surgery. You’ll get your beautiful body back. Just sleep a bit, and you’ll be as good as new.” I felt the warmth of his embrace, just like every time he comforted me when I was upset before. But now, all I felt was coldness, and the man before me seemed unfamiliar. Taking a deep breath, I looked at him earnestly: “Declan, will I really go back to how I was before? Will I see again? Where’s our Phoebe? I…” I still wanted to test the importance of my daughter and me in his heart, hoping for a bit of conscience to save us. But I was wrong. The next moment, I felt his body stiffen, and he interrupted me harshly: “Enough. You’re a mother now. We’ve been married for so long. Don’t you trust me? Do you still think you’re a beauty-loving little girl? Don’t let Phoebe learn your vanity.” Seeing my pale face, he finally realized his harsh tone. He gently stroked my hair: “Don’t worry. I’m here. I won’t abandon you. Be brave for Phoebe, alright?” Can sleeping really make everything disappear? No, waking up will only bring more sorrow and deceit. I closed my eyes, feeling his kiss on my forehead. Then, from somewhere, a needle pierced my body, and my consciousness blurred. The bright lights above shone, causing my already blurry eyes discomfort. At that moment, I could only feel the blood leaving my body, the cold machines working inside, and the smell of burning flesh entering my nose. Beside me seemed to be another person undergoing surgery, radiating happiness. I knew that was Adeline, the next owner of my kidney. Tears involuntarily flowed again. The surgery went well. My waist and abdomen were wrapped in heavy bandages, just like the heavy barriers in our relationship. “Cora, you’re really brave. Tell me what you want, and I’ll make it happen. Be careful of wound infection.” “Our Phoebe would be proud of her mom if she knew. By the way, I adopted a child named Milo. He’s a little man too. We’ll always be here with you, giving you strength.” Now, he couldn’t wait to announce Milo’s identity in front of me. The happiness surrounding him was probably because they were reunited as a family. Once, I’d have thought he was a reliable husband, felt happiness in the family. But now, I only sensed his uncertain tone and that coldness. Turns out, love and indifference are so obvious. I was not just blind but also blind in heart, ignoring the deceit. 0

Maybe the medication hadn’t worn off. I drifted into a deep sleep as soon as I closed my eyes. When I woke again, I was alone. I got up, enduring the excruciating pain in my abdomen, to find my daughter’s ward. But the laughter from the next ward caught my attention. In the blur, I saw Declan affectionately holding a boy, gently caressing the face of a woman on the bed. “Adeline, everything’s over. You’ll soon be fine. Milo and I will protect you. Don’t worry; I’ll treat him as my own.” “I’ve invited your favorite designer from Country A to design your wedding dress. The jewelry I ventured to Africa for will be yours. I’ll give you the best of everything.” “You said you like a seaside villa. I bought one for you and your son. Later, I’ll take Milo to the amusement park. Don’t worry; we’ll bring back your favorite Dorayaki…” He meticulously planned their future, so tenderly and lovingly. Turns out he wasn’t a dull man. In these seven years, on every anniversary, he wasn’t home, nor did he prepare gifts, but he remembered everything about Adeline and Milo. I once cried and argued, but he said long-married couples didn’t need so many ceremonies. Even the most important wedding in life, he kept delaying. I just wasn’t worthy. He wasn’t busy but took the time to go to the amusement park. Once on Phoebe’s birthday, she asked him to join, but he claimed no interest. He was with someone else. The three of them, close and planning their future, even sneaked kisses when the child wasn’t looking. Adeline blushed and playfully scolded him. Each scene stabbed my heart. Without lingering, I called my mentor to help treat me and my child and to train me in acupuncture and traditional medicine. My mentor was overjoyed, repeatedly saying “good,” and began preparing to welcome me. I also bought two tickets for the wedding day, as a final farewell. As I walked, I finally found my daughter’s ward. Even with my blurred vision, I could see the girl wrapped in bandages, quietly lying on the bed. Her breathing was weak as if she might vanish at any moment. At that moment, I gently held Phoebe’s hand and finally couldn’t hold back, bursting into tears. I didn’t linger. I turned around and called my mentor, asking him to help treat my child and me, and to pass on his acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine skills. My mentor was thrilled and immediately agreed, starting to make arrangements for my arrival. I also purchased two plane tickets for the day of the wedding, intending them as a final farewell. While making calls and searching, I eventually located my child’s hospital room. Even though my vision was still blurry, I could make out the girl lying quietly on the bed, her body wrapped in bandages. Her breathing was weak, as if she might vanish at any moment. At that moment, I gently held Phoebe’s hand and finally couldn’t hold back my tears. A pair of hands appeared on my shoulders, gently embracing me, wiping my tears, and trembling uncontrollably. “Lydia, don’t be too upset. It’s not good for your eyes to cry; it breaks my heart. Phoebe might not make it, so let’s make her last moments happy, okay? Don’t cry and make her sad.” “And you just had surgery. The doctor said the recovery isn’t going well, and it might be difficult to have children in the future. Don’t worry, I won’t abandon you. We adopted Milo, didn’t we? We still have a child…” “Let’s think of him as staying with us in place of Phoebe. She would find peace knowing that…” As he spoke, his voice began to tremble, tears sliding down my neck as if he was enduring immense pain. If I weren’t aware of the truth, I might have thought he was empathetic and understanding. But I know this is all a web of lies around me. The one losing a kidney, going blind, and possibly dying is me. I’m the one about to lose a child and be forced to accept my husband’s lover’s child. What did I do wrong to deserve such deceit? 0

After a long silence, my tears had dried. Declan spoke carefully, “Lydia, you can’t attend the wedding this time. We’ll have plenty of chances in the future. Let Adeline attend the wedding in your place, okay?” “She won’t interfere with our relationship. Her health is poor, and who knows how long she has left. She just hopes for a wedding, to give the child a status, to fulfill this wish, okay?” He tightly held my hand, revealing his current anxiety. He had spoken, how could I refuse? After all, he’s denied me 99 times before; what’s one more time? I smiled and nodded, agreeing, “She has done you a favor; you should repay her. We’ll talk about our wedding later. I just want to wait for Phoebe to wake up now.” Declan seemed ready to persuade me further but didn’t expect me to agree so readily. He was momentarily stunned, then grasped my hand and praised me happily, his joy evident. Just then, he received a notification on his phone. “Why did you buy a plane ticket for a few days later? Your eyes haven’t recovered yet, can you see? Is there an emergency? If not, I’ll go with you, why didn’t you say anything?” When we were dating, he linked our information, saying he wanted to ensure my safety. But he never used this software. I always informed him of my whereabouts to give him a sense of security. I didn’t expect the first time he’d use this software would be under such circumstances, and I felt bitter inside. I didn’t look at him, denying it, “I was thinking of buying them for a honeymoon trip after the wedding. Now they won’t be used, and I haven’t had time to cancel them yet. We’ll talk about it later.” He listened with slight regret, then kissed my forehead to comfort me, “In the future, we’ll have plenty of time to travel as a family of three. Just focus on recovering, no need to rush.” I instinctively tightened my grip on my daughter’s hand, then loosened it, suppressing the overwhelming sense of pain inside. After exchanging a few words, he received a call and hurriedly left the room. I knew it was Adeline feeling unwell again. I didn’t try to stop him. His heart was long gone from me; there was no need to suffer further. At this moment, a small, soft hand moved, and a hoarse voice spoke, “Mom, were you crying? Phoebe will blow, and the pain will fly away.” “Where’s Dad? I miss him. Mom, can you find Dad for me?” I bit down on the soft flesh inside my mouth, controlling my voice so my daughter wouldn’t notice, and gently said, “Phoebe is the bravest. Does it still hurt? I’ll go find Dad now, okay? Don’t move, or you won’t look nice.” My daughter nodded obediently, looking forward to seeing her father. I gathered my courage again to find Declan. Even if I were heartless and could let go of everything, I couldn’t take away my child’s hope for a father’s love. Let her see him one last time, let her give up. 0 I straightened my numb body, noticing the bandage around my waist was stained with blood, and there were faint traces on the ground. But I couldn’t care about that. I went to Adeline’s hospital room.

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To save my wife and daughter, I was severely injured and hospitalized. When it came time for family to sign for my surgery, my wife was at the cemetery visiting her first love’s grave. “You won’t die without the surgery, but today is the anniversary of his death!” she said. “Stop calling me!” Every year on this day, my wife would visit the grave of her deceased love without fail, rain or shine. I resigned myself and closed my eyes. The moment she hung up, I could hear her breathing grow heavier. “You’re so bad!” she panted. “Not only are you sleeping with someone else’s wife at a gravesite, but you’ve let another man raise your daughter for four years.” The sounds of kissing and moaning grew louder in my ear… 0 The phone crashed to the floor as my mind went blank. I fell out of the hospital bed in a daze. Pulling out my IV, I rushed past the protesting nurses straight to Peaceful Hill Cemetery. “Quick, stop! Someone’s coming!” A woman’s seductive voice reached my ears. I hid behind a gravestone, clenching my fists as I stared intently at the entangled figures in the darkness. A cat darted past as the man teased: “Even if it was a ghost, not just a person, you’d still have to be with me today. Besides, James is so badly burned – how could you stomach touching him?” Olivia playfully pushed him: “Don’t be silly! I haven’t let him touch me since the abortion.” Abortion? Two years ago, Olivia was pregnant with our second child. Unlike the joy of her first pregnancy, she was depressed all the time. I didn’t think much of it then, trying my best to fulfill her wishes. Even when she hit and kicked me, I never complained. Despite this, just after three months, we “accidentally” lost the baby. My fingers dug into my palms until they drew blood. “Not even once?” the man asked huskily. Olivia laughed lightly: “I can tell the difference between true love and an ATM.” “Who would have thought that the cold, dignified CEO in public would beg like a dog in private, failing each time. He always had to take care of himself in the bathroom…” Her mockery felt like a bucket of ice water dumped over my head. After Olivia’s miscarriage, she deliberately teased me. When I finally made a move, she accused me of being “inconsiderate”, blaming me for the miscarriage… The man’s movements quickened, drowning out Olivia’s murmurs. Lightning flashed, and the man’s face overlapped with the photo on the gravestone. Ethan Wilson. He wasn’t dead. 0

Ethan only got off Olivia when the downpour started. Olivia hurriedly pulled on her clothes, her cheeks flushed as she scolded him: “The ATM is waiting for me to sign for his surgery! Now I’m soaked – how will I explain this to him?” “Come back to the villa with me. You’re not allowed to go home tonight!” Olivia’s eyes widened: “How could I do that?” Ethan narrowed his eyes, his tone displeased: “What, have you fallen for him?” “Your grandfather is dead now, no one can stop us anymore. How much longer are you going to hide me?” Olivia hesitated for a moment. Then she stood on her tiptoes to kiss him, coaxing: “A $2 million villa is beneath you, I know. Just wait a bit longer. Once I get Grandpa’s $100 million inheritance, I’ll divorce him immediately.” Ethan smirked as he scooped Olivia up, heading straight for the villa complex outside the cemetery. This villa was the compensation Olivia had insisted I give her after she lost our second child. The cold rain pelted my body as I shook uncontrollably, but my mind had never been clearer. This must be what it feels like to have your heart ripped out. I let out a bitter laugh, then called my lawyer: “According to Grandpa’s will, donate his entire $100 million inheritance to the Children’s Foundation.” Olivia, this is where we end. 0

The next day, Olivia brought our daughter to visit me. When Emma saw my burned face and torso, she screamed: “Daddy’s a monster! I don’t want Daddy, I want Daddy Ethan…” Olivia covered Emma’s mouth, then turned to scold me: “Couldn’t you have wrapped some bandages around your face? What if you traumatize the child!” I coldly replied: “You didn’t need to come.” Olivia was taken aback. I had never spoken to her in that tone before. The next moment, she grabbed some bandages and started roughly wrapping them around my face. As the bandages touched my wounds, it felt like thousands of leeches biting and sucking at the injuries. Blood quickly soaked through one layer of bandages, so she just kept adding more layers, all while taunting me: “You’re such a failure as a father. Your daughter thinks you look like a monster – I’d say you’re even worse than that.” Olivia seemed to have forgotten that I was burned saving her and Emma. “What are you doing?! He just had medicine applied, do you know how much pain he’s in?” A young nurse rushed in, pushing Olivia aside to gently remove the bandages and reapply medicine. “If you don’t care about him, I do!” “You didn’t touch his waist, abdomen or upper thighs, did you?” The nurse’s words sparked the imagination. Olivia glanced at my lower body: “James, you didn’t…” My face stung fiercely from the fresh medicine, bringing involuntary tears to my eyes. Before I could deny anything, she had already taken out her phone to snap photos. After taking several pictures, she fiddled with her phone, a satisfied smile on her face. When she turned back to me, she covered her nose in disgust: “I’m warning you, Emma is still young. Don’t bring your germs home! Stay here and recover properly these next few days. The care worker will look after you.” As she reached the door, she called back to me: “Hey!” My heart clenched. After being her workhorse for years, I wasn’t even worthy of being called by name anymore. The hickey on Olivia’s neck stung my eyes. “I’ll take over the company for now. Don’t bother me unless you’re dying – I’m busy.” After Olivia left, I opened her social media. She had arranged the horrific photos of my injuries into a collage, proudly displayed for all to see. With the caption: [Bad news: James injured his manhood. Good news: At least we have Emma.] Every word of hers stomped mercilessly on my pride and dignity as a man. The paternity test results popped up. With trembling fingers, I opened it. As expected, Emma wasn’t my biological child. I took a deep drag of my cigarette. As the smoke filled my lungs, I resolved to seek treatment abroad. Before turning off my phone, I glanced at the company’s latest financial report. Olivia had no idea that the prize she was so eager to snatch was nothing but a hot potato. 0

A month later when I returned to the country, I checked my phone to find Olivia hadn’t sent a single message asking about me. As soon as I opened the door, Emma ran over to hug me: “Daddy, did you buy Emma’s favorite dumplings?” When she looked up and saw my face, her smile froze. The arms hugging me jerked away as if electrified, her lips pursed in displeasure. I deliberately asked her: “Where’s the daddy who buys you dumplings?” Emma rolled her eyes and ran into Olivia’s arms. “James, even jokes have limits. Don’t forget, we’re not officially married yet – you’re still on probation.” Olivia tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, looking at me as if granting a favor. Good thing we never registered our marriage. Saved me a month-long cooling off period for divorce. I headed straight for the master bedroom to pack my things, only to find half the gold bars missing from the safe. And my custom tailored suits in the closet showed signs of being worn and washed. The messy bed even had a few strands of another man’s hair. Disgusting! “James, why didn’t you buy me that limited edition handbag?” Olivia barged in with her hands on her hips, pointing at my nose as she yelled: “I order you to fly to Italy right now and line up to buy me that bag!” When I loved her, I found her temper cute and endearing. Now that I don’t love her, she’s just a shrew. “Have your little lover buy it for you.” I picked up the hairs from the bed and flicked them at her nose in disgust: “Olivia, aren’t you afraid of catching something? You’ll let any trash into our home.” A flash of guilt crossed her eyes. But she quickly regained her haughty demeanor: “What? You can’t perform, so am I supposed to live as a widow forever?” I had no interest in arguing further and picked up my suitcase to leave. Olivia stepped in front of me, showing weakness for the first time: “Don’t be angry. I was away for a few days and my cousin stayed here with her boyfriend. The young ones got a bit carried away.” Olivia couldn’t even be bothered to come up with a decent excuse. “Come to the office tomorrow. The company can’t function without you.” “Fine.” During my month abroad, besides medical treatment, I had been busy developing my own company. To be safe, I made two plans. The Wilson Group and my own company would share resources in contacts and talent, paving the way for my future. 0

As soon as I entered the company, I saw the sympathetic looks from the secretary and colleagues. When I pushed open the door to the general manager’s office, Ethan was actually sitting in my chair. “James, this is Ethan. He’s actually still alive – my years of prayers must have moved heaven. You know how happy I am, right?” Olivia clung to my arm, gauging my reaction: “You’re happy for me too, aren’t you?” Ethan stood up and extended his hand to me, more like a challenge: “James, nice to meet you!” My eyes swept past him, landing on the belt at his waist. That belt was a token of love Olivia had given me, the only one of its kind in the world. Blood rushed to my head as I grabbed his collar, my fists raining down uncontrollably on his temple. Colleagues gathered at the door to watch the spectacle, debating who was really Olivia’s husband. Anger, humiliation, resentment and hatred all surged up at once. I just wanted to beat this man to death! “Slap!” A sharp pain stung my cheek. Only then did I notice Ethan had collapsed in a pool of blood, his face swollen like a pig’s head. Olivia held Ethan tenderly, yelling at me: “James, apologize! You must apologize to him!” After regaining my composure, I coldly looked at Olivia: “Apologize? You want me to apologize to your lover?” “Olivia, are you so broke you can’t even afford a belt, resorting to letting your lover wear mine?” Olivia’s eyes blazed with anger as she defended her beloved: “James, how dare you say such things?” “If it weren’t for Grandpa forcibly separating me and Ethan back then, how could you have your current wealth and status? When you think about it, everything you have now was stolen from Ethan’s happiness!” Ethan had ulterior motives, which is why Olivia’s grandfather had promoted me and arranged our marriage instead. Over the years, it was my hard work that grew and strengthened the Wilson Group. But with Grandpa’s body barely cold, Olivia couldn’t wait to bring her lover in to seize the family assets. Since she was done pretending, I would make the first move. I pulled off my wedding ring and threw it forcefully to the ground, my attitude resolute: “Make him leave. Otherwise, we’re through.” 0

After a long standoff, Olivia finally had security escort Ethan out. After dispersing the crowd of onlookers, Olivia’s expression softened as she spoke gently: “James, you never used to embarrass me in public like this. Doing this today… are you upset that I’ve been neglecting you?” I used to think that her willingness to have my child meant she truly loved me. I was willing to let her have her way in everything. Now, she doesn’t deserve that. Olivia’s fingers trailed up my chest: “There’s nothing going on between me and Ethan. Why don’t you come test it out tonight?” I swatted her hand away. Disgusting. Olivia’s face darkened as she glared at me through narrowed eyes: “I give you a way out and you don’t take it. You really think I won’t break up with you?” I stepped on the ring, completely certain: “You wouldn’t dare.” As I left the office, I calculated in my mind. Within a week, Olivia would come begging me to take her back. Unexpectedly, it took less than three days before Olivia tried to make amends: “Honey, I was wrong. The creditors are blocking the office building entrance. I really have no other choice.” I impatiently tapped the desk, brushing her off with an “Mm.” She grew anxious: “What do you mean ‘mm’? Tell me, what do I need to do for you to forgive me?” She had fallen into my trap, just as I planned. I gave a cold smile as I toyed with her: “Olivia, I really don’t know what to do with you.” “It’s simple to make it up to me. Just change your phone wallpaper and the photo frame on your desk to a picture of our family of three.” “A man needs to save face in public too. We’re family after all, let’s not make things too awkward.” Olivia breathed a sigh of relief on the other end of the phone. A minute later, after she sent over screenshots of the changed photos, I leisurely made my way to negotiate with the creditors. Seeing it was me, the creditors’ attitudes immediately softened. Not only did I smooth things over with the creditors when I left the office, I also managed to sign a major new contract. Ethan’s face turned green as he hid in a corner of the company. 0

To celebrate landing the deal, I invited everyone out for drinks. My colleagues know how to read the room. To curry favor with me, they kept forcing drinks on Ethan. After a few glasses of wine, Ethan stumbled drunkenly into the restroom with Olivia following close behind. Curious to see what would happen, I trailed after them. The alcohol had loosened Ethan’s tongue as he whined pitifully: “Olivia, you’re so heartless. Do you know how I’ve spent these past few years?” “While I was in hiding, eating dry ramen in basements, you were having your dream wedding with James.” “When I was hit by a car while delivering food, hovering between life and death, you were in the hospital giving birth to James’ child.” Olivia was overcome with sympathy, comforting Ethan with kisses. Soon Ethan stopped complaining and started ranting indignantly: “And James, he just got lucky, born with a face your grandfather liked. He used that to climb the ladder and reach the top in one step.” “I don’t care about the money, but how dare he steal your heart? I can’t accept it!” In the scuffle, Olivia’s phone crashed to the floor. The cracked screen flickered, showing the family photo of the three of us as the wallpaper. I smiled. My plan to drive a wedge between them had succeeded. Olivia completely broke down. She clung desperately to Ethan, apologizing over and over, begging him to forgive her and the Wilson family. “Everything James has, I’ll make it up to you.” Olivia pleaded with him through her tears: “I’ll make James give you his position as general manager. I’ll repay everything the Wilsons owe you!” I was eager to dump this pile of garbage on Ethan. But unexpectedly, Ethan wasn’t satisfied and made a new demand: “The Wilson Group’s debt ratio is too high, it’s not worth investing in. Cash out your shares and use that to start a new company for me.” Hm, he has some brains after all. But not much. Olivia hesitated. Ethan immediately threatened to break up with her. In her panic, she hastily agreed to his request. After leaving the restroom, Olivia came to lay it out for me: “James, can you buy all the shares I own?” “This is what I owe Ethan. I want to liquidate the assets under my name. You don’t have any objections, right?” Under my manipulation, the Wilson Group’s stock price had plummeted. Buying back all the shares now would be like picking up a bargain at rock bottom prices. “Are you sure?” I raised an eyebrow at her, feigning reluctance: “You’re spending money on your lover like I’m already dead, is that it?” “I can buy the shares, but that means buying out our relationship too. We break up – do you agree?” Olivia shook her head. She explained with a wronged expression that the belt was just a misunderstanding, that she still loved me, that she didn’t agree to breaking up. After some back and forth, I “reluctantly” agreed to buy her shares. Olivia had no idea that in a month’s time, the Wilson Group’s stock price would hit a record high. At this moment, blinded by love, she was secretly promising Ethan behind my back: “Take this money first as startup capital for the company. Once Grandpa’s inheritance comes through, I should be able to get at least $50 million…” I leaned against the doorway, eavesdropping. The corners of my mouth curved up involuntarily.

My daughter Emily was running a high fever in the middle of the night, but my husband Jack had taken the car and left. The next day, I saw a post from Lily, his female business partner, on social media. “Finally fulfilling my dream of motherhood,” she wrote. The picture showed stockings on the passenger seat, and the car’s interior was identical to ours. Furious, I confronted Jack for an explanation. He brushed it off casually: “I’m just maintaining client relationships. It’s all for you and Emily’s benefit.” “Besides, what use is a daughter? Lily’s son will be the one to carry on the Miller family name!” To add insult to injury, Lily leaned into his arms and said, “Don’t mind me, sweetie. I just love kids and needed someone to help me have one.” I kept my face expressionless as I turned away, already planning my next move. 0When four-year-old Emily’s fever suddenly spiked to 104°F in the middle of the night, I frantically woke Jack up. He glanced at his phone, then left without a backward look. “There’s an issue with a business partner. You’ll have to handle this yourself,” he said. I watched in disbelief as he slammed the door shut. With no other choice, I carried Emily downstairs myself. To my shock, Jack had taken the car and driven away without a word. In the dead of night, the streets were deserted. I had to walk eight miles to get Emily to the hospital. As the nurse hooked up the IV, she scolded me, “A little longer and she could have suffered brain damage. Where’s her father?” I forced a smile. “He’s busy with work.” The nurse nodded approvingly. “What a good husband.” Is he really? I wondered. In our seven years of marriage, I had helped him grow his small fruit stand into a thriving store. As our lives improved, I saw less and less of him. Having finally caught my breath and settled Emily to sleep, it was already dawn. I picked up my phone, intending to ask Jack where he was, but instead saw a social media post from Lily from twenty minutes ago. “Finally fulfilling my dream of motherhood,” it read. The picture showed stockings on a car’s passenger seat, and the interior was identical to ours. I felt like I’d been struck by lightning. Though I had a bold guess, I didn’t dare to investigate further. Jack and I had been married for seven years, weathering hardships together. Even as our situation improved, he seemed to be a good husband and father to Emily and me. Lily was a purchasing manager at his company, and had been buying fruit in bulk from our store for company events for years. I’d never heard of them being close. Looking at my sleeping daughter, I tried to push the thoughts away. But the next day, reality hit me like a ton of bricks. In the hospital lobby, I saw two familiar figures. Jack was carefully supporting a woman, laughing and talking. It was Lily. Her belly was slightly swollen, and Jack’s face showed a tenderness I’d never seen before. I remembered being eight months pregnant and still working in the store. Jack would come by after unloading deliveries and affectionately pat my belly. “You’re doing great, honey. I promise I’ll take good care of you both in the future!” he’d say. Now here he was, arm-in-arm with another woman at the hospital! I was grateful Emily was still upstairs getting her IV. Before I could approach them, Lily spotted me. Leaning into Jack’s embrace, she sauntered over. “Well, if it isn’t Chloe! What brings you to the hospital?” Seeing my silence, Jack quickly stepped closer. “Honey, I’m just accompanying Lily for a prenatal check-up. Don’t be upset.” I stared at her belly, my throat dry. “Whose is it?” He looked guilty but tried to appear calm. “Mine… but you know my parents have always wanted a grandson to carry on the family name…” Lily giggled, stroking her belly. “Don’t take it personally, sweetie. I just love kids and needed someone to help me have one!” 0

Heartbroken and disillusioned, I went back upstairs and took Emily home alone. I thought Jack might follow to explain further. But to my surprise, he didn’t come home until that evening. “Emily, look what Daddy bought for you!” he called out. He returned with a load of snacks and toys, but only gave Emily two bags of chips. My daughter looked longingly at the toys in his hands, but was too well-behaved to ask for more. I felt angry and ridiculous. Was his own daughter only worthy of leftovers? If these were bought for someone else, why pretend to be a caring father? “Honey, I bought something for you too. Look at this dress, do you like it?” he said. I coldly watched him pull out the garment. It was a bright red dress. But the size was wrong, and the color wasn’t my style. Since marrying Jack, I’d never bought new clothes to save money. I only wore old black and gray clothes, with my one red dress being my wedding gown. But even that was far inferior in quality to this one. Besides, after having a child, my figure had changed. This didn’t seem like a size I could wear. I took out my phone and smirked. On it was CCTV footage from the store. It showed him passionately kissing Lily, who was wearing an identical red dress. Was this a carefully chosen gift, or just something Lily didn’t want passed on to me? “If you don’t want to stay married, just get a divorce. No need to be disgusting,” I said. He flew into a rage, throwing the dress on the floor. “I try to be nice and this is what I get? Don’t push your luck! I’m just maintaining client relationships, all for you and Emily’s sake!” “Besides, you’re eating my food and spending my money. You’re past your prime and still acting like this!” With that, he stormed out, slamming the door. I knew without asking that he was going to see Lily again. Emily looked up at me and asked, “Mommy, were you fighting?” Looking at her face, I felt overwhelmed with grief. To marry Jack, I had cut ties with my parents and hadn’t seen them in years. I had worked tirelessly to grow the business from nothing, handing over all the profits to him. Now I was being treated like a parasite. Fighting back tears, I knelt down and stroked Emily’s face. “If Mommy and Daddy separated, who would you want to live with?” “I want to stay with you, Mommy!” Feeling a small comfort, I knew I had to fight for Emily’s sake. Late that night, after finishing a call with my lawyer, I suddenly felt a splitting headache. Using my last bit of strength, I sent Jack a message. [Remember to go to the store tomorrow. I’m not feeling well.] Then I passed out. The next morning, Emily woke me up. I realized Jack hadn’t responded all night. Instead, Lily had sent a picture of his sleeping back. My heart ached. The seven-year itch was real after all. To make money, I forced myself to go to the store. But halfway through unloading a delivery, I felt dizzy. When I opened my eyes again, I was in a sterile hospital room. The nurse told me Emily had called her father. I felt a glimmer of hope. At least he wasn’t completely heartless. “You’re overworked and stressed out,” the nurse said. “Whatever’s going on, talk it out. Don’t make yourself sick.” I looked around but didn’t see Emily. I quickly asked the nurse about her. “Her father and grandmother took her home. Oh, you still have one more IV bag…” I pulled out the IV and hurriedly left. 0

When I got home, my mother-in-law Martha was indeed there. Emily ran to me excitedly when I arrived. “Mommy, you’re finally back! Daddy came home earlier too!” “He brought a lady with him. She gave me this toy!” I had a bad feeling, but I sent Emily to her room to play. I heard noises coming from the bedroom and rushed to open the door. “Chloe! Don’t disturb them!” Martha tried to stop me. My heart sank. “So you know about your son’s affair?” She spat, “What affair! He’s just borrowing a womb to have a child. It’s consensual, don’t make it sound so ugly!” “Besides, Jack left Lily to rush here for you. Doesn’t he deserve to make amends?” I laughed coldly and moved to open the door. She grabbed me again. “And you haven’t given our family a son to carry on the name all these years. Lily drank my special tea before getting pregnant, so it’s definitely a boy!” I was both amused and angry. So everyone knew about their affair except me? Shaking off Martha, I kicked the door open. Inside, the two were half-dressed. Jack was even shirtless. “Is this how you make amends? In bed?” I sneered. Seeing me enter, Jack hurriedly covered Lily with the blanket. “She wasn’t feeling well, so I was just checking on her. The baby comes first, you know…” “Don’t worry, once the baby’s born, I’ll never see her again.” I scoffed, “She’s already showing. Aren’t you worried about miscarriage, playing around like this?” Suddenly, he slapped me across the face. My ear rang, and my left cheek burned. “How dare you say such unlucky things! If Lily miscarries, I’ll never forgive you!” Just then, Lily let out a strange cry. “Honey, I’m in pain!” He panicked and quickly helped Lily up to leave. As they passed me, he kicked my knee. Lily whimpered, “Chloe, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have come…” Jack cooed, “Don’t apologize. As long as you and the baby are okay.” Even Martha fussed over her as they left. Emily, frightened by the argument, came out with teary eyes and gently touched my swollen face. My heart ached. I was determined to take Emily and leave, no matter what! I spent half the day consulting with my lawyer and gathering evidence. That evening, Martha came home first. “Chloe, think about Jack. He works hard day and night to provide for you two, and in the end, he doesn’t even have a son to carry on the family name.” I laughed coldly. “He provides for us? If I hadn’t begged for connections, could he have turned that fruit stand into a store?” She was taken aback but tried to continue scolding me. I cut her off. “Where is he?” “At… the hospital with Lily. You really scared her earlier.” I scoffed, “Did he know I fainted at the store? Did he know I was taken to the hospital?” Martha stammered, unable to answer. So he did know. A dull pain spread in my chest. Seven years of love, and I still cared for him instinctively. “Tell him I’m filing for divorce.” 0That night, Jack rushed home. “I’m sorry, honey. Please don’t divorce me, okay?” “Are you still mad about me hitting you? Come on, hit me back!” He grabbed my hand and pressed it to his face. Since he insisted, I slapped him hard. He seemed shocked that I actually hit him, his eyes darkening for a moment. Then his expression softened again. “Our family really needs a son to carry on the name. I promise, just this once.” “We’ve been together for seven years, honey. Please don’t divorce me.”

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One month before the SAT, Lucas approached me once again to confess his feelings. The eighteen-year-old boy was bold and passionate. When he expressed his fondness for me, his cool eyes sparkled like a sky full of stars. However, I rejected him once more. The smile on Lucas’s face vanished. He violently threw the roses in his hand at his lackey’s face. The sharp thorns left several bloody gashes on the lackey’s face, looking ghastly and terrifying. “It’s all your fault! Aria must not like the roses you chose!” Lucas shouted. He vented his anger on the boy, kicking him repeatedly until he coughed up blood. The roses worth thousands of dollars were trampled underfoot, mixed with the boy’s blood. Lucas’s psychotic behavior frightened me. Fearing he might beat the boy to death, I quickly spoke up, “I wouldn’t like you no matter what you give me. Right now, I just want to focus on studying for the SAT.” Worried he would continue to interfere with my studies, I added, “I hate you, Lucas. Your persistence disgusts me.” Lucas’s eyes reddened as he stared at me intently. I felt scared under his gaze, afraid he might beat me like he did that boy. But in the end, he didn’t do anything else, only saying he’d talk to me again after the SAT. I breathed a sigh of relief. However, what I didn’t expect was that night, Lucas would drink and drive, running through over a dozen red lights before dying in a car accident. The next evening after school, someone covered my mouth and nose, knocking me unconscious. When I woke up again, I was in an abandoned warehouse. A man who bore a slight resemblance to Lucas sat in a chair in front of me, a cigarette held between his long fingers. He stood up, exhaled a puff of smoke, then pressed the lit cigarette directly onto my face. Amidst my screams of agony, the man said with disgust, “Cripple her hands.” This sentence jolted me awake through the pain of my burning flesh. My hands were held down, and a hammer was suspended above them. “No, don’t! Who are you people? Why did you kidnap me?” I cried out. The man didn’t speak, just raised his hand and brought it down in a swift motion. “Ahhhhh!” The index finger of my right hand was smashed, the pain almost making me pass out. No, they can’t cripple my hands. I still have to take the SAT. My hands can’t be injured! I begged them incoherently through my tears, “Please don’t hurt my hands. I… I have the SAT in a month. My whole family is counting on me… My mom is sick, I need to take the SAT. I must take it…” My family was ordinary. My dad worked on construction sites, and my mom ran a small breakfast shop. But ever since mom was diagnosed with leukemia, our family’s expenses exceeded our income. The school promised me that if I could rank in the top three in the state for the SAT, they would give me a $5,000 scholarship. That money could cover mom’s next round of chemotherapy. It was just one month away. I banged my head hard on the ground, my tears mixing with the dust, “Please, if I’ve offended you somehow, can’t you wait until after the SAT to take revenge?” The fingers of my right hand had already been smashed one by one, deformed, but I still endured the pain and kept kowtowing to the man. It didn’t matter if my right hand was ruined. I still had my left hand. As long as there was a glimmer of hope… “SAT?” The man looked down at me condescendingly. “You caused my brother’s death. What right do you have to live well?” It turned out he was Lucas’s brother, Ethan. He believed Lucas’s death was entirely due to my rejection of his confession. Ethan used the tip of his shoe to lift my chin. “What right does a commoner like you have to reject my brother?” It was too absurd. My left hand was smashed just like my right, but I couldn’t feel the pain anymore. All hope had been completely shattered. Then my clothes were torn off. I knew what they were going to do, but I had no strength left to resist. I stared directly at the camera in the man’s hand, even wondering how I would earn money after this day, how I would earn enough for mom’s chemotherapy. I kept thinking, my mind filled with images of my mom lying weak on the hospital bed. Clinging to this thought kept me from passing out, from killing myself on the spot. “I heard your mom is having chemotherapy today?” Ethan said. I, who had been as lifeless as a rag doll, showed a flicker of emotion in my dead eyes upon hearing these words. Ethan’s face, similar to Lucas’s, twisted into a cruel smile. “I wonder how she’ll react when she sees this video?” My eyes widened, tears falling. I desperately reached out with my distorted, deformed hands, touching his expensive suit pants. “Please don’t. Just kill me. It’s all my fault. I’ll pay for Lucas’s life with mine…” Ethan stepped on my hand. “Your life is too worthless. One isn’t enough.” Ethan took me back to the Smith family home and locked me in a dark basement to torture me. My mom saw the video and didn’t survive the surgery. She died crying, saying it was her fault for burdening me. My dad was working at a construction site when he heard the tragic news about his wife and daughter. The nearly fifty-year-old man lost all will to live and fell from the high-rise building. I don’t know how long Ethan kept me locked up. I often wondered if everything would have been different if I had accepted Lucas. I shouldn’t have been so prideful. Ethan had many ways to torture people. He said Lucas loved me the most when he was alive, so he locked my naked body in a coffin with Lucas’s corpse. He said he was fulfilling his brother’s wish, marrying me to him. Later, he threw me into a tank full of piranhas, branded me with hot irons, forced me to eat filth… I wanted to die but couldn’t. He spent millions on equipment to keep me alive, saying unless he died, I had to live on to atone for my sins. Later, for some unknown reason, he moved me from the basement to a warm, bright bedroom. He gradually stopped hurting me, bought me a lot of beautiful clothes and jewelry, and even took me to the hospital to remove my scars. Until one night, he came to my room, hugged me, and kissed me. He said he understood why Lucas liked me, that I could maintain my sanity and not bow down even after being tortured like this. Ethan said he was starting to have feelings for me, that he wanted me to stay with him forever. Just like those cliché romance novels where the male lead tortures the female lead but then suddenly realizes her worth and has a change of heart. It was utterly disgusting. I sat in the bathtub, using a hidden piece of broken glass to slash my wrists. Fresh blood dyed the bathtub red. Death would reunite me with my family. I could finally escape these revolting brothers. When I next regained consciousness, the sound of summer cicadas accompanied by waves of heat rang in my ears. My vision began to focus, and the intense sunlight made me instinctively cover my eyes. After being locked in the basement by Ethan for three years, my eyes had nearly gone blind, only able to tolerate the faintest candlelight. “Aria, I like you. Will you be my girlfriend?” The familiar voice made my body instantly go cold, my skin breaking out in goosebumps. I lowered my hand and saw a face that was etched into my soul. “Lu…Lucas?” It took me a minute to quickly process the fact that I had been reborn. If I remember correctly, there are still six months until the SAT, and this is Lucas’s third time confessing to me. Lucas had a very deceptive face. He looked gentle and sunny, with amber eyes like a cat’s. But in reality, he could easily instigate one bullying incident after another, all while maintaining that gentle smile. Lucas was sick, literally. The violence in his genes made it impossible for him to control his emotions. His liking for me was inexplicable. The reason was simply that I had casually given him a cheap Tootsie Roll when he had low blood sugar. The sticky, artificial taste made the young heir remember me deeply. From then on, the young heir always kept a strawberry-flavored Tootsie Roll in his pocket. How could someone fall in love because of a candy? Moreover, what kind of girls hadn’t Lucas seen or dated? So in my eyes, his pursuit was just a bored rich boy’s game. I never thought he was serious. Even if it was real, it only seemed absurd to me. The love brought by a cheap candy was equally cheap and artificial. I had a clear understanding of myself. I was just like that fifty-cent candy, only giving the young heir a momentary sweetness. It was impossible for someone as pampered as him to remember it for a lifetime. I really just wanted to escape the hardships of reality through my own efforts. I just wanted to cure my mom, just wanted to help lighten my dad’s burden. But just because of my lower class, I couldn’t reject their love. I should have been grateful. Why? What right did they have to easily trample on my dignity and extinguish my hope? Because of my initial rejection, Lucas began to use various methods to force me to love him. He secretly guided the whole school to bully me. They tore up my three years’ worth of notes and locked me in a warehouse for a day and a night. Then Lucas would appear as a savior, rescuing me from the fire and water. A typical hero saves the beauty scenario, but I didn’t have Stockholm syndrome, nor would I fall for the suspension bridge effect. The fact that I could maintain the top spot in our grade proved I wasn’t stupid. I understood why I was being bullied. I couldn’t afford to offend them, so I could only study secretly in inconspicuous corners of the campus. Only six months left, I couldn’t afford to fight them. I couldn’t take that risk. When they found me by the lake again and threw my newly made notes into the water, I didn’t hesitate to jump in after them. My body sank down, and Lucas frantically came to save me. When I woke up in the infirmary, I held the scissors used for cutting bandages to my throat, tears rolling down my fair cheeks one by one. I looked at Lucas with tear-filled eyes and said, “I really can’t bear their bullying anymore. If I die, will I no longer be bullied?” The high and mighty young heir panicked. He hadn’t expected that I would rather die than accept his help. So the bullying stopped. He asked the teacher for the most complete notes for me and bought me the best practice books. In the corners he couldn’t see, I wiped away my tears, expressionless. These setbacks weren’t enough to make me seek death. They were just too annoying. I needed a quiet environment to study. Afterwards, I still clearly rejected him. But the more I rejected him, the more obsessed he became with me. Lucas was hostile to any male who appeared around me. Just because a boy came to ask me a question, Lucas sewed his mouth shut with a needle and forced him to drop out of school. He was truly an unrepentant madman, just like his brother. They were both lunatics. As the memories ended, I looked at the handsome young man before me and, for the first time, smiled as I accepted the flowers from his hand. His eyes lit up, his cheeks flushing. I spoke softly, “Thank you for the flowers. It’s just that I haven’t considered dating yet. We can be friends first.” Lucas nervously said, “It’s okay, Aria. I’ll make you fall for me!” I smiled without speaking. If I rejected him this time, he would bully me for a month, just like in my past life. When Ethan tortured me in my past life, the thing he said most often was that I had a pride that someone of my class shouldn’t have. I was unwilling to bow to anyone, thinking that sheer determination alone could achieve any goal. Little did I know that what the upper class loved most was crushing the pride of people like us, watching us roll in the mud like dogs. So in this life, I won’t be proud. I’ll drag them into hell bit by bit. Lucas’s obsession with me was too strong. If I continued to reject him, it would only end up like my past life. But agreeing disgusted me. And he was sick. He seemed able to control it now, but who knew if he might lose control and kill me in the future? Who could guarantee he would love me forever? Because of my softened attitude, Lucas started following me around like a puppy. Unlike before, I didn’t treat him coldly and even brought him a box of milk every day. The lactose-intolerant young heir would drink every drop of the whole milk I brought, clutching his cramping stomach with a pale face, seeking praise from me. I’d reach out to pat his curly hair, giving him a little reward. Looking at his bright amber eyes, I would think of another person who had those same eyes. Although Lucas was called the young heir by everyone, the real heir to the Smith family was his brother, Ethan. Ethan doted on this brother a lot. Even if Lucas killed someone, he would help him cover it up. It’s just that he had been abroad on business before and didn’t know about Lucas and me. He was coming back soon. On the tenth day after my rebirth, I appeared at an ordinary intersection wearing a pure white dress. I counted down in my heart. Three, two, one. A Maybach was suddenly hit by a small truck and flipped over. The car body quickly caught fire. I saw Ethan trapped in the back seat. His leg was injured and he couldn’t move. A steel bar that had fallen from the truck had pierced his calf. What a pity. Why couldn’t it have pierced his heart? While people around were taking photos with their phones, I ran over and dragged Ethan out just before the car exploded. Even if I didn’t save him, someone else would. I might as well take credit for saving his life to get close to him.

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The day I found out I was pregnant, Lucas drove us off a cliff, crashing through the guardrail. Our car tumbled down the mountainside. In the moment before the explosion, Lucas shouted at the sky: “Olivia! I’m coming to be with you!” At that instant, I realized he had never let go of his first love, Olivia. When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to my college days. I tore up the love letter in my hand and strode away in the opposite direction from him. Eight years later. He rented out the most expensive bar in the city, planning an unforgettable proposal for his true love. But when he saw me holding another man’s hand, he asked with reddened eyes: “Evelyn, didn’t you promise to love only me forever?” I never expected to see Lucas again, especially not in a nightclub. Traffic had delayed me, causing me to miss the class reunion dinner. I drove straight to the club where I had a prior engagement. To my surprise, I stumbled upon my old classmates who had moved on to their second venue of the night. They were lost in the rhythm on the dance floor. Lucas, with his fair skin and tall stature, stood out in the crowd. He held Olivia close, his eyes full of adoration. “Lucas is truly a rare genius. At such a young age, he already owns several Formula 1 teams,” someone remarked. “Indeed. Tonight, he rented out this entire club just for Olivia.” “This must be the most luxurious venue in the city. The rental fee for one night must be at least a million dollars.” “Well, you can’t put a price on a beautiful woman’s smile.” As the music stopped, Olivia stood there, flushed and slightly out of breath. Suddenly, the big screen lit up, playing a montage of Lucas and Olivia’s romantic moments. The crowd started to cheer as Olivia was ushered onto the stage. Lucas, holding a bouquet of roses, got down on one knee before her. “Olivia, will you marry me?” His voice was as soft as a gentle stream, almost overflowing with emotion. Someone in the crowd asked, “When did Lucas break up with Evelyn?” The question, neither too loud nor too soft, reached everyone’s ears. Hearing my name, Lucas’s expression darkened, his smile fading. Olivia’s face froze for a moment before she quickly recovered, accepting the flowers from Lucas with a polite smile. “Lucas has always been popular with women, but who hasn’t made mistakes when they were young? The important thing is that it all worked out in the end.” The crowd laughed, continuing to compliment the couple on how well-matched they were. I stood in the corner, watching their intertwined fingers. Was I the mistake she referred to? But she didn’t know that in my previous life, it was Lucas who had pursued me. He had fallen for me at first sight, launching an intense pursuit. Who could resist a handsome, tall, intelligent man who loved you to the point of obsession? So I agreed. On the day we became official, Lucas cupped my face, hesitating to kiss me. “Evelyn, am I dreaming?” he had said. “If I kiss you, will I wake up?” I laughed, brushing his beautiful eyes before standing on tiptoe to kiss him. That night, he promised me, “Evelyn, I’ll be good to you for the rest of my life.” I believed him. But he lied. I took a deep breath and headed towards the elevator through the dim light. A sharp-eyed former classmate spotted me and exclaimed, “Evelyn, what are you doing here?” “What happened to you? You look so disheveled.” “Don’t tell me you’re still unemployed. Since Lucas is here, why don’t you ask him to help you find a job that pays at least $5000 a month, for old times’ sake?” Their mockery was undisguised. I didn’t care, just smiling politely as I poured myself a glass of ice water. From the moment I entered, Lucas’s gaze had been fixed on me, never wavering. Seeing me take a free glass of ice water, he seemed to relax a bit and said casually, “Order whatever you want. I’m covering all the expenses tonight.” I replied, “Thank you, but that won’t be necessary.” My tone was polite but carried an unmistakable distance. Lucas’s attempt to approach me halted. Half his face was hidden in the shadows, making his expression unreadable. After a long moment, he let out a bitter laugh. “Evelyn, after all these years, you’re still so prideful.” Olivia’s gaze was filled with wariness. She intertwined her fingers with Lucas’s, eyeing me with a look of ownership and contempt. “Evelyn, I don’t mean to be rude, but as a woman, you should at least make an effort with your appearance when you go out.” “Look at your mismatched clothes and messy hair. How do you expect any man to want to marry you like this?” “I have plenty of clothes at home that I don’t wear anymore. If you don’t mind, you can have them. After all, Lucas buys me so many that I can’t even fit them all in two walk-in closets.” The crowd burst into laughter. I turned to look at my reflection in the glass. After two days of non-stop work on set, I was exhausted and hadn’t bothered with my appearance. Standing next to the impeccably groomed Olivia, I did look rather unkempt in comparison. “No, thank you,” I said, waving her off as I helped myself to some chilled fruit from the bar. I was too hungry to care about my table manners. Lucas suddenly walked towards me and held out his phone. I looked up at him, confused. “Give me your account number. I’ll transfer you $300,000,” he said. “Your current situation is ultimately because of me.” “But we’re in the past now. Don’t be so stubborn.” “Stop waiting for me and move on with your life.” Lucas’s phone wallpaper was a picture of Olivia holding a large bouquet of flowers. Looking at her carefree smile, I felt a bit dazed. In my previous life, let alone being his wallpaper, there wasn’t a single trace of me on Lucas’s phone. He didn’t even save my number because he never needed to contact me. Whether in life or work, I always arranged everything for him in advance. It turns out that love and indifference are indeed very obvious. We started dating in college and got married right after graduation. He dreamed of becoming a race car driver, while I wanted to study film directing. Two completely different dreams that would never intersect. Seeing his dejected eyes, I gave in. I gave up the opportunity to study abroad without hesitation, following him around with heavy toolboxes day after day. He didn’t have professional equipment, so I would ride my bicycle around the city at night delivering food, saving money to buy him the most expensive and best racing suits. He didn’t have a maintenance team, so I taught myself car repair techniques, taking on the work of an entire team for him alone. But he still lost. His second-hand race car, bought at a low price, could never outrun others’ latest models. Despite my tireless efforts to comfort him in his depression, he pushed me away harshly, his eyes filled with a disgust I had never seen before: “I’m sick of this boring life with you.” “If I had chosen Olivia back then, I wouldn’t be living like this now.” Those words shattered all my hopes for the future. I didn’t even have time to look back at the road we had traveled before we both died in that cliff accident. I wanted to beg him to save our child. But the words were swallowed by the flames before they could leave my mouth. Since fate had given us a chance to start over, we both chose to pursue the lives we wanted. There was no need for any further contact between us. I pushed the phone back to him. “There’s no relationship between us. This isn’t necessary.”

Lucas frowned, his voice trembling slightly, though he didn’t seem to notice it himself. “No relationship? What do you mean? Am I just a stranger to you now?” I looked up, meeting his gaze steadily. “Aren’t we? Our lives have no intersection. Whether I dress well or poorly, whether I live comfortably or not, what does it have to do with you?” “If you have too much money to spend, you might consider helping those in need.” Perhaps feeling that I had embarrassed him in front of everyone, Lucas’s expression turned impatient. He coldly rebuked me, “Evelyn, stop pretending. Didn’t you show up here just to get my attention?” Seeing this, Olivia gently comforted him, “Lucas, don’t say that about Evelyn. It’s too harsh.” Turning to me, the contempt in her eyes was barely concealed, though her tone remained gentle as ever. “Evelyn, don’t mind Lucas. He’s just concerned about an old classmate.” “How about this? I opened a private clinic on South Street. We need a receptionist there, with a salary of $7000 plus room and board.” “If you’re interested, you can work there.” Someone nearby exclaimed, “South Street is prime real estate! To have a clinic there, Olivia must really be something.” “Evelyn, you’ve struck gold! Quick, thank Olivia!” I rolled my eyes, calmly eating my fruit and refusing their offer once again. “No need. I’m very happy with my current job.” Seeing that I didn’t appreciate their gesture, those trying to curry favor with Lucas immediately stood up to criticize me for being ungrateful. “Evelyn, I think poverty has made you crazy. Lucas and Olivia are trying to help you, and not only are you not grateful, but you’re acting all high and mighty.” “We’re all old classmates. Everyone knows what you’re worth. Don’t miss this opportunity for the sake of your worthless pride.” After he finished speaking, Olivia pretended to stop him. “Please don’t say that about Evelyn… Maybe she really likes her current life.” As she spoke, her eyes welled up with tears, as if she had been bullied. Seeing the tears in Olivia’s eyes, Lucas pulled her into his arms, comforting her softly. “Olivia, you’re just too kind.” He turned to me and said, “Evelyn, I didn’t expect you to still be so selfish and hypocritical.” “You really are beyond help! You only deserve the worst life has to offer.” I was curious why Lucas would say such things about me. In both my previous life and this one, I had never done anything to hurt him. Why, after all these years, was he still speaking to me so harshly? I didn’t want to engage with them any further and stood up to go to the private room upstairs. However, a former male classmate blocked my way. He held a drink and leered at me as he approached. “Evelyn, I always hated that high-and-mighty act of yours. Never thought I’d see you like this.” “How about you drink with me? $500 per glass, what do you say?” “If you let me hold your hand, I might even pay extra.” I looked closely and barely recognized him as the guy who had confessed to me at the graduation ceremony. I think his name was Jack. At the time, I was focused on securing a spot for further studies abroad, so I had flatly rejected his advances. I didn’t expect him to hold a grudge for so long. Everyone was laughing, and no one came to my aid. I frowned. It wasn’t my intention to join their gathering. If I hadn’t had a prior appointment, I would have left long ago. The security guards were nowhere to be seen. As I was about to push him away, Lucas, who had been quietly watching everything, suddenly threw his glass violently at Jack. His tone was ice-cold: “Stay away from her.” Jack, now drenched in alcohol, was about to lash out but stopped when he realized it was Lucas. He could only turn back and glare at me viciously. The glass shattered on the floor. Olivia’s schadenfreude smile instantly vanished as she looked at Lucas in disbelief. “Lucas, what are you doing?” Lucas didn’t even glance at her, his eyes fixed on me. “This is my event tonight. I don’t want any accidents happening here.” I took two steps back, wiping the alcohol off my pants. “The security here is really poor.” Olivia looked at me, her eyes almost shooting fire. “You’re complaining now?” “Do you know where you are? This is the property of Adrian, the movie star. If it weren’t for Lucas, someone like you wouldn’t be able to set foot in here in a lifetime.” At the mention of Adrian, several female classmates suddenly became excited. “Is that the Adrian who’s won all those awards at such a young age and has been on the city’s richest list for five consecutive years?” “I heard he already has a child, but his wife has never been seen in public.” Just then, the main door was suddenly pushed open. A little girl, surrounded by a group of bodyguards, entered the hall. The girl looked around curiously. A butler in a suit followed closely behind her, cautiously saying, “Miss, please walk slowly. Be careful not to bump into anything.” The old classmates became excited instantly. “Someone who can freely enter a private event and is called ‘Miss’ must be the movie star’s little princess!” “My goodness, she looks exactly like Adrian!” I was about to step forward when the man who had been splashed with alcohol by Lucas earlier blocked my path again. He didn’t dare confront Lucas, so he took out his frustration on me: “Evelyn, if it weren’t for Lucas, how could someone like you even get to see the movie star’s daughter? I suggest you kneel down and apologize to me right now. If I’m in a good mood, I might even marry you.” “A good man like me with a stable monthly income of $5000 is hard to come by. I advise you to be sensible!” I ignored him and watched as the movie star’s daughter was surrounded by people. They bombarded her with questions, and some had already taken out their phones to take pictures. Olivia’s face no longer showed the arrogance from earlier. Instead, she wore a fawning smile: “Little sister, is your daddy Adrian?” After getting confirmation from the little girl, Olivia’s smile became even more ingratiating: “What are you doing here? Would you like some fruit? Let sister get it for you.” As she spoke, she reached out to touch the girl’s face. The little girl pushed Olivia’s hand away and walked straight towards me. Under everyone’s gaze, she threw herself into my arms, sweetly calling out: “Mommy!”

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When I filed for divorce, Oscar Astor remained as indifferent as ever. He turned his face away, his tone flat. “Do as you wish. You can keep Nora with you. I do not want her.” My heart felt like it had turned to ash. Just as I was about to sign my name, a stream of comments appeared before my eyes. [Kathy, do not sign! He may look calm and unbothered, but inside, he is dying. Look, he cannot even bring himself to look at you.] [He is giving up custody not because he does not care, but because he does not want to make you suffer. It has nothing to do with that woman.] [My heart aches for Oscar. Just because he is naturally reserved, he is going to lose the woman he loves the most.] My pen hesitated while writing. I snapped back to reality after reading those few lines. Lifting my head, I studied Oscar. Under the dim yellow light, his sharp profile remained as distant as ever, as if divorce were nothing more than a trivial matter. I couldn’t find a single flaw, so I took the initiative to speak, “Don’t you have anything to explain?” Oscar turned away, rubbing his temples. “What more do you want from me?” He let out a long sigh, as though I were the one being unreasonable. A dull ache spread in my chest. Forcing a weak smile, I was about to respond when his phone rang abruptly. The room was quiet enough for me to hear Carol’s tearful voice clearly. “Oscar, Mila has a high fever. What should I do?” This was the 33rd time. Carol’s excuses for calling him were always the same: something broke, her daughter was sick, or their house had been burglarized. My lips curled into a cold smirk, unsurprised to hear her excuse again. Oscar said, “Kathy.” I turned my head to look at him. At some point, Oscar had already ended the call. He stood there with his lips pressed together and stared at me. “There’s nothing as dirty between us as you think.” With that, he slammed the door, leaving with a hint of restrained anger. So that was his explanation? I lowered my gaze. How utterly unconvincing. But the online comments didn’t see it that way. [Oh, Oscar must be heartbroken because Kathy doesn’t trust him.] [He only takes care of that woman out of gratitude. Can’t Kathy be a little more understanding?] [Great, now Kathy has pushed him further toward the other woman again.] Frustration welled up in my chest, making it hard for me to breathe. I felt trapped, unable to move forward or back. Carol Wilson was the daughter of Oscar’s late mentor. Ever since her father passed away six months ago, she had returned to the country with her daughter, Mila. And from that point on, Oscar and I had been caught in an inexplicable cycle of cold wars. Our five-year-old daughter, Nora Astor, had been affected by the tense atmosphere at home, waking up crying from nightmares night after night. I had read online that a couple’s relationship directly impacts their children’s mental health. So, I chose to take the first step toward reconciliation. I brought a pot of soup to Oscar’s office, only to walk in on Carol already inside. “I’m married,” he said. “So what?” Carol’s eyes were red as she wrapped her arms around his waist from behind. “I know you’ve only ever cared about Kathy,” she choked out. “But I don’t have a father anymore… Can you give me just a little bit of the love you have for her? Just a little is enough.” Oscar fell silent. He didn’t say a word for a long time. At that moment, my hands trembled so much that I nearly dropped the lunchbox. There had always been countless girls who liked Oscar. But he was naturally indifferent, rejecting others with clean precision, never leading them on. So his silence now was nothing short of acquiescence. And for the first time, I realized that, to Oscar, there was now another exception besides me. That was why Carol had the audacity to throw me that blatantly provocative smile.

“Mommy, when will Daddy be back? I want to go to the amusement park soon!” Fresh out of school, Nora broke free from Mary’s hand and ran toward me. I snapped out of my thoughts and quickly caught her. It was only then that I remembered today was our family day. Oscar’s childhood had not been a happy one. His father was a violent gambler, while his mother was weak and timid, shaping him into the distant and indifferent person he was. On the day Nora was born, he had held her carefully in his arms, fearful yet gentle, his eyes so full of tenderness that it was almost overwhelming. “Kathy, I would be willing to die right now if it meant keeping this moment forever!” Oscar had grown up in an empty and lonely childhood, and he was determined not to let his child go through the same thing. That was why he personally established this family outing day. Every year, on November 1st, we would put everything aside and take Nora to the theme park. Even as she grew older and his business empire expanded, he had never missed it. I had not even answered Nora yet when she eagerly tapped on her smartwatch, starting a video call with Oscar. Then, she lifted her wrist high and pleaded with me, “Mommy, please ask Daddy for me!” Her expression was pitiful, making her look even more adorable. For some reason, Nora was never very close to Oscar. Perhaps in Nora’s heart, a father who was often absent naturally felt distant. I chuckled and took the watch, about to tease her when the call connected. The next second, a large, curious face filled the screen. It was Mila. My smile froze. “What did Daddy say?” Nora noticed my sudden stillness and leaned forward, trying to get a better look at the screen. Almost instinctively, I ended the call. Calmly, I placed the watch down, bent down, and patted her head. “Daddy is still busy. Today, Mommy and Mary will take you instead.” “Oh… Okay…” Nora lowered her head, looking a little disappointed. But being the sensible child she was, she did not throw a tantrum and obediently followed Mary upstairs to change. Once she was out of sight, I turned and continued packing the things we needed for the outing. As I reached for the three Halloween-themed family masks, my hand paused. After a brief hesitation, I took out the two smaller ones and put them in my bag. I casually tossed the black one into the trash. It would not be needed anyway. Oscar had always had a rigid sense of personal boundaries. He never let anyone touch his phone, not even his own daughter. When Nora was three, his phone rang while he was in the shower, and Nora picked it up, intending to hand it to him. Oscar flew into a rage. He scolded her harshly. Little Nora was terrified and cried so hard that she could barely breathe. In the past, Oscar would surrender the moment his daughter shed a tear. When I tried to intervene, he stopped me, his face stern as he declared, “Let her remember this lesson. She needs to understand what she is not allowed to touch.”

A child’s emotions were like a summer rainstorm, which was quick to arrive but just as quick to pass. At the theme park, Nora was so excited that she was like a wild horse set free. Despite the cold winter weather, she played until her face turned red and broke into a sweat. I rummaged through my bag and realized that we had finished all the warm water we had brought from home. “Let’s take a break,” I said, stopping Nora just as she was about to run toward the carousel for the eighth time. Holding her hand, I led her toward the convenience store. As we passed by a souvenir stall selling accessories, I glanced at it instinctively. Then, my footsteps came to a halt. Oscar was standing in front of the stall, one hand in his pocket, the other absentmindedly fiddling with a tiger-shaped mask. His expression was indifferent. Beside him stood Carol and Mila. Carol was bent over, adjusting a pumpkin hat on Mila’s head. Mila was excitedly gesturing, her cheeks flushed with joy, showing no signs of having a fever at all. She and Carol whispered something to each other, then both of them laughed with bright eyes. Even Oscar had a small smile. The bullet comments appeared again. [Oscar is smiling so gently. He must be thinking about the times he used to come here with Kathy and their daughter.] [The only person who can make him smile just by thinking about them is Kathy.] I ignored the comments and exchanged a glance with Mary, signaling her to take Nora another way. But before she could react, Nora had already spotted Oscar with her sharp eyes. “It’s Daddy!” she exclaimed. Oscar turned his head, and the moment he saw me, his lips immediately pressed into a thin line. [Haha, he is still sulking because Kathy brought up divorce this morning.] [He actually didn’t forget about family day. He agreed to come with Carol on purpose, hoping to run into Kathy. It is so heartbreaking how desperate he is!] [Yes! He has been waiting for her to call him all day, but when she didn’t. He had no choice but to come looking for her himself.] I had no time to pay attention to the comments because, at that moment, Nora had already broken free from Mary and was running toward Oscar. She grinned, thinking her father had come here to surprise her. But before she could reach him, Mila suddenly bumped into Nora and pushed her aside. Nora watched as Mila threw herself into Oscar’s arms and pointed at the pumpkin hat on her head. “Mr. Astor, I want this hat!” Nora stumbled and fell to the ground. Her eyes instantly turned red. In her memory, her father had never held any other child before. Her small body tensed up as she struggled to keep her tears from falling. “My daddy won’t buy it for you!” she declared. Nora got up, patted the dust off her clothes, and marched toward Mila, raising her voice. “You bumped into me! You need to apologize!” Mila huffed and lifted her chin. “Why should I? You weren’t looking where you were running! I didn’t even ask you to apologize to me, and who are you to decide what Mr. Astor buys? You are so rude!” Mila was about the same age as Nora but shorter, so she had to tilt her head up to glare at Nora. Nora was furious at her shamelessness. “It was obviously you—” “Apologize,” Oscar suddenly spoke. His voice was indifferent. Nora put her hands on her hips and swayed her head triumphantly. “Did you hear that? My dad told you to apolo—” “Nora, apologize!”

Oscar repeated coldly, his voice sharp. Nora’s eyes widened in disbelief, and tears instantly welled up. But she was strong-willed; she bit her lip stubbornly without giving in. Carol pulled Mila to her side and smiled in understanding, “Kids have tempers. It is normal. We are fine, really. You do not have to let this affect your relationship with your daughter.” Oscar did not respond. Instead, his brows furrowed even tighter, and his tone became even harsher. “Nora!” Nora trembled all over, and tears fell onto the ground. Oscar frowned, about to reprimand her further when I felt a sharp pang in my heart. I immediately rushed forward and shielded Nora. “Do you need me to apologize too?” Oscar’s furious gaze met my cold eyes. He froze. [Does Kathy think Oscar is standing up for Carol and Mila?] [Did Kathy forget that Oscar was badly bullied in high school? He just does not want his daughter to become someone weak like he was back then!] [Oscar may be scolding his daughter, but deep down, he feels sorry for her.] Ridiculous. The comments made me frown. I took Nora’s hand, ready to leave, but Carol stepped in our way. “Sorry, I did not know today was your family day. Mila kept insisting on coming here, and we are unfamiliar with this place, so we had no choice but to ask Oscar for help. Kathy, you are not mad about this, are you?” Her tone was full of apology, yet her eyes could not hide their smugness. “Yes,” I replied. “What?” Carol tilted her head in confusion. I curved my lips into a cold smile. “I am mad. So what now? Shouldn’t you apologize to me?” If she wanted to twist the truth, I could do the same. Carol had not expected me to be so direct. She stood there, momentarily stunned. “You…” “There is no need,” Oscar said flatly. “It has nothing to do with you.” His hands were in his pockets, but there was an unmistakable hint of amusement in his expression. [Kathy is jealous. Oscar is secretly pleased!] [Oh my god, this is too sweet!] [Oscar looks cold on the outside, but he is actually so sensitive. That is why he constantly needs reassurance of Kathy’s love. He is completely addicted to it.] I was so angry that I actually laughed. Ignoring Oscar, I walked straight up to Carol. In the midst of her shocked scream, I kicked her hard, sending her toppling to the ground. “Your daughter pushed my daughter. Returning this to you is reasonable, right?” Oscar was stunned by my sudden outburst. “Kathy?” I ignored him, picked up Nora, and walked away. He grabbed my wrist, his face dark with anger. “What are you doing? Apologize to them!” Without hesitation, I lifted my foot. The sharp heel of my shoe landed precisely on his toe. “You get lost too!”

Oscar walked through the door carrying a cake just as I finished putting down Nora’s backpack. Since that day, this was the first time he had come home. He did not look at me, only lifted the bag slightly in Nora’s direction. Little girls could never resist sweets. “Yay! It is from Cloud Dessert! My favorite!” As expected, Nora cheered in excitement and immediately followed Oscar into the dining room. [This is hilarious. Oscar originally refused to come home to punish Kathy, but in the end, he could not hold out himself.] [Oscar is not good with words, but this action is clearly his way of conceding to Kathy.] I thought for a moment but did not stop Nora from spending time with Oscar. After all, he was her biological father. He would not harm her. Turning around, I headed upstairs, planning to wash Nora’s school uniform. Just then, a voice message popped up. It was from the owner of Cloud Dessert. Because Nora loved their cakes, I often bought from them, and over time, I added the owner on WhatsApp. “Mrs. Astor, long time no see. I just wanted to check if you were satisfied with the two cakes Mr. Astor ordered today.” I froze. Oscar ordered two cakes? But he only brought back one. Cloud Dessert specialized in cartoon-themed cakes, and many parents usually ordered cakes for their children. The other cake must be ordered for Mila. The owner continued introducing the cake. “This is a new product from our store. It is made with a special cream, tastes better than before, and for the first time, we have added a whole pound of mango in the filling. If you are satisfied…” Mango? My expression changed, and I hurriedly asked, “It contains mango?” “Yes, and Mr. Astor was aware of that. He…” The moment I received confirmation, I dropped my phone without hesitation and rushed downstairs in a panic. Oscar was no longer in the dining room. On the table, the cake was nearly finished, only a small portion left. Nora was scratching her face. When she saw me, she immediately pouted. “Mommy, I feel really bad.” Her whole body was covered in red rashes, and blisters had already formed around her mouth. As soon as she finished speaking, she collapsed straight onto the floor with a loud thud. My vision went black, and my mind went blank. Like a madwoman, I grabbed my daughter and ran to the hospital. It was only when I saw the doctor administering her anti-allergy treatment that my legs gave out, and I sank to the floor. Mary arrived shortly after, bringing a change of clothes for Nora and a pair of shoes for me. Only then did I belatedly look down. I had not even been wearing shoes. No wonder people had been giving me strange looks on the way here. I let out a bitter laugh. I had been so terrified. When Nora was two, Oscar once fed her with a piece of mango, not knowing she was allergic. It had sent her straight into the emergency room. That was when we first discovered that Nora had a severe mango allergy, so severe that it could trigger anaphylactic shock. Back then, Oscar was overwhelmed with guilt. He had even warned Mary sternly, “From now on, I do not want to see mango in this house. If you cannot remember that, then do not work here anymore.” I looked out the window. Dark clouds devoured the blue sky. Waves of black rolled and churned, piling upon each other. It was so heavy that I could not breathe.

As I stepped out of the hospital room, Oscar arrived. His usually neat hair was slightly disheveled, likely from rushing over. Seeing me, he quickly strode forward. “Kathy, what—” “Where were you? Why didn’t you answer your phone?” I cut him off, my tone cold and sharp. From the moment Nora had the allergic reaction until now, I had called him countless times. He had not picked up a single one. “Mila had another high fever. Carol asked me to take her to the hospital. My phone battery died, so I did not get your calls. I am sorry.” Oscar’s expression remained indifferent, as if he were merely stating a fact. I studied his face for a moment before letting out a cold laugh. “Do you even know why you are here?” “I heard Mary had an accident,” he replied slowly, his voice devoid of any emotion. I scoffed in disbelief before speaking, “Your daughter went into shock after eating the mango cake.” His eyes widened in shock. “Yes,” I said icily. “The very cake you specially bought for her.” Suddenly, I remembered what the owner of Cloud Dessert had said yesterday. She had mentioned, “At the time, Mr. Astor even replied, ‘Perfect, the kids love mango-flavored cake.’” I took a deep breath and looked him straight in the eye. “Do you have anything to explain this time?” Oscar visibly froze. For a moment, he seemed at a loss for words. Then, in a panic, he reached for my hand. “I was careless. I did not mean to…” He abruptly stopped, as if unable to find a reasonable excuse for himself. Awkwardly, he changed the subject. “How is Nora? She must have been crying and asking for me. I will go in and see her—” He turned to walk toward the hospital room. I shouted, “You are not worthy!” Oscar stopped in his tracks. “Let’s get a divorce, Oscar.” At this moment, I felt nothing but absolute calm. [No, Kathy, do not be impulsive!] [Oscar is just naturally quiet. He does not know how to express himself, but that does not mean he does not love you.] [What is Kathy doing? Nora is fine now. She is his salvation, why does she not understand that?] [Oscar will never refuse. No matter how unwilling he is, as long as Kathy asks, he will do it.]

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By some strange twist of fate, I swapped bodies with the person who bullied me. I became the adored heiress of the Summers family, while she was stuck as the older sister in a family that drained her dry. Later, when she was slapped across the face and left crying on her knees, she begged me to switch back. SMACK! The moment I stepped into the classroom, a slap sent me stumbling backward. “How dare you even show your face here?” Maya Summers stood in the doorway, hands on her hips, glaring at me with pure disdain. “Why didn’t you pass me the answers during yesterday’s test?” I clutched my burning cheek and stammered, “The proctor was watching too closely. I couldn’t get the answers to you.” But Maya didn’t care about my excuses. All she cared about was her grades. How I managed to pass her the answers was my problem, not hers. A growing crowd of students gathered in the hallway, eagerly watching the drama unfold. My cheek throbbed with pain as I lowered my head and muttered, “I’m sorry, Maya. I’ll do better next time.” Hearing my apology, Maya’s expression softened slightly. She scoffed, spun around, and returned to her seat. I tried to follow her into the classroom, but her sidekick, Rainie, blocked my path. Rainie smirked and poked me hard in the forehead with her manicured finger. “You better be grateful Maya let you off easy. If this happens again, you’ll regret it.” Satisfied with her intimidation, she turned on her heel and strutted back to her seat. Only then was I finally able to walk into the classroom. As I passed by, the class representative muttered under her breath, loud enough for me to hear: “Getting slapped like that and still apologizing like a dog. Do you have no self-respect?” My fists clenched tightly at my sides, shaking with frustration. I wanted to fight back. But Maya’s family was filthy rich, and her uncle was the school’s vice principal. And me? I lived in a run-down neighborhood on the outskirts of town. My mom had drilled it into me from a young age: “Keep your head down at school. Don’t cause trouble.” With a deep sigh, I unclenched my fists and returned to my seat. After a long day of classes, the teachers handed out their usual piles of homework. As usual, Maya tossed her worksheets onto my desk. She pulled a $20 bill out of her designer bag and threw it in my face. “You know the drill: do mine first, then do yours.” I nodded, silently gathering her papers into my bag. When I got home that evening, I barely had time to close the door before my mom slapped me across the face—right on the same cheek Maya had hit earlier. The sting of the slap brought tears to my eyes as I felt the fresh handprint bloom over the already swollen skin. “Well, well, Ashley,” my mom sneered, “what kind of trash have you been learning at school? Stealing money now, are we?” My heart sank when I saw the piggy bank in her hand. That was my money, all the cash I’d earned from part-time jobs. I’d hidden it carefully in my room. How had she found it? “Your brother found this while cleaning your room,” she spat. “I didn’t raise you to be a thief!” I glanced toward the living room, where my little brother sat on the couch playing video games. His smug grin made my blood boil. The handheld console in his hands? He’d begged me to buy it for him, and I’d refused. I snatched the piggy bank from my mom and shook it. Sure enough, a large chunk of my money was missing. Pointing an accusing finger at my brother, I shouted, “You stole my money to buy that stupid game!” My mom turned to him, her expression uncertain. But he didn’t miss a beat. “That’s my money from my part-time job. What’s your problem?” he said, feigning innocence. Then he added, “Actually, that money isn’t even hers—it’s yours, Mom! She probably stole it from you!” My mom’s face darkened with fury. She snatched the piggy bank back from me and screamed, “Caught red-handed, and now you’re trying to frame your brother? You’ve really lost it, Ashley!” Reaching behind the door, she grabbed a metal hanger and swung it at my legs. The pain was so intense that my knees buckled, and I collapsed to the floor. My brother, now towering over me, smirked and adjusted his seat so he was sitting directly in front of where I knelt. All I could do was grit my teeth and bury the burning humiliation deep inside.

The Beating Continued Like a Storm of Blows I tried to explain through the pain that the money was mine, earned from working part-time jobs. But of course, my mom didn’t believe me. She’d rather trust my lazy, good-for-nothing brother than me. I don’t know how long it went on, but eventually, she stopped. She took all my money and told me to get up and cook dinner. Dragging my bruised body, I forced myself to finish the chores—cooking, cleaning, laundry—before I finally sat down to do my homework. By the time I finished one set of assignments, it was already 1 a.m. I stared at the two identical stacks of homework on my desk—my own and Maya Summers’. The events of the day replayed in my mind, and I couldn’t help it anymore. For the first time, I wrote my name on the completed assignment meant for her. As soon as I did it, my heart pounded with fear. But… there was also a thrill, a spark of vengeance. The feeling didn’t last long. A few seconds later, I sighed, picked up the second set of blank worksheets, and started working again. At some point, exhaustion overtook me. I must’ve fallen asleep at my desk because the next thing I knew, my alarm was blaring. 6:30 a.m. Panic surged through me as I realized several pages of Maya’s homework were still blank. If she found out I hadn’t finished, I was dead. I grabbed my pen to start writing, but before I could, the door burst open. My brother stood there, arms crossed, barking, “Hurry up and make breakfast! I’m starving!” Behind him, my mom’s dark, angry face loomed. Under their suffocating pressure, I had no choice but to drop everything and head to the kitchen. By the time I finished cooking and cleaning up after them, there wasn’t a second left to spare. I stuffed my things into my bag and sprinted to school, barely avoiding being late. When I entered the classroom, Maya was already glaring at me. “You’re late. What took you so long?” she snapped. Before I could answer, she demanded, “Where’s my homework?” Instinctively, I clutched my bag to my chest, stammering as I hesitated to hand it over. Her eyes narrowed. Without another word, she yanked my bag out of my hands and rifled through it. When she pulled out her unfinished worksheets, her expression darkened into something terrifying. “You’ve got to be kidding me. I paid you, and this is what I get?” She waved the papers in the air, then slapped me across the face, hard. Grabbing a fistful of my hair, she forced me to look at her. “Ashley, I didn’t know you had the guts to pull something like this.” The searing pain in my scalp brought tears to my eyes, but I couldn’t stop them from falling. The classroom fell silent as everyone turned to watch. From the back of the room, a few boys started jeering. “Get her, Maya! Teach her a lesson!” “Yeah, slap her again!” Fueled by their encouragement, Maya’s fury grew. She hit me two more times, each slap harder than the last. Her sidekick, Rainie, joined in by grabbing my homework and ripping it to shreds. I sat there, frozen, as sunlight streamed through the windows. The warmth of the sun felt mocking against the icy chill inside me. This wasn’t just a classroom anymore—it was a living hell. Images of the past few months flashed through my mind: The money I’d worked so hard to save, stolen by my mother. Her baseless accusations. The bruises on my body. I knew she didn’t actually believe I was a thief. She just needed an excuse to take what was mine and claim it as hers. The thought ignited something inside me—a fire that burned hotter and brighter with every passing second. Before I knew it, I shoved Maya away with all my strength. She stumbled backward, her face twisting with shock. At the same time, I saw Rainie raising her hand to slap me again. I braced myself, squeezing my eyes shut. But the blow never came. Instead, I heard a sharp cry of pain. Opening my eyes, I saw something that made my blood run cold. I was sitting on the ground, but Maya—Maya was clutching her face, looking terrified. Even stranger, she was wearing my clothes. And… she looked exactly like me. I glanced down at myself and froze. The short skirt Maya had been wearing earlier was now on me. Rainie rushed to my side, concern etched across her face. “Maya, are you okay?!” Maya? Wait… What the hell just happened?

Rainie Called Me… Maya? I stared at my hands in shock. They were smooth, soft, and unblemished—so different from my own calloused hands, roughened by endless chores like cooking and scrubbing. These weren’t my hands. It hit me like a freight train: somehow, I had swapped bodies with Maya Summers. I looked up and saw Maya—well, my body—staring back at me with wide, horrified eyes. Rainie, oblivious to what had happened, shot her—no, me—a scolding glare. “Ashley, what’s with that look? Do you want another beating or something?” That confirmed it. Instead of fear, a wave of exhilaration rushed through me. I wasn’t the Ashley everyone bullied anymore. The bell rang, and Rainie grabbed my arm—well, Maya’s arm—guiding me back to her seat. “Don’t stress over it, Maya,” she said soothingly. “Your uncle’s the principal. One missed assignment won’t matter. We’ll deal with Ashley after school.” Hearing the words “deal with Ashley,” my body froze instinctively. Rainie noticed and frowned. “What’s wrong, Maya?” I shook my head quickly, pretending nothing was wrong. Sitting in Maya’s seat, I pulled out a mirror from her desk. The face staring back at me was hers—Maya’s. “Ah!” A scream erupted from the front of the classroom. Maya—no, my body—was staring into a mirror of her own. The teacher slammed a ruler onto the desk, glaring at her. “Ashley, stop yelling! If you disrupt my class again, get out!” Maya swallowed her anger and sat down, her lips trembling with frustration. A few minutes later, she scribbled a note and passed it to me. What’s going on? Did you cast some kind of spell on me?! I stared at her words, unsure how to respond. I didn’t have an answer either. When class ended, Maya—still in my body—was called to the teacher’s office. Meanwhile, her lackeys, Rainie and another girl, swarmed around me, excitedly asking how we should “punish” Ashley. I hesitated, unsure of what to say. I didn’t want to accidentally blow my cover, so I mimicked Maya’s usual demeanor as best I could. “Just handle it the same way as before,” I said casually, waving a hand. Their eyes lit up with excitement. Maya returned to the classroom just before the next lesson started. Her face—my face—was swollen and red, her expression full of barely contained rage. It was almost funny watching her try to look menacing with my bruised and puffy features. She glared at me, as she always did. In the past, I would’ve immediately looked away, afraid to meet her gaze. But this time, I stared her down, head held high. Caught off guard, she faltered for a moment before stomping back to her desk. She opened the drawer to grab a book, but instead, her hand pulled out a dead rat. Her scream was ear-piercing. She flung the rat away in a panic—straight onto her deskmate’s lap, who cursed her out for it. Watching her flail around like that was oddly satisfying. Even though she was wearing my face, I couldn’t help but enjoy the moment. All day, Maya—trapped in my body—was berated, humiliated, and bullied. By the time school ended, it was clear she was finally relieved the day was over. But what she didn’t know was that this was just the beginning. Before she could confront me, Rainie and the other lackeys dragged her off to the back alley behind the school. I knew that alley well. It was the place where I’d been beaten and tormented countless times. A few older guys were waiting there—Maya’s “crew.” I recognized all of them. They’d been responsible for most of my bruises in the past. When they saw me, they immediately straightened up, their faces lighting up with fake smiles. “Maya! Glad you’re here,” one said, practically bowing. I nodded coolly and sat on the stone bench they’d wiped clean for me. Maya—still in my body—was held down by Rainie and the others. She thrashed and struggled, finally breaking free and crawling over to me. Her eyes were filled with hatred as she snarled, “What the hell is going on?! What did you do to me?!” Before she could touch my shoes, one of the guys yanked her back. “Whoa, whoa, whoa. What do you think you’re doing? Trying to suck up to Maya now?” Pinned to the ground, Maya looked up at me, her expression a mix of disbelief and rage. I stared down at her, letting a smirk curl across my lips. It was the same look she always gave me—mocking, condescending, and full of disgust. For the first time, Maya Summers was tasting what it felt like to be me.

I Turned Away, Leaving Maya to Her Fate I didn’t want to look at my old, pitiful face for another second. I gave Rainie a signal to handle the situation and turned to leave. Behind me, I could hear Maya—now trapped in my body—screaming like a madwoman. “Ashley! I don’t care what kind of witchcraft you used! You better watch your back!” I paused mid-step, turned around, and crouched down beside her. Grabbing her chin the same way she used to humiliate me, I leaned in close and whispered into her ear: “From now on, you’re Ashley. And I’ll be taking your place, living as the Summers family’s precious little princess.” The words felt like a release, like the weight of years of injustice was finally lifting off my chest. For the first time in forever, I felt light. Even my steps were bouncier as I left the alley. Outside, the Summers family’s chauffeur was waiting by a sleek black car. The moment he saw me, he straightened up and opened the door with a respectful bow. “Miss Summers.” I didn’t immediately head to the Summers estate. Instead, I decided to make a detour. Checking the time on my phone, I instructed the driver to take me back to my old home. When we arrived, I stayed outside, peering through the window. Maya, now stuck in my body, was kneeling on the floor in the middle of the room. In front of her stood my mom, holding a broom in one hand and the $20 bill Maya had thrown at me yesterday in the other. “What, stealing once wasn’t enough for you? Now you’re trying to do it again, huh?!” Maya didn’t even get a chance to explain before my mom began beating her with the broom. The blows rained down mercilessly as Maya screamed and cried, insisting the money was from a classmate. But my mom didn’t believe her—she never did. I watched through the window, feeling a strange mixture of satisfaction and pain. I knew exactly how Maya felt. I’d been through the same thing countless times—falsely accused, beaten, silenced. My body knew this routine all too well: flinching, twisting, trying to dodge the blows, knowing it was pointless to argue. Suddenly, as if sensing my presence, Maya—still in my body—turned her head sharply and looked straight at me. I snapped out of my thoughts and let a small, cold smile curl across my lips. This is what you deserve, Maya. You wanted my life? Go ahead. Enjoy it. With that, I turned back to the car and told the driver to take me to the Summers estate. Living as Maya Summers The Summers family estate was like something out of a movie—a sprawling mansion surrounded by perfectly manicured lawns and a fountain in the driveway. It was the kind of place I never even dared to dream of setting foot in. The moment I walked through the doors, a housekeeper rushed over to help me change my shoes. I wasn’t used to this level of attention and waved her off, insisting I could do it myself. But to my surprise, she immediately dropped to her knees, trembling. “Miss Summers, I’m sorry! Please don’t fire me! I promise I’ll do better next time!” Her panicked reaction caught me off guard. I quickly crouched down, helping her up as I asked, “What’s wrong? Why are you apologizing?” It took a lot of reassurance before she stopped shaking. With her head lowered, she explained, “You always let me help you with your shoes. But now you won’t let me. I thought… I thought you were unhappy with me…” I realized then just how spoiled and cruel Maya had been. Even something as small as refusing help sent the staff into a panic. Just as I was about to reassure her further, a voice from the living room cut through the air. “Go to HR and collect your paycheck. You’re done here.” It was Maya’s father. He hadn’t even looked up from his newspaper as he delivered the cold dismissal. I froze, unsure of how to respond. Part of me wanted to plead for the housekeeper, but I quickly caught myself. If I acted out of character, Mr. Summers might suspect something was wrong. Swallowing my words, I gave the housekeeper an apologetic look as she quietly left, tears streaming down her face. “Miss Summers, dinner is ready,” a young woman called out from the dining room. I recognized her from school. She was Maya’s mom. “Coming, Mom,” I said, trying to mimic Maya’s usual tone. I dropped my school bag onto the couch and walked toward the dining room. But as I entered, I froze. The entire family was seated, their eyes all fixed on me. Especially Mrs. Summers. Her gaze was intense, almost as if she could see through me. A chill ran down my spine, and cold sweat prickled at the back of my neck. Had I done something wrong? Had they already noticed something was off? Sitting at the Dinner Table Mrs. Summers served me a bowl of rice as I nervously ate, my eyes darting around to gauge everyone’s expressions. Mr. Summers seemed to be in a good mood. He even added some food to my plate a few times, telling me to eat more. But Mrs. Summers… her gaze was different. Throughout the meal, she kept staring at me, her expression unreadable, yet heavy with suspicion. It made my skin crawl, like she could see straight through me—as though she knew that despite looking like Maya Summers, inside, I was Ashley. After dinner, Mr. Summers left to work on some business matters, and I stayed behind to help Mrs. Summers clean up. I was carefully carrying the last plate when she suddenly leaned in close, inspecting me from head to toe.

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After graduating from university, my dad transferred one million dollars to me to buy an Audi A8. I was struggling with which color to choose when my boyfriend, James Anderson suddenly commanded, “Stop thinking about the car. Let’s use that million for the down payment on our new home.” Worried that I might have objections, he added, “This is for our wedding preparations.” I didn’t respond, but turned around and immediately ordered the top-spec Audi A8. And by the way, I broke up with him. On the day I graduated from university, my dad transferred one million dollars to me. He left a note: [Congratulations on your graduation, my dear daughter. Use the money to buy an Audi A8 so it’s easier for you to drive to work.] I was overjoyed and sent several emojis, replying: [Dad! You’ll always be my hero!] [I’ll do anything in the next life just to be your daughter again!] James, curious about why I was smiling so happily at my phone, leaned over and casually asked, “What did your dad give you that has you so excited?” Without noticing his change in expression, I showed him the balance on my phone and said, “My dad gave me one million dollars as a graduation gift so I can buy an A8 and drive to work.” He suddenly snatched my phone and examined the balance several times, his face turning serious. Sweat beads formed on his forehead. His voice suddenly rose. “Your dad’s crazy! How could a girl like you get one million dollars to buy a car?” I was still immersed in my excitement over the new car and didn’t notice how odd his response was. I showed him pictures of the car in black and white, asking, “Which one do you think looks better, black or white?” To my surprise, he shot me an annoyed look and plopped down on the bed, playing with his phone as though I wasn’t there. “Do you even know anything about cars? This car will be a waste for you.” His comment made me feel uncomfortable, so I retorted, “Who says only men are supposed to drive cars?” He noticed my change in mood and realized that his words had been too harsh. He quickly stepped forward, pulled me into his arms, and gently comforted me. He said, “Baby, that’s not what I meant. This car costs at least over a million dollars. Now that we’ve both graduated, wouldn’t it be better to save that money for a house?” As he spoke, he pulled up information on several new apartment complexes nearby. I recognized them all as upscale developments, with down payments requiring over a million dollars. James lightly shook my shoulders, planting a soft kiss on my forehead as he continued speaking softly, “A car is just a tool for getting around. The cheaper ones and the expensive ones aren’t that different. But a house is something else. Remember, you’ve always talked about wanting a home with me. Why not use this money for the down payment?” Gradually, my earlier excitement started to fade. I turned and looked at James quietly. Noticing my silence, he pressed on, still trying to convince me. “We’ve both graduated now. It’s time to plan for our future. I want to give you a stable home.” As I listened to the way he spoke, as if he were thinking of me in every word, my mind felt unusually clear. The first time I dated James, I knew his family wasn’t wealthy, and I had never expected him to propose marriage or buy a house anytime soon. I instinctively pulled away from his embrace and said in a flat tone, “But I don’t want to buy a house, and I don’t want to have the pressure of a mortgage either.” The place I worked was only a ten-minute drive from my parents’ house, so honestly, there was no need to buy a house. But James was persistent, continuing his suggestion in a tone that pretended to be for my benefit, “You can put the house in my name. I’ll help you with the mortgage.” At that, I couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief. I had never met someone so shameless. Forget that it was before marriage. He wanted to use my parents’ money for the house down payment and then expect me to share the mortgage with him. I pushed him away. “Do you think my parents can’t afford to buy me a house?” I thought, “If I ask, my parents will buy the house outright. Why would I have to struggle with him to pay off a mortgage?” James looked at me coldly, his eyebrows twitching slightly. When we argued earlier, he had the same expression on his face. Just when I thought he was about to lose it, he suddenly flashed a grin that didn’t reach his eyes. He tried to take my hand. “Baby, don’t be mad. I’m doing this for you. “I don’t have a house. How could I possibly go to your family to ask for your hand? “I just want to give you a stable home. “Don’t you dream of having a place where after work, we can cook together and watch TV? Isn’t that the life you’ve always wanted? “I just think it’s more convenient if the house is in my name, and I’ll be able to help you with the mortgage.” He kept trying to tempt me, but I outright rejected him, saying, “I don’t want to buy a house.” Seeing that I wasn’t budging, James couldn’t hold back any longer. He snapped at me, “Natalie, what do you mean? It’s just a house! What’s the difference whether it’s in my name or yours? “I really didn’t expect you to be this kind of person, arguing with me over something as small as a house!” I gathered my things and turned to leave, but James followed me, asking me accusingly, “I’ve been with you for all these years, and now you’re turning your back on me over a house? How materialistic can you be? “It’s just putting the house in my name, why are you so angry?” He followed me all the way to the door. I couldn’t help but ask him in return, “Then if you pay the down payment for the house, would you be willing to put it in my name?” James almost instinctively retorted, “Am I crazy to buy you a house?” I laughed in disbelief, “You’re the crazy one, not me.”

I took a cab back to my parents’ house. After taking a shower, I lay in bed, reflecting on the years I had spent with James. We had been together since college, and because of his family situation, I had always taken care of the finances. Our relationship used to be harmonious, and we never fought. Today, things just didn’t go his way, and he showed his true colors. Suddenly, I felt like I didn’t know him at all, as if I had never really understood him. Just as I was about to fall asleep, James messaged me: [Sorry, baby. I was too impulsive today and didn’t consider your feelings.] Reading his message, my anger faded by half. I thought, “Maybe I have misunderstood?” But the next second, he sent me pictures of newly built developments. [Baby, check out these new developments. The locations are great. I’m just thinking about our future.] He made it sound so righteous, positioning himself on the moral high ground, as if using my parents’ money to buy a car for myself was selfish. I intentionally sent him a screenshot of an order I had placed. He got frustrated and, after a while, sent me a long voice message. “Are you crazy? Who buys a car these days? What’s the point of driving a luxury car? “How selfish are you? I’m thinking about our future, have you thought about it? “You’re a woman. What’s the point of you driving such an expensive car? Do you even know anything about cars? “Besides, your dad gives you all this money, and you can’t even plan for our future?” He sent me several voice messages. I knew that sixty seconds was the limit for a voice message, not his. I didn’t want to listen to him talk any longer, so I shot back, “Are you crazy? Why should I use my dad’s money to buy you a house? “Are you that shameless? “You’re too stupid to even live off someone properly. With a brain like yours, you should hurry up and go see a doctor!” With that, I immediately blocked and deleted him. I also froze all the cards I had given him. I took screenshots of all the bank transfers I had made to him over the years and printed them out. “Scumbag, go to hell!” I thought.

The next day, my dad was a bit surprised when he saw me come out of the bedroom. “How come you’re home? Not with your little boyfriend anymore?” I rubbed my reddened eyes, feeling a bit upset. “We broke up.” To my surprise, my dad grinned from ear to ear and immediately started planning a celebration. “Breaking up is good! I’ve never liked that guy anyway.” Hearing about the breakup, my mom came out of the kitchen. “Breaking up is a good thing. Look at you, you’ve been with him for so many years, and you’re looking worn out. Just stay home for a while, and let me take care of you.” At that moment, my eyes welled up. My voice was choked. “Okay.” Looking at my parents, who were already in their older years, I realized that no matter what I had done in the past, they always loved and supported me unconditionally. I thought, “How could I not love myself? Why should I let someone like James drain me?” To my surprise, a few days later, James suddenly called me. “Have you booked the private room?” he asked. I froze, suddenly remembering he had mentioned inviting some senior students to dinner a few days ago. “This is important for my future graduate studies. You can’t mess this up. “Don’t forget to buy the cigarettes and alcohol when you come. Get the best quality. The senior girls will be there, so make sure you have a set of SK-II for each of them. “Also, make sure the food in the private room isn’t too cheap. The quality needs to be high so I don’t lose face.” Listening to him rambling on the phone, I couldn’t hold it in anymore. “What do I owe you?” These things were going to cost tens of thousands of dollars at the very least, but since it wasn’t his money, of course, he didn’t care. James nonchalantly responded, “Are you still mad? It’s been a few days now, surely you’re over it, right? “You used to always encourage me to go to grad school, right? Don’t just talk, it’s time to put some action behind those words. “Also, didn’t your dad give you a million dollars? Can’t you scrape together this small amount of money?” His attitude was so entitled that it made my heart sink. I had been planning to break up with him, but now I realized that would be too easy on him! Not only did I want him to pay back all the money I had spent on him over the years, but I also wanted him to learn the consequences of messing with me. Suppressing my disgust, I forced a smile and said to James, “No problem, I already booked the private room. Tomorrow, I won’t disappoint you.” Hearing that, James couldn’t hide his smug laughter on the other end of the line. It was as if he was saying, “What’s the big deal? No matter how much money you have, I can still control you with ease.” He added, “Since that’s settled, tomorrow I’ll bring my advisor along. You’ll need to buy him some dietary supplements, at least 50 thousand dollars or more. Anything cheaper would be too low-end.” Hearing him push further and further, I casually agreed, replying, “Sure!” Hearing me agree so easily, he didn’t suspect a thing and actually felt a sense of superiority. “Natalie, if you had listened like this earlier, it would’ve been much better.” I snorted in contempt, thinking, “Fool. He’s digging his own grave.” The next day, I canceled all my plans and stayed home watching TV dramas. At first, James sent me texts saying he had arrived at the private room, ordered the food, and asked when I would bring the gifts over. I ignored all his messages. Later, he couldn’t reach me, started to panic, and bombarded me with calls. I could barely tolerate the noise, so I finally answered. “Natalie, where are you? The seniors have all arrived. Where are the gifts?” I lay on the sofa, pretending to sound anxious. “I’m on my way, I’m stuck in traffic. You guys go ahead and eat.” Then, I hung up the phone and continued watching my drama. I went ahead and ordered several expensive bottles of wine and various cosmetics and bags, but chose cash on delivery. James waited in the private room, only to receive the payment order instead of me.

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The day before my birthday, when I saw Zachary’s message saying he had to go on a business trip tomorrow and couldn’t celebrate with me, I felt only a moment of disappointment. But I wasn’t surprised by his actions at all. Zachary and I had been together for seven years, and we didn’t spend every birthday together. In fact, he had only celebrated with me three times. Once when he first won me over, once when we were in the honeymoon phase, and the last time was after we reconciled from a fight. When our relationship settled into a routine, he rarely paid attention to these so-called rituals. Gifts for holidays never failed to arrive, but his company was always absent. Even during holidays, we would go back to our respective families. I had once suggested bringing him home to meet my parents, but he always found excuses to avoid it. He never brought up the idea of taking me to meet his family either. As time went on, I gradually got used to this lack of surprises in our daily life and stopped obsessing over how to celebrate special occasions. This year, I hadn’t expected him to be with me on my birthday either, so I had agreed to my girlfriends’ invitation. They said they would keep me company for a happy birthday celebration. But just a few days ago, Zachary told me he wanted to celebrate my birthday this year, saying he had already made reservations at a restaurant and everything. When I shared this news with my girlfriends in our group chat, I felt a bit guilty. After all, they had been preparing for my birthday for a while and had cleared their schedules for me. But they all said they understood and even got excited, speculating, “Could Zachary be planning to propose to you?” A string of enthusiastic responses followed. In their eyes, Zachary and I had a great relationship; we were just both very busy. I instinctively denied the possibility. If Zachary were to propose, he would definitely not choose my birthday for it. He once said that choosing significant dates like birthdays or anniversaries for proposals or weddings was just a way to save on gifts during commemorative occasions, purely for convenience. More importantly, Zachary and I had been giving each other the cold shoulder for some time now. Ever since his first love returned from abroad, we hadn’t had a calm conversation. Every time we started talking, it would end up in an argument. I couldn’t even remember the last time we had a sweet, romantic date. Recently, he had been spending less and less time with me. I thought a breakup was probably just around the corner. The messages on my phone kept popping up. After telling me he couldn’t celebrate my birthday with me, Zachary transferred $1000 to my account, telling me to have a good time with my girlfriends. But they had already made other plans after hearing that Zachary was supposed to celebrate with me! I consoled myself, thinking it was just another birthday alone, something that had happened many times over the years. I accepted Zachary’s transfer. It had been a long time since he had given me a gift. For holidays and his birthday, I was always the one choosing gifts, and when the time came, he would simply transfer back a similar amount of money. The next day, my birthday. I woke up early, went about my usual busy routine, and then found myself sitting idly by the window. It was supposed to be my birthday, but it felt no different from any other day. I looked at the address of the restaurant Zachary had booked and decided to treat myself to a nice dinner there tonight, maybe buy myself that cake I’d been craving lately. I got in my car and headed out, but halfway there, I got into an accident. A large truck suddenly changed lanes and crushed the passenger side of my car. My forehead hit the car frame, and my leg was injured. Blood was everywhere. When the ambulance brought me to the hospital, I was a mess – disheveled and covered in blood. I was lying on a stretcher, unable to move, as the nurse wheeled me into the emergency department. At a corner, I ran into my boyfriend who was supposed to be on a business trip yesterday. He was holding some medicine, sitting in a corner talking to someone beside him. I blinked and wiped away the blood on my face to make sure it was really my boyfriend. And the woman leaning on him, getting an IV drip, was Isabella, his first love. Perhaps because I was covered in blood, Zachary didn’t seem to recognize me at first. It wasn’t until I was pushed past them that Zachary finally recognized me, and I saw the panic on his face. He quickly stood up, about to walk towards me, but Isabella just lightly tugged at his hand, and Zachary stopped, nervously turning back to take care of her. Maybe it was because the wounds on my forehead and leg were too painful, but I felt surprisingly numb inside. As I was being wheeled into the emergency room, Zachary finally ran up to me. He looked at my blood-covered body, at a loss for words, and finally just asked, “How did you end up like this?” “Small car accident, not fatal,” I answered casually, only then realizing how hoarse my voice was. Zachary rummaged through his backpack and took out a thermos, about to pour me some water. Then he realized it was prepared for Isabella, so he awkwardly put it down and said to me: “I’ll go buy you some water.” Before he hurried away, I stopped him: “No need. Weren’t you on a business trip with Isabella? Go take care of her.” Zachary had his back to me, so I couldn’t see his expression. As he was about to turn around, I was already being wheeled into the operating room. My injuries seemed quite serious. There was a large gash on my forehead, which the doctor stitched up with five sutures. My body was covered in black and blue bruises, and my leg had countless stitches. The doctor warned me not to walk around carelessly. When the nurse wheeled me out in a wheelchair, I found Zachary still standing at the door waiting for me. He rushed over to the nurse, asking question after question about my condition, whether I needed to be hospitalized, if there were any dietary restrictions. After learning that I didn’t need to be hospitalized but required IV drips and regular medication and dressing changes, he concernedly took the wheelchair from the nurse and pushed me towards the IV room. I didn’t say a word the entire time. As I was getting my IV, the truck driver was also brought to the hospital by the police. He apologized to me profusely and said he would cover my medical expenses. It wasn’t until Zachary spoke with the police that he realized how severe the accident scene had been. When he received photos from the insurance company showing the car that had been crushed by half, genuine anxiety finally appeared on his face. “You call this a small accident?” he exclaimed. I calmly looked at him and said, “This is a hospital. Please keep your voice down.” All around us were other patients getting IVs. The appearance of the police and the driver who caused the accident had already created quite a stir. Now with Zachary shouting, everyone’s attention was focused on us. He looked apologetically at the surrounding patients, then crouched behind me and said softly, “It’s okay now, don’t be scared. I’m here with you.” I found it somewhat amusing. I looked at him, then at Isabella who was standing across from us holding her IV bag, and nodded towards her. “Someone’s waiting for you.” Zachary was about to say something, but after Isabella called out to him, he stood up. His gaze was conflicted, constantly moving between Isabella and me. “Lily… Isabella’s IV is almost done. I’ll keep her company for a bit longer and then come back to you.” But in the end, upon seeing Isabella’s pale and weak appearance, Zachary left me behind and ran over to her. Of course, I didn’t believe he would come back to keep me company. Every time Isabella called him away, there was never any follow-up. I looked up at the medicine dripping down drop by drop, silently finishing two bottles of IV fluids on my own. Then I calmly called the nurse to remove the needle and wheeled myself through the remaining procedures. As I sat in the wheelchair waiting for my Uber, I finally had a moment to re-examine my relationship with Zachary. Seven years ago, when he confessed to me, I was overjoyed to accept, having harbored a crush on him for a long time. But he never brought up the topic of marriage. On the rare occasions when I asked about it, he would only say it was too soon, too early, too busy, not ready, or that we’d talk about it later. I understood him and was considerate, but stepping back from our relationship to think about this issue, I realized that the fundamental reason Zachary never mentioned marriage was that he had never forgotten his first love. I always thought that after being with him for seven years, I should have at least found a place in his heart. But after Isabella came back, I realized how thoroughly mistaken I had been. In the end, I didn’t wait for Zachary, nor did I wait for my Uber. The person who came to pick me up was my best friend, Olivia. Being an athlete, she effortlessly lifted me from the wheelchair into her car, then easily folded the wheelchair and put it in the trunk. She didn’t know that Zachary wasn’t actually on a business trip, so she was worried I wouldn’t be able to take care of myself alone at home and brought me to her place instead. “This must hurt so much,” she said, looking at my injuries with concern. She ordered a lot of takeout, saying she wanted to help me recover. “When you’re better, let’s go to a temple and pray. We need to get rid of this bad luck,” she said, feeling that I was incredibly unlucky to have gotten into a car accident on my birthday. I smiled and agreed, but my next words were interrupted by a sudden phone call. It was Zachary: “Lily, are you still at the hospital?” The delicious aroma wafting from the kitchen made me realize how hungry I was, so my tone carried a hint of irritation: “Is there anything else?” “I’m just worried about you. I’m your boyfriend, can’t I ask where you are?” I watched Olivia bustling about in the kitchen and coldly replied, “Oh, so you’re my boyfriend? I thought you were Isabella’s boyfriend.” Zachary seemed taken aback by my words. As Olivia was busy serving the food, he finally spoke again: “You don’t understand the situation. Isabella had a high fever, and her acute gastroenteritis flared up. She’s all alone here, with no one else to take care of her. I’ve known her for so many years, I can’t just ignore her, can I?” It was the same old excuse. I had heard it countless times over the past two years. Isabella had returned to the country two years ago, and the day after she came back, she called Zachary away using the excuse of not being accustomed to the local environment. “Two years, and she hasn’t made any friends,” I said, my tone somewhat sarcastic. “She’s not like you, she’s more introverted—” Zachary instinctively started to defend Isabella, but I didn’t want to hear him speak anymore. “Alright, then take good care of her,” I interrupted him and hung up the phone immediately after speaking. Olivia, who had brought out the food, overheard my conversation with Zachary. She asked about what happened today, and after I explained, she cursed Zachary vehemently on my behalf. “He’ll probably come looking for you later. Should I tell him you’re not here?” Olivia asked as she ladled some soup for me. I didn’t want to go home, but I knew I couldn’t burden Olivia, so I shook my head: “I should go back. You have work tomorrow.” Olivia bit her chopsticks, calculating how many days of annual leave she had left. I shook my head and smiled, refusing: “Didn’t you say you were saving your annual leave for a trip with your boyfriend? Won’t he be jealous if you use it to take care of me?” She patted her chest righteously, saying she didn’t care. But I was determined not to trouble her any further. After dinner, I packed up my things. Olivia was washing dishes in the kitchen, so I sat in the living room slowly waiting. But Zachary didn’t come to pick me up. I had a pretty good idea where he was, and sure enough, the next second my phone buzzed with a SnapChat message from Isabella. “Lily, I’m so sorry. I was feeling really awful, so I had to call Zachary to take me to the hospital.” “I heard you were in a car accident? I saw you covered in blood today and was so shocked. Are you feeling better now? Should I ask Zachary to make some soup for you?” Look at that, she’s come to show off again. Every time after calling Zachary away from me, Isabella would send me these boastful messages. Sitting in my wheelchair, holding my bag, I slowly typed with one hand: “Is he with you now?” “Yes, I have acute gastroenteritis so I can’t eat much, so Zachary is cooking for me. Do you want to come and join us?” Right after that, she sent a video of Zachary busy in the kitchen. I was used to this by now and didn’t reply. I just took a screenshot and sent it directly to Zachary. After a long while, probably after he finished cooking, Zachary replied: “Isabella has been abroad for a long time, so her way of speaking has changed. Don’t take it personally.” “I really think you two are a good match,” I responded. “What nonsense are you talking about? We’re the couple, she’s just my childhood friend now.” Then, as if to cover something up, he sent another message: “What do you want to eat tomorrow? I’ll cook for you.” I stared at my phone screen, not answering him, sitting alone in the wheelchair with tears in my eyes. In the seven years we’ve been together, Zachary had never cooked for me, not even a bowl of noodles. I’ve always loved to experiment with food, so my cooking is quite good. Since we started living together, I’ve been the one doing all the cooking at home. The excuse was that my food tasted better, so the more capable person should do more. Who knew? Apparently, Zachary was such a good cook. Olivia patted my back, pretending not to notice as she wheeled me off to wash up. Afterwards, she changed the bedding for me and told me to rest well. Lying in the soft bed, I received another call from Zachary. But I didn’t answer, I just turned off my phone. The next day, I was awakened by the aroma coming from the kitchen. Considering my current physical condition, Olivia had prepared many foods suitable for patients. I slowly sat up in the wheelchair, pushing myself out of the room. I heard Olivia in the kitchen, quietly talking on the phone with her boss. I should have left yesterday, but now she couldn’t go to work and had to take a half-day off for me. After she hung up the phone, I wheeled myself over to her and said, “You should go to work. I’ll head home soon.” Olivia looked at me disapprovingly. She looked at the bandage on my forehead with concern, then at my immobilized leg. “What if something happens when you’re alone at home?” After finishing breakfast, I insisted on leaving, not wanting to trouble her further. So I had to call Zachary and ask him to take me home. I called several times, and finally, Isabella picked up. “I’m sorry, Lily. Zachary was up all night taking care of me and just fell asleep. Did you need something from him? Should I wake him up?” The room was quite quiet, and I hadn’t put the call on speaker, but Olivia still heard what Isabella said. Her temper was like a firecracker, ready to explode at the slightest provocation. Just as she was about to start cursing, I stopped her. My voice was calm: “Isabella, is this the extent of your tactics? Otherwise, why hasn’t Zachary broken up with me and gotten back together with you in these two years?” There was a pause on the other end of the line, but she still used her sweet voice, pretending not to understand: “Because we’re just childhood friends. He just sees me as family. Don’t think of our relationship that way.” I was disgusted and didn’t continue to play along with her charade. I hung up the phone directly. In the end, it was Olivia who took me back home. Back to the home I shared with Zachary. I struggled through the day alone, and it wasn’t until noon the next day that Zachary returned. At the time, I was in the middle of handing over my work responsibilities. I had taken sick leave, and some of the projects I was handling needed to be transferred to others in advance. Zachary’s face was pale, looking as if he was the one who had fallen ill. Seeing me sitting alone in the wheelchair, busy with work, he quickly ran over to me.

My childhood sweetheart suddenly officially announced his relationship one night. His girlfriend was the girl who had been pursuing him for three weeks. One day, he finally snapped at me, his tone impatient: “If it’s not important, can you please stop bothering me?” But he knew very well that I lost my right leg because of him. I looked at him coldly and left with a parting shot, “Don’t think too highly of yourself.” A few months later, he was crying at my doorstep, begging for forgiveness. 0Recently, a girl has been relentlessly pursuing my childhood friend. She sent flowers on Valentine’s Day, brought water when he played basketball, and waited for him after evening study sessions – she tried every trick in the book. I thought she would fail like all of Jack’s countless admirers before her, but when I asked Jack about his feelings towards her, I saw him hesitate for the first time. Although he eventually told me to stop asking such pointless questions, I noticed something different. After one basketball game, when he accepted the water Emma handed him, I saw a genuine smile on his face amidst the teasing from others. I realized he had fallen for Emma. Otherwise, why would he suddenly leave our dinner together when he received a message from Emma asking for help? I cleaned up our table and limped after him. “What’s wrong?” I asked. “Emma said someone was following her,” he replied urgently. As he said this, I clearly felt Jack quicken his pace. I was stunned for a moment, instinctively trying to speed up as well. But I forgot that my right leg was a prosthetic, and I couldn’t run fast. The next second, I fell to the ground, letting out a cry of pain. Jack turned to look at me, but his eyes lacked their usual concern and worry. I knew that look – it was irritation and disdain. I had seen it in many people’s eyes before. He came forward to help me up, his brows furrowed and his tone unusually cold: “What’s going on?” “Why are you following me? Why didn’t you go back to the dorm? Don’t you know your own body’s limitations?” Scared by his tone, I instinctively apologized: “I’m sorry.” I wanted to keep up with him too. He seemed to finally realize he had said something wrong and ruffled my hair several times: “Lily, I didn’t mean it like that. Don’t cry.” He said, “Emma might be in danger. Be good and go back to the dorm, okay?” I nodded, and he let out a relieved sigh before turning and leaving. As Jack’s figure disappeared from my sight, I suddenly felt like crying. But I held it in. It was just… an inexplicable feeling of hurt. That day, my leg was actually scraped, but Jack didn’t notice because I was wearing long pants. In the end, I stumbled back to the dorm alone. I walked very slowly, and by the time I reached the dorm, I saw a new post on Reddit. Emma wasn’t in any danger that night; it was just a grand confession she had planned. Opening the photo, I saw Jack standing in a heart shape made of candles, his ears red. Emma stood opposite him, her face blushing. The post quickly gained traction. Most comments were along the lines of “What a perfect couple” and “The girl is so brave.” Among the hundreds of comments, I even saw my name mentioned. “Who still remembers Jack’s limping sidekick?” But this comment was quickly buried. I didn’t pay much attention to it. That night, Jack officially announced their relationship. The caption read: “A new chapter, my heart belongs to Emma.” He attached the photo of their confession from that night. With trembling fingers, I commented “Congratulations” under his post. On the day they got together, Jack replied with thanks to every comment congratulating them on that Reddit post, except for the one mentioning me. He skipped over it. In the past, he would have immediately lashed out at anyone in the comments who insulted me, not stopping until they apologized. But now, he chose to ignore the humiliation directed at me to maintain the beautiful atmosphere of his new relationship. I knew that Jack and I were drifting apart. 0

When I was ten, Jack became my new neighbor. When I first saw him, the movers were carefully carrying a Yamaha piano into their house. Jack stood awkwardly to the side, but when he saw me, a smile spread across his face: “Hello there, little girl.” Jack was excellent at playing the piano, and I had been learning ballet since childhood, so I often asked him to accompany me. Over time, we became known as “childhood sweethearts” to others. My favorite piece he played was “Für Elise.” Watching his flying fingers, my heart would start to flutter. I liked Jack. No one knew. For him, I even threw myself in front of a falling beam during a fire to protect him. While recovering in the hospital, I heard my parents crying outside the room, lamenting that I would never be able to dance again. Jack held my hand tightly at my bedside: “Lily, I’ll always be by your side from now on.” Tears slid down my cheeks as I bit my lip, barely managing to say: “Jack, I can’t shine on stage with you anymore…” I saw his expression turn grief-stricken, crying so sorrowfully, his grip on my hand tightening as he said earnestly: “Lily, you are the light itself.” From then on, Jack became my guardian angel. He would fulfill all my little wishes, like saying he would only play “Für Elise” for me alone. He would chase away other kids who gossiped about me, even if it meant getting physical. He would deliberately slow down his pace when walking with me, just to protect my fragile self-esteem. He said that whenever I needed him, he would never let me be alone. He said these things with such sincerity, and I basked in his gentleness year after year. Most of the roads we walked in our growth were wide and smooth, but I never imagined that the path between Jack and me would become muddy, causing me to fall and allowing thousands of vines to grow between us. 0

On the first day Jack and Emma got together, they invited me to dinner. When I arrived, I realized it wasn’t just the three of us. Besides the guys I knew who were friends with Jack, there were also some of Emma’s friends. Among them were people who had gossiped about my limp behind my back. Jack had previously cut ties with them because of this, but because of Emma, he chose to accept them again. I stood there frozen, watching them chat and joke happily, feeling as if my feet were weighed down by a thousand pounds. The moment they saw me, they all fell silent, looking at me with strange expressions tinged with mockery. I looked towards Jack, but he averted his gaze as if he hadn’t noticed my discomfort. In the end, I found a corner to sit down. Emma was the first to speak at the dinner: “Thank you all for your tremendous support in my pursuit of Jack! Today, I want to properly thank you!” “This first toast is for Lily.” I looked up in surprise to see Emma’s lips curled into a slight smirk, her expression smug: “Thank you, Lily, for always being by my boyfriend’s side, acting as his guardian for so long.” “If it weren’t for Lily’s companionship, how could I have caught up with Jack walking so fast?” Rachel, Emma’s friend sitting next to her, chimed in: “Don’t forget that time when Lily’s prosthetic leg fell off while trying to keep up with Jack for an 8 am class. It was hilarious, I still have photos on my phone.” They joked so naturally, making Jack laugh beside them. I choked up. It was the first time I doubted Jack. Could he really not hear the mockery in Emma’s words? Or did he also think my disability was just a casual joke to be tossed around? “Oh really? I remember something pretty funny too. Rachel’s wig fell off during the long jump in PE class. It was quite a shocking sight. It even ended up on the campus confession page afterward. I have photos on my phone too, want to see?” The one who spoke was Alex, Jack’s friend. His tone was flat, completely different from Emma and Rachel’s joking manner. Rachel’s face immediately turned awkward, forcing out a few dry laughs. After that, I kept my head down, sipping juice and secretly glancing at Jack sitting diagonally across from me, just to see if his smile was any different from when he smiled at me. The air conditioning in the private room was set very low. I unconsciously rubbed my arms, and the next second, a jacket was draped over my legs. Alex said in a voice only I could hear: “Put it on.” I obediently did as he said. I don’t know if it was my imagination, but after I put on Alex’s jacket, I clearly sensed a change in Jack’s expression. After the dinner, Jack offered to walk Emma and me back to our dorms together. Emma’s face clearly fell, but she still clung to Jack’s arm sweetly and said, “Baby, look, Lily is already wearing someone else’s jacket. Why don’t you let them have their private time? Just focus on walking me back, okay?” Jack rejected the idea without hesitation: “No, her leg isn’t good. I’m not comfortable letting her go with someone else.” As he said this, I couldn’t help but feel a bit dazed. The reason I had some interaction with Alex was also because of Jack. For instance, when Jack needed to go on dates with Emma and couldn’t accompany me to the rehabilitation center, he had asked Alex to take me there and back to school. But throughout those times, we hardly had any conversation. I really couldn’t have imagined that in a moment like this, it would be Alex who came to my rescue. Alex spoke up at this point: “Want to come with me?” I said, “I’ll go with you.” After saying this, even through the night, I clearly saw the displeasure on Jack’s face. But when he looked at Emma, that displeasure instantly melted into tenderness. Two taxis drove side by side. Because the distance was so short, through the car window, I could even see the two of them kissing shamelessly in the backseat.

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