Category: English

I had just secured a $10 billion project for the company and was about to report this good news to the CEO. But as I reached the CEO’s office door, I heard CEO Adrian discussing me: “That project Jade signed? Pure luck, nothing more!” His secretary immediately chimed in with flattery: “Exactly! A country bumpkin like her landing a major deal is mainly thanks to you and the company’s reputation!” Adrian continued: “Don’t lay her off yet. She’s been with the company for years. The severance would be too high. Transfer her to clean toilets. If she can’t handle it, she’ll quit on her own!” “Besides, a woman’s most important skill isn’t work—it’s serving men! She doesn’t act like a woman at all!” I tore up the project contract in my hands and turned to leave. Then I immediately called Adrian’s competitor: “Send the offer tomorrow. I’ll take that branch president position.” Adrian continued to humiliate me: “Jade is so old and doesn’t even have a boyfriend. She’s probably psychologically twisted.” “A woman’s greatest skill is serving men well. What kind of logic is it for women to compete with men for performance? Send her to the janitorial department to reflect!” Standing outside the door, the blood in my veins seemed to freeze instantly. The scene from that rainy night eight years ago flashed vividly before my eyes—me running wildly with a dying child on my back. I had just turned twenty then, working odd jobs in town. When I found the child, he had been abandoned by human traffickers in the roadside grass, burning with fever, barely breathing. I wrapped him in my only thick coat and walked over ten miles of mountain roads in the rain. The old doctor at the town clinic said if I’d been half an hour later, the child wouldn’t have made it. I later learned he was Adrian and Lauren’s only son, born after many years of marriage. Because he was frail, the traffickers thought he wouldn’t survive and casually dumped him. To express her gratitude, Lauren brought me out of the mountain village. She said, “Jade, you’re our family’s savior. From now on, you’re my sister. I’ll help you make money and establish yourself in the city!” Later, she really did teach me hand-in-hand how to read reports and negotiate with clients. From a warehouse partition to renting a proper office, almost every hard battle was fought by her and me together. She would put her arm around my shoulders and proudly introduce me to clients: “This is Jade, our company’s ace salesperson and my co-founder.” Until three years ago, when her heart condition flared up and she had to step back from the frontlines to recuperate. It was also from that time that Adrian’s eyes on me became increasingly complicated. At first, Lauren still came to the company often, but later, less and less. Occasionally when I visited her, her smile never reached her eyes. Once, when her son Max threw himself into my arms calling me “Jade,” she suddenly turned cold. “This child is closer to you than to me.” I found it strange at the time but just assumed she was in a bad mood from her illness and didn’t take it to heart. Instead, I threw myself wholeheartedly into the company. Adrian wasn’t cut out for business. The projects he led lost money consecutively, and morale plummeted. The suggestions I made were always rejected by him on the grounds that women had shallow vision. When I went to Lauren, she only said, “Jade, Adrian’s in charge of the company now. You need to listen to him.” This hundred-billion-dollar order I’d fought desperately to secure was already the company’s last lifeline. And now, it had become the trumpet call for my dismissal. I took a deep breath and pushed the door open. The embarrassment on both their faces flashed briefly before being replaced by anger. “Jade, why didn’t you knock before entering? Can’t shake off those country habits, can you!”

I gently placed the termination notice on the desk. “Mr. Anderson, I need an explanation for this.” “I made this decision.” Lauren took over, her tone displeased. “The company needs transformation now, fresh blood. You’ve worked hard and achieved much. You should rest.” Adrian leaned back, his gaze lewdly sweeping across my chest. “That’s right, Lauren is thinking of you. Administrative positions are easy, low-pressure. Women at a certain age always have to think about family.” “Thinking of me? Lauren, do you remember what you said to me eight years ago? You said we would together…” A flash of struggle crossed Lauren’s eyes, but she quickly regained composure. “Jade, people can’t keep living off past achievements. I’m grateful you saved Max, so I gave you opportunities, but you can’t keep using that favor to extort, can you?” She pushed another document toward me. “I’ve already reserved an administrative position for you. Think it over carefully. With your background, where else could you go if you left the company?” I reached out, grabbed the transfer notice, and tore it to shreds. “I appreciate Ms. Anderson’s kind intentions.” “But although I’m from the countryside, I still have self-respect. I can’t learn to serve people.” Ignoring their roars behind me, I turned and left the office. The glass on both sides of the corridor reflected my straight-backed silhouette, and also reflected this city I had once given everything for. Lauren hadn’t always been like this. In those first few years, she would often tell me that women should have their own careers. But I don’t know when it started changing. Her social media began sharing posts like “A woman’s true wisdom is making her husband shine.” The company atmosphere gradually changed too. Susan from Finance was transferred to manage archives after refusing to sign off on Adrian’s messy accounts. Mr. Quinn from Marketing was sent to the warehouse after questioning Adrian’s hole-riddled proposal. When I went to confront Lauren about it, she was learning to make soup from a video. After hearing me out, she put down the ladle and looked up at me with terribly unfamiliar eyes. “Jade, the company belongs to Adrian and me. You need to remember your place.” I stood frozen, taking a long time to find my voice. “Lauren, but didn’t we together…” She cut me off with a cold laugh. “Together what? I’m the boss, you’re the employee. You can only have what I give you. Including… the right to point fingers.” At that moment, I felt like I’d fallen into an ice cave. I said nothing more and just turned and walked out. But what chilled my heart even more was how she treated female employees. She promoted “women’s workplace skills” in the company, even bringing in a sex expert to preach that “a woman’s main battlefield isn’t the workplace, it’s the bedroom.” A promising new female intern liked to follow me around asking about sales techniques. Three days later, Lauren transferred her to receptionist. The intern felt wronged, but Lauren gently patted her shoulder. “Young girls shouldn’t always think about learning money-making skills. Finding a capable man—that’s the real skill.” The intern timidly glanced at me, but I couldn’t say anything. Because I knew that if I spoke up for her, she would probably be fired outright. And I wasn’t ready to leave at that time. I couldn’t let go of this empire she and I had built together. I even foolishly hoped she might return to being the old Lauren. But my silence seemed to fuel her suspicions. After I’d close a major deal, Lauren would praise me in a seemingly casual way.

“I heard that boss is very difficult. Ms. Jade must have put in a lot of effort!” But gradually, rumors began circulating in the company about me using special means to land projects. Lauren would always appear at the height of the rumors: “Everyone, don’t spread rumors. Jade is my sister. I know her abilities best.” In private, though, she’d hold my hand and sigh. “Jade, reputation is most important for girls. With you acting like this, how can I feel at ease as your sister?” I used to stupidly think that was concern. My phone vibrated in my pocket. It was a formal offer letter from the rival company’s HR director. [Ms. Jade, please confirm this offer. Position: Group Vice President and European Regional President, reporting directly to the CEO. Base salary, performance bonuses, and equity incentive details are attached. We look forward to your earliest start date.] Back at my desk, I began packing my things. A photo frame still sat on the desk—a picture of us from the early startup days. Lauren had her arm around my shoulders, smiling bright and radiant. I couldn’t reconcile her with the bitter, harsh woman from just now. “Packing up so soon?” Lauren’s voice sounded behind me. My movements paused, but I didn’t stop what I was doing. “Jade, do we really have to go this far?” She stood behind me, her voice softening, coaxing me like she had countless times before. “Isn’t this all for your own good? Why can’t you understand my good intentions!” I finally turned around and looked her in the eyes. “For my good? After I land a hundred-billion-dollar order, you throw me into cleaning toilets, and you call that for my good?” The gentle mask on her face finally showed a crack. “Of course it’s for your good! Jade, I’m grateful to you, grateful you saved my son and helped me build this empire.” “But why do you have to keep reminding me of this? Why do Max’s eyes light up when he mentions you? Why do company employees think that without you, Jade, the company can’t function?!” “Even when Adrian mentions you, that look in his eyes…” “Let me tell you, Jade—everything you have, I gave you! Without me, you’d still be scraping dirt in the mountains! Me having you clean toilets is elevating you!” I finally understood. Turned out all these years, every achievement I made was one more threat in her eyes. The life-saving favor was a debt, sisterly affection was an act, fighting side by side was foolishness. Perhaps initially, she truly treated me as her sister. But hearts change, and when I became “too accomplished for a subordinate,” This sister who once protected me couldn’t wait to destroy me. Seeing my silence, Lauren seemed even more enraged. “I wanted to leave you some dignity. But things have come to this, and there are some things I must say.” “Several important client files have been leaked recently, and projects keep getting snatched by competitors. I investigated for a long time, until yesterday when I confirmed the leak source was in the sales department!” “Not only that. This person also repeatedly tried to seduce Mr. Anderson. I caught her more than once! Out of old sentiment, I wanted to transfer her to administration to reflect, waiting for her to come to her senses before returning. But what did she do?” “Ungrateful, biting back instead. Since that’s how it is, don’t blame me for being ruthless.” Before I could refute, Lauren had already ordered people to restrain me. “Ms. Jade is suspected of leaking trade secrets. Until the investigation is clear, please have her rest in the storage room.” The ones restraining me were Leo from Finance—last year when his mother was critically ill, I privately advanced him $100,000 for surgery.

The other was Zoe from Marketing—when she was harassed by a client, I brought a lawyer in the middle of the night to rescue her. They held my arms on both sides, hands trembling but gripping hard. I was half-pushed, half-dragged toward the storage room at the end of the hallway. Passing familiar faces, some averted their eyes, some pretended to be busy, some hesitated to speak but ultimately stayed silent. My heart sank bit by bit to the bottom. The dust in the storage room made me cough constantly. Leo and Zoe pushed me hard, keeping their heads down, not daring to meet my eyes. “Ms. Jade… I’m sorry, we…” Leo’s voice was choked with tears. Before she could finish, Zoe pulled her hard. “Let’s go! Do you still want your job or not!” The door was locked again, cutting off all sound from outside. I slowly slid down the wall to sit on the floor. I reached into my pocket for my phone—the screen was pitch black. The last hope of contact with the outside world was gone too. I scanned the narrow space, wondering if I could crawl out through the ventilation shaft. Suddenly, footsteps sounded at the door. The lock clicked open, but my heart inexplicably panicked. Adrian slipped through the door crack and locked it behind him. He walked toward me, his gaze lewdly roaming over my body. “Look at this—our illustrious Ms. Jade, how did you end up like this?” I stood up, looking at him coldly without speaking. “Lauren just has a quick temper, acts impulsively. But I’m not incapable of helping you.” He moved closer, his tobacco-scented breath spraying on my face. “You were just too stubborn before! But from now on… as long as you’re smart and obey me.” “I can talk to Lauren and let you come back, even keep you as sales director. How about it?” I slapped away his hand reaching for my face and shouted angrily. “Don’t touch me.” The fake smile on Adrian’s face instantly vanished. He raised his hand and slapped me. “Ungrateful bitch!” “Jade, if it weren’t for your looks, I wouldn’t bother with you!” He grinned menacingly, grabbed both my hands, and pushed me against the wall. “You don’t want to? Doesn’t matter. I just need to have my fun today!” “Let’s see how long your stubborn bones can last!” Humiliation and rage made me instantly raise my leg and kick with all my strength toward his groin. Caught off guard, Adrian groaned and released his grip. But before I could run, he grabbed me from behind and slammed me hard to the side. My ears immediately rang, and a rusty, metallic taste filled my mouth. My vision blurred. I could only see his furiously twisted face and his hand raised high again. However, the expected second beating didn’t fall. The storage room door opened once more. Lauren stood backlit in the doorway, her expression as twisted as a ghost. “Jade, I knew I was right—you two really are having an affair!” Hearing this, I found it utterly absurd. But before I could refute, Adrian’s face was already plastered with flattery. “Lauren! Don’t misunderstand! She lured me here, trying to seduce me! She just wanted me to let her out.” “She even said she’s familiar with all the company business and will take those client resources and go solo, so she won’t have to deal with you, this nagging wife.” Lauren’s chest heaved violently, her eyes stabbing viciously at me.

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My fiancé Ronan ran away from our wedding two years ago. For those two years, he’d been accompanying his adopted sister Tia on hunting trips in Africa. When I went to pick someone up at the airport, I ran into him by chance. I was wearing sunglasses, but he spotted me in the crowd immediately. “Layla, I came back to marry you.” I hesitated. “You are…” He smiled helplessly. “Come on, don’t be mad at me. I didn’t mean to run away for so long. After Tia finished hunting one group of animals, she wanted to hunt another group. She’s my only sister—I had to indulge her.” “But look, as soon as filming wrapped, I rushed straight back to fulfill our engagement!” Only then did I recognize the man before me—my ex-fiancé Ronan! But didn’t anyone tell him that on the day he ran away, I married his brother Leo, the Alpha heir? The airport was packed with people. Ronan held a Chanel bag in one hand and pushed a suitcase with the other. Tia, whose skin had also darkened several shades, sat on top of the suitcase while Ronan pushed her along. After two years of hunting in Africa, they both looked like they’d been baking in the wilderness for years. Dark as night. Ronan used to be fair and handsome with a great physique. Back then, so many friends said I had good taste for finding such an outstanding fiancé. But now… Good thing he’s not my husband. I took off my sunglasses and forced a polite smile. “Sorry, it’s been so long and you’ve both changed so much, I didn’t recognize you at first.” Tia sneered as usual. “Stop pretending you didn’t recognize us. You came here to pick up Ronan, didn’t you?” “If Ronan and I hadn’t thrown away our SIM cards and cut off contact with home after going to Africa, you probably would’ve chased after us!” Tia huffed and turned her head away angrily. Ronan ruffled her hair and tapped her nose helplessly. “Once I marry Layla, she’ll be family too. You can’t talk to family like that.” “Otherwise, next year I won’t go to the next hunting zone with you.” After comforting Tia, he turned to explain to me: “She’s just childish, you know. Her father died protecting me when the Rogues attacked, and she lost her father because of it.” “After we get married, we’ll be one flesh. I hope you can help me take care of her and treat her like your own sister.” Did he even hear what nonsense was coming out of his mouth? I elegantly rolled my eyes and showed him the wedding ring on my hand. “Ronan, thank you for not marrying me back then. It let me marry a man a thousand times, ten thousand times better than you.” “Please don’t flatter yourself. I’m here today to pick up my husband.” Ronan froze. Then he squinted at me for a long moment before smirking. “Layla, do you think I’m an idiot?” “The alliance between Dubois pack and Ravencrest pack—our wedding two years ago was witnessed by all the werewolf packs. So many Alphas came to the ceremony. Who doesn’t know you’re my fiancée?” “I know running away made you lose face, and that’s my fault. But with your reputation ruined, if you don’t marry into our Dubois pack, who else would take you?” So that’s why he dared to run away—he was convinced that as an “abandoned bride,” no one else would want me! He really overestimated himself and underestimated me. His father, Alpha Orion, had to clean up his mess at great cost—losing both a son and resources. To appease my father, the Alpha of Ravencrest pack, Alpha Orion voluntarily offered to transfer the pack resources meant for Ronan to Ravencrest pack. Apparently, Ronan knew nothing about this. Well, of course not. He’d been out of contact with Dubois pack for two years for Tia’s sake, hadn’t even made a single phone call home. Naturally he wouldn’t know. I just hoped he could still laugh about it tonight when he got back to the pack.

Ronan and I were fated mates. We fell in love at first sight and quickly started dating. Ronan used to take me on dates to all sorts of places every day. But before long, a spoiled-princess adopted sister named Tia appeared by his side. On our wedding day, Ronan received her call: “Ronan, remember what you promised me? That you’d go hunting with me in Africa.” “I’m waiting for you at the airport. If you don’t come, I’ll drink wolfsbane!” Ronan just gave me an apologetic glance, didn’t hesitate to let go of my hand, abandoned all the wedding guests, and ran off. I received two text messages from him, then couldn’t reach him again. [Tia’s father saved my life. She’s his only daughter—I can’t let anything happen to her!] [Don’t worry, I’ll just accompany her on one hunt, then I’ll come back. A week at most, and I’ll return to complete the wedding. Then we’ll go on our honeymoon.] Alpha Orion was furious. To give Ravencrest pack an explanation, Alpha Orion promised me: “Layla, it’s my fault for not raising him properly. Whatever compensation you want, just say it!” I pointed at Alpha Orion’s eldest son, the current Alpha heir of Dubois pack, Leo. “Then give him to me. This wedding is still missing a groom.” Leo happened to have never met his mate and was single, so he and I completed the wedding ceremony. After the wedding, I had a witch sever the mate bond between Ronan and me. On our wedding night, Leo marked me. Just like that, I officially became Ronan’s brother’s mate. Thinking of this, I checked the time. Leo’s flight should be arriving soon. I was about to ask when I saw his message: [Honey, flight delay. I just boarded. Might be very late. Don’t wait for me—let the driver pick me up.] [Love you.] A big heart emoji. I couldn’t help smiling, my brow relaxing. Even looking at this infuriating ex-fiancé, current brother-in-law, seemed more tolerable now. Ronan crossed his arms, smirking at my phone. “Oh, where’d you find this actor? Saved as ‘Husband’? Flight delay too?” “Layla, don’t make jokes like this anymore. You know I get jealous.” He suddenly leaned closer, reaching out to touch my hair. I quickly stepped back. His hand froze in midair. “I told you, I’m married. If you keep harassing me, you’ll probably get your legs broken when you go home tonight.” Ronan laughed like he’d heard something hilarious. He pointed at my neck and raised an eyebrow. “That gemstone necklace you’re wearing—Father said he’d give it to his daughter-in-law. You’re wearing it now and lying to me about marrying someone else?” The necklace was indeed a gift from Alpha Orion, just not to his younger son’s wife, but to his elder son’s wife. “I married—” Before I could finish, Tia interrupted. “Is that the emerald necklace?” She jumped down from the suitcase and walked over, inserting herself between Ronan and me. When she saw clearly that the necklace I wore was the one she’d been thinking of, her eyes instantly reddened. She grabbed Ronan’s arm, her voice dejected. “Ronan, I’ve loved this emerald necklace for so long, but Father wouldn’t give it to me. Now he’s given it to an outsider instead.” “Does Father… not consider me his daughter?” “But I’m just the daughter of an ordinary wolf warrior. I only became Father’s daughter because he was kind enough to adopt me. I can’t compare to Layla, an Alpha’s daughter. Even Father favors her.” Hearing this, Ronan’s face filled with apology again. He looked at me with some difficulty. “Tia is young and has a pitiful background. She’s always insecure. Just give in to her.” “She likes this necklace, so give it to her. I’ll buy you a ruby one later—I guarantee it’ll be prettier and better quality than this one.”

I laughed—out of anger this time. “Ronan, I suggest you wash your brain. If I remember correctly, Tia is twenty-three this year, a few months older than me, right?” “I hate two things: man-children and scheming women who steal other people’s things. She happens to be both.” Provoked, Tia’s tears fell immediately. “Ronan will spoil me no matter how old I am. You’re just jealous!” “You haven’t even married Ronan yet—what right does an outsider have to take things from Ronan’s family? You’re the shameless one!” Though Tia had been taken in by Alpha Orion, she’d never been legally adopted or changed her surname, so she wasn’t an official family member legally or within the pack. Ronan had made a fuss about making Tia a true member of the Ronan family, but Alpha Orion made his position clear and refused, so he had to give up. That’s why he felt guilty toward Tia. Now seeing Tia upset, he felt sorry for her. He frowned. “Tia is different from you. She has no parents, only me. Father won’t agree to let her officially join our family, so she feels insecure…” I cut him off with a suggestion. “Want to make Tia your family? That’s simple.” “Just marry her. I’ll gladly give her this necklace as a wedding gift. Alpha Orion’s daughter-in-law would truly deserve to wear it.” I took off the emerald necklace from my neck and held it out to Tia. Tia’s eyes widened in shock, then filled with unconcealed delight. She immediately reached out to take it. “No!” Ronan snatched the necklace away and clutched it tightly in his palm. “What nonsense are you talking? Tia is just… just my adopted sister. You’re the one I want to spend my life with!” “You can be jealous of anyone, but not Tia.” “She’s family, and you’re my lover. Stop saying these angry words, or I really will get mad.” Being stared at by those affectionate eyes, I felt no emotion—only nausea. Not wanting to waste more words, I turned and walked away. Ignoring whatever Ronan was saying behind me. Walking out the airport doors, a low-key Maybach pulled up right in front of me. The driver got out and opened the door for me. “Layla, Leo asked me to pick him up later. Should I take you to Alpha Orion’s house first?” Leo had been on this business trip for half a month. Alpha Orion knew he was returning today and specifically told us both to come to his house for dinner tonight. Suddenly, someone pushed past me and got in the car first. After Tia sat down, she sneered. “Didn’t you say you’re married? Why are you hitching a ride in Ronan’s family car? Go take your husband’s car!” Tia recognized this Maybach—it was Leo’s. Ronan clearly recognized it too. He seemed flattered, since Leo usually didn’t handle these small matters, much less send a car to pick someone up. He sat down next to Tia, helped her fasten her seatbelt, then turned to me. “You sit up front. Tia’s used to sitting next to me. I’ll have the driver drop you off at your place first.” “No need, I have my own car. Driver, please take them home. I have other plans.” I pulled out my car keys and pressed unlock. In the distance, a Lamborghini Veneno’s lights flashed twice. Seeing me drive off in a supercar, jealousy flashed in Tia’s eyes. Ronan sighed. “She came specifically to pick me up—she must be mad I didn’t take her car.” Then he asked the driver: “Did Leo send you to pick me up?” The driver answered honestly: “No, I’m here to pick up Leo.” The air froze for two seconds before Ronan said: “…What a coincidence. So where’s Leo?” “Flight delay.” I went to a beauty salon for a spa treatment, enjoying myself thoroughly. Seeing it was almost dinnertime, I drove to Alpha Orion’s house. As soon as I got out of the car, I saw two people kneeling stiffly like wooden stakes at Alpha Orion’s front door. Turns out, after the driver brought them home, when Alpha Orion heard it was Ronan and Tia who’d returned, he threw his cane on the spot and wouldn’t let them in the door. “Get out! Why didn’t you just die out there instead of coming back?” Ronan bet on Alpha Orion softening, so he dropped to his knees at the door with a “thud.” Tia, to accompany him, knelt too. Seeing me arrive, Ronan stood up and blocked my way. His previously dejected expression vanished instantly, replaced by a beaming face. “I knew you couldn’t let me go.” “Did you rush over because you heard Father punished me?” I turned my face away in disgust, trying to go around him. But he blocked me again, looking like he was “doing me a favor.” “Don’t go in. Father’s still angry—I’m afraid he’ll take it out on you.” Tia somehow sidled over too. She pointed at my nose, sternly questioning: “Are you still holding a grudge about Ronan running away for me that year?” “You stirred things up, didn’t you? Father usually dotes on Ronan most—how could he not let him in the house?” “You came here just to laugh at us!” She rushed at me to grab me, but I sidestepped and she face-planted. Tia fell to the ground, her knee hitting a sharp stone, instantly cutting open a wound. She looked completely aggrieved. Ronan pressed his lips together, his smile fading. He crouched down first to check Tia’s wound. Seeing she was fine, he skillfully picked her up in a princess carry and coaxed her for a long time before a smile returned to Tia’s face. Only then did Ronan remember me. He sighed. “Layla, you’re making me feel like I don’t know you anymore.” “Tia speaks without thinking. If you’re going to marry me, you must learn to tolerate her.” “Apologize to Tia this time and we’ll call it even. In the future, I hope you can change your personality.” What? My vision darkened. I sneered. “Should I also give her some compensation to soothe her fragile heart?” Greed flashed in Tia’s eyes. “I still need a car to get around. The one you drove today barely catches my eye.” A Lamborghini Veneno—only 3 in the world, 23 million dollars each. Tia had quite the appetite. Ronan started making decisions for me again. “Since Tia rarely likes something, give her the car. Consider it compensation for hurting her.” I flat-out refused. “Impossible!” I pushed past Ronan and walked straight toward the house. “Stop!” Ronan realized he’d been played. His face turned ashen as he threatened: “Layla, I’m saying this once—if you don’t apologize to Tia, forget about marrying me, forget about stepping foot in Dubois pack!” “BANG—” Suddenly, a cane flew out and hit Ronan square in the head. From several meters away, Alpha Orion’s vigorous voice reached everyone’s ears clearly: “Get out! She’s Leo’s wife—of course she can enter Dubois pack!”

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1 I left my rich family to live in a cramped basement with Grayson, giving up my socialite life for him while pregnant. I used my entire billion-dollar trust fund to rebuild his failing business. Months later, Grayson became Chicago’s wealthiest billionaire. Everyone said I’d gambled and won. But the day I went into labor, my ex-best friend Tessa did too. As I struggled in pain, Grayson signed surgical forms for us both, announcing that both babies were his. He admitted Tessa was his college sweetheart who’d left him when he was poor. I was just a stepping stone. Now wealthy, she’d returned and even allowed her child to bear his name. Through my pain, Grayson laughed, saying I’d naively welcomed Tessa into our home and served her. He offered to let me keep the title of Mrs. Rowland if I didn’t mind sharing him, but warned I’d sleep alone. With no family or society to turn to, he asked if I needed him to spell out my choice. … The violent agony of the induced labor swallowed my senses. I bit down on my lip until I tasted copper, enduring the sensation of my body tearing itself apart. “Why tell me today?” I forced the words through my trembling teeth. Grayson raised a casual eyebrow. He reached out to smooth my sweat drenched hair, his expression carrying a sickening mix of relief and fake pity. “Tessa is having her baby today too. I swore to her that I would give her a proper title.” “She endured a whole year of hiding in the shadows for me. It’s time to put an end to her suffering.” My heart violently seized, suffocating me. I wanted to scream, to curse him for his sick deception, but the excruciating pain in my stomach reduced me to quiet, breathless sobbing. “Grayson, do you even have a heart? I abandoned my entire family for you.” I thought I would see a flicker of guilt in his eyes. At the very least, a trace of conflict. But his next words turned the blood in my veins to solid ice. “Amy, how much longer are you going to hold that over my head?” “You chose to do that. I never begged you for a dime. Stop playing the tragic victim.” His face was completely blank, as if he were discussing the weather. I lay completely frozen until a fresh wave of blinding cramps dragged me back to reality. “It hurts. It hurts so much.” I let out a guttural cry. Grayson finally turned to call for a doctor. But right at that moment, a piercing scream echoed from the VIP suite next door. “Grayson! The baby is coming!” The man snapped his head toward the door. Without a second thought, he peeled my desperate, clinging fingers off his sleeve one by one. “Hold on a minute, Amy. Tessa is crowning. I’ll be right back to sign your epidural release.” “Grayson, they gave me pitocin!” I shrieked, my vocal cords tearing. The only response I got was the sight of his retreating back as he sprinted out the door. The heart monitor beside my ear shrieked in warning. Hot, thick blood poured relentlessly over the delivery bed, soaking the sheets. My lower body felt like it was being ripped open by a jagged blade. I didn’t even have the strength left to cry for help. Every single available doctor and nurse had been summoned to Tessa’s room. I dragged my trembling hand toward the emergency call button clamped to the bedrail. My sweat slicked fingers slipped. With a heavy crash, I tumbled off the mattress onto the cold tile floor. The heavy IV pole toppled over, smashing directly onto my back. Laying in a pool of my own blood, I felt my womb growing terrifyingly hollow. Total despair swallowed me whole. My mind flashed through everything Grayson had done to win me over. Before I met him, I was the beloved heiress of the Kensington family. The line of wealthy heirs begging for my attention stretched all the way to Paris. But Grayson wanted me. He lowered his pride to act as my personal bodyguard. He let my snobby socialite friends treat him like a stray dog without a single complaint. When I mentioned a dress I liked, he tracked down exclusive designers across the globe to custom make pieces just for me. He offered to sign away his pride and marry into my family, taking my last name just to prove his devotion. Even when I surrounded myself with gorgeous male models at parties, he just stood in the corner with red eyes, willingly playing the role of my pathetic backup plan. Eventually, he broke through my walls. I fell madly in love with him. I never imagined it was a meticulously crafted trap to steal my fortune. When I opened my eyes again, my heart was hammering frantically against my ribs. I grabbed the sleeve of a passing nurse. “Where is my baby?!” The nurse offered a sympathetic smile. “Miss Kensington, your daughter was very weak. She’s currently stabilizing in the neonatal incubator.” Knowing my little girl was alive, a flood of hot tears spilled down my cheeks. I covered my mouth, completely overcome by muffled, shaking sobs. But through the thin walls, I heard deafening cheers erupting from the adjacent room. “Congratulations to Tessa for giving the boss a baby boy!” “Hell yeah! Tessa is the real deal. Not like Amy, popping out a useless little girl!” The nurse gave me an awkward, pitying look before stepping out. I stopped crying. I wiped my face with the back of my bruised hand, my eyes hardening into glass. I reached for my phone on the bedside table and opened the Kensington family group chat. I hadn’t sent a message in over a year. “Mom, Dad, Cole. I was so wrong. I’m ready to come home. I’m bringing my daughter to New York.” Grayson Rowland, since you never cared about our child, don’t blame me when we disappear from your life forever. Just as I locked my phone, Tessa walked into my room. Her eyes were artificially glossy with fake tears as she cradled her newborn son against her chest. “Amy! I am so sorry. It’s all my fault for having such a long labor. I heard you hemorrhaged from the delay.” Her voice dripped with sickly sweet sincerity, as if my near fatal blood loss was the greatest tragedy of her life. “But don’t worry, Amy. Even though you only had a girl, my son is basically yours too. You can be his godmother.” My face was a mask of pure frost. “I seriously doubt Grayson would ever let me touch his precious heir.” Tessa’s face drained of color. “Amy, you… you know everything. Please don’t overthink this. Grayson and I were just friends with benefits.” Friends with benefits. A dark, venomous laugh escaped my throat. What kind of best friend sleeps with her friend’s boyfriend and shamelessly calls it a casual arrangement? And then has the audacity to birth his bastard child. I spent fifteen years protecting Tessa. When her stepdad abused her, I called the cops and hid her in my mansion. When she fell into deep depression, I paid for the best therapists in the country to pull her out of the dark. I spent millions of dollars making sure she had a good life. And she repaid me by turning into a bloodsucking parasite. Pure, boiling rage consumed me. I glared at her pathetic, innocent mask. I grabbed the heavy glass vase from my nightstand and hurled it directly at her face. The glass shattered against the wall with a deafening crash. But it didn’t hit Tessa. Grayson had materialized out of nowhere, shielding her. A thick stream of blood slid down his forehead where a piece of shrapnel caught him. His broad back was rigid, acting as a human shield for Tessa and his newborn son. “Amy Kensington, that is aggravated assault. I will lock you in a federal prison for the rest of your life.” My chest physically ached at the sight. Then came his cold, disgusted reprimand. “Tessa dragged herself out of bed right after giving birth just to check on you. She cares about you to a fault, and you throw a fucking vase at her head?” “If you had hurt my son, how would you ever repay me? You have absolutely nothing left to your name.” Those two questions dug into my brain like rusted spikes. My lips twitched into a bitter smirk. I stared at Grayson, my eyes hollow with profound disappointment. When his company’s funding collapsed and his parents were sent to federal prison on fraud charges, he had absolutely no one. It was me who threw away my pride. I begged my elite friends for high interest loans to bail him out. When the money still wasn’t enough, I crawled on my knees begging my parents and my brother. When they refused, I sneaked into my grandfather’s estate in the dead of night, legally liquidating my billion dollar inheritance just to save Grayson’s pathetic life. I was a billionaire heiress who had never done a load of laundry in her life. Yet I followed him to cheap motels, ate instant noodles, and sold off my designer bags one by one to pay his lawyers. During my pregnancy, I was so malnourished I could barely stand. I refused to buy meat just to save a few extra dollars for his startup. And now, for the sake of his mistress, he casually erased all my sacrifices and nailed me to a cross. A faint cry from the incubator down the hall broke the suffocating silence. I suddenly remembered my fragile daughter, hooked up to a dozen IV needles because of my delayed labor. I grabbed my water glass, the floral arrangement, anything I could reach, and violently hurled them at the two of them. “Get out! You disgusting pieces of trash. I hope you two rot in hell together!” I screamed until my lungs burned. My entire body shook uncontrollably with absolute fury. Grayson just tightened his grip on Tessa and escorted her out the door. Once they were gone, the adrenaline faded. I collapsed back onto the cold linoleum floor, completely numb and drained. Suddenly, a terrifying wave of manic depression hijacked my brain. My skull throbbed with a splitting agony. I grabbed fistfuls of my own hair and began slamming my head violently against the floor tiles. After cutting ties with my family, the prolonged, crushing stress of poverty had given me severe bipolar depression. When the episodes hit, the urge to destroy myself was a living, breathing monster. Losing total control, I grabbed a jagged piece of porcelain from the broken vase. I dragged it hard across my forearm, watching the blood well up. The hospital door was suddenly kicked open. Grayson dropped to his knees, pulling me tightly into his chest. Panic laced his voice. “Amy, I’m here. I’ve got you. It’s okay. It’s over.” The manic rage inside me wasn’t satisfied. Just as I raised the bloody shard to cut myself again, Grayson shoved his bare forearm directly against my mouth. My teeth sank deep into his flesh. I heard his sharp hiss of pain ringing in my ear. I froze. Clarity slowly seeped back into my fractured mind. I looked down and saw his arm was already covered in a dozen faded bite marks. Tessa also suffered from severe depression. A sudden, horrifying realization washed over me. I let out a miserable, broken laugh. “Why Tessa?” “Grayson Rowland, are you actually stupid or just pretending? She stole your company’s classified data from me. She sold your entire empire out to the Sinclair Group. Did you conveniently forget that?” Grayson lowered his gaze. His thumb gently wiped a tear from my cheek. “I haven’t forgotten. But that’s in the past. After my parents went to prison, you were completely obsessed with the legal battles. You never noticed my suffering. Tessa was the one who stayed by my side in the dark. She pulled me out of the abyss.” I threw my head back and let out a hysterical, mocking laugh. Tears poured freely down my face. So my sleepless nights bribing lawyers, begging for leniency, running myself into the ground until I looked like a corpse. The night I was cornered by thugs in the slums and almost assaulted just trying to deliver his legal paperwork. To him, all of that meant absolutely nothing compared to Tessa’s fake sympathy. An invisible hand gripped my heart, squeezing until I was on the brink of total collapse. Like a glutton for punishment, I asked one last question to finally kill whatever love I had left for him. “How did we both get pregnant at the exact same time?” Grayson stiffened. A nostalgic, almost amused smirk touched his lips. “A year ago, after you were cornered in that alleyway. You swore those guys didn’t touch you. But honestly, the thought of it disgusted me. You flinched every time I came near you. Under all that pressure, Tessa and I rekindled things. She told me she was doing it for your sake. We even signed a casual hookup agreement.” “Now that I’m a billionaire, she doesn’t have to leave me. She even went under the knife for breast implants just for me. She bought endless sets of lingerie to keep things interesting. When your depression flared up and you locked yourself away, I couldn’t handle the suffocating energy. I went to a hotel with Tessa. We went through five boxes of condoms in a single night.” “I can lie to the press, Amy, but I can’t lie to my own heart.” Every single word was a serrated hook ripping through my flesh. I couldn’t fathom it. This was the same man who once promised me a pure, childfree life. The man who claimed he only wanted a deep, emotional connection with me. And yet he surrendered his entire soul for a pair of fake breasts and cheap hotel sex. My stomach violently turned. No wonder the first time we slept together after my trauma, when I was crying and begging him to stop because it hurt, he just forced himself on me like a feral animal. All my life-threatening sacrifices had been weighed and given a cheap price tag. Even his grand pursuit of me was nothing more than a calculated scheme to drain my family’s wealth and pay off his debts. My eyes were bloodshot. My throat felt like I had swallowed burning coals. Grayson noticed my devastated expression. He looked down at me with casual arrogance. “You don’t need to play the innocent victim, Amy. The only reason my parents are rotting in prison is because your parents bribed Tessa to plant the evidence. They wanted to force me to leave you.” “I know your elite family looks down on me. But the debt is settled now. Moving forward, you get me on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Tessa gets the rest. I’ll make sure it’s fair.” A massive wave of pure irony washed over me. I let out a dark sneer. Grayson had no idea. In the beginning, my parents actually tried to secretly fund his failing company. It was only when they uncovered the Rowland family’s illegal money laundering that they pulled their support. And yet, he used this fabricated grudge to mentally torture me for an entire year. I straightened my spine, slipping perfectly back into the untouchable posture of the Kensington heiress. “Your sense of fairness makes me sick to my stomach.” I reached into my bag and pulled out the flash drive my brother had just securely messaged me. It contained the undeniable proof of Tessa framing Grayson’s company. I slapped the small metal drive into his palm. “Everything you actually need to know is in there.” He didn’t even look at it. He let out a condescending scoff. “Amy, I already know the truth. Handing me fake files now just proves you’re terrified I’ll cut you off now that your parents don’t want you.” “Relax. As long as you don’t pick fights with Tessa, I’ll write thirty percent of my estate into your will.” Without a backward glance, he walked straight back to Tessa’s room. Through the wall, I heard the sickening sounds of their happy new family laughing together. I looked down at my phone. My flight to New York was booked for three days from now. The morning of my departure, I dressed impeccably. My family was hosting a massive welcome back gala at the Kensington estate to officially announce my return to high society. But the moment I stepped out of my cab, rough hands clamped over my mouth. I was violently dragged into the backseat of a tinted Rolls Royce. Grayson was sitting in the dark leather interior. Tessa was curled in his arms, weeping hysterically. Her clothes were torn, and there were fresh, shallow cuts on her arms. My heart dropped. Then Grayson’s venomous voice filled the car. “Amy, I was wondering why you were acting so quiet lately. Turns out you were busy crawling back to your mommy and daddy.” “You actually had them send an online mob after Tessa. She had a major depressive episode. She tried to jump off a building three times today!” “How much blood do you people need to draw from her?!” I stared blankly at Tessa. Beneath her fake tears, her eyes danced with malicious triumph. For a split second, my numb heart felt a sharp sting. I treated this woman as my soul sister, and she was actively trying to destroy my life. “What do you want from me?” I asked coldly. “At your welcome gala tonight, you are going to take the microphone and publicly expose your parents for cyberbullying and corporate terrorism.” My pupils shrank. My voice involuntarily spiked. “Are you insane? They are my family!” Grayson sneered. He threw a massive stack of manila folders aggressively into my face. “If you refuse, I will leak these documents to the press. They prove the Kensington Corporation committed massive tax fraud and forged federal stamps. Do you want your parents to die in federal prison?” “You only have one choice, Amy.” My knuckles turned white. The heavy fabricated evidence stung my cheeks. My teeth chattered with suppressed rage, but I closed my eyes and surrendered. “Fine. I’ll do it.” The gala was breathtaking. My parents were glowing with pure joy, holding my hands tightly, their eyes red with happy tears. “Amy, you finally grew up.” “As long as you’re home, sweetheart, everything we own is yours.” I couldn’t look them in the eye. Standing under the glittering chandeliers, surrounded by the most powerful elites in the country, I raised the microphone to my lips. My voice shook violently. “I… I have a confession to make.” The ballroom went dead silent. “I am reporting Richard and Margaret Kensington for severe corporate extortion, withholding employee wages, and orchestrating a malicious cyberbullying campaign against an innocent woman.” Every word felt like a knife dragging across my own throat. The crowd erupted in absolute chaos. My parents looked like they had been struck by lightning. My brother, Cole, turned pale with fury. With tears streaming down my face, I stepped off the stage, desperate to whisper an explanation to them. But Cole lunged forward, grabbing me by the collar. He roared in my face. “Amy, have you lost your fucking mind?! How dare you throw dirt on this family in front of the press?! Do you know you just ruined our entire legacy?!” I looked at him in sheer panic. I turned my head and saw the massive projector screen behind the stage displaying the fabricated tax fraud documents Grayson had blackmailed me with. My brain practically short-circuited. I shook my head wildly. “No… no, this wasn’t supposed to happen. Grayson promised me!” Acting on pure instinct, I looked up toward the VIP balcony overlooking the ballroom. Grayson had Tessa pressed hard against the glass railing. They were completely naked, having sex right there in the shadows, watching my life burn to the ground. Tessa locked eyes with me through the glass. Her arrogant smirk said everything. You lost, Amy. I didn’t just take your man. I took your entire family. I couldn’t breathe. My lungs felt like they were literally going to explode. Cole shoved me to the ground, his eyes filled with absolute disgust. “You are a rabid dog, Amy. We never should have let you back in.” My world shattered. I tried to crawl toward my parents, but the paramedics were already rushing them out on stretchers. They had collapsed from the shock. The wealthy guests and corporate executives didn’t hold back. Someone threw a heavy cocktail glass at my head. Another splashed an entire bottle of red wine over my designer gown. A tidal wave of vicious insults crashed over me. “You cursed bitch! You ruined your own empire for a piece of trash boyfriend?!” “I feel so sick for her parents. Raising a monster like this!” “Brainless little slut!” I curled into a ball on the marble floor, trying to protect my head. But my defensive posture only seemed to enrage the mob further. High heels kicked my ribs. Hands grabbed my hair, dragging my bruised and bleeding body straight out the front doors and throwing me into the middle of the busy intersection. “Let’s teach this ungrateful bitch a lesson her parents couldn’t!” Cars swerved violently around my body. The sheer terror and trauma finally triggered my depression. I knelt on the asphalt, screaming and smashing my forehead into the pavement like a maniac. I didn’t stop until I saw Grayson’s sports car pull out of the valet line. He and Tessa drove right past me. Acting like a completely deranged lunatic, I screamed wildly, chasing their taillights down the avenue. By the time I stumbled into the hospital lobby, my bones felt like shattered glass. I barely made it to the third floor before four burly nurses ambushed me. They pinned my arms behind my back and dragged me forcefully into a blood-draw room. “Who are you?! Get your hands off me!” I shrieked. They ignored me, handing the fresh vials of my blood to Grayson, who was standing in the doorway. “The match is one hundred percent perfect, Mr. Rowland. We can proceed with the pediatric bone marrow extraction immediately.” Bone marrow extraction? A sickening, impossible thought clawed its way into my brain. I stumbled forward, grabbing Grayson by his expensive lapels. My eyes were bloodshot, practically glowing with madness. “Where is my daughter?!” He gently wiped a streak of dried blood from my cheek. “Amy, the doctor said our little girl won’t survive past her first birthday. Her heart is failing. But Tessa’s boy was just diagnosed with aggressive leukemia. Their bone marrow is a perfect match.” My scalp went completely numb. I stared at Grayson like he was a terrifying, alien monster. “You are going to harvest my daughter’s organs to save your bastard son?!” “Over my dead body!” I shoved him away and sprinted toward the surgical wing. But a sharp prick pierced the back of my neck. Grayson looked down at me with cold, detached pity as he pushed the plunger of a heavy sedative syringe. “Amy, we can always make another baby.” Black spots danced in my vision. Pure, suffocating terror wrapped around my throat like a venomous snake. I collapsed onto the cold floor. When I woke up, Tessa was standing over my bed. Her eyes were gleaming with pure malice. She tossed a small gold locket onto my chest. “You really are pathetic, Amy. You couldn’t even save your own brat.” “Honestly? My son never even had leukemia. But he is going to be the sole heir to the Rowland empire. Your little mistake had to be erased.” My pupils violently dilated. A primal scream tore from my throat. I grabbed the heavy surgical scalpel off the medical tray next to the bed and lunged straight for her throat. In a flash, Grayson tackled me from the side. “Amy! I told you not to touch her!” I stared at him in stunned silence. As we fell, the blade missed Tessa completely. Instead, Grayson’s momentum drove the handle hard against my chest, burying the blade deep into my own stomach. Hot, dark blood sprayed violently across Grayson’s face. His pupils trembled with sudden horror. Blood bubbled from my lips. I used the absolute last ounce of my strength to let out a weak, mocking laugh. “Grayson… you are so fucking stupid.” “You’re so blind… you don’t even know Tessa is the one who put your parents behind bars.” “You’re so stupid… you don’t even know your son was never sick.” Seeing my eyes slowly roll back into my head, Grayson froze completely. Total panic finally shattered his arrogant mask.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “428146”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

It was my birthday. I’d booked a table at a fancy restaurant, but my wife and father-in-law both claimed they had to work late. Though disappointed, I understood. I enjoyed the meal alone. Then my phone buzzed with a wedding livestream. There, in a suit, toasting the guests, was my father-in-law. “This first toast is to myself. I’ve endured every hardship building this business and raising my daughter. Today, I finally live for myself.” “The second toast is to surviving. For my child, I endured a stifling marriage. Now, I’ve found someone who truly cherishes me.” “The third toast is to my family. Look at this table—my daughter, my wife, and my devoted Wilson. This is our family, complete. I just pray my daughter doesn’t follow in her father’s footsteps.” Watching my wife nestled in the man’s arms, gazing at my father-in-law with emotion, cold dread spread through me. I picked up my phone and revoked their unlimited signing privileges at the hotel. I wanted to see how this “happy” family would manage to leave today. 1 The company just closed a huge deal. To celebrate, I gave all my employees the day off. Finally, I had some time free from my busy schedule. Coincidentally, it was my birthday, so I booked a table at a high-end restaurant, planning a nice weekend with my wife and her family. But my father-in-law claimed he had important matters to attend to, and my wife, looking apologetic, explained she had to work overtime at her company and couldn’t make it. I understood, regretfully heading off to enjoy the lavish meal by myself. While scrolling through my phone, however, I was pushed a live stream of a wedding. It was, unmistakably, taking place at a hotel under my company’s ownership. And my father-in-law was there, in a groom’s suit, smugly toasting the guests, with my wife smiling and sitting beside him. In the live stream, the woman clinging to my father-in-law looked familiar. She was the nurse we’d hired when my mother-in-law was gravely ill. My father-in-law had, at some point, gotten involved with her. What angered me even more was that the wine my father-in-law was toasting with was the very jar of “daughter’s red” that my mother-in-law, in her final moments, had painstakingly prepared and sealed for our future child. My mother-in-law’s blessings were still faintly visible on it. Yet, his relatives acted as if they were blind, echoing my father-in-law’s words, saying he had finally overcome his hardships. This wedding, it seemed, was being held at the expense of my mother-in-law’s and my dignity! My rage boiled. My hand trembled slightly as I picked up my phone. I quickly dialed my wife’s number. In the live stream, the moment she saw my name on her phone, her expression subtly changed. But the next second, she chose to hang up, then flipped her phone face down. Not giving up, I bombarded her with calls. After several rings, I saw my father-in-law frown, pick up my wife’s phone, and tap it a few times. When I called again, the line just kept showing “in use,” and her phone didn’t react at all. Not only that, but whether it was WhasApp or other contact methods, all showed I’d been blocked. My father-in-law’s phone was the same. I took a few deep breaths, then called my wife’s aunt. This time, it was answered quickly. But the voice on the phone was no longer as amiable as before; instead, it held a sharp, disdainful edge. “Well, well, isn’t this Ethan Gummer? What, not going to your dead-end job today? You actually have time to call me?” 2 Her words were harsh, laced with schadenfreude, but I had no time to argue with her. “Put Joyce on the phone. I need to talk to her.” “What’s with your attitude, man? Don’t think you’re still a son-in-law of the Hayes family. My brother didn’t even invite you to his wedding. If you ask me, young Wilson is much more sensible than you. You’re simply not good enough for our Joyce!” I almost laughed in anger. The Hayes family’s true colors were utterly shameless. When they thought I had value, they were all respectful. Now, believing my father-in-law was rich and seeing his displeasure with me, they were openly hostile. “Think carefully. I haven’t divorced Joyce yet. We are legally married. Hand the phone to her, now!” The aunt hesitated this time. She mumbled some unsavory words, then held the phone out. I watched Joyce in the live stream, frowning and shaking her head, and heard her voice through the earpiece, refusing to take the call. My father-in-law chimed in from the side, impatiently waving his hand at the aunt. “Why pick up? It’s my big day, and this tactless fool just has to interrupt. Don’t waste words on him!” Hearing that, the aunt scoffed dismissively and immediately hung up. I held my phone in silence, feeling as if I were watching some absurd tragicomedy unfold. My wife of ten years betrayed me, falling for another man. And my father-in-law, who had been a model husband to my mother-in-law, had apparently never liked her from the start. He’d feigned affection for years, waiting for my mother-in-law to pass, only then revealing his true self. Their proclaimed “family” never included my mother-in-law or me. It turned out love truly could be an act. And now, the curtain was about to fall on this performance. Recalling everything from the past, I felt a faint ache in my chest. I stared blankly at my phone. In the live stream, my father-in-law was proposing to his second spring, his face beaming with happiness. But the dowry he offered her made me utterly disbelieving. My father-in-law was smiling like a giddy teenager, excitedly slipping a ring onto Serena’s finger. Before, when my mother-in-law was alive, he always maintained an air of detached intellectualism, never getting emotional, much less losing his composure like this. “Your willingness to marry me truly moves me. Meeting you, I finally understood what a true soulmate is. I wish I had been with you from the very beginning.” “Serena, don’t you worry. I won’t shortchange you. This hotel and the villa at home will be transferred to your name tomorrow. Consider it a small token of my affection.” “As for Wilson, I know he’s a filial boy. He’s the son-in-law I’m truly pleased with. So, I’ll make a small sacrifice for him. Just let him tolerate that troublesome one at home. As compensation, I’ll give him that estate on the city outskirts.” Serena and her son’s eyes gleamed as they listened. My father-in-law then turned and patted Joyce’s shoulder. “Daughter, your dad has faith in you two. I just really don’t want you and Wilson to go down the same old path your dad did.” Joyce was overcome with emotion, feeling her father’s profound love for her. I was so disgusted I couldn’t speak. The hotel, the villa, and the estate—they were all my assets. On what grounds did my father-in-law think I’d willingly give them away? Truth be told, Joyce and I came from vastly different backgrounds. I was the eldest son of the Gummer family; she was from an ordinary working-class family. Our marriage only happened thanks to my mother-in-law. My mother-in-law and my birth mother had been best friends since childhood. Even after my mother-in-law’s family went bankrupt, it didn’t affect their bond. My mother passed away after giving birth to me, entrusting me to my mother-in-law on her deathbed. My father, busy with the company, was often absent, so my mother-in-law essentially raised me. In my heart, she was no different from my birth mother. So, after she married, I often visited. My decision to be with Joyce, besides genuinely liking her, was also partly influenced by wanting to stay close to my mother-in-law. Over the years, the Hayes family had largely thrived, smoothly sailing through life, relying on my mother-in-law’s and my resources. When my mother-in-law passed away, I was more heartbroken than anyone else, burying myself in work to numb the pain. 3 Truthfully, I wasn’t entirely against my father-in-law finding a new partner. My mother-in-law had even encouraged me to accept it before she passed. But this was too fast. My mother-in-law had only been gone for six months, and he was already married to another woman, who, to top it off, was the nurse who had cared for my mother-in-law. The thought of them hooking up right by my mother-in-law’s sickbed filled me with an uncontrollable hatred. Joyce’s reaction chilled me even more. My father-in-law had never lifted a finger; my mother-in-law had handled all of Joyce’s upbringing and daily needs since childhood. Yet, not only was she not angry about her father’s betrayal, she sympathized with him, claiming to have found “true love” herself. The child my mother-in-law gave birth to had become a sharp knife plunged into her. Joyce was worse than a piece of rotten meat! I watched as the crowd below cheered, and the comments section flooded with praise for my father-in-law’s generosity and his image as a good man. A fleeting comment asking if I, her rightful husband, would agree, was noticed by a relative. He rolled his eyes, then nosily asked the question aloud. My father-in-law on stage scoffed, a look of domineering authority on his face. “How dare he disagree? He eats my food, uses my things, I support him. It’s generous enough that I haven’t made my daughter divorce him. What right does he have to stop my daughter and me from pursuing true love?!” The audience applauded loudly. Watching Joyce tightly clasping Wilson’s hand, I let out a cold laugh. My past sincerity? I guess I just fed it to the dogs. My father-in-law’s words were very true. They ate my food, used my things, I supported them—but not so they could step on my mother-in-law and me to pursue “true love”! I picked up my phone and revoked their unlimited signing privileges at the hotel. I wanted to see how this “happy” family would manage to leave the hotel after I stopped being their blood bank. You see, at my father-in-law’s insistent request, this wedding banquet, from the food to the decorations, was all of the highest possible standard. After a moment’s thought, I called the hotel manager, instructing him to settle the bill immediately. After all, without an audience, I feared my father-in-law’s little show wouldn’t last. The hotel manager’s face immediately tightened upon receiving my call. When my father-in-law had made the booking, he had used my name. Now I was telling the manager I didn’t know them. Realizing the enormous cost of the event, and fearing a no-show, the manager disregarded the lively scene and hurriedly ran up to demand payment. My father-in-law, his declaration to Serena interrupted, shot an annoyed glance at the manager. “Is this your hotel’s service attitude? Coming to collect payment in the middle of a wedding banquet?” The relatives below chimed in, supporting him. “Exactly! How tactless is this guy? I’ve never been to a wedding where they demand payment halfway through!” “Old Man Hayes is your company’s boss, isn’t he? If you do this, you’ll be fired!” My father-in-law, basking in the flattery, nodded at the crowd below, proudly promising. “From now on, anyone who wants to come, just come and have fun. Just tell them my name, Garrett Hayes, when you check out. My Hayes family has plenty of money!” Serena also smiled and nodded. “That’s right, we’re all family. Once it’s under my name, everyone is welcome anytime. I’d be delighted.” But the manager remained unmoved. He had received my call and naturally knew my father-in-law’s lies. My father-in-law, seeing his persistence, gave him a cold look. “No common sense, huh? Fine, settle the bill now. Once you’re done, you can pack your things and leave. My hotel doesn’t need you!” Seeing him agree to pay, the manager nodded and presented the bill. “Your wedding venue decoration and food together total one and a half million dollars. How would you like to pay?” “Pay? I’m the owner of this hotel. I have signing authority. Bring it, I’ll sign!” The manager was quite confused, but still, upholding his professional integrity, he checked his phone. Then he looked up at my father-in-law. “I apologize, sir, you do not have authorization at this hotel… Do you have another payment method?” My father-in-law’s face turned ugly. He stared at the manager in disbelief. The relatives below also fell silent, their gazes subtly sweeping over my father-in-law. He flushed crimson, pulling Joyce forward. “I must have forgotten to activate my own authorization. Swipe her card. I remember I gave my daughter full access!” My father-in-law thought I was just trying to block him. He was convinced I wouldn’t deny my wife access, but he was destined for disappointment. “This lady also has no authorization. How would you like to proceed, sir?” This time, Joyce’s face also changed. She tried to appear calm, reassuring her father. “It’s okay, it must be a system glitch. Let’s just settle the bill directly. It’s all just transferring money from one pocket to another anyway.” She said, pulling out the black card I had given her. “Use this card to pay.”

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When I awoke, I found myself back on the day I was to operate on my husband’s cherished former love. In my past life, I spent ten grueling hours in surgery to save her, only to be framed by my husband afterward. He bribed a nurse to testify I gave the wrong drug, causing her death, and accused me of killing her out of jealousy. My medical career was destroyed, and I was shunned by all. My mother, trying to defend me online, was driven to suicide by cyberbullying. Overwhelmed, I jumped from the hospital roof. After I died, I saw my husband take my insurance and inheritance, then live happily with his “reborn” first love. This time, on the morning of my scheduled promotion to Vice President, I took an iron weight and crushed my right hand. The injury made me miss the crucial surgery. Everyone pitied me for ruining my future. Overjoyed, I went home and drank two bottles of fine Bordeaux. 1 “What the hell happened to Dr. Pierce’s hand?” “Who knows? Maybe she was terrified of botching tomorrow’s surgery. A failure like that would humiliate our newly appointed VP!” I walked through the hospital corridors, completely ignoring the gossip and wild speculation filtering out of the breakrooms. My face remained an mask of total calm as I headed straight for the Director’s office. My phone screen lit up. A text from my husband, Declan. [Val, I’m leaving Serena in your hands tomorrow. I know you’ll fix her. Love you babe, xoxo.] It was the exact same message he sent in my past life. Back then, my heart had fluttered at the words “Love you.” Now, only a venomous chill spread through my veins. Director Brooks stared at my heavily casted right hand, his forehead wrinkling into a deep frown. “How could you be so careless, Valerie? Of all the times to get injured.” “I was planning to use tomorrow’s surgery to solidify your authority here. You know perfectly well there’s still a faction opposing your promotion to Vice President.” I lowered my eyes, letting my gaze fall onto my completely immobilized fingers. After a long, deliberate pause, I spoke. “I’m so sorry, Director Brooks. I know I let you down.” “Let my father-in-law take the scalpel tomorrow. Adam has the seniority and the surgical skills to outshine almost anyone in this hospital.” Director Brooks let out a heavy sigh. “I suppose we don’t have a choice. Go home, Valerie. Take some time to rest.” Leaving the hospital grounds, I hailed a cab and headed straight to my mother’s house. Watching the city streets blur past the window, my heart felt a strange, profound peace. Everyone pitied me for losing the perfect chance to prove my worth. But I was the only one who knew the truth. That supposedly glorious surgery was nothing but a massive, meticulously planned trap. Before I could even fish my keys out of my purse, the front door swung open. My mom stood there, her eyes red-rimmed as she stared at my bandaged hand. Pure maternal panic was written all over her face. “Valerie! Honey, is your hand going to be okay?” Seeing my mother standing there, alive and breathing, a painful lump formed in my throat. I practically threw my arms around her, hugging her tighter than I ever had. “Mom, I missed you so much.” She stiffened in surprise for a second before gently rubbing my back. “Sweetheart, did someone at work treat you badly?” “Listen to me. Tell your bosses you need a leave of absence. Stay home and rest. I don’t care about you being a big shot doctor. I just want my daughter to be safe and happy.” A single tear slipped down my cheek. Mom, I want you to be safe too. I’ve been given a second chance at life, and I swear to God I will rewrite both of our fates. Swallowing the lump in my throat, I forced a lighthearted smile. “Don’t worry, Mom. The Director gave me a whole month off.” “I just need to pop into the hospital tomorrow to sort out some paperwork, and then I’m all yours.” My mom beamed, nodding repeatedly. “Oh, an old woman like me doesn’t need babysitting. You should spend that time with Declan. You’ve been working yourself to the bone these past few years. It hasn’t been easy on him being home alone so much.” The warmth drained from my face the second I heard Declan’s name. Right on cue, my phone buzzed with another text from him. [Valerie, why aren’t you replying? Serena said you didn’t even do rounds today. What kind of attending physician are you? Are you even prepped for tomorrow’s surgery?!] 2 In my previous life, I basically lived in the hospital archives trying to guarantee Serena’s survival. I read endless medical journals and watched surgical recordings until my eyes bled. But the moment I pulled Serena back from death’s door, the husband I adored threw me to the wolves. He accused me of treating human life like garbage just to settle a petty, jealous grudge. My brilliant, hard-earned future was shattered into a million dark pieces. To make the charges stick, he bribed a scrub nurse. I can still remember the blinding flash of the press cameras as that nurse pointed right at me, his face twisted in fake outrage. “I saw Dr. Pierce swap the patient’s life-saving medication with my own two eyes!” Worse, Declan leaked a video of an argument between Serena and me. In the clip, I had lost my temper and shouted, “Why won’t you just drop dead?!” Those words became the final nail in my coffin. No matter how loud I screamed, no matter how desperately I pleaded my innocence, I couldn’t fight their manufactured witnesses and fabricated evidence. The world decided I was a monster hiding in a white lab coat. Only my mother stood by me. But the harder she fought to clear my name, the more viciously the internet tore her apart. It broke her mind, eventually leading to her fatal fall into the river. On the day the police came with a formal arrest warrant, I climbed to the hospital roof and stepped off the ledge. As a ghost, I haunted Declan’s side just long enough to see Serena miraculously come out of hiding, completely cured. Maybe the universe felt the suffocating weight of my hatred, because it actually hit the rewind button. This time around, Serena’s surgeon was Declan’s own biological father. Let’s see how he plans to dump this bucket of blood on my head now. The next morning, I arrived at the hospital early. I practically superglued myself to Director Brooks, staying in his office to discuss administrative matters all day long. When the timing felt right, I finally excused myself. The moment I stepped toward the surgical wing, Declan appeared. He brought a massive crowd of people with him, completely blocking my path. Because I kept my cast hidden inside the deep pocket of my oversized white coat, Declan had no idea my hand was crushed. He stormed right up to me and slapped me hard across the face. “Valerie Pierce! You call yourself a doctor?! You murdered your own patient out of pure, petty jealousy! You are a sick, twisted psychopath!” I pressed my tongue against the inside of my stinging cheek, tasting a hint of copper. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed someone in Declan’s mob already holding up a phone, recording everything. I let out a cold, sharp laugh. “What the hell are you talking about? When did I ever kill a patient? Serena’s surgery…” Declan’s eyes were bloodshot. He looked completely unhinged as he cut me off. “Did you really think calling it a surgical complication would let you get away with murder?!” “You killed Serena on purpose!” The crowd, supposedly Serena’s grieving relatives, immediately began shouting. They didn’t give me a single second to speak, rushing forward to grab and shove me. “You piece of trash! You shouldn’t be allowed near a hospital!” “You’re going to pay for this with your life!” Luckily, hospital security was already sprinting down the hall. I only took one punch to the jaw and a few muddy footprints on my lab coat before the guards formed a barricade. Standing safely behind a burly security guard, I glared daggers at Declan. I spoke slowly, enunciating every single syllable. “I didn’t kill Serena. If you’re going to make accusations, Declan, you better have proof.” Declan didn’t look panicked at all. Instead, he put on an Oscar-worthy performance of a heartbroken, morally conflicted husband. “Valerie, I might be your husband, but I’m a human being first. I can’t just turn a blind eye to your evil.” “Don’t blame me for this. Before God and the law, I have to do the right thing. I have to get justice for the dead.” Right at that exact moment, Director Brooks hurried onto the scene, looking furious. 3 “I am the Director of this hospital! What on earth is happening here? If you’re intentionally causing a riot outside my operating rooms, I will have you all arrested.” Declan immediately spoke up, his tone dripping with fake respect. “Director Brooks, thank god you’re here. Valerie abused her medical authority to intentionally murder a patient on the operating table. This hospital owes the grieving family an explanation.” Director Brooks gave Declan a highly skeptical look. “If my memory serves me right, you are Dr. Adam Pierce’s son, and Valerie’s husband.” Declan’s facial muscles twitched for a split second. “I am. But I refuse to bury my conscience just to protect my wife. If I cover for a murderer, I won’t be able to sleep at night.” Watching Declan act like the patron saint of justice physically hurt my chest. Since the day we married, I had catered to his every whim. My mother treated him like the son she never had. And in return, he pushed us into a literal grave. Director Brooks crossed his arms, looking utterly baffled. “That makes no sense. Valerie hasn’t been scheduled for an OR rotation in days. And her surgical record is flawless.” Declan’s voice cracked an octave higher. “Are you blind? She literally just operated on Serena this morning!” I finally stepped out from behind the security guard. “I wasn’t Serena’s surgeon. I spent the entire day inside Director Brooks’ office.” The Director nodded firmly, verifying my alibi. The chaotic hallway instantly dropped into a dead silence. Declan clearly hadn’t accounted for this plot twist. He stood frozen, his brain visibly short-circuiting. Suddenly, a new thought seemed to spark in his eyes, and he pointed a shaking finger at me. “I get it now! You finished the surgery early, killed her, and then ran to the Director’s office to establish a fake alibi behind his back!” Honestly, I had to admire his desperate imagination. Right on cue, a young nurse pushed his way to the front of the mob. He pointed directly at me, his chest heaving with rehearsed indignation. “I can prove it! Dr. Pierce is the one who killed Serena!” Looking at Toby’s handsome, innocent-looking face, pure rage bubbled in my gut. I would recognize this toxic little snake even if he were burned to ash. In my past life, Toby used that exact same innocent face to lie to the press and the police, turning my life into a living hell. But in this life, I hadn’t even set foot in the surgical wing. How the hell was he planning to frame me now? Swallowing the venom in my throat, I stared him down. “Nurse Toby, I’ve never done anything to you. Why are you trying to frame me?” A flicker of guilt flashed in Toby’s eyes, but he quickly masked it, speaking with dramatic conviction. “You’re right, Dr. Pierce. We have no personal issues. But I took an oath to protect patients.” “I saw it with my own two eyes! You swapped Serena’s IV meds. You made sure she died on that table.” “And everyone knows why. You suspected Serena of sleeping with your husband, so you took your revenge!” To seal the deal, Toby pulled out his phone and played the exact same video that had doomed me in my past life. 4 The video played loudly. There I was, face flushed with anger, arguing with Serena in her hospital gown. My voice echoed through the hallway speakers. “Why won’t you just drop dead?!” The nurses and doctors who had gathered to watch the drama began whispering furiously among themselves. “I always thought Dr. Pierce was so elegant. I didn’t know she was psycho behind closed doors. Does she have anger issues?” “You really never know a person. How else do you think she became Vice President so young?” “Do you think she really killed a patient over a guy?” The family mob flared up again. A few heavily built men cracked their knuckles, looking like they were ready to rush me. But the moment they lunged, twenty hospital security guards slammed them back against the wall. Prevented from throwing punches, they settled for screaming vicious curses at my face. Even Director Brooks looked at me with a hint of doubt. Seeing this, a smug, victorious gleam appeared in Declan’s eyes. He seized the moment to deliver the final blow. “Valerie, the motive, the witness, the evidence. It’s all here. What lies are you going to spin now?” I didn’t flinch. I just smoothed down the lapels of my coat. “A heavily edited video clip with zero context isn’t evidence of anything.” Toby ground his teeth, stepping closer. “Prove it’s edited, Dr. Pierce. Prove it.” I tilted my head, smiling coldly. “No, Toby. You prove I swapped the medication. Tell everyone exactly when and where I did it.” Toby puffed out his chest, clearly prepared for the question. He sounded entirely convinced of his own lie. “It was right before the surgery this morning. In the prep room. You injected an unknown substance directly into Serena’s IV bag.” “So I personally pushed the syringe?” I asked. “Yes! I saw you do it!” Hearing his confident answer, I locked eyes with Director Brooks. The Director’s face turned a violent shade of purple. He stepped forward, pointing a heavy finger at Toby. “What department do you even work in, son?” Under the Director’s crushing authority, Toby’s fake confidence began to crack. “I… I’m a scrub nurse in the surgical wing, sir.” “If you work in the OR, why are you out here actively slandering one of our top doctors?! Do you have any idea what happens to liars who try to destroy this hospital from the inside?!” Toby turned completely pale, stammering defensively. “Director, I swear I’m telling the truth!” “You can’t just throw a junior nurse like me under the bus just to protect your precious Vice President!” Declan shot me a filthy look before turning to the crowd, expertly fanning the flames. “He’s right! You can’t threaten a whistleblower just to cover up Valerie’s crimes!” “Does human life mean absolutely nothing to you corporate doctors?!” “I’m calling the cops right now. The police will get us the truth.” I took a step forward, my voice ringing loud and clear down the corridor. “Please do. Call the police. Because I would love to ask a detective how a surgeon with shattered fingers managed to push a syringe, let alone operate on a patient.” Slowly, deliberately, I pulled my right hand out of my deep pocket. The massive, thick cast securing my severely broken hand was finally exposed to the fluorescent lights. Declan and Toby stared at my cast. All the color drained from their faces simultaneously. But my broken hand wasn’t the only nightmare waiting for Declan. A split second later, the heavy electronic doors of the operating room slid open. A surgeon wearing blood-spattered scrubs walked out. When he saw the Director, a tired but relieved smile spread across his face. “Director Brooks. The surgery was a total success. Once the anesthesia wears off, the patient can be moved to a regular recovery room.” Declan let out a horrifying, high-pitched scream. “Dad?! Who did you just operate on?!”

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For five years of marriage, my wife, Maya, always had her ex-husband, Chris, on her mind, while remaining utterly indifferent to me. On our wedding anniversary, she suddenly pulled out a scratched lottery ticket, telling me we’d won two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Before I could even process the joy, she added that Chris was planning to study abroad, and this money would be perfect for his tuition. The mortgage foreclosure notice in my hand slipped, hitting the floor with a soft thud. I stood there, completely stunned. “Our mortgage is already overdue, and my mom needs fifty thousand for life-saving surgery!” I couldn’t help but confront her. “If you give him that money, what about our house? What about my mom’s illness?” She frowned, countering, “The mortgage can be delayed a bit longer. We can find another way to scrape together your mom’s surgery fees.” “Chris has been depressed since our divorce, and he’s finally picked himself up. I can’t abandon him now,” she said self-righteously. I was silent for a long time, then took a deep breath and nodded. “Fine. If you want to give him the money, give it to him.” “But I won’t help you support your ex-husband anymore,” I calmly told her. 1 Maya’s face instantly hardened. “Julian, you’re not a child. Stop always bringing up divorce.” “You know my relationship with Chris. He never used to care about anything, and now, he’s finally making plans for the future.” She paused, her eyebrows relaxing, a faint smile playing on her lips: “This is a good thing. We should support him.” It was August, yet I felt a cold draft creeping up from my ankles, chilling my entire body. “So, our mortgage, my mother’s illness—you’re abandoning them?” The smile froze on her face. Maya turned her head away. “The mortgage can be put off a little longer. Your mother isn’t in immediate danger.” “But my mom’s surgery is scheduled for three days from now.” My voice trembled: “If we don’t pay fifty thousand within three days, the surgery won’t happen.” Maya stared directly at me, trying to reason: “It’s just that the surgery won’t happen, it’s not like she’s going to die immediately.” “But Chris has severe depression. If I don’t help him, he could commit suicide at any moment.” “You need to understand what’s urgent and what’s not.” I felt suddenly dizzy. My temples throbbed, my mind reeling with disbelief. “Maya, Chris’s severe depression isn’t new.” “From the moment we got married, you’ve said he could commit suicide at any moment, that we needed to look out for him. Yet, five years later, he’s still alive, isn’t he?” Maya, who had been leaning against the balcony railing, suddenly straightened up. “Watch your language. How can you talk about Chris dying?” I clenched my fist: “You were the first one to say that word about my mother. You can say it about my mother, but I can’t say it about Chris?” She immediately looked guilty. Her previously stiff posture slumped again: “That’s not what I meant. But Chris’s depression is because of the divorce; I have to take responsibility for that.” “His studies abroad will cost two hundred and fifty thousand dollars in tuition. The lottery winnings after tax are just enough. If I have the money but don’t help him, I’ll never have peace of mind.” After all the arguing, she was still going to give the money to Chris. I suddenly felt so tired. I leaned against the doorframe, hearing her phone ring with its custom tone. She answered, her voice soft and sweet: “It’s fine, Julian just has that temper. He’ll get over it in a couple of days.” “No, I told you I’d pay for your tuition, and I won’t go back on my word… Chris, studying abroad is the best decision you’ve ever made. Don’t give up on yourself.” She always encouraged him so gently. My phone vibrated. A message from my mom: “Julian, the family in the bed next to me gave me so many salted duck eggs. Maya loves these, doesn’t she? Come get them when you have time.” I looked at the smile in Maya’s eyes and, for the first time, interrupted her: “My mom…” I’d barely spoken two words when she immediately looked up, pressing a finger to her lips, letting out a sharp shhh. The tenderness she had for Chris turned entirely into impatience when she faced me. In that instant, my words caught in my throat, unable to come out or be swallowed. I tugged at the corner of my mouth. It was a laugh at her, and even more so, at myself. Maya’s call lasted half an hour. When she finally hung up, smiling, I was packing my suitcase. “Where are you going?” “The hospital, to stay with my mom.” She froze, then pursed her lips: “Your mom’s surgery can be delayed. It’s fine if you don’t stay with her.” “Tomorrow, I’m going to pay the tuition fees and help Chris buy some things for his studies. He’s worried you’ll misunderstand, so he asked me to bring you along.” My movements didn’t stop. I smoothly zipped up the suitcase. “It’s not the first time. There’s nothing for me to misunderstand.” “What…” “From now on, how you want to spend time with him, how much money you want to give him, it’s all up to you.” After changing my shoes, I gave her one last look before closing the door: “Maya, from today, you can support your ex-husband yourself.” “I’ll have my lawyer send you the divorce papers. I’m actually curious, once I become your ex-husband, will you treat me the same way you treat him?” At the hospital, Mom still didn’t know what had happened. She proudly showed me the salted duck eggs, reminding me to take them back for Maya tomorrow. I didn’t nod or shake my head. I just lay on the cot, staring at the ceiling until dawn. The next day, shortly after I mailed the divorce papers, Chris called me, sighing: “Julian, are you two still fighting?” “I’m sorry, I always cause you trouble, becoming a burden…” Patients and family members came and went in the hallway. I suddenly felt intensely irritated. “Chris, I’m busy. I don’t have time for your sob story.” “If you want to cry, go find Maya. She’s free as a bird; she can revolve around you 24/7.” With that, I hung up and went to the cafeteria to get food for my mom. My phone rang again while I was in line. Maya, barely controlling her anger, demanded: “Julian, how many times have I told you Chris has severe depression and can’t be provoked!” “How could you call him a burden!” I frowned, bewildered: “He said it himself.” Maya immediately flared up: “You’re still denying it? Do you know that because of what you said, Chris cut his wrists!” “How could you be so heartless? He’s a living, breathing person! I was going to use the lottery money to help him regain hope, and now you’ve ruined everything!” I immediately stopped, walked to the side, and chilled my tone: “You know he has severe depression. ‘Burden’ is his catchphrase; I never said it.” “Also, he’s a life. Is my mom’s life not a life?” “When we got married, you didn’t bring any dowry and were buried in debt. My mom took out her one hundred and fifty thousand dollars in savings to help you pay off those debts. Now you’ve won two hundred and fifty thousand, and you can’t even spare fifty thousand for my mom’s medical treatment. What right do you have to call me heartless?” The other end of the phone fell silent. Maya seemed to want to speak, then stopped several times: “I will definitely pay back your mother’s money, and I’ll find another way to cover the medical fees.” I gritted my teeth: “Have you signed the divorce papers?” “I won’t sign them. I won’t divorce you.” Chris suddenly called her name from nearby. She sped up her words: “Just calm down, I’ll deal with Chris’s situation and I promise I’ll give you an explanation.” The call ended. I took a deep breath, got the food, and brought it to my mom. Mom sensed something was wrong and asked if we had argued. I shook my head, quickly changing the subject to avoid it. But in reality, in our five years of marriage, we had argued for five years because of Chris. We were husband and wife, yet her thirty thousand salary had two hundred and fifty thousand going to her ex-husband. This was a clause she had actively added to her divorce settlement. She spent her days chatting with him, taking him to therapy, and traveling with him every quarter to clear his head. His messages were always replied to instantly, and if he needed anything, she would immediately drop me and rush to his side. Even when my mom had a sudden medical emergency in the middle of the night, Maya would drive away our only car because Chris “was having a bad day.” I had argued and fussed, but she always came back to the same phrase: “Chris’s depression is because of me; I can’t abandon him.” Too much disappointment, accumulated into despair. But now, my biggest regret was marrying her without hesitation, all because of the little bit of kindness she showed me back then. Mom felt sorry for my bare-bones wedding and used all her savings to help Maya pay off her debts. She thought this would help us live a good life, but in the end, it was all just a mess. After dinner, the nurse suddenly came to find me, saying the card I’d given her didn’t have enough money. My mind reeled. That was the eighty thousand dollars I had painstakingly borrowed from friends, intended for the surgery prepayment. I urgently called Maya, but she hung up on me ten times. Just as I was about to call the police, she sent a nonchalant message: “I transferred the money from the card. Chris’s depression has severely relapsed, and I’ve booked him a therapist.” I immediately took a taxi to the most exclusive psychology clinic in the area. In the past, every time Chris had an episode, Maya would take him for treatment. The cost was ridiculously high, eighty thousand dollars for two hours, and she always paid. When I entered, Maya was waiting at the door. Seeing me, she rushed over: “What are you doing here… Don’t make a scene. Chris is in therapy, he can’t be disturbed.” She lowered her voice, trying to pull me away. I bit down hard on my molars and pushed her away, asking each word clearly: “That’s eighty thousand dollars I borrowed from friends, to pay for my mom’s surgery!” “Maya, how could you… how could you transfer all of it?!” I finished shouting, breathing heavily, and the previously quiet hallway filled with murmurs. Maya’s eyebrows furrowed, and her face darkened: “I told you, Chris cut his wrists. If I hadn’t gotten there in time, he would be dead. If I don’t book him a therapist now, he’ll become even more radical!” “Then why didn’t you use your lottery money? Maya, you won two hundred and fifty thousand dollars!” Anger made my body rigid, my voice trembling uncontrollably: “You have a full two hundred and fifty thousand dollars! You could spare a little and he’d be able to see ten therapists!” “Why did you touch the eighty thousand dollars I painstakingly gathered? That’s my mother’s life-saving money!” Someone not far away looked over. Maya’s throat bobbed. Her tone was both flustered and resolute: “That two hundred and fifty thousand is for his studies abroad; it can’t be touched.” I froze, then let out a hollow, absurd laugh. She sighed heavily: “I’ve talked to you about it. I divorced Chris because of personality differences, but it wasn’t until I married you that I found out I was already pregnant with his child back then.” “I had an abortion to marry you. When he found out, it led to his depression.” “This is what I owe him.” I bit my lip: “Maya, you can pay back what you owe him yourself, but are you really so eager for my mom to die?” Maya’s expression instantly changed: “What nonsense are you saying? Your mom is my mom. How could I possibly want her to die?” “I asked a friend about your mom’s surgery; it’ll be fine if she has it next year.” “If Chris is okay today, he’ll go to Canada to study, and I’ll finally be at peace. I’ll work hard and save money for your mom’s surgery in the future.” I slowly shook my head: “I don’t believe you!” “Give the money back right now!” No sooner had the words left my mouth than the consultation room door suddenly opened. Through the crack, I saw Chris crying. Maya instantly lost her composure, turning to rush inside. I desperately gripped her sleeve: “Give me the money back!” Her entire face was scrunched up. She pushed me away: “You go home first. I’ll contact you as soon as I’ve calmed Chris down.” The door closed. Maya’s incredibly gentle voice drifted out, comforting him. I was unwilling to give up, my nerves taut as I was about to pound on the door, when I suddenly remembered our house. We had bought it together after we got married. It wasn’t big, but it could sell for several hundred thousand dollars. Ignoring everything else, I rushed to contact a friend, planning to sell the house. But on the way to the housing registry, my friend called, hesitating. “Julian, your house has already been sold. Didn’t you know?” I gasped. “When?” “Last month. After all the fees and late penalties, it fetched five hundred thousand dollars.” “Your wife personally signed the papers. After selling it, she rented it back from the new owner for six months…” My fingers loosened, and my phone dropped to the ground. My last hope had vanished last month. Every step back to the hospital felt like my legs were filled with lead, hard to move, yet I couldn’t stop. Only when I reached a red light did I snap back to reality and open Chris’s social media. Last month, he posted daily fitness videos. He supposedly hired the best celebrity personal trainer, whose fees were exorbitant, and one-on-one sessions were double that. Maya liked every post, and on one, she even sent a clapping emoji. “Be confident, take your time, I’m always here.” I found it strange back then. He couldn’t find a job due to his depression, and Maya had supported him for five years. How could he afford hundreds of thousands of dollars for a celebrity trainer? But now I understood. To give him confidence, to prevent him from suicidal thoughts, my wife had sold the house we bought together and hired him a trainer. My nails dug deep into my thigh, but I was already numb. I mechanically answered the hospital’s call, apologizing repeatedly, promising to pay all fees as soon as possible, begging them not to cancel the surgery schedule. After hanging up, I looked up at the gloomy sky. In the two months I dated Maya, I thought I had found true love. But after five years of marriage, I had nothing. A sudden clap of thunder struck. I steadied myself and headed back to the hospital to care for my mom. That night, I borrowed from every relative and friend I knew, but by morning, it still wasn’t enough. A friend remarked: “If Maya hadn’t had those debts, your mom’s savings would definitely be enough.” I sat bolt upright. When we got married, Maya had no house, no car, and wasn’t a gambler. Where did these debts come from? I opened Chris’s social media again. Updated ten minutes ago: [Going to study abroad in Canada soon. It’s a shame to leave the house empty. Contact me if you want to rent it!] He has a house? Didn’t Maya say she and Chris had a bare-bones wedding and rented? The more I thought about it, the more wrong it felt. I went home and pried open Maya’s desk drawer. She had a habit of keeping everything related to money. There was a stack of various receipts on top, with the celebrity trainer’s payment slip in the middle. Flipping to the very bottom, a property purchase contract boldly appeared. “One hundred thousand dollars, property owner, Chris.” This was the debt she spoke of. Rage instantly choked me. I pulled out my phone to take photos for my lawyer, then suddenly noticed several luxury item receipts in the contract. A watch, bespoke clothing, rings, a bracelet, and cufflinks, totaling almost fifty thousand dollars. In the bottom right corner, Maya’s handwriting read: “What I owed you when we got married, I will make up to you little by little.” I opened my mouth, staring in disbelief over and over, then looked at the purchase date. It was the second month after Maya and I were married. We had just returned from our honeymoon, and I was still full of hope for the future, when she solemnly told me about her ex-husband’s illness. From then on, I was trapped by the words “Chris’s severe depression,” unable to escape. But today I learned that the one hundred and fifty thousand dollars she got from my mom under the guise of “debt” was used to buy Chris a house and all those luxury items. All these years, her concern for her ex-husband wasn’t guilt; it was clearly that she had never truly broken things off with him. I was just stuck in the middle, wasting five years of my life. An icy chill shot up from my feet. My heart was completely dead. I swallowed hard, photographed all the receipts for my lawyer, and then called the police. “I want to report a scam. The amount involved is at least one hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and the perpetrator is about to flee the country by plane. I request immediate interception!”

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I had explicitly told Landon that I had zero tolerance for infidelity. During the raffle at the department’s celebratory dinner, the big screen paused briefly on newcomer Lily’s name, then finally settled on mine. The entire room instantly erupted. Colleagues gave Landon meaningful looks, especially since the prize was a seven-day couple’s cruise to Macau. “You two are so lucky!” “Don’t worry about work, we’ve got it covered, you two just enjoy your trip!” Everyone chattered excitedly, even pushing Landon onto the stage. I, brimming with joy, held up the cruise tickets to him. But he, expressionless, simply pulled them from my hand. After stepping down, he walked directly over to Lily and handed her the entire set of tickets. Only then did he turn to me and say, “The machine glitched. Lily was supposed to win; this prize belongs to her.” He added nonchalantly, “It’s just a trip, I’ll take you another time.” Watching Lily’s ecstatic reaction to holding the tickets, my lips curved into a cold, involuntary smile. I simply replied with one word: “Fine.” Because for me, one betrayal meant being discarded forever. 1 The female manager beside me instantly changed her expression. She pulled me aside and whispered, “Harper, you had the biggest contribution to this project. This prize was originally set aside for you…” “It’s fine, boss. It’s good to encourage newcomers.” The surrounding colleagues, hearing the commotion, were already sizing up Lily. She wore an ill-fitting dress, gazing at Landon with admiration. Landon gave her a slight nod and returned to his seat. The raffle continued, the next winner took the stage, and the room grew lively again. The celebratory dinner dragged on, and I sat at the head table, feeling a hundred eyes on me. Every time I turned, I’d meet the hurried averted gaze of three or five colleagues. Their eyes all seemed to ask, “How can you tolerate this?” On Landon’s side, Lily had already pulled her chair next to him. The overly narrow distance between them looked particularly out of place at the dining table. Lily shouldn’t have been at this celebratory dinner. The project was already winding down when Lily joined the company. It was Landon who insisted on bringing her, saying it would help new hires integrate faster. Furthermore, Landon often took her to various high-level meetings, claiming it was for experience. When I toasted my manager, she frowned and said, “Lily’s been with the company for almost three months, and I haven’t seen her sparkle yet, but her relationship with Manager Landon is a bit too close…” “Young people, not focused on their work. Her probation period, I think…” “Perhaps she just hasn’t found the right opportunity yet.” I clinked glasses with my manager. “You can observe her a little longer.” My manager snorted, dropping the subject. Finally, the banquet ended, and I had had more than a few drinks. As people were thinning out, Landon finally came up to me, complaining, “Why did you drink so much?” He naturally helped me up, chattering as usual: “Walk on your own, I can’t carry you…” I sat in the passenger seat, and Landon buckled my seatbelt. The car started, streetlights blurring outside the window, and we drove in silence. As we neared home, he finally couldn’t help but speak, “Are you mad about today?” “You saw it, Lily’s name flashed on the screen first, then maybe it glitched and showed yours.” “Giving it back to its rightful owner. Don’t fuss with a young girl.” I didn’t answer, just gazed out the window. In the underground garage, he gallantly opened my car door, helping me out. “Still mad? Didn’t I promise I’d go with you next time?” “Once the bonus comes in, I’ll take you to Macau for as many days as you want, on a cruise even more luxurious than this one.” My heart felt like it was being flayed repeatedly with a dull knife. I had lost count of how many times he had told me, “next time I’ll go with you,” or “next time I’ll buy it for you.” I only remembered he’d never once followed through. He always had an endless supply of excuses. He took it for granted that no matter how many times he disappointed me, I would always be there waiting for him. “Landon.” I stopped, fixing my gaze on his eyes. “I’ll be thirty in a few days. I promised my dad I’d be married before I turn thirty.” Landon was silent for a long time, then shifted his gaze away. “Thirty is still so young, what’s the rush?” He quickened his pace, walking ahead of me. “Besides, your thirtieth birthday is in less than half a month. We both have work; where would we find time to get married?” “We have plenty of time, no need to rush.” Getting married at the courthouse only takes a few hours. I remembered when the project was nearing completion, our manager called us both aside for a private chat. “You two put in a lot of time and effort on this project, and I’ve noticed.” “Once the project is over, come to me anytime for leave. I’ll approve whatever you need. You two should be getting ready for marriage, right?” Landon awkwardly brushed it off: “We’re busy now; let’s talk about it after the project is successfully wrapped up.” Afterward, he fled back to his cubicle as if escaping. In that moment, beyond gratitude for my manager, there was a deep sense of sorrow. Seven years of feelings, still unable to blossom into something concrete. Back inside, Landon took off his jacket and changed his shoes, his entire body relaxing. He seemed to think today’s incident was behind us, and turned to hug me. I sidestepped, avoiding him. Landon froze. “Let’s just… end it.” He widened his eyes, staring at me, silent for a long while. Finally, he chose to brush it off lightly: “You’re tired too. Let’s just leave it for today. You get some rest, I won’t bother you.” Ding-dong, his phone chimed. He picked it up, a frown creasing his brow. “Lily has a stomachache. I’m driving her to the hospital.” “It’s late, and it’s not safe for a young girl to go out alone.” He picked up his keys again, but didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he stood there, waiting for my reaction. It was as if he’d already prepared his lines, expecting to deal with my questions. But I just nodded calmly. “Okay.” Then, without looking back, I walked into the bathroom. Behind me, I heard Landon slam the door shut. I sank into the bathtub filled with hot water, feeling all the day’s exhaustion wash away. After showering, I returned to the bedroom. Staring at the photo display cabinet, now empty on one shelf, I felt a prolonged sense of disbelief. The largest, central shelf was where we’d planned to put our wedding photos. Now, the white surface was covered in a thick layer of dust. I walked over, looking at them layer by layer. Photos of dates in college, travel pictures, graduation photos… Fewer photos after starting work, but important days were always remembered. Another shelf held countless greeting cards he’d written to me. Back then, he would scour the internet for every sugary-sweet phrase he could find, copying them out for me. The topmost one was a postcard we bought during our graduation trip to Tibet. On the back, in his handsome handwriting, he’d written, “Praying to the Buddha, I vow to marry Harper Quinn before I turn thirty!” I always remembered the determination in his eyes when he wrote that line. Now, the paper had long yellowed, and his sincerity had long changed. I looked at them one by one, reminiscing day by day. I don’t know how long passed, but then I heard the front door open. My bedroom door gently pushed open. I was in the midst of putting the old photos back into the cabinet. Landon walked closer, looking at the photos in my hand, his expression softening. “You’re not sleeping yet, just to look at these pictures?” “Haven’t you seen them a million times?” I didn’t answer his question, casually asking, “How’s Lily?” “Nothing serious, just overate.” His voice held a hint of indulgent exasperation. “She just stuffs her face with anything tasty she sees. So undisciplined.” He then took the photos from my hand and shoved them all into the cabinet. “Stop looking, go to sleep.” He was already changed and in bed, urging, “Come on in.” I silently got up, turning to face him, my expression unruffled. “What’s wrong?” “Let’s end this.” Landon blinked twice, then laughed wryly: “Still mad about the cruise tickets? Such a small temper.” He switched off the bedroom light, plunging the room into instant darkness. His voice was lazy, tinged with fatigue: “Fine, I’ll plan the trip tomorrow. We’ll pick a date and go to Macau together.” I gazed at him in the darkness, my voice very soft: “I’m getting married, on my thirtieth birthday.” In the darkness, Landon sat bolt upright. His eyes gleamed with a cold light. “Harper Quinn, stop messing around. I’m very tired today.” “Who else are you going to find to marry besides me? Getting married isn’t something you can just decide to do and have happen instantly.” I calmly explained: “My parents have arranged everything. I just need to show up.” Landon suddenly became enraged. “How many times have I told you, don’t always listen to your parents so much. Our lives are for us! They tell you to get married now, and you just have to get married?” “I’ve taken leave. I’m getting my marriage license tomorrow.” Click, the blinding light momentarily stunned me. Landon’s chest heaved violently. “Harper Quinn! Have you ever respected my opinion?” “We do have time to breathe now, but we’re both in the prime of our careers. I know you want to get married quickly, but you can’t completely disrupt my career plans!” His career plan included time to travel with Lily for a week, but no time to get married to me. I had never, at any point, asked him for a grand wedding or ceremony. I just wanted to get legally married, for peace of mind. His time was scarce. After allocating it to work and Lily, there was naturally none left for me. If he wouldn’t give it to me, I had no choice but to seek it from someone else. I met his gaze, my heart unperturbed. “Yes, I want to get married quickly.” With that, I turned and walked into the guest room. I lay on the bed, staring blankly. This guest room only had one bed. We had originally planned to decorate it as a nursery, and the designs were all ready, but Landon’s “it’s too early” put it on hold. It became the guest room for when my parents visited. Lost in thought, my phone vibrated twice. It was a text from my dad. “Harper, have you talked it over with Landon? It’s still not too late to tell that boy the wedding is off.” There was nothing to discuss. His actions today were the best answer. “You two have been together for so many years. If Landon really isn’t willing, then wait a bit longer. It’s just that this marriage has been delayed for so long, and your mom and I are getting a little anxious…” “Your mom and I don’t want to pressure you. Your happiness is what matters most.” I had already waited too long for him. Perhaps reality had told me long ago that we weren’t right for each other. I just hadn’t wanted to believe it then. I typed out a line: “No need to wait. I trust you both to choose a good husband for me.” To avoid me, Landon moved directly into his office. I hadn’t explicitly said we were over, but my words, I’m sure, had made the implication clear enough. Even if he was now avoiding and refusing to communicate, it didn’t matter; the die was cast. This time, I didn’t ask Landon for his opinion. I simply paid the down payment on the house I had long admired, to be our marital home. I had already contacted a real estate agent to sell the current house. After packing my belongings, thinking the agent would come to take over the house in a few days, I still felt I should tell Landon. To see if he wanted to take it over or find another place to rent. But I called him five or six times, and all were rejected. Messages sent only received red exclamation marks. After a moment of hesitation, I decided to notify him in person at the office. When I arrived, the department office door was closed, but I could faintly hear laughter from inside. It was the weekend, and surprisingly, there were others in the office besides Landon and Lily. Lily’s voice chimed in then, “Landon, you have to vouch for me. It really wasn’t me who stole Harper’s prize; the machine just malfunctioned.” “Now a lot of people in the company are spreading rumors, and some are even saying I deliberately broke you two up!” My raised hand froze mid-air. Another male colleague teased, “Landon is so popular. Harper is still with him, but this young lady is already asking for a proper title. Trouble in paradise, eh?” Despite the teasing, Lily didn’t seem annoyed. “Don’t talk nonsense. What ‘proper title’? We just have a normal boss-employee relationship.” At that moment, Landon’s voice finally chimed in, “I’ll find an opportunity to hold a meeting and tell everyone. It’s time to clarify things. Lily shouldn’t be falsely accused.” That sentence stirred a memory from long ago. When our relationship became public, I had just started at the company, and Landon held a higher position than me. Some colleagues speculated that I was trying to gain advantages by deliberately seducing him. I wanted Landon to explain privately that we had been together since college. But back then, he said it wasn’t necessary, that colleagues would forget about it after a while. At the time, I didn’t understand. It was just a simple explanation; he could have cleared it up in casual conversation. Now I understood. He simply didn’t care enough about me. A chill settled in my heart. His indifference had been evident all along. Another colleague asked, puzzled, “Landon, are you really marrying Harper Quinn? I saw her post on social media that she already got married today.” Landon let out a mocking laugh. “Just a self-directed performance.” “We’ll see how she handles it when the groom doesn’t show up.” Someone sighed, “Landon, you’re really not going?” “Of course not. This time, she needs to learn a lesson.” “But Landon, you two have been together for a long time, haven’t you? I think you still need to talk things through, otherwise this might really be the end for you two…” The gossiping colleague, surprisingly, seemed to care more about our relationship than he did. Before Landon could speak, another colleague quickly interjected, “If it ends, it ends. Michael still has Lily anyway.” Lily, at the center of the conversation, laughed. “Oh, stop teasing me! I don’t want to be a home-wrecker~” Landon didn’t offer any explanation. Everyone started joking again, “Of course you’re not a home-wrecker~ If you ask me, if I were Landon, I’d swap Harper out. Been looking at her for too many years, gotten boring.” Having clearly heard all of this, I withdrew my hand from the door and turned to leave. It seemed Landon didn’t care even if I married someone else. In that case, having the agent come in a couple of days to clear out all his belongings and leave him homeless… I guess it wouldn’t matter if I didn’t tell him.

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That graduation trip disaster left me lost on a strange beach for a solid six hours. Passing a brightly lit bar, the voices spilling out felt like ice picks stabbing through my eardrums. “I deliberately ditched her,” it was Michael’s voice, my fiancé. He was complaining to Chloe, the senior beside him. “I never intended to bring her in the first place.” “Harper’s so clingy, it’s honestly annoying.” His casual tone was colder than the ocean waves. “If only she could be as mature and independent as you.” That sentence shattered the last remnants of my fantasy. I ran like a maniac along the beach, screaming his name over and over until my throat was too raw to make a sound. Without even the strength to storm in and confront him, I turned and silently walked back to the hotel, grabbed my passport, and headed straight for the airport. As boarding time approached, Michael’s call finally came through, his voice as light as if nothing had happened: “My phone just charged. You must be frantic, right? Send me your location, I’ll come get you now.” I hung up directly, my fingertips trembling as I texted him four words: Wedding canceled. 1 “Harper, what do you mean? You couldn’t keep up with me, ran off somewhere, and now you’re taking it out on me?” The message had only been sent for three seconds before Michael called. I could vaguely hear our companions on the other end trying to smooth things over. Chloe’s voice was clearly the closest. “You two are practically married, Michael. Be nice to Harper. You need to sweet-talk a girl.” Laughter erupted around her, but Michael’s voice grew colder. “Well, we only booked the venue, invitations haven’t even gone out. If Harper wants to cancel the wedding, she can go right ahead!” The call ended. Michael’s anger abruptly cut off. And my phone wallpaper still showed his sunny smile. I paused, then decided to change it immediately. But when I opened my photo album, Michael was everywhere. I loved capturing every little moment Michael and I shared. Him grimacing after a sip of Americano. Him begrudgingly eating the mushrooms I’d picked out for him. And the silly dance videos I’d dragged him into. I selected them one by one, deleting them. Until, finally, I just cleared the entire album. For some reason, my heart felt a huge chunk had been hollowed out too. A fellow traveler’s nudge made me realize my phone was ringing incessantly. It was Michael again. This time his tone had softened considerably. “Harper, I was out of line just now, I was too upset.” “Don’t be mad at me. Where are you? I’ll come pick you up right away.” Seeing I still wasn’t speaking, Michael sounded a little anxious. “We’re supposed to go snorkeling tomorrow, isn’t that what you’ve always wanted to do?” I opened my mouth, instinctively wanting to say something. Because Michael loved snorkeling, I, a complete non-swimmer, had specially hired a private instructor before this trip. I didn’t want my clumsiness to wear out Michael’s patience. So, I’d conquered my fear again and again, holding my breath underwater, and leaving lessons with bloodshot eyes from the chlorine. Now, I felt it was all for nothing. “I…” I wanted to say, Let’s break up. I’m not getting married. But my throat felt like it was scraped with gravel, hoarse and painful. The silence, lasting for several seconds, completely infuriated Michael. “Harper, you’re really something else.” “If I can’t find you at the hotel in an hour, we’re over!” Whenever Michael and I argued before, this tactic always worked. Because I loved him, seemingly more than he loved me. But this time, I wasn’t going to back down. At the very last minute for check-in, I walked towards the counter with my passport. The ground staff looked up at me, then handed my documents back. Only then did I realize that in my haste, I’d grabbed Michael’s passport by mistake. And tomorrow’s flight back home was fully booked; the earliest I could rebook was the day after. An hour and a half later, I returned to the hotel, exhausted. I’d planned to swap passports and find another place to stay. But I happened to run into Michael and Chloe in the hotel lobby. Michael was clearly drunk, leaning heavily on Chloe’s shoulder. “Harper, seriously, how could she just leave without a word, leaving me behind?” “Here, have some water.” Chloe held a glass of water to his lips; there was a noticeable lipstick mark on the rim. Spotting me, she guiltily pushed Michael towards me. “Oh, good, you’re back. Michael’s all yours.” I have allergies. The moment I got close, the perfume scent clinging to Michael triggered a series of sneezes. Without a second thought, I pushed him back towards Chloe. My voice was flat. “He’s your handiwork, Chloe. You can take care of him.” On the way back, I’d bought some throat lozenges; swallowing one helped a lot. I turned and went upstairs, ignoring Chloe’s darkening expression. There were six of us on this trip. Three were Michael’s roommates from college. He wouldn’t be without a place to sleep tonight. After washing up in my room, I found Michael’s phone on the bedside table, constantly buzzing with notifications. I found it annoying and was about to put it on silent. But my face ID, which I’d set up earlier, automatically unlocked it. Michael’s group chat immediately popped up. “Seriously, what does Michael even see in Harper? She’s nothing but clingy.” “Chloe brought him back when he was hammered. I swear those two are perfect for each other.” “It’s just that Chloe was almost engaged back then, so Michael only agreed to Harper.” My fingers froze, unable to press the power button. Because Chloe had a boyfriend, I’d never questioned Michael’s excessive concern for her. At most, I’d pretend to be mad for a couple of days and wait for Michael to come and coax me. The more I thought about it, the worse I felt. Since I’ve decided to break up, why do I even care about this stuff anymore? Seeing the latest message pop up in the chat, I let out a cold laugh. “You guys didn’t know? Chloe broke up with her boyfriend at the beginning of the month.” I paused, then suddenly understood why Michael had been in such a rush to organize this trip. Taking me snorkeling? Filming beautiful videos of me? Turns out, all the reasons he kept spouting were just excuses. I turned to look at my suitcase, filled with various dresses. For me, this was supposed to be a special journey. Because after returning home, I would dive into wedding preparations, ready to become a wife and perhaps even a mother. The day before we left, I was still up all night doing research. But fate always seems to enjoy playing tricks on the earnest. Both this relationship and this trip. They had both failed spectacularly. I looked out at the silent sea beyond the French doors, feeling my tears were utterly superfluous. Just as I was about to put down my phone and go to sleep, Michael’s phone received another message. From Chloe. Just a few simple words: “Feeling better?” I stared at it for two seconds, then, on an impulse, tapped the video call icon. It connected instantly, and Chloe, in a deep purple slip dress, filled the screen, her figure on full display. “You—why are you…” Facing her undisguised embarrassment, I smiled. “Chloe, honestly.” “If you want to hook up with someone else’s boyfriend, at least wait until I’ve broken up with him first. Then it’ll be legitimate, won’t it?” Chloe’s face went pale as she ended the call. … Perhaps it was pure exhaustion, but I slept incredibly deeply. Until Michael burst in and dragged me out of bed. “Harper, Chloe just broke up with her boyfriend, why would you upset her?” “If anything happens to her, I swear I’m through with you!” Chloe’s disappearance that morning had Michael pacing like a cat on a hot tin roof. Calling the police wasn’t enough; he even considered contacting the embassy. I kept wondering if Michael had ever been so anxious for me. But it seemed, not once. I always arrived ten minutes early for dates. I’d report everything I did outside, everyone I met. If Michael missed me, even if I was vacationing with my parents, I’d take the fastest flight to be there. That was my way of loving him. But in Michael’s eyes, it just made me clingy. Annoying. I didn’t know if I was using the wrong approach. Or perhaps, the fault wasn’t mine at all. That morning, Michael had yelled at me in front of his roommates, then later came back to ask for my help contacting the local expat community. Given my parents’ influence, they would certainly lend a hand. But why should I? Not only did Chloe have nothing to do with me. Even Michael, not yet married, was nothing to me. So I refused. “Chloe is an adult. She’s responsible for her own safety.” Those were the exact words Michael had told Chloe yesterday after he’d left me behind. Now, I returned them to him, word for word. Michael, however, became furious. “Harper, I only just realized today what a petty, small-minded woman you are!” “Do you think every man in the world should revolve around you?” “If you didn’t like me inviting Chloe on the trip, why didn’t you just say so?” Even his roommates chimed in. “Michael only invited Chloe because he didn’t want you to be the only girl, to make you feel comfortable.” “Harper, Michael’s been good enough to you. What more could you want?” Before Chloe left, she’d texted saying she didn’t want to spoil my fun. They immediately assumed I’d said something nasty to her. I had, indeed, but it was all true. Chloe, however, had used this method to turn the tables, and she’d succeeded. Since I couldn’t leave, I wasn’t going to waste my time. I was now by the sea, doing my pre-snorkeling warm-ups. The instructor said there was a good chance of seeing whale sharks today, and I was absolutely thrilled. As we prepared to head out, I saw Michael and his friends approaching, with Chloe at the center of their group. “I knew you wouldn’t hold a grudge against Harper, it was all a misunderstanding.” With that, Michael shot me a look, signaling for me to say something conciliatory to Chloe. I fought hard to keep from flipping a table right then and there, and instead turned and boarded the boat. Looks like I won’t have any peace today. It turned out Chloe had just been in a bad mood and had gone exploring the local market by herself. She even thoughtfully brought gifts for everyone. Leaving no room for complaint. After the boat set off, Michael, right in front of me, put on the handmade necklace Chloe had given him. “Chloe really has great taste.” Michael looked like he’d found a treasure. He then took off his original necklace and casually handed it to me. I remembered, it was my birthday gift to him last year. Michael had said he’d wear it forever, that it was a way for me to keep him close. Now, it seemed the meager sense of security he’d given me was entirely disposable. I silently lowered my hand, letting the necklace be swallowed by the waves without a sound. Letting go, that was my freedom too. At the snorkeling spot, Michael’s three roommates eagerly jumped into the water. He, like an expert, patiently helped Chloe adjust her mask, fins, and other gear. By the time Michael remembered me and turned to help, I was already fully geared up and had flipped over the side of the boat. There was no fear, only the thrill of exploring the ocean. Even in those few seconds when a whale shark swam alongside me, I felt an immense sense of fulfillment. Life’s choices, perhaps some are right, some are wrong. But they always correspond to different scenery. I’ve been here, I’ve loved, that’s enough. After snorkeling, the atmosphere on the boat ride back was incredibly awkward. Chloe, the university league champion for the 1000m butterfly, had surprisingly been afraid to get in the water today. Michael had ended up staying on the boat with her all afternoon. When the instructor enthusiastically showed off the snorkeling videos and photos he’d taken of me. It was clear Michael felt a pang of regret. “Harper, let’s come back again when we get married for our honeymoon.” Even now, Michael still thought I was just being dramatic yesterday. I was about to take this opportunity to make things clear, but then the wind suddenly picked up on the sea. The change happened in an instant. When the boat capsized, it would be a lie to say I wasn’t panicked. I instinctively reached out to Michael, who was closest to me. But my fingertips grazed his arm, grasping at empty air. I watched Michael, without hesitation, swim determinedly towards Chloe. For a moment, I was stunned, then a massive wave crashed over me, pulling me deeper into the sea. I struggled desperately, but it was useless. Both Michael and the shore were getting further and further away. Michael and I were neighbors, we went to the same elementary and middle schools. Back then, my family’s business was just starting, and my parents were very busy, so they had Michael and me walk to and from school together. Michael always loved to tease me as a kid. On the first day of school, he deliberately left me behind. I was timid back then, too scared to go anywhere. So I sat by the school gate, waiting from sunset until deep into the night. “Harper!” It wasn’t my parents who finally found me, it was Michael. “Are you stupid? You don’t even know how to get home!” After scolding me, Michael opened his backpack. It was full of snacks, all his apologies. “Remember to stick close to me from now on, understand?” Because of what Michael said, I became his shadow. Once, in a daze, I almost followed Michael into the boys’ restroom. I was so mortified, mocked by everyone, that I didn’t want to go to school. Michael then punched the leader of the bullies, knocking out his front tooth. It was as if he was telling everyone through his actions that being his sidekick wasn’t something to be ashamed of. In high school, my parents sent me to an international school. Michael attended the state’s top-ranked high school. Every Friday, I would wait for him early by his school gate. Michael would always toss his backpack at me with an annoyed look. Inside, it wasn’t full of snacks anymore, but bundles of love letters. Some were for him, some were for me. “Harper, don’t come to my school anymore. All these admirers of yours are driving me crazy.” I habitually followed behind Michael, meekly apologizing. But secretly, I’d open the love letters people sent him. Reading the veiled or bold confessions of affection, I’d get so jealous I couldn’t sleep. I don’t know why, but I just felt that I was the only one who could be Michael’s girlfriend. He was never a patient person. Yet he would stay with me in the library for an entire afternoon. He would wait in line with me for two hours to buy trendy ice cream. On my 18th birthday, Michael, amidst shouts of encouragement, kissed me on the forehead. My face flushed crimson, wanting to disappear. My friend said Michael would definitely ask me out after college started. To go to the same school as him, I put in a lot of effort. Even my parents, who insisted I study abroad, were persuaded. But I never expected Michael to break his own rule for another girl on freshman orientation day. Chloe was a year above us and responsible for welcoming new students. On orientation day, my parents were busy, so Michael and I went together, eager to explore the campus where we’d spend the next four years. At the club recruitment fair, I was bumped. Michael shielded me, getting into an argument with a senior, almost coming to blows. Chloe stepped in to mediate and was accidentally grazed on the elbow by Michael. Michael immediately panicked, insisting on taking Chloe to the infirmary. And in the crowded hall, I couldn’t hold onto his arm. Michael’s phone was dead, so I couldn’t reach him, but I thought he’d eventually come back for me, so I waited where I was. In the end, Michael never showed up. That day, Chloe showed Michael around campus and invited him to join the swimming club. At the freshman welcome dance that evening, they were the most dazzling pair, while I arrived late. From that moment on, I decided I would no longer wait passively. I memorized Michael’s class schedule, always secretly making my way to his classrooms. If the photography club had an event, I’d volunteer as an external staff member. Everyone called me Michael’s inseparable shadow. But no one knew I was terrified, afraid Michael would be snatched away by someone else, like the Sword of Damocles hanging over my head. College life was different from before. Michael had many friends; he no longer took me everywhere, even lying to me. I heard Michael was celebrating New Year’s Eve by the river with his roommates. Despite the heavy traffic, I braved the cold wind and rode a shared bike for two hours, just to watch fireworks with him at midnight. But when I shared my location, Michael was ten miles away at the mall, celebrating Chloe’s birthday. “Oh, Harper, while you’re at it, could you swing by Willow Street and grab a box of caramel egg tarts? Chloe’s craving them.” Even though both ends of the phone call were filled with noise. I felt an eerie silence all around me, being jostled by the New Year’s Eve crowds, like driftwood on the ocean, with no place to anchor.

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I shelled out $25,000 for a house with a past. On my first night there, the kitBaker light flickered on by itself. Under its glow, an old woman sat at the dining table. She smiled at me. “Sweetie, why are you so thin?” she asked. Later, I learned she was the previous owner. And she had been dead for three years. 1. “Sis, three rooms, one living room, twenty-five thousand dollars. Interested?” The real estate agent, a young guy, chased me out as I was sitting on the steps outside, nibbling on a bagel. I’d been house-hunting for two weeks, and couldn’t afford anything. With twenty-eight thousand dollars in hand, I couldn’t even buy a bathroom in this city. “Twenty-five thousand? For three rooms and a living room?” “Yeah. It’s just… a bit special.” “Special how?” The agent rubbed his hands together, lowering his voice. “Someone… died in this house.” The house was on the sixth floor of an old apartment building, no elevator. I followed the agent up, panting by the time I reached the door. It was an old-fashioned security door, the lock a bit rusty. Pushing it open, the inside was surprisingly clean. Three rooms, one living room, south-facing, with excellent natural light. The living room was spacious, the kitBaker had a window, and the bathroom was split into wet and dry areas. This kind of setup would normally go for over a quarter million. “The previous owner was an old lady, Mrs. Bridgeforth, seventy-eight years old.” The agent stood at the doorway, hesitant to enter. “She passed away in the house. Her neighbors found her three days later.” “How did she die?” “Natural causes, no foul play. It’s just… she lived alone. No one was with her when she passed.” I walked around the living room. The floors were spotless. On the kitBaker counter, there was an enamel mug, emblazoned with “Serve the People.” “No one bought it before?” “A house flipper bought it, lived there for three days, broke his leg, then resold it at a loss.” The agent looked at me, his expression asking, “Do you still want it?” I thought for three seconds. “Can you go any lower?” On the day of the transfer, the notary public staff looked at me three times. They probably figured a twenty-four-year-old girl buying a “death house” was either foolish or desperately broke. They were right on both counts. On moving day, my entire belongings consisted of two suitcases and a cardboard box. The suitcases held clothes, the box held books and an old laptop. No furniture, no appliances. The living room was empty. I propped the suitcases against the wall and laid a yoga mat on the floor to serve as a bed. Lying down, I noticed a crack on the ceiling, winding like a crooked river. “Joanna, you’re really something.” I told myself. “Twenty-four years old, living in a haunted house, sleeping on the floor.” But at least it was my own place. Three rooms and a living room, with my name on the title. I closed my eyes and quickly drifted off to sleep. At two in the morning, I was woken by a noise. It came from the kitBaker. Clanking and rattling, like someone rummaging through things. My heart rate instantly rocketed to 150. Didn’t they say someone died here? Could there really be… No, I don’t believe in that. It must be a mouse. I fumbled for the slipper beside me and tiptoed towards the kitBaker. The kitBaker light was on. I definitely hadn’t turned it on. Taking a deep breath, I pushed open the kitBaker door. An old woman sat at the small kitBaker table. Her hair was white, neatly combed, and she wore a floral cotton blouse. In front of her sat the “Serve the People” enamel mug. She was holding the cup, sipping tea. Seeing me enter, she looked up. “Sweetie, why are you so thin?” I opened my mouth, but no words came out. “There are pork ribs in the fridge. I’ll teach you how to stew them.” She said, reaching for the teacup. Her hand passed right through the cup. 2. I shrieked, and my slipper flew, hitting the wall with a thud. The old woman glanced at the slipper, then at me. “What’s all the screaming about in the middle of the night?” I turned and ran. I dashed into the bedroom, locked the door, and leaned against it, panting. My heart pounded as if it would explode. The old woman’s voice came from outside the door. “Sweetie, why are you running? I don’t bite.” “You… you’re a ghost!” “So what if I’m a ghost? Can’t a ghost talk to you?” I closed my eyes, taking deep breaths. Okay. Calm down. I’m an adult. I bought a house where someone died. Now the previous owner of that house has appeared. This is perfectly logical. No, this is not logical at all. “Sweetie, open the door. I want to tell you something.” “No!” “I can get in even if you don’t open the door. I’m a ghost.” I froze for a moment. The door hadn’t opened, but the old woman was already standing in front of me. She’d passed right through the door. I screamed again. “Alright, alright, stop screaming. The neighbors will call the police.” The old woman sat down on the floor opposite me, cross-legged, looking more at ease than I did. “My name is Susan Bridgeforth. This house used to be mine. I lived here for forty years, and I died here too.” She said it calmly, as if discussing the weather. “Why… why are you still here?” “Can’t leave. I’m tied to this house.” “Tied? Who tied you?” “Who knows? Maybe the Grim Reaper forgot to collect me, or maybe I just don’t want to leave.” She looked around. “I cleaned this house for forty years. I can’t bear to leave it.” I stared at her, slowly calming down. She really didn’t look like a ghost from a horror movie. No disheveled hair, no bloody face, no crawling. Just an ordinary old lady, wearing a floral blouse, speaking with a slight accent. “You’re not going to harm me?” “Harm you? Why? You haven’t wronged me.” She looked me up and down. “Besides, you have a kind heart. That house flipper last time, the moment he walked in, he was already calculating how to raise the price. I made him take a tumble.” “That was you?!” “Served him right. My house isn’t for him to flip.” The next morning, I went to work with dark circles under my eyes. I hadn’t slept well all night, Mrs. Bridgeforth’s face swirling in my mind. Before leaving, she had written a line on the bathroom mirror. I saw it while brushing my teeth and almost swallowed my toothbrush. The mirror read: Take Maple Street, not Willow Avenue. I hesitated for a moment but decided to listen to her. I took a five-minute detour, walking down Maple Street. When I got to the office, I found out—Willow Avenue had a burst water pipe that morning, causing a two-hour traffic jam. Half the company was late. And I arrived ten minutes early. Just in time for the boss’s impromptu roll call. The boss scanned the room. Only I and two other people were there. “Joanna, good job, punctual.” I smiled, wondering to myself: Was that a coincidence? After work, I came home to find Mrs. Bridgeforth sitting in the living room watching TV. Yes, she could turn on the TV. Although her hands passed through solid objects, she could control electrical switches. “Grandma, how did you know Willow Avenue would be jammed today?” “I didn’t know. But that street’s pipes haven’t been replaced in thirty years. It was bound to burst.” “…You’ve lived here for forty years and you know the age of the pipes?” “I’m telling you, there’s nothing in this building I don’t know.” She changed the channel to a business news program. “Oh, there are pork ribs in the fridge. I’ll teach you how to stew them tomorrow.” “You’ll teach me?” “I’ll write the steps on the mirror; you just follow them.” I glanced towards the bathroom. “You can cook?” “I cooked for forty years when I was alive. I haven’t forgotten, even after I died. I just can’t do it myself anymore.” The next evening, following the recipe on the mirror, I stewed a pot of pork rib soup. Mrs. Bridgeforth directed from the side. “Not enough salt.” “Too high heat.” “When blanching, always put it in cold water. How many times have I told you?” I fumbled for over an hour. Sitting at the table with my bowl, I took a sip. It was so savory it almost made me cry. Not because it tasted good. It was because, in the two years I’d been in this city, it was the first time anyone had taught me how to cook. 3. The good times didn’t last long. The company started layoffs. “Last-in, first-out. Based on hire date.” The supervisor’s cold voice announced in the group chat. I was the last to be hired. I was definitely the first to be laid off. That evening, I collapsed on the sofa, staring blankly at the ceiling. Mrs. Bridgeforth floated over, glancing at me. “What’s wrong? Why so glum?” “I’m getting laid off.” “They’re laying you off? Why?” “Because I was the last one in.” Mrs. Bridgeforth scoffed. “Then find another job. This crummy company isn’t worth staying at.” “Easy for you to say. Jobs aren’t that easy to find.” “Just you wait.” She floated away. In the middle of the night, I was woken by my phone vibrating. I picked it up. The screen had automatically lit up, opening a job hunting website. Three positions on the page were marked with asterisks. One was a copywriter for an internet company, salary $8,000 per month. One was a content manager for a new media company, salary $10,000 per month. One was a creative director assistant for a brand company, salary $7,000 per month. My current salary was $3,000. “Grandma, did you do this?” No one answered from the living room. But the TV turned on automatically, displaying a line of text: Apply for all three, don’t be picky. I applied. Three days later, all three companies sent interview invitations. I sat on my bed, staring at my phone, a little stunned. When it came to sending out resumes, getting one response out of ten was considered lucky. Three for three? The night before the interviews, I tried on clothes in front of the mirror. White blouse? Too plain. Black suit? Too serious. Gray knit? Too casual. Slowly, a line of text appeared on the mirror: Wear the blue one. The interviewer has an affinity for water. “Grandma, you know about elemental affinities?” Another line appeared on the mirror: I don’t. But blue makes you look radiant, and it suits you. I smiled. On interview day, I wore the blue blouse. The interviewer was a woman in her forties, wearing silver earrings, with a cup of herbal tea on her desk. She glanced at me and smiled. “Blue blouse, very fresh. I love blue.” The interview lasted forty minutes. She asked me about projects I’d worked on; I answered truthfully. She asked for my views on the industry; I shared my thoughts. She asked about my salary expectations; I said $8,000. She nodded. “Alright. Start next Monday.” Just like that? I walked out of the company building, standing in the sunshine, feeling it was all a bit surreal. Three days ago, I was worried about being laid off. Now my salary had tripled. Back home, Mrs. Bridgeforth was sitting in the living room, the TV on, playing a dating show. “How’d it go?” “I got it. Eight thousand.” “Only eight thousand?” “Grandma, I was only making three thousand before.” “Three thousand and you call that a salary?” She shook her head, a look of disdain on her face. “I’m telling you, you’re worth fourteen thousand.” I smiled and sat down, a warmth spreading through me. This ghost of an old lady, she was more protective than my own mother. First day at the new company, I arrived half an hour early. The receptionist processed my ID badge and led me to my workstation. I set down my bag, ready to turn on my computer. The chair at the cubicle next to me swiveled around. Someone was sitting there. Mark Baker. My ex-boyfriend. He saw me, froze for a second, then smiled. “Joanna? You’re here too?” My smile froze on my face. This luck, was it too much of a good thing? 4. Mark Baker. We dated for a year, broke up three months ago. Reason for breakup: He thought I was poor. His exact words were, “Our spending habits are different.” Translated into plain English: You can’t afford the restaurants I want to go to, can’t wear clothes I consider presentable, and don’t fit into my social circle. Now he sat in the cubicle next to me, smiling as if nothing had ever happened. “What a coincidence, I never expected to run into you here.” “Yeah, quite a coincidence.” I opened my laptop, expressionless. “Lunch together? Catch up?” “No, I have plans for lunch.” “Then dinner?” “Dinner too.” “You have plans every day?” “Yes.” He smiled, saying nothing more. But I knew he wouldn’t give up. Mark was the kind of person who got more persistent the more you rejected him. That evening, I got home and told Mrs. Bridgeforth about it. She was watching TV. After hearing me out, the remote control slipped from her hand and hit the floor with a clatter. “What did you say? Your ex-boyfriend?” “Yes, he’s sitting right next to me.” “Broke up with you because you were poor?” “Yes.” “Now that you’ve joined a good company, he’s trying to latch on again?” “Pretty much.” Mrs. Bridgeforth’s expression changed. It wasn’t anger; it was a cold, knowing smirk that said, “I’ve seen his type a million times.” “Don’t go near him.” “I know, I didn’t agree to anything.” “I’m not talking about dinner. I’m saying, don’t have any contact with a man like that.” She floated to the bathroom mirror and began to write. She filled the entire surface. I followed to read. The mirror read: I’ve seen many men like him. My ex-husband was the same way. He’s not coming back because you’re more valuable now. Not because you’re worthy. It’s because he hasn’t found anyone better. You’re just his backup option. I looked at the words, my nose stinging a little. “Grandma, you went through something like this too?” The words on the mirror stopped. Mrs. Bridgeforth was silent for a moment. “…We’ll talk about that later.” The next day, Mark came again. This time, he simply bought two coffees, placing one on my desk. “Americano, your favorite.” I used to drink Americanos because they were cheap, not because I loved them. But I didn’t say that. “Thanks, but no thanks.” “Don’t be such a stranger, we’re colleagues now.” He leaned beside my cubicle, lowering his voice. “Joanna, I’ve always wanted to tell you, breaking up was my mistake. I’ve thought about it a lot, and I think we’re still a great fit.” I looked at him. His expression was very sincere. If it had been three months ago, I might have softened. But not now. “Mark, we’re not a good fit.” “Just think about it—” “No need to think.” His expression stiffened for a moment, but he quickly regained his smile. “Alright, then I’ll wait for you to come around.” He left. I picked up the coffee and tossed it into the trash. On the third day, Mark started waiting for me by the company entrance. When it was time to leave, he stood by the main door, holding a bouquet of flowers. “Joanna—” I was about to take a detour when my phone suddenly vibrated. A private message notification popped up from TikTok. Not my account—it was Mark’s. He had used my phone to scroll TikTok before, logged into his account, and had forgotten to log out. I had also forgotten to log out. The private message was from a girl, with a heart emoji: “Honey, where are we going this weekend?” I tapped it open and scrolled up. The screen was full of messages. “Whatever you say, I’ll listen to you~” “How about that hot spring resort we went to last time?” “Oh, yes, yes, I miss you” The date was last week. I stared at the screen for three seconds. I looked up, at Mark and the flowers in his hand. I smiled. “Mark, who did you go to the hot spring resort with last week?” His smile froze. “What?” I turned the phone screen towards him, letting him see. His face went paler by the second. “This… this is…” “Your chat history.” I pulled my phone back and walked past him. “The flowers are nice. Give them to your ‘honey’.” Ten steps away, I heard the sound of the bouquet hitting the ground behind me. So satisfying. Truly so satisfying. Back home, Mrs. Bridgeforth was in the living room, watching the news. “All sorted?” “All sorted.” “Don’t ever bother with people like him again.” “Got it.” I sat down, hesitating slightly. “Grandma, you said your ex-husband was like that… did you go through something similar?” Mrs. Bridgeforth watched the TV, not turning around. A long silence. “…Yes. I married an unreliable man when I was young, and later we divorced.” I paused. 5. I wanted to press for more details, but Mrs. Bridgeforth floated back to her room and closed the door. A ghost closing a door. I knocked for a long time, but she ignored me.

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