I won 20 million in the lottery and shared the exciting news with my boyfriend. That evening, he brought over a younger friend from his lab, saying they wanted to play some cards to catch a bit of my good fortune. I agreed. After losing five games, I felt overwhelmed and suggested we take a break. On the balcony, I accidentally saw my boyfriend kissing his friend in a corner. “Darling, when will this be over? Just looking at her makes me sick.” “Hang in there a bit longer. I’ve already set everything up. Once she’s ensnared, we’ll make our move.” “The lottery results are out. Congratulations, you’ve won a big prize. Please follow the instructions to redeem it at the designated location. Wishing you a happy life.” Seeing the new message, I was momentarily stunned before realizing I had been given a second chance at life. This was the day I won the big prize. In my previous life, I quickly told my boyfriend the news. He was overjoyed, saying we must celebrate. But when I got home that night, he had brought the younger friend along. “Baby, I was in the lab when you called. Emily overheard the great news and asked if she could come over to share in your luck.” Emily looked at me with a sweet smile, “Sis, I’ve never seen such a big lottery win. I was curious and asked my senior to bring me along to see it. You don’t mind, right?” Thinking it was a fun occasion, I didn’t refuse. After dinner, Ethan suggested we play cards for fun. They worked together seamlessly, and I lost ten thousand dollars in just five rounds. Feeling light-headed, I suggested taking a break. It wasn’t until I caught them hugging that I realized everything had been a setup. From the moment he brought Emily home, their goal was to con me out of money and harm me. Recalling Ethan’s ugly smile, I slammed the table hard. “Bark! Bark!” The water cup toppled over, and Buddy, who had been sleeping, quickly ran over, circling my feet. Looking at him, my eyes welled up. To force me to admit the gambling debt and sign the IOU, Ethan and Emily tied Buddy next to the stove, torturing him with boiling water and a hot spatula. Amid my heart-wrenching cries, Buddy suddenly sprang up, biting through Emily’s hand. She screamed in pain, angrily raising a kitchen knife to strike. “Stupid dog! Your owner would rather have money than save your life, and you still protect her!” “So loyal, I’ll send you both down to reunite!” Buddy’s struggling whimpers echoed in my ears. I couldn’t help but cry. Buddy got anxious, jumped on me, and gently nudged my arm with his paw, showing his concern. I petted his head, softly explaining, “I’m okay, Buddy, don’t worry. I’ll make you a gourmet meal tonight.” I calmed myself down and hid the lottery ticket. Then, I went to Ethan’s school. Being reborn, I thought I could give Ethan another chance. If this time he didn’t plan to harm me, I might even share half the prize with him and part ways amicably. Standing at his lab door, I dialed his number. “Baby, I’ve got some good news!” I spoke excitedly, and Ethan immediately stopped his experiment, turning around nervously to ask in a whisper. “Is it about the lottery ticket we bought?” I nodded. “I got a message today that our lottery ticket won the grand prize, and the staff asked me to go redeem it!” Hearing his sudden rapid breathing, I deliberately reminded him, “With this money, we can live comfortably for the rest of our lives. Don’t tell anyone, or it might bring trouble!” Ethan, looking all proper, agreed and repeatedly promised not to tell anyone. Hanging up, I watched him excitedly jump around the room, then call Emily without hesitation. “Emily, Nora just told me she struck it rich! Now, we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.” “Hurry over, so we can plan how to get that money from her!”
That evening, Ethan brought Emily back. The moment they met me, they couldn’t hide their excitement, eagerly asking, “Did you really win the big prize? How much is it altogether?” I pretended to be surprised, pulling Ethan aside to whisper my complaint. “Ethan, didn’t I say this should be kept secret? Why did you bring someone else?” Ethan awkwardly scratched his head, smiling ingratiatingly. “When I took the call, Emily was right next to me. I couldn’t help but tell her in my excitement.” “She’s a good girl, just wants to share your luck, no other intentions. Don’t worry.” I sneered internally. If I hadn’t seen how he ruthlessly betrayed me, I might have fallen into the same trap again. Recalling how Emily proudly boasted about how Ethan shared everything with her, calculating against me, his official girlfriend, I couldn’t help but clench my fists. She was beaming with happiness, “After getting your call, Ethan couldn’t wait to call me over.” “You’ve been together so long, and he hasn’t bought you anything, right? But he promised me he’d buy me all the jewelry I want.” “You’ll never understand, being someone who can’t even win a man’s love.” I was in a dilemma, “I wanted to plan with you on how to get the money.” “But now it’s inconvenient to talk about it.” Ethan clicked his tongue, “How much could it be to make you so cautious?” I leaned in and whispered a number into his ear. Ethan’s eyes widened in shock. His voice trembled, “Really?” I nodded, complaining repeatedly. “I wanted to disguise ourselves and go redeem it under the cover of night. But you brought your junior home, now neither of us can leave.” Ethan’s expression turned strange. I knew he was weighing the pros and cons. If he could get the prize money himself, why go through the trouble of setting traps to steal my money like in the past? But letting me out now, if he slipped up, the cooked duck might fly away. Seeing his conflicted look, I patted his shoulder. “No worries, Emily is your favorite junior. How could we not let her broaden her horizons with such a rare event?” “We can find another time to go.” Actually, I should have noticed something was off between Ethan and Emily long ago. Though they were in the same lab, Ethan’s concern for Emily far exceeded what a senior should have. He could immediately recall Emily’s birthday and even knew her cycle, thoughtfully preparing sweet water. Even I hadn’t received such attention. I had my suspicions. But Ethan told me Emily was an orphan, and everyone cared about her. So, I thought I was overthinking. And ended up in a miserable situation. Probably thinking I couldn’t escape. Ethan showed a confident smile, not saying much. When we returned to the living room, Emily had already brought out the food from the kitchen. Seeing me, she smiled sweetly, “Sis, everything’s ready.” During dinner, I picked up a piece of mango, pretending to feed it to Ethan. Emily immediately reached out to stop me, “Sis, senior is allergic to mango. He can’t eat this.” I responded with a surprised look, “Even I didn’t know. How do you know so well?” Hearing my words, Ethan’s face turned sour. In the past, Emily was jealous of my title as Ethan’s girlfriend. After getting her way, she boasted. “Someone like you doesn’t deserve to claim you’re with Ethan. You don’t even know what he’s allergic to. Ethan never intended to open up to you.” She tirelessly used these ridiculous details to brainwash herself. Now, I pointed it out directly. Emily was so scared she dropped her chopsticks.
I looked at her calmly. After a moment of eerie silence, Emily forced a smile, stammering. “Last time, we went to a club event, and someone brought mango cake. After eating it, he started itching all over. That’s when I found out he’s allergic to mango. It’s just a coincidence.” Emily smiled ingratiatingly. I just nodded lightly, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. Ethan and Emily exchanged glances, a barely noticeable viciousness in their eyes. After a full meal and drink, Ethan suggested playing poker. It’s the most common card game at gambling tables. Several players bet, with the last two revealing their cards, and the one with the highest card takes all. With the right cooperation, it’s easy to set traps in this game. Just like in the past, under Ethan and Emily’s manipulation, I lost several rounds in a row. Seeing my gloomy face and the transfer notification on my phone. Ethan and Emily were overjoyed. I pretended to be frustrated, “How could I lose so much? Let’s play another round. I can turn it around this time!” Emily paused, then smirked. “Sis, why don’t we play bigger?” She took out two IOUs from her pocket and placed them on the table. “I know you want to win back what you lost, but in this situation, it’s impossible.” “Let’s not cap the maximum amount. Bet all your assets. If we lose, we’ll sign this IOU.” Ethan and Emily couldn’t hide their delight. Feigning disappointment, I said, “How could I lose so much? Let’s go for another round. I’m sure I’ll make a comeback this time!” Emily paused before flashing a smile. “Hey, why don’t we up the ante?” She pulled out two IOUs from her pocket and laid them on the table. “I know you’re eager to win back your losses, but realistically, it’s not going to happen.” “Let’s lift the limit and bet everything we’ve got. You put up your lottery ticket, and if my senior and I lose, we’ll sign these IOUs.” “How about it? With my senior here as a witness, we won’t back out.” Watching Emily’s smooth persuasion, I chuckled to myself. In poker games, there’s a ruthless strategy called “bluffing.” Since you have to raise the stakes each time you check your cards, and you can only look at one card at a time, there are three chances to double up. At the showdown, you still have to increase your chips. When two players team up, they avoid checking their cards and keep raising, pressuring the target into folding when they can’t handle it anymore. And folding means giving up everything you’ve bet so far. In my past life, I didn’t know about this nasty trick and foolishly agreed to Emily’s challenge. On such a table, two million was nothing. Ethan and Emily teamed up to put psychological pressure on me. Eventually, I couldn’t handle it and folded voluntarily. It gave them a perfect excuse to humiliate me. Even worse, after ruthlessly killing me, they spread rumors around the neighborhood. Claiming I was a gambling addict who committed suicide with gas after being cornered by debt collectors. Everyone used me as a cautionary tale, dragging my name through the mud repeatedly. Now, meeting her expectant gaze, I smiled slightly. “Alright.” Perhaps my compliance made them drop their guard. I noticed Ethan awkwardly make a mark and pass it to Emily. Emily started first, “My family has a house in the suburbs worth fifty thousand, I’ll bet that.” Ethan added, “Then I’ll bet my family’s house,” he looked at me, “the one you know of in the city center, worth one hundred fifty thousand.” Facing his gaze, I felt nauseated. “I’ll just bet the lottery ticket money, two hundred thousand.” Several rounds of betting passed, and the stakes soared. But I remained calm and composed. Seeing that they had nearly bet all their assets, Ethan and Emily were getting anxious. “Nora, aren’t you going to check your cards? Be careful, or you’ll lose everything.” I knew they were trying to break my mental defenses and make me fold. But having gone through this in my previous life, I wouldn’t fall for it again. I shook my head. Finally, Emily couldn’t take it anymore. She glared at me venomously and revealed her cards. “Three Kings, let’s see who can beat that!” “Nora, if you lose, don’t blame us!” I slowly revealed my cards. At that moment, her face changed.
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