My boyfriend was sitting next to me while I got my nails done. I asked for the $20 basic manicure, but the technician “accidentally” covered all ten fingers in Swarovski crystals that cost $25 a pop. When I went to pay, she told me I owed the difference: $800. I was about to argue when glowing text suddenly floated across my vision like a Twitch live stream: [OMG, Lila is so smart! The villainess is too embarrassed to make a scene in front of the male lead. She’ll just pay up.] [Carter is totally going to fall for Lila’s gritty, survivalist vibe!] [That stupid side character has no idea. Lila is going to spend her money, sleep with her man, and even raise her kids!] Chapter 1 Lila held up the card reader, a smug look on her face, waiting for me to tap my card. The floating comments kept scrolling: [Lila is a genius! Now her tuition for next semester is covered.] [Poor Lila. Her dad is a gambler and she’s broke. She has to skip class to work. If only she met Carter sooner!] [Does anyone else think this is kind of… illegal? If that happened to me, I wouldn’t pay.] [Yeah, isn’t this basically fraud?] Seeing I hadn’t moved, Lila raised her voice. “What? Are you trying to dine and dash on a service?” It was rush hour at the mall. People started staring, whispering. They clearly thought I was some entitled Karen trying to stiff a worker. I ignored the stares and said calmly, “Since you applied the wrong product, just take them off one by one and put on the basic rhinestones I asked for.” I sat back down and extended my hand. earlier, when she was trimming my cuticles, she nipped my skin. I was bleeding, and she didn’t even apologize—she just rolled her eyes and said I was moving too much. I thought she was just a stressed college student trying to make ends meet. My patience, it turned out, was just an opportunity for her to scam me. “We’re out of the cheap ones,” Lila said, crossing her arms. “Look at you. Your bag is worth like two grand. This $800 is nothing to you, but for people like me, it’s life-saving money.” The text stream accelerated: [Exactly! Just pay up, you rich witch. Don’t stop Lila from securing the bag!] [Boohoo, Lila is so tragic. I want to donate to her GoFundMe.] [Carter needs to step in so the villainess pays up immediately!] [Am I the only one who thinks the heroine is gaslighting her?] Bystanders started chiming in. “Just pay the difference, miss. It’s already on your hands.” “Yeah, look at her. She spent two hours gluing those tiny diamonds on. Give the girl a break.” Emboldened by the crowd, Lila threw shade. “You’re just trying to get free stuff. These crystals are obviously real. You didn’t stop me, so that means you agreed to the upgrade.” I checked the time. My evening lab session was starting soon. “Fine,” I said, my voice ice cold. “Remove them. All of them. I’m not paying for the diamonds.” “Sure. removal fee plus lost wages comes to $400. Venmo or cash,” she said, thrusting the QR code in my face again. Chapter 2 I almost laughed out of sheer disbelief. Lost wages? I was the one who sat here for two hours getting my fingers butchered and scammed. Just as I was about to explode, a familiar voice came from behind me. “Harper? Are you done? I’m here to pick you up for dinner.” The floating text became so dense it almost blocked my vision. [AHHH! The Male Lead is here!] [Lila’s savior has arrived!!!] [Let’s see the villainess argue now. She better pay up. Lila’s time is worth way more than $400!] Carter Sterling walked up to me, sensing the tension. “Harper, what’s going on?” Lila beat me to it. “Sir, your girlfriend got a full set and is refusing to pay. Her purse costs more than my tuition. Please, just have a heart and settle the bill.” She bit her lip, forcing a few crocodile tears to roll down her cheeks. The “good Samaritans” around us sighed. “Kids these days. So rich but so stingy. Just pay it, man. It’s charity at this point.” Charity and extortion are two different things. I have money, but I’m not an ATM. And I’m definitely not paying a scammer because she’s crying. Carter put a hand on my shoulder. “Harper, it’s getting late. Let’s just let it go.” “Can I pay you back later?” he asked me, lowering his voice. “She worked hard for two hours. Everyone is struggling. Take the high road.” The text stream went wild. They were calling me a toxic villainess and praising Carter for being a “gentle king.” So, defending my rights makes me a villain? And because I’m not the “protagonist,” I have to be a doormat? Lila wiped her tears. “Sir, you really understand the struggle of the working class. How about this? If your girlfriend buys a $2,000 gift card today, I’ll comp the diamonds. And she gets 20% off future visits.” “It’s a steal. I’m doing this behind my boss’s back to help you out. Hurry, before she comes back.” She shoved the card reader at me for the third time. I scoffed and slapped it out of her hand. Clatter. “You’re out of your mind,” I said. “Since we can’t communicate, I’m calling the police. Let’s see if they call it ‘charity’ or ‘theft’.” I pulled out my phone. Carter grabbed my wrist, hissing, “Harper, don’t be dramatic. It’s on the price list. You should just pay.” The moment I mentioned the cops, Lila wilted. She looked at Carter with big, wet puppy eyes. “Sir… I’m just a student working part-time. My dad is sick in the hospital waiting for surgery money. Why does your girlfriend want to destroy me?” She tugged gently on Carter’s sleeve. The comments erupted. [Omg Lila crying is so cute and sad. I love her.] [If I were Carter, I’d hug her right now.] [Carter, save her!] Carter ate it up. He pulled his arm away from me and stood tall. “Harper, if you won’t pay, I will. But after this? We’re done. I can’t be with someone this heartless.” Chapter 3 “Great. I agree. You should pay. After all, you’ve taken way more than $800 from me over the years.” I shoved Carter away. And then I dialed 911. Both of them froze. Carter looked panicked. He realized he’d spoken too soon in the heat of the moment. His graduation thesis relied entirely on my lab data. Without me, he’d fail the year. Offending me now was career suicide. The police and the salon owner arrived at the same time. The owner was confused. She’d just stepped out for coffee. When the cops explained the situation—a technician upcharging $800 without consent—her face went pale. Her shop was next to the university. If word got out she was scamming students, her business would die. “Miss, I am so sorry,” the owner said, glaring at Lila. “This is unauthorized. The manicure is free. In fact, here’s a voucher for a free service by me personally. Please, let’s not involve the officers further.” “You need to fix your hiring process,” I said coldly. “She shouldn’t be working here.” The owner nodded, pulled out some cash, and shoved it at Lila. “Here’s your day’s pay. Get out. You’re fired.” Lila looked furious. She opened her mouth to argue, but the officer cut her off. “Miss, if the customer presses charges for attempted fraud, that’s a misdemeanor or worse depending on the amount. You want a ride to the station?” Lila shut her mouth. I accepted the owner’s apology and left. I had a lab to get to. Carter, of course, stayed behind to comfort the crying scammer. The text stream scrolled by: [Okay, the villainess was actually kind of cool there.] [Right? She was a boss. Why does she have to be the blood bag for the male lead?] [The heroine is giving major Pick-Me energy.] [Carter is comforting Lila! OMG ship it!] Let them have each other. As I walked, I read the comments closely. I realized I was a “cannon fodder” character in a college romance novel. My role? To be the rich, smart girlfriend who funds Carter’s life and does his homework, only to be dumped once he becomes successful. He would use my data to publish a top-tier paper, become a star, and I would go blind from overwork before thirty. He’d let his kids call Lila “Mom.” Not in this timeline.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “388879”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

Everyone tuned in expecting a catfight between the “Real Heiress” and the “Fake Heiress.” Instead, they watched us bond over trash-talking our boyfriends. Chloe Sterling: “How’s yours doing?” Me: “Clingy as hell. I haven’t slept a full night in weeks. I’m thinking of dumping him.” Chloe Sterling: “Mine too. I literally only get seven days of rest a month… You dump yours first?” Me: “Let’s do it together.” We both hit send on the breakup texts at the exact same second. Ten minutes later, Oscar-winning actor Atlas Thorne and chart-topping pop star Ezra Thorne hijacked the live stream. They arrived via helicopter and motorcycle, tossing us over their shoulders like sacks of potatoes. Ezra: “Bro, never sign them up for the same reality show again. We almost became single men today.” Atlas, hoisting me up: “Noted.” Twitter imploded that day. #Trending: Atlas and Ezra Thorne almost got dumped in 4K. Chapter 1 Chloe Sterling and I are the subjects of the biggest “Switched at Birth” scandal in New York history. She is the biological daughter of the Sterling dynasty. I was the one raised in her place. When the truth came out, Chloe took back her name and moved into the Sterling estate, instantly becoming the city’s darling. I moved out, took back my birth name, Harper Vance, and according to the tabloids, became the unwanted reject. Just then, a trendy new live-stream reality show invited us both. They offered an obscene amount of money, so naturally, I packed my bags. On filming day, I arrived panting, riding a bicycle with my luggage strapped to the back. As soon as I pulled up, I saw my nemesis—the B-list actress Bella Knox. I rolled my eyes so hard it hurt. Bella and I debuted around the same time. She used to follow me around like a puppy, calling me “Harper, Harper!” Back then, I was naive. I thought she was my friend, so I shared my resources with her. The moment the news broke that I wasn’t a real Sterling, she cut ties. Her fans started dragging me online. We’ve been enemies ever since. Seeing me, Bella’s eyes flashed with disdain. But since the cameras were rolling, she put on her sickly-sweet voice. “Harper! So good to see you!” Her voice was so high-pitched and fake it gave me goosebumps. I immediately took a step back. Bella seized the moment. She looked at the camera, eyes filling with tears, acting like I had just slapped her. Her “bullied victim” act worked instantly. The live chat exploded with her fans attacking me: [Wow, Harper Vance got kicked out of the Sterling family and she’s still acting like a princess? Shameless.] [Bella is being so nice to her! Harper should be grateful anyone is talking to her at all.] [You aren’t a rich heiress anymore, honey! You aren’t even fit to tie Bella’s shoes.] [If Bella wasn’t an angel, you wouldn’t even be on this show!] Bella glanced at the comments on the monitor, a smirk flickering in her eyes. She kept up the act: “Guys, don’t say that about Harper. Even though she’s the… you know, the ‘fake’ daughter, I still consider her a friend…” Before she could finish, I pulled out my phone. I opened our chat history. I played the voice memo she sent me the night my scandal broke. I held it up to the microphone. “Harper Sterling… oops, I guess it’s Harper Vance now. I was just using you. Did you really think we were friends? Don’t be stupid.” “I’m warning you, stay away from me. Don’t try to leech off my fame.” “You’re a nobody now. You really think you’re worthy of being my friend?” I played three messages in a row. Then I looked at Bella with innocent eyes. “But you told me to stay away from you.” Bella froze. She didn’t think I’d have the receipts ready to go. [Wait. Plot twist!] [So Bella told her to get lost in private, but is acting like a saint on camera? That’s toxic.] [That is disgusting. She was friends with her when she was rich, and dumped her the second she fell?] [Bella Knox? More like Bella Two-Face.] The tide turned instantly. Bella was getting roasted. But her die-hard fans tried to save her: [It’s just a recording! Deep fake! Harper probably AI-generated it!] [Harper is so manipulative. No wonder the Sterlings kicked her out!] [Scheming witch!] While the chat was filled with “The Sterlings don’t want you,” a Maybach with the license plate “8888” pulled up. The driver jumped out and opened the rear door. Chloe Sterling stepped out, looking like a runway model in designer shades. She paused, looked at Bella, then looked at me with a frown. Bella’s fans went wild. [She’s here! The Real Heiress is here to slap the Fake one!] [Yes! Chloe hates her! Look at that frown!] [Drag her, Chloe! Take back what she stole!] Bella saw her chance. She walked towards Chloe, hand extended. “Hi, Miss Sterling. I’m Bella Knox. It’s an honor to meet…” Chloe walked right past her like she was air. Bella was left shaking hands with the wind. Chloe walked up to me, circled my bicycle, and sighed. “I told you to ride in the limo with me. Why did you ride this bike? Look at you, you’re sweating. It’s not a good look.” She pulled out a silk handkerchief and wiped the sweat from my forehead. No malice. Just big sister energy. Bella and the audience were stunned. [Am I hallucinating? Are they… friends?] [Where is the catfight? I came for blood!] [Scripted! This has to be scripted! There’s no way Chloe doesn’t hate the girl who lived her life for 20 years!] I swatted Chloe’s hand away. “Girl, relax. Dad just bought me this bike. It cost seven million dollars.” Chloe whipped off her sunglasses and squatted down to look at the gears. “Say what? Seven mil?” Bella, recovering from the snub, thought this was her moment. She stepped forward, ready to scold me for spending “Daddy Sterling’s” money—until she heard Chloe’s next words. “Let me ride it.” Chloe hopped on the bike and started doing laps around the set. “Damn,” she yelled. “You can really feel the seven million dollars in the pedals!” “Right? And it’s great cardio,” I yelled back. “I lost three pounds already!” Atlas had been away filming for a month. Without him… exercising me every night, I had gained weight from stress eating. I needed this bike. “That effective?” Chloe stopped. “Let me do two more laps. I gained weight too.” “Stop! We’re filming a show, not a spin class!” I grabbed the handlebars. Chloe froze, remembering the cameras. She looked at me, panicked. “Wait, was I supposed to act like a poised heiress?” I pointed to the blinking red lights. “Too late. It’s live.” Chloe: “Crap.” Chapter 2 The show was called “Spill the Tea.” Just four girls in a garden, gossiping. Me, Chloe, Bella, and a cool rapper named Jinx. The host immediately went for the jugular. He asked Chloe how she felt about the “switch.” Chloe’s eyes got red. She couldn’t speak. Bella saw an opening. She handed Chloe a tissue, feigning empathy. “I understand. Living a hard life for twenty years and finding out you were rich… I’d be sad too.” Chloe looked at her, confused. “Hard life? You think living with the Vances is a ‘hard life’?” “What?” Bella blinked. “But… aren’t they poor?” “Harper’s biological father is Vance,” Chloe said. “As in, the Tech Billionaire Vance. The richest man in the state? Didn’t you know?” Bella looked like she was going to throw up. She thought I was a broke fake heiress. Turns out, I was just a switched billionaire. “Harper…” Bella turned to me, eyes watering. I smiled and hit play on my phone again. “Don’t ever talk to me again or I’ll blacklist you.” “I’ll send my fans to cyberbully you.” “You don’t want to be canceled, do you?” I smiled sweetly. “Sorry, I’m scared of being cyberbullied. I can’t talk to you.” Bella looked like she wanted the ground to swallow her whole. The comments were merciless. Her fans were defecting in droves. To save the show, the host pivoted. “So, Chloe… are you dating anyone?” Chloe blushed. “Yeah. I have one.” Host: “What about you, Harper?” I thought about Atlas, that handsome demon. “Yeah. I have one too.” Chloe asked me instinctively, “How is he?” Me: “Too clingy. I get zero sleep at night. I’m dumping him.” Atlas is a beast. If he’s not filming, he’s in my bed. All night. Every night. I love him, but my body needs a break. Chloe sighed deeply. “Mine too. I literally only get seven days off a month… You dump yours first?” I thought about it. “Let’s do it together.” We both took out our phones. We both sent the text: We’re done. The studio went silent. The live stream comments froze for a second, then exploded. [OMG. Did they just dump their boyfriends live on air?] [Rich girl problems: My boyfriend loves me too much in bed?] [I am living for this tea!] [Wait, only 7 days rest a month? Girl, are you dating a machine?] The server crashed. The screen went black. Bella was dragged away by her agent. Then, my phone started blowing up. Atlas. Blocked. Then the texts came through on my iPad. [Break up?] [What did I do?] [Was I not good enough last time?] [Wife?] [Baby, are you mad I was filming for a month? I’m done now. I won’t take long shoots anymore. I can be home every night for the next three years.] [Where are you? I’m coming to get you.] Every. Night. For. Three. Years. My eyes widened in horror. I looked at Chloe. She was pale. “What do I do?” she whispered. “Ezra said he’s coming to ‘fix’ me.” I grabbed her hand. “Run.” “Run!” We stood up, but the internet came back on. The director waved us down. We had to sit. Bella came back, revitalized. Her fans were back, trying to change the subject. Host: “I heard Bella is getting married soon. Who is the lucky guy?” Bella blushed. “He prefers to stay private.” Host: “Is he famous?” Bella: “Maybe…” The chat lit up. [It’s Atlas Thorne! They have matching phone cases!] [Atlas is the heir to the Thorne empire!] [Bella is going to be Mrs. Thorne! Take that, Harper!] I frowned. Matching phone cases? Atlas has a custom case with a photo of my back on it. “Are you sure Atlas Thorne is your boyfriend?” I asked. Bella flinched, remembering the audio recording, but doubled down. “Why are you asking? Jealous? I’ll send you an invite to the wedding.” I was stunned by her audacity. Chloe slammed the table. “You’re lying!” Bella wiped a tear. “Just because you’re a Sterling doesn’t mean you can bully me.” Her acting was Oscar-worthy. The chat turned on us again. I laughed. “Okay. Call him. If Atlas picks up and calls you ‘babe,’ I will bow 90 degrees and apologize to you in front of 200 million viewers.” Bella froze. “He… he’s busy.” “Call him,” I smiled. “He wrapped filming today.” Bella, cornered by the chat demanding proof, dialed. Ring… Ring… No answer. She tried again. No answer. “He’s busy,” she smirked. “Sorry, Harper.” I pulled out my phone. I unblocked Atlas. I hit FaceTime. Suddenly, the sound of a helicopter rotor drowned out the audio. A black helicopter hovered over the open-air garden set. A man jumped out, looking like an action hero. It was Atlas Thorne. Then, the roar of a Ducati engine. A man in all black skidded to a halt. He took off his helmet. Ezra Thorne. “He’s here to kill me,” Chloe squeaked. Atlas marched toward me. I panicked and pointed at Bella. “You don’t need to call him. I brought your boyfriend to you.” Bella turned white. Atlas looked at Bella, confused, then flicked my forehead. “Stop talking nonsense. You’re the only girlfriend I’ve ever had.” The internet broke again. [Atlas is Harper’s boyfriend?!] [He just admitted it!] [So Bella was lying the whole time?] [Matching phone case? She probably just bought a stalker case!] Bella rolled her eyes back and fainted for real this time. Atlas picked me up and threw me over his shoulder. I grabbed his shirt. “Put me down! It’s daytime!” “Don’t worry,” he growled. “It’ll be dark by the time we’re done.” Ezra grabbed Chloe. “Brother, next time, separate shows. My wife almost escaped.” Atlas nodded solemnly. I looked at Chloe. She looked at me. Wait. Brother? They were brothers? Chapter 3 Atlas carried me straight into our downtown penthouse. “Why did you break up with me?” He unbuttoned his collar, tossing me onto the bed. “Wait! It’s 3 PM!” I scrambled back. “It’s fine,” he said, looming over me. “I have a lot of time to make up for.” Chapter 4 I didn’t see the sun until the next morning. I couldn’t feel my legs. Atlas, the monster, was in the kitchen making pancakes, looking fresh as a daisy. I ate the pancakes and texted Chloe. Me: [You alive?] Chloe: [Barely.] We met for lunch. We were both walking funny.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “388878”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

I bought a custom $2 million Ferrari as a weekend toy. My wife gave it to her male assistant as a “gift.” The assistant, Liam, posted a photo on Instagram to brag: “Finally put a saddle on this wild Mustang. From now on, everywhere it runs, it stays within the circles I draw~” My secretary sent me the screenshot. In the photo, my custom beige interior had been ripped out and replaced with cheap, black punk-rock leather. Worse, my passenger seat looked like a literal dog kennel, piled with his trash. I texted my wife, Elena, demanding an answer. She left me on read. Five hours later, I posted a video on all my social media platforms. Caption: “My $50 million garage is so spacious. It’s perfect for the animals I’m raising to run free~” In the video, a wrecking ball I hired was smashing Elena’s private luxury showroom to pieces, converting it into a stable for horses. Chapter 1 Five minutes after I hit post, my mother-in-law called. As soon as I picked up, her shrieking voice pierced my eardrum. “Caleb Sterling! That video! Did you just turn Elena’s showroom into a barn?!” At the same time, a notification popped up. My video had gone viral, hitting millions of views. I felt zero guilt. I answered calmly. “That’s right. I turned your daughter’s garage into a stable.” “Mom, you have great eyesight.” There was a silence on the other end, so I pulled the phone away from my ear. Predictably, the explosion followed. “Are you insane?! You wasteful loser!” “You are embarrassing our family in front of the entire social circle!” “Delete that video immediately and fix that garage!” When she finally paused to breathe, I forwarded her the screenshot of Liam’s Instagram post. I spoke slowly and clearly: “Your daughter gave my property to a wild horse on the side. Why can’t I renovate her garage to match?” “Mom, she touched my things first. It’s only fair I touch her garage.” I thought seeing the evidence might make my mother-in-law pause. I was wrong. After a brief silence, she defended her daughter with audacious confidence. “Elena is a CEO! She has to socialize and flirt a little for business. It’s part of the job!” “You’re her husband. Why can’t you be more open-minded?” I laughed out loud. I knew she favored her daughter, but this double standard was impressive. “Mom, since you’re so open-minded, I’m sure you wouldn’t mind if I found a few young sugar babies for Dad.” “I bet Dad wouldn’t refuse.” “You’re getting older. You should be sensible and find someone to keep his bed warm.” She choked on her words. It took her a full minute to recover before screaming again. “You dare! You speak to me like that? You are a psychopath!” “Elena has bad luck to be married to a man like you!” “If you dare try anything with your father, I won’t let you off the hook!” She hung up immediately, terrified I’d say something even worse. People like her are always blind when it’s their own fault. But when the tables turn, suddenly they care about morals. To be fair, this marriage was a charity case from the start. Five years ago, the Vance family business was collapsing. Elena’s father used an old favor he owed my family to beg my father for help. My dad is soft-hearted. He showed me Elena’s photo. I looked at her innocent face and, like a fool, I agreed. After the wedding, I used the Sterling family’s massive resources to quietly fill the Vance Corporation’s debt holes. In three years, I took their failing company public. Back then, my mother-in-law praised me daily. Now? She treats me like a servant. And Elena, who used to respect me, now gives my things to other men. It seems the Vance family has forgotten who feeds them. The Sterling family’s power is something they can’t even comprehend. Since they want to play games, I don’t mind taking back every scrap of glory I gave them. Chapter 2 Half an hour passed. Still no reply from Elena. I was about to call her when my secretary sent me another update. “Mr. Sterling, the CEO took her assistant to the Diamond Gala.” “Rumors are spreading that the assistant is her new boyfriend.” Attached was a photo. Elena was wearing a couture gown, laughing with the elite. Next to her stood Liam, wearing a bespoke suit and a watch worth a million dollars. He stood close to her, acting like the master of the house. I gripped my phone until my knuckles turned white. The Diamond Gala. A high-barrier event hosted by the city’s oldest money. Usually, I, Caleb Sterling, would be the one by her side. Instead, she took a glorified secretary. Elena, you really have a death wish. A wave of rage hit me. I made a decision instantly. I called the estate manager. “Go to the stables. Saddle a horse. I’m going to the gala.” The manager paused. “Sir… did you say prepare the car or the horse?” “The horse. I’m riding there.” Ten minutes later, I was on a thoroughbred stallion, galloping toward the city center. When I arrived at the venue, I didn’t dismount. I rode right through the open gates. Recognizing me as the Sterling heir, no security guard dared to stop me. I guided the horse right onto the outdoor terrace of the party. I spotted them immediately. Elena and Liam, giggling together. I pulled the reins. The horse let out a loud whinny, silencing the crowd. Elena looked up. Her smile froze. She stared, processing the fact that her husband was sitting on a horse in the middle of a cocktail party. She marched over, frowning deeply. “Why are you here? And on a horse? Are you crazy?” She grabbed the reins, trying to pull the horse away. The beast didn’t budge. I looked down at her from the saddle, smiling coldly. “What? You’re at a party. Shouldn’t your husband be here?” “I didn’t see a ‘No Horses’ sign.” She let go of the reins but hissed a warning. “I am here to discuss business. Don’t embarrass me.” I laughed loudly, making sure everyone heard. “Business? Is that why you’re practically sitting in your assistant’s lap?” “Is the business discussion about which hotel room you’re going to later?” The crowd gasped. Whispers erupted immediately. Elena’s face turned purple. “Stop spouting nonsense! We are communicating normally!” Liam looked terrified. “Mr. Sterling, Ms. Vance and I are innocent. Nothing happened.” “Innocent…” I rolled the word around in my mouth. “Fine. Let’s pretend you’re innocent.” I dismounted smoothly and tossed the reins toward Liam. “Then, Assistant Liam, take my horse to the stables. Feed him well.” “This horse cost me a fortune. Don’t treat him poorly.” Liam froze, looking at Elena for help. Suddenly, a friend of mine from the old money circle stepped out of the crowd. “Caleb! You rode a horse here? That’s legendary!” “Is that an Akhal-Teke?” Chapter 3 I smiled at my friend, Ryan. “Good eye. If you like him, I’ll send you one. I converted a garage into a stable, plenty of stock.” After a brief chat, I turned to address the entire party. “If anyone is interested, feel free to visit my new stables. Pick a horse, it’s on me.” The crowd cheered. “Mr. Sterling is generous!” “I saw the video of the renovation! Very avant-garde!” I smiled, then glanced at Liam. “Some animals are just too wild,” I said, my voice dropping. “You have to give them space to run, or they start coveting things that don’t belong to them.” “But in the end, a beast is just a toy to be ridden and tamed.” I locked eyes with Liam. “Right, Assistant Liam?” “I… I don’t understand,” Liam stammered, hiding behind Elena. Elena was confused. “What stables? When did we build a stable?” A guest chimed in, laughing. “Ms. Vance, your husband smashed your luxury garage and turned it into a horse ranch! It’s trending #1 on Twitter!” He showed her the video. Elena’s face went from confused to horrified. She whipped around to face me. “You smashed my garage?!” I smiled brightly. “Yep. Are you happy? We can ride horses together now.” “Caleb! Sterling!” She gritted her teeth. “Are you out of your mind?!” “That garage cost me $40 million and took two years to build!” “And you smashed it without asking me?!” “I’m not crazy,” I said, my smile vanishing. “You gave my car to another man without asking. Why can’t I smash your garage?” “I’m just learning from you, Elena. Don’t have double standards.” Elena finally understood what this was about. “The… car?” “I gave it to him as a reward for his performance! He worked hard!” “You have so many cars. Why does it matter if I give one to a subordinate?” “If you’re that stingy, I’ll buy you ten more.” “Restore my garage immediately. We’ll talk about this at home. Stop making a scene.” She tried to grab my arm to drag me away. I shook her off. “I’m not leaving.” “You’re acting so guilty. Are you actually keeping him as a pet?” The crowd whispered louder. “I told you, it was a work reward! We are clean!” Seeing her arrogance, I lost the last shred of patience. I reached into the saddlebag and pulled out the diamond necklace I had just bought at auction for her—worth $2 million. I smashed it onto the pavement. Crunch. Diamonds scattered everywhere. “First you give my car to him. Now you parade him around as your partner.” “Elena, you have some nerve.” “I’m warning you. If you touch my things again, or let this trash appear in front of me…” “You won’t just lose a garage.” “I have the power to raise the Vance family up, and I have the power to wipe the name Vance off the map.” I turned around and walked out, leaving the stunned crowd behind. Chapter 4 We entered a cold war. Elena didn’t come home. I didn’t call her. While organizing my desk, I found a supplementary credit card Elena had given me when we got married. She had been depositing money into it for years—a “allowance” to soothe her ego. It had about $15 million on it. I never touched it. I thought of it as emergency funds for her company. But thinking about the money she spent on Liam, I realized I was an idiot. I took the card and went straight to the mall. I was going to spend every cent. I shopped for hours. When the cashier rang up a mountain of luxury goods, she paused. “I’m sorry, Mr. Sterling. This card has been declined. It’s frozen.” “Frozen?” “Yes, the primary holder locked it three days ago.” Three days ago? While I thought she was reflecting on her actions, she was busy cutting off my funds? I tried to call her. Blocked. Just then, my secretary texted me a screenshot. It was a new post from Liam. Caption: “Promoted to Chief of Staff! Thank you, Ms. Vance, for the trust. I won’t let you down~” Image: A photo of the top-floor corner office—the best view in the building. Another text followed: “Sir, she didn’t just promote him.” “Yesterday, she bought him a villa in the city center. Paid in full.” I laughed in disbelief. She ignored my warning. She doubled down. Frozen my card, but bought him a house and gave him a promotion? Elena, you really have a death wish. Since you want to play hardball, don’t blame me for breaking the board.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “388877”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

I spent six years by the side of the city’s most dangerous crime lord. But on my birthday, he brought another girl home. He was covered in blood, and the trembling, doe-eyed girl was tucked safely in his arms. From that night on, the man who used to indulge my every whim never looked at me again. Everyone thought I was heartbroken, devastated by unrequited love for Silas Vane. I just smiled and adjusted the watch on my wrist. I am an undercover agent planted inside the largest crime syndicate on the West Coast. I lurked by his side for all these years for one reason: to see him rot in a federal prison. So, how could I possibly… fall in love with him? Chapter 1 It was late, but the villa was ablaze with lights. I sat on the sofa, relighting the candles on the cake for the third time. “Ria, don’t wait anymore,” one of the guys muttered. “The Boss said he isn’t coming.” I flicked my lighter. The flame danced and died. I stared at the wick. “If he doesn’t come back, I’ll keep waiting,” I said softly. “He promised to spend every birthday with me. Breaking a promise? That’s not his style.” The clock on the wall ticked past 3:00 AM. He wasn’t coming. I sat there with a room full of thugs and henchmen. To the outside world, I was the loyal girlfriend waiting for her man. To them, it probably looked like I was marshalling troops for a war. Finally, one second before the clock struck 4:00 AM, the roar of a V12 engine shattered the silence outside. “Ria! Boss is back!” someone shouted from the hallway. I stood up and looked down from the landing. Yes, he was back. I frowned, looking down at the man who was staring up at me with an unreadable expression. “Silas,” I called out cold. “Who is the girl in your arms?” Chapter 2 Silas Vane had a scar running from his brow to his cheekbone. Right now, that old scar was fresh again, oozing crimson. It added a savage edge to his usually sophisticated, handsome face. I pressed a piece of gauze to his wound. He caught my wrist. “Ria, have I spoiled you too much over the years?” His fingers traced the inside of my wrist, a gentle touch masking a lethal threat. I lowered my eyes. “Spoiled? hardly.” He chuckled, his thumb pressing lazily against my pulse point. “Is that so? Calling all these men to my house… strangers might think I’m running a gang.” He was running a gang. He had climbed from the gutter to the throne over a mountain of corpses. Now, he was “washing his hands,” posing as a young entrepreneur. The newspapers called him a visionary. It made me sick. “Who is the girl?” I pulled my hand away, changing the subject. He relaxed his brow but looked away. “None of your business.” He took the gauze from me, leaned in, and kissed the corner of my lips. “You have the energy to worry about my women…” “But no energy to ask how I got hurt?” He bit my neck, a sharp, punishing nip. “I raised you for nothing.” Chapter 3 The wind in Port Haven was brutal these days. Or maybe it was just this abandoned construction site, open to the elements. I could hear the sounds of a beating nearby. Sev handed me a cigarette. I pushed it away. “Silas doesn’t like me smoking.” … “Look into the girl Silas brought home last night,” I told Sev. Sev was ranked seventh in the hierarchy. He’d followed me since I entered the organization. “Ria… sigh,” Sev shook his head. “You’re the smartest woman I know. You should know that love isn’t for people like us.” He stood beside me, looking out at the wasteland. “We all have blood on our hands. The Boss is going legit now. He won’t marry someone like us—someone who knows where the bodies are buried.” “We took the fall for him, sure. He’ll take care of us financially, but a title? A marriage? Never.” Yes, Silas trusted me because I had blood on my hands for him. I had killed my own morality to get here. Sometimes, looking in the mirror, I felt like a ghost. I was a nail driven deep into dark wood. A fuse burning for thirteen years. “Let’s go,” I said, turning away from the screams. “Time to meet the new Princess.” Chapter 4 Unlike the construction site, Silas’s private villa was peaceful. As soon as I walked in, I saw her. A girl with braided hair, reading a book on the sofa. She jumped when she saw me. “You…” She looked away, shy and fearful. “Are you the Boss’s wife?” I sat next to her. “No.” “Oh…” She shrank into the corner. “I thought only someone as beautiful as you could match Mr. Vane.” She had that innocent, deer-in-the-headlights look. Another girl fooled by Silas’s charm. Just as I reached out to pat her head, a voice stopped me. “Ria, Boss said you can’t touch Miss Lily.” A bodyguard blocked me. If he didn’t respect my rank, he would have thrown me out. “Please don’t come here anymore. This is Miss Lily’s house now.” The girl trembled in fear. “Fine. I’m leaving.” Silas had had many women, but he’d never protected one like this. Chapter 5 “Ria, this is all we could find.” In the car, Sev handed me a file. The girl’s name was Lily. Three years younger than Silas. She grew up in the same foster home system as him. Her record was clean. A perfect greenhouse flower. “The Boss treats her… differently,” Sev whispered. She was his ‘White Moonlight’—the one pure thing in his dark world. I bit my nail. Silas had no weaknesses. He had clawed his way up from nothing. He was younger than me in the organization, but infinitely more ruthless. My thoughts were interrupted by Sev. “Boss said… he wants you to cook for him.” I smiled bitterly. “Turn the car around. To the market.”

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “388876”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

My billionaire husband, Chase Sterling, was drugged and slept with a college student. The moment he sobered up, he called me, his voice raspy and panicked. “Raine, I was drugged. I made a mistake. But I gave her money. She won’t bother us.” Eight years of loving marriage. I thought it was just an accident. Six months later, Chase went on a business trip, and news of an earthquake broke. When I rushed to the hospital, Chase was standing outside a ward, his expression complicated. The doctor said Tessa Price was three months pregnant. To save him, she had dug through rubble with her bare hands, her fingers bloodied and mangled. Chase grabbed my hand, his voice low and pleading. “Three months ago, her family died. She came to me for help. I was drunk. I didn’t expect it to happen just like that…” “Don’t worry, she won’t enter our home. She will never affect your position.” Suddenly, Tessa rushed out and knelt before me, crying. “Mrs. Sterling, please give my child a chance to live!” Chase looked at me, begging. “Raine, you’re the most reasonable person I know. The child is innocent…” I stared at him and suddenly laughed. “Chase Sterling. Either we divorce.” “Or she gets the hell out.” “I won’t divorce!” Chase grabbed me, his eyes red. “But I have to be responsible for her.” Later, Tessa gave birth to twins, and the Sterling family rejoiced. I took off the wedding ring from my ring finger and dialed an unknown number. “I agree to your proposition.” The person on the other end chuckled. “Mrs. Sterling, pleasure doing business with you.” Chapter 1 I stood at the door of the hospital ward, my fingers unconsciously clenching. Through the half-open door, I saw Chase’s parents each holding a baby, their faces full of smiles. Even Chase, always cold and composed in public, was now looking at the baby in his arms with a gentle expression I had never seen before, a doting smile on his lips. How ironic. They looked like the happy family. Chase looked up and saw me, his expression freezing. “Raine, you’re back…” I didn’t respond. Chase’s mother glanced over, her voice cold as ice. “You know to come back now? Have you had enough peace and quiet on the mountain for the past six months?” “It’s good that you’re back,” Chase’s father smoothed things over, his eyes still fixed on the baby in his arms. “Just in time for the babies’ full month celebration. As the Sterling family matriarch, you should show some heart.” Chase’s mother’s expression softened slightly. “The babies haven’t been named yet. You and Chase should think of names quickly. Don’t worry, as long as you live well, the position of the young Mrs. Sterling will always be yours.” I looked at them numbly and nodded. “Okay.” When the two elders left, Chase’s phone rang. He glanced at me and went outside to answer the call. Only Tessa and I were left in the ward. Her complexion was rosy, even her hair glowing with careful maintenance. It seemed the Sterling family had spent a lot of money on her in the past six months. “Sister,” she called me timidly. “If I did something wrong, you can hit me or scold me, just please don’t quarrel with Mr. Sterling anymore. You know he only has you in his heart. You haven’t been back for so long, and he still asks people to clean your room every day.” “Tessa Price.” I looked at her coldly. “You don’t have to pretend like this. The money he gave you back then was enough for you to squander for several lifetimes. You could have flown far away, but you came back to find him halfway, and that’s how you have these children now.” “Tessa, you know what you’re planning in your heart.” Broken through by me, her face turned red and then white. Suddenly, she grabbed a baby and stuffed it into my arms. Cruel. The warm milky smell made me stiff all over. But the next second, the baby suddenly slipped from my arms and fell heavily to the ground, letting out a heart-rending cry. Amidst the piercing crying, Chase rushed in and pushed me away. I stumbled back, watching him distressedly pick up the child. The look he gave me was complicated to the extreme. Although he didn’t speak, it seemed as if he had said everything. Tessa cried from the side, “Mr. Sterling, I just wanted Mrs. Sterling to hug the child, who knew she would…” Chapter 2 Chase’s voice was very cold. “Raine, Tessa is being discharged tomorrow. Since you can’t tolerate the children, move to the West Hill Villa for now…” I bit my lower lip hard until I tasted blood. When I went for spiritual retreat, I didn’t bring much luggage, and now it was even simpler, just one suitcase held everything. I sat in the empty villa from dark to dawn. It was good, at least I didn’t have to watch their happy family of four with my own eyes. Memories flooded in like a tide. Chase and I were childhood sweethearts. Married for eight years, we were the model couple everyone envied in our circle. That time he was drugged by a competitor and had sex with a college student. He called me the moment he woke up, his voice trembling. “Raine, I was set up! I already gave her hush money, she will definitely not appear again!” I believed him. But not long after, this woman named Tessa Price appeared again. Her parents died accidentally, and she found Chase, who was drunk from talking business. The second time. The first time was an accident, what about the second time? Later, Chase went on a business trip to the South and encountered an earthquake. It was the pregnant Tessa who dug him out of the rubble with her bare hands. With the life-saving grace added to the child in her belly, Chase could no longer shake her off. He knelt in front of me crying bitterly, and I stated my conditions. “Chase Sterling. Either we divorce.” “Or she gets the hell out.” “I won’t divorce!” Chase grabbed me with red eyes. “But I must be responsible for her…” He was neither willing to divorce nor let Tessa leave. So I left, went to Mount Santai for spiritual practice. Until Tessa gave birth to the children, and Chase’s parents ordered me to come back. I took out my phone and sent the message I should have sent long ago in the darkness. “Let’s divorce.” In less than ten minutes, there was a hurried sound of the door opening outside. Chase rushed in, beads of sweat still on his forehead. “Raine! I don’t agree to a divorce!” I sat quietly on the sofa and sighed lightly. “Forget it, Chase Sterling, I’m tired.” “I told you she will never affect us!” He was so anxious that his voice was trembling. At this moment, his phone suddenly rang. Tessa’s crying voice came from the receiver, “Mr. Sterling! The baby was frightened by falling on the ground just now and has a fever. The doctor said he might need to go into the ICU!” Chase’s expression changed instantly. He looked at me, then at the phone, and finally spoke with difficulty, “Raine, I… I have to go take a look…” I looked at his retreating back in a panic and suddenly laughed out loud. This is my marriage, even divorce has to rank behind other women and children. Chapter 3 I curled the corners of my mouth mockingly. “Go quickly, the child needs you.” He hurriedly left, the wind he brought brushing my cheek, as if he had never appeared. I sat alone in the dark, tears falling silently. I knew he might never marry Tessa, but he would be called away again and again. How long can I endure such days if I don’t divorce? A lifetime? Familiar cramps came from my stomach. Turning on my phone, in Tessa’s Moments, Chase was guarding by the incubator day and night. The haggard face in the photo was a nervous appearance I had never seen before. I found a lawyer to draft a divorce agreement and then went to the company to handle the resignation. HR asked in surprise, “Mrs. Sterling, does Mr. Sterling know you are resigning?” I smiled faintly. “He doesn’t have time to care about these things right now.” Seeing the pity flash in the HR’s eyes, I knew what she was thinking. I returned to the villa. This West Hill Villa, we occasionally stayed a few times after marriage. When I was packing things, I found a yellowed note, “Raine, I don’t know when you can see this note. Presumably by then we will have several children. I love you so much, no matter what happens, you are not allowed to abandon me.” Tears fell on the paper, and my stomach suddenly felt a sharp pain. My eyes went black, and I fell heavily to the ground. When I woke up again, the phone ringtone rang piercingly. “Raine Vance! What on earth do you want!” Chase’s roar came from the receiver. He rarely called me by my full name like this. “Tessa is already cautious enough! How many times have I said that she won’t affect your position! Why did you send those vicious text messages? Why curse my child!” I smiled bitterly. He didn’t even ask if I did it, he just convicted me. “Are you finished?” I asked calmly. He was stunned for a few seconds. “Next Sunday is the children’s full month party, you must come. Stop playing petty tantrums, okay?” “Okay.” After hanging up the phone, I looked at the night sky outside the window. On the day of the full month party, I arrived without makeup. Everyone cast pitying glances, while in the center of the venue, Tessa leaned beside Chase in a red dress, like the real hostess. Chase’s mother urged me, “Go and hug the child.” Chase handed one of the children to me and whispered, “Raine, I won’t pursue the text message matter. After today, I will send Tessa abroad, and the children will be registered under your name. You can’t have children, isn’t this the best of both worlds?” His voice was full of pleading, and my heart hurt severely. In the avalanche back then, I injured my uterus to save him. He once fought with his parents for me, saying he wouldn’t have children in this life. Now, everything has changed. Suddenly, the child in my arms coughed violently and foamed at the mouth. “What’s wrong with the child!” Someone screamed. Chapter 4 Tessa suddenly lunged over, her voice shrill and piercing. “Mrs. Sterling! If you want to kill someone, kill me, don’t harm the child!” Smack! Chase’s father slapped me hard on the face. My eyes went black and I fell to the ground. My cheeks burned with pain, and a bloody taste rose in my mouth. Chase subconsciously reached out to help me. The child suddenly vomited a large mouthful of blood with a “wah”, and the scene instantly became chaotic. “Mr. Sterling!” Tessa screamed miserably and threw herself over, forcibly squeezing between us. “The baby isn’t doing well! Quick, save our child!” Chase’s hand trembled violently. I watched the heartache in his eyes fade bit by bit, and finally slowly released the hand that was supporting me, turned around and picked up the child who was vomiting blood. The hospital corridor was freezing cold. I stood there like a wandering soul, the divorce agreement already prepared falling from my pocket to the ground. Chase’s mother was sharp-eyed, picked it up and threw it back at me roughly. Her well-maintained face was full of disgust. “How has the Sterling family treated you poorly these years? Huh? Chase fought against us for you, and we tolerated it! Now you want to harm even the children?” “Since you want to divorce so much, then hurry up and leave! Don’t dawdle and refuse to go!” I silently picked up the papers on the ground. Chase came out of the ICU, his eyes red. “The child has been saved.” He looked at me, his eyes frighteningly strange. “Raine, you really went too far this time.” Trembling, I handed over the divorce agreement. “Let’s… end it.” His pupils constricted sharply. “Are you sure?” “I’m tired.” I held back tears. “I don’t know what else I might do…” “Good! Very good!” He snatched the agreement and signed his name fiercely, throwing the pen to the ground. “As you wish!” Returning to the former marital home, the housekeeper, Mrs. Xu, greeted me flusteredly. “Madam! Why are you…” She looked at my red and swollen face and wet clothes, her voice choked. I looked around. My piano was gone, the wedding photos had vanished, even my treasured ornaments were nowhere to be found. Mrs. Xu rubbed her hands, stammering, “Miss Price kept bumping into things while resting for the pregnancy, so young master Sterling had…” The door suddenly opened. Chase walked in with Tessa. Tessa said in surprise, “Madam, why are you here?” That tone, as if she were the hostess. “Where are my things?” My voice trembled as I looked at Chase. Chase sneered, pulling Tessa closer into his arms. “You’re getting a divorce, why do you care about this?” Tessa hypocritically came to pull my hand. “Madam, it’s because Mr. Sterling was afraid I would bump into things during pregnancy…” “Don’t touch me!” I threw her off violently. She exclaimed and staggered backwards. Chase quickly supported her and asked nervously, “Are you okay?” Watching their intimacy, I turned decisively and left. Even hearing Chase calling me from behind, I didn’t look back. I didn’t want them to see my tear-stained, wretched appearance. Outside, heavy rain poured down. I didn’t know how long I walked until I was blocked by a few thugs in a dark alley. “Mrs. Sterling, right? Someone paid us to teach you a lesson.” A scar-faced man approached with an obscene smile. “This wife of the richest man really looks seductive. Although her chest is small, her face is tender enough!” I subconsciously dialed Chase’s phone, and from the other end came his gentle coaxing voice for sleeping. “Tessa, if your head hurts, then sleep.” “Chase Sterling! Help…” “I don’t want to talk to you right now.” The phone was ruthlessly hung up. When I called back, it was turned off. Cold rainwater mixed with tears flowed into the corners of my mouth, tasting salty and bitter. “No one will come here. Obediently have some fun with us!” The thug’s dirty hands touched my collar, rough fingers scraping over my collarbone. I closed my eyes tightly, fingernails digging deeply into my palms.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “388875”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

My parents were responsible for the death of his parents. Because of this hatred, Asher Vance kept me as his lover for nine years. In those nine years, he told me countless times how much he hated me. Yet, he would drop a hundred-million-dollar project and fly back to the country just to make me soup when I caught a cold. I thought our feelings had long surpassed that old hatred. Until, two months after I gave birth to his child, I overheard a conversation between him and another woman. “Asher, the baby has stopped breathing. How are you going to explain this to Iris?” Asher answered without hesitation: “Explain what? The child of an enemy giving his life for our experiment is his fortune.” “It’s just right to let that woman see what it feels like to have her closest kin die tragically before her eyes!” It turned out he had been waiting bitterly for nine years just to truly take revenge on me. Holding my child’s ashes, I walked to the riverside, distraught, ready to end my own life. But as my body plummeted rapidly, he turned pale and tried to jump with me. Chapter 1 “Since you know everything, there’s no need for me to hide it from you anymore.” The white laboratory walls carried an impersonal coldness. Asher looked at me, a flash of pain quickly passing through his eyes, yet his words were heartless. “He is indeed dead.” “Injected with a large amount of experimental drugs by my own hands.” I stared at him in a daze, my hands trembling uncontrollably. “Why…” “That was your child too!” I moved my lips, realizing my voice was hoarse when I spoke. Asher looked at me silently for a few seconds, then turned his head away. “I told you countless times, Iris…” “Because of hate. I hate your parents, I hate you, and I also hate your child.” Hate… The familiar word appeared in my ears again. I bit my lip. In nine years, I don’t remember how many times I’ve heard it. He hated my parents for doing nothing during his family company’s crisis, dumping the entire mess on his parents. They even took all the funds and fled far away. Leaving his parents with no way out, choosing to end their lives with a bottle of sleeping pills. But he always talked about hating me while treating me well without restraint. He would drive all night to take me to see the sunrise at the beach just because I said I was bored. He would hold my hand in winter, putting it in his pocket for warmth. Sometimes, when the mood struck, he would even take the eyebrow pencil from my hand and draw my eyebrows for me, bit by bit. Then he would look at his clumsy handiwork and laugh embarrassedly. I thought… I thought that the hatred he constantly proclaimed would eventually fade with time. But now, when I questioned him in disbelief, he sneered: “Iris, because I could see that the better I treated you, the guiltier you would feel.” “It was just acting out a love drama with you.” “What, did you take it seriously?” My body went limp uncontrollably, my hands subconsciously touching my lower abdomen. The scar left by the C-section throbbed faintly, mixing with the pain in my heart, pressing down until I couldn’t breathe. With just a few words, he easily destroyed all my inner defenses. My hands gripping his collar dropped suddenly, feeling cold all over. I couldn’t help but laugh at myself mockingly. I was really too foolish, foolish enough to believe that between two people with a blood feud, love could grow lush and leafy across that hatred. But I still remember when I was eighteen, approaching college entrance exams but with both parents dead, living alone in a dilapidated rental room. I held a fruit knife, gesturing at my wrist. Thinking about where it would be appropriate to cut, but lacking the courage to really do it. A bed, a set of table and chairs, some pots and pans occupied almost the entire space of the room. Asher stood at the door, looking at the room with barely a place to stand, emotions in his eyes changing for a long time. Finally, he punched the wall behind me angrily and dragged me away by the wrist. I squatted down in despair, crying uncontrollably. Chapter 2 The urgent ringing of a cell phone sounded at that moment. I don’t know what the person on the other end said, but Asher glanced at me with a complicated expression. “Then just take him directly for cremation.” My heart shrunk as if sensing something, and I understood almost instantly. I desperately grabbed the corner of Asher’s clothes, as if grasping the last straw. “What cremation?” “Who are you going to cremate?” He didn’t answer me, just coldly pried my hands open, finger by finger. He said: “Go back to the hospital and stay there properly.” The way he threw me off forcefully was as if I wasn’t the girlfriend who had been with him for nine years, but a piece of useless trash. Although to Asher now, I, this girlfriend, seemed to be just a piece of trash. In this instant, I seemed to lose all strength. From this moment on, the will to die had taken root in my heart. After a long silence, I looked at him with red eyes, my voice already hoarse. “Asher, I want to see him…” But Asher promised nothing. He just gave me an indifferent look and turned his back. “You’d better go back to the hospital and stay put.” “Chloe, let’s go.” He took Chloe away, walking to the end of the corridor without ever looking back at me. I stared blankly at their retreating figures, watching them go further and further away. Just as they were about to disappear from my sight. I wiped the tears from my face and got up to follow them. I ran urgently, almost pushing Chloe down. “You!” Chloe’s face turned livid. Just as she was about to accuse me of something, In the next second, she saw me pull out the fruit knife I had prepared long ago. Slowly pressing it against my own throat. I looked at Asher, my expression calm, yet acting like a madwoman. I said: “Asher, take me to see him.” Chapter 3 Asher’s hand opening the car door paused slightly, his eyes holding some ambiguous emotion. “Want to send him off on his last journey?” I slowly lowered my head under his gaze. “Yes.” “Asher, I just want to see him…” “Please, can I?” “If you’re still not satisfied, take my life too…” For a moment, a trace of mockery appeared on Asher’s face. He seemed to think I was begging him only because I didn’t want to die. He pinched the wrist holding the knife, pushing it closer to my throat, and sneered. “Iris, do you think I really care about your life?” “If you want to die, find a quiet place. Don’t dirty mine and Chloe’s eyes.” “Besides, do you really dare to die?” After finishing, he drove away with Chloe, leaving me behind. Before getting into the car, Chloe looked me up and down. The disdain in her eyes made me clench my fists hidden under my clothes. Asher thought the laboratory was far in the suburbs and hard to get a taxi to. As long as he left with Chloe, no matter how unwilling I was, I would behave. But he didn’t expect that I, who had always been cowardly, after a moment of silence, lifted my feet and chased after them. I don’t know where the strength and courage came from. Through the rearview mirror, he could clearly see my figure running behind the car. Stubbornly, with all my might, chasing his receding car. Falling, getting up, falling again, getting up again… Falling over and over, climbing up over and over. As if I had lost my pain receptors. Asher slammed on the brakes, cursing under his breath. “Madwoman.” Seeing the car finally stop in the distance, hope suddenly rose in my heart. In a journey both distant and shallow, I stumbled and ran onto the car. It was clearly a scorching summer, but the temperature inside the car was cold enough to make one shiver. In the back seat, I hugged myself tightly, trying to find a tiny bit of energy from my own embrace. But the result always disappointed me. I couldn’t find the strength to support living anymore. Even when the car drove onto the cross-river bridge, I seriously considered it for a moment. If I jumped out of the car here and threw myself into the river to die. It seemed not bad. The laboratory was somewhat far from the crematorium. When we arrived there, it was almost evening. When getting out of the car, Asher reflexively reached out his hand to me. And for the first time in my life, I ignored him and rushed straight towards the morgue. Walking past corpse after corpse, I never found my baby. I don’t know how to describe my mood at that time. Was it despair, or relief… I repeatedly paralyzed myself in my heart. Maybe, this is just a dream of mine. In the dream, flowers withered, lifeless. But actually, my baby is still safely receiving treatment. Maybe in a few months, when I wake up from this dream, our family will be reunited. I didn’t know, I was just mechanically, numbly looking for my baby. When I came out of the morgue distraught, I happened to meet a staff member pushing a corpse towards the fire pit. I stopped as if feeling something. When I saw the corpse, I recognized him almost at a glance. That was my baby… In the two months since he was born, I had only seen him three times and held him once. They said the baby was weak and needed treatment in a sterile room. So every time I saw him, it was through a thick glass wall. I was outside, he was inside. I hadn’t even given him a name yet. In the two months after his birth, I looked through numerous classics but couldn’t find two suitable characters. I thought, when he gets better, I must… Must give him the name with the best meaning in the world. But I never imagined that our fourth meeting would be like this. He lay there quietly, being pushed towards the fire ahead by the staff. Chapter 4 The world seemed to have been muted. At this moment, there was no sound in my world. Only the flickering flames dancing in front of my eyes. And my child about to be pushed into the fire, disappearing from my world bit by bit. At that moment, I had long forgotten that the fire was enough to burn me to death. I couldn’t even hear the staff’s exclamations. Ghosts and gods at work, I rushed forward and threw myself into the fire. I wanted to hug him one more time. “Baby…” Sorry, really sorry. It was me who didn’t protect you well. Or maybe, I shouldn’t have given birth to you. A life carrying hatred ultimately won’t be happy. But, do you know how happy I was the moment I learned you had life in my belly… The scorching flames burned my skin bit by bit. But as if I couldn’t feel the pain, I rushed forward recklessly. I thought, anyway, my life is already rotten, dying with the baby like this seems not bad. “Iris, what are you doing?” Asher dragged me back from the fire desperately. By the firelight, I saw my reflection in Asher’s eyes. Messy and crazy. His eyes held emotions I couldn’t read. Like anger, like panic, and it seemed there was also a little bit of: pity. He gripped my shoulders tightly, his strength terrifying. “Do you want to die?” I collapsed weakly. He was right, I didn’t know the meaning of living anymore. “Yes, Asher, I don’t want to live…” “I’ve lived enough.” “Asher, let me die with the baby…” Under the firelight, I cried uncontrollably. Asher’s expression changed abruptly, a few traces of panic appearing in his eyes where I couldn’t see. Then, he grabbed my arm tightly again, forcing me to look at him. “Die?” “Iris, are you even worthy of dying?” “You have to live, live to atone for your parents.” His cold, hard expression pierced into my eyes, carrying a thorough chill. Like the substantive wind blades in a snowy night. “Also, don’t threaten me with death again.” “At eighteen you were too cowardly to die, do you think after nine years, you have the courage?” Looking at my breakdown, Asher felt as if his heart had been pricked by a tiny needle. Not very painful, but the strange feeling was particularly obvious. In a trance, another me appeared before him. The me who once fell asleep on the sofa waiting for him to come home. The me who carefully pulled his sleeve asking for forgiveness when making a mistake. The me who cried to him with red eyes when accidentally cutting a finger. The me who stubbornly ran into the kitchen to hug him from behind, refusing to rest even when sick and weak… These versions of me gradually merged with the me crying hysterically in front of him. Yet they seemed like two different people. For no reason, his heart felt a bit uncomfortable. Asher tightly clenched his hands hidden in his cuffs, forcefully suppressing the wave-like emotions in his heart. He took the urn handed over by the staff and threw it to me without hesitation. Like throwing away a hot potato. Under the night sky, his tone was cold and hard. “Done crying? Then take your son and get lost back home.” He left with Chloe, ignoring me behind him, almost crying to the point of fainting. Under the night sky, I held the child’s ashes, walking step by step back to the “home” I had lived in for nine years. The summer night wind wasn’t cold, but at that moment I felt there was not a trace of warmth left in this world. When I got home, Asher was leaning obliquely against the back of the sofa, thinking about something. He saw me, his gaze swept over the box tightly held in my arms, and his eyelids drooped. The words he spoke were ugly and piercing. “Only you treat him as a treasure.” These words were like heavy rain on a summer night, beating on my heart, provoking my anger towards him. For the first time in my life, I retorted with sarcasm. “Naturally can’t compare to you, who can even lay a hand on your own son.” Asher looked as if a sore spot had been pricked. A flash of pain passed through his eyes when he looked at me, but he refused to admit defeat. Finally, he snorted coldly and went back to his room.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “388874”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

Chapter 1 My father was an undercover narcotics officer. When he died, there was no body left to bury. His only belonging was a small recording bear, a toy that held something incredibly important to me. To get it back, I was prepared to bankrupt myself at the auction. I didn’t know the organizer of this auction was my ex-boyfriend, Julian Sterling, the man I dumped three years ago. In those three years, he transformed into a billionaire tycoon in the capital. And I was left destitute, with nothing but a broken body missing an arm. But Julian wouldn’t let me go. He bid $100 million for my father’s keepsake, just to give it to his dog as a chew toy. I knelt on the floor and begged him. In return, he had dozens of people line up to spit on me. Even after that, I didn’t get the bear back. It wasn’t until I reactivated my father’s badge number and went undercover at the border myself that Julian went crazy. He offered the cartel a billion dollars to buy my life back. But by then, I wasn’t going to survive. … At the auction house, my father’s recording bear sat in the center of the display case. It was stained with old blood. A few days ago, a friend tipped me off that this item had surfaced at a high-end auction in D.C., but no one was bidding on it. So I rushed here without stopping. Just as I eagerly raised my paddle to bid, a deep, heavy voice came from not far away. “I bid ten thousand.” I whipped my head around and crashed into a pair of deep, obsidian eyes. It was Julian Sterling. The ex-boyfriend I dumped three years ago. For me, this was the worst possible encounter. Of course, I soon realized this was no chance encounter. This was a trap Julian set personally to get revenge on me. Even this auction was part of it. I took a deep breath, turned back, and continued bidding. “Eleven thousand.” I didn’t have much money, but I was ready to “light the sky lantern”—to bid whatever it took. But to survive afterwards, I had to save something for myself. Unfortunately, Julian didn’t think so. “Twenty thousand.” I thought he was insane. When I looked at him again, I clearly saw the loathing and hatred in his eyes. Yes, he hated me. He should hate me. But that wasn’t a reason to steal my father’s only remnant. “Twenty-five thousand.” Julian didn’t stop. Every time he raised the bid, he started with increments of ten thousand. “Fifty thousand.” This time was even worse; he doubled it. I bit my lip, recalling the nightmares I’d had since losing my father. No, I couldn’t let those nightmares continue. I raised my paddle high: “One hundred thousand!” The room erupted in whispers. “Who spends that kind of money on a broken toy?” “I don’t know what goes on in the heads of these rich people.” I wanted to scream at them that this was the most glorious medal left by a great undercover cop. But no one gave me the chance, especially not Julian. His mockery was the loudest. “Buying it for my fiancée’s dog to play with. Is there a problem?” My heart throbbed with a dull pain. So he was getting married. The girl sitting next to him must be his fiancée. That was… good. I was willing to wish him happiness. As long as he let me have this one thing. I looked at him with pleading eyes, but Julian remained unmoved. He raised the bid again: “Two hundred thousand.” I sighed. I turned my body to face him fully. “That was left by my father.” “Please, have some mercy, Mr. Sterling.” Julian’s dangerous gaze swept over me. Then he sneered, “A keepsake from a dirty fugitive? Even if I buy it just to burn it, I’d be doing a public service.” “Don’t you think so, daughter of a dirty fugitive?” Chapter 2 I looked at Julian with complicated emotions. How could he say that? My father wasn’t a fugitive. He just… didn’t make it out alive. Instantly, tears welled up in my eyes. I knew that in the end, Julian could decide everything at this auction with a single word. I couldn’t compete with him. So I could only continue to submit. “I’m begging you.” Julian raised an eyebrow. “Begging me?” He stood up with interest, interrupting the auctioneer’s countdown. “Sure.” Julian walked toward me. Two bodyguards followed behind him. “Here’s the deal. You kneel on the ground. Then let everyone here walk past you and spit on you.” “Do that, and I’ll consider letting you have the item.” I looked up in a daze. Staring at Julian this close again, I realized he had changed a lot. His features were more mature, sharper. I also knew what he had gone through in the three years since I dumped him. That was why he made such a demand. I lowered my eyelashes. I whispered, “Okay.” This time, it was Julian’s turn to be surprised. “Maya Vance, where is your backbone?” I shook my head and didn’t speak. Julian scoffed. “Fine. Okay.” “Alright! The auction is paused. Everyone line up and spit on this woman!” “Whoever spits the most gets the jade on the display.” Hearing this, everyone scrambled to get up and crowded over. It began. Those people didn’t ask questions; they actually listened to Julian and started spitting on me. Liquid ran down my forehead to the tip of my nose, mixing with my unyielding tears. I kept my lips tightly sealed. For my father’s keepsake, I would endure it. I counted as person after person walked by me, leaving disgusting marks on my body and face. I subconsciously wanted to wipe it off, but Julian had his bodyguards restrain my hands. Some were even more malicious, prying my mouth open. I struggled hard and ended up vomiting. It was too humiliating. But every time I thought of my father’s situation, I grit my teeth. I stared fiercely at Julian, who was watching the show. Time passed minute by minute. Dozens of people had spat on me. I watched as Julian’s face grew darker and darker, until finally, he called a stop to this outrageous game. “Enough. This is boring.” “Maya Vance, three years later, you’re still like a boring dead fish.” As soon as he finished speaking, the whole room burst into laughter. Julian put his arm around his fiancée and kissed her on the cheek. “Auction continues!” I froze in place. “Didn’t you say you’d let me have it?” Julian looked back playfully. “I changed my mind. What, only you are allowed to back out of things whenever you want, but I can’t change my mind at the last minute?” Chapter 3 Julian shouted out an astronomical price of five hundred thousand. I touched the bank card in my pocket. I brought a million dollars this time. Could I win this gamble? After all, my luck had never been good. Just like three years ago. My father had an accident during “Operation Crime Hunter” and died without a trace. Because the criminal syndicate hadn’t been caught yet, the cause of my father’s death and his identity couldn’t be revealed. Everyone thought my father was a drug dealer who harmed people. During that time, my social media accounts received thousands of abusive messages and gruesome pictures every day. I started having frequent nightmares. Dreaming of my father being tortured, dreaming of him calling my name in pain. “Maya, leave D.C. Don’t look back.” In fact, my father’s advice was right. No one could protect me 24/7. So that day, I faced retaliation. It was a pitiful man whose whole family had been killed by the syndicate. He had lost his mind, yet he could accurately identify me as the “drug dealer’s” daughter. He kidnapped me to a warehouse in the suburbs, a long knife flashing before my eyes. Just as he was about to chop off my neck, the police arrived in time. I managed to survive. But immediately after, I received a threatening text message. “Neither you nor your boyfriend will escape death.” My boyfriend was Julian. A big boy who had just graduated from college, started a business with me, and had a bright future. I looked at the bloody words and got goosebumps all over. At first, I didn’t believe they could go that far. Until Julian was driving home and got run off the road into a green belt by a black car. My nightmare began. Countless threatening texts flooded my phone late at night. Reminding me that my life was no longer my own. Looking at Julian sleeping soundly next to me, I finally made up my mind to break up with him. In fact, I left without saying goodbye. I only left him a brief letter. I left him the company, the unfinished business. Including the aimless future, I left it all to him. Those three years must have been very bitter for him. So I understood why he hated me. He wanted my money, I gave it to him. He wanted my life, I thought I would give it to him too. But before that, I had to hear what was inside the recording bear. So I bid again, seven hundred thousand. Behind me, Julian clicked his tongue. “Let’s let everyone judge.” “A fugitive’s keepsake might contain state secrets. What do you say, should I let her have it?” Someone answered him. “Of course you can’t give it to her! She’s the daughter of a dirty fugitive; maybe that money is stolen.” “Exactly, we should call the police! Or just kick her out!” I closed my eyes in silence. Dad, I just want to take back what belongs to us. Why is it so hard? But I am a free citizen now. They have no right to kick me out or deprive me of the right to participate in the auction. So I raised my paddle and shouted, “I’m lighting the sky lantern.” The gaze from behind was incredibly hot. Julian led the applause. “Good, Miss Vance is really rich.” “Lighting the sky lantern, huh? Then I bid one hundred million.” “Are you sure you want to light this lantern?” At this moment, Julian’s fiancée, who hadn’t spoken for a long time, spoke up. “Julian, spending so much money on a toy for the dog is too wasteful.” “Besides, the dog won’t even play with that toy.” Julian turned his head and chuckled lightly. “It doesn’t matter, Mia. I just don’t want to see bad people get their way.” “That’s true. A hundred million for a dog toy, count it as part of the dowry for marrying me.” Listening to their conversation, my heart felt like it was being twisted. Julian knew perfectly well that I couldn’t afford a hundred million. When the auctioneer asked me if I wanted to increase the bid or light the lantern. I was left with only the last resort. That was, to kneel down in front of Julian with a thud. And start slapping my own face. Once, twice, louder and louder. Even Julian didn’t react immediately. In the venue, people were already pleading for me. An auntie walked over from the side, trying to help me up. “Girl, don’t do this. Lost things can be bought again, but lost dignity can’t be picked up.” But unfortunately, she touched the arm that had been chopped off. She felt nothing and looked horrified. “Oh my god, girl, your arm…” Inside the empty sleeve, a hard, cold prosthetic was revealed. I nodded. “Yeah, the arm is gone.” At that moment. I felt Julian’s gaze from above becoming increasingly intense. After a long while, he spoke. “How did that happen?” “Don’t you know how to take care of yourself?” His tone became increasingly urgent, as if he cared about me like before. Only now, the status wasn’t appropriate. I continued to kowtow to him. Finally, Julian couldn’t stand it anymore. He forcibly pulled me up. “Maya Vance, do you think a sob story will work on me?” I looked up at him. “Then what do you want me to do? What do I have to do to get my father’s keepsake back?” Julian looked away abruptly. His fiancée, Mia Jiang, put her hand on his arm and whispered something in his ear. Just loud enough for me to hear. “Maya Vance has a sugar daddy in South City who helps her with everything. She shouldn’t be short of money.” It was this sentence that made Julian’s eyes change suddenly. He stared at me tightly and said, “No matter what you do, I won’t give the thing back to you.” At the same time, the auctioneer banged the gavel for the last time. Chapter 4 “One hundred million, sold!” I couldn’t recover for a long, long time. When most people had left the venue, I subconsciously stood up. But turning around, I bumped into Mia Jiang. I intended to go around her, but she blocked me. Clearly, she was coming for me. I raised my gaze wearily. “Miss Jiang, is something wrong?” The next second, a slap landed on my cheek. “What do you think?” “You were doing so well in South City, why did you suddenly come back to D.C.?” “Maya Vance, don’t think I don’t know, you came back for Julian.” I didn’t know how to explain to her that there was no possibility for Julian and me in this lifetime. Besides, he hated me to the bone. How could we ever get back together? I said so too. “I came back this time only to get that thing back. Everything else has nothing to do with me, including your Julian.” “Hmph, then swear to me, if you have even half a feeling for Julian, you won’t live past this year!” I lowered my eyes helplessly. Finally, I repeated her words. “Satisfied? Can I go now?” Mia rolled her eyes. “Wait a minute, I want to show you something fun.” After saying that, she whistled towards the back, and a large dog ran in. What made my whole body stiff at a glance was that in the dog’s mouth, it was holding my father’s keepsake. I covered my mouth, holding back the trembling. Watching with my own eyes as the dog tore and bit the toy in its mouth. “No, don’t…” I lay on the ground, humbly begging Mia. “Just let me listen to the voice inside, just once, and I will never return to D.C. in my life!” Mia’s eyes lit up. “Really?” I nodded repeatedly: “I swear.” Finally, Mia took the little bear out of the dog’s mouth. Just as she was about to hand it to me. Not far away, Julian’s figure appeared. In the dark light, I couldn’t see his emotions clearly. But the downturned corners of his mouth already hinted at something. “Mia, don’t give it to her!” So just as I was about to touch the bear I thought about day and night, it disappeared again. Replaced by Julian’s condescending contempt. “Mia, take the dog out to play. Play until this broken toy is destroyed!” Under my gaze, Mia left anyway. I lay on the ground in despair. Julian lowered his noble body. “How is it? Does it feel good to have happiness within reach and then suddenly disappear?” I knew what he was talking about. But I was powerless to respond. So Julian continued talking to himself. “After you left me three years ago, the company fell into a funding crisis.” “Employees came to me for wages, I didn’t have any. They made me kneel on the ground and lined up to spit on me.” “When I got home that day, I showered for three hours, but couldn’t wash off that disgusting smell.” “But what I needed most at that time wasn’t money, wasn’t connections, it was you, Maya Vance.” After speaking, he lifted my chin involuntarily. “I thought you had some difficulties, until I heard you went to South City and got a sugar daddy?” “I heard everything you just said.” “Actually, if you had said even one sentence that you still had me in your heart, I would have returned that toy to you.” “But you didn’t, Maya Vance.” “From beginning to end, you betrayed me.” I looked at Julian’s fierce eyes, unable to say a single word to defend myself. Or rather, everything Julian said was right. For so many years, I betrayed him. No matter what difficulties I had. I deserved it. Seeing no reaction from me, Julian finally let go of me. He spat in disgust and lifted his foot to leave. But at the last second, I called out his name. “Julian.” Julian paused, stopping in place. I said, “I’m sorry.” “If you can let bygones be bygones, please tell me what’s in the recording toy within a month.” Julian turned his back to me and sneered. “Maya Vance, you have some nerve.” “Playing the countdown game with me?” “I’m telling you, you’re not worthy.” Julian left anyway. So he didn’t hear the last sentence I said to him. What I wanted to tell him was that in a month, I would reactivate my father’s badge number and go to the border to participate in the latest round of Crime Hunter operations. On this trip, I went with the determination to die.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “388873”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

I picked out a diamond ring at an auction as my wedding ring with Chloe Vance. But no matter how much I bid, the “little brother” Chloe sponsored, Liam Reed, always bid ten dollars more than me. Chloe smiled helplessly: “Honey~ Liam likes these shiny things, let him have it, okay? Be good~” I turned around and lit the Sky Lantern. That day, Liam ran out with red eyes. Chloe kissed my cheek: “Hubby is so bad.” She ignored Liam, and for the year after our wedding, she refused to be apart from me every night. One day, I received an invitation to a private auction. Photos of me blindfolded and choked by Chloe, our “Queen and Knight” couple’s game, were blatantly displayed as exhibits. Chloe leaned into Liam’s arms: “Don’t you like lighting Sky Lanterns? Three hundred and sixty-five photos of you serving me like a dog. If you don’t want them falling into someone else’s hands, you can take your time lighting them.” Chapter 1 I stood in the auction hall, watching dozens of men and women discussing loudly in front of the big screen: “Men really know how to play! I’ve been around the block, but this is the first time I’ve seen a male prostitute sluttier than a woman.” “Tsk tsk! Who would have thought, Chase Sterling looks so cold and aloof, but in bed he’s like a duck. And to think he usually tells us to get lost if we touch him, hahaha!” “President Vance really knows how to train men. The young master from a scholarly family has been ruined by President Vance, right? When…” A woman winked at Chloe, who was sitting in the main seat: “Should we tie him up and let us sisters have some fun?” I clenched my fists and turned trembling to look at my wife. Beside her, in the seat that originally belonged to me, sat Liam Reed. Chloe didn’t hide it at all, gently curving her lips: “Whoever wins the photos gets the full video of that night as a bonus.” “President Vance is generous!!” The crowd boiled over. Chloe looked at me, her beautiful brows tinged with a smile: “Don’t look at me like that. I said, you can light the Sky Lantern. Three hundred and sixty-five photos, take your time.” “Oh, President Vance, you don’t know yet! The Sterling family went bankrupt recently, Mr. Sterling doesn’t have much money left!” “Lighting a Sky Lantern costs fifty million a pop. It would be impressive if he still has a hundred million in hand now!” Chloe raised an eyebrow, feigning ignorance: “Oh? Is that so?” “Tsk! What a pity. Three hundred and sixty-five photos, each one wonderful. Honestly, I want to light them all and take them back to study properly.” Someone stroked their chin and sighed: “Unfortunately, the only one present with that kind of financial power is President Vance.” Chloe laughed and raised her hand: “Everyone, for today’s auction, the Vance Group will not participate in bidding for any exhibits. All proceeds will be donated to charity. Please feel free.” Cheers erupted from the audience: “This is a true entrepreneur! Fortunately, the Vance Group secretly squeezed out the Sterling Group’s partners, otherwise we might not have been able to get the photos today!” “What are you worried about? There are dozens of us, let’s not fight, everyone gets some!” “No way! The third photo is arranged so perfectly, I must have it!” Only I trembled with clenched fists, looking at Chloe in disbelief: “The Sterling Group’s bankruptcy, you did it?” Chloe just looked at me and smirked. My eyes stung, blurring my vision, my voice hoarse: “Why… just because I lit a Sky Lantern a year ago?” Chloe ignored my grievance and took the microphone: “Time is limited, Mr. Sterling. If you’re not participating in the auction, I’ll let my friends start.” The men and women looked at me playfully. Everyone here was top-tier in the circle. The remaining hundred million in cash I had might just be pocket change for a short trip to them. How could I compete with them? “I’m going to the restroom.” I quickly turned and left the venue. Otherwise, I was really afraid I would go crazy right there. Laughter came from behind: “So male whores have shame too, hahaha!” “President Vance, don’t wait for him. A hundred million to play with us? He’s definitely embarrassed to say it straight and ran away using the restroom as an excuse.” “Shut up, all of you.” Chloe spoke coldly. She stared dead at the direction of the entrance. No one dared to act rashly, and they all shut their mouths. A moment later, I pushed open the door. I took my seat under everyone’s gaze, the corners of my eyes still red: “Let’s begin.” Chloe glanced at me, slightly surprised. To clearly display my photos, the big screen behind the host was transformed into a panoramic surround screen, showing my humiliation 360 degrees without blind spots. Allowing everyone to appreciate it from every position. Chapter 2 “First photo.” The host smiled meaningfully: “‘Moonlight Inquiry’, starting price two million.” The whole audience gasped: “Elegant! Too elegant! Appreciated by both the refined and the common! Mr. Sterling from a scholarly family really knows how to play.” “Two and a half million!” The host smiled without speaking, and released a text introduction. I stood up abruptly. That was a detailed description of the key parts of my wedding night with Chloe. Besides me, the only one who could write these details was… I looked at Chloe trembling. She sat there quietly, a sneer hanging on the corner of her mouth, as if everything here had nothing to do with her. Only when Liam leaned in to whisper to her would she turn her body sideways, her brows filled with shyness and tenderness. The discussions in my ears almost drowned me: “Thought the photos were slutty enough, didn’t expect the process to be even more explosive than I thought! Don’t fight! Five million! I want the video!” “Six million!” “Knowing how to play like this on the first night, can’t imagine what comes after… tsk tsk! Ten million!” “Light the Sky Lantern.” I heard my trembling voice. Everyone looked at me. The host looked at me with a professional smile: “Number 438 lights the Sky Lantern, are you sure?” I slumped back into the chair, my voice weak: “Sure.” “Tsk! What a pity, that video must be explosive.” “What are you afraid of? How many photos can he last?” “Exactly, and this is just the first one, right? It gets sluttier later, won’t be a loss to wait.” “Number 438 lights the Sky Lantern! Congratulations Mr. Sterling on obtaining the ‘Moonlight Inquiry’ photo and its accompanying video!” I closed my eyes, fingernails digging deep into my palms. The big screen immediately changed to the second photo, along with the accompanying introduction. “Second photo, ‘String Plucking’, starting price two million!” The venue boiled over: “Does this really exist? With this, who needs male models? President Vance surely gives us free access right!” Someone sitting close poked me: “Tsk tsk tsk! Can’t tell, you look so upright, but privately you’re so cheap.” I glared at him, and he immediately laughed: “Hey~ I don’t despise you! If President Vance doesn’t want you, come find me? I’ll help you light one, how about it?” “Don’t touch me.” My voice was cold enough to kill, the man snorted disdainfully and sat back: “What are you pretending for, a thing played rotten by others, ten million!” “Twenty million!” “Twenty-five million!” “Light… the Sky Lantern.” I didn’t know with what strength I said these words. The host glanced at me, smiling meaningfully: “Number 438 lights the Sky Lantern!” The transaction was completed, he looked at me with a professional smile: “Lit the Sky Lantern twice. According to your capital verification results, you have less than five million in cash flow left, oh?” My tone was dispirited: “Continue.” “Heh.” The disdain on the host’s face wasn’t held back for a moment, and he released the third photo: “Third photo, ‘Glazed Glass’, starting price two million!” “Light the Sky Lantern.” Hearing my voice, everyone looked at me in surprise. The host looked at me: “Mr. Sterling, your capital verification result before entering was one hundred million four hundred and thirty thousand. You have already lit it twice, the remaining money is not enough.” An old woman blinked at me: “Beg Brother Sterling, Brother Sterling will help you light it.” I ignored them and looked at Chloe. She was also looking at me. Only there was no intention of helping, instead, the corner of her mouth held an arc of disdain. Everyone looked at her. After all, she was still my wife. “What are you all looking at me for?” Chloe hooked her lips carelessly: “I said, all auction items are entirely handed over to everyone for bidding.” People breathed a sigh of relief: “Thank you President Vance for not competing!” Just then, Liam, who had been sitting beside her, raised his hand: “How about this, I’ll light this photo for Brother Chase.” Chloe looked at him, and after a bit of surprise passed, it was more of an unconcealable smile. Liam looked at me: “After all, Brother Chase also sponsored my tuition for studying abroad. I can’t be ungrateful.” The smile in Chloe’s eyes deepened. Looking at Liam, her always cold brows seemed to melt the ice. Everyone started jeering: “No wonder President Vance likes Liam, who wouldn’t like someone so obedient?” “Liam is a good man, blushes just hearing us tease him a bit, unlike someone, tsk tsk tsk!” Meaningful gazes pierced me like sharp swords. A trace of imperceptible pride flashed across Liam’s mouth, then he looked at me: “Brother Chase, don’t worry.” “Hypocrite.” Hearing my answer, he froze: “What?” “Your way of repaying me is to occupy my seat and seduce my woman?” I leaned back in the chair: “Sorry, I haven’t fallen to the point where I need help from a bitch and a scumbag.” “Chase Sterling.” Chloe rarely spoke to me. But it was a tone cold and strange. I glanced at her coldly and looked at the host: “I lit the Sky Lantern, I’ll do it myself.” “This…” The host was somewhat troubled: “If you still want to light it, we can only include the Sterling Group’s real estate, but the real estate after bankruptcy has shrunk significantly, barely scraping together fifty million, oh?” “Just light it, no need to say more.” “Tsk tsk tsk! This man is really crazy.” People shook their heads and teased: “Giving up even a place to live for this breath, pity, the third photo was the one I fancied at first sight.” “It’s okay, haven’t even sold a fraction yet, more than three hundred photos, what are you afraid of?” “Exactly, I took a peek, gets cheaper and less human further back hahaha!” Everyone’s gaze, whether pitying or mocking, was cast towards me: “Just a beast fighting in a cage.” “Wait for the next one, he can only watch us take his private photos.” “Tsk tsk tsk! Really want to know what expression he will have then, will it be the same as when dominated by President Vance?” Snickering sounds were endless. I endured the lump in my throat, silently clenched my fists, and looked up at the host. Chapter 3 The fourth photo was quickly displayed: “Fourth photo, ‘Netherworld’, starting price two million!” “Damn! I really like this one! Fifteen million!” “Twenty million!” “Twenty-five million!” “Light the Sky Lantern.” I spoke. Everyone’s gaze invariably projected towards me. The host couldn’t maintain his smile anymore: “Mr. Sterling, please do not disturb the order, if you continue like this we will have to ask you to leave.” I said coldly: “Not disturbing. I said I want to light the Sky Lantern. “And not just this one, I’m lighting all three hundred and sixty-five photos and videos in the venue.” The host and the audience below looked at each other and laughed out loud simultaneously. Even Liam couldn’t help but “Pfft!” and burst out laughing, leaning on Chloe’s shoulder sideways. Chloe’s eyes were so gentle they could drip water, her always indifferent face couldn’t help but melt a trace of ice. “Is he crazy? Three hundred and sixty-five photos? Eighteen billion two hundred and fifty million, did he even have this strength before bankruptcy?” “Except for President Vance who dares to play like this, who else dares to say so!” The host took several seconds to adjust before restoring his professional smile: “Mr. Sterling, in the previous round you already auctioned off all your family assets, so you can’t light this Sky Lantern, haha. “Which gentleman bid twenty-five million just now? “Twenty-five million going once!” “Smack!” I grabbed the water glass on the table and threw it forward. “Crash!” it shattered at the host’s feet, startling him into retreating a few steps hurriedly. I looked at him coldly: “I said I want to light the Sky Lantern, do you not understand?” “Chase Sterling!” Someone got impatient: “We played three rounds with you, you’re out of money long ago! What are you pretending for!” “Fake bidding carries responsibility, us brothers fancying your photos is appreciating you, don’t be ungrateful!” The host’s smile also couldn’t hang on: “Mr. Sterling, if not for President Vance’s face, you wouldn’t even have the qualification to enter and light the Sky Lantern. If you make trouble again, don’t blame the security for inviting you out!” I narrowed my eyes: “Who said I have no money?” Chloe glanced at me calmly. Everyone was also stunned: “Stop joking, although it’s a private auction, do you think our capital verification methods are a joke? Would we not know how much money you have?” I looked at the host: “As long as I still have money, I can still light the Sky Lantern, right?” “Yes, but…” “Re-verify capital.” I interrupted the host. Everyone looked at each other in dismay, and Chloe frowned imperceptibly. I pulled the microphone closer to myself: “What, you guys can’t afford to play?” “Hmph! Verify then! If we play, we’ll make you convinced!” On the big screen, my photos were all withdrawn, replaced by my account balance. The host stood still again: “Number 438, second capital verification.” Everyone stared tightly at the numbers on the screen, faces inevitably showing some nervousness. Many whispered: “Why is he so calm? Does he really have money?” “No way… President Vance secretly blocked all cooperation with the Sterling Group, is there anyone in the circle with more say than President Vance?” “Then is he crazy? Humiliating himself in public? Maybe he really has means we don’t know…” “Verification ended.” Everyone stared dead at the screen. Deducting the Sky Lanterns just lit. Account balance— Zero. “Hahahahaha!!” The whole venue exploded with laughter: “Thought he really had some tricks, turns out he’s really crazy!” A sneer appeared at the corner of Chloe’s mouth, Liam laughed until tears came out. The host made a gesture: “Sorry Mr. Sterling, you disturbed the order, trouble you to leave. Thank you for your support of this auction, security!” Immediately a row of burly men stepped forward to surround me. “Wait.” I sat quietly, looking down at my watch. Index finger tapping on the armrest with the second hand. After three times, I made a “please” gesture: “Now you can re-verify capital.” “Chase Sterling, who do you think we are, having time to talk nonsense with a madman!” The host had long been impatient, waving his hand: “Drag him away and throw him out.” But as soon as the voice fell, his eyes slowly widened, then he turned back abruptly, staring dead at the screen: “This… how is this possible?” Chloe also stood up abruptly. Everyone stood up: “This… fake, right?” On the big screen, the originally zero balance suddenly flashed. Then changed crazily. From single digits to four digits, from four digits to eight digits, leaping crazily, until stopping at the hundred billion level. “Bang!” The microphone was knocked to the ground by the host. He supported himself on the table, looking at the big screen in disbelief: “This is impossible… how is it possible to finance so much in such a short time!” The security guards who originally restrained me were also shocked into letting go. I said indifferently: “Sorry, large transfer review took some time, made everyone laugh.” Some people collapsed into their chairs in disbelief. Speaking, I looked at the host: “May I ask, three hundred and sixty-five photos, can I light the Sky Lantern now?” The host scrambled to regain his state, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead: “Yes, yes! That… cough! Number 438, lights the Sky Lantern!” The venue was in an uproar. The man who teased me just now was paralyzed in his chair. Although he had quite some family assets, compared to my current account balance, it was just a drop in the bucket. Thinking of what he did to me just now, a layer of cold sweat oozed from his forehead. Everyone couldn’t believe it: “Financing hundreds of billions in such a short time, didn’t he go bankrupt!” “Did President Vance deceive us? Actually Chase Sterling has always been hiding his light?” “Or… did he hook up with some big shot…” “Bullshit! What big shot can be bigger than President Vance!” I got up, walking step by step to Chloe’s seat. Raised my palm high, and landed it fiercely on her face: “Smack!” The crisp slap echoed throughout the hall. Chloe tilted her head slightly, looking grim. Everyone held their breath. “Secretly taking my photos?” After speaking, the next slap landed on the other half of her face: “Secretly recording my videos?” Then, a third slap was raised again. But this time, a dark shadow rushed up: “Brother Chase! Don’t!” “Smack!” This slap landed solidly on Liam’s face. Chloe, who had been silent, suddenly exclaimed: “Liam!” Liam took a slap, but it was like taking a heavy blow, collapsing into Chloe’s arms. Before I could react, my back collar was suddenly yanked fiercely, and I fell heavily backward to the ground. “Let go!” I struggled hard, but a crisp “Crack!” came from my wrist. Severe pain spread throughout my body. I gritted my teeth and looked up. Chloe’s bodyguards had swarmed out at some point, pressing me dead on the ground kneeling. My breath trembled slightly— When I attacked Chloe, Chloe didn’t mobilize them. Liam took a slap, yet she let these people treat me like this…

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “388872”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

In the grand hall of the Riverfront nightclub, my heavily pregnant sister was shoved onto the stage. Below her, men argued red-faced over the child in her belly. “It’s gotta be mine! I put in the most work that night!” “Bullshit! I went the most rounds, my odds are way better!” My sister’s face was pale as a ghost. With tears in her eyes, she questioned the man beside her: “Lucas Thorne, you’re my fiancé. How could you treat me like this?” Lucas, with a delicate girl in his arms, sneered: “You don’t even know whose bastard you’re carrying, and you have the nerve to ask me?” The girl in his arms covered her mouth, giggling shyly, but looked at my sister with triumphant eyes. I sat in the audience, my gaze turning icy. I haven’t been back in a few years, and people already dare to bully my family? … My assistant leaned in and whispered, “Should I get the club owner, Chris Sheng, to give you an explanation?” I scoffed coldly: “What’s the use of calling him? Have everyone on standby!” “Yes, ma’am.” The assistant quickly retreated. Dare to touch my sister? Don’t expect to walk out of here in one piece tonight! Chapter 1 My sister’s voice trembled. “That night, it was only you! How could I be pregnant with someone else’s child?!” The girl in Lucas’s arms, Sue Locke, laughed coquettishly: “Mia, dear, you were drunk and yelling ‘one isn’t enough,’ dragging several men into the room. Don’t you remember?” My sister’s face turned instantly white. “Impossible! Only Lucas was in the room…” Mid-sentence, she stiffened, staring intently at Lucas. “It was you. That glass of red wine… you drugged me?!” Lucas didn’t deny it. He didn’t even look at my sister. He pulled a stack of photos from his pocket and scattered them on the stage. “Come on, place your bets live! Whoever guesses right gets a bonus hot video from that night!” Cheers erupted below the stage. “Damn, that’s intense! Not a stitch of clothing, clear as day!” “Hotter than a porn cover. Just one look and I’m burning up!” Sue also picked one up, glanced at it with disgust, and tossed it aside. A photo drifted down in front of me. I picked it up, and with just one glance, I was seeing red with rage. These people are insane! I’ll let you know soon enough what happens when you dare to touch a Jiang. The men below scrambled for my sister’s photos like hungry wolves, cash slapping onto the tables. Red-eyed, they placed their bets, as if auctioning off livestock. I sat in the shadows, rubbing my wine glass, watching this absurd gamble with cold eyes. My assistant hadn’t returned yet. Just a little longer… “Bets closed!” The dealer’s voice cut through the noise. “Now, please welcome the professionals to reveal the answer to this bet!” Several people in white coats rushed onto the stage with instruments. Without a word, they clamped down on my sister’s arm, a needle glinting coldly as it aimed for her skin. “Get away!” My always-weak sister suddenly turned fierce. She yanked herself free, her nails scratching a bloody streak across the other person’s face. “Where is Chris Sheng? Tell him to get his ass out here! If I lose a single hair tonight, this shitty club of yours will be shut down tomorrow!” My sister screamed herself hoarse, and everyone roared with laughter. Sue covered her mouth, laughing so hard she shook: “Oh my, is our eldest Miss Jiang still dreaming?” She suddenly grabbed my sister’s hair and whispered into her ear: “You forgot, Chris is my biological brother. He bankrupted the Jiang family long ago. Where do you get the nerve to shout here?” Already at the stage, ready to rescue my sister, I was startled. Chris’s sister? The Jiang family bankrupt? How did I not know about this? Lucas pulled Sue into his arms. “Why waste your breath talking to her?” He turned to the white coats and said, “Hurry up, don’t waste time!” Just as the needle tip touched my sister’s skin, the dealer beside them turned pale with fright. He suddenly bellowed: “Stop!” Chapter 2 Everyone was startled, and I also stopped my movements. Trembling, he pulled a green jade seal from my sister’s waist, cold sweat instantly soaking his back: “The… The Cloud-Water Seal?!” In shock, he pressed the highest priority call button in the nightclub. “Mr. Sheng, the Cloud-Water Seal has appeared. Please come and verify its authenticity!” Lucas’s face involuntarily darkened, and even Sue in his arms fell silent. Chris Sheng, the “Mr. Sheng” they spoke of, was just an adopted son of my father. In terms of age, he’d have to call me Big Sister. Knowing this was his territory, my tense nerves relaxed slightly. I waited calmly for my assistant to return. Not long after, Chris’s personal secretary, Bella Miao, arrived. “Mr. Sheng will be here shortly. Let me assess the situation first!” Just as her fingertips touched the seal, Sue in Lucas’s arms suddenly laughed delicately: “What a coincidence. I have one of those piece-of-crap things too!” She pulled a brocade box from her handbag. The moment the box popped open, the whole room was in an uproar. Two identical Cloud-Water Seals. “Hers has a crack!” Sue’s red lips parted slightly. “It’s a fake.” My sister cried out urgently, “My sister gave this to me personally. How could it be fake?” “I am the biological sister of Aria Jiang!” As soon as she finished speaking, Sue laughed. “I’ve lived in the Jiang house for so many years and I’ve never seen you have a sister. You really are a habitual liar, even fabricating that you have a sister!” After examining the seal, Bella respectfully returned Sue’s seal and smoothly picked up on Sue’s words. “Aria Jiang?” A look of disdain appeared on Bella’s face, as if hearing a joke. “I’ve never heard of such a person.” “Since the real Cloud-Water Seal is in Miss Locke’s hands, then it’s not our place to interfere with this Ms. Jiang’s affairs. You guys carry on.” With that, Bella stood aside, acting as if it was none of her business. The men instantly exploded: “Hurry up and test! I bet a hundred grand that she’s carrying my seed!” “After the test, everyone gets a turn for a taste.” The men were instantly like flies to blood. Some even started unbuckling their belts: “I’m upping the ante! After the test, I’m digging straight in!” The white coats pinned my sister down on the stage again. The needle glinted coldly, stabbing straight toward my sister’s pale skin. My assistant hadn’t returned yet, but I couldn’t care about that anymore. “Stop!” I leaped onto the awards stage and kicked over the metal instrument tray. Bella’s pupils shrank sharply: “Where did this crazy woman come from, daring to smash Mr. Sheng’s place?!” I smiled coldly. “Jiang family. Aria Jiang.” Chapter 3 Dead silence filled the venue. But the silence lasted only a second. “Hahaha—” The entire hall erupted in deafening mockery; some even laughed until they cried. “Aria Jiang? You?” “That’s the legendary big shot who could turn Capital City upside down! No news for years, how could she possibly show up here?” Sue covered her belly, laughing so hard she trembled. “Mia, which troupe did you hire this actress from? Her acting is quite something!” Lucas frowned, his gaze full of disgust. “Mia, get this impostor out of here quickly. Aren’t you embarrassed enough?” My sister grabbed me tightly, her eyes full of unbelieving excitement. The veins on my forehead throbbed, and I barely suppressed my raging anger: “When Chris gets here, the truth will naturally be revealed!” I pulled my sister behind me, my eyes sharp as knives. “Before then, whoever dares to touch a hair on her head, I’ll chop off their hand!” Sue covered her mouth and sneered sarcastically: “Oh, the acting is quite convincing. If Aria Jiang really were here, she’d be surrounded by an entourage. How could it just be you alone?” Out of the corner of my eye, I glanced at the bodyguard team squeezed into the corner, a cold smile curling the corner of my mouth. “Let Chris come out and speak! I want to ask him if he still respects me as his elder sister!” Bella narrowed her eyes, looking me up and down, a sneer curling her red lips: “Who do you think you are? Daring to call Mr. Sheng by his full name? You really don’t know your place!” She slowly turned the jade bracelet on her wrist, her voice suddenly dropping low: “Men, take her down!” “I want to see just how much you really weigh!” Hearing this, several burly men smiled greedily, their voices full of malicious teasing. “Yes! Bella, we’ll ensure she’s stripped clean, weighed inside and out, all clear for you!” Saying this, their hands reached out toward us sisters. I slapped the approaching man on the face. “How dare you! Do you want to die?! Do you know the consequences of touching me?” The man’s head snapped to the side from my slap. His eyes suddenly turned vicious, and he choked me violently. “Stupid bitch, I give you face and you take it for granted, huh?” “Today, in front of everyone, I’m gonna teach you what the rules are!” A roar of laughter erupted around us. Several men surrounded us maliciously; someone even pulled out their phone to record. My sister cried out, trying to rush over, but Sue grabbed her hair and shoved her hard onto the floor. “Mia, where did you find these people? Are they brain-damaged, daring to act wild here?” “You play the innocent rich girl so well, but who knows whose bastard is in that belly!” With that, Sue slapped my sister across the face, drawing blood from the corner of her mouth. I violently kicked away the man beside me, trying to save her, but several thick arms pinned me down tightly. My bodyguards were blocked by the chaotic crowd on the periphery, unable to move a step. “Tsk tsk, the impostor’s addicted to acting?” Sue stepped with her high heels, the tip of her shoe pressing against my sister’s chin. “Kneel down and kowtow three times, and I might ask Bella to let your fake sister go.” My sister looked at Lucas with tears in her eyes, her voice trembling: “Lucas, she really is my biological sister. If you touch her, you’ll all regret it…” Lucas adjusted his cuffs coldly, his eyes looking at them like a pile of garbage: “If it weren’t for you, where would all this trouble come from? Hurry up and apologize to Sue.” “Kowtow! If you don’t kowtow, we’ll strip her naked right now!” The men laughed savagely, reaching for my collar. “I’ll kowtow!” My sister’s knees hit the marble floor heavily. Her forehead pressed against the cold marble. “Please, don’t touch my sister…” I watched as she slammed her forehead against the floor again and again. Every time she kowtowed, it felt like a sharp knife was carving out a piece of my heart. My assistant still hadn’t returned, and the bodyguards at the door were abnormally quiet. This was clearly wrong. Bella looked at my exquisite and beautiful face, a flash of jealousy in her eyes. She had pulled out a scalpel at some point, the blade pressing against my face. “Such a pretty face. I wonder if Mr. Sheng would still recognize it if it were sliced up?” “Don’t touch my sister!” My sister suddenly struggled. “Chris will make your life a living hell!” “You really think you’re still the eldest Miss Jiang. Too bad the Jiang family name doesn’t belong to Jiang anymore.” Mocking my sister, Bella pressed the blade into my face. Warm blood slid down my neck. Just as she was about to slice again. The main doors crashed open, and Chris entered with a team of subordinates. His gaze swept over my sister’s bloodstained forehead and the wound on my face. The atmospheric pressure in the room dropped instantly to freezing point. Chapter 4 “Chris,” my sister’s eyes lit up. “Tell them to let go of Big Sister!” Chris’s gloomy gaze swept across the venue, finally landing on Bella: “What’s going on?” Bella immediately put on an aggrieved expression. “Chris, look, this woman brought a fake seal to impersonate your sister.” Chris then looked at my sister, his eyes full of disgust: “Mia, how long are you going to keep making a scene? Sue has been tolerating you at every turn, but you just keep pushing your luck?” “Tolerating?” My sister trembled with anger. “They humiliated me in public and said Big Sister’s seal was fake, and you say I’m pushing my luck?” “You promised Big Sister you’d take care of me! And now you’re helping an outsider bully me?” “Outsider?” Sue smugly took Chris’s arm. “I’m his biological sister! What are you?” My face covered in blood, I stared coldly at Chris. He was focused only on comforting Sue. My sister looked anxious, pointing at me and saying, “Big Sister has returned. How will you explain this to her now?” Chris finally looked at me. The moment he saw my face clearly, a flash of surprise crossed his eyes, but he quickly reverted to indifference: “Mia, your sister died a long time ago. Getting a body double to act is boring.” I couldn’t help but sneer. So the dog my family raised actually learned to bite when its master wasn’t looking. “Chris Sheng, you really throw your weight around!” Hearing the familiar voice, Chris’s pupils contracted violently, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. He lifted my chin with trembling fingers, examining me closely for a long time. His eyes were filled with thick, unresolvable emotions. For a long while, he gently touched the wound on my face and sighed deeply. “This face is really like her… What a pity. If not for this scar, I could have let you follow me.” “But now, it’s useless.” There was sorrow on his face, as if through me, he was remembering someone he loved but couldn’t have. “No matter how alike you are, what’s the use? She’s gone…” With that, he closed his eyes. “Bella, you handle it.” Bella had a sarcastic smile on her face, as if she saw me as a joke. She raised her hand and snapped her fingers. Several burly men immediately tore open my collar. My sister was roughly pinned onto a card table, chips scattering on the floor with a clatter. At this moment, the gilded gates of the grand hall crashed down with a loud bang. My assistant stood against the light, a dark mass of people behind him surging in like a tide. He had wounds on his face and said apologetically, “Sorry, Miss Jiang. There was… a delay on the way.”

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “388871”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

I woke up the day after my divorce was finalized with no memory of the past ten years. Later, my ex-husband, Asher, found me. He said that if I stopped acting crazy every day, he might consider remarrying me. I froze, biting down on my ice cream spoon. After a long pause, I finally spoke: “Let’s not! I… I… I’m actually perfectly fine just taking the money.” Chapter 1 When I woke up, my best friend, Chloe, was looking at me with a worried expression. She told me not to be sad. She said my body belonged to me, and even though I was divorced, I still had to live well. She said the kids wouldn’t be mistreated living with Asher, and there was no need for me to fight another lawsuit, especially since I wouldn’t win. I stared blankly for a long time before I couldn’t help but ask: “Who is Asher?” Chloe froze, looking completely baffled. After a long moment, she snapped out of it and ran to call the doctor. The doctor said I had amnesia from the car accident. Chloe hurriedly asked me how old I thought I was. I thought about it: “Eighteen! Didn’t I just finish my SATs yesterday?” Chloe burst out laughing, squatting on the floor clutching her stomach, pounding the bed with her fist. “Eve, you are amazing! This amnesia is fantastic! Yes, you are eighteen! Eighteen is great! No Asher, no kids… just the two of us…” I was even more confused. Chapter 2 Chloe took me home. Once it was confirmed that my memory was unlikely to return soon, she gave me a brief rundown of my current situation. I, Evelyn Vance, fell in love during my freshman year of college and met a poor boy named Asher Sterling. I dated Asher for ten years, from eighteen to twenty-eight. I accompanied him through his startup, ate ramen and leftovers with him, bore him children, and took care of his parents. Then, this year, he fought a lawsuit to divorce me. “??? What?” I was shocked. What kind of melodramatic tragedy was this? After a long while, I asked with a trembling voice: “So, you’re saying I served someone like a servant for ten years, and at twenty-eight, I was kicked out?” Chloe nodded: “Yes. You also have two children, a son who is six and a daughter who is four. But because you were a housewife with no earning capacity, and both children chose to live with their father, custody was awarded to Asher.” “…What??? The two children I worked so hard to raise are gone…” Although I hadn’t experienced any of this in my memory, it sounded terrifying. I was almost scared to tears. Then Chloe laughed and patted my shoulder: “Don’t be too sad. At least you still have money.” Tears swirled in my eyes as I tentatively asked: “How much?” Chloe sat up straight: “Eve, listen carefully. You got 20% of Asher’s assets, 10% shares in three listed companies, and two brownstones in Manhattan. The total value is about 270 million dollars.” “…” Silence. Thought. Then I tentatively asked: “Chloe, you’re not lying to me, are you?” “If I’m lying, I’m a dog.” That day, I stared dazedly at the sky outside the window. I had forgotten ten years of memories. I didn’t know how I had lived those ten years. But Chloe said I was rich. And at eighteen, what I loved most was money. So I figured this wasn’t too bad. Chapter 3 Chloe took time off work. For the next few days, she took me around to transfer various assets. I didn’t see the Asher person Chloe talked about. He had delegated all the divorce property division matters to his lawyers. We were busy for nearly a month. Later, Chloe helped me list all the properties under my name for rent. She calculated for me that the monthly rent would be around 170,000 dollars. That day, looking at the countless zeros in my bank account, I looked up at the mirror to see my exquisite twenty-eight-year-old self. I scratched my head. Not bad. Chapter 4 I had nothing to do at home, but Chloe had to work. I spent every day at Chloe’s place playing video games. When Chloe ordered takeout for lunch, she ordered for me too. Chloe got off work very late. When she came back at night, she was half-dead, collapsing onto the sofa lifelessly. I would drop my game controller and massage her shoulders. Perhaps due to muscle memory, I was excellent at massaging. After resting enough, Chloe started lamenting: “Asher is a freaking animal. Right after graduation, you worked for him for free. His mother was in poor health, and after work, you had to massage her back and shoulders.” “…” As she spoke, Chloe pulled me over and flicked my forehead: “Eve, you’re just spineless. When I’m not around, you let them bully you. That group of people just bullied you because you were an unloved child.” I rubbed my head, feeling a bit wronged: “I don’t remember any of what you said! I only remember you.” Chloe stopped talking, then laughed: “That’s right! You don’t remember. It’s better not to remember. Just remember me. I won’t bully you.” I believed Chloe because we grew up together. We both grew up in a foster home. When we were very young, I followed Chloe around. Chloe snatched snacks for me and helped me wash clothes. Later, when we grew up a bit, Chloe tutored me. She was a year older than me. When I was a senior in high school, she was a freshman in college. She called me every day, telling me to work hard. She wanted me to go to the same university as her, but Chloe scored too high. I studied myself to death, but I still couldn’t get into an Ivy League. The day the results came out, I hugged Chloe and cried. Chloe flicked my forehead: “What are you crying for? 1450 on the SATs, such an amazing score, what’s there to cry about?” She patted my head: “It’s already very good.” Later, I went to New York crying. Chapter 5 Chloe regretted it whenever she talked about it. She said she shouldn’t have let me go to New York: “If you hadn’t gone to New York, you wouldn’t have met Asher. If you hadn’t met Asher…” I interrupted: “Then I wouldn’t have these 270 million dollars.” Chloe put her hands on her hips: “Is money more important or your ten years?” I tried to guess the correct answer: “Money?” Chloe looked at me like iron that failed to become steel: “You are important! If you’re not happy, no amount of money is useful. Luckily you have amnesia, otherwise if you couldn’t think straight and did something foolish, what use would that money be?” “Hmm… buy me a nice cemetery plot…” Chloe laughed angrily: “Get lost!” “…” Chloe had always been amazing, and she was still amazing now. She was the general manager of a multinational corporation, with a monthly salary of around 60,000 dollars. But she was busy. Sometimes she had to travel for business and was worried about leaving me alone. So she took me along. Later, she figured since she was taking me everywhere anyway, why spend her own money? She hired me into her company as her assistant. I was familiar with this! I had read dozens of books about domineering CEOs falling in love with their little assistants in the past few months. On the first day, I wore a pencil skirt and went to work full of confidence. I made her coffee, organized her materials, and ran around. I looked very hardworking. Later, she laughed and told me to stop running. She gave me a spreadsheet: “Let Anna guide you. Work on this. Learn slowly, no rush.” “Okay, okay.” And just like that, I officially started working.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “388870”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel