It was Daniel Harper’s mother’s fiftieth birthday, and his female assistant, Tiffany, suddenly sent me a picture. The photo showed Daniel’s mother locked in a dog cage, her teeth all pulled out, her mouth bloody. I immediately called Tiffany: “Tiffany, what are you doing?!” Tiffany chuckled coldly. “You have the nerve to ask? Daniel just opened a new restaurant, and your mother immediately shows up to freeload? Are you that desperate?” “Let me tell you, Daniel gave this restaurant to me. If you want to take advantage, this is what happens!” I gasped in disbelief. “Are you insane? That’s Daniel’s mother!” Tiffany sounded completely unfazed. “Daniel said that even though he married you, he never considered your mother his family.” Daniel loved his mother deeply. No wonder Tiffany dared to do this to Daniel’s mother – she thought it was my mother? Tiffany hung up right after saying that. I didn’t dare waste a second and immediately called Daniel. “Daniel, your mom was hurt by Tiffany, you need to go…” “Alright, I know what you’re going to say.” Daniel cut me off, his voice chilling. “I think Tiffany’s lesson was well-deserved.” I froze. “What did you say?” Daniel sighed, sounding exasperated. “Scarlett, we might be married, but your mother needs to learn some basic boundaries. She can’t just keep looking for handouts and trying to scam me.” I started to panic. “You’ve got it all wrong, that’s your…” “Enough!” Daniel snapped impatiently. “So what? I’m not obligated to tolerate her greed.” “She dares to scrounge for food at the restaurant today; tomorrow she’ll show up at my company asking for money.” “Tiffany teaching her a lesson, making her remember, is actually for her own good.” Daniel’s words instantly froze my frantic heart. My mother, though from a rural background, had always been kind and honest her entire life. She’d never taken advantage of anyone and had given everything to Daniel. When Daniel was starting his business and short on funds, my mother didn’t hesitate to give him all the retirement savings she’d accumulated over a lifetime. Knowing he had a sensitive stomach, my mother, no matter how busy, would make time to prepare various stomach-friendly foods and travel a long way to the city to deliver them. Yet, this simple, kind elderly woman who treated him like her own son had become, in Daniel’s eyes, a greedy wretch with no boundaries who deserved to be taught a lesson. My heart ached with desolation, and my voice turned distant. “Daniel, I suggest you go to the restaurant and check on your mother. After all, it wasn’t easy for her to raise you.” Daniel exploded. “Scarlett, are you out of your mind? When did your mother ever raise me?” “No wonder Tiffany couldn’t help but teach your mother a lesson. With a daughter like you, she deserved to be hit!” “Today is my mother’s fiftieth birthday. I’m still preparing her party, I don’t have time for your messy nonsense.” “If you have any conscience at all, stay out of this and let your mother learn her lesson.” With that, Daniel abruptly hung up. A few seconds later, he sent me a text message: “In an hour, my mother’s birthday party will start promptly at the Marriott Hotel. Get dressed and come over. Don’t embarrass me like your mother.” I didn’t say anything more, just silently texted back: “Okay.” Since you, her son, are telling me to mind my own business, then why should I worry?

An hour later, I changed my clothes and arrived at the Marriott Hotel. The entire banquet hall was meticulously decorated, filled with flowers, balloons, and gifts everywhere. It was clear that Daniel truly valued his mother; he had put a lot of thought into her birthday. Daniel’s family, friends, and all the partners of Harper Group were there. Daniel was busy greeting them, occasionally checking his watch and glancing towards the entrance, seemingly waiting for his mother’s arrival. Tiffany, dressed in a delicate dress, was laughing and chatting with Daniel’s sister, Brittany. Seeing me walk into the banquet hall, the two exchanged a look and walked towards me together. Tiffany sneered. “Well, well, isn’t this the good daughter who lets her mother go out scrounging for food?” “Are you planning to pack up some good stuff for your greedy mother to try today?” Brittany looked at me with an expression of disgust. “Scarlett, you’re married to Daniel now. Can you please drop your family’s cheap habits and stop embarrassing the Harper family?” “Anyone who doesn’t know us might think the Harper family is raising a bunch of beggars!” Hearing their chatter, the guests in the room began to speak up with disdain. “When I arrived, I heard someone was freeloading at Cloud Haven Restaurant today. I wondered how anyone could be so shameless these days. Turns out it was Scarlett’s mother!” “I heard her mother was brutally taught a lesson by Assistant Tiffany, and her teeth were all pulled out!” “That kind of person totally deserved it! If she can’t behave herself, fine, but to embarrass the Harper family? Having her teeth pulled is getting off easy.” “Exactly, if she isn’t taught a harsh lesson, what if she goes out and humiliates them again later?” Hearing the mockery from the crowd, Daniel’s face darkened considerably. He walked up to me, looking down with cold disdain. “Scarlett, today is my mother’s fiftieth birthday. If her mood is ruined because of your mother’s ridiculous mess, I swear I won’t let you get away with it – or your clueless mother!” His words were incredibly harsh, and I found them utterly ridiculous. “Daniel, if you truly care about your mother, you should go check on her at the restaurant.” Daniel frowned. “What would I go to the restaurant to see?” “Your mother throwing a tantrum?” “Or seeing her make a fool of herself?” “Scarlett, stop disgusting me with your mother’s affairs!” Brittany lifted her chin, echoing him contemptuously. “Exactly, it’s our mother’s birthday today. Is your mother’s trivial mess really worth Daniel’s time?” “If you ask me, she should be locked in the restaurant and starved for a few days, so she learns what proper behavior is.” “Save her from truly believing that just because you married into the Harper family, your whole family gets to live the good life.” Tiffany looked at me smugly. “Scarlett, I know you care about your mother. Don’t worry, I just taught her a little lesson to make her remember the rules. I didn’t actually do anything to her.” The moment her voice faded, Mr. Harrison, the manager of Cloud Haven Restaurant, rushed into the banquet hall, breathless. “Tiffany, bad news.” “The old lady locked in the dog cage… she’s dead!”

Mr. Harrison’s words instantly sent the entire banquet hall into an uproar. Tiffany herself was frantic, demanding. “What happened?!” Mr. Harrison panted. “We followed your instructions, pulled out her teeth, and locked her in the dog cage, and we didn’t check on her at all.” “Who knew the old lady had a heart condition? Not long after you left, she started clutching her chest, struggling to breathe, and then she was gone.” Hearing this, Tiffany’s body went limp, and she almost collapsed. Daniel quickly caught her, comforting her. “Tiffany, don’t be scared.” “This is just Scarlett’s mother having poor health. It has nothing to do with you.” Brittany also recovered and immediately nodded in agreement. “That’s right, Tiffany, you can’t be blamed for this. Blame that old woman herself for being so frail and still going out to cause trouble.” “If you ask me, she deserved to die. Saves her from embarrassing the Harper family again.” Seeing Daniel and Brittany side with Tiffany, the previously shocked guests quickly chose their stance. “That’s right, people who love to take advantage like that are just parasites on society.” “Assistant Tiffany was doing a good thing. There’s nothing to be afraid of.” “Exactly, who told her to go eat free food first? With her bad heart, she still went out looking for trouble. Wasn’t she just asking for it?” Suddenly, everyone was comforting Tiffany. As if she, the perpetrator, was the one who had suffered, not the poor deceased. Seeing everyone on her side, a flicker of triumph crossed Tiffany’s eyes. But the next second, she shyly glanced at me and spoke weakly to Daniel. “But Daniel, the person who died is Scarlett’s mother after all. What if she comes after me?” Daniel looked at her with tenderness. “Don’t worry, with me here, no one will hurt you.” With that, Daniel immediately instructed someone to draft a waiver of liability and handed it to me. “Scarlett, your mother was in the wrong first. If she died, it’s her own bad luck; you can’t blame Tiffany.” “For the sake of our marriage, I’ll arrange a lavish funeral for your mother.” “But you must sign this waiver, promising to let this matter end here and not cause trouble for Tiffany.” Brittany, arms crossed, spoke condescendingly. “Scarlett, your mother brought this on herself. Don’t even think about framing Tiffany. Be smart and sign the waiver.” The siblings arrogantly commanded me, waiting for me to sign the waiver. But I pushed the waiver back to them, speaking calmly. “If anyone’s signing, it should be you. I’m not qualified.”

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When I was eighteen, I caught a cash-strapped college kid named Lucas stealing pigs from our family farm. To keep Lucas in school, I was up before dawn daily feeding the hogs and shoveling manure. I even sold the gold bracelet my mom left me. He knelt by the pigpen and vowed: “Aria, when I make it big, I’ll make you the most cherished wife.” Seven years later, Lucas was a tech tycoon with a publicly traded company, worth hundreds of millions. But the day before our wedding, a girl who bore a 70% resemblance to me showed up at my door. She wore the exact same wedding dress as mine, pinching her nose in disgust: “Lucas always said you smell like pig slop. He’s put up with that stench for seven years and can barely stand it anymore.” “Watching you wallow in the mud with those sows all these years—it’s just pathetic and ridiculous.” “Here’s a $100,000 check. Take it and go back to your filthy pig farm. Don’t ruin my wedding to Lucas.” Staring at that check, I didn’t cry or cause a scene. I just quietly pulled out my phone, and called my uncle. “Brain, cut off all funding to Lucas’s company. And tell him…” “That core patent he’s so proud of? That’s not his. It clearly has my name written on it.”

“Lucas was right. A lowlife pig farmer like you can be bought off with a little cash. He didn’t even need to come himself.” “Take the money and get out. Don’t let your pig stench ruin tomorrow’s wedding venue.” I bent down to pick up the check—not for the money, but to tear it up and throw it in her face. As soon as she finished speaking, the gate was abruptly pushed open. “Who told you to come here?” Lucas stood there in a tailored suit, his tie hanging crookedly. Beads of sweat dotted his temples—he’d clearly run all the way over. When he saw Vivian standing in front of me, he grabbed her wrist so hard she yelped immediately. Lucas’s voice turned terrifyingly cold: “Tell me! Who told you to come here?” Vivian’s eyes filled with tears as she stared at him in shock. “Lucas, I did this for you! This woman won’t let you move on…” “Shut up!” Lucas shoved her away roughly. In her high heels, Vivian stumbled backward, nearly landing in the feed trough. “Get back in the car. Don’t make me repeat myself.” Lucas didn’t spare her a glance, his eyes fixed on me. Vivian shot me a venomous look, but ultimately feared Lucas’s anger and awkwardly climbed back into the car. The yard fell silent, except for the occasional oinks from the pigpen. Lucas took a deep breath and turned to face me. His previously fierce expression softened instantly, even taking on a hint of nervous ingratiate. He stepped closer, trying to take my hand, but I stepped out of his reach. Lucas’s hand froze mid-air. He gave a helpless, bitter smile: “Aria, don’t listen to her nonsense.” “I never wanted to drive you away, and I’ve never been disgusted by how you smell.” He pulled out a handkerchief and took my hand, carefully wiping the dirt from between my fingers. “You know the company’s about to go public. I need the resources Vivian’s family can provide.” “Marrying her is just a temporary measure—she’s basically a prop.” “In my heart, you’re the only woman who’ll ever be my wife.” I looked up at his face. Seven years had refined him into someone increasingly handsome. He was no longer that poor kid cramming vocabulary by the pigpen. And I was still Aria, the one who’d been shoveling pig manure behind him for seven years. The affection in his eyes seemed so genuine. So genuine that if Vivian hadn’t shown up today, I might have almost fallen for it. “What exactly are you trying to say?” I asked flatly. Lucas thought I was warming up to him. A flicker of hope crossed his face. He immediately pulled a velvet box from his jacket. Inside was a diamond ring the size of a pigeon’s egg. “I bought you a downtown penthouse. It’s in your name.” “Once I marry Vivian and lock in her family’s investment, I’ll push her to the side.” “You’ll still be my only wife—we’ll just skip the marriage certificate.” He leaned down, his warm breath brushing my ear, his voice cajoling. “Aria, you know I can’t live without you. But I also can’t lose the company.” “Just do this for me—compromise a little, please?”

Compromise a little. Lucas made it sound so easy. Seven years ago, he’d said: “Aria, just keep raising pigs a little longer until I make it big.” Seven years later, he said: “Aria, just be my secret lover for a while. Once I’m done with Vivian’s family, I’ll come back to you.” He reached out to ruffle my hair, the way he used to when he wanted me to buy him new sneakers. Lucas, even the old sow in the pigpen would get tired of your manipulations. “You want me to be your side piece?” I looked into his eyes, my voice steady—surprisingly so, even to myself. Lucas frowned slightly, clearly not liking the term “side piece.” “Side piece? That sounds terrible.” He walked to the window, looking annoyed, and lit a cigarette. Through the smoke, his expression was hazy, but his words dripped with entitlement. “Aria, you’re a smart woman. You know in today’s world, it’s all about who you know.” “But when it comes to feelings? I only have eyes for you.” “That Vivian—she’s got money, but she’s not worth one of your fingers. She’s just a hollow copy of you.” He turned around and pointed at the check on the coffee table. “Keep the hundred grand Vivian gave you—think of it as walking-around money.” “The condo I’m giving you is worth twenty million, plus an unlimited credit card.” “Quit the pig farm. Shut it down.” “That dirty, backbreaking work isn’t for you.” “Just stay in the condo, take up flower arranging, get spa treatments, and wait for me to come home. Doesn’t that sound better?” He said it so earnestly, like he was offering me some amazing gift. In his mind, pulling me out of the pigpen and locking me in a gilded cage was saving me. I couldn’t help but laugh. Seven years ago, when he made that vow by the pigpen, he’d worn the exact same expression. Now that he had money, the first thing he offered me was to be his secret lover. “Lucas, do you honestly think I’d be stuck in the mud without you?” Lucas hesitated, then put out his cigarette and pulled me into a hug. “Aria, don’t be ridiculous. You only have a high school diploma. What else can you do besides raise pigs?” “The world out there is tough. Without me looking out for you, people will eat you alive.” “Tomorrow’s wedding will be packed. I don’t want Vivian’s family giving you a hard time.” “I’m doing this to keep you safe.” Protect me? Was he protecting his wedding from disruption, or keeping me as his fool? Looking into those so-called loving eyes, the tight string I’d held for seven years suddenly snapped. “Fine.” The worry in Lucas’s eyes vanished instantly, replaced by a satisfied grin. He bent down and kissed my forehead, like rewarding a well-behaved pet. “I knew it—Aria’s always so reasonable.” “After the wedding, I’ll come stay with you.” “We’ll go to the Maldives, just the two of us.” In high spirits, he grabbed his jacket, like he’d just wrapped up a big deal. “I still have a meeting. The driver’s downstairs to help you move.” “Make sure to throw out all those old clothes. I bought you new ones.” After speaking, he tried to lean in for another forehead kiss. I stepped back, avoiding his advance. “Fine, you’re still upset. I won’t push it.” He turned and strode toward his Maybach, and I stood watching the taillights disappear around the bend. I crumpled the hundred-thousand-dollar check in my hand into a ball. Lucas, you really didn’t let me down. You’re even more rotten than I thought.

The next morning, I got a call from an unknown number. It was Vivian. “Aria, Lucas said you agreed to be his side piece?” On the other end, her voice dripped with triumphant arrogance: “Since you’re the other woman, you should know your place.” “Come to the downtown bridal shop. I have something for you to do.” She hung up before I could respond. I stared at my phone, a cold smile tugging at my lips. Perfect. I wanted to see what other tricks this pair of scumbags had up their sleeves. As soon as I walked in, I saw Lucas helping Vivian try on wedding dresses. Vivian wore a million-dollar mermaid gown, preening in front of the mirror. Lucas sat on the nearby sofa,furrowed his brow, clearly bored. When he saw me enter, he jumped to his feet, panic flashing in his eyes. “Who told you to come? Didn’t I tell you to wait at home?” “Do you think this is the kind of place you belong?” He spoke while nervously glancing at Vivian, afraid she’d blow up right there. The classic cheater move—trying to keep his wife and mistress separate. He played the part perfectly. “I’m the one who called her.” Vivian lifted her skirt and walked over, wearing a smug smile. “Lucas, since you can’t bear to get rid of this country bumpkin, why not make her my bridesmaid?” “Let her watch our happiness firsthand. That way she’ll learn her place faster, don’t you think?” Lucas’s face darkened significantly: “Vivian, knock it off. Aria doesn’t know anything about this.” Vivian latched onto Lucas’s arm, pouting while shooting me a provocative gaze. “Aria, don’t you love Lucas? If you do, can’t you handle this little compromise?” Lucas, clearly fed up, looked at me helplessly: “Aria, since Vivian’s set on this, maybe you should…” “Just do me this favor.” He leaned close to my ear, speaking so only we could hear: “Seeing you in a bridesmaid dress will tide me over. Then tonight I’ll come to your place and make it up to you properly.” Absolutely revolting. Looking at Lucas’s two-faced hypocrisy, I agreed without hesitation. “Sure.” “Since you’re both so eager, I’ll definitely play along.” Lucas froze, clearly surprised by my willingness. A glint of victory flashed in his eyes. He thought I was still that Aria who loved him desperately, willing to endure any humiliation for him. Vivian pointed to the corner: “There, that’s yours. Go change.” “Don’t let your filth ruin my clothes—they’re imported.” I took the dress and headed for the fitting room. Looking at the cheap, neon green dress in the mirror, I smiled coldly. But I put it on anyway and pushed open the door. Sure enough, Vivian doubled over laughing, holding up her phone to take pictures: “Oh my god, it’s perfect on you! Don’t you look just like a green worm crawling out of a garden?” Disgust flashed in Lucas’s eyes. He waved dismissively. “Take it off. Keep the dress and bring it to the venue yourself tomorrow.” He pulled a slip of paper from his pocket and tossed it to me: “This is the condo address. The code is your birthday.” “Don’t go wandering around, and definitely don’t go back to the pig farm. I don’t want you bringing that smell with you.” I silently picked up the paper and changed back into my clothes. Lucas. Vivian. Laugh all you want. Because after tonight, neither of you will ever laugh again.

The condo Lucas prepared for me was definitely luxurious. A 2,000-square-foot river-view unit with fancy decor. The walk-in closet was filled with the season’s latest styles. Even the vanity was covered with expensive skincare products I’d never normally dream of buying. If I were some ordinary girl, I might have cried tears of joy. I might have gladly become his lifelong mistress. That night at ten, Lucas arrived, reeking of alcohol. As soon as he walked in, he wrapped his arms around me from behind. “Aria, do you like it?” He buried his face in my neck: “Tomorrow at the wedding, don’t look at me, okay? Not even once.” “Because I’ll weaken. I’ll want to take you away.” “But I can’t.” He closed his eyes dramatically, like he was having some epic internal battle. “For our future, I have to marry Vivian.” “Aria, do you get what I’m going through?” Watching this display of supposed devotion, I just felt sick. Wanting to be a player while acting like a saint—that summed Lucas up perfectly. “Lucas.” I gently pushed him away and picked up the document he’d tossed casually on the table. It was a prenuptial property agreement. But not between him and Vivian—between him and me. Titled as a gift, it was really a contract of servitude. The agreement stated that while the condo was in my name, it was fully mortgaged, with Lucas’s company as the lender. If I violated the terms, the condo would be immediately repossessed, and I’d be stuck with massive debt. Even more absurd was a clause at the end: [The female party must unconditionally cooperate with the male party’s technical research and development needs, including but not limited to providing inspiration and organizing data.] So he didn’t just want my body—he wanted my mind too. He’d long suspected that the company’s key technical breakthroughs were connected to me. But he refused to admit that Aria the pig farmer was his technological savior. He’d rather believe it was my “inspiration”—a resource he could exploit whenever he wanted. “Lucas, do you really love me?” I held up the agreement. Lucas’s eyes shifted, then he stepped over and took my hand. “Of course I love you. If I didn’t, why would I give you all this?” “Sign it, Aria. Then we can be together forever.” He pressed a pen into my hand, watching eagerly. In Lucas’s mind, I was like that old sow back in the pigpen. Useful for breeding when alive, good for meat when dead. He wanted to squeeze every last drop of value from me, leaving nothing behind. “Okay, I’ll sign.” I bent my head and scribbled on the agreement. But it wasn’t “Aria.” I drew a little pig. Lucas didn’t look closely. Seeing me put pen to paper, he immediately relaxed, satisfied, and tucked the agreement away. “That’s my girl.” “Get some rest tonight. Wait for my text tomorrow.” He left in a rush, not even staying the night. Probably hurrying back to sweet-talk his fiancée, or eager to lock this “contract of servitude” in his safe. I stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, watching his luxury car vanish into the night. I pulled out my phone and called Brain. “Tomorrow at ten in the morning, I’m going to Lucas’s wedding.” Lucas and Vivian’s wedding was at the Peninsula Hotel, the fanciest in the city. I heard they’d flown in dozens of tons of fresh flowers, and the champagne tower was taller than a person. All of River City’s elite showed up. Media cameras lined the entrance. Vivian clung to Lucas’s arm at the door greeting guests, grinning from ear to ear. Truly a match made in heaven—if it weren’t for me. The ceremony time arrived. The emcee on stage passionately told their “love story.” “Mr. Lucas and Miss Vivian met in humble beginnings, childhood sweethearts who grew up together…” Thunderous applause broke out below. Lucas looked at Vivian with deep affection, about to exchange rings. “Wait.”

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On New Year’s Eve, while my mother-in-law was pressuring me to have a second child, my husband’s female assistant, Chloe, showed up uninvited, holding a baby. “Aurora saved my life,” Chloe announced dramatically. “I gave birth to the son you wanted for her! Can’t you stop pressuring her now?” She turned to me then, adding, “Better I stepped up than him running off with some random woman, right? Besides, I didn’t want you going through childbirth pain!” Every eye in the room turned to me—awkward, judgmental stares that burned into my skin. In that sickening moment, it hit me like a slap to the face. But she mistook my shock for blame, and her tears intensified. “To make your marriage happy, he exploited me from the office to the bedroom. And you still blame me?” Blake pulled the sobbing woman into his arms, comforting her. When he looked at me, his eyes were icy. “Chloe’s being so generous she’ll even let you raise our son! How can you be this cold, Aurora? Can’t you at least say thanks?” I was hit with this overwhelming sense of absurdity. I stared at him, my heart turning to ice. He probably didn’t even remember. Everything he had, everything he was—I gave that to him!

Maybe my face looked too stiff, because Blake paused, his tone softening a little. “Aurora, Chloe was practically family. You helped her get out of that small town. Does it really matter who gave birth?” He reached for my hand, his voice gentle but unyielding. “Let’s not make this worse than it has to be, Aurora. Look at Lily—she’s about to cry because of all this.” I glanced at my daughter beside me. Her little face was red, tears welling in her eyes as she called “Mommy” with a confused, worried frown. In that moment, a dull, belated ache hit my chest. I fought back the emotions threatening to spill over, yanking my hand away from Blake’s grip. “Don’t touch me!” The dining table went completely silent. His face hardened into a cold mask too. “Aurora, if you can’t pull yourself together, I’ll have the driver take you home.” “I’m celebrating New Year’s with my family tonight. I won’t be going with you.” Family? I almost laughed through my tears, glaring at everyone around the table. “None of you have anything to say? Don’t forget—if it weren’t for me, Aurora Hayes, none of you would be here right now!” Years ago, Blake was a nobody—dead broke, going nowhere. I went against everything to be with him, using the Hayes family’s connections and money to build Harrison Corp. into what it is today! Just minutes before, when they were pressuring me for another baby, his parents were all smiles—calling me the family’s savior, even promising Lily a huge gift! But now their tune had changed. His mother, holding their new grandson, scolded me. “Aurora, that’s not true! Blake’s talent is what made the Harrisons successful. What did you really do?” “Harrison Corp. is a major company now. We can’t just have a female heir.” “Honestly, you should be thanking Chloe. She gave us a healthy baby boy—finally, an heir for the Harrison name!” They even went further, picking on Lily. “Lily, sweetie, look at your baby brother! You better be good from now on, or Grandma and Grandpa might only love him and not want you anymore!” My daughter was only five—still little and sensitive. Her lips trembled, and she buried herself in my arms. “Waaah… Mommy, I don’t want a baby brother. Don’t stop loving me.” My heart broke. I held her close, my eyes locked on Blake. “Blake, you’re gonna regret this!” With that, I turned and walked out, no second thoughts. On New Year’s Eve, my husband of six years kicked me out of our house. After finally getting my sobbing daughter to sleep, I let my own tears come. I buried myself in the covers, crying until my chest hurt—heartbroken, silent. Six years. Six long years. From the slums where he had nothing to this big house we lived in now. Yesterday, Blake was inside me, kissing me like crazy, whispering he’d only ever love me. But why? How could that sincerity have been a lie? How could his love flip so fast? My chest hurt so bad I could barely breathe. Then my phone rang. As soon as I answered, I heard Chloe’s soft, teary voice. “Blake… what are you doing? I need to call Aurora and say sorry…” Wet, muffled sounds of them having sex followed, making my blood run cold. I heard Blake laugh, out of breath. “Sorry? She’s so in love with me she can’t function without me. In a couple days, she’ll be crawling back, begging. Chloe, be a good girl and open your legs…” He lowered his voice, every word a knife. “Who else would want a woman who can’t have kids anymore? Is she even still a real woman?” All the blood in my body turned to ice.

I felt like I’d been punched in the gut. My hands shaking, I hung up, only then noticing my face was covered in tears. Betrayed and humiliated by the person I trusted most. He said it himself—I wasn’t even a woman. But he was the one who shielded me with his body when we got in that car crash when I was eight months pregnant. He was coughing up blood, trying to keep me calm. “Aurora, just hold on… we’re gonna be okay.” His blood and tears mixed on my face, burning like acid. “Aurora, this is our first baby—you don’t wanna lose them, right? The ambulance will be here soon…” I fought to stay alive, and Lily was born safe. But the accident meant I could never have more kids. He promised me then, kissing me and telling me over and over, that Lily would be his only child—his whole world. Yet here we were, five years later, and he had a second kid with someone else. I wiped my tears and threw my wedding ring in the trash, hard. Staring at the red-eyed woman in the mirror, I laughed and cried at the same time, couldn’t help wondering. Aurora, what the hell were you even fighting for? You went from a privileged heiress to a wife and mom who gave up everything for her family. And in the end, someone else got all the benefits of my sacrifices! Finally, I called my dad. Taking a deep breath, my voice still cracked with unshed tears. “Dad… I wanna come home.” Dad said he’d be there in two days. But in the middle of the night, Lily spiked a high fever. I had no choice but to call Blake. “Blake! Lily has a fever! The driver…” “Aurora, is this your way of groveling? You’re so desperate you’d wish our kid was sick? Don’t you realize Chloe feels guilty and cried for hours because you left?” Cried for hours? Whether it was guilt or post-sex hormones, only they knew. “You’ll get your status as Mrs. Harrison back when you apologize to Chloe and she forgives you!” He hung up. I bit my jaw, hugging my burning daughter. I walked the streets at night, crying until I had no tears left, finally hailing a cab to the hospital. The next day, after grabbing some food, I found Chloe and Blake by Lily’s hospital bed. I panicked and rushed over, shoving Chloe away. “Don’t touch my daughter!” The next second, a sharp slap hit my face. Blake steadied Chloe, who almost fell, looking disappointed. “Aurora, Chloe found out Lily was sick and talked me into coming. You don’t have to thank her, but shoving her like that?” Chloe frowned, tears filling her eyes, shaking her head hard. “Don’t say that, Blake. It’s all my fault…” My cheek stung where he’d hit me, but I held back tears. The last bit of love I had for him disappeared completely. I begged him for so long, but he didn’t care that our daughter had a high fever. But Chloe says one word, and he comes running. I used to think even if he got tired of me, he’d at least be a good dad. But I was wrong. Lily and I together meant less to him than Chloe. I closed my eyes and pointed to the door. “Both of you get out. You’re not welcome here!” Chloe looked heartbroken. “Aurora, why can’t you forgive me? I know I messed up, back when you were pregnant…” “Chloe! Enough!” Blake cut her off sharply, panic flashing in his eyes. He turned to me with a cold laugh. “Aurora, since you’re so ungrateful, I’ll transfer Lily’s shares to Leo as soon as I get back! You…” He didn’t finish before freezing, like he’d seen a ghost. His pupils shrank, and he grabbed my wrist hard. “Where’s your wedding ring? Aurora, how dare you take off our wedding ring!”

I stared him cold in the eye, every word clear. “I threw it away.” Those wedding rings. He’d made them himself, from a piece of his own bone, after saving me from kidnappers back when he actually loved me. He’d broken ribs and gotten stabbed for me then. He said I was his missing rib—that with me, he was whole. How pathetic. He squeezed my wrist tighter, practically growling the words. “Threw it away? Aurora Hayes, you’re unbelievable!” His face went completely dark. He dialed a number, never taking his eyes off me. “Freeze all of Mrs. Harrison’s assets. No one gives her a single cent! And…” Blake let out a cold laugh, speaking directly to my face. “Transfer Lily’s trust fund to Leo’s name!” My eyes went wide, shocked. “Blake! You wouldn’t dare!” He shrugged off my hand violently, pulling Chloe close with a sneer. “Just watch me! Aurora, this is what happens when you cross me. You think throwing a fit will make me back down?” “Since you refuse to accept Leo as your second child, Lily’s trust fund will go to him as compensation!” I was shaking with anger. Behind me, my daughter still slept with a fever. I couldn’t even protect her shares, and now they were taking her trust fund too! Chloe frowned, pretending to persuade him. “Blake, that’s Aurora’s mom’s inheritance…” Blake stroked her face gently, each word like a knife to my heart. “You’re right. A dead woman’s things are bad luck for Leo’s first birthday gift. Let’s donate it to… St. Jude Hospital instead.” I didn’t know I could scream that loud. Bodyguards held me down. My eyes burned, I bit my cheek till it bled, screaming in agony. “Blake! You can’t—you can’t do this! You know St. Jude Hospital is where my mom died!” I’d suffered countless nights over my mom’s death. Even after making those people pay. Even after Harrison Medical barely survived my family’s retaliation, clinging to life by a thread, I still hated them! And Blake knew all of this, yet he still did this to me! I was sobbing so hard I could barely breathe, my throat closing up. Through my tear-blurred eyes, I thought I saw his expression soften for a second. But then Chloe’s voice cut in, sweet and happy. “Really? Blake… you’re amazing. You remember—that’s where we first met.” Those words shattered whatever was left of my love and hate. I heard Blake hesitate for a second, then laugh, giving in to her. “Of course. Our special place. I’ll keep it forever, and Harrison Medical… will stand strong forever, just like our love.” Lily woke up behind me. She got scared by the scene and started crying. Blake, completely heartless, left with Chloe. His last words were: “Aurora, let’s see how long you can last!” My heart felt completely crushed. He was forcing me—forcing me to accept that bastard, forcing me to take the humiliation of being betrayed by the two people I trusted most! As Lily snuggled into my arms, I got a call from the private investigator my dad had hired. “Ms. Hayes, during my investigation, I found that the car accident five years ago—when you were pregnant—wasn’t an accident. It was deliberate!”

It hit me like a lightning bolt. I swayed, barely staying on my feet. “Who… who did it?” That accident— the one that left me unable to have more kids, that almost took my only daughter. I used to think it proved Blake loved me— how he fought for his life in the ICU to save me. “The investigation shows Blake personally planned that accident.” I almost laughed out loud. My numb, aching heart felt like it was being torn out. The nightmare that haunted me for five years was caused by the man I shared my bed with— my husband. What was he thinking all those times I struggled with depression, thought about ending my life, and tried to find strength in his so-called love? I closed my eyes, too devastated to speak. My dad had already gathered all the evidence, found the weaknesses that would take down Harrison Corp. He told me to wait, that he’d pick me up soon. But I couldn’t wait anymore. I called Chloe. “You really want to lose your son? Let me become his mother instead?” “Aurora, I would never…” I cut her off, my voice cold. “I’ve already sent the divorce papers to you. Whether he signs them is up to you and your ‘talents’.” “And don’t call me Aurora. You make me sick.” That same night, I got the signed divorce papers from Blake. Chloe dropped the act on the phone, sounding triumphant. “Too bad, Aurora. Blake was head over heels for me from the start— the second you brought me here.” “When you were pregnant, he took my virginity right there in his office. He said I gave him something new and exciting.” My stomach twisted. I fought back the nausea. “If he loved you so much, why did he wait until you had a miscarriage, then a child, and still wouldn’t give you the Mrs. Harrison title?” “Guess your ‘love’ isn’t that special after all.” I hung up, ignoring her angry yelling. I picked up Lily. “Lily, Mommy’s taking you to Grandpa’s house, okay?” My daughter hugged my neck, nodding hard. But I didn’t get to leave. After packing our bags, the hospital called. “Hello, is this Ms. Hayes? Further tests show Lily Harrison’s fever is an early symptom of leukemia…” I couldn’t believe it. I rushed my daughter to the hospital, but then bodyguards burst in and grabbed Lily! They pinned me down. I watched helplessly as my daughter cried and struggled while they carried her away. “Aurora, I’m so sorry, but Leo is only one, he’s so little, please save him?” Chloe clung to Blake, sobbing hysterically. Blake avoided my accusing look, just saying: “Leo’s kidneys are failing. Lily’s the only match. Don’t worry, I got the best doctors…” I collapsed to the floor, staring at him in shock. “So you’re gonna make five-year-old Lily donate a kidney? Blake! Lily is your daughter too!” He frowned, annoyed. “I know! But Leo’s my son too! It’s just one kidney— she’ll be fine!” I watched in horror as they gave my daughter anesthesia. No matter how much I begged, apologized, or screamed, nothing worked! I was frantically blocking the operating table, my fingers getting crushed, but I couldn’t stop them. Then a group of bodyguards burst in, kicking the crooked doctor aside and breaking Blake’s wrist with a sickening snap! Blake cried out in pain and fear as a loud, angry voice boomed through the room. “I’d like to see who dares touch my daughter and granddaughter!”

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My best friend Liam gave me a mansion. But not long after I moved in, someone broke in with a knife in the dead of night. “Liam, you framed me, ruined my family, took everything from me! I’m gonna kill you!” I immediately realized I was being set up as a patsy. But before I could even speak, the attacker slit my throat in one quick motion. After police shot the deranged killer dead at the scene, Liam put his arm around my wife Scarlett and strolled over. He smirked, “Thanks for getting rid of that pain in my neck and leaving me your fortune. I’ll enjoy everything you left behind, including your wife. Rest in peace, pal.” Scarlett melted into his embrace, compliant. “Liam, I told you I’d help you take everything he had. I kept my promise. Now you owe me—marry me.” When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day my “brother” gave me that mansion. “Alex, we’ve built so much together over the years. To show my appreciation, I want to give you this mansion.” “You’re a big shot at a public company now, and you and Scarlett deserve a place that matches your status.” Hearing that familiar voice jolted me back to reality. Looking at Liam’s smiling face, I realized I’d been given a second chance. In my past life, just a few nights after accepting Liam’s “gift,” I ended up with my throat slit. Now I saw the truth. He’d purchased that mansion publicly with reporters watching to expose its location, then secretly transferred ownership to me. All to make me his fall guy. That way, he could have his enemy commit murder while seizing everything I owned. A perfect two-for-one deal. Seeing me hesitate, Scarlett chimed in. “Honey, Liam’s like family. It’s just a little something to show he cares. Don’t be so uptight.” A bitter laugh rose in my throat. She’d never so much as held my hand in public, but now she was practically clinging to Liam. If I hadn’t lived through this before, I might’ve bought that “brother-sister” act. But now I knew the truth—she and my “best friend” had been hooking up for years, and she was helping him set me up to die. This time, with all the facts, I wasn’t about to let them make me their fool again. The killer got out of prison in three days. As long as I didn’t move in before then, I’d be safe. “You keep it. If I want a place, I’ll buy my own.” Liam and I usually had that bro bond where gift-giving was normal, and I never said no. But this time, my answer threw them off. Liam’s smile dropped. “Alex, what’s with you…” Scarlett scowled, clearly irritated. “Alex, what’s your problem? Liam’s being nice—why are you being like this? You wanna hurt his feelings or something?” I let out a dry laugh, nodding at how close they were standing. “He’ll survive. You’re already keeping him plenty warm, aren’t you?” That set Scarlett off. “Alex, what the hell are you insinuating?!” “I only see Liam as a brother! We’ve been married for years—don’t you trust me at all?!” I stayed quiet, and Scarlett got even more worked up. But Liam stepped in first. “Calm down, Scarlett. Alex is probably just jealous—that’s why he won’t take the gift. Maybe we should keep our distance so Alex doesn’t get the wrong idea.” His words said one thing, but his body stayed put. In fact, he inched even closer to Scarlett. Then he turned to me with a smile. “Don’t worry, I only see Scarlett as a sister. There’s nothing going on between us. If the mansion’s not your style, I’ll hook you up with something else later.” I forced a small smile. “Sure. Just make sure it’s not another ‘surprise’ like last time.” “Of course not.” Liam looked uncomfortable, while Scarlett shot me a dirty look, muttering about how I’d gotten too big for my britches since the company went public and forgotten who my real friends were. But I didn’t care. As I headed for the door, I said, “Believe what you want. I’ve got work to do. Later.” Behind me, Scarlett kept bitching about my attitude. But at that point, I couldn’t have cared less. I really did have bigger fish to fry. Before I died, I recognized the guy. It was David, our former CFO, who Liam had framed for embezzlement and sent to prison. But now, there seemed to be more to the story than that. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have gone after Liam the second he got out. I needed to dig into that old case. I wasn’t about to let the bastards who killed me get away with it.

But the case was cold, and I had no leads. That evening, I got a text from Scarlett. “Working late tonight. Won’t be home till late.” If she’d actually come home, she would’ve known I wasn’t there. Chances were she was with Liam—otherwise she’d know I’d been at the office all day. A minute later, I heard the elevator ding. I quickly shut off my office lights. It had to be Scarlett and Liam. I wanted to see what those two were doing at the office so late. Their voices filtered through the door. “Babe, I had my guy check. David gets out in three days, and the story about me moving into the mansion is already blowing up online. When he gets out, he’ll definitely go there for payback. He’ll be so blinded by rage, he’ll mistake Alex for me.” “Then the cops will take David down for murder, and I’ll never have to worry about him again. And we won’t have to hide from Alex anymore.” “Too bad Alex isn’t taking the bait—he won’t accept the gift.” “Liam, don’t stress. I’ll fix it.” “Good. He was totally jealous today. You not coming home tonight—he didn’t suspect a thing, right?” Scarlett laughed. “Suspect? That man’s been my doormat for years. If my parents hadn’t forced me to marry him, I wouldn’t give him the time of day. I could cheat on him with the entire football team and he’d still beg me to stay.” “Perfect. Can you imagine his face if he knew his best friend and wife have been hooking up for three years? Fucking priceless.” “Babe, the office is empty tonight. Hotels are too risky—how about we… here?” Scarlett giggled. “You’re such a pervert…” Then came the sound of heavy breathing. That bitch! All those years I’d loved her—wasted! Scarlett and I met in high school. I first saw her getting jumped by some thugs. I fought them off, took a beating, and saved her. After that, I always had her back. I even turned down better colleges to go to the same one as her. Once we were together, I catered to her every need. When her parents got sick, I scraped together money and handled everything. She was scared of having kids, so I never pressured her. But I never thought she’d always seen me as beneath her—and was helping someone murder me. A few minutes later, they went into the next office. I was burning with rage, but now wasn’t the time to expose them. I needed evidence to take Liam down for good. I snuck out of the office. One thing bugged me: even if you’re framed, would you really kill someone right after getting out? What did Liam do to David?

On the way home, I remembered someone important. I made a call, gave instructions, then headed home. I hadn’t been asleep long when I heard the front door open. When I walked out of the bedroom, Scarlett jumped. I noticed hickeys all over her neck. Scarlett noticed and quickly covered her neck, looking guilty. “Honey, you’re still up?” I kept my voice flat. “Yeah, just got back from the office.” My words made her smile freeze, then she forced it back. “Oh! I went to the office looking for you! Didn’t know you’d come home early. What a waste of a trip. You owe me.” She looped her arm through mine and pouted. Back then, her little games always worked. I’d pull her close right away. But now? Nothing. I gently pushed her off. “Honey, what’s wrong?” “I stuck up for Liam earlier—are you still mad about that?” “I just thought you two shouldn’t be so formal after all these years. You always used to accept each other’s gifts, but you hesitated this time. It’ll make him think something’s wrong.” “You wouldn’t be where you are without your friends. If you fall out with them, where does that leave you? I’m looking out for you. Just take the mansion.” A bitter laugh rose in my throat. *Looking out for me while trying to kill me.* I kept a straight face. “If they’re so great, go be with them.” That set Scarlett off. “Alex, what the hell are you talking about?! I’m your wife! How could you say that?!” “My parents were wrong about you. They never should’ve let me marry such a petty man!” I scoffed. “Guess I am petty—otherwise I never would’ve married you!” Scarlett lost it. She grabbed a glass and threw it at me. It hit my forehead, drawing blood. She pointed at me, screaming, “Alex, are you serious?! If you want this marriage to work, take the mansion! I’ve been with you for years! You don’t want to live there, but I do!” “And I even planned a company banquet in your honor to boost your reputation! You’re such a disappointment!” I was about to fire back when Mark, our CFO, called. “Mr. Alex, Scarlett said there’s a celebration banquet this afternoon. You’re not at the office, so hurry! Everyone’s waiting.” I didn’t know what Scarlett was planning, but with the company newly public, I couldn’t let employees get demoralized. So I agreed. When I agreed, Scarlett finally looked satisfied. She left, warning me not to let her down and to make sure I showed up. That afternoon, I arrived at the address Scarlett sent. I noticed it was less than a hundred yards from that mansion.

Walking into the hotel, I saw employees had already arrived. Scarlett and Liam looked at me, sharing a weird smile. I ignored them, sat down calmly, and turned on my phone’s voice recorder. Maybe I could get Liam to slip up when he was drunk. When the time came, most top performers still weren’t there—but some uninvited guests showed up instead. “Tyler, Jake—what are you guys doing here?” Those two had slacked off all last year, breaking company rules and harassing female employees. They were basically thugs. If Liam hadn’t kept protecting them, I would’ve fired them months ago. I barely finished speaking when Liam cut in smoothly. “They were just passing by.Since they’re here, let them stay.” Then he told them, “You two, stay sharp. Keep Mr. Alex’s glass full.” They nodded quickly. Once the banquet started, everyone there began toasting me. Soon I started feeling dizzy. I tried to stop drinking, but Liam suddenly held me down, telling Tyler and Jake to force my mouth open. “Before we came, Mr. Alex said he’s in a great mood today—no holding back! Anyone else want to toast? Hurry up! Don’t keep Mr. Alex waiting!” The others hesitated when they saw this. Then Mark, the CFO, poured a glass of wine straight down my throat. “Mr. Alex, here’s to you!” The alcohol made me dizzy. I was pinned down, unable to speak. Liam shouted: “See? Mr. Alex doesn’t mind! Everyone have another toast. Anyone who doesn’t is dissing Mr. Alex!” Scarlett chimed in: “My husband’s in a good mood—you all better drink up! Anyone who doesn’t gets fired tomorrow!” No one dared hesitate after that. They kept pouring wine down my throat. Liam leaned in and whispered: “I offered you the mansion, but you said no. Had to do this the hard way, huh? Pathetic.” I was furious. That bastard was playing dirty! But I was too drunk to fight back. Liam, seeing his plan work, pulled Scarlett into a kiss right in front of everyone! And everyone acted like they didn’t see a thing. When the banquet ended, Liam sent everyone home. That’s when Ryan—Liam’s right-hand man—finally showed up and whispered something to him. Liam grinned. He told Ryan to take me to the mansion. After tying me up, Liam smirked at me. I stared daggers at him, then spat in his face. “Liam, what the hell do you want?!” “I treated you like family, made you Vice President! How could you do this?!” I barely finished when Liam kicked me. “Shut the hell up!” “But since we’re doing this, you might as well die knowing the truth. Why do you think I bought that mansion at the press conference? So everyone would think I lived there. Remember David? He gets out tonight, and he’s coming here to kill me. And you’re gonna take the fall.” “I already sent my guys to the prison. They even gave David the exact address. Just sit tight.” I ground my teeth. “You framed him for embezzlement! And you’re proud of it?!” Liam smirked. “So you figured that out? But don’t you wanna know why I’m so sure he’ll come for revenge?” I muttered, “If it was just the frame job, he wouldn’t murder someone. Unless…” Liam laughed. “Exactly! I had his wife killed for kicks, and his kid? Sold to traffickers.” “Every time I visited him in prison, I told him how I messed with his wife and how his son got chopped up by those traffickers. I wanted to push him over the edge—use him one last time to take everything from you.” My blood ran cold. I stared at him. “Does Scarlett know about this?” Liam grinned. “Do you really think she’d help tie you up if she knew I’d killed someone’s wife?” “Oh, and you didn’t happen to have a recorder on, did you?” Liam patted me down, found my phone, checked it, and scoffed. “Thought so.” He smashed my phone against the floor and stomped on it. “Alex, you’ve always been such a chump. Never saw it coming, did you? Everything you built—just gonna be my payout. I’ll swing by tomorrow morning to clean up your body. Ha ha ha.” After his maniacal laughter, Liam hit me with a stick, knocking me out cold. Then he laid me flat, making it look like I was asleep. Before leaving, he told someone not to lock the mansion door. Only after making sure David could get in easily did he leave, looking satisfied. I don’t know how much time passed before someone shook me awake. I looked at the person and smiled faintly. “Did you record everything he just said?”

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“Your underwear is pink today!” My rival Jenny pulled open my collar in the classroom. Classmates started whistling and taking photos. But she just patted my shoulder: “Don’t be mad. We’re both girls—it’s just a joke~” Later, she became even more brazen! She’d pull down my pants when I wasn’t paying attention, yank up my skirt. She even unzipped my skirt right before my master’s program interview. Later, I failed that interview. Under her constant harassment, I developed depression and took my own life. When I opened my eyes again, I’d been reborn—back to the moment she was about to rip off my clothes. I grabbed her wrist hard. Her bones made a cracking sound. She cried out in pain: “Let go! That hurts!” I sneered: “You’re right—we’re both girls. So how about I strip your clothes off instead?” Her face froze. The laughter around us gradually died down. She wrenched her hand free and stepped back: “Are you crazy? I was just joking…” “You just said you were ‘messing around,’” I said calmly. “So now I’m messing with you. What’s the problem?” Her face went pale. She quickly backed up and bumped into the teacher’s desk. “I—I’ll apologize, okay?” Her eyes reddened. “It was just a joke. It’s not like it’s the first time. Why are you taking it seriously today?” I slapped her across the face. The entire classroom fell so silent you could only hear breathing. She covered her face, eyes full of disbelief: “You dare hit me?” I stared at her coldly: “This is the last time you touch me. Want to try again?” I looked around at everyone, raising my voice: “She just pulled my clothes off in public. That’s sexual harassment. I recorded it, and I’m taking it to the professor.” She looked at me in shock: “You recorded it?! You actually recorded me?” “Yes.” I nodded calmly, holding up my phone. The red dot was blinking. Everything that just happened—all recorded. From the corner of the classroom came whispered discussion. “…That was pretty messed up, actually.” “What kind of girl strips someone else’s clothes?” “And it’s not the first time?” I pulled my clothes back into place, picked up my bag, and calmly walked out of the classroom. Behind me, she called out urgently: “Claire, don’t do anything crazy,I was just messing around!” I didn’t look back. This lifetime, I’m done playing your games. That evening back in the dorm, her smiling face still filled my mind. “Don’t be mad. What’s wrong with girls being a little close?” I sat on my bed, still gripping my collar tightly. Even though I knew my clothes were fixed, I instinctively didn’t dare let go. My phone suddenly buzzed—a group message from my roommate Lisa— My hand trembled, and the video auto-played. The footage, shot from behind and to the side, clearly showed Jenny pulling my collar from behind, me stiffly covering my chest, and the whole class laughing. The group chat instantly lit up: 【Her expression is so funny】 【Pink underwear is so tacky】 【I actually think it’s kind of cute~】 I looked at the comments, my nails digging into my palms. When I didn’t respond, Lisa sent a voice message: “Come on, Claire, you’re taking this too seriously. Nobody meant anything bad by it. Jenny was just playing around.” “Didn’t you say you were mature and didn’t care about this stuff?” I couldn’t say a word. That video got forwarded to the class chat, then to the school account. A few minutes later, some influencer account pinned it to their highlights: 【#She Says It’s Not Harassment Between Girls#】 【#Pink Underwear Girl’s Classroom Meltdown#】 I became a campus “celebrity.” The video got remixed with weird sound effects and filters, turned into memes. The comments were all: 【If you dress like a slut, who’s to blame?】 【She just wants attention. Probably stripped on purpose】 【Disgusting. Stop playing victim】 I messaged the account privately asking them to delete the video. They replied with two words: “LMAO.” I went to find a professor. She first said: “Are you sure she did it ‘on purpose’? Aren’t you being a bit too sensitive?” Just as I was about to argue, she frowned at me: “The way you dressed for class today… wasn’t really appropriate.” “Those comments you clapped back at on social media—I suggest you delete them.” “Now that you’ve made this such a big deal, it’s not good for you either.” My nose stung as I held back tears. I asked: “What about the video? Shouldn’t she delete it?” She thought for a moment: “I’ll talk to her, but don’t get worked up. She’s also a girl—she probably didn’t mean any harm.” This is how it started in my previous life. Everyone kept telling me: “Don’t be so sensitive” “She just doesn’t know boundaries” “You’re both girls.” But she never pulled Lisa’s clothes. Never pulled Rachel’s either. She only pulled mine. Because I was quiet, easy to bully, got good grades, never argued, never fought back. The easiest target. But this time, I won’t stay silent. I opened my phone and saved that video, then exported screenshots of the chat logs. I was slowly realizing: She wasn’t clueless about boundaries. She was testing mine. Today was the first test. Next time, she’d smile as she destroyed me.

“Is that the same shirt from yesterday?” The professor frowned at me, then looked down and typed on her laptop. “Yes.” I answered quietly. I’d washed that white shirt, but the look in her eyes made it seem like I’d worn it deliberately to provoke someone. “Do you know how widely that video has spread?” she said. “Several professors in the department have seen it. They say it reflects poorly on us.” I pressed my lips together and didn’t respond. “Plus, you need to consider the setting. That was during an open lecture. When the professor called on you to speak, you got emotional and hit someone. Do you think that behavior is appropriate?” I froze and looked up: “I didn’t just hit her—I was—” “You got emotional.” She cut me off. “No matter what the other person did, hitting someone in public is wrong.” I tried to calm myself: “Then what about her pulling my clothes off in public? The whole class was there. It wasn’t the first time she did this. She keeps saying it’s a joke, but if I were a guy doing this, would the school still say ‘it’s just a joke’?” Her eyebrow twitched, as if I’d hit a nerve, but she quickly recovered: “We certainly don’t support any form of physical violation, but… she didn’t mean any harm.” “Whether she meant harm isn’t for her to decide.” I kept my voice low. “It’s for me to decide.” She was silent for a few seconds, then said calmly: “The school is looking into the situation. But I suggest you don’t escalate this conflict. You know, once these things get bigger, it won’t be good for you either.” I understood what she was implying. Exactly like my previous life. “Don’t let this become harder to resolve.” “Minor friction between girls doesn’t need to escalate to disciplinary action.” “You need to be more tolerant. Don’t throw away your own future over a little misunderstanding.” Every sentence cut like a knife. She stood by the office window, flipping through that “Incident Handling Record.” Under “Cause of Incident,” it just said: “Claire’s inappropriate attire led to classroom disruption.” I almost laughed. She pulled my clothes, the video went viral, and it got written as “my inappropriate attire.” “So what you’re saying, Professor, is that I’m at fault for wearing this shirt?” She glanced up at me but didn’t answer directly. She just said gently: “You’re an excellent student. We all have high hopes for you. It’s your junior year now—honors selection is coming up. Don’t leave a stain on your record over an emotional impulse.” I finally understood. This wasn’t a “misunderstanding”—it was “willful ignorance.” She wasn’t blind to right and wrong. She just didn’t want to deal with someone troublesome. I walked out of the office. The sunlight was beautiful, but my back felt cold. On the campus path, people stared at me secretly, whispering. I looked down and opened my phone, clicking on that video. The system had auto-collapsed the comments section, but the comment count had soared to over 800. The top-liked comment read: 【If you dressed more appropriately, nobody would pull at you.】 I stared at those words, my fingertips ice-cold. In that moment, I realized— Not all “sexual harassment” gets recognized as such. Especially when you’re a girl, and your abuser is also a girl.

The next morning in early class, the moment I walked into the classroom, I felt something was off. Several people glanced at me and whispered something, then quickly looked away. She sat in the third row, eyes red and puffy, looking like she hadn’t slept all night. Tissues were piled on her desk. Her open notebook showed the first page: 【To Claire: I’m Sorry】 I intended to ignore her and walk to the back row, but she suddenly grabbed my sleeve, her voice trembling: “Claire… I really didn’t mean it.” I shook off her hand without saying anything. Her eyes immediately reddened: “I really didn’t know you’d mind that much… I thought we were good friends.” People around us started whispering. “She apologized though…” “She looks pretty pitiful…” “You think maybe that girl in the video dressed a bit too…you know?” I gritted my teeth and sat in the back row. My phone buzzed— The class group chat was blowing up: 【Jenny’s really not a bad person, she’s always nice to everyone】 【She cried all night, she hasn’t even dared to eat】 【Don’t you think Claire is overreacting a bit?】 I clicked in and saw screenshots from Ins posted by her roommate: 【Some people act all cold on the surface but have worse tempers than anyone.】 【We ordinary girls deserve to be humiliated? Say two words and get reported with recordings?】 Below were pictures of her crying with tears all over her face, holding a stack of “apology letters” in draft form. This stirred up a massive response. Someone wrote in the comments: 【Is a joke between girls really that serious?】 Others said: 【You really can’t touch people nowadays. Make one little mistake and they report you. Makes us all walk on eggshells】 Others shared the post with a hashtag: 【#City Girls Are Too Sensitive#】 I looked at that line “say two words and get reported with recordings,” my fingers trembling uncontrollably. She was performing. And she was better at it than anyone. This wasn’t the first time she’d pulled my clothes. She was just testing whether public opinion would forgive her again. And sure enough, people believed her. In my previous life, she cried like this too, saying she was just “trying to get close to me.” Teachers, classmates, even my mom all said: “She already apologized. Why won’t you forgive her?” Forgive? Next time she could brazenly push me down the stairs and tell everyone: “She was careless.” I took a deep breath and saved the Ins screenshots, the videos she’d liked last night, and those group chat logs. You want to cry?

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “352006”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #惊悚Thriller #现实主义Realistic #重生Reborn #浪漫Romance #狼人Werewolf

I’ve been married to Lucas for seven years, and I’ve lost count of how many women he’s slept with. The reason I never made a fuss is simple—he always throws money at me to shut me up. When he cheated with an online influencer, he bought me a penthouse in the city center. When he partied on a yacht with models, he gave me an identical yacht. He used money to buy my silence, to purchase my breakdowns, my questions, and my tears. Until I was eight months pregnant, and my baby died in my womb. I had to go through induced labor. The nanny helped me out of my hospital room, weak and barely able to stand. That’s when I saw Lucas in the room next door, carefully tending to a woman who had just given birth. Our eyes met. Panic flashed across his face for a moment before his usual cold indifference returned. He walked over and handed me a blank check. “Fill in whatever amount you want.” I tore the check to pieces. I looked at him and smiled. “Lucas, I don’t want your money this time…” I raised my trembling hand and pointed toward the room behind him, where a baby’s weak crying could be heard. “I want that child.” 0

“Nina, have you lost your mind?!” Disbelief was written all over Lucas’s face. I repeated myself. “I want that child.” “Stop this nonsense!” He lowered his voice. “That’s not your child!” Right. My child is gone. Dead… “Your child is my child, isn’t it?” I asked softly. “Or would you prefer your child to be born with the stigma of being illegitimate?” Lucas was instantly speechless. He and I grew up together. Our families had been friends for generations. Both the Knight family and the Sanders family were elite, prestigious families that valued reputation above all else. Rules mattered. The woman in the hospital bed, Emily, finally understood what was happening. She struggled to sit up, her voice shrill. “Lucas! You can’t give my child to her! This is my only…” This was her only weapon to climb the social ladder. I watched Lucas’s conflicted expression and suddenly found it all so ironic. I used the last of my strength to push him aside and walked step by step into the room. Emily’s body shrank back, and she clutched the baby in her arms even tighter. “Hello, mistress. I’m Lucas’s wife, Nina. From today on, I’m this child’s mother.” Emily broke down into hysterical screaming and grabbed the pillow from the headboard, throwing it at me. “You’re lying! This is my child! Mine!” Lucas followed me in, looking troubled. “Lucas, you can’t let her take our child!” Emily cried, begging him for help. Lucas looked at me, clearly torn. “Nina…” I leaned close to his ear and whispered: “That property on the west side… Grandpa really values it. And it just happens to be in my brother’s hands.” Lucas’s body went rigid. The west side property was crucial to the Knight family’s strategic plans for the next decade. It was also key to proving his competence to his grandfather. He spun around to look at me—anger, resentment, and a hint of fear in his eyes. He took a deep breath and said to Emily: “Listen to me. Let Nina raise this child.” I turned to my nanny and ordered: “Go bring that child to my room.” I walked out of the room and called my assistant. “Make arrangements with the hospital. I don’t want anyone except us to know about this. On the birth certificate, the mother’s name can only be mine.” Soon, louder arguments erupted from next door—the sound of things being thrown and Emily’s heart-wrenching sobs. I looked down at the baby boy in the bassinet. He was sleeping soundly, his little mouth opening and closing. A cold smile curved my lips.

Lucas came to my room every day, but while his body was present, his heart was next door. His phone screen was always lit up with messages from Emily. [Lucas, I miss the baby so much. Please ask her to give him back to me, okay?] [I don’t want anything else anymore. I just want my child.] [Lucas, I’m bleeding so much. The doctor said I have postpartum hemorrhaging. Am I going to die?] Emily knew exactly how to manipulate Lucas. She never attacked me directly. She just repeatedly emphasized her pain and longing for the child. This way, she could paint me as “cruel” and “heartless.” Every time Lucas read her messages, his frown deepened. Then he’d find an excuse to leave in a hurry. Early one morning, Lucas wasn’t there. The baby had been taken by the nurse and nanny for checkups. Emily appeared beside my bed like a ghost, her eyes full of hatred. “Nina, don’t think you’ve won.” “Your unlucky child—Lucas killed him because I told him to.” “That night, Lucas got drunk and kept calling me.” “I just acted cute on the phone and said your baby would be an obstacle to me…” “I told him to spend more time with me instead of always hovering around you.” “I didn’t expect him to actually hang up and go back to you. What happened after…” “You couldn’t keep your own child. That’s your own failure. Don’t blame others.” “You’re just raising my child for me. Don’t get too happy!” She turned and walked away. Every word was like a red-hot iron, burning into my heart. So that’s how it was… I closed my eyes. My hands under the blanket were shaking violently. Blood quickly flowed back into the IV tube, staining a section of the transparent tubing red. I bit my lip hard until my mouth filled with the thick taste of blood. I didn’t cry or make a scene. I just silently pulled the needle from my hand. Blood dripped down the back of my hand onto the pure white sheets, like a tragic plum blossom. Just then, the door opened. Lucas walked in. He saw the blood on my hand, froze for a moment, then quickly stepped forward and grabbed my wrist. “Why did you pull out the needle? Are you crazy?!” He grabbed a cotton swab from the bedside and pressed hard on my wound, his brow furrowed with what seemed like genuine concern. My whole body was shaking. I wanted to scream, to demand answers, to tear him apart. But I had no strength. “Just go. Go be with Emily. The nanny will be back soon. You’re not needed here.” Crying came from next door. Emily was throwing another fit. Lucas didn’t hesitate. He ran over to her. I called my assistant and told her to arrange for my early discharge immediately. When I appeared at the Knight family estate holding the baby, the entire family was in an uproar. Everyone gathered around. “Oh my, what a good baby!” Grandma carefully took the baby from my arms, beaming with joy. Grandpa was so excited his hands were trembling. He looked at me with approval in his eyes. “Nina, well done! You’ve finally given us an heir!” No one knew that my heart had already died in that cold hospital, along with my unborn child. Lucas’s father, Jack, saw the nanny’s car drive straight to the garage and asked in confusion: “Where’s Lucas?” “Busy, I guess. I didn’t see him at the hospital either.”

The rewards the elders gave me were almost shocking. Grandpa gave me an oceanfront villa. Grandma brought out all her treasured jewelry, set after set. Jack directly transferred five percent of Knight Group’s shares to my name, making me the youngest member of the board overnight. Lucas’s mother was even more thoughtful—she gave me a private island in the Maldives and said I could go there to relax once I recovered. I smiled and accepted everything. These were what I deserved. They were what I’d traded for my child’s life. No one knew that in the deepest corner of that luxurious walk-in closet, I had a small hidden space. There were no expensive bags or designer clothes there. Inside were the tiny wool shoes I’d knitted by hand but could never give away, and a few pitifully small baby clothes. Every night when it was quiet, I would lock myself in that closet. “Baby, Grandpa and Grandma bought so many toys today. If you were here, you’d have them too.” I never cried loudly. I just let the tears fall silently. Lucas also returned to the estate, but he didn’t dare come near me. In front of everyone, Grandpa pointed his cane at him and called him an asshole, saying I had just “given birth” and instead of being with me, he was making me angry. He probably couldn’t understand how I—who once loved him desperately, whom he controlled completely—could suddenly change like this. He occasionally came to the bedroom to keep me company, but more often, he went to see the child. He would clumsily hold him, feed him, his eyes showing something unfamiliar—something called “fatherly love.” He stood behind me, silent for a long time, then suddenly spoke. “Nina, about that night, I was wrong. I was drunk.” “Emily… she just depends on me too much. Don’t hold it against her,” he added. I slowly raised my head and looked at our reflection in the mirror. He was tall and handsome. I was thin and haggard. “Hold it against her?” I let out a soft laugh. “What right do I have to hold it against anyone? I couldn’t even protect my own child.” His face instantly darkened, as if my words had wounded him. “That was an accident!” He raised his voice. “Why do you keep bringing it up! I’ve tried my best to compensate you!” Compensate? I was born into wealth. Money was the most useless thing to me. I didn’t want to argue with him anymore. I pushed him toward the door. “Nina, what exactly do you want?” “What do I want?” I looked at him, my tone mocking. “I want you to stay away from me.” In the end, he let go. From that day on, he rarely entered my room.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “352005”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #惊悚Thriller #现实主义Realistic #重生Reborn #浪漫Romance #狼人Werewolf

New Year’s Eve. The train was hijacked by armed gunmen. The lead hijacker shouted: “Whoever pays the highest ransom gets released first! The rest of you get blown to bits!” I immediately transferred 50 million, desperate to buy two lives—mine and my daughter’s. But my husband, the train conductor, publicly crossed my name off the first release list to avoid suspicion. He turned to me with feigned righteousness: “I’m the conductor, you’re my family. Have some dignity! Give this spot to that boy with asthma medication!” In my past life, I agreed through tears. My daughter was killed in the explosion. This time, when my husband tried to cross off my daughter’s name and replaced her with his illegitimate son again… I screamed like a lunatic: “Give me back that spot!” He had me gagged and dragged to the vestibule. For that bastard child, he was willing to sacrifice his own daughter’s life! Just as the boy was being released in the first group, his mistress—completely unaware—grabbed a megaphone on the platform and screamed hysterically: “Hey, hijackers! The first kid has a bomb on him! The conductor planted it to blow you all up!” She thought the first person released would still be my daughter. “BANG!” A gunshot echoed through the station.

New Year’s Eve. Cold wind howled against the train windows. The heating had cut out. The air reeked of gunpowder and sweat. “No one calls the police!” “Anyone tries to call the cops, I’ll blow this whole car sky-high right now!” The lead hijacker was bald, clutching a red remote in one hand and a hunting rifle in the other, sweeping the barrel across the passengers’ heads. “Listen up! Within ten minutes, whoever pays the highest ransom gets released first!” “Every ten minutes after that, I’ll execute one hostage!” The car filled with sobs and pleas. I hugged my five-year-old daughter Lily, huddled in the corner, my heart racing. I’m Madison Monroe, only daughter of the Monroe Group. My hands shook as I pulled out my phone and frantically made the transfer. “I’ll pay! Fifty million dollars!” I held up my phone and yelled. “I just want two spots—me and my daughter!” The car fell silent. All eyes turned to me. The lead hijacker paused, stared at my phone screen, then burst into manic laughter. “Now that’s what I’m talking about! That’s how the 1% handles things!” “This mother and daughter—put ’em on the first release list!” I let out a shaky breath, squeezing Lily tighter. “Don’t be scared, Lily. Mommy’s taking you home.” Just then, a uniformed hand snatched my phone away. “Crack!” The phone shattered on the floor. I looked up into the eyes of my husband, Conductor Derek Vaughn. He wore his uniform, cap pulled low. “Madison, have you no sense of decency?” Derek’s voice echoed through the silent car. “People are fighting for their lives, and you’re flashing your cash?” “Trying to buy special treatment? Want everyone to watch you escape first?” “Derek, that’s fifty million! I’m trying to save our daughter!” “Shut your mouth!” Derek raised his hand and struck me hard across the face. My ears rang. “I’m the conductor. I’m in charge of negotiations on this train!” “Your money can’t buy special treatment!” He turned and pointed to a boy in the crowd, raising his voice. “This child is Cameron. He has severe asthma.” “His inhaler ran out. He needs medical help immediately!” “I’m changing the first release list!” “Madison and her daughter are off. This asthmatic boy takes their place!” The crowd erupted in applause. Passengers gave Derek thumbs up. “Conductor Vaughn is such a hero!” “Exactly! Who does she think she is, throwing money around? Why should she get to leave first?” “That woman is so selfish. Her husband’s a conductor and she still doesn’t get it.” I ignored the stinging in my cheek and grabbed Derek’s sleeve. “No! Lily is a child too! She’s only five!” “I paid that fifty million! Why should someone else take our spot?” “Derek, are you out of your mind?” Derek wrenched his hand free from mine, his face twisted with disgust. I crashed hard against the handrail, a searing pain shooting through my lower back. “Officer Chen!” he barked. His colleague Officer Chen rushed over, pinning my arms behind my back and pressing a knee into my spine. He leaned down, speaking coldly in my ear. “Stop causing trouble!” “Derek is doing this for everyone’s good. You need to understand!” I struggled frantically. My cheek scraped raw, blood stinging my eyes. Through the blood haze, I saw the boy named Cameron hiding behind Derek. His face was flushed—no sign of asthma at all. Right then, he was smirking at me, making a malicious face. His eyes didn’t look like a child’s—they were full of triumphant malice. Cameron… Memories from my past life flooded back with the pain. Same train, same New Year’s Eve. Derek had forced me to give our spot to Cameron. I’d agreed, thinking my husband was truly that noble. Then the hijackers detonated the bomb. I watched Lily die in the explosion. And Derek, holding Cameron on the platform, became everyone’s hero. Only after death did I learn—Cameron was his illegitimate son! To save his bastard child, he’d personally pushed his wife and daughter into hell! “Derek! That’s your bastard son!” “You’re trading my daughter’s life for that bastard!” Derek’s expression changed instantly, panic and murderous intent flashing in his eyes. “Gag her! She’s hysterical!” “Take her to the vestibule until she calms down!” Officer Chen immediately pulled out a dirty rag and stuffed it in my mouth. “Mmph! Mmm!” I couldn’t make a sound. I kicked wildly, watching Lily burst into terrified tears. “Mommy! Don’t hurt Mommy! Daddy, you’re mean! I want Mommy!” Lily tried to run over, but Derek roughly pushed her away. “Get lost, you little brat!” “Cry again and I’ll hand you over to the hijackers!” That was his own daughter! Lily fell to the floor, a bump swelling on her forehead. Her sobs grew quieter. My eyes nearly bulged with rage. My heart ached, but Officer Chen held me down. “Drag her out! Don’t let her spread lies in here!” Derek straightened his collar, putting his heroic face back on, and called out to the hijackers. “Boss, the money’s been transferred. I’m sending the boy over now.” “This woman’s delusional. I’ll take care of her!” The hijacker nodded in approval. “Smart man. Make it quick!” Officer Chen dragged me toward the utility closet in the vestibule. I stared desperately at Lily in the corner. She was curled up. Less than six feet away sat a ticking time bomb. That was my child! Derek Vaughn, you monster!

The utility closet door slammed shut. No windows. Just one emergency light flickering on and off. The space was crammed with mops and buckets, reeking of mildew. Officer Chen threw me on the floor and stood guard at the door. Derek walked in, locked the door, and turned off his body camera. His heroic expression disappeared, replaced by something sinister. He stood over me, looking down. “Madison, what were you yelling about? Bastard son? Illegitimate child?” He squatted down, grabbed my hair, and forced my head up. “You’re pretty damn clever, aren’t you? When did you figure it out? Huh?” The rag was yanked from my mouth. I gasped for air, staring at him. “Derek Vaughn, you’ll burn in hell!” “Lily is your own daughter. How could you do this?” “Own daughter?” Derek sneered and backhanded me again. “Crack!” My lip split. Blood dripped onto my collar. “That little money-waster is the one I hate most!” “Just like you—stuck-up rich girl with an attitude!” He grabbed my chin. “You think I wanted to be your family’s trophy son-in-law?” “Dealing with your parents’ stuck-up faces every day—I’ve had enough!” “For seven years I’ve been their doormat in your house, treated worse than a servant!” “Has your family ever shown me an ounce of respect?” His face contorted, eyes full of venom. “As long as Cameron gets out safely, you and your little money-waster can die for all I care!” “An accident. Clean and simple!” “Then the Monroe fortune will all be mine!” “Cameron and I can spend it however we want!” So that’s it… He was planning to eliminate the whole family and take the assets! He wanted to use the hijackers to get rid of us and take the Monroe fortune! I trembled with rage and spat blood in his face. “Dream on! My parents are still alive. You’ll never get your hands on it!” Derek wiped the blood from his face, eyes turning vicious. “You won’t play along? Then you’ll pay the price!” He pulled out his baton and jabbed it hard into my ribs. Searing pain shot through me. I curled up, cold sweat soaking my back. He didn’t stop. Again and again. “So high and mighty! So stuck-up!” “On this train, I’m in charge! If I say you’re crazy, you’re crazy!” “If I say you die, you die!” I clenched my teeth, refusing to beg, my nails digging into the floorboards. Just then, his walkie-talkie crackled to life. “Hey! Cop! What’s taking so long?” “Three minutes! If the kid ain’t out by then, I start shooting hostages!” Derek paused, checked his watch, panic flashing in his eyes. “Right away! Right away! The kid’s getting ready!” He shouted into the walkie-talkie, then glared at me viciously. “No time to deal with you now.” He pulled out handcuffs and cuffed my hands behind me to a water pipe. The cuffs dug painfully into my wrists. “You just stay put.” “When that little money-waster gets blown up, your turn comes next.” He grabbed the dirty rag to stuff it back in my mouth. “Derek Vaughn! You’ll regret this!” “That bastard Cameron won’t get away with it either!” I twisted my head frantically to avoid it. “Shut your mouth!” He punched me in the stomach. As I gasped, he forced the gag back in. “Mmm! Mmm!” A child’s voice came from outside the door. “Daddy, are you done yet? I’m scared. Is that mean lady dead?” It was Cameron! Derek’s expression softened immediately. Through the door, he spoke gently. “Don’t worry. Daddy’s taking care of the problem.” “That mean lady will never bother Cameron again.” This double standard made my blood boil. My Lily was out there with a bomb, while his bastard was asking if I was dead! Derek stood up and adjusted his uniform in front of the cracked mirror on the wall. He straightened his cap and practiced a determined smile in the mirror. “Madison, next time you’re reborn, remember to choose better.” He gave me one last cold look, pulled open the door, and walked out. The door closed and locked. I was left in darkness. But I didn’t cry. I couldn’t afford to despair. In my past life, all I did was cry and beg. That got my daughter killed. This life, I’d crawl out if I had to—even if I had to bite my way through! I had to save my daughter! I’d make those bastards pay with their blood! By the emergency light, I looked at that cracked mirror. In it, I saw my disheveled hair, bloodied face, and eyes full of rage. Kill them! Make them pay!

Through the metal door, I heard Derek’s voice. “Attention passengers! This is Derek Vaughn, your train marshal!” “The $50 million ransom that woman offered has been transferred!” “For everyone’s safety, I’ve decided to use this money” “to free the most vulnerable child first!” “That’s young Cameron here! He has severe asthma!” “And as law enforcement family, my own family will naturally go last!” “It’s our duty and our honor!” Cheers and applause erupted in the car. “Way to go, Marshal Vaughn!!” “So inspiring! Thank God we have Marshal Vaughn!” “This needs to go viral!” Some influencer even pulled out a phone and started livestreaming Derek. “Guys! You won’t believe this! The train marshal is giving up his own family’s spot!” “To save a sick kid he doesn’t even know! So touching!” Comments flooded in with “salute” and “tears.” Listening to this, I dug my nails into my palms until they bled. Derek Vaughn—you’re using my money to buy your bastard son’s life, and building your hero image on my daughter’s grave! “Cameron, hurry, put these on.” Sounds of clothing rustling came from outside. My heart dropped. Changing clothes? He was dressing up that bastard? “Daddy, these clothes are too tight. I hate pink.” Cameron whined. “Be good! This will keep you warm.” “And… only if you wear this will that lady’s money work.” Derek coaxed patiently. Those were Lily’s clothes! That pink puffer jacket was Lily’s favorite birthday gift! My heart ached hollowly. But I had to save myself first! I twisted my body,enduring the searing pain inching toward the damaged storage rack nearby. The rack had a sharp, broken edge. This might be my only chance! I struggled to lift my cuffed hands, pressing the zip tie against the sharp edge. “Scratch—scratch—” I didn’t dare use too much force. I could only saw back and forth slowly. My wrists started bleeding. Piercing pain shot through me. I kept sawing. Faster! Hurry! Lily was still waiting for me! Through the small window above the utility closet, I could see part of the platform. Spotlights lit it up. SWAT officers with riot shields formed a line, countless gun barrels aimed at the train door. Suddenly, a familiar figure came into view. A woman in a red coat, hiding just beyond the police line, holding a megaphone. Vanessa! Derek’s mistress of seven years! What was she doing here? She clutched a photo, staring fixedly at the train door, body trembling slightly. I squinted to make out the photo in her hand. It was a photo of my daughter Lily! I realized immediately. Derek hadn’t told Vanessa the whole plan! She thought Lily would be the one coming out. She was here to… finish the job herself! “Snap.” My wrists came free. The zip tie had snapped! I didn’t rush out right away. I lay by the window, watching Vanessa outside, a bitter laugh escaping me. “Heh… heh…” Derek Vaughn—you planned everything except that your own lover would be the one to destroy it all. You wanted to play the hero sacrificing his family. But your precious “cousin” was outside waiting to send your “daughter” to hell! The train door slowly slid open. Cold wind rushed in. The car fell completely silent. Everyone held their breath, watching the figure in the pink puffer jacket walk toward the door.

The door opened. Cold wind carried snowflakes inside. Through the gap, I saw Derek standing by the door, sweating bullets. He gave Cameron—wearing the pink jacket—a hard push, whispering urgently. “Go! Don’t look back! Just run straight ahead!” Cameron pulled his cap down low, covering most of his face, and stepped through the door. SWAT snipers locked onto the figure. “Report! Hostage exiting. Child. Description doesn’t match the list.” “Confirmed as first release subject.” The command center’s voice came over the radio. “Clear to proceed. Prepare for receive.” I saw Derek standing in the shadows, a smirk playing on his lips. But just as Cameron was halfway out of the car— “Hey! You there!” A woman’s voice cut through the silence over the megaphone. Vanessa stood in the cold wind, face contorted, eyes wild. The distance was too far, and with Cameron wearing Lily’s clothes, cap pulled low and head down Vanessa lifted the megaphone. “Kidnappers! Don’t fall for it! Derek Vaughn’s tricking you!” “The first kid they’re releasing has a bomb on him!” “That dirty marshal planted a remote-controlled bomb!” “He wants to take all of you out!” Passengers in the car recoiled in terror. Derek’s smile froze. He stood rooted to the spot. His pupils shrank as he stared in disbelief at Vanessa in the distance. “No! That’s not true! Shut up! Just shut the hell up!” Derek rushed to the door waving his arms, but his voice was drowned out by the megaphone. Across from him, the lead kidnapper’s face turned feral. “Son of a bitch! You double-crossing bastard?!” “Die then, you dirty cop!” The kidnapper roared, raised his hunting rifle, and aimed at the child who’d just stepped out. “BANG—!” A deafening shot rang out. Cameron’s chest exploded in blood. His body was thrown backward, tumbling heavily off the platform. Blood stained the pink jacket red, and the white snow too. Vanessa’s hand froze mid-air, still gripping the megaphone. She stared at the body that had rolled to the platform’s edge. That short hair, that face… even in girl’s clothes, that was her son! “Cameron…?” She whispered, voice shaking. And in the utility closet, watching all this, I bit my lip until blood filled my mouth. I felt no fear. A rush of satisfaction shot from my feet to the top of my head! Derek Vaughn, Vanessa. See that? This is exactly the ending you plotted! This is your—comeuppance!

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The second I came to, I grabbed the box cutter off the shelf and pressed it to the convenience store cashier’s throat. Amid the chaos of screams, I calmly told the clerk to call the cops and insisted they handcuff me, demanding a mandatory 24-hour hold. Everyone thought I’d snapped or was having some kind of psychotic episode. Only I knew I was trembling with sheer relief. In my past life, on this exact night, my scheming stepsister Tiffany—the fake heiress—pushed my adoptive mom down the stairs, killing her instantly from brain death. I was asleep in my room when the police hauled me out. They showed me security footage, claiming I’d murdered my mother. I was totally helpless, begging my adoptive dad and brother to uncover the truth. But they just lashed out, calling me an ungrateful snake they’d raised for eighteen years, always plotting to steal their family’s money. Internet trolls doxxed me, cornered me in an alley, and beat me to death. “Oh my God, Chloe’s totally lost it!” “Officer! Arrest me! I’m a dangerous criminal!” “I told you that girl had a dark streak since she was a kid. Now she’s finally gone off the deep end!” The convenience store entrance was packed with people—some filming on their phones, others just gawking and pointing. The reason was simple: I’d just barged into the convenience store, held a box cutter to an innocent clerk’s neck, yet all I forced him to give me was a soda. Then I turned to the arriving cops, sticking out my hands and practically begging to be cuffed and hauled away. The clerk’s legs shook with terror. The more scared he got, the more relieved I felt. Two officers pinned me to the ground, then stuffed me into a squad car with sirens blaring down the street. At the station, they wanted my statement, trying to figure out if it was a real robbery or just a stunt. I sat in the interrogation chair, acting completely uncooperative. “I did try to rob the place. I want to go to jail, and you have to hold me for 24 hours!” Officer Davis frowned, jotting down notes. “I’ve seen plenty of thrill-seekers like you. A night in lockup should straighten you out!” “Not just detention—we’re calling your family. Let them see the mess you’ve made!” The second he mentioned family, I shook my head frantically. “No family! I’m an adult. I’ll take the rap myself!” “And you have to put me in a cell with cameras and bars! No less than 24 hours!” Officer Davis probably thought I was nuts, but with the weapon threat, he followed procedure and booked me. The second the station’s iron gates clanged shut, I wanted to dance for joy. Last time around, on this exact night, my “sweet” stepsister Tiffany pushed my adoptive mom down the stairs during a fight over a necklace. Mom hit the back of her head, bleeding badly, and died instantly. I was in my room, listening to an English podcast with headphones, when the cops kicked down my door. Tiffany was sobbing dramatically, putting on a show of grief, pointing at me and claiming I’d pushed her. She even showed them the hallway security footage. The monitor clearly showed me in my pajamas, with a crazy look on my face, shoving my adoptive mother down. I was confused, but I knew it couldn’t be real. I’d been in my room studying—never even left. How could I have pushed her? But my adoptive dad Richard and brother looked devastated, pointing and yelling, “We raised you for 18 years, and you’re just an ungrateful snake…” I wondered if I was dreaming. How could the family who’d always loved me turn on me like this? Internet trolls were furious, doxxed my address, and jumped me on my way home. Sticks hit me, bricks smashed my head, and blood poured into my eyes. “This monster who killed her own mom doesn’t deserve to live!” When I woke up again, the hard cot in lockup felt like a five-star hotel bed.

I ate and slept fine in detention, even helped the woman in the next cell with her divorce case. Life was weirdly comfortable. A little over twelve hours later, the female guard said someone was there to see me and told me to get ready. I did the math—Tiffany must’ve pushed Mom by now. I straightened my jail uniform, cuffed, and was led to the visiting room. Before I could even sit down, Richard and Tiffany burst in with a lawyer, reporters, and crying relatives. The second Richard saw me, he tried to lunge through the glass to attack me. “You monster! You killed your mother! And now you’re hiding here like nothing happened!” Tiffany sobbed, “Chloe, just confess! Mom’s gone, but if you admit what you did, Dad and your brother might forgive you!” An influencer in the crowd was live-streaming: “Folks, the mom-killer’s been found! Hiding right here at the station! This monster deserves the death penalty!” I was shocked. I’d hidden in the station, and they were still trying to frame me. I opened my mouth, but before I could speak, Richard’s lawyer pulled out a document. The lawyer declared self-righteously, “Chloe, for the heinous murder of your adoptive mother, Richard is filing to strip you of inheritance rights and demands maximum punishment!” Cops tried to keep order, but the family had brought cameras and mics—total chaos. I tried to explain, but no one would listen. Cameras flashed nonstop, everyone screaming for my blood, demanding I pay for Mom’s death. A hysterical relative threw a water bottle that hit my forehead, leaving a red mark. The station lobby was a circus—other inmates pressed against the bars, watching the show. Soon, the Captain emerged with a larger group of officers. “What’s going on here? This isn’t your living room! Quiet!” Richard pointed furiously, jaw tight. “We’re pressing charges! This animal killed someone at home last night and hid here!” I immediately spotted Officer Davis, the one who’d taken my statement, standing behind the Captain. “Officer Davis! My dad’s nuts—they’re saying I killed someone! You have to help me!” Officer Davis frowned and stepped up. “Sir, the suspect Chloe has been in custody since last night. How could she have gone home to commit murder?” Richard’s face turned red with rage. He shoved his phone at Officer Davis. “I’ve seen plenty like her—ungrateful brats doing evil and faking alibis!” “I have security footage! The cameras clearly show it was her!” The live stream comments exploded: [Alibi won’t matter—video evidence is solid!] [Lock her up for life!] [She deserves the death penalty!] I was livid and confused. I’d turned myself in—how could they still pin this on me? “I don’t get it! How could security footage show me?” Richard yelled, “You pushed your mother down the stairs! You’re the best actor I’ve ever seen!” Unlike last time, I stayed calm. “I pushed Mom? When? I have no clue what you’re talking about!” Tiffany tried to grab my hand, but a correctional officer blocked her. Tiffany sobbed harder, “Chloe, don’t lie! I saw you last night in your pajamas, pushing Mom!” The captain’s expression turned grim. “Ma’am, you need evidence. Our entire station was on duty. Are you saying we couldn’t keep one prisoner from escaping, murdering someone, and returning?”

Officer Davis, who’d processed me, looked equally angry. “Sir, you can’t call us incompetent just to frame someone!” “Good thing our station’s covered in cameras. Look—isn’t this Chloe?” On the big screen, there I was in my jail uniform, cross-legged on the cot, explaining legal stuff to the woman next door. The timestamp in the corner matched exactly when Tiffany claimed Mom was killed. Richard’s video showed me in pink pajamas, looking crazy, shoving Mom at the top of the stairs. Side by side, the two videos couldn’t have been more different. One me was talking law in a cell; the other was murdering someone at home. It was nuts, but it proved I couldn’t be in two places at once. The crowd went silent, everyone staring at each other confused. The live stream comments were equally confused: [Same person in two places?] [Twins? One in jail, one killing?] [If not twins, this is straight-up supernatural!] [But even twins don’t match exactly—look at that birthmark behind the ear!] Reading the comments, cops started wondering if I had a twin.

Officer Davis asked Richard, “When you adopted Chloe, did the orphanage mention a twin?” Richard snapped, “I only adopted one brat like her!” “I’m her father! I know her best. She must’ve used some trick, but she’s the killer!” “Officer, lock her up! Make her pay for my wife’s death!” Officer Davis frowned. “Is that how a father talks? Even if she’s adopted, she’s still human. You can’t just throw her life away.” Richard sized up Officer Davis, then scoffed. “Oh, I get it! No wonder she snuck out—she’s sleeping with you!” “You helped her escape to kill my wife!” Officer Davis was a straight-arrow guy. Richard’s accusation made his face burn with anger. The captain slammed his hand on the table. “Richard, watch your mouth! This is a police station—we won’t stand for false accusations!” Richard shrugged. “A murderer’s a murderer. Locked up or not, she did it!” Cops were getting suspicious. Richard didn’t act like a grieving husband—more like a guilty man trying to pin blame. They sent someone to check Tiffany’s relationship with Mom. Richard exploded. “What are you doing? There’s nothing to investigate!” “I’m the victim’s husband! Don’t I get to know who killed my wife?” Everyone there was confused. Richard kept ranting, trying to rile up the reporters. But the reporters could tell something was off and decided to wait for police updates. I was waiting too. Soon a forensics tech rushed in: “We found something in the Wu family’s video! After enhancement, the ‘Chloe’ pushing her has a faint neck seam.” All eyes turned to me in shock. Everyone gasped, trying to process what that meant. The room turned hostile. Tiffany glared at me. “Chloe, did you get someone to wear a realistic mask to frame me?” Richard’s eyes blazed. “I knew it! You manipulative witch!” Just then, a helicopter roared overhead. I panicked. “Julian, cut the drama! They’re gonna kill me!”

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “352003”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #惊悚Thriller #现实主义Realistic #重生Reborn #浪漫Romance #狼人Werewolf

When my wife Diana fell ill, it was the first time I’d ever set foot in her company. The receptionist looked utterly shocked: “You can’t be serious. The Diana you’re asking about is our CEO. And she’s already married…” The next moment, my wife—who should have been in a hospital bed—stepped out of the elevator, linked arm-in-arm with her first love. Our eyes met, and her smile froze instantly. I stared at her, who dressed head to toe in designer labels, and demanded: “You told me your startup failed. I sold the only house my parents left me to pay your debts. I coded by day and delivered takeout by night. I had a bleeding ulcer but couldn’t afford to see a doctor! Tell me—why did you string me along like this?!” Diana remained silent. Her first love smirked and clapped me on the shoulder. “Buddy, don’t blame her. When she married you, she promised me everything, so her body, her money, everything…would always be mine.” I shrugged off his hand and laughed bitterly. Did he honestly think he could take everything?

“Shut your mouth—you’re not part of this! Diana, tell me yourself—is this true?!” I cut off Lucas West’s gloating and demanded, my eyes burning. Diana sighed. “Adrian, please understand. I was scared that if you knew who I really was, you’d lose your ambition. I worried about hurting your pride. Besides, didn’t you promise to take care of me no matter what?” “Diana, we’ve been married seven years! Was that not enough time to figure out who I really am?!” My voice cracked with emotion. “Or did you think I was dumb enough to fall for this forever?” She let go of Lucas’s hand and reached for mine. “It’s not like that, Adrian.” I stepped back, my balance unsteady—my shoes were so worn through I could barely walk, but I’d never been able to afford new ones. My gaze drifted to Lucas. Italian leather shoes, custom-tailored suit, and a Rolex Submariner glinting on his wrist. Diana once joked, “When I make it big, I’ll get you a Rolex too—so you can flex it on Instagram.” Turns out she did buy one. Just not for me. I swallowed the lump in my throat and met her eyes. “Then what is it like? And what about him?” Diana shot him a quick glance. “Lucas is just a friend.” Lucas’s face dropped. “Diana!” Diana grabbed his arm, shot him a warning look, then turned back to me. “Lucas was my first love, but now we’re just business partners. He’s interested in investing in the company.” I ground my teeth. “Then what the hell did he mean by that?!” Diana darted a nervous look at Lucas, then waved it off. “Oh, he’s always joking around. He was just messing with you…” Before she could finish, Lucas cut in. “It wasn’t a joke. Didn’t you say those exact words to me on video chat your wedding night? Adrian was passed out right next to you…” Diana snapped, “Lucas!” Lucas clamped his mouth shut. But my heart had already hit rock bottom. So it was all true. Diana couldn’t meet my eyes, her voice tight with guilt and frustration. “Don’t listen to Lucas—he’s just being an idiot. None of that’s true. Just go home, okay? I’ve got clients to meet, but I’ll explain everything tonight when I get back.” I took a deep breath. “Save it. I want a divorce, Diana.”

“Adrian, please calm down. We should talk about this at the apartment.” I cut her off. “You mean that $700-a-month dump with the peeling wallpaper?” I almost laughed. Her face tightened as office workers in the lobby started staring. She tried to grab my arm. “Don’t do this here—it’s embarrassing.” “Let go.” My jaw ached from clenching. She wouldn’t release me. “You’re just mad I didn’t spend money on you? Must you play the victim in front of everyone? I’ve been with you for seven years and never asked for anything! You should be grateful! The more you act like this, the less you’ll get in the divorce!” I stared at her in shock. I never thought I’d hear those words from my own wife. Lucas watched our struggle with an amused smirk. “Come on, Di. This is getting ridiculous. Didn’t you promise to pick out that new watch before our meeting?” “Absolutely. We’ll get you that watch—and a new car too! Can’t have my business partner driving around in that old thing, right?” Lucas shot me a triumphant look. “You heard her. Her money’s my money. You think you’ll get $800k in the divorce? Keep dreaming, loser.” “But hey, you did take care of Diana for me all these years. Even if you didn’t do a great job, you tried. If you beg me nicely, I might convince her to buy you some new shoes—you know, ones without holes.” That stung worse than a slap. I thought about all those years pinching pennies. The five-year-old winter coat I couldn’t replace. The video game skins I never bought. The customers who called me a loser while I delivered their food, saying I wasn’t worth the $5 tip. Rage and humiliation boiled up inside me. When Lucas leaned in, sneering in my face, I snapped. My fist connected with his perfect, arrogant jaw. Lucas stumbled back, clutching his face. The lobby went silent. After a beat, Lucas’s face turned crimson with rage. “You son of a bitch! Diana! He hit me!” Diana was instantly at his side, cupping his face. “Adrian, have you lost your mind?!” She grabbed her designer bag and started swinging it at me. The bag’s metal clasp caught my cheek. I tasted blood. I grit my teeth. “Don’t make me hit you back.” Diana shrieked. “Hit me? Go ahead! You don’t have the balls! You never did!” “You’re nothing but a deadbeat! Seven years of marriage and you’re still just a code monkey! If you had any talent, would you still be delivering takeout after all these years?!” “You’re the one who can’t cut it! Stop taking it out on everyone else! If you want to blame someone, blame your own sorry ass!” “You know what? I’m ashamed to even mention I’m married to you!” Blood trickled down my cheek, warm and sticky, then turned cold. So cold. I felt it all the way to my bones. I thought about my boss walking all over me—dumping extra work on me, making me pull all-nighters while paying me the same as everyone else. He knew I was stuck paying her debts, so he could treat me like garbage. I never told her about any of it. I didn’t want her to worry. Now all that pain had become weapons she used to stab me in the heart. I stared at them, my voice raw. “Diana, we’re done.” She blinked. “What?” “You think $800k is too much? Fine. Every cent you owe me, every drop of blood I spilled—I’ll get it all back in court.” And I meant everything—the company she started with my money, all those years of profits, the house, the car, that watch she bought Lucas. Half of it was mine, and I was going to take it. Lucas’s head shot up. “You wish!” I didn’t say a word. I just turned and walked toward the door. My cheek throbbed with every step. Blood kept dripping onto my shirt. But I held my head high. A man can fall, but he doesn’t have to crawl. As for whether I was dreaming—my lawyer would handle that.

By the time I left the lawyer’s office, night had fallen. I grit my teeth through the pain and headed home. The second I walked in, I spotted an open suitcase in the middle of the living room. Diana was shoving dresses into it. Lucas was sprawled on the couch like he owned the place. “Oh, you’re back.” Diana glanced up, her voice casual—as if we hadn’t just torn each other apart. “Perfect timing. There’s something you need to know.” “Lucas has a heart condition. That punch you threw today really messed him up.” “The doctors say he needs round-the-clock care. I’m staying with him for a few days.” I picked up a box of condoms from the corner of her suitcase. “Doctor’s orders, huh?” She snatched them out of my hand, cheeks flushing. “It must have fallen in by accident. You’re so immature, making a big deal out of nothing.” “I know you’re upset, so I’ll let this go. Lucas needs me right now. We can talk when I get back.” I was always there when she needed me. But when I needed her? She was with him. Was that fair? Marriage was never about fairness. It was about choosing each other. I’d chosen her for seven years. Now my heart was empty. No more. “Fine.” I turned toward the bedroom. I opened her closet and started pulling out her stuff. Then I saw the photo. My hand froze. Our wedding picture. In its frame on the shelf. She was beaming. I was grinning like an idiot, like I had the whole world. “Adrian, what the hell are you doing?” She followed me in, panic finally creeping into her voice. “You’re kicking me out?” I didn’t look at her. I grabbed the frame and tossed it in the trash. “Just helping you pack faster. One less trip for you.” “I said it’s only for a few days—” “Then don’t bother coming back. Take your stuff and your ‘sick’ friend and get out.” Diana fished the frame out of the trash and set it carefully on the shelf. “Quit being so dramatic. I’ll be back once Lucas is better.” Lucas appeared in the doorway, like he’d been waiting for his cue. “Babe, I sent you that new startup idea. It’s gonna be huge. Check your email.” Diana barely glanced at her phone before nodding. “No need. I’ll have accounting wire you $10 million tomorrow.” I caught a glimpse of the business plan title before her screen went dark. His tenth startup. Ten times he’d failed before. Ten million. How many delivery runs? How many all-nighters coding? Would I even live long enough to earn that? Probably drop dead first, like that 32-year-old developer in the news who worked himself to death. That could’ve been me—if I’d kept working myself ragged to pay her “debts.” Lucas noticed me staring and smirked. “What, Adrian? You wanna start a business too? Need some tips from a pro?” He saw right through me. Diana rolled her eyes. “Please. He can’t even tell a bull market from a bear market. Let him manage something? He’d probably lose his shirt day trading. He’s always gonna be a corporate drone.” I cut her off. “You done?” She stopped short. I pointed at the door. “Then get out. Get the hell out of my apartment.” “Adrian, this is our—” “No. It’s mine. I pay the rent, the utilities, bought the furniture. What’ve you contributed besides mooching off me for seven years?” She opened her mouth, but no words came out. Because it was the truth. For seven years, I’d sent her $10k monthly for her ‘debts’ on top of covering every bill. I’d skipped meals to buy her designer bags and fancy makeup—afraid she’d get made fun of at work. And this is what I got? She’s loaded—filthy rich—while I slaved away. She played me for a fool, showered another guy with cash, and had the nerve to call him a ‘friend.’ Diana’s voice turned icy. “Fine. I’m leaving. But don’t come crawling back when you regret this.” “Get out!” The door slammed shut. The apartment went quiet. Too quiet. I could hear the fridge humming, my own heartbeat thudding in my ears. I dropped to my knees. Tears hit the floor. One, two, more. A grown man, sobbing like a kid. I don’t know how long I knelt there before my phone buzzed. I grabbed it. A photo from an unknown number. Diana’s head on Lucas’s chest, both in a hotel bed. Message below: “Thanks for freeing her up.” I stared at that photo for what felt like hours. Then I typed back: “Thanks for taking out the trash.” Delivered. The PI I hired had struggled to get proof of physical cheating—Diana was always careful. Now they had it.

The next morning, I stood outside HR clutching a termination letter. The accusations on it made me laugh. Embezzlement? $3.2 million? Ridiculous. I was just a backend team lead. The biggest budget I handled was for new monitors. How the hell could I steal $3.2 million? I marched into HR. “I want to see the audit logs and system records.” The HR director adjusted her glasses, looking almost sorry for me. “The company was acquired yesterday. You’ll need to ask the new owner for those records.” “Who the hell is that?!” “Lucas West.” I barged into the CEO’s office. There they were—Lucas behind the desk, Diana beside him shuffling papers like nothing was wrong. “Well, if it isn’t our coding whiz!” Lucas grinned, all teeth. “Team lead—sorry, former team lead.” My vision went red. But I forced myself to stay calm, taking slow breaths. “Diana, that audit report is fake. Purchases need three approvals. I only had advisory power, not signing authority. The system logs will prove it.” Diana finally looked up. “The system was hacked. All those records are gone. Funny how it was only the ones related to your purchases, right?” I laughed out loud. “I built this company’s security system. I wrote the firewall code myself. You expect me to believe it got hacked that easily?” Lucas kicked back in the leather chair, smirking. “That’s why we’re怀疑你. Insiders always make the best hackers, right? Faking logs, altering purchase orders—piece of cake for a hotshot like you.” My hands balled into fists. “You rigged the database!” Lucas stood up. “You need proof to make accusations. Right now, every log points to you. Enjoy the lawsuit—and maybe a jail cell.” He leaned in, voice dropping to a whisper. “Or… you could beg. Get on your knees and maybe I’ll have Diana ask the lawyers to go easy.” I felt sick to my stomach. “Diana, say something! Don’t you have any humanity left?!” Diana met my eyes, voice flat. “You did this to yourself. We’re giving you an out. Take it.” I exploded. “An out?! You lied to me for seven years, and now you frame me for embezzlement? You want to destroy my life? Is that what this is about?!” Her face paled. Lucas lunged forward and grabbed my arm. “Who the hell do you think you’re yelling at?!” “Let go! You want me on my knees begging? Crawling like a dog? Dream on!” I turned to Diana. “I’m not paying a cent. I’m not admitting to shit. Go ahead—call the cops. I’ll see you in court.” Diana’s lips quivered. She started to speak, but Lucas cut her off. “Diana, go grab some coffee. Clear your head.” She hesitated, then walked out. The door clicked shut, and Lucas’s fake smile vanished. “Let’s cut the crap, Adrian. You’re just bitter. Bitter she chose me, bitter you’ll get nothing in the divorce.” My muscles tensed. “Hit a nerve, did I?” “That hotel photo turned out nice, huh? Diana’s skin’s so soft… like silk.” Blood rushed in my ears. “What’s your point?” My voice came out gravelly. “My point? You lost. Diana’s mine—body, heart, everything. This company, her money, her future. All mine.” “And you? You’re just trash. Waiting to be thrown out.” I balled my fist. The punch grazed his cheek. Lucas touched his face, eyes flashing, but then he smiled again. “Getting desperate? Here’s your last chance. Walk away with nothing, disappear, and I’ll make the charges go away. You can start over.” “$3.2 million, Adrian. How many delivery orders to pay that off? A lifetime?” That did it. Something snapped inside me. I launched at him, tackling him to the floor. My fist was raised when the door opened. Diana stood there. Lucas wiped his cheek, like there was blood. “Babe, he attacked me! I was trying to talk sense into him, and he snapped!” “I didn’t—” “Enough!” Diana cut me off. She spoke into her walkie-talkie, and two security guards appeared, grabbing my arms. A guard kicked the back of my knee, forcing me down. My face smashed into the carpet. Diana’s voice was ice. “Lucas, he hit you? Hit him back.” Lucas stepped closer, then planted his shoe on my face. He ground his loafers into my cheek, then kicked me square in the jaw. My nose exploded in pain. Blood poured out. Then the pain faded. All I felt was absurdity. Seven years of marriage, seven years of devotion. This was my reward. Diana’s voice cut through. “Adrian, you never learn. I’m calling the police. We’ll see how tough you are in a cell.” Her phone rang mid-sentence. She answered, frowning. Her face went white as she listened. When she hung up, she stared at me. “You… you filed for divorce?”

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My fiancée, Scarlett, was throwing a birthday party for her childhood best friend, Dylan, and I went along. After a few too many drinks, Dylan grinned and spilled a secret: “One time, I went to the clinic to donate sperm, but I was so nervous I couldn’t get it done. Scarlett happened to be passing by and just…helped me out. Don’t get the wrong idea, we didn’t actually do anything.” The air in the bar froze for a few seconds, then erupted into shouts. “Whoa!” A guy in a floral shirt slammed his hand on the table. “Dylan, that’s a creative alibi! Was it a VIP suite at the clinic, with a bed and everything?” “Screw off!” Dylan laughed, punching the floral shirt guy. “You guys just have dirty minds!” “We have dirty minds?” Another girl with short hair, Chloe, jumped in. “Then tell us, how exactly did Scarlett ‘help’ you?” Dylan pretended to cover her mouth, and they burst into laughter, playfully wrestling. Everyone else chimed in, their voices a chaotic chorus. “Scarlett, you’re such a good friend! To help with that! Wanna help me out next time?” I gripped my glass, my knuckles turning white. I glanced over at Scarlett. She wasn’t embarrassed at all. She was even smiling. She lifted a hand and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “What are you guys even talking about? I just happened to be going to the building next door to drop off some paperwork. How was I supposed to know Dylan was so useless?” The atmosphere in the private room reached a new peak of hilarity. Amidst the teasing, Dylan dramatically covered his face and wailed. I abruptly stood up. All the laughing and talking stopped. A dozen pairs of eyes turned to me, dead silent. Scarlett finally looked up at me, her brow slightly furrowed. “Alex, what’s wrong now?”

I stared at her. I’d spent seven years pursuing her. Now, I had no idea what to say. I turned and walked out of the private room. Whispers started behind me. “Oh, here we go again.” “Alex is always making a scene about jealousy. Can you imagine what marriage would be like with him?” “Seriously, if he can’t handle a joke, he shouldn’t show up. Total buzzkill…” When I stepped out of the bar, the night wind hit me hard. “Alex! Stop right there!” Scarlett chased after me, finally grabbing my arm. “What do you mean, just walking off without a word? You just made me look like an idiot in front of all my friends.” I slowly turned around. She was slightly out of breath, her cheeks flushed from the alcohol and anger. “What else was I supposed to do?” My voice was dry and hoarse. “Was I supposed to just keep sitting there, listening to them ask for every gory detail of how you ‘helped’ Dylan donate sperm, and then laugh along with everyone else?” Scarlett paused, then yanked her arm away. “I knew it! It’s always the same with you!” “Alex, when are you going to lighten up?” “Dylan is just my friend. It’s his birthday, we had a few drinks, what’s wrong with a little joking around?” “Did you really need to storm out and make a face like that? Do you have any idea how much of a downer that is, and how much you embarrass me?” “Joking around?” I tried to find even a flicker of empathy in her beautiful eyes. But there was nothing. “Scarlett, that wasn’t a joke.” “For any man, that’s not a joke.” “It’s a red line!” She looked at me as if I’d said something completely unbelievable, her eyebrows knitting together. “A red line? What’s the big deal? I just helped him out in the past!” “It’s a perfectly normal thing, and you’re making it sound so disgusting. People with dirty minds think everything’s dirty.” Her matter-of-fact tone hit me like a bucket of ice water. “And I already explained, it was just a coincidence, and I was just wearing a black dress. I left right after helping him, we didn’t even touch hands. What are you even fixating on?” That black dress. Hearing that, my stomach churned again. She’d never understand, or maybe she simply didn’t care. What those symbols, so meaningful to me, meant when she so casually tossed them into such a foul joke. Seeing my silence, the anger on her face softened a little. She reached out and ruffled my hair. Like she was trying to soothe a pouting child, her voice softened. “Okay, okay, I said the wrong thing, alright? I promise there won’t be a next time, no more jokes like that, okay? Don’t make that face. Come back inside with me, we’re about to cut the cake.” I pressed my lips together, my Adam’s apple bobbing. I struggled to suppress my swirling emotions: “Promise me one thing, and I’ll go back.” She immediately responded, her tone clearly impatient. “What is it? Just say it!” “Limit your attendance at Dylan’s gatherings and keep your distance from him.” I spoke each word clearly and slowly. Scarlett didn’t hesitate for a second, as if she’d already anticipated this kind of request, and quickly agreed: “Fine, fine, I promise.” “Is that good enough? Let’s go, don’t keep everyone waiting.” She reached out to link her arm through mine. Back in the private room, they indeed stopped teasing about the incident. But the unspoken understanding in the air became even thicker. Exchanged glances, subtle suppressed smiles. I sat in the corner, the surrounding merriment feeling entirely disconnected from me. Soon, a server wheeled in an exquisite birthday cake, its candles flickering. Everyone cheered, urging Dylan to make a wish. His eyes swept around the room, finally landing on Scarlett beside him. Dylan put an arm around her and said, “My wish is… to stay with my best friend, forever!” “To friendship!”

Cheers and applause instantly erupted, almost lifting the roof off. In the candlelight, Dylan looked smug and satisfied, tightening his arm around Scarlett. And Scarlett, my fiancée, the woman I’d pursued for seven years and was about to marry. She leaned into his embrace, turned her head to look at him, her eyes curving, smiling brightly and radiantly. I felt completely numb. Back home, Scarlett kicked off her heels and habitually stretched her legs towards me. “So tired… Alex, rub my legs.” She waited a few seconds, but I didn’t move. Her beautiful brows furrowed, showing her annoyance at being ignored: “Alex? I’m talking to you! Did you hear me?” Seeing me still sitting silently, just smoking, her displeasure deepened. “Ugh, you’re not starting again, are you? Are you ever going to be done with this? If you don’t want to, then don’t!” She pulled back her legs, walked barefoot across the floor, and headed towards the bathroom without a backward glance. I held the cigarette between my fingers, its glow flickering in the dim living room. Smoke swirled, blurring her retreating figure, and blurring the future that had once been so clear to me. My first meeting with Scarlett was seven years ago. She wore a white dress and white sneakers, looking lost in the heavy rain outside the library. I offered to walk her back to her dorm, and when she blushed and softly nodded, my heart skipped a beat. From that day on, I began my long pursuit. She was the undisputed campus queen, brilliant, and from a well-off family, never lacking admirers. And I, apart from a desperate courage and a genuine heart, had almost nothing. Thinking back on those clumsy yet passionate efforts now, even I find them incredible. My friends all called me an idiot, a simp, and told me to just give up. I wasn’t without frustration, I’d thought about giving up too. But every time I saw her give me a faint smile, or a simple “thank you.” All the grievances and exhaustion would instantly vanish. Finally, the year she graduated college, she said yes. The early days were sweet and warm. We decorated our little place together. She would lean into my arms, planning our future. She talked about getting a cat, having two kids, and traveling every year… I thought we would always be this happy, that she was the entire meaning of my efforts. But everything changed when Dylan came back from abroad. Their families were equally well-off, they were childhood friends, attending the same schools from kindergarten all the way through high school. As Scarlett’s best friend, it was natural for him to frequently appear in our lives. At first, I didn’t mind. But gradually, things started to feel wrong. Scarlett began setting a password on her phone, and she changed it frequently. When I asked, she casually said the internet wasn’t safe these days, and she needed to guard against harassment. She used to come home from work and chatter away about her day’s interesting events or complain about work frustrations. Now, she was working overtime more and more, coming home later and later. Even when she was home, she wasn’t as affectionate, cuddling up on the sofa to watch shows with me. Instead, she’d be engrossed in her phone, typing furiously, a sweet and shy smile occasionally playing on her lips. When I asked what she was laughing at, she’d quickly lock the screen. “Nothing, just saw a funny video.” And I, afraid of losing her, chose to believe. I even felt ashamed for my suspicions. Until tonight. Seeing her nestled in Dylan’s arms… I knew then that I’d been wrong. The next morning, Scarlett woke up uncharacteristically early. When I walked out of the bedroom, she was already coming out of the kitchen with milk and breakfast. A rare, almost gentle smile on her face. She even leaned in and kissed my cheek. “Hurry and eat, you’ll be late for work.”

I was stunned. For the next few days, she seemed to genuinely listen to my requests. Her phone didn’t ring as frequently, she came home from work on time, and she even asked what I wanted for dinner. Though her tone still carried a hint of habitual nonchalance, compared to her previous coldness and neglect, it was a world of difference. My heart, which she had trampled into the mud, began to tragically, carefully, sprout a tiny bud again. Perhaps I was just too sensitive? Perhaps that night was just a drunken misstep? She did care about me after all, and she was willing to change for our future. The gloom that had shrouded my heart slowly began to dissipate. It was time for the wedding dress fitting. This was one of the most anticipated parts before the wedding. Just before quitting time, an urgent meeting suddenly came up, so I texted her. “Sorry, I have a last-minute meeting. I’ll get there as soon as I can, you go ahead and start picking.” She texted back an “okay.” The meeting ended sooner than expected, and I practically grabbed my jacket and bolted out. I imagined how breathtakingly beautiful she would look trying on her wedding dress. Seven years of waiting, and finally, I’d see the girl I loved walk down the aisle for me in a white gown. Pushing open the glass door of the bridal shop, soothing music flowed through the air, mingled with the unique scent of wedding dresses. A sales associate smiled and greeted me. I was about to ask about Scarlett, but my gaze was abruptly drawn to a scene not far away. Scarlett was wearing an incredibly lavish, floor-length wedding gown. However, standing beside her was Dylan, dressed in a formal suit. The photographer adjusted the lighting, giving directions: “Alright, groom, get a little closer to the bride. Yes, gently put your arm around her waist.” Scarlett’s face was beaming with a happy, radiant smile. She tilted her head slightly, leaning against Dylan’s shoulder. The sales associate noticed the look on my face and quickly whispered, “Mr. Davies, please don’t misunderstand. Ms. Miller said you might be late and was eager to see the effect on, so she said Mr. Dylan here had a similar build to you, so… so she just had the photographer help take a few sample shots to see…” The sales associate’s words pierced through the last shred of my self-deception. I saw Dylan’s fingers gently stroking Scarlett’s waist. I saw her not only not flinching, but smiling even sweeter. Their eyes met, that kind of unspoken understanding and intimacy left no room for a third person. I didn’t step forward, I didn’t confront them. I just watched quietly, from a distance. When Scarlett, at the photographer’s request, somewhat reluctantly but acceptingly, kissed Dylan. I turned and walked away, pulling out my phone and dialing a number. The phone rang for a long time. Just when I thought no one would answer, it connected. A soft voice came through. “…Alex?” I took a deep breath. “I’m getting married in two days. Just need a bride. Will you be there?”

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