I was in a rush to fly overseas to negotiate a billion-dollar project with European royalty when my private jet was suddenly grounded before takeoff. A man in a suit stormed onto the plane, shouting: “Who gave you permission to touch my plane? Don’t you know this thing is worth more than your lives?” Thinking he had mistaken the hangar, I tried to explain calmly: “Sir, please check again. This is hangar 25, and this plane belongs to me.” My explanation only made him more aggressive. “My plane is parked in hangar 25. My wife just gave it to me last month. You think I’d forget that? Get your people off my plane now, or you’ll regret it!” Seeing how unreasonable he was being, I had no choice but to ask the airline staff to check the plane’s registration documents. Just as I was confidently preparing to put this arrogant young man in his place, I heard the airline staff deliver a shocking revelation. “Mr. Carter, please disembark immediately. This plane does indeed belong to Mr. Parker.”

“All systems go, ready for takeoff!” “Wait, we have a situation on the ground!” Just as the captain was preparing for takeoff, he suddenly received a warning from ground control. I instructed the flight attendant to open the cabin door so I could see what was happening. “What are you idiots doing? How could you let someone mess with my plane when I’m paying millions in annual hangar fees? Are you feeding that money to the dogs?” Through the cabin door, I saw a young man in an impeccable suit yelling at the hangar manager. Behind the suited man was a group of young men and women, all looking at the manager with disdain. The flustered manager pointed at me standing in the doorway and shouted, “This… this really isn’t my fault! When the plane was registered, it only listed the owner as Mr. Parker.” “That gentleman came in saying he was the plane’s owner and that his name was Carter, so I let him in.” Hearing this, the young man’s eyes flashed with anger as he charged up the stairs, bellowing at us: “Who gave you permission to touch my plane? Don’t you know this thing is worth more than your lives?” My crew members, whom I had hastily recruited from the flight base, all looked at me uncertainly. “Mr. Carter, what’s going on?” I waved at them to stay calm. I turned to examine the young man in the suit. He was handsome, but reeked of alcohol. Most likely some drunk rich kid who had mixed up the hangar numbers. Not wanting to cause a scene and delay my important meeting, I patiently tried to explain: “Sir, please check again. This is hangar 25, and this plane definitely belongs to me.” “Why don’t you look at the hangar next door? I bet that’s where your plane is parked.” Hearing my suggestion, the group of young people behind him started mocking him: “Ethan, you kept bragging about showing us your private jet, and this is what we get?” “You really oversold yourself this time. Sure, your family has some money, but do you have any idea how much a Gulfstream G700 costs? Your dad’s net worth of less than $100 million can’t afford this!” “Let’s just leave before we embarrass ourselves any further.” Faced with his friends’ doubt, Ethan started panicking. He grabbed the hangar manager’s collar: “You were there when my wife gave me the plane, right? Tell them!” The manager looked uncomfortable: “Well, I do remember something like that happening, but…” Before the manager could finish, Ethan eagerly turned to his friends: “See? Didn’t I tell you I have a private jet? Didn’t I?” Hearing that Ethan really did have a private jet, his friends quickly changed their tune. “Our boy Ethan has really made it big, even got himself a private jet. You’ve got to take us along on your road to riches, bro.” “Thanks to Ethan, I finally get to experience what it’s like to ride in a private jet.” “Are there any more rich ladies out there giving away planes as gifts? Hook a brother up, will you?” Basking in his friends’ praise, Ethan became even more smug. He yanked on the manager’s collar again: “I’m supposed to take my friends to my wife’s birthday party today. Get these idiots off my plane now.” “If you make me late, I’ll end you.” “And have the plane thoroughly inspected. If there’s even a scratch, they’ll pay for it!” Seeing how serious he was, I started to doubt myself. I even wondered if I had mixed up the hangars. After double-checking with my assistant, I confirmed that I hadn’t made a mistake. Now I realized this guy wasn’t just a drunk who mixed up hangars. He was trying to use my plane to show off to his friends. And of all times, he had to do it when I was in a rush to get to Europe for an important meeting. Just as I was about to step forward and chase them off, the hangar manager approached me with an accusatory look. “Sir, impersonating the owner of a private jet is a serious offense. Please leave immediately, or else…” “Are you kidding me? He says the plane is his and you just believe him?” “I bought this plane from England last year for $70 million. You’re telling me it changed owners just because he said so? Is this how your airline operates?” The manager looked conflicted: “Well… you both claim to be Mr. Parker, so which one of you is really…” “Of course it’s me! This plane is mine!” Ethan cut in before the manager could finish. Seeing this shameless freeloader continue to disrupt my travel plans, my anger started to rise. “Listen, there’s a limit to showing off. You’ve repeatedly interfered with my travel plans. I’m warning you, I’ll sue you if you don’t stop!” “Get off my plane now!” Faced with my challenge, he arrogantly shoved me: “I should be the one suing you for stealing my plane, and you have the nerve to try and kick me off? You must have a death wish.” “Take your people and get the hell off my plane, or I’ll make you regret it!” My assistant stepped forward to confront him when he saw how rudely he was treating me, but I held him back. Time was of the essence, and I couldn’t afford to waste it arguing with this freeloader. So I asked him directly: “You claim this plane is yours. Then tell me, what’s the aircraft’s registration number?” Only the plane’s owner would know the registration number. By asking this question, I intended to expose him in front of everyone and see if he’d keep up his act. The crew members and Ethan’s friends all turned to look at him, eager to see if he could answer. I stood by coldly, waiting to see him make a fool of himself. But his next words completely shocked me. “The registration number is N9527, it’s a Gulfstream G700, and it cost $73.4 million. Did I get that right?” “Now get lost!” Looking at Ethan’s smug face, I was completely stunned. Not only could he recite the plane’s registration number, but he even knew its exact price. This was bizarre. While the base price for Gulfstream jets is around $60 million, the final price varies for each customer based on interior customization. So each plane has a unique price. How did he know the exact price of this plane? What was going on here? 3 Hearing Ethan recite the correct registration number, the crew members gathered around me worriedly. The captain spoke first: “Mr. Carter, is this plane really yours? Don’t get us all in trouble. This jet is worth hundreds of millions. We could end up in prison if there’s an investigation.” “Mr. Carter, you offered a high price, but this job is too risky. I’m out.” The maintenance engineer demanded to quit. Realizing we were about to miss our important meeting, I quickly tried to reassure everyone: “Don’t panic. I don’t know how he got the plane’s registration number, but I can guarantee this plane absolutely belongs to me.” “Look, here are the emails between me and Gulfstream when I purchased the plane.” The crew members calmed down a bit after seeing the communication records on my phone. “I’ve already sent someone to push the airline to pull up the plane’s ownership records as soon as possible. That will prove this plane belongs to me.” “When that happens, not only will I kick this imposter off the plane, I’ll also pursue legal action against him.” Hearing this, the crew members returned to their posts. When Ethan heard I had sent someone to check the ownership records, he burst out laughing. “You’re quite the actor, aren’t you? Checking ownership records? I bet you’re just buying time so you can make a run for it.” I ignored the freeloader, waiting for the airline staff to return with proof of ownership so I could deal with him properly. Seeing that I was ignoring him, he started taunting the crew: “You people are really stupid, aren’t you? Can’t you see he’s a total fraud and a thief?” “He stole my plane and is trying to drag you down with him. How can you not see that?” His friends chimed in to back him up: “You guys really have no sense, do you? Do you think just anyone can own a Gulfstream?” “Look at our man Ethan here. He’s wearing Armani, sporting a Rolex. Only high-class people like him deserve a plane like this.” “Now look at that guy. His clothes don’t even have a logo. They look like they came from a street market. Someone like that probably can’t even afford a toy plane, let alone a private jet.” My assistant James couldn’t stand hearing them mock me and snapped back. “You ignorant fools! You have no idea what true luxury is.” “My boss’s suit is made from French vicuña wool. It took the top luxury brand Loro Piana half a year to custom make it. Just the jacket alone is worth $3 million. And you mistake it for cheap clothes? With your level of taste, you don’t deserve to be anywhere near a private jet.” Stung by my assistant’s retort, Ethan’s group turned red with embarrassment. Trying to save face, Ethan angrily pointed at me and yelled: “Who are you calling ignorant? Who doesn’t deserve a private jet?” “When the airline staff comes back and proves this plane is mine, you two better get on your knees and apologize. Otherwise, you’re not leaving here!” I gave a cold laugh: “We’ll see about that. It’s not clear who’ll be kneeling when this is over!” Just then, the airline staff arrived. I confidently asked him: “Have you confirmed who owns the plane?” The airline employee nodded solemnly: “Yes, we’ve figured it out.” I glanced smugly at the arrogant Ethan and said with satisfaction: “Now that it’s been cleared up, get these uninvolved people off my plane.” I gestured at Ethan’s group, indicating for the staff to remove them from the aircraft. But the employee didn’t move. Instead, he looked at me earnestly. After a moment, he said something that made my jaw drop: “Mr. Carter, please take your people and disembark immediately. The true owner of this aircraft is Mr. Ethan Parker.” 4 Hearing the staff say this, I was completely dumbfounded. This was clearly my plane. How could it suddenly belong to someone else? I grabbed the employee’s collar and anxiously asked: “You must have made a mistake. I bought this plane for $70 million. How could it suddenly become his?” The employee stumbled from my sudden movement but patiently explained: “Mr. Carter, please trust our professionalism. We didn’t make a mistake. This plane does indeed belong to Mr. Ethan Parker.” “However, there was a change in ownership. Last month, the previous owner, Ms. Olivia Reed, gifted the plane to Mr. Ethan Parker at no cost.” Hearing his explanation, I suddenly remembered that I had given this plane to my wife Olivia as a wedding gift last year. But Olivia had apparently re-gifted it to this pretty boy. Realizing this, I was overwhelmed with anger. My legs went weak, and I started to fall backwards. Fortunately, my assistant and the airline employee caught me before I hit the ground. At this moment, Ethan swaggered over with a smug look on his face. “Well, now that we’ve confirmed the plane is mine, get on your knees and apologize!” His friends joined in: “Yeah, kneel and apologize to our man Ethan!” The thought that this arrogant man might be involved with my wife made my blood boil. I broke free from my assistant’s grip and rushed over to slap Ethan hard across the face. “Kneel to your mother! I’ll kill you, you bastard!” Seeing Ethan get hit, his friends swarmed me, raining down punches and kicks. My assistant tried to intervene but was knocked to the ground as well. Ethan had his people pin me down and slapped me hard: “You try to steal my plane and then hit me? I’ll teach you a lesson you won’t forget!” Just as he was about to kick me again, his phone rang. He paused and checked the caller ID, then grinned at his friends: “It’s my sugar mama. Hold on a sec.” To show off, he put the call on speakerphone. As soon as the call connected, Olivia’s coquettish voice came through: “Honey, why aren’t you here yet? I can’t wait any longer.” Hearing Olivia urge him like this, Ethan winked at his friends, showing off. His friends all gave him thumbs up in admiration. Basking in their praise, Ethan smugly replied: “I would have been there ages ago, but some idiot tried to claim your gift to me was his plane. When I confronted him, he even hit me. I’m just teaching him a lesson.” “What? Someone dared to hit you! Honey, teach that person a good lesson. Make sure they never forget it!” “But don’t keep me waiting too long, okay? I’ve already booked us a hotel room in Bay City. I’m just waiting for you to get here.” Hearing Olivia say this, Ethan hung up with a satisfied smirk. His friends whooped and hollered. As for me, I was shaking with rage. My blood felt like it was boiling. I wanted nothing more than to castrate these animals, but they had me pinned down tightly. They continued to mock and beat me until they tired themselves out. Then they threw me and my assistant off the plane. As they were about to take off, they couldn’t resist one last taunt from the cabin door: “You broke loser, trying to act like a big shot in front of me. If my wife wasn’t in such a rush, I’d teach you a real lesson today!” Watching the plane disappear into the sky, murderous thoughts filled my mind. I took out my phone and called my executive assistant: “Buy out all flight routes from Bay County to Bay City immediately. Prohibit N9527 from landing at any airport along the way!”

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Kidnappers had taken both my son and my wife’s beloved dog hostage. They told Olivia she could only choose one to save. My eyes were bloodshot as I fell to my knees, shouting, “Save Leo! Save our son! He’s only five years old!” But Olivia was agonizing between our child and the dog. Lucas’s face was pale as he spoke with a trembling voice, “Olivia, don’t worry about Snowball. It’s just a dog. But… it’s my only emotional support now…” She glanced at me, her eyes filled with complexity. “I’ll decide with a dice roll,” she said. The kidnappers laughed and agreed to her proposal. Odd numbers would save our son, even numbers would save the dog. The dice landed on three. I instantly felt relief wash over me, my body going limp. But Olivia shouted, “That doesn’t count! My hand slipped. I demand another roll!” The kidnapper sneered, “One finger buys you another chance to roll.” Without hesitation, Olivia broke her own pinky finger. I watched in horror as she rolled the dice again with her shaking hand. This time… it landed on four.

“Even number! It’s an even number!” Olivia exclaimed with relief, shouting at the kidnappers. The kidnapper grinned, his voice dripping with mockery, “Hahaha! Mrs. Quinn, you’re fucking hilarious!” “You could have saved your son on the first roll, but you chose to save a damn animal instead. Mrs. Quinn, you’re truly one in a million!” Olivia’s face flushed red, but she didn’t argue back. She just stubbornly repeated, “This is fate!” My heart sank to the bottom of an abyss. My whole body was shaking, blood and tears blurring my vision. Olivia carefully walked over to Lucas, opened the cage, and took the terrified Samoyed into her arms. “It’s okay now, Snowball is safe,” she cooed. Lucas ran to her side, crying uncontrollably. Meanwhile, my son Leo had a pale face, his mouth taped shut, crying so hard his body was turning purple. I rushed over to embrace Leo. His tiny body trembled in my arms. Only then did Olivia seem to remember us and walked over. “Is Leo okay?” she asked casually, her eyes never leaving the dog in her arms. My throat was too constricted from shock to make any sound. Suddenly, Lucas cried out, “Olivia, Snowball is dying! We need to get him to the hospital right away!” “Okay, let’s go now!” Olivia said anxiously, turning to leave with the dog in her arms without sparing us another glance. She only threw a cold sentence to the kidnappers: “The money will be transferred to you. Release my son.” With that, she hurried away supporting Lucas. The iron door of the warehouse slammed shut, cutting off everything outside. I held my son, my body ice-cold. The kidnapper squatted down in front of me. He had a cigarette dangling from his mouth as he sneered at me, “I’ve never seen such a heartless wife. Where did you find this piece of trash?” I stared at him blankly, unable to utter a word. The kidnapper blew a puff of smoke in my face, bringing me back to reality and making me cough. “Tell you what, I’m in a good mood today. I’ll give you one more chance,” he said. He held his phone out to me. “Call your wife.” “If she’s willing to turn back now, I’ll let you and your son go.” “How’s that? Pretty merciful, right?” He laughed at his own words. My hands were shaking so badly I could barely hold the phone. I dialed Olivia’s number. The phone rang for a long time before it was answered. “Hello?” It was Olivia’s voice. In the background, I could clearly hear Lucas’s anxious voice. “Olivia…” I sobbed, “Save Leo… please come back…” From the other end came her impatient voice. “Gabriel! I’m in the middle of getting emergency treatment for Snowball. He’s in shock!” “Leo is my son. The kidnappers won’t dare do anything to him once they get the money. Don’t make trouble for me now!”

With that, she hung up without hesitation. The kidnapper listened to the dial tone and took back his phone. He shrugged and said with a cold smile, “I gave you a chance. Mrs. Quinn is a busy woman, and she hasn’t even transferred the money to me yet.” “You can’t blame me for what happens next.” He gestured to his men behind him. One of them with dyed yellow hair roughly snatched Leo from my arms. “No!” I let out a heart-wrenching roar, crawling on all fours to try and stop him. Another thug kicked me hard in the chest. I slammed against the wall before crumpling to the ground. Blood flowed from my forehead, obscuring my vision. My son’s cries echoed in my ears. “I want Mommy! Mommy, come save me!” “Daddy! Daddy, save me!” The next second, both Leo’s terrified screams and my cries were abruptly silenced. I saw Leo’s tiny body collapse softly to the ground, motionless. I kept shaking my head, my jaw trembling, as I slowly supported myself up and staggered over to my son. My hand caressed Leo’s face, which had been so full of life just hours ago. The blood on my hands smeared his face, and I frantically tried to wipe it away, but there was more and more blood. I picked up my son and finally broke down in loud, uncontrollable sobs. When I had cried myself out, I looked up to find myself surrounded by a group of men who weren’t the original kidnappers. Before I could react, they swung the clubs in their hands, striking my legs and arms. I heard the sound of bones breaking and was nearly driven unconscious by the pain. In the last second before I passed out, I heard their malicious laughter. “This bastard can’t take a beating at all. Brother Lucas said to just break his arms and legs, leave him barely alive.” … I woke up in the hospital. My whole body ached as if I had been torn apart and haphazardly put back together. The doctor said I had suffered comminuted fractures in my left arm and right leg, and they had barely managed to save me. I stared blankly at the ceiling, feeling a twinge in my heart, but I had no more tears left to cry. Why didn’t they just let me die along with Leo? A nurse came in and asked me in a low voice, “Is that little boy’s body in the morgue your son?” “The forensic examination is complete. The family can come claim the body now.” My heart was stabbed again. Just then, Olivia pushed open the door to the hospital room. She was holding Snowball in her arms, with Lucas following behind her, his eyes red and puffy. Seeing that I was awake, Olivia’s face broke into a smile. She was about to show me the dog when I spoke. Her voice held a hint of relief: “Snowball was in critical condition, but luckily we saved him.” I remembered the doctor saying I had nearly died too. A dog’s life, a human life… Hah, this was my wife. I stared vacantly at the wall without speaking. After a long silence, just as Olivia was starting to get impatient, I spoke in a hoarse voice. Each word felt like a knife scraping my throat. “Olivia, the doctor said they issued twenty-five critical condition notices for me. I almost died.” “I barely managed to survive, but Leo will never come back!” I practically shouted the last sentence, tears falling in large drops onto the bedsheet. Olivia was taken aback, then sighed, “You know dogs are more fragile, of course we had to save Snowball first.” “You’re fine now, aren’t you? You have good recovery abilities, unlike Snowball who still needs months of care.” Then, as if just remembering something, she frowned and asked me. “What happened to Leo? Did the kidnappers release him?” I looked at the face I had loved for ten years, suddenly feeling it was very unfamiliar. I opened my mouth, my voice raspy: “Leo… is dead.” “You killed him!” My emotions suddenly collapsed, and I began to scream hysterically. “You killed him! Olivia, you’re a murderer!”

Olivia’s face instantly turned ugly. Lucas quickly came forward to hold her back, gently persuading, “Olivia, don’t be angry. Gabriel just woke up and is emotionally unstable.” Olivia shook him off, pointing at my nose and scolding, “Gabriel Gray, have you had enough? What kind of madness are you spouting?!” “Lucas has already contacted the kidnappers. They said they received the money and released Leo long ago!” “Where did you take Leo? What kind of father are you? You can’t even watch your own child!” I looked at her in disbelief. She didn’t believe our son was dead. I stared at her with wide eyes, my lips trembling slightly, “The kidnappers killed him because you didn’t transfer the money immediately…” Olivia let out a cold laugh, “Gabriel Gray, I know you hate me for choosing Snowball, but how can you make up such lies just to make me feel guilty!” “How could Leo possibly be dead? The kidnappers just wanted money!” “You must have lost him and are too afraid to admit it, so you made up this nonsense to trick me!” “Hurry up and find Leo! Stop being so unreasonable!” With that, she left holding the dog and pulling Lucas along, without looking back. I shouted and threw everything I could reach onto the floor. The sudden movement caused my freshly sutured wounds to burst open, blood soaking the sheets. I collapsed to the ground, my chest aching violently. On the day I was discharged, Olivia came to pick me up. I sat in a wheelchair as she pushed me out of the hospital. She didn’t mention Leo again. Lucas told her I had accepted the fact that I had “lost” our son, but the shock was too great and I needed time to recover. She believed it. After returning home, I started having nightmares every night, often waking up crying. In my dreams, I always saw Leo dying before my eyes. That night, I was again awakened by a nightmare and went to the kitchen for water. As soon as I turned on the light, I saw a dog’s body by the sink. I went over and found it was Lucas’s Snowball! Before I could react, Lucas cried out behind me. “Gabriel, you actually… you actually killed Snowball!” The sound drew Olivia, who immediately pinned the blame on me without asking what happened. She looked at me with disgust and scolded harshly, “Gabriel Gray, how could you be so vicious?! Even if Leo’s disappearance broke your heart, Snowball was innocent!” “Besides, it was your failure as a father. How can you make an innocent dog bear the consequences of your own mistakes?!” I shouted back with red eyes, “So Leo deserved to bear it all, to the point of death?!” Olivia looked at me with disappointment, “You’ve really gone mad, completely mad! I’ve told you Leo just went missing. Why do you keep cursing him dead?!” I didn’t want to argue anymore. I rushed out of the house, ignoring Olivia’s angry shouts behind me. I ran to the hospital barefoot, my soles already bloody and raw. At the entrance to the morgue, I couldn’t take another step forward. I crouched down covering my face, sobbing. Olivia caught up behind me. She roughly pulled me up from the ground, her scolding raining down on me. “Gabriel Gray, what the hell are you doing?!” “Running to a place like this in the middle of the night, are you sick?!” “I haven’t even settled the score with you for killing Snowball, and you ran away because you feel guilty!” I looked at Olivia’s contorted expression, the anger in my heart finally erupting. I lunged forward and grabbed her throat. The next second, I was violently kicked away by her, my head hitting the wall. My broken leg couldn’t support me and I fell to the ground, blood dripping down. I looked up to meet Olivia’s bloodshot eyes. She pointed at me, “Gabriel Gray, wasn’t killing Snowball enough? Now you want to kill me too?!” I laughed, laughing so hard tears streamed down, laughing until the wounds on my chest ached sharply. I wiped the blood from my face and struggled to stand up on shaky legs, the pain like walking on knife edges. But it was nothing compared to the pain in my heart. “Didn’t you say Leo just went missing?” “He’s lying in there right now. Do you dare to go in with me and see?!” “See what your choice has done to your five-year-old son?!”

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Olivia Sullivan, the Oscar-winning actress and my girlfriend of five years, was caught spending a night with a mysterious man. To protect Marcus Shaw’s reputation, she quickly posted intimate photos of them on Twitter, publicly acknowledging their relationship. The caption read: “Waiting for falling leaves, cold winds, autumn fireworks, and a better us. From beginning to end, I’ve only loved one person.” Looking at the man in the photo whose face was 50% similar to mine, a chill gradually enveloped my entire body. So for all these years, I had always been someone else’s stand-in. Olivia called soon to explain: “Marcus just returned to the country and can’t afford any damage to his reputation. I did this for work reasons, don’t take it seriously.” I only replied calmly: “It’s fine, I understand.” Seeing that I had no reaction, Olivia sounded confused on the other end: “Why aren’t you jealous today?” Less than half an hour after hanging up, Olivia came back. I thought she would continue her explanation from earlier, but she didn’t. Acting as if nothing had happened, she handed me a prepared gift: “Take a look, do you like it? I picked it out especially for you.” It was a Patek Philippe watch, quite expensive, I’d heard of it. In the past, she would always bring me small gifts when she came back, but never anything this expensive. Maybe she also realized that this time was different from before. In the past, a cake, a hug, or even a simple smile would have been enough to appease me. But today, even with this million-dollar watch in front of me, my expression remained indifferent, without any emotion. I just said a bland “Thank you.” Disappointment flashed across Olivia’s face. She could clearly sense that something was off with me. But she didn’t dare to bring up her public announcement with Marcus, because she felt guilty. She could only deliberately change the subject: “Aiden, I’m hungry. Can you make me some chicken soup noodles?” The noodles were pre-packaged, but the chicken soup had to be freshly made. Every time she said she wanted to eat something, I would rush to prepare the ingredients for her without complaint, no matter how troublesome it was. But today, I didn’t want to do anything. “There’s bread in the fridge. If you’re hungry, just eat some yourself.” “Aiden!” Seeing that I still maintained an indifferent attitude, Olivia finally lost her temper: “Can you stop being moody? Do you know how many interviews I canceled to come back and comfort you! Can’t you be more understanding of my work?” “No!” I interrupted her. Looking up, my eyes still like a midnight lake, without any ripples: “Olivia, let’s break up.” Even after so many days of self-healing, when I saw the one I once loved deeply, my heart still uncontrollably ached, the pain blocking my chest, making it difficult to breathe. But I still said those words stuck in my throat. This ridiculous underground relationship had lasted for five years. My feelings for her had long since reached their end. I no longer wanted to wait in an empty house for her return, no longer wanted to watch her various scandals, and no longer wanted to love her. I was tired. When she heard the words ‘break up’, Olivia’s face turned pale, showing unprecedented panic and shock. Before she could speak, I opened the door and left.

After getting together with Olivia, except for work hours, I stayed at home waiting for her all day and hadn’t hung out with friends for a long time. This time when my friends invited me out, I reluctantly agreed. After a few drinks, they noticed I was distracted, so I had to tell them about the breakup. “Breakup? When did you start dating someone that we didn’t know about? How did you meet?” My friend’s rapid-fire questions instantly took my memory back to middle school, that summer when I first met Olivia. I was locked in the bathroom by bullies for getting the top score in the school, and I met her who was in an equally miserable state. At that moment when equally miserable state the gears of fate turned, two hearts with the same destiny were tightly bound together… After graduating from middle school, she followed her divorced mother to another city, but we never lost contact. It wasn’t until five years ago when I graduated from college and came to her city to support her that we finally became a couple. But she clearly knew. Marcus Shaw was the boy who bullied me back then! My friends’ noisy voices pulled my drifting thoughts back. I casually pointed at the poster on the wall and smiled bitterly: “She’s the girlfriend I’ve been dating for five years.” On the poster was a promotion for Olivia and Marcus’ new movie. She had also fought for the male lead role for Marcus. The two were pressed tightly together, gazing into each other’s eyes, their expressions full of affection. What a perfect pair. My friends burst into laughter, thinking I was joking. “You must be drunk. How could the famous Oscar winner Olivia Sullivan be your girlfriend!” The laughter around me was a bit harsh. With three parts drunkenness, looking at that poster also made me feel a bit dazed for a moment. I didn’t explain further, just raised my head and drained the glass in one gulp. The burning sensation swept down my throat, bringing melancholy and also calmness. As I lowered my head, the door of the private room was pushed open. Even though the newcomer was tightly pressing down her baseball cap, wearing a mask and sunglasses, I still recognized Olivia at a glance.

Amidst everyone’s shock, Olivia nodded slightly in greeting, then pulled out a chair and sat down quietly next to me. Except for me, she always had an innate sense of aloofness towards everyone. “What are you doing here?” My voice was polite but distant, instantly pulling our relationship far apart. She frowned in dissatisfaction, but her tone was gentle: “I rarely have free time, so I wanted to spend more time with you.” I coldly replied: “You don’t need to do this. We’re breaking up anyway.” “I won’t agree to break up.” She took a deep breath, interrupting me, “You’re just jealous and want to make our relationship public, right? Fine, I’ll satisfy you.” After saying this, she reached for my glass and stood up, her tone returning to its usual haughtiness: “Hello everyone, I’m Aiden’s girlfriend.” “Due to work reasons, I’ve been hiding my relationship with Aiden. Please don’t mind.” As she finished speaking, she raised the glass amidst everyone’s shocked gazes. Before it could touch her lips, I snatched the glass away. “Enough, Olivia.” “We’ve already broken up.” The glass slammed heavily on the table, rolling twice before coming to a stop. After saying this, I ignored her slightly reddened eyes and turned to leave directly. I stumbled out drunkenly, the dark night road dim and bleak. The darkness mixed with the smell of alcohol, surrounding me tightly. My thoughts were a bit chaotic, making me recall the scene of Olivia raising her glass. My chest suddenly felt tight and I couldn’t breathe. Olivia never drank alcohol, saying she hated the taste. But I had once seen her drunk in a video leaked by paparazzi, half of her body leaning against Marcus’ embrace, raising her glass to please the producers at the table: “I hope everyone can give Marcus a chance, he will definitely perform well.” For Marcus’ sake, she who never touched alcohol downed three glasses of whiskey in one go, finally falling drunkenly into Marcus’ arms. And that day was my birthday. I sat in front of the cake waiting all night, but she never came back. Later she called to explain: “There were many producers and directors at the wrap party for the new drama, I really couldn’t get away. When I have time to come back, I’ll definitely make it up to you with a proper birthday celebration.” But Olivia, I don’t need it anymore.

From the moment I saw her falling into Marcus’ arms, all the feelings I had built up over the years were shattered, leaving my heart as cold as ashes. Olivia quickly chased after me. “Aiden, don’t be angry. Marcus and I really are just work partners…” Her voice was pleading in front of my friends. I just calmly replied: “I’m not angry. It has nothing to do with me anymore.” “Stop denying it, Aiden. You’re breaking up with me because you’re jealous of Marcus.” “I’ve explained many times that those rumors are just part of my work. If you mind, I can clarify them right now. Please don’t talk about breaking up anymore, okay?” She was still rambling on, always using work as an excuse for her unavoidable actions. She would never admit that she had ever divided her heart in our love. I suddenly felt that her desperate clinging and lies were extremely ugly. I shook off her hand and hailed a taxi, leaving without looking back. Just as I got home, I suddenly received a dismissal notice from the HR department. “Aiden, this is a decision from upper management. I couldn’t do anything about it,” the HR staff said apologetically. “I heard someone deliberately set you up. Did you offend anyone?” I had always been kind to others and never offended anyone. But since the company fired me for this reason, I didn’t care. After all, I wasn’t relying on that salary to make money anyway. After hanging up, an unknown number called immediately. When I answered, a man’s voice came through: “How does it feel to be fired, Aiden?” I immediately recognized the voice. It was Marcus. So the person behind this was him. My fists clenched tightly, nails digging into my palms. The pain mixed with hatred swept through my entire body. “You’re just a useless piece of trash who can’t even earn $5000 a month now. What right do you have to cling to Olivia? I advise you to get lost quickly.” “With me around, I’ll make sure you can never find a job again, haha.” He laughed arrogantly, completely different from his gentle and elegant image on TV, like a devil devouring people from hell. Just like how he was in middle school. But no matter what he looked like, in my eyes, he was disgusting. I sneered coldly, interrupting his ugly laughter: “Is that so? Then you’re bound to lose.”

Marcus was destined to lose this bet miserably. For me, the 9-to-5 job outside was just a daily pastime to kill time. It didn’t matter whether I worked or not. Back in college, my anonymously published original novel was selected by a famous director who bought the film and TV rights. From that first book, I embarked on my journey as a screenwriter. Several hit TV dramas in recent years were all written by me. However, at my request, my real name was always hidden, only using the pen name ‘Fallen Angel’ instead. Except for a few top directors I’ve been working with, no one knows about this identity of mine. Not even Olivia. The next day, I went to the company on time to handle the resignation procedures. When I arrived at my workstation, I found all my personal belongings were gone. The entire desk was empty. My gaze shifted to the trash can beside it, where I saw my things lying quietly inside. I didn’t need to guess to know who did this. I smirked coldly, grabbed a vase nearby and walked towards the director’s office. Amidst the terrified gazes of all my colleagues, I kicked open the door and smashed the vase at the director’s feet with a loud ‘crash’. He shouted angrily and stood up: “Aiden, don’t go too far.” “If you want to blame someone for this, blame yourself for being so lowly and offending Mr. Marcus Shaw. He specifically said he doesn’t want to see you. We had no choice.” The company had chosen Marcus Shaw as the spokesperson for their new product. It was time to curry favor with him, so naturally they wouldn’t offend Marcus over a small employee like me. I couldn’t be bothered to say anything more. After all, losing me was the company’s loss. Smashing the vase was enough to vent my anger. Just as I was about to leave, the director’s secretary rushed in anxiously. “Director, we just received a call from Oscar winner Olivia Sullivan. She expressed interest in endorsing our new product, but she has one condition…” At this point, the secretary gave me a complicated look. The director’s eyes lit up, urging: “Whatever the condition is, we must do everything possible to satisfy her.” The opportunity to work with an Oscar-winning actress was rare and precious. He naturally couldn’t wait. “Miss Sullivan’s only requirement is that her boyfriend Aiden be fully responsible for all her work.” When this was said, everyone was stunned. Even I was momentarily taken aback.

After Olivia and I confirmed our relationship, she said we couldn’t reveal our relationship in public to avoid suspicion. For three whole years, Olivia and I never appeared together in anyone’s sight. My family and friends knew nothing of her existence. She never attended any of my friend gatherings either. Even last year when my grandmother was critically ill and wanted to see my girlfriend before she passed away, I called Olivia in tears, hoping she could spare some time to see the old lady. Even though she heard the choke in my voice, she only hesitated for a few seconds before firmly refusing. “Aiden, you know my current status. It’s not convenient for me…” After that, I never again made requests to introduce her to my family and friends. I just didn’t expect that today, for the sake of my job, she would step in as my girlfriend for the first time. But I no longer needed it. Olivia’s status was not something Marcus could match. Hearing her make such a cooperation request, the director changed his ugly attitude from earlier and apologized to me with a smile: “Aiden, why didn’t you say earlier that you had such a connection with Miss Sullivan?” “I was wrong before, please don’t mind. How about this, I’ll make an exception and promote you to project manager, fully responsible for this cooperation. Your year-end bonus will be tripled.” But I just threw my work badge on the table expressionlessly and refused directly. “Sorry, I quit.” After saying that, I turned around coolly. The surrounding colleagues were dumbfounded, all shocked by my actions once again. The colleagues in the hall had already exploded into discussion. When they saw me come out, they swarmed around me. “Wow Aiden, you’ve really been hiding your talents! We never imagined the famous actress Olivia Sullivan would be your girlfriend.” “Olivia Sullivan just updated her Twitter. Not only did she clarify the previous rumors with Marcus Shaw, but she also announced her relationship with you. She’s already changed into a wedding dress and is preparing to come propose to you!” Before I could react, a colleague shoved their phone into my hands and played a video. In the video, Olivia was wearing a pure white wedding dress. Her exquisite makeup was cold yet noble. She stared at the camera, her deep gaze seeming to penetrate the screen and look into my eyes. She said: “Aiden, are you ready to marry me?”

It turned out that half an hour ago, Olivia had posted a clarification on Twitter, publicly revealing our five-year underground relationship. She also released candid photos of me cooking and several life photos. The nine-grid post was full of love, accompanied by a 500-word caption explaining that her previous admission of a relationship with Marcus Shaw was a joke because she lost a bet. She said from beginning to end, she only had one boyfriend. That was me. My breath caught, my heart filled with mixed emotions. Marcus also immediately replied to this tweet: “Sister Olivia’s willingness to admit defeat in a bet is admirable. It was all a misunderstanding. Brother-in-law, please don’t be angry.” The comment section exploded instantly, with a flood of criticism. Many accused Olivia of taking the joke too far and treating her fans like fools. Some even continued to say that only Marcus was a good match for her. Only a handful of people expressed their blessings. I don’t know how Olivia persuaded Marcus to act out this farce with her, but while everyone else was moved to tears, I remained exceptionally clear-headed. I once eagerly looked forward to the day when we could make our relationship public, fantasizing about being able to walk hand in hand with her on the street openly, receiving everyone’s blessings. But at this moment, apart from a full sense of helplessness, there was only indifference after disappointment. In just a few minutes, the video of the famous actress proposing to an ordinary man online instantly went viral across the country, squeezing to the top of the trending list and the headlines of major media outlets. Many bloggers and reporters started live streaming, following Olivia as she ran towards my location holding a bouquet of flowers. Everyone was driven crazy by her courage and sincerity. Many fans had already gathered at the entrance of my company to clear the way for her. For a moment, this live broadcast in the name of a proposal was watched by hundreds of millions of viewers across the country. While I was still in a daze, a cheer suddenly erupted outside the company. Olivia had arrived.

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After Being Cheated On 100 Times, The Translator Wife Finally Realizes Something’s Wrong Adrian couldn’t believe his eyes as he stared at the SnapChat message from his wife, Olivia. “I pretended to be William’s girlfriend when we visited his parents. Does Simon know? He didn’t make a fuss?” Adrian’s fingers hovered over the keyboard, unsure how to respond. Just then, a call came in from his manager. “Mr. Quinn, did you forget? You signed Olivia’s resignation letter yourself. When she left, she also left behind divorce papers.” Adrian’s face turned pale as he suddenly remembered that incident when Olivia had gone to the countryside with her male intern without telling him. On Olivia’s Instagram, the usually cold and professional translator was now showing off her linguistic talents in 18 languages, clearly trying to impress William’s relatives. The caption read: “My translator wife helped me impress the elders!” Adrian couldn’t help but leave a sarcastic comment: “How professional of you.” Seconds later, Olivia called, her voice sharp with anger: “Who told you to leave such a comment? How is William supposed to face his colleagues now?” “He was being looked down on back home, so as his boss, it’s normal for me to help him save face. If you keep making a scene and embarrassing me, we might as well get divorced!” Adrian laughed coldly and hung up. As if he cared about staying married to her anymore. He glanced at the calendar. In two days, the divorce cooling-off period would be over.

This was the first time Adrian had ever hung up on Olivia. In their five years of marriage, she had always taken advantage of his love, forcing him to compromise every time. If he showed even the slightest displeasure, she would never let it go. Sure enough, Olivia called back immediately. Adrian didn’t even bother to look at his phone before rejecting the call and blocking all of Olivia’s accounts. He glanced at the pair of tickets he had just purchased and asked the young woman at the counter, “Can you help me exchange these for a single ticket?” The girl looked confused. “But the couple’s ticket has such a big discount. Did your friend cancel?” Adrian smiled. “She can’t make it. Because she just died.” The ticket seller froze for a moment, then helped him exchange the ticket with a mix of sympathy and bewilderment. As Adrian scrolled through his WhatsApp, he suddenly saw a message from William in the work group chat: “Intern William @everyone: The post I just shared on Instagram was a joke. Thanks to Olivia for being so understanding. If I offended anyone, I apologize.” Offended who? This passive-aggressive apology was clearly a provocation aimed at Adrian! Adrian laughed coldly. He was about to put his phone away when he saw Olivia’s instant reply: “Everyone can tell you were joking. It’s good for young people like you to liven things up. No need to apologize. Only petty people would take offense.” With the head translator backing William, colleagues who had been lurking came out to suck up: “Yeah, that Instagram post was obviously a joke. We wouldn’t take it seriously. No need to apologize specifically.” “Thanks to William, we got to see Olivia’s amazing debate skills. Olivia is so impressive, I need to study every word!” “I bet that petty person is lurking right now. Geez, I don’t get how some people can be so petty!” The colleagues unanimously criticized Adrian for defending William in order to flatter their boss. What angered Adrian most were the junior managers he had personally trained and promoted. They cursed him the harshest while polishing their boss’s shoes the fastest. No wonder – Olivia was the company owner, and William was her precious darling. In their eyes, Adrian, who had invested his entire fortune to help Olivia start her business, was just a lovesick fool with a green hat who didn’t even know he was being cheated on. Adrian took a deep breath and left the group chat. He didn’t want to ruin his rare day off because of them. However, just as he was queuing up for the roller coaster, he received a FaceTime call from his assistant Zhang. Her tone was full of reproach: “Adrian, why aren’t you at the office yet? The international delegation is coming in two days. Where are your materials? When will you submit them to me? You know how important this reception is, don’t you?” Her words left Adrian confused. He frowned, “What delegation?” He had been working overtime for over half a month before the holiday, just to free up these few days to travel with Olivia. He clearly didn’t have anything scheduled for these days. Zhang impatiently said: “The delegation of professors from top art schools coming for academic exchange.” Adrian bit his lip in confusion: “Wasn’t that task assigned to William by Olivia?” “Yes, but William had to go back home for something urgent, so he’s on leave. Olivia said to have you take over. You need to come to the office right now to prepare.” Adrian laughed bitterly. The visiting professors were from 10 countries including the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, and Egypt. With William’s mediocre English skills, he could never handle hosting this delegation. But William had his eye on the opportunity to show off in front of top professors and leaders, so he begged Olivia to give him the task. At the time, Adrian said William couldn’t handle it, but Olivia indulged him and assigned the task to William anyway. Now that the visit was approaching and William hadn’t prepared anything, he wanted Adrian to clean up his mess! No wonder he suddenly took leave – he must have realized he couldn’t handle this important task. “Adrian, did you hear me? If you heard, hurry to the office.” Because Olivia always ordered Adrian around at work, even fresh graduates like Zhang now dared to command him! Adrian laughed coldly and said firmly, “I’m also on vacation, didn’t you know? I can’t make it back. I can’t take on this translation task. Tell Olivia to figure it out herself.” He hung up without giving Zhang a chance to respond. Taking her cheating intern to hide out in the countryside while making Adrian clean up the mess – she was really trying to ride all over him! Adrian sat down on the vertical drop roller coaster with a cold expression. Unexpectedly, five minutes later, the entire amusement park was broadcasting announcements to find him: “Mr. Adrian Quinn, your wife has an urgent matter and is looking for you. Please come to the park’s communication room to take a call as soon as you hear this announcement.” Adrian rolled his eyes. Olivia was really something… The announcements played over and over. With no choice, Adrian went to the park entrance and picked up the phone. Olivia’s furious voice nearly split his eardrum: “Adrian Quinn, have I given you too much face?”

“It’s me who’s given you too much f**king face. You’re even riding your boy toy on top of my head now!” I couldn’t be bothered to hold back anymore and snapped at her directly. There was a moment of silence on the other end before Olivia spoke again, suppressing her anger, “Adrian Quinn, what the hell is wrong with you? Such vulgar language, is this how you honor the 20 years of education your parents provided? Is this what you learned from all those years of study – to make unreasonable scenes?” “I already said I’d play with you next time. What are you still making a fuss about?” “You’d better go prepare for that professor delegation reception right now. If you mess it up, we’re through!” I clenched my fist tightly, “Fine, let’s be through then. I’ve wanted to end things with you for a long time!” Before I could finish speaking, I heard William calling Olivia from the background, “Olivia, mom’s calling you for dinner.” Then I heard Olivia’s voice become unprecedentedly gentle, “I’m just wrapping up some small matters. I’ll be right there.” Her tone turned icy cold again when she spoke to me, “What did you just say? I didn’t hear clearly.” I laughed coldly: “Olivia, listen carefully. I said you’ve found yourself a new mom in just half a day, huh? Better hurry, or your mom might get annoyed and smack you with that rolling pin.” “Oh right… I’m just being petty and fussy.” Olivia lowered her voice and roared: “People in the countryside always bully honest kids like William. As his mentor, what’s wrong with me helping him get some payback? You can’t expect everyone to be as cold-blooded and heartless as you!” “Adrian Quinn, you come back to the office right now and coordinate with the team receiving the visiting professor delegation. Otherwise, don’t blame me for ruining your reputation in the translation industry!” She cursed a few more times before hanging up. I stood in the stuffy, cramped communication room, listening to the dial tone with a feeling of desolation. I had made a huge mistake. I should have divorced Olivia long ago, back when she first started treating me coldly and ignoring my feelings. I lost all desire to play and was about to take a cab back to the hotel. The next second, messages flooded in until my phone was vibrating non-stop. Everyone was privately messaging me to come back to the office to work. Though it was an urgent matter where they needed my help, their tones couldn’t have been more disrespectful. The divorce certificate would be in my hands in two days. I couldn’t care less about the mess at Olivia’s company. I deleted that batch of fair-weather colleagues and opened the company app to submit my resignation. But as soon as I opened it, I saw the company’s announcement of my dismissal, with an attached notice criticizing my poor work performance and low moral character. I laughed. It was my first time seeing someone burn bridges before even crossing the river. Olivia really did love her little toy boy. I enjoyed myself for two days, then went straight to the office to pack up my things after getting off the plane. To my surprise, when I got to my office door, neither facial recognition nor my work badge could open it. I was confused when the door opened from inside. “Adrian, what are you doing here? Hurry to the airport! The team receiving the delegation left a long time ago!” William walked out of my office, wearing my watch on his wrist and drinking from my mug. Now he was even ordering me around! I shoved him aside and walked into the office. “It’s not your place to give me orders.” As soon as I entered, I saw that all my belongings had been cleared out. The trash can held photos of Olivia and me, along with the voice recorder and brooch she had given me. Yes, Olivia had loved me once. Those years when we started the business together were the most difficult but also the happiest. William caught my moment of distraction and deliberately exclaimed, “Oh Adrian, I forgot to mention, Olivia gave me this office. Your things were probably thrown out by the cleaners.” He stared at me intently, hoping to see me explode or go crazy. But I smiled at him and glanced casually at the trash can. “Thanks for throwing out this garbage for me. Saves me from getting my hands dirty.”

“Adrian Quinn, why are you still here? The delegation is about to arrive!” Olivia’s face was as cold as iron, her voice anxious. I frowned and glared at her. “So what? Why should I care?” I said as I strode out. “But Adrian, you can’t…” William hurried to block my path. As we brushed shoulders, he suddenly cried out and fell heavily to the ground. “William! Are you okay?” Olivia, who had just been glaring at me, instantly panicked. She took two big steps, shoved me aside, and anxiously helped William up, gently patting his back to comfort him when she saw he wasn’t injured. Olivia glared at me furiously. “Well, Adrian Quinn, have I given you too much face? Is this what you learned from all those years of education – bullying colleagues and picking on the weak? Apologize to William right now!” I laughed coldly. Before I could speak, William added fuel to the fire, sounding wronged, “Olivia, don’t be angry. Adrian must be too anxious about the professor delegation project. He didn’t mean to push me.” Reminded of this, Olivia also grew nervous. “Are you trying to get fired? If this project gets messed up, you can resign on your own!” I laughed strangely. “Olivia, are you pretending to have amnesia on top of finding new parents? I was fired by you yesterday. The life and death of your precious company have nothing to do with me now.” Olivia’s whole body trembled with anger. She raised her hand to slap me but ended up knocking the computer off the desk. Her voice was terrifyingly low, “Fired? Are you deliberately sabotaging such an important project just to threaten me with quitting?” I really didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. She was the one who issued the dismissal notice. This pair of cheaters was too much. I quickened my pace to leave – spending another second with them made me want to vomit. But Olivia called out as I was leaving, “Adrian Quinn, according to company policy, for major losses caused by personal mistakes, compensation must be paid…” I didn’t even look back as I walked away. “Yeah, if you keep yapping instead of cleaning up this mess, it won’t be compensation – it’ll be bankruptcy!” Thinking of Olivia’s gnashing teeth, I felt secretly pleased. She had wanted to manipulate me into cleaning up William’s mess, but this time I didn’t give an inch. She had kicked an iron plate. After leaving the company, I listed the marital home I had bought years ago for sale online, priced for a quick sale. The real estate agent said those school district apartments were in high demand. He quickly found a buyer offering much more than my asking price. The price didn’t matter. What mattered was that anything related to Olivia felt like a thorn in my side. Then I drove straight to the civil affairs bureau and got the divorce certificate I had been longing for. Our mutually torturous marriage was finally over!

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On the first day of freshman orientation, I happily arrived with some local specialties, eager to share them with my new roommates. However, I never expected that right after introducing myself, the three roommates would suddenly push me out the door, adamantly refusing to share a room with me. They even took the issue straight to our resident advisor. The RA had no choice but to quickly arrange a new room for me. But as soon as I reached the doorway of my new room, before I could even push my luggage inside, I faced fierce resistance from these new roommates as well. They wouldn’t even let me through the door, claiming they would rather drop out of college than live in the same room as me. I was utterly baffled, thinking someone must have said something bad about me. But I had never offended anyone, and after scouring our class SnapChat group, the university forums, and confession pages, I couldn’t find any gossip about me. When I asked other classmates, they would chat with me normally at first, but as soon as they heard I might become their roommate, their expressions would instantly change. Yet no one would tell me why.

“Professor, we absolutely refuse to be his roommate.” “Yeah, if you force us to room with him, I’ll drop out.” “Well…” Seeing his attempts to persuade the students were futile, the RA gave me a helpless look. “I’m sorry everyone, but could you please tell me why?” I asked tentatively. “I promise I’m very easy to get along with. I lived in dorms in high school too and was never any trouble.” I carefully grabbed one of the students, hoping he would explain. But he just glanced at me and shook off my hand. “There’s no reason. We just absolutely refuse to be your roommate.” I slumped against the doorway, looking at my still-unpacked luggage, feeling utterly defeated. I had always been an introverted and quiet person. Though I didn’t have many friends, I had never made enemies either. I couldn’t understand why in this new city, at this new school, facing complete strangers – everyone was so resistant and unwilling to be my roommate. “I’m sorry, River. We really can’t find any students willing to room with you right now,” the RA said gently. “The school doesn’t have any single rooms available. Why don’t you stay at a hotel for now, and I’ll keep trying to arrange something else.” “Don’t worry, the other students probably just have some misunderstanding about you. Once they get to know you better, I’m sure it will all work out.” The RA patted me on the back reassuringly. Right, maybe someone had spread rumors about me? The RA’s words gave me an idea. I immediately went to check our class SnapChat group, the university forums, and confession pages again. But even after scrolling through every message, I couldn’t find a single word about me. Plus, I was the only student from my high school who got into this university. There shouldn’t be anyone who knew me well enough to spread rumors. As I was utterly perplexed, someone called out to me in the classroom. “River, what a coincidence! I didn’t know we were in the same class.” I looked up to see Zack, the first person I had met at this school. I only knew him because he had nearly fainted from low blood sugar on move-in day. I had given him a drink and some snacks, which helped him recover. We were both busy moving in that day, so we just quickly exchanged contact info before parting ways. I had no idea we’d end up as classmates. “Zack, does your room have any empty beds? Could I possibly be your roommate?” I asked hopefully, clinging to him like a lifeline.

I had just helped him recently, so he should know what kind of person I am. Even if someone had spread rumors, he probably wouldn’t believe them. As it happened, the RA and I had checked almost every room, except for the very last one. I had given up hope by then and didn’t bother checking. Who would have thought Zack was in that final room? I waited expectantly for Zack to nod. But to my surprise, as soon as he heard I wanted to be his roommate, his expression changed completely. “No way. Our room is already full,” he said coldly. “They definitely won’t agree to room with you.” Zack’s friendly smile vanished, replaced by a wary look. “Zack, why? Why won’t you room with me?” I asked desperately. “You know I’m not a bad person!” I grabbed Zack’s arm, no longer hoping to be his roommate. I just wanted to know the reason – I could change if I knew what was wrong. But he yanked his arm away forcefully. “There’s no reason. We just don’t want to room with you.” Feeling helpless, I could only turn to the internet for advice. Why wouldn’t a single classmate accept me as a roommate? Helpful netizens quickly offered many possible explanations. “Maybe someone said you have a contagious disease?” I stared at this comment, suddenly enlightened. Recently, many schools had announced they would be admitting some HIV-positive students. To prevent discrimination, they wouldn’t disclose who these students were. Could it be that someone had spread a rumor implying I had a contagious disease? I immediately made an appointment for a full medical checkup at the hospital. I got tested for every possible infectious disease. After anxiously waiting a few days, the test results finally came back. They showed I was negative for everything – I had no infectious diseases at all. Excitedly, I projected the results onto a big screen. To prevent anyone from suspecting I had photoshopped them, I even logged into the hospital system on the spot to show my electronic medical records again. I thought this would clear up the misunderstanding and someone would finally accept me as a roommate. But to my dismay, after asking every classmate, still not a single person was willing to room with me. “Maybe they think you have mental health issues?” someone suggested when I posted about my situation online again. Once more, I went to the hospital and underwent a psychological evaluation. The results showed my mental health was perfectly normal, with no issues whatsoever. Again, I displayed the results to my classmates. I even got several of my childhood friends to record video testimonials, affirming that I was truly a good person with no problems. Yet despite all this, still no one was willing to be my roommate. At the mere suggestion of me moving in, they would react with vehement refusal, saying they’d rather drop out. At this point, even the internet commenters couldn’t come up with any more explanations. Some even started to suspect I was hiding part of the story. The comment section went from actively trying to help solve the mystery to various taunts and mockery. “This has to be clickbait. OP must be selling something.” “Why only tell the parts that make you look good? How could everyone dislike you for no reason? You must be leaving something out.” “I’ll painlessly gain $100,000 the next time I see a post like this.” My inbox was also flooded with insults. Feeling utterly defeated, I deleted the post.

News of my situation quickly spread to other classes in the department. Not knowing the full story, some speculated I must have done something unforgivable, while others said I had some terrifying disease. Every time I walked through the department building, I felt like people were pointing and whispering about me. By this point, I had been staying at a hotel for over two weeks. The expensive hotel fees were draining my finances. With no other choice, I could only ask my parents for more living expenses. But watching a video of my parents crouched by a construction site eating plain steamed buns, I couldn’t bring myself to ask for money. After I was born, my parents decided not to have any more children, fearing I would face unfair treatment otherwise. Though we weren’t well-off, my parents always gave me the very best they could. Even though their education level was limited and they couldn’t help me with many things anymore, they still constantly encouraged and supported me. “River, are you getting used to living in the dorms? How’s it going with your roommates?” my mom asked on a video call. “I know you’re not very talkative, but try to get along well with your classmates.” “Making more friends will help you be happier.” “River, have you been eating properly? You look like you’ve lost weight after just a few weeks of school.” Hearing my mom’s concerned words and thinking of everything I had been through recently, I nearly burst into tears. I quickly ended the call. Even though I hadn’t asked for money, my mom still transferred some over, telling me to buy some good food. I knew I had to move into a dorm as soon as possible. I had given up hope of rooming in my own department, so I begged the RA to help me find an empty bed in another department’s dorm. Finally, after the RA’s tireless efforts, he managed to find me a spot. “This is a room for seniors in another department,” he explained. “They’re all out doing internships, so the room has been empty. There happens to be one spare bed available.” “We’ve talked to the RAs for both departments, and they’ve all agreed to let you move in.” Hearing this news, I wept with joy. Someone was finally willing to accept me. I wouldn’t have to stay in that expensive hotel anymore. In high spirits, I packed up my belongings and gave the room a thorough cleaning inside and out. I thought that if the senior roommates ever came back, I could at least leave them with a good impression. But I didn’t expect that day to come so soon. Before I could even enjoy two peaceful days of campus life, I learned that one of the senior roommates on an internship was coming back. The night before the senior was due to return, I tossed and turned anxiously, unable to sleep. The next day, I was a nervous wreck. I was terrified that as soon as the senior saw me, he would demand to have me kicked out again. But fortunately, all my worries were unfounded. The senior was very friendly, even sharing his snacks with me. Seeing how clean I had kept the room, he couldn’t stop praising me, saying he had lucked out with such an amazing junior roommate. I was overjoyed, feeling for the first time the warmth of friendship from a classmate on this campus. Things continued smoothly with my senior roommate. I felt like everything was finally back on track. Until that day when I had just finished class and was heading back with some takeout and watermelon. I had plans to play video games with my senior roommate that evening. But as soon as I reached our door, I found a crowd of people gathered outside. There was my senior roommate, the RAs from both departments, and two guys I didn’t recognize. From their tone, I gathered they must be the other two seniors who also lived in this room – my other two roommates. “No way. He has to move out,” one of them was saying firmly.

“We’re seniors now. Why should we have to room with a freshman?” “We can pay for that empty bed, or arrange for someone else to live there.” “Anyone but River.” I was stunned to see my senior roommate, who had been so friendly just that morning, now insisting on throwing me out. I was so shocked I couldn’t even keep hold of the watermelon in my hand. It fell to the ground and split open, red juice spreading across the floor like my seemingly bleeding heart. “But we were getting along so well just a few days ago,” I said desperately to my senior roommate. “Why do you suddenly want me to leave?” “Why does no one want to room with me? What did I do wrong?” I completely broke down, grabbing my roommate’s arm and practically begging him for an explanation. I was on the verge of kneeling down to plead with him. But no matter what I said, he just coldly demanded that I pack up and move out immediately. He threatened that if I refused to leave, he would make such a fuss that the entire dorm building wouldn’t be able to sleep. Even when the RA threatened to withhold his diploma, it didn’t sway him one bit. To avoid disturbing the other students, I had no choice but to silently pack my things and move out. The RA told me he truly couldn’t find any room willing to accept me anymore. He had already applied to the school to refund my dorm fees and suggested I find off-campus housing to rent. At this point, I had completely given up hope. With no other options, I found a part-time job at a bubble tea shop to cover rent. Fortunately, I quickly found a suitable apartment. With the refunded dorm fees to tide me over, I didn’t need to ask my parents for money. One day while working my shift at the bubble tea shop, I unexpectedly ran into Zack coming to buy a drink. We hadn’t spoken since that time I had begged him to be my roommate. But seeing me working as a cashier, he surprisingly came over to chat. “River, I still need to thank you, no matter what,” he said. “If it weren’t for you, I might have really fainted on campus that first day.” “Anyone who passed by probably would have helped. No need to thank me specifically,” I replied coldly, handing him his drink. The experiences of the past few weeks had left me utterly exhausted. I no longer wanted to engage with anyone from school more than necessary. “River, I…” Zack trailed off, his expression suddenly looking very guilty. It was a far cry from his arrogant refusal before. Seeing I wasn’t responding, he lingered by the shop entrance for a long time, seemingly wanting to say something but unable to get the words out. He finally left when other staff started urging him to move along. “What’s his deal? Does he owe you money or something? Why was he looking at you like that?” a coworker asked curiously after Zack left. I just shook my head. I was also confused why, ever since I had moved out and given up on living in the dorms, many classmates seemed to have become much friendlier towards me. They no longer avoided me in the hallways. Many even started inviting me to join their groups for class projects. Especially Zack. He seemed to constantly be looking for opportunities to repair our relationship, but would always stop short of actually saying anything when he got near me. I had no idea why things had changed. But since I couldn’t figure it out, I decided not to dwell on it. Living independently for four years would be fine. Once I graduated, I could leave all this unpleasantness behind. But just when I had come to terms with everything, it turned out someone else hadn’t.

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My husband was passionately entangled with his newly kept mistress next door. On the other side of the wall, I was putting our daughter to sleep. “Mommy, is Daddy hurting another lady again?” she asked innocently, her little face full of sadness. Young as she was, she didn’t understand what her father was doing. I swallowed my pain and comforted her to sleep. As dawn approached, a pair of strong arms wrapped tightly around my waist, and a sensual voice panted in my ear. “Sorry I’m late tonight. Hope I didn’t keep you waiting.” He kissed my earlobe gently, as if we were lovers. Everyone knew that no matter how Lucas Shaw was entangled with other women, he would always hold his beloved wife to fall asleep. I lay awake all night, watching the frantic stream of messages on my phone. “Sis, it’s so cold today. Even my six-pack abs are getting chilly.” Our daughter’s happiest moment was opening her eyes to see her dad lying beside her. Each time, I would force a smile and pretend we were a loving couple, letting her feel the warmth of family. But this time, I was truly exhausted. “What is this crap? Mr. Shaw loves my voice the most. You’re trying to fob me off with rice porridge?” The mistress’s shrill voice made me frown. “Go deal with your little plaything,” I said coldly. Lucas pressed against my back, his husky voice still tinged with desire. “She’s not as important as you.” “Mia will wake up soon. Smile, darling,” he whispered. I kicked him off the bed. “Lucas Shaw, what’s the point of all this?” His expression darkened as he grabbed my chin, eyes menacing. “Olivia Sanders, I can tolerate your little tantrums, but my patience has limits.” “Don’t do these pointless things to wear away my love for you.” My heart turned to ice. He seemed like a stranger to me now. From school uniforms to wedding dresses, our love had been passionate and intense. He knew he was my everything, my salvation. He knew I could never leave him. So he took advantage of my love and acted without restraint. A knock at the door, and the woman’s coquettish voice called out: “Mr. Shaw, I hand-washed your underwear. I don’t trust anyone else to do it.” Lucas’s eyes flashed with panic, complex emotions crossing his face. He wasn’t usually so careless, but she had been especially clingy last night, making him forget his boundaries. “I’ll handle it,” he said. He leaned down to kiss me, but I turned away. Lucas’s face darkened, about to lose his temper when our daughter woke up. She looked at her dad’s face with delight, then frowned slightly. “Daddy, were you going to hit Mommy?” I quickly pushed him away and picked up our daughter to comfort her. “No, sweetie. Daddy was just joking around with Mommy.” Lucas awkwardly turned away, his tone cold. “She’s not a baby anymore. She should sleep in her own room from now on.” He had always been like this – his patience with our daughter limited to a morning smile, never even wanting to hold her. But was his patience, his love for our daughter, real? Or just guilt towards me? To punish me for not cooperating, Lucas broke his rule of not letting women stay for breakfast. They were all over each other at the table, making me sick to my stomach. Our daughter watched them enviously, saying softly: “Mommy, I want Daddy to hold me while I eat too.” Tears sprang to my eyes. “How about Mommy holds you instead?” “No,” the little girl said, eyes full of longing. “I want Daddy.” Faced with our daughter’s expectation, I reluctantly asked Lucas to look at her. The mistress laughed coyly. “Oh, is big sister jealous?” “You’re a mother now, using your child to get attention? If it were me, I’d never play such mind games in front of a child.” Lucas’s face darkened. “You’ve raised her with no manners, so petty and small-minded.” The servants looked at us, their eyes full of mockery. Our daughter was young, but she could read the mood. She burst into loud sobs. “Daddy’s mean! I don’t want Daddy anymore!” Lucas’s expression changed drastically. He picked her up and headed for the basement. “Since your mother can’t teach you properly, I’ll do it myself.”

My legs went weak with fear. I knelt at his feet, clutching his legs and begging. “It’s my fault. I have no class, I can’t raise our daughter well.” “It’s all my fault. Please don’t hurt her.” “I’ll take her punishment instead.” “Mia’s afraid of the dark. She can’t go in the basement, she won’t be able to handle it!” Lucas paused, his expression uncertain. I thought he had listened and was about to take our daughter from his arms. But the mistress chimed in, “Last time she said Mia was scared of thunder and begged you to come home, but wasn’t she happy and lively after all?” Lucas’s face turned completely cold. “So you’re both liars cut from the same cloth.” He kicked me in the chest and had someone hold me down. I listened to our daughter’s frightened cries, my heart breaking. As soon as two hours had passed, I rushed to the basement and scooped up our daughter. She was so small, crying until she shook, her hands and feet ice cold. “Mommy, does Daddy not like me?” she whimpered. “Of course not, sweetie. Daddy spends time with you every morning, doesn’t he?” I said, rubbing her hands and feet, filled with regret. If he didn’t love me, how could he love the daughter I gave him? I had been so wrong. She buried her face in my chest and said quietly, “Mommy, I don’t want Daddy anymore.” “Okay, we don’t need Daddy,” I said, kissing the top of her head. I had made my decision. When breaking news interrupted the cartoon we were watching to report on Lucas lavishing gifts on his mistress, Mia’s eyes instantly dimmed. “I’m sleepy,” she said. Not knowing how to comfort her, I could only pat her back and soothe her to sleep. When the man pressed down on me from behind, reeking of perfume, I turned to face him. My eyes were startlingly bright in the darkness, startling him. “I told you not to wait up for me.” He tried to embrace me, but I refused. “Lucas Shaw, we need to talk.” In the study, I was about to bring up divorce when he pinned me to the desk, forcefully demanding intimacy. “No, Lucas Shaw, let go of me!” His eyes were weary, still filled with unsatisfied desire. “Isn’t this what you wanted? It’s late, Mia will be scared if she wakes up and doesn’t see us.” His lips fell on my skin, each touch making me want to vomit. “Don’t make me hate you,” I said coldly. Lucas paused, a mocking smile on his lips. “Isn’t this what you schemed for, Mrs. Shaw?” That “Mrs. Shaw” was too sarcastic, making me feel like the past few years had been a joke. He came from a good family, while I was just a small-town girl who studied hard. The night after our college entrance exams, I chased after his car, shouting my confession without caring who saw. It was the bravest thing I’d ever done in my life. I was afraid if I missed the chance, I’d never have another. After I shouted, overwhelming embarrassment washed over me. A pair of white shoes stopped in front of me. He crouched down, a faint smile on his lips. “I heard you.”

Youthful passion was no match for family pressure. His family wouldn’t let him marry a girl with no background. While he was fighting his family for me, I showed up pregnant. His family relented, but the way he looked at me was full of unfamiliarity. Deep down, he thought I was just a woman who would do anything to marry up. From that day until our child was born, I never saw him again. After that, he started bringing all sorts of women home. He was always intimate with those women in front of me, then come back to my side and say he loved me. At first the servants sympathized with me, then they started advising me. “The boss does care about you. Don’t be angry with him.” “If he didn’t love you, would he sleep with you every night?” “He just doesn’t know how to express love. You need to understand and forgive him.” But who would understand and forgive me? Amidst the turmoil, I took out divorce papers and shoved a pen into his hand. “Lucas Shaw, I’ve found a house I like. My brother is getting married soon…” He sneered, “So you’re showing your true colors now?” “Next time don’t use our daughter as an excuse. Just tell me directly what you want.” “So you won’t end up greedy like your mother.” I nodded mutely, a bitter taste in my mouth. Yes, my family wasn’t well-off. I grew up in a small town where they favored boys. But after we married, I never let my family take advantage of him. But he didn’t believe me. When it was over, I quickly wrapped myself up and returned to our room. Now I just had to wait for the cooling-off period to end, and I could take our daughter and leave this place for good. But our daughter, who should have been lying quietly in bed, was gone. I panicked, frantically searching everywhere. She was so small, still unsteady on her feet. Where could she have gone? Lucas answered his phone. “Alright, I understand. Thank you for your trouble.” He looked weary. “Claire took Mia out. She said the child was crying for her mother and looked pitiful, so she took her out to play for a bit.” My vision went black. “She hates me to the bone. How could she truly care for my daughter?” “Tell me where they are quickly. I need to go save my daughter.” He stepped back, disappointment filling his eyes. “Mia is my daughter too. Do you think I would hurt her?” “Claire has a kind heart and studied early childhood education. She’ll take good care of Mia, so don’t make trouble.” How could I possibly believe him? Just yesterday, Claire had sent me many intimate photos of them. She had said: “You only became Mrs. Shaw because of that little brat.” “If she were gone, do you think you’d still keep your position as Mrs. Shaw?” Tears poured from my eyes as I lunged for his phone. “If you won’t ask, I will.” He raised the phone out of reach and slapped me hard across the face. I was stunned, my ears ringing. “You can’t take care of the child like this. Stay home and calm down,” he said coldly. Security guards covered my mouth and dragged me to the basement. I struggled desperately, my fingers leaving bloody prints on the floor. The door slammed shut, the last bit of light disappearing. So this was where my little Mia had spent two hours. She must have been so scared.

I pounded frantically on the door, crying out: “Lucas Shaw, I give up! I was wrong, I shouldn’t have clung to you.” “Please let me out. Mia will die in that woman’s hands. I’m begging you.” Separated by the door, I could sense him standing outside. “Olivia Sanders, I don’t know how we ended up like this.” “If you’re willing to admit you were wrong, I’ll forgive you.” My pupils constricted as I pounded the door even harder. “Lucas Shaw, you bastard! You monster! If anything happens to Mia, I’ll hate you for the rest of my life.” He yanked the door open suddenly. I fell into his arms, caught off guard. “I really don’t know what to do with you. Is it so hard to just apologize?” he said, his tone exasperated as if dealing with a beloved partner. I pushed him away, my eyes full of unfamiliarity. “Lucas Shaw, I’ve told you many times Mia is in danger. Why do you never believe me?” His expression instantly darkened. “Danger, danger, danger. You’ve been paranoid ever since you had the child.” “I’ve assigned several bodyguards to Mia. What danger could she be in?” “You’re so suspicious now, how can I take you to meet business partners looking like this?” Unable to see my daughter, I no longer cared about such things. I just wanted to find her. I fell to my knees before him. “I’m not worthy. I’m despicable. I promise I’ll never appear before you again. Just tell me where they are.” “Please.” I kowtowed again and again, not stopping even as blood flowed. Lucas’s heart clenched painfully. He couldn’t understand how his once pure and beautiful wife had become like this. His voice was weary. “Fine, I’ll show you.” I hurriedly grabbed his phone. It was a video sent by Claire. In the video, Mia clutched a stuffed rabbit’s ears. Her eyes were red as if she’d been crying, and there were red marks on her little hands. She pouted, as if trying not to cry at something she saw. “I like playing with Auntie. Mommy doesn’t need to worry.” Tears streamed uncontrollably down my face. Mia was in danger! I used to worry what I would do if she got lost, was kidnapped, or if Lucas’s family wouldn’t let me see her. So I told her that if she was ever in danger, she should grab the rabbit’s ears, and Mommy would appear by her side. “Mia is in danger. I have to go save her.” Lucas looked at me with even more disappointment. “Olivia Sanders, you need to go to the hospital.” No, I couldn’t go to the hospital. If I went, who would save my daughter? So I pushed past him and ran to the garage, getting in my car. The display screen in the car was connected to the tracker in Mia’s stuffed rabbit. It showed them moving towards the sea. My suspicions were correct. Claire was going to kill my daughter. I sped recklessly, running many red lights and causing several cars to crash. Lucas gritted his teeth. “Olivia Sanders, do you know what you’re doing?” My gaze was determined, my tone resolute. “I know.” To stop me from making a bigger mistake, he crashed his car into mine at the intersection before I could intercept Claire. I was trapped in the car, begging him to go save our child. He took a deep breath, his face grim. “Olivia Sanders, you’re suffering from paranoid delusions. You need to go to a mental hospital. Mia and I will wait for you to come back.” No matter how I pleaded, it was useless. Lucas dialed the mental hospital. Looking at the calm sea, a wave of panic washed over him. A call from the police made him utterly despair. “Mr. Shaw? We’ve received reports that your daughter has drowned. Is this true?”

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During a live stream, someone sent me a hundred expensive gifts. Their only request was to watch me eat in person. When they arrived, I realized they weren’t alone. There was also a handsome guy with a pale face and an extremely thin build. The beautiful lady took out a thick red envelope. “If you can get him to take just one bite, this $1,500 is yours.” I didn’t know severe anorexia existed in this world. I methodically ate all the food on the table. Finally, I licked my lips and looked longingly at the steak in front of him. “I… I’m still hungry. If you’re not going to eat it, can I have it…?” His pupils trembled, and his bony hand pressed down on the plate. He even picked up the bowl and took a few sips of mushroom soup. The lady beside him watched with tears in her eyes. But I only stared at his unfinished bowl. “Um, are you not going to finish that? Can I drink it?” He looked at the table full of empty dishes. Silently, he moved a little to the side. The beautiful lady tried to help me out, “Bella, are you still hungry?” I scratched my head and nodded sheepishly. “Well, the portions here are a bit small. Each plate only has this much.” She looked at the dozen or so empty plates on the table and quietly ordered another table full of food. My eyes lit up. This place is so delicious, the mushroom soup is to die for. Soon I finished everything again. The handsome guy saw me constantly eyeing his bowl with desire. He couldn’t help but take a few more sips. I wiped my mouth and started eating the fruit platter. Zach finally couldn’t help but ask. “You can still eat fruit?” I looked at him curiously. “Fruit is so delicious, why wouldn’t I be able to eat it?” He reached out and put a slice of honeydew in his mouth. I felt a pang of regret in my eyes. Unconsciously, I pulled the fruit platter closer to myself. The beautiful lady’s eyes were full of excitement. She grabbed my hand. “Bella, I’m begging you, please eat with my son every day.” “Oh, don’t worry, I’ll cover all the food expenses. You just need to be there.” “$15,000, how about $15,000 a month?” It turned out the handsome guy had anorexia, and it was so severe he needed IV fluids. I looked at her in surprise. Was there really such a good job? Seeing I didn’t respond, she said, “Is that too little? $30,000 then.” Zach suddenly let out a light snort. “Mom, let’s go. If we don’t leave soon, she’ll have nowhere to purge!” I stared at him blankly. You can insult my character, But don’t insult my eating habits. If there weren’t four eyes watching me, I’d be a bit embarrassed. I could still eat another table full. Food is so precious, I never waste it.

Don’t be fooled by my ordinary appearance as a small-time mukbang streamer. But I never purge. “Eat More Today” is my online username. My real name is Bella Tang. But I’ve never felt full since I was little. So be careful when choosing names, okay? It’s not that my family was poor. They say I cried day and night when I was a newborn. My mom almost went crazy. Until my grandma came to visit and made me a full bottle of milk. I only stopped crying after drinking it all. My mom was puzzled why my formula intake was over ten times the feeding guidelines. It’s like I was literally starving for a month. They say my first word was “eat food”. My mom always says, There’s nothing in the house I haven’t tried to chew on, except the toilet. Everyone in the family eats from bowls. But I use a pot. Because it’s too tiring to keep going back for more food each meal. All the buffet restaurants in my hometown have circulated my photo to their staff. As soon as I show up, they pay me to go eat at their competitors! My parents even took me to the hospital, but the doctor said I was very healthy. He said some people are just born with big appetites and good digestion. During my teenage years, I tried to eat less like other girls. But by afternoon, I would feel dizzy. By the next meal, I couldn’t pretend anymore. The bowls of rice I ate could stack up half a meter high. My classmates were stunned by how much I could eat. They said I was born to be a mukbang streamer. It turned out to be a self-fulfilling prophecy. My mom always worried I wouldn’t earn enough to feed myself after getting a job. But I do, I do. After all, how can eating not be included when your job is to eat? After graduation, I couldn’t find a job, so I started livestreaming my daily meals. Somehow people started treating me as a mukbang streamer. In reality, I was just eating normally. Although my stream doesn’t have as many viewers as the big streamers, it’s steady. Many fans say they’ve never seen a streamer who broadcasts three meals a day like me. More punctual than an alarm clock. And I chew slowly and enjoyably. They praise me for making eating look so delicious! Of course, I always eat on time, sleep early and wake up early, never picky about food, and enjoy every bite. Many people treat me as their virtual dining companion. I picked up the red envelope Mrs. Quinn gave me. “Thank you so much! I need to go digest now!” Her eyes lit up with curiosity, “Digest?” Zach had an “I knew it” look on his face, “Eating so much and still so thin, heh.” I patted him. “You eat too little. Your stomach is empty. Otherwise, we could go together.” Mrs. Quinn looked excited. “Why don’t I come along? Can I see the secrets of this industry?” I was a bit confused. Don’t rich people know how to digest after meals?

I led them along the street and started walking. Clapping my hands in front and behind while walking. “Walk a hundred steps after meals, hey, live to ninety-nine, hey!” Then raising and lowering my arms, crossing to pat my shoulders. “Rotate to balance yin and yang, boost yang and strengthen the body!” Then snapping my fingers with both hands. “Snap snap, worries go away, hey!” Half an hour later, I closed my eyes contentedly. Mrs. Quinn’s pupils were shaking. “This is what you meant by digesting…?” Zach’s expression was like he’d seen a ghost, his lips pressed tightly together. I nodded. “Don’t you know how to digest after meals?” “I do this set of after-meal walking exercises every day.” Mrs. Quinn suddenly jumped up. She quickly pressed another envelope into my hand. “Good, good, good. Here’s $1,500. Please eat with him for a month first.” “I’ll also arrange for a chef to come. You can have food made according to your requests.” Look at that, I have to brag to my mom. People who know how to eat always have good luck! $30,000 a month! Mrs. Quinn insisted on sending me home. The next day, she sent Zach to live across from me. “I thought about it. Going to my place might make you uncomfortable. Sending him to you is more convenient.” “His nickname is Big Strong. He’s a year younger than you.” She left without looking back after saying that. That’s when I realized they had bought the apartment across from me overnight. They really are wealthy… When will I become one of the rich people in this world! I looked at Zach, whose thin legs looked like ostrich legs. “Big Strong?” He slammed the door shut with a bang. Then opened it a crack, speaking haughtily. “My name is Zach.” Oh well, I told you to be careful when choosing names! Diligent eater, he doesn’t eat! “Okay, Big Strong!”

The next morning, I prepared breakfast. Then I knocked on Zach’s door. Seeing the table full of food I had prepared, Each dish in colorful plates, His handsome face looked as pretty as my plates. What’s that phrase? A feast for the eyes. I had Zach sit at the other end of the long table. Then I set up my phone on a stand and started the livestream. My regular viewers know my streams are very quiet. I only say a few words. “Hello everyone, it’s breakfast time! Here are today’s delicious dishes.” “Bella is going to start eating.” Then I focus on enjoying the food. I first took a bite of the yam, hawthorn and date cake. The sweet and sour taste really opens up the appetite. Zach sat across from me. As I kept chewing and chewing, He couldn’t help but pick up a piece of cake too. Then he drank some porridge just like me. I watched him slowly and robotically mimic my movements. I couldn’t help but share. “Big Strong, I pickled the side dishes myself. They’re super fragrant!” Suddenly comments started flooding the stream. “Is the streamer eating breakfast with someone else today? So last night…??” “Wah, my little cabbage has found a pig.” “Who is it? Which pig dares to go after my soft and tender bun!” I laughed and explained. “My little brother is visiting. I’ll be eating with him for a while. He won’t be on camera. The stream content won’t change!” “Oh it’s her brother. The streamer is so cute, her brother hehe, let us see him too.” “I just like watching the streamer, don’t distract us.” “It’s her brother, that’s fine then. As long as it’s not a pig going after a cabbage.” “Too bad my son is only in first grade, otherwise streamer you should wait for him.” The comments often make me laugh. After I finished eating everything, I ended the stream. “All done, bye bye, see you at lunch!” As I was cleaning up the dishes, Zach stood in front of me with narrowed eyes, his voice rising. “Little brother?” Though thin, he had a large frame and broad shoulders, completely blocking the kitchen entrance. “Little brother Big Strong, what’s wrong?” I pushed him aside. As I expected, no chest muscles. Disappointing. “You…” He moved away from the door, changing the subject. “Other people do product promotions all day. Do you earn enough to cover how much you eat?” I opened my phone to show him the viewer count. Now I have over a thousand people watching me eat every day. Although I never promote products or make big money, I can at least break even. He really knows how to hit where it hurts. I gave him a long look. He let out a light snort and raised his head, not saying anything more. I started doing my post-meal exercises. “Big Strong, join me! When you eat food you made yourself, it feels different.” I went up to him to teach him the movements. His fingers were so long, like a hand model’s. I couldn’t help but pinch them! He pulled back slightly, his ears turning suspiciously red. “What… what are you doing?” “I’m teaching you! You have to do it like this, pound your tiger’s mouth to strengthen your spleen and stomach.” He acted annoyed. But following my one-two-three-four rhythm, his hands also moved a bit. Like a 90-year-old grandma doing the tango in a wheelchair – 10 beats behind! Just then, a voice suddenly came from the door. The door opened with an angry shout. A bouquet of roses was thrown to the ground.

“Bella Tang, what are you doing?” “Is this the wild man who sent you 100 expensive gifts and is now your top fan?” “You’ve even brought him home?” I was stunned by the scolding. Yes. Besides having a talent for eating since I was little, People always said I was slow to react and not very smart at other times. My ex-boyfriend Chris rushed up to Zach, trying to grab his collar. A flash of darkness passed through Zach’s eyes. I quickly blocked him. With Big Strong’s small frame, He might get flipped over if Chris grabbed him. “Chris, what are you doing at my place?” Chris glared. “Bella Tang, I’m your boyfriend!” “You’re talking nonsense. We broke up long ago. How did you get in?” Chris stuck out his neck. “We may have broken up but we can get back together. I’ve taken the initiative to come find you. Let’s make up.” “Did you move on so quickly? And with someone like this? Like this…” ?? He looked Zach up and down with disgust. Deliberately rolling up his sleeve. Showing off a bit of his bicep. “This skinny dog! Bella Tang, have you gone blind?” His words were inappropriate. Big Strong may be thin, but his face is whiter than a girl’s, with slightly messy bangs. A high nose bridge, and lips that look… Like peach-flavored mochi, very delicious. I shook my head. Gosh, what am I thinking? I used to think Chris was handsome enough, but comparing them side by side, tsk tsk, better not compare. “What nonsense are you spouting?” “We broke up long ago. If you dare come again, I’ll… I’ll call the police to arrest you!” Chris stormed out, slamming the door. “Bella Tang? Are you sure?” “I gave you a chance!” “Who else could put up with how much you eat!” I kicked the flowers at him. My hand shook as I closed the door. I frowned, how did Chris have a key to my place? I turned to see Zach striding into his apartment across the hall. As he closed the door, he left a crack, revealing a mocking eye. “Ex-boyfriend? Your taste really is bad!” “I suggest you change your lock.”

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On the day I got my acceptance letters from all the top schools, my billionaire dad told me to pick a fiancé from the roster of brilliant young men he’d sponsored. In my last life, I chose Trevor, my long-time crush. Who knew that after we married, he’d sell me to the dark web, where I was brutally dismembered and tortured! My daughter, Lily, begged him on her knees, but he choked her to death right in front of me. “Daisy! If you hadn’t used your dad’s sponsorship to force my hand, I never would’ve missed out on Chloe! She wouldn’t have left heartbroken and died in that car crash out in the middle of nowhere!” “If I had to choose again, I’d throw *everything* away just to never be with you!” Trevor stomped on Lily’s lifeless body, then, amidst my screams, he tossed her into the street, leaving her to be crushed by passing vehicles. The entire process of my torture and murder was recorded, turned into a video on the dark web, and went viral, racking up hundreds of thousands of views. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day my college applications were finalized, choosing my fiancé. I ignored Trevor’s eager gaze, my finger shooting out to point at Julian, the guy with the absolute worst reputation: “I want him.”

Dad’s gaze swept over the line of men before him, finally settling on me: “Daisy, your old man isn’t getting any younger. I don’t know how much longer I’ll be here to look after you. These are all young men I’ve watched grow up, carefully selected. Their character and capabilities are… *barely* up to your standards. No matter who you choose, your dad will bless your decision.” Everyone held their breath, their tension palpable. If I picked them, it meant a life of unimaginable wealth and influence, a smooth ride forever. I looked at Trevor. The moment our eyes met, my fists clenched involuntarily. The phantom pain of the inhuman torture from my past life still lingered. Just a flicker of that memory in my mind was enough to send shivers down my spine. I scoffed, my gaze shifting to Julian, who stood a little apart. After I died in my last life, Trevor ordered my body to be thrown into a junkyard and completely destroyed. It was Julian who spent a fortune, hiring people to sneak my body out, ensuring I received a proper burial and could finally rest in peace. That kindness, I never forgot. In a single breath, I’d made my decision. I turned, meeting Dad’s expectant gaze with a small smile: “Dad, the person I want…” Trevor was already poised, ready to step forward. After all, everyone knew I’d been relentlessly chasing Trevor for years. My husband, it could only be him. “Is Julian.” My finger landed squarely in front of *him*. “I accept— *what*?!” Trevor’s head snapped up, disbelief etched on his face. My dad, meanwhile, shot straight up from his chair: “Are you out of your mind? Julian? He’s a notorious playboy who’s been caught with girls since his freshman year of high school! How could you possibly choose him?” My expression didn’t falter: “Dad, you said you’d bless whoever I chose.” I already knew the truth about that whole thing. Trevor blurted it out when he was drunk in my last life. Julian never did anything like that. Trevor just got worried that Julian, who was better than him in every single way, would earn Dad’s favor instead. It was all a lie. A nasty rumor. A complete and utter scoundrel. My dad stared at me for so long, I thought he was going to pass out from anger. Finally, he grudgingly nodded: “Fine, fine. It’s just an engagement, not a marriage contract. If you want to have your fun, go for it. Your old man can always bail you out, no matter what.” He agreed! A wave of excitement washed over me. I honestly thought I’d have to argue more. Barely able to contain my excitement, I quickly reached out to give Dad’s shoulders a grateful squeeze. In this life, as long as I could get rid of that lecherous leech, it was a victory.

The moment I stepped out of the mansion, Trevor grabbed my wrist from behind: “Daisy! What the hell do you think you’re doing?!” His grip was too strong, making my face twist in pain: “Are you out of your mind?! If you’re having a bad day, go get a rabies shot, don’t come here acting like a rabid dog!” Trevor’s voice was practically spitting through clenched teeth: “Everyone knows you’ve been shamelessly chasing me since we were kids, begging to marry me! Now you have the perfect chance, and you’re throwing it away? Isn’t this just your pathetic attempt at playing hard to get?” I actually laughed, I was so mad. I’d never met anyone so utterly shameless: “I can’t believe your delusions have gotten this bad. I chose Julian because I *like* Julian. I didn’t choose you because the sight of you makes me want to puke, got it?” Trevor, naturally, didn’t believe it. After all, half an hour ago I was still calling him ‘my dearest Trevor’ non-stop. Now, suddenly turning on him like this? Anyone would think something fishy was going on. Just as he was about to say more, I was suddenly pulled into a warm embrace: “Looks like some dogs just don’t understand human words. My fiancée has made it perfectly clear she wants nothing to do with you, yet you’re still clinging on. Your hide must be thicker than a rhino’s.” Because of me, everyone in my household used to treat Trevor with kid gloves, giving him special deference. When had he ever been so utterly humiliated? Trevor’s face flushed crimson with rage: “Do you honestly think she wants to marry *you*? She’s just using you to make me jealous! I saw through her pathetic little games ages ago!” “Daisy, Chloe was right! You arrogant, spoiled rich girls are all just leeches, the scum of society!” SMACK! I swung my arm in a wide arc, my palm connecting squarely with his face. The force sent him stumbling backward: “You dared to hit me?!” It was the first time I’d seen someone’s eyes bug out quite so dramatically, like they were about to pop out of their sockets. I shook out my wrist: “Hitting you? That was the *least* of it. Looking at how lively and energetic you are, you don’t exactly seem like someone who needs charity, do you?” “You’re right, we *are* scum. And naturally, money from the family of scum like us simply *cannot* be used. So, for your future college life, you’ll have to work extra hard, won’t you?” The moment he heard I was revoking his sponsorship, Trevor panicked: “How dare you?! I’m a top scholar!” Julian snorted a laugh: “Oh, right, *county-level* first place is also called a ‘top scholar,’ isn’t it? Such high *value*.” Trevor glared daggers at Julian: “I’m talking to *her*. Do you have a license to butt in?” Julian just flexed his wrist: “Looking for a beating?” Trevor wanted to retort, but then he looked at Julian, who stood a good half-head taller than him. He grudgingly snapped his mouth shut. And stormed away. “So *that’s* the kind of guy you used to like?” The smirk still hadn’t left Julian’s lips. I looked at him, slowly speaking: “Your husband.” ? Julian fell silent. Heh. Go on, laugh. If you mock me again, he’s *your* husband now too. Fair enough, right?

The next day, as I stepped out of the mansion, I spotted Chloe and Trevor at the gates, practically draped all over each other, playing the part of lovesick puppies. Chloe’s eyes were brimming with tears, as if she’d suffered some unimaginable injustice, as she sobbed uncontrollably, nestled in Trevor’s arms: “How could she humiliate you like that? My Trevor is the best man in the entire world!” Trevor sighed dramatically: “Rich people like them are just spoiled rotten. They have no idea how to respect anyone. She’s probably just trying some new trick to get my attention, but I saw through her disgusting little schemes ages ago. She just makes me sick!” Chloe bit her lip, nodding softly: “Trevor, I’m worried she’ll deliberately cause trouble for you… After all, people like them, what *wouldn’t* they do?” Trevor scoffed: “She won’t dare. All I have to do is ignore her for a couple of days, and she’ll come crawling back to beg for my attention.” I leaned against the doorway, casually shattering his little fantasy: “Oh, really?” Trevor heard my voice and, as if on instinct, immediately put some space between himself and Chloe. But seeing Chloe’s stunned expression, he realized his reaction was a bit too obvious. To save face, he snapped at me: “Who told you to eavesdrop on us?!” I raised an eyebrow: “This is *my* house. Do I need to report my movements to an outsider like you? Oh, and by the way, my dad has officially cut ties with your sponsorship. Isn’t it a bit awkward for you to still be hanging around *our* house?” My eyes curved into little crescents as I smiled, instructing the housekeeper to pack up all his *pathetic* belongings and toss them out. The housekeeper initially just put the bag on the floor, playing along, since I’d pulled this stunt plenty of times before when Trevor and I fought. And I’d always ended up meekly helping him carry his stuff back inside. It had gotten so bad that even the housekeeper thought I couldn’t live without him. Trevor glanced at the bag on the ground, frowning: “Why is this all there is? Where are my watches and shoes?” I smirked: “Those? I bought them. What makes you think you have any right to take them? You’re not even worthy.” I had never spoken to him with such venom before. Trevor’s disgusted expression finally wavered, a hint of something else surfacing: “Alright, stop messing around. You’re just upset because you saw me with Chloe, right? Fine, I’ll make her leave.” With that, he started to pick up the bag, intending to go back inside. But I extended my foot, blocking his path. My expression was no longer casual: “I didn’t realize the last name of this house had changed to ‘Trevor.’ Since you’re all so loyal to young master Trevor, you can pack your bags and leave with him.” The housekeeper, hearing she was about to be fired, was too terrified to pretend anymore. She swiftly picked up his pathetic bundle and sent it flying with a kick. Clothes and personal items spilled everywhere. Before Trevor could even react, Chloe couldn’t stand it anymore. She put her hands on her hips, striking a pose of righteous indignation, and demanded: “How can you bully people like this?!” She was half a head shorter than me; I had to look down to meet her gaze. Honestly, such a bother. “Do you really think you have the right to speak to *me*?” That single sentence utterly shattered Chloe’s fragile self-esteem. Right, if it weren’t for Trevor… …she would never have even seen me in her entire life. It was the truth, but she couldn’t handle it. Her big eyes immediately filled with tears: “How could you say that to me…?” So, I’m supposed to baby you now? Idiots truly do attract other idiots, don’t they? Seeing his beloved crying, Trevor felt even more humiliated. He bellowed at me: “How did you become like this? You’re absolutely impossible! Isn’t all this just to make me marry you? Fine! I’ll marry you! Just stop bothering Chloe! I’ll do anything you want!” He looked like a martyr, which utterly melted Chloe’s heart: “Trevor, I don’t want you to give up so much for me…” Trevor gazed at her adoringly: “As long as you’re well, I’m well…” Honestly, it made me want to puke. “Trevor, I don’t recall ever saying I wanted to marry you.” Trevor sneered: “Stop joking around. Don’t I know you? You love me so much, of course you’d marry me. Stop pretending.” I shrugged: “Sorry, but I should warn you, you might want to move.” He reflexively turned his head. And collided squarely with Julian’s fist. His nose bled, gushing a good ten feet. Hah. Spectacular. “Hearing dogs bark first thing in the morning. So annoying.” Trevor lay on the ground, unable to get up, too weak to even retaliate. Julian frowned: “Even more useless than I thought.” Smiling, I took his hand and led him back inside. Once we were alone, he finally voiced the question on his mind: “I know you only got engaged to me to get back at him, but as long as you need me, I’ll be right here by your side. And if… if one day you grow to hate me, I’ll just leave on my own. I won’t make it difficult for you…” What was with that aggrieved look? Like *I* was the one who wronged *him*. Anyone would think I’d betrayed him. I smiled, leaning closer: “What if I never hate you?” His ears instantly flushed red: “Then… then I’ll be with you forever.” My little innocent. He’s quite the sweetheart, isn’t he?

Days later, a phone call shattered my peaceful life once more: “Ms. Daisy, Mr. Trevor has run up a tab here more than three times, totaling over fifty thousand dollars. When can you come settle his bill?” I raised an eyebrow: “What does his bill have to do with me? Didn’t you know he’s been kicked out of my family’s home?” The person on the other end sounded surprised: “But he said to just call you directly for the money, and that you’d definitely pay…” I rubbed my temples: “And you just take his word for it? Do you have *any* critical thinking skills? He was just some hanger-on my dad found for me. Why would he have any right to spend *my* money?” The call was abruptly disconnected. I immediately sent a message to all the shops I was familiar with: Trevor’s bills have nothing to do with me. Do not harass me. Within minutes, Trevor’s call came in. The moment I answered, he immediately launched into an indignant tirade: “Chloe, are you insane?! Why won’t you pay my bills?! I’m giving you an out here, don’t be ungrateful!” An out? As if I needed one. “Are we close? And besides, why would a man of *your* principles ever spend a woman’s money? I’m just looking out for your reputation, aren’t I?” From the other end of the line, Chloe’s voice suddenly chimed in: “Is it settled? Those shops are calling *me* now, demanding payment! Where are we going to get all that money?!” No wonder he’d blown through so much money in just a few days. So he was trying to impress his little girlfriend. Pathetic. Trevor’s voice got frantic: “I don’t care what game you’re playing! I’m ordering you to pay those bills right now! Chloe’s been crying hysterically because of all the debt collectors! You need to buy her some jewelry and go apologize to her immediately!” Jewelry too? How about a good slap across the face instead? Chloe was still putting on her pathetic act on the other end: “It’s okay, Trevor. I know Daisy hates me, and I can understand if she doesn’t care about me. It’s all my fault for dragging you into this.” Trevor sighed again. His voice held a tenderness I’d never heard directed at me. I didn’t want to watch their pathetic little love drama unfold, so I clicked my tongue: “Anything else?” My cold indifference made Trevor’s heart skip a beat. He sensed something was off with me, and he knew it wasn’t a good sign. “Playing hard to get has its limits, Daisy. You’re just going to make me hate you even more.” I honestly laughed out loud. “Then do me a favor and hate me for the rest of your life. And never contact me again. You make me sick.” He tried to speak, but I just hung up. Seconds later, another call came in. I was about to hang up, but then I saw the name on the screen. I immediately changed my mind: “Hello?” “Is this Trevor’s guardian? His tuition hasn’t been paid, and the deadline is fast approaching. Is he still attending classes this semester?” It was an administrator from a top university. Trevor’s tuition used to be covered by my dad. Even though our family paid for all his living expenses—food, rent, everything—my dad still sent him a regular allowance. It wasn’t that he didn’t have money. He just wanted to use the tuition as leverage to make me beg. What a joke. If he didn’t attend school, the only future he’d be ruining was his own. What did that have to do with me? “Actually, we’ve already decided to have him withdrawn. Sorry for the trouble.” The administrator sounded surprised. Trevor was, after all, a promising student. She admitted she’d called Trevor before, but he’d just haughtily declared: “Get the money from the Davis family. If they don’t pay the tuition, I’m not going.” At the time, she thought it was just idle threats. Now, it seemed he was serious about dropping out. The withdrawal paperwork was processed quickly. Meanwhile, Trevor, the clueless idiot, proudly dragged Chloe along on the first day of classes, ready to register. But the admissions officer stared at him for a long moment before finally speaking: “Didn’t you already withdraw?” Trevor froze on the spot. When Trevor was sent packing from the university, looking like a whipped dog, I was having breakfast with Julian, our arms linked.

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My daughter held up her drawing book, pointing at the row of cars parked in our garage, asking which one she should draw. That’s when I found out her kindergarten had assigned homework: little ones had to draw their family car. And write a sentence: “My dad’s car is a XX brand, and he drives this car every day to take me to kindergarten.” My brows furrowed at this assignment. Was this just a sneaky way to peek into our financial standing? I knelt down, stroking Daisy’s head. “Draw whichever one you like best, sweetie.” Daisy thought for a long time, then finally said, “I don’t like any of them. I like the little pickup truck the bunny dad drives in the cartoon.” She handed in her homework, expecting praise from her teacher, but instead, she faced constant targeting. I called Mr. Harrison, the principal, to complain, but Ms. Thorne only escalated her behavior. She even started live-streaming, portraying my daughter as a spoiled, bratty kid, leading to her being cyberbullied by thousands online.

When I got home that evening, Daisy didn’t rush over like usual when she heard me unlock the door. I called her name a few times, but there was no answer. The clock hands pointed to eight. Usually, by this time, she’d be on the couch, watching her favorite cartoon. Mrs. Davis hurried down from upstairs. “Ms. Sterling, you’re back.” I handed her my coat, asking, “Where’s Daisy?” “She’s asleep, ma’am.” “So early?” Mrs. Davis explained, “She looked a bit off when she came back from kindergarten. She went straight to her room the moment she got back and didn’t even eat dinner.” My brows knitted with worry, afraid she might be sick. I went upstairs and gently pushed open her door. The person on the bed, hearing the movement, turned over, pulling back the covers to look at me. “Mommy.” I sat by her bed, turned on the night light, and felt her forehead. “What’s wrong, sweetie? Are you not feeling well?” Daisy shook her head. Feeling her forehead, confirming her temperature was normal, my heart finally eased. My gaze was drawn to the drawing book on her nightstand. “Are you drawing? What did you draw? Can Mommy see?” She hesitated for a moment, then nodded, saying uncertainly, “My drawing isn’t very good.” “Nonsense! Mommy thinks your drawings are the most beautiful in the world, darling.” I flipped through the drawing book, only to find the last few pages filled with all sorts of cars. The drawings grew more agitated, more chaotic with each page. Until the very last page, messy, tangled lines completely buried the picture beneath. I instantly knew something was wrong. Daisy was always so emotionally stable; she’d never expressed herself like this before. I helped her sit upright, asking with concern, “Tell Mommy, why did you draw so many cars?” She bit her lip, her eyes red. “Teacher said my drawing assignment was the worst in the whole class.”

My heart sank. Even if her drawing wasn’t perfect, a teacher shouldn’t tell her that to her face. Especially not Daisy, who’s just a kindergartner. A single comment from a teacher could easily kill a child’s interest in something. But I also knew I couldn’t just take a child’s word for it. Maybe the teacher didn’t say that at all, and Daisy just misunderstood. I pulled out my phone and opened the SnapChat group chat for the class. Just as I was about to private message the class teacher to get the full story, I saw the “excellent student works” she’d posted in the group that afternoon. I clicked in and saw they were all luxury cars: Ferraris, Rolls-Royces, and the “worst” were BMWs and Mercedes. And those drawings, far from being “excellent,” some of them had crooked, wobbly lines; you could barely make out the car’s shape. Only the car logos were strikingly clear. I suddenly remembered a few days ago, when Daisy pointed at the cars in the garage and asked me which one to draw. She said it was school homework and needed a caption: “My dad drives this car every day to take me to school.” Daisy had deliberated for a long time and ended up drawing the little pickup truck from a cartoon. It all clicked for me. This teacher’s standard for judging homework wasn’t based on artistic skill, but on the car’s value.

Aurora Kindergarten, where Daisy went, was the best private kindergarten in the city. It wasn’t uncommon for elite families to send their children there, and of course, some ordinary families bit the bullet, scraping together every penny to get their kids in. Getting into this kindergarten meant guaranteed admission to Aurora Group’s affiliated middle and high schools, and studying abroad would also be much simpler later on. I specifically chose it for the opportunities and benefits behind it, which is why I enrolled Daisy. Before this incident, I was quite satisfied with the kindergarten. Not only because of the school’s excellent faculty, but more so because of how well they protected student family privacy. That was until this semester started. Daisy’s original class teacher went on maternity leave, and a young new teacher took her place. Ms. Thorne. The first thing she did was send out a survey form, asking kids to take it home for their parents to fill out. It was all questions about parents’ jobs, annual income, and so on, saying she wanted to “understand the students better.” My husband, Mr. Evans, and I are both well-known entrepreneurs, each with our own ventures. We knew that standing out too much could draw unwanted scrutiny. So, we just filled out that form casually and handed it in. I hadn’t thought much of it, but now with this new incident, I couldn’t help but suspect this teacher had ulterior motives. Daisy was going to elementary school next semester, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, she’d also be attending Aurora. I wanted her to finish her kindergarten years happily, and I was afraid she’d be discriminated against again in the future. So, I called Mr. Harrison, the principal. The phone rang less than twice before he quickly picked up. Mr. Harrison’s overly eager voice came through the receiver. “Ms. Sterling, why are you calling me personally? Is there a problem with the investment?” I stated calmly, “I always believed your school highly values student privacy. Yet, with these survey forms and drawing assignments about family cars, what exactly is your school trying to investigate?” There was a distinct pause on the other end; he stammered for a moment. “Wh-what?” “My daughter was unfairly scolded by her teacher because of this assignment. I do not want this to happen again. Otherwise, I will have to reconsider investing in your school.” Mr. Harrison quickly said, “Your daughter attends our school too? Ms. Sterling, there must be some misunderstanding. I will investigate this thoroughly and give you a satisfactory explanation.” I didn’t want to talk any further and hung up. These past few years, the education sector has been booming, with private schools springing up rapidly. Aurora had also faced quite a bit of impact because of this and had been seeking corporate funding. Because of Daisy, and also because my company specializes in AI, fostering talent is fundamental. So, I decided to invest in Aurora, and one of Aurora’s shareholders was Mr. Harrison, the principal of Aurora Kindergarten. I chose to deal with him regarding the partnership. Adhering to a strict boundary between my professional and personal lives, I had never disclosed my private information. So, he had no idea my daughter was actually attending Aurora.

After putting Daisy to sleep, I had just returned to my room when Mr. Harrison called again. “My apologies, Ms. Sterling. Ms. Thorne is new and perhaps a bit out of line. I’ve reprimanded her severely. I’m currently away on a business trip, but when I return, I’ll personally bring Ms. Thorne to apologize.” Mr. Harrison’s tone was sincere, and I didn’t want to make things difficult for them over this. So, I softened my voice and declined. “It’s fine, as long as this doesn’t happen again.” “Understood. We’ll still need your continued guidance and supervision in the future, Ms. Sterling.” After a few more polite exchanges, I hung up. But lying in bed, I tossed and turned, unable to sleep. My company’s new project was in its critical final stages, and my husband had also been away on business. We had indeed neglected Daisy’s development. I hadn’t even met the new teacher in person. After much thought, I decided to personally pick Daisy up from school tomorrow so I could talk to Ms. Thorne face-to-face.

The next day, I made sure to leave work right on time. At the kindergarten gate, lines of students streamed out in orderly rows. I scanned the crowd and finally spotted Daisy in her little floral dress. “Daisy!” I waved to her. She seemed surprised to see me, her face lighting up with joy. She quickly ran into my arms. I immediately noticed her messy hair. I knelt down, untangling her hair as I asked, “What did you play today at kindergarten? Your hair looks like a little scamp’s.” Daisy shook her head. “After nap time, the teacher didn’t comb my hair, so I just tied it up myself.” “What about the other kids? Did they tie their own hair too?” Daisy answered without hesitation, “No, Ms. Thorne braided all of theirs, especially Isabella’s braids, they were really pretty. But when it was my turn, the bell for class rang, and the teacher just left.” My eyes grew cold. Doing children’s hair was part of the teacher’s job. I didn’t expect her to make it look like a masterpiece. But she shouldn’t just walk away the moment the bell rings, right? I took Daisy’s hand and walked into the kindergarten. A few more children from Daisy’s class hadn’t been picked up yet, so the teacher was waiting with them by the door. I looked at the young teacher fanning herself in the shade and politely greeted her, “Hello, Ms. Thorne, I’m Daisy’s mom.” She looked up at me for a few moments, a little hesitant. “That’s not right, I haven’t seen you before.” Ms. Thorne remembered clearly that it was always a plainly dressed middle-aged woman who picked up and dropped off Daisy. But the woman in front of her was elegant and radiant, exuding an invisible aura of authority. I said, “I’m usually busy with work, so I haven’t been able to pick up or drop off my child much. I wonder if you have some time? I’d like to chat with you.” She flat-out refused. “You can SnapChat me if there’s anything important. After work hours are my private time, and I don’t want to deal with work matters.” “Then I’ll be brief.” I could hear the impatience in her voice, so I naturally dropped my polite tone. “Aurora has always valued student privacy. I do not want to see any more incidents of student backgrounds being investigated in various ways.” She scoffed. “Daisy’s mom, I’ve always followed school regulations. If you have a problem, you can always transfer Daisy to another school. After all, our Aurora isn’t just for anyone.” That last sentence immediately shut down any desire I had to continue the conversation. I sneered, “Whether there’s a threshold for admission, I don’t know, but there certainly seems to be no threshold for teachers. I will relay every word you said today to Mr. Harrison.” She casually shrugged. “Our principal is very busy; not everyone can get in touch with him.” I pointed at her. “Whether I can reach him is my business. You just wait to be fired!” “Big words! Even if every teacher in this kindergarten gets fired, I won’t be going anywhere.” I caught the deeper meaning in her words. “What, are you some big shot, indispensable to Aurora?” She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, quite pleased with herself. “Naturally. Oh, well… you common folk wouldn’t understand.” I was about to retort when I saw her eyes light up. She grabbed a girl standing nearby and walked towards a woman who had just entered the entrance. “Isabella’s mom, you’re finally here! Isabella was so well-behaved today.” I watched Ms. Thorne’s fawning mannerisms, feeling utterly speechless. Isabella… that name sounded familiar. I seemed to recall that the top scorer on this assignment was Isabella. I pulled out my phone and opened the SnapChat group chat. It was indeed her. Although her drawing was crooked and distorted, the car logo was clearly identifiable as a Rolls-Royce.

Daisy tugged at my sleeve. “Mommy, aren’t we going home yet?” I snapped back to reality, took her hand, and left the school. “Daisy, would you like to switch kindergartens?” She hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “But I still want to go to the weekend parent-child activity with you, Mommy.” “Okay.” I stroked her head, deciding to accompany her to this one activity, then proceed with the transfer. And as for the investment in Aurora, I also decided to withdraw it. An educational group that doesn’t prioritize character in its teachers, only background, isn’t worth my money. As soon as we got home, I saw a large bouquet of roses on the table. Just as I picked them up, someone wrapped their arms around my waist from behind, whispering in my ear, “Honey, I missed you so much.” “Daddy!” Daisy cried out excitedly. My husband released me, picked her up, and gave her a big kiss on the cheek. “My precious girl, did you miss Daddy?” “Yes, I missed you every single day.” Daisy wrapped her arms around his neck. “Daddy, will you come to the school activity with me?” I playfully scolded her, “Just now you said you wanted to go with Mommy. Are you already breaking your promise?” Daisy made a funny face. “Mommy can come too!” My husband pulled me into his embrace. “That’s right, it’s been a while since the three of us were together. It’s perfect timing, my work is done, so I can spend some quality time with you both.” I nodded. “My project is almost finished too. Let’s go on a trip abroad soon.” “Yay!” Daisy clapped her hands excitedly.

Our reunion felt like a second honeymoon, and it wasn’t until late into the night that we quietly lay in bed, chatting. I told my husband about Daisy’s school situation. Regarding the suggestion to transfer schools, while he felt it was a bit inconvenient, he didn’t outright object. After all, it was the last semester, and he just told me to handle it as I saw fit. Weekend arrived in a blink, and as my husband and Daisy were organizing the things they needed to take to kindergarten. I received a call from my company. They said the newly developed robot suddenly malfunctioned. And the new product launch was scheduled for next Monday, so time was extremely tight. My husband was understanding. “The project is important. Daisy has me.” “Okay.” I kissed both their faces. “I’ll try my best to make it back.” I rushed to the company, where the technicians were already inspecting the product. They finally found it was a source code issue. The designer asked me, “Ms. Sterling, does the robot you have at home have this problem?” I paused for a moment, realizing I hadn’t seen that robot at home in a long time. Since it was a new product development, not yet mass-produced, only two units of this series had been made. One was the human-sized humanoid robot. The other was a small robot model that I had taken home for Daisy to play with. It was also a good way to test the robot’s performance and practical use at home, to make adjustments later. But it seemed that at some point, that robot had gone missing. And because I was too busy with work, I had just overlooked it. When I got home, I’d have to ask Daisy and find that little robot. Work wasn’t done until late at night, and the kindergarten activity had long since ended. I opened my phone and saw a dozen missed calls, all from my husband. Fearing something had happened, I quickly called him back. The moment the call connected, I heard my husband’s angry roar from the other end. “She absolutely has to transfer! What kind of damn kindergarten is this? What kind of damn teacher? I can’t trust Daisy there!” My husband was usually a gentle, even-tempered man; he’d never gotten this angry before.

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My boyfriend asked me, the winner of the North American Architectural Design Award, to draw his blueprints. After five years of dating and on the verge of getting married, I agreed. I pulled all-nighters, day in and day out, helping him with his designs, which landed him the sole coveted faculty position at the university. But when I went to help him organize his office for the new semester, I ran into his new assistant, Briar Thorne. “Audrey, your designs are so handy. It’s just, the paper for your sketches was so stiff, it wasn’t comfortable to lie on. It even chafed my skin. Next time, use something softer, like fine art paper.” “I’m attending Professor Thorne’s induction ceremony in three days, and Mr. Hayes worked so hard to get Professor Thorne to take me on as his protégé. What if I can’t even wear my dress?” I looked at the water-stained blueprints, and it hit me: my all-nighters, my blood, sweat, and tears, were just a flimsy pad for my boyfriend and his assistant to… well, *enjoy themselves* on! Noah always preached that Briar came from a rough background, and he was just “doing his part” to help her out. He told me to “broaden my horizons,” to stop being so “petty.” But he took my design plans and put Briar Thorne’s name on them! And for three whole months, my hard-earned designs? Just a prop in their twisted little *game*! Silently, I tossed the design sketches into the trash. Then, I called Professor Sterling Thorne, the man who’d been trying to recruit me as his protégé for years. “Professor Thorne,” I said, my voice cutting through the silence, “Your apprentice? It’s either me or her!”

“Audrey, you finally came around!” Professor Thorne’s voice was filled with barely contained delight. “You absolutely *must* be there for the induction ceremony in three days!” “It was always meant for you. You are the true star, the guest of honor!” I simply hummed in response, listening as Professor Thorne continued to give instructions. “That Noah kid, he did recommend a student named Briar Thorne to me.” “I saw that design draft. It was brimming with creativity and showed a deep foundation. But that kind of innate design sense? No ordinary student could pull that off.” “I found it suspicious then, and I’d been meaning to ask you about it. I just didn’t realize… you’re just too patient, kid.” Professor Thorne’s words stirred a bitter ache in my chest. After hanging up, I drove back to the apartment Noah and I had decorated together, a place filled with five years of memories. Pushing open the door, Noah was sitting on the sofa, drinking a beer, talking to Briar Thorne on FaceTime. His voice was so soft and gentle, it could melt butter. “Briar, don’t worry. I’ve handled everything with Professor Thorne. He really admires your talent.” “Just be stunning at the induction ceremony.” He saw me, but didn’t hang up. He just casually lifted his chin, gesturing for me to change my shoes. After he finished the call, he noticed my calm demeanor and realized something was off. He scowled, his face full of impatience. “What now, Audrey Blake? Who annoyed you?” I tossed my phone onto the coffee table in front of him. The screen showed the photo of the water-stained blueprint. Noah’s face instantly changed. “Audrey Blake, what is this supposed to mean?” “What do I mean? Noah, why is Briar Thorne’s name on *my* design?” Seeing that I’d caught him, his tone softened slightly. “Audrey, I only did this for *our* future!” “Think about it, if Briar becomes Professor Thorne’s protégé, won’t we have an extra connection in this industry? It’ll benefit both our careers!” He reached for my hand, but I sidestepped, avoiding his touch. “You’re going to doubt our five years together just because of a piece of paper?” “Audrey Blake, you’re really disappointing me!” Disappointing? I looked at his indignant face and felt nothing but absurdity. “Disappointment? Is it because I didn’t use softer paper, so it chafed *her* skin?” “You two know exactly what you did on my blueprints!” At that, Noah’s face turned beet red. He snarled, “Audrey Blake! How can your mind be so filthy?!” “Briar is young, she’s just a kid, she likes to joke around. Why are you getting so worked up over it? Don’t you have any dignity as an upperclassman?!” I watched his furious outburst, and the last flicker of warmth in my heart completely extinguished. That’s what true heartbreak feels like, when your heart just… dies. “Noah, we’re over.” I spoke calmly, and the air instantly solidified. The anger on Noah’s face froze. He probably thought this was just another one of my usual “tantrums.” Throughout our five-year relationship, he’d grown accustomed to my tolerance, my yielding, my habit of always revolving within the circle he drew for me. “Audrey Blake, you’re being utterly unreasonable! Fine, I’ll let you cool off for a few days.” He walked into the bedroom, slamming the door shut. “Once the induction ceremony is over, you’ll understand my good intentions.” I looked at this man, who had become completely unrecognizable, and a cold smile touched my lips. Noah, there is no future for us anymore.

Leaving the apartment and getting into my car, I watched the city lights fly by outside the window, remembering the laughable five years I’d spent with Noah. Noah’s talent was limited; he originally wouldn’t have been able to secure a faculty position. It was *me* who locked myself in the studio, researching, sketching, and building models day and night, helping him complete the design that earned recognition from FasTech and secured him that sole coveted faculty position. The last week before the project deadline, I was on my period, doubled over in pain, cold sweat drenching my clothes. Noah brought me a warm tea, his eyes full of feigned concern. “Audrey, maybe you should stop drawing. Your health is the most important thing.” I was so touched back then, I drank the tea, put on a heating pad, and gritted my teeth, continuing to work. Now that I think about it, his “maybe you should stop” was probably the only honest thing he said. The next day, I returned to the studio with bloodshot, swollen eyes. My assistant, Julian Reed, brought in coffee and gasped when he saw me. “Audrey, what happened to you? Did a client push you this hard?” Julian has been my assistant since I graduated. He’s two years younger than me, usually seems laid-back, but he’s sharper and more attentive than anyone. I didn’t say anything. I just silently opened my laptop and pulled up the design I’d made for Noah. “This…” Julian’s eyes lit up after just one glance. “Audrey, is this your new work? It’s brilliant! That mortise and tenon joint structure is simply divine!” I forced a bitter smile. “This design? It belongs to someone else now.” After Julian heard what happened, he slammed the folder in his hand onto the desk in anger. “Holy hell! You gave your blood, sweat, and tears to that jerk, and he hands it over to that manipulative snake? And they used it as a damn *pad*? Are you kidding me? Who *does* that?!” “Audrey, just wait. I’m going to have someone teach that jerk a lesson right now!” Seeing him hopping mad, my heavy heart lightened a little. “It’s fine, no need.” But Julian wouldn’t back down. He suddenly sat across from me, looking at me with a serious expression. “Audrey, seriously, are you just going to keep this dead weight around? Dump him, now!” He winked, a playful tone in his voice, “If you need a place to stay, you can come to my place. If you need a boyfriend, you can consider me.” “I promise, I’ll spoil you rotten, take care of your every need. I’ll never let you suffer any more injustice.” I laughed, amused. “Are you getting your lines from a bad rom-com, kid? Get back to work.” He pouted, wearing an expression that clearly said, “I’m serious, you know.” Just then, my phone rang. I answered, and Noah’s condescending lecture immediately came through. “Audrey Blake, stop messing around.” “You’ve had your fit, right? I’m apologizing, okay?” “Two days from now, dress up nicely and come to the ceremony. Apologize to Briar in front of everyone, and we’ll put this behind us.” “We can go back to how we were before, okay?” Before I could say anything, a sickly sweet, suggestive female voice came from the other end. “Mr. Hayes, hurry up, please. Help me with the zipper on the back of my dress, I can’t reach it…” It was Briar Thorne. Noah’s voice dropped, tender and comforting. “Don’t rush, I’m coming.” They didn’t even bother to hide it from me. I forced a bitter laugh. Julian, noticing my mood, clenched his jaw, his knuckles white. He looked ready to jump through the phone and tear that rotten pair apart. I reached out and gently pressed his hand, then spoke calmly into the phone. “Okay.” “I’ll be at the induction ceremony in three days.” With that, I hung up and dragged Noah’s number into my blacklist. Julian looked at me incredulously. “Audrey, you’re really going to…” “Apologize?” I raised an eyebrow. “What are you thinking?” I stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the bustling street below. “That ceremony was always *mine*.” “I’m just going to reclaim what belongs to me.” “As for apologizing… the one who needs to apologize? It’s certainly not me.” “Audrey, you look so powerful right now.” Julian’s eyes held a flash of concern, but he quickly put on a joking facade to comfort me. What I didn’t see was that the moment he closed the door, the smile on his face vanished. Julian pulled out his phone and dialed a number, his voice cold as ice. “Look into Noah Hayes and Briar Thorne from the Architecture Department at A-University.” “Yes, I want them… utterly ruined.”

Three days later, the induction ceremony. The venue was the city’s most exclusive hotel ballroom. Noah had clearly pulled out all the stops. To build momentum for Briar, he had already leaked my design, credited to Briar Thorne, to several friendly media outlets. Headlines screaming “Architectural Prodigy Takes the World by Storm!” and “Professor Thorne’s Visionary Discovery” were plastered everywhere. Noah wore a crisp, tailored suit, looking radiant. Briar, in a white strapless gown, her makeup flawless, nestled against his arm, playing the demure damsel. “Mr. Hayes is truly young and accomplished, and so sharp-eyed to discover such a talent like Briar!” “Indeed, a perfect match, a match made in heaven!” “Briar is Professor Thorne’s final protégé! We seniors will have to look after this little genius in the future, won’t we?” Noah beamed, unable to contain his joy. While his words were humble, his eyes were practically overflowing with smugness. “Oh, it’s nothing, really. Briar simply has immense talent and works incredibly hard.” “Everyone here is part of the same community now, so please, do look after our Briar.” Noah and Briar revelled in the compliments, completely oblivious to how dark Professor Thorne’s face was on stage! Professor Thorne took the microphone, his deep voice resounding throughout the ballroom. “Good evening, distinguished guests. Today, I’ve invited you all here to introduce a young designer whom I deeply admire.” He gestured to a staff member, who projected a 3D rendering of a design onto the large screen behind him. It was “The Nest,” the very design I had poured countless sleepless nights into. “This design, ‘The Nest,’ is a work of genius, whether viewed from its structure, concept, or humanitarian considerations.” Below the stage, Briar Thorne already wore a triumphant smile. She was even ready to elegantly walk onto the stage the moment Professor Thorne called her name. Noah also smugly adjusted his tie, preparing to accept everyone’s congratulations. Just then, I walked into the ballroom, arm in arm with Julian. Seeing me, the smiles on Noah’s and Briar’s faces froze. Noah strode towards me, his voice low and sharp. “Audrey Blake! How can you be so clueless?!” “I know you’re feeling wronged, but today is Briar’s induction ceremony. What are you doing here? Do you *have* to embarrass Briar?!” On stage, Professor Thorne’s gaze swept across the room, his eyes suddenly sharp. “Today, besides introducing a true genius, I also want to use this opportunity to reveal a truth and personally rid our design world of plagiarism and its perpetrators!” At these words, the entire hall fell silent!

The reporters Noah had invited to fill the room were the first to react, swarming around me. “Miss Blake, there are rumors circulating online that you maliciously plagiarized new designer Briar Thorne’s work. What’s your explanation?” “We hear you were in a relationship with Mr. Hayes. Did you make such an irrational move out of jealousy that your boyfriend was promoting a new talent?” “Are you here today to publicly apologize to Miss Briar Thorne and Professor Thorne?” Sharp questions came one after another, flashbulbs flickering wildly, threatening to swallow me whole. Noah looked at me coldly. “Just go back! The plagiarism rumors are already trending! Do you seriously have the nerve to come here and make a scene?!” After reprimanding me, he quickly stepped forward, adopting a humble and deferential posture toward Professor Thorne on stage. “Professor Thorne, please don’t be angry. Audrey is young, she made a mistake. I’ll make sure to teach her a good lesson when we get home!” Briar Thorne’s eyes immediately welled up, tears flowing freely. She weakly stepped to the front of the stage, pleading with Professor Thorne in a seemingly magnanimous tone. “Professor Thorne, please don’t blame Audrey.” “I know Audrey didn’t mean it. She probably just liked my design too much and made such a mistake.” “Please, I beg you, give her another chance. I… I’m willing to forgive her.” Her words, while seemingly magnanimous, were utterly insidious, directly nailing me to the pillar of shame for plagiarism. The gazes of the crowd below were already filled with disdain and contempt. Professor Thorne gave them a cold glance, saying nothing, but then turned the microphone towards me, his eyes burning with intensity. “Audrey, come up here!” “Now, I would like to formally introduce you to someone.” “This person is the true author of the genius work ‘The Nest,’ and the brilliant designer I have been searching for years to take under my wing—Audrey Blake!”

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “297125”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #浪漫Romance #现实主义Realistic