Have you ever used a mask that can transform your appearance? There are only three sheets in a box. Use one box, and all the acne and scars on your face disappear, leaving your skin flawless. Use two boxes, and your face becomes slimmer, your eyes bigger, and your nose more defined. What if you could use three boxes? Hehe, your face would be completely renewed, stunningly beautiful, just like… just like you’ve become a different person. Interested? DM me. I never thought Sophia’s face could change so quickly. Two days ago, when I visited her house, her face was swollen like a pig’s head due to an infection from plastic surgery. The housekeeper was still wiping pus from her face. But now, her skin was smooth and delicate, as white as porcelain. Even the twisted scars from the stitches were gone. Seeing my surprised expression, she explained, “I didn’t expect this product to be so miraculous either.” I wanted to ask what product it was, but I held back, knowing I couldn’t afford it anyway. Even though it should have been a happy occasion, Sophia still frowned, looking listless. Her mouth twitched slightly, and I couldn’t help but ask with concern, “Sophia, your mouth…” A flash of panic crossed her eyes as she covered her mouth, “Is it twitching?” I nodded. “Maybe the nerves were damaged during the previous surgery and haven’t fully recovered yet.” Just as I was about to comfort her, a small figure appeared on the second floor. “Miss Wilson, good afternoon.” Noah waved at me like an old bureaucrat. He was only 7 years old, but his gesture seemed oddly out of place.

I smiled at him as I walked towards the stairs, surveying my surroundings. Under the golden lights, classical music filled the vintage two-story mansion. Four gold-edged carpets were inlaid on the marble floor. A sandalwood tea table sat in the center of these carpets. The house was filled with the scent of sandalwood. Perhaps because I couldn’t appreciate this deep color scheme, I didn’t find it elegant or noble, but rather mysterious. I originally hadn’t planned to take this part-time job because it was a full 20 kilometers from my university. But Noah’s housekeeper, Aunt Lucy, had sought me out twice. “You look so quiet; you must have a good temper too.” “Noah has a bit of autism, so we wanted to find a gentle teacher.” The crow’s feet at the corners of her eyes moved up and down as she not only offered me double the pay but also promised to drive me to and from work every day. It would have been ungrateful to refuse at that point.

Noah’s bedroom-study was on the second floor. Despite being only 7 years old, he had an exceptionally strong ability to learn, grasping everything after just one lesson. And Aunt Lucy, who lived next door to him, would always bring fruit. I secretly rejoiced at how lucky I was. Not only did I teach a smart student, but I also got to enjoy all kinds of fruit. Noah often curled up in Aunt Lucy’s arms, seeming even closer to her than to his mother. Aunt Lucy would always comfort him, “Just hang in there a little longer, it’s almost time.” I thought her concern was unnecessary, as Noah didn’t seem to resist learning at all.

After finishing the lesson, Aunt Lucy drove me home as usual. Despite being nearly 60 years old, her driving was very steady. “Miss Wilson, do you have a boyfriend?” she asked. I looked at my acne-covered face in the car mirror and sighed. Seeing her crow’s feet directed at me, she said, “Your face is a minor issue. Even Sophia’s condition could be fixed.” My mind suddenly flashed to Sophia’s appearance, and I couldn’t help but ask what she had used. Aunt Lucy stared at the red light ahead, her mouth opening and closing, “A mask.” A mask? You’ve got to be kidding. In all my years, I’ve never heard of a mask that could fix a botched plastic surgery. I guess Aunt Lucy, at her age, probably hasn’t even used a face mask before. I didn’t pursue the topic and changed the subject, mentioning that Sophia seemed a bit down today. “If it weren’t for her cheating husband, she wouldn’t have gotten plastic surgery.” “She even hid it from me. It wasn’t worth the suffering.” Aunt Lucy looked very angry; I could tell she really cared for Sophia. As we reached the school gate, I caught sight of a familiar figure. It was Lucas. Aunt Lucy noticed me staring at him and gossiped, “Is this the boy Miss Wilson likes? He’s quite handsome.” I blushed as I got out of the car.

Lucas had been my secret crush for three years. I had even changed my college choice because of him. Not only was he academically excellent, but he was also very handsome. But he probably didn’t even know my name. Because I didn’t even have the courage to say hello. How I wished I could get rid of all this acne on my face and slim down my cheeks. But I didn’t have as much money as Sophia. Still, I thought that when I had the chance, I’d ask her what exactly she had used. Even if I couldn’t afford it now, I could save up, right? Unexpectedly, because final exams were coming up, I took three days off. When I saw Sophia again after those three days, I was shocked once more.

Her originally delicate and refined appearance had suddenly taken on an exotic beauty. Her round eyes had become European-style double eyelids, and her chubby nose had become straight and defined. There was no sign of swelling on her face. Could this also be due to that product? Seeing me arrive, she pulled me to sit on the sofa. “Rachel, I’m really upset.” I looked at her stunningly beautiful face, with a smile on her lips. I was completely confused. This expression didn’t look upset at all. But her large, blinking eyes were devoid of any sparkle. She murmured, “My husband is determined to divorce me.” “Sigh, everything has been in vain.” If it weren’t for her voice sounding truly sorrowful, I would have thought she was pretending. After speaking, she collapsed onto the sofa and stopped talking to me. I watched as her mouth and eye corners twitched along with her shoulders. I didn’t feel comfortable asking her about the product either. 6 Halfway through the lesson, I suddenly heard a loud crash. I instinctively rushed out of the room. Classical music echoed through the empty house, and Aunt Lucy stood at the door, staring wide-eyed at the floor below. As I approached, I saw Sophia lying face-up in a pool of blood, wearing a deep blue cheongsam. On the gold-edged carpet, she looked like a blooming blue rose. It was so sudden that I was stunned on the spot. Aunt Lucy cried out and ran downstairs, nearly falling. She checked Sophia’s breath and shook her head. From behind me came Noah’s childish voice, “911? 325 Green Hill Street. Someone has committed suicide.”

It took nearly an hour for the ambulance to arrive. Sophia had no external injuries but had died from asphyxiation due to a broken neck from the fall. The surveillance footage showed her walking up to the second floor in a daze, then smiling at the camera before jumping. It was initially determined to be suicide. Half an hour after the body was taken away, I finally started to recover a bit and quickly went to check on Noah. To my surprise, he wasn’t crying. Maybe because he was so young, he didn’t understand what death meant. But Aunt Lucy was crying uncontrollably. Between sobs, she said, “Why did you give up?” “If this man wasn’t good enough, couldn’t you have found another?” “How foolish, so foolish.” Aunt Lucy had taken care of the mother and son for six years. In her heart, Sophia must have been like a daughter to her. It was indeed difficult to accept this sudden loss. The police asked some questions. It was only then that I learned from Aunt Lucy that Sophia had been suffering from depression for a long time. Her husband’s insistence on divorce had been the last straw. The medical examiner asked Aunt Lucy to find the medication Sophia had been taking. She knelt on the ground and handed me a key, “Rachel, it’s over there. You go, I’m too upset.” She pointed to the storage room at the corner of the second floor.

There weren’t many things in the storage room, and it was very tidy. On the shelf nearest the door was a row of medicines. I couldn’t tell which was which, so I just cradled them all in my arms. As I was about to leave, I noticed a faint red glow coming from the opposite shelf. Curious, I took a closer look and saw it was a box of face masks. “Transformation Mask.” Could this be the product Sophia had used? The mask Aunt Lucy had mentioned? I wanted to take a closer look, but the police asked if I had found the medication. I hastily put it aside and rushed downstairs with the medicines. They were just ordinary antidepressants, nothing suspicious. The police asked Aunt Lucy to go to the station to give a statement. They told me to take Noah for a walk outside, fearing he might be scared. But Noah refused to leave, insisting on staying at home. I was scared too. One of the officers, probably seeing that I was quite young, volunteered to stay with us. I reluctantly agreed to stay.

With a pounding heart, I turned off the classical music. The photo of Sophia on the table sent chills down my spine. Surprisingly, she didn’t look young before the surgery. The tired face with deep nasolabial folds rivaled mine. I turned the frame face down and hurried upstairs to wait with Noah in his room. I had my bag ready, planning to leave as soon as Aunt Lucy returned. “Miss Wilson, you won’t be coming back anymore, will you?” Noah asked. Maybe he sensed my unease. I patted his head, “I’ll come back to see you when I have time, don’t worry.” I wasn’t in the mood to teach him, so I put on a cartoon for him on the computer. But he didn’t seem very interested. After a while, I couldn’t hold it anymore. “Noah, stay here for a bit. I need to use the bathroom.” To my surprise, as soon as I entered the bathroom, I saw that glowing box of masks next to the mirror.

For a moment, I forgot my fear and, as if possessed, looked at the back of the box. There was no ingredient list, only instructions for use. Step 1: Drop a drop of blood on the mask sheet. Step 2: Write down the effect you want to achieve with a red pen. Step 3: Apply for over 30 minutes and wait. Note: Each box can only be used for one type of modification. For example, types include: skin texture, facial features, bone structure. Using three boxes has a miraculous effect. I hastily stuffed it into my bag. Then I remembered I had left the key in the storage room, and I recalled there were two more boxes in there.

The faint red glow seemed so eerie. But as I touched my own furrowed face and thought of Sophia’s transformation, my heart stirred with desire. Sophia was quite generous; surely she wouldn’t mind if I used a few of her masks. Aunt Lucy probably wouldn’t remember how many boxes of masks Sophia had anyway. But wouldn’t this make me a thief? Besides, the owner had just died. It didn’t feel right to steal her things. I hesitated and put the mask down. But my mind was filled with memories of being disliked and mocked since childhood. No boys wanted to sit next to me in school. When I didn’t have money for the bus fare, no one was willing to help. Even the boy I had liked for three years probably didn’t know I existed. I gritted my teeth and grabbed the two boxes of masks, stuffing them into my bag. I hadn’t been paid for the past two weeks of part-time work anyway. Worst case, I’d forgo the money. If Aunt Lucy asked me, I’d just firmly deny knowing anything. I locked the door and wondered where to put the key. I didn’t dare go downstairs, but luckily, I saw that Aunt Lucy’s door was ajar.

I placed the key on her bedside table and accidentally discovered a faded photograph in her wallet on the desk. It showed a man and a woman who looked very well-matched. Strangely, the woman in the photo looked a bit like Sophia, but the photo was dated 30 years ago. I remembered Aunt Lucy saying that she saw Sophia as if she were looking at herself. This must have been Aunt Lucy when she was young. I never imagined she had been so beautiful in her youth. Aunt Lucy returned quickly. She seemed calmer than before. “Rachel, after what happened, I can’t drive you home today.” I clutched my bag, feeling relieved. As I was leaving, Noah wrung his hands, looking at me longingly.

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I received a call from the police, saying they needed my cooperation in an investigation. Was this some kind of scam call? “Yes, I went to Thailand. I used my card to buy an elephant,” I replied dismissively before hanging up. Not long after, the phone rang again. It was the same number. “This isn’t a scam call. We mainly want to inquire about Mr. Zachary Walsh’s disappearance,” the voice said. Are scammers getting this thorough now? They even know about my good-for-nothing husband who never comes home? Then I heard him continue, “We received a missing person report from his wife, stating that Mr. Walsh disappeared after meeting with you.” Wait, his wife? Confused, I rummaged through my things to find our marriage certificate. Looking at the official seal, I wondered aloud, “Then who am I?” When the police came to my door again, they didn’t just talk to me there. Instead, they asked me to come to the station for questioning. When I arrived, I saw a young, pretty pregnant woman sitting in a chair outside. She was so thin that if she hadn’t been wearing maternity clothes, you wouldn’t have known she was pregnant. Next to her, constantly comforting her, was a middle-aged woman who bore some resemblance to Zachary. Coincidentally, I knew both of them. One was Zachary’s aunt, and the other was the homewrecker who had ruined my marriage. Sophie Jenkins jumped up when she saw me, pointing and yelling, “It was you, wasn’t it? You wanted more money and didn’t want to divorce him, so you did something to my husband! Otherwise, how could he just disappear without a trace?” How ridiculous. Although Zachary and I were discussing divorce, we hadn’t even signed the papers yet. And she was already calling him her husband. “Don’t want a divorce? I married that man because I was blind. Only someone like you would treat him like a treasure. You two deserve each other,” I shot back, refusing to back down. “You accuse me of harming him? Why don’t you look at yourself? If I remember correctly, Zachary didn’t put a single thing he gave you in your name, right? And he never gave you more than $1000 at a time, did he?” I knew all too well how stingy Zachary was as a man. I couldn’t understand why anyone would want to be his mistress. “You’re not very good at being a mistress, are you? Everything he gave you, he can take back whenever he wants. Even if you managed to become the official wife, he’d still toss you aside when he’s done with you.” At this point, Zachary’s aunt, Zoe, tried to intervene. “We’re all family here. Why are you fighting like this? The most important thing right now is to find Zachary. You can’t get divorced if he’s not here, right, Rachel?” I gave her a cold, mocking smile. Only Aunt Zoe could say such nonsense. When my in-laws were on their deathbeds, I was running around taking care of everything. Not a single person told me that Zachary was out there with a mistress. The whole family treated me like a fool. Back then, when I wanted to hire professional caregivers for my in-laws, how did Aunt Zoe try to persuade me against it? She said, “Rachel, dear, it’s best to take care of your own family members. You don’t know how scary it is these days. There are so many stories online about caregivers abusing the elderly.” I replied, “I’ll visit my parents-in-law every day after work. They’re in the hospital, so nothing like that will happen.” Aunt Zoe then put on a sour face and said, quite unhappily, “Rachel, I don’t mean to criticize you, but you’ve already failed to give Zachary children. Now that his parents are sick and need you, how can you not take care of them yourself? You’re his wife, you’re one unit.” Back then, I didn’t realize how ridiculous Aunt Zoe’s words were. I even thought she had a point. Now, looking back, it’s absurd. I retorted, “Listen to yourself. Is that how a human being talks? Before Zachary disappeared, every time you said we were family, it was to convince him to leave me with nothing. Now that he’s gone and you realize you can’t get anything, suddenly I’m family again? Do I look like some kind of pushover to you?” Aunt Zoe’s face turned ashen. She tried to pull the elder card on me again, like she used to. I wasn’t falling for it anymore. “Enough. Don’t bother with this act. You can’t even manage your own son, and now you’re trying to meddle in my life when Zachary and I are already estranged? What are you, the world police?” At this point, the female detective from earlier and a few other officers came to break up the argument. Aunt Zoe and Sophie didn’t dare to make a scene anymore. They could only watch as Detective Miller and I walked into the interview room. Detective Edwards and a young officer I hadn’t seen before, who seemed to have a perpetual scowl, were there to question me. Detective Edwards informed me, “We found Mr. Walsh’s fishing gear downstream in the reservoir. We suspect he might have fallen into the water and had an accident.” I couldn’t help but laugh. The scowling young officer said, “This is serious! We’re talking about a man’s life here.” I replied, “I’m sorry, officer, but as you know, I’m a woman whose marriage was betrayed. The mistress is right outside with a baby bump. If it were anyone else, I’d be worried and concerned. But when it comes to Zachary Walsh, I hope he’s dead already.” Detective Edwards calmed down the young officer and handed me some photos. “This is what we wanted to discuss. According to our investigation, you were also near Linjiang Reservoir last Friday. Security cameras near Linjiang Supermarket caught you on tape. Can you tell us why you were there?” The photos showed me wearing a baseball cap, sunglasses, a face mask, a green sun protection shirt, white pants, and sneakers. Coincidentally, I was wearing the exact same outfit today. “I have legs, don’t I? I can go wherever I want,” I replied coldly, my tone somewhat confrontational. The young officer tried to intimidate me, “Ma’am, please answer our questions seriously. This isn’t just a missing person case anymore. If you can’t prove your innocence, we have the right to arrest you.” In reality, they couldn’t, because they had no evidence to prove my guilt. But many ordinary citizens don’t know this, so when the police say things that are half-true, those with guilty consciences might confess. But I had nothing to hide. I didn’t want to waste any more time here, so I told the truth. “I went there to discuss divorce matters with him.” Detective Edwards asked, “Didn’t you and Mr. Walsh already reach an agreement? Why did you need to discuss it again? And why didn’t you say this earlier?” My craving for a cigarette hit me again. I asked Detective Edwards for one and said, “Actually, we hadn’t. Before, he wanted a divorce and I didn’t, so he kept dragging things out. Now, I want a divorce and he doesn’t, so he’s the one dragging his feet.” “Why did Mr. Walsh change his mind?” they asked. I smiled bitterly. “For money, of course.” “At first, he wanted to get rid of me cheaply, and I didn’t agree. Later, I wanted to take what rightfully belonged to me and leave, but he thought it was too much and disagreed.” “So he refused to talk to me, kept stalling, and wouldn’t meet me face to face. When I called, he’d just say one thing.” The scowling officer asked, “What did he say?” “He’d say, ‘I’ll only accept you leaving with nothing. If you agree, we’ll divorce. If not, forget it.’” Detective Edwards asked, “And Sophie Jenkins was okay with this situation? Her baby must be about six months along now.” I laughed mockingly. “What could she do about it? I built this business with Zachary. I only stepped back from the company because I had to take care of his dying parents. That’s why I lost so much control and ended up in this situation.” “I have the means and ability to fight Zachary. As long as he still cares about his reputation and doesn’t want to be shunned by his business partners, he has to deal with me, no matter how annoying it is.” “But what leverage does that whore outside have? The baby in her belly? I couldn’t have children before, but when I couldn’t give birth, didn’t he just find another woman to have a kid with? Everything she has, Zachary can take back whenever he wants. He’s just deluding himself, thinking he’s in love with her. Are you satisfied with this explanation?” “Answer what we ask, don’t try to deflect. How did you know Zachary would be there? Did he tell you? Did you see him?” The scowling officer tapped the table. I gave him an OK sign. “Of course he didn’t tell me. The mistress told me. But I didn’t see Zachary either. He didn’t want to meet me. Sophie was afraid Zachary would come after her, so she only told me his general location.” She was desperate to become the official wife but couldn’t get Zachary to budge, so she tried to work through me. “We heard from Ms. Jenkins that you had blocked her. How did she tell you?” they asked. “Public phone. All the calls taunting me to hurry up and divorce Zachary came from public phones.” I opened my call log on my phone to show them. Indeed, there was a 5-minute call from a public phone the day before Zachary disappeared. “Instead of suspecting me and questioning me all the time, why don’t you ask Sophie Jenkins? Maybe she did something out of jealousy because she couldn’t become the official wife. The first time she came to make a scene, it was with Zachary, you know.” Detective Edwards said, “Tell us more about that.” I smiled, feeling genuinely cheerful for the first time since hearing that Zachary might have met with an accident. “Because at that time, Sophie didn’t know Zachary had me as his legal wife. When she found out, of course she went to confront him!”

Soon after, I left the police station. I didn’t know that Detective Edwards and his team had a discussion about this case. Detective Edwards asked, “What do you think, sir? Can we trust her?” Detective Thompson shook his head, then nodded. “Rachel Quinn is different from Sophie Jenkins. She has very high psychological resilience. She’s definitely hiding something. Her words are half-truths and half-lies. We can only believe about half of what she says.” The scowling officer, Detective Wilson, said, “In my opinion, we should lock her up and interrogate her repeatedly. It won’t take long before we know exactly what she’s hiding.” Detective Miller scolded him, “Are you trying to get us all fired? Don’t drag us into your misconduct!” Then she turned and pulled out some documents. “Uncle Thompson, according to our investigation, Sophie Jenkins is also hiding something and has a motive for committing a crime.” This piqued everyone’s interest. What motive could a soon-to-be-official mistress have? Could it really be a crime of passion? “The phone records Rachel Quinn gave us show that Sophie Jenkins did indeed use a public phone to call and taunt her the day before, and told her about Zachary Walsh’s plans for the next day.” “We confirmed this from the surveillance cameras near the phone booth. As for the other things Rachel mentioned, including property and car titles, it’s true that none of them are in Sophie’s name. We also found many compromising photos of Sophie on Zachary’s phone, suggesting he might have used them to blackmail her.” “I discovered something else during the investigation,” Detective Miller continued. Detective Thompson gestured for her to go on. “When the Walshes were still happily married, they sponsored many students. Sophie Jenkins was one of them. At first, she was genuinely deceived by Zachary. Many neighbors know about this incident.” Detective Wilson said to Detective Edwards, “The case seems to have become more complicated.” Detective Edwards smiled. “Actually, the case isn’t that complicated. What’s complicated is the human heart.” Detective Thompson made a decision. “Alright, let’s question Sophie Jenkins next.” When I got home, I looked around the empty house and sank comfortably into the couch. Everything belonging to the second person in this house had long been cleared out. Now, this house that Zachary and I had shared after our marriage was no different from the home of any single woman. Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Irritated, I dragged myself up to look through the peephole. It was Zachary’s cousin, Zack Walsh. I opened the inner door but left the outer security door locked. At this point, I had zero goodwill towards anyone in the Walsh family and didn’t want to let them set foot in my house. “Sister-in-law!” Zack greeted me enthusiastically, then tried to come in. “Aren’t you going to invite me in?” “No,” I said flatly, with no intention of playing host. “I don’t deserve to be called your sister-in-law or a member of the Walsh family. Let’s cut the pleasantries. What are you here for?” When Zachary’s parents were critically ill, Aunt Zoe hadn’t contributed a penny or lifted a finger to help. But as soon as the old couple passed away, she brought her son to demand money. That’s why our two families had a falling out long ago. She stood in front of the coffins with a tattered notebook, itemizing everything—how much more money her parents had given her brother when they divided the family assets, what things Zachary’s parents had borrowed from her after the wedding. Finally, in front of everyone at the funeral, she said, “You’re my nephew’s wife, so I won’t be too hard on you. Back then, when times were tough for everyone, I couldn’t bring myself to ask. Then when my poor brother fell ill, I couldn’t say anything either.” “Now that you’re doing well, it’s time to settle these accounts. I won’t ask for too much. Just pay me back based on the current value after the relocation compensation, and we’ll call it even.” Someone couldn’t stand it anymore and spoke up. “Zoe Walsh, what kind of person are you? You didn’t say a word all these years, and now that your brother is dead and not even buried yet, you’re forcing your nephew’s wife to pay up. What kind of logic is that?” Aunt Zoe shot back, “Mind your own business, Zhang! This is a family matter. It’s none of your concern!” Then she turned back to me and said, “I came to help as soon as your in-laws passed away. You’re a respectable person, daughter-in-law. Don’t try to weasel out of this debt!” By that time, I already knew about Zachary’s affair. Even at the funeral, we were like strangers, not exchanging a single word. Seeing Aunt Zoe’s greedy expression made me even more disgusted. “If you think Grandpa and Grandma shortchanged you back then, go ask them about it,” I said coldly. Aunt Zoe immediately became upset. She raised her voice at the funeral, “Everyone here knows that I got less than my fair share back then. My brother knew it too. Now he’s not even in the ground yet, and you’re already denying it!” Zack also got angry. “Sister-in-law, I’ve always been polite to you. Now that you and Zachary are doing well, you won’t even help out family? Not even paying back what you owe? What’s that about?” Zachary, who had been greeting guests outside, finally came in. He arrived just in time to hear these words. “Debt? What debt? Do you have any evidence? Any IOUs? Haven’t I helped you before? You’re just a hopeless case, and you have the nerve to make a scene!” Zack immediately shouted back, “You helped me? You just look down on me. You have such a big company, but you only let me run errands. Meanwhile, you’re living the high life and even keeping a mistress!” Under the watchful eyes of the onlookers, Zachary’s face turned ashen. Seeing that her son was about to derail the conversation, Aunt Zoe quickly handed over that tattered notebook. “How can you say there’s no evidence? Look, look at this. I’ve kept a detailed record of everything over the years, down to the smallest items. It’s been so hard on me.” “Besides, according to the law, I have inheritance rights to my brother and sister-in-law’s property.” I was really tired of dealing with the Walsh family’s nonsense. I replied, “If you want to talk about the law, then go through the legal process. The company was started by Zachary and me together, and we’re both still alive. Where do you get inheritance rights from?” “If you’re talking about inheriting from my in-laws, they’re lying in coffins right behind us. Go wake them up and have them give you whatever you want. I won’t interfere with their belongings. Whatever they say to give you, I’ll give you.” “As for you saying Grandpa and Grandma gave you less back then, go find the elders who were present when the family divided the assets and have them redistribute everything. I have no objections to that either.” The people around us were trying to hide their smiles. My in-laws were dead, and the grandparents and elders who had been present at the family division had long since passed away. “If you’re not satisfied, then sue me. I have plenty of money to hire lawyers and fight you in court. If I lose the case, I’ll pay whatever the court decides!” Aunt Zoe burst into tears and ran to hug my father-in-law’s coffin. “Brother, you’ve just left us, and your son and daughter-in-law are already disowning me. They’re ganging up to bully us. How did I end up with such a miserable life…” Aunt Zoe’s wailing was giving everyone a headache. I decided I’d done my part and got up to leave. After all, I had a clear conscience. Zachary grabbed my arm. “Where are you going? We still need to send my parents off on their final journey.” At that moment, Aunt Zoe was inside, wailing and cursing, “That woman in your family is cold-hearted. No wonder her husband went out to find a mistress.” Zachary looked a bit embarrassed. I laughed coldly. “Where am I going? To rest, of course! I just didn’t want to argue with you at the funeral today.” “For everything else, go find your mistress and deal with it together!” With that, I went home. I heard from relatives later that Zachary really did bring Sophie Jenkins over. When I heard this news, I couldn’t help but laugh bitterly. I completely ignored it, just focused on taking inventory of our assets and organizing the company shares. I disappointed many people who were hoping to see me make a fool of myself. Similarly, Zachary’s behavior made many of his business partners refuse to work with him anymore, or at least give him a hard time behind the scenes. Only then did Zachary start to behave himself a bit more. So I’ve long known what this family is like. Zack coming to visit me today was definitely up to no good. Hearing my unfriendly tone, Zack put on an angry face. “Don’t be so stubborn. You know what you did. If you still want to live comfortably as a rich woman, you’d better listen to me and give me what I’m owed.” “Keep dreaming. I’ll say it again: if you want to sue, I’ll see you in court.” Zack suddenly gave a strange smile and said in a low voice, “I saw it, you know!” I laughed, exasperated. Zack and Zachary were cut from the same cloth—one a gambler, one a womanizer. I must have been crazy to waste my breath talking to him. “Bang!” I slammed the door in his face. Soon after, I heard cursing from outside the door. “Damn it! Rachel Quinn, you murderer! You’ll regret this! I’m going to report you!” Not long after, I was called to the police station again. But unlike the previous polite conversation, this time I got the treatment that suspects in TV shows usually get. “Rachel Quinn, we’ve received a report that you killed Zachary Walsh. Do you have anything to say about this?” Detective Thompson asked. This time, Detective Thompson and the scowling young officer, Detective Wilson, were questioning me. “A report? Was it Zack Walsh who reported it? He’s just a gambler who would do anything for money. You can’t trust what he says.” I looked at them. “Besides, you don’t have any evidence, and you haven’t issued an arrest warrant. I could sue you for unlawful detention.” Detective Thompson suddenly said, “You probably don’t know yet. We found Zachary Walsh’s body.” Detective Wilson said sarcastically and triumphantly, “We’ve seen plenty of people like you. You’d better tell us everything. Don’t try to hide anything!” The person who reported it wasn’t Zack Walsh. At that time, he was just making threats outside my door. Linjiang Reservoir used to be Linjiang Village. Ten years ago, the government relocated us villagers to Linjiang City to build the reservoir. The villagers and graves were all moved, and the original site became the reservoir area. Well, not all the graves were moved. Many young people from the village had gone to work in big cities. When they made it big, they brought their elderly parents to live with them in the cities. They were too busy with work to move the family graves, so they just swore they would come back every year to tend to the graves. But how could they tend to graves at the bottom of a reservoir? The young people had no choice but to learn how to scuba dive. This year, a young man brought his wife to dive and pay respects to his ancestors. When they went down, they saw Zachary Walsh’s body floating in the water. This news spread quickly. Combined with people hearing about Zack Walsh coming to my door to make a scene, someone reported me and had me arrested. Of course, the two officers didn’t have the kindness to tell me these details. At this point, I didn’t know where exactly the body had been found. “I thought Zack Walsh would keep using this to extort money from me. I didn’t expect him to report it to the police so quickly. If he had been this decisive before, he might have made his fortune already.” Detective Wilson frowned, seeming to want to say something, but Detective Thompson stopped him. “So you admit that you killed Zachary Walsh, right?” “Yes,” I smiled and asked them for a cigarette, slowly confessing the process. After we relocated, Zachary and I used the money to start a small business, contracting landscaping work for residential communities one by one. When the business became somewhat successful, Zachary liked to go fishing at Linjiang Reservoir. His favorite spot was a hill that used to be popular with kids in the old Linjiang Village. This hill used to overlook the entire Linjiang Village, but now it only saw water. He particularly liked this place. Only the Walsh family knew about this. So when Sophie Jenkins called me, I knew Zachary would definitely come to this spot to fish. That’s why what I said earlier about not seeing Zachary was a lie. I did see him, and we got into an argument. That day, he seemed strange, not feeling well, chewing on something in his mouth. When we were arguing, he bit down and swallowed it. Usually, when we argued, it would end up in a physical fight, leaving both of us bruised and battered. But that day, after we pushed each other a few times, he got impatient and turned away, seeming unwilling to fight with me. Zachary said to me, “When I wanted a divorce before, didn’t you drag it out? Now you want a divorce? Well, I’m going to drag it out. I won’t divorce you!” I said, “Zachary Walsh, you bastard. You cheated on me, and your whole family kept it from me. I was in the dark, taking care of your parents. Now I’m done with this, and you won’t sign the divorce papers. How can you do this? Aren’t you afraid of karmic retribution?” Zachary gloated, “The one who can’t have children is you. Let me tell you, I’ve got a mistress now. In a few months, I’ll have a son. I’ll bring them to live wherever you live. Wherever you move, we’ll move there too!” I was shaking with anger, hating him. “I can’t have children because of whom? I’ll ask you one last time! Are you really not going to sign the papers? Even if we go to court?” He laughed loudly, “You’ve tried taking me to court before, haven’t you? Did the judge grant the divorce? If you take me to court again, I’ll admit my mistakes, I’ll repent, I’ll beg you not to divorce me in front of the judge. You still won’t be able to divorce me! Hahaha!” Zachary finished laughing and said, “This is all because you’re greedy. If it weren’t for the fact that you took such good care of my parents, I wouldn’t even let you keep the house you’re living in now. Since you’re so insatiable, you can leave with nothing!” My anger had reached its peak, and I suddenly felt calm. I looked at him coldly, all the love and feelings I once had for him when we struggled together were gone. Time and again, I watched this man become more and more shameless and unfamiliar. He turned his head and sat on a small stool to fish, not looking at me, seemingly certain that I would leave after our argument like before. But this time, I didn’t. I picked up the fishing rod that had fallen to the ground during our scuffle and hit him hard on the head. Zachary fell to the ground. I threw the rod into the reservoir and turned to leave. When I got home, the first thing I did was find a good lawyer and ask for legal advice. “At that time, I wasn’t sure if he was alive or dead. Indeed, one shouldn’t do things that weigh on their conscience. I never imagined this scene would be witnessed by Zack Walsh. If I were him, I would have reported it to the police directly instead of hiding the body to blackmail me. If I go to jail, wouldn’t all the money be his?” I finished recounting the process of the incident to the two officers while smoking my third cigarette. I thought about how I had wasted my life on this scumbag, and it really wasn’t worth it. Detective Thompson stood up. “We understand the process of what happened. Next, we will charge you with intentional injury.” I was stunned for a moment, not understanding why it was intentional injury and not murder. Zachary had drowned, which meant that after Zack Walsh discovered this, he went to check on Zachary’s condition after I left. Zachary wasn’t dead; he had just passed out. After considering for a while, Zack dragged Zachary into the bushes, waiting for him to die there. That’s why he didn’t dare to report it to the police and wouldn’t have reported it. “If the case could be closed like this, that would be for the best,” Detective Miller sighed deeply. Detective Edwards continued, “According to Zack Walsh’s statement, he only ignored Zachary’s death and didn’t push him into the water.” “Moreover, he said he knew Zachary was there because Sophie Jenkins told him.” Detective Wilson asked, “Could he be lying?” “We did find an abandoned phone at the scene where Zachary was killed, and there were multiple missed calls from Sophie Jenkins on it. If it was just a normal drowning, we could consider that Zachary woke up and fell into the lake due to a concussion. Sigh!” “We need to be rigorous in our investigation,” Detective Thompson, with years of criminal investigation experience, tapped the table to remind everyone not to let their thoughts wander too much. “There are still things we haven’t discovered about this case. First, where did Zachary’s fishing gear go? Second, who pushed Zachary into the reservoir? And third, the time of death.” At this moment, the forensic expert pushed open the door. “The time of death is here!” He handed the report to everyone. “There’s also an interesting thing. There were remnants of sleeping pills and undigested preserved plums in the victim’s stomach.”

I didn’t expect to be summoned for questioning again so soon. At this time, my lawyer was explaining to me how to defend myself. “Ms. Quinn, do you know what Zachary Walsh ate on the day of the incident?” Detective Thompson asked. I found this question strange. “To be honest, by that point in our relationship, I wouldn’t have cared if he ate dirt.” “Did you bring him anything to eat?” I was even more puzzled. “Putting aside why I would bring him anything, do you think he would eat anything I gave him?” “You like to eat preserved plum candy, don’t you? If Zachary had invited you to talk things over and brought you candy, would you have eaten it?” I sighed deeply. I don’t like preserved plum candy, but if he had come to talk things over properly, I probably would have. They let me go again. The source of the sleeping pills was found. It was in the preserved plum candy that Zachary ate before he left. According to Sophie Jenkins’ statement, she had made the candy by hand. Zachary had asked her to make it, intending for me to eat it. He had told her to put it in any food. Recently, Zachary had bought a large accidental death insurance policy for me, which was one of the reasons he was unwilling to divorce. Sophie thought this man was truly terrifying, wanting to kill his wife when their relationship had broken down. But Sophie couldn’t disobey him. When she first realized she had been tricked, she wanted to have an abortion and leave. But Zachary wouldn’t allow it. He threatened her with her private photos. Sophie’s reputation among Zachary’s family and friends was already bad, which was the result of Zachary’s threats. But back in her hometown, her parents still took pride in her. So she had no choice but to endure. So she put sleeping pills in the homemade preserved plum candy. Because she was pregnant and craving sour and sweet things, it wouldn’t arouse Zachary’s suspicion. When Zachary drove alone to go fishing, Sophie called to sweet-talk him into eating the candy. She hoped Zachary would have an accident on the way due to the effects of the drug. Because if anything happened to Zachary, she wouldn’t have to live with a guilty conscience. If Zachary died, that would be even better. She wouldn’t have to endure a despicable man without dignity, wouldn’t have to worry about being controlled without financial freedom, work freedom, or social freedom, and wouldn’t have to constantly fear being abandoned when she had nothing. She casually told Zack Walsh that Zachary would come into some money soon, and informed him of Zachary’s recent schedule. Zack Walsh, who had no money and was deeply in debt, would definitely go find Zachary. This way, he would be the first to discover Zachary, whether alive or dead. No matter what state Zachary was in, Zack Walsh would notify her. Because notifying her might get him money, but notifying me would definitely not get him any money. But what she didn’t expect was that Zachary disappeared. So Sophie lived in constant fear and anxiety, waiting for judgment. She was afraid he was alive, and afraid he was dead. She was worried that not reporting it would make her suspicious, so she was the first to file a police report, and desperately tried to frame me. Because she knew that no matter whether Zack Walsh went to find Zachary or not, I would definitely go. Sophie was also charged with responsibility. When I heard this news, I laughed coldly but didn’t say much. But the case wasn’t over yet. Both Sophie and I had motives, but according to our statements, neither of us committed the crime. Because Zachary didn’t just drown; there was more to it.

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After graduating from high school, my adopted sister got into a diploma mill, while I was accepted into Oxford University. My dad rewarded her with an apartment, but kicked me out of the house. Jade waved the property deed in front of me, gloating. “Amelia, what does it matter if you’re their biological daughter? You’ll never be able to compete with me.” The next day, I moved into the most expensive villa in the city, tears in my eyes. “Now this is fitting for an heiress! Haha!” Jade was the daughter of my dad’s good friend. Her mother died when she was young, and when she was ten, her father died in an accident at a construction site. My parents felt sorry for her and adopted her, thinking I’d have a companion. Little did they know, she would try to gradually replace me and take everything for herself. Of course, how could a child raised with a privileged education lose to an outsider putting on an innocent act? The day before my interview, Jade bought bubble tea for everyone in our class. She even made a grand announcement from the teacher’s podium. “I’ll cover the cost of our class gathering dinner.” Everyone cheered and praised her from below. As the noise died down, Fiona Taylor, who sat in front of me, deliberately spoke loudly with a sarcastic tone. “Jade, you’re so generous! Not like some people who have money but won’t even treat everyone to a few dollars’ worth of bubble tea.” Since middle school, Jade had been pretending not to know me at school. She was afraid that my outfit without designer logos would be associated with her. I rested my left cheek on my hand, watching these hypocrites praising each other. When Jade brought the bubble tea to me, she pretended to be kind. “Amelia, don’t mind what Fiona said. She’s just straightforward, try to understand.” I ignored her, rolled my eyes, and reached for my textbook. “Splash!” The bubble tea that had been sitting steadily on the desk suddenly spilled all over the floor. While I was still staring at the spilled tea in confusion, Jade was already playing the victim beside me. “Amelia, if you hate me, just say it. There’s no need for this.” All the students who had been focused on their homework looked up at the commotion. Fiona immediately stood up and went to Jade’s side, supporting her swaying body. “Amelia, Jade was kind enough to buy bubble tea for everyone. Not only are you ungrateful, but you’re also wasting her kindness. How can you be so heartless!” This works? What a manipulative bitch. Jade could go straight to the Film Academy with her acting skills. Seeing that the whole class was looking at her with sympathy, I knew that no matter how I explained, it would be useless. I glanced at the camera on top of the podium. Let’s see how you’ll act your way out of this one. “If everyone thinks I’m bullying her, then let’s go to the office and check the camera footage!” Hearing about the camera, Jade, who had been acting weak and pitiful, immediately came forward and grabbed my hand. “Amelia, I don’t want to make a big deal out of this. If you don’t want to apologize, let’s just forget about it.” “Framing someone and then playing innocent?” Before I could speak, a deep, sarcastic male voice came from behind.

I turned back in surprise. It took me a moment to remember. He was Henry Carter, a repeating student who had just transferred to our class. I had been so focused on studying that I hadn’t paid much attention to him before. Jade’s scheme had been exposed in front of everyone. Her eyes filled with tears as she bit her lip. “Henry, don’t say that. It was clearly her…” “Cut the crap. If you have any shame left, clean up the mess on the floor and go back to your seat to do your homework. Stop chirping here and disturbing my sleep.” Henry impatiently interrupted her. At this point, the classmates were all whispering and gossiping about Jade. Jade glared at me hatefully and ran back to her seat, pretending to sob. Tsk tsk, how pitiful~ Haha, serves her right! Seeing the situation, Fiona didn’t dare to be arrogant anymore and quietly shrank back to her seat. I covered my mouth and lowered my head, secretly laughing.

When I returned home after school in the afternoon. Jade tactfully told my parents about what happened at school. Without distinguishing right from wrong, my dad immediately asked me to apologize to Jade at the dinner table. “Amelia, how could you throw such a tantrum? Quickly apologize to Jade.” I looked up and saw Jade flash a challenging smile in the moments when my parents weren’t looking at her. As soon as my dad turned his gaze to her, she put on a teary-eyed act. “Dad, maybe Amelia was just in a bad mood. Don’t blame her.” Bad mood my ass. I had received an offer from Oxford University, I was in a good mood every day. Hearing this, my dad became even more convinced that I was being unreasonable. “Jade, don’t speak up for her. She’s just been spoiled since childhood.” I calmly put down my chopsticks and responded quietly. “Dad, I didn’t do anything wrong. Jade is twisting the facts.” My dad had always been very strict with me. Because they only had one daughter, he and mom didn’t allow for any mistakes in my upbringing. They always admonished me not to be too willful, not to be ostentatious, to be humble. When Jade threw tantrums, was arrogant, and overbearing, they never disciplined her. If it weren’t for the fact that her last name was Foster and mine was Wilson, I would have doubted whether I was their biological daughter. This was the first time I had ever talked back to him like this, and I could see he was holding back his anger. “Amelia, your father is just looking out for you. You can’t be so willful in life,” my mom came to my side and tried to persuade me in a low voice. Ever since Jade came to our family, my parents always believed her side of the story and did whatever she said. This time, I really exploded! “Ever since she came into this family, you’ve always listened to her side of the story, and everything I say is wrong. I said it wasn’t me, so it wasn’t me!” My dad finally couldn’t hold back. He slammed his bowl on the dining table and raised his hand to strike me. I gritted my teeth and glared at him, not showing any fear at all. In the end, he couldn’t bring himself to hit me. He sighed and lectured me. “Amelia, Dad just hopes you can be a magnanimous person, not so petty.” Hah, magnanimous. I’ve already been magnanimous enough, so much so that my mom and dad have almost become hers.

Since she came into the Wilson family, she’s known how to please my parents. The most common things I heard from my parents were: “Amelia, look how well-behaved Jade is, she never gives us any trouble.” “Amelia, you need to learn to be independent. Jade has been without parents since she was little, you should be more understanding of her.” “Jade is so good, at such a young age she already knows how to think of us.” … I’ve had enough of these words. What’s the difference between having parents and not having them in a family like this? They only know that Jade has no parents and needs to be given fatherly and motherly love, but what about me? Letting Jade parasitize the Wilson family for so many years, it’s time for me to take back the familial love that belongs to me. This was the first time in many years that I had such an unpleasant argument with my parents. I’ll deal with that little bitch after the interview in a few days. That night, I took a shower and lay down in bed to sleep peacefully. “Bang!” The door was kicked open by someone. Whoever it is, disturbing this young lady’s beauty sleep, don’t expect to walk out of this room in one piece. No need to guess, it must be that bitch. My parents happened to be on a business trip abroad tonight, she’s dead meat. She stood in front of me arrogantly with her arms crossed. “Amelia, didn’t you already receive an offer from Oxford University? Why are you still going for an interview? What are you pretending for?” This person has completely worn away my patience. I was originally planning to let her have a few good days. But since she’s asking for a beating, I’ll grant her wish. I got up stretching lazily, giving her a disdainful look. Ugh, how disgusting. “Yes, I’m pretending. Why shouldn’t I show off when I have the ability to?” Jade sneered. “Amelia, no matter how hard you try, Mom and Dad will only listen to me. In their hearts, you’re just a spoiled daughter.” “Jade, I really don’t know what’s going on in your head. My last name is Wilson and yours is Foster. The Wilson family will eventually be mine. If you don’t try to please me now and instead provoke me, the consequences will be very bad for you.” Jade hated nothing more than her last name being Foster. Previously, she had hinted several times that she wanted my dad to change her last name to Wilson, but was always rejected by my dad. My dad might be loyal to his friends, but he’s not stupid enough to let an outsider compete with his own daughter for the family fortune. Jade was angered by my retort and lunged at me, trying to grab my hair. What she and my parents didn’t know was that while she was attending those art classes that I had already mastered in middle school, I was learning Taekwondo. I dodged to the side and grabbed her long hair, pulling it back. “Ah! Amelia, you dare hit me, I’m going to tell Mom and Dad!” I pinned her to the ground and quickly slapped her twice. Her fair cheeks immediately showed the imprint of my hand. Hah! I’m not the saintly protagonist from some tragic drama. I’ve always been the one hitting others, never the one being hit. Except by my dad! “Since you said I hit you even when I didn’t, I might as well not lose out.” “You dare!” Still talking tough while pinned down! “Slap!” I gave her another backhand slap. “This slap is to tell you not to provoke me when I’m sleeping.” Jade howled beneath me. “Ahh! Amelia, I’m going to kill you…” “Slap!” Another slap for her. “You can scream your throat raw tonight, Mom and Dad won’t come to save you.” I only stopped beating her when she begged for mercy, then I dragged her up. I kicked her out the door. Shut the door! That felt good. This is how you should deal with people like her. Warm-up complete, now I can sleep well.

In the morning. I got up early to wash up. I put everything I needed to prepare into my bag. After getting ready, I went downstairs and saw a shocking sight. Jade had actually gotten up so early, and she was in the kitchen. This was the first time in eight years since she came to our family that I’d seen her making breakfast! I glanced out the window, wondering if I should bring an umbrella. It must be about to rain heavily. Seeing me come downstairs, Jade ran over to me with that swollen smiling face. I leaned back in disgust. Her tone had also become much gentler. “Amelia, I made breakfast for you. Let’s go to the interview together after we eat.” There’s no such thing as a free lunch, she must be up to something. I squinted at the exquisite breakfast on the table. A voice in my heart told me not to eat it. She couldn’t have tampered with the breakfast, could she? Seeing that I wasn’t touching the utensils, Jade urgently urged me from the side. “If you don’t eat now, we’ll be late. We have an interview today.” I gave her a cold sidelong glance, and she quickly ate her portion clean. “I’ve finished mine, are you satisfied now?” I used a fork to pick up a small section of sausage. Jade watched me with an expectant face, as if she couldn’t wait for me to eat it immediately. As the sausage reached my mouth, I stopped. “This sausage is too greasy, I’ve lost my appetite. Let’s go to school.” “Bang!” Jade angrily slammed the table as she stood up. “Amelia, don’t push your luck. I got up early to make breakfast for you and you dare not eat it!” Looks like it didn’t go according to her expectations, and now she’s furious. “Jade, you know very well who you are. I’m the genuine heiress of this family, it’s your honor to make breakfast for me.” I held up the milk and extended it to her. “Do you dare say you didn’t tamper with this food?” Jade looked at the milk, her confidence immediately deflating. She started putting on her innocent, pitiful act again. “Amelia, I was too excited earlier and didn’t express myself well. I really made breakfast for you with sincere intentions.” “Alright, if that’s the case, drink this milk and I’ll let bygones be bygones.” “Amelia! You…” Faced with this glass of milk, Jade actually retreated a few steps in fear. I knew this bitch was up to no good. I continued to hold the milk up to her mouth, and she turned pale with fright. “Enough! Amelia!”

How did Dad come back? Wasn’t he supposed to be on a business trip for a week? I looked towards the door, Dad seemed to have rushed back, I didn’t even see his luggage. He walked over and swatted the milk out of my hand onto the floor. Jade immediately hid behind him. Crying pitifully. “Dad, last night Amelia beat my face swollen and wasn’t satisfied. This morning I made her breakfast to make her happy, but Amelia actually thought I was trying to poison her.” Dad saw her red and swollen cheeks and immediately believed her side of the story. “Amelia, if Jade hadn’t posted on Instagram last night and we saw it, we wouldn’t have known you hit her so hard. You’re getting more and more out of hand!” Hah, so that’s why she did it, to let Mom and Dad see. I’m not some stupid protagonist from a depressing story who lets an outsider suppress me. “Jade, stop acting weak in front of Dad. If you didn’t poison it, then eat my portion!” She’s really good at acting, this bitch! I grabbed her from behind Dad and pressed her head towards the breakfast plate. She screamed in fear. “Dad, save me! Amelia, what have I done to offend you? Just because I told Dad you bullied me at school, you’re treating me like this?” “Amelia, what are you doing! You dare to act like this in front of me!” Dad pulled me away, his hand raised to strike me. “Young miss, please stop fighting. You have an interview today and you’ll be late if you don’t leave now!” The family driver, Uncle Lee, appeared just in time, and Dad’s hand stopped in mid-air. He glared at me angrily, with a look of disappointment. “Amelia, after your interview, move out of this house. You need to go out and experience life. You’re too willful and unreasonable.” I didn’t argue, just felt disappointed by Dad’s bias. I picked up my bag and walked straight out the door. 6. After the college entrance exam, I packed all my clothes and called a moving company. I absolutely won’t stay in this house for another second. Jade came to my room, strutting arrogantly. She waved the property deed in front of me, gloating. “Amelia, what does it matter if you’re their biological daughter? You’ll never be able to compete with me.” “Dad said that whether or not I can get into college, he’ll arrange everything for me in the future. This house is his gift for my coming of age.” I pretended to approach her with a dejected face. “Jade, you’re so lucky. I have nothing, even if I got accepted into Oxford University, what’s the use?” Jade thought I was really beaten down by her scheme. She leaned in close to my ear, gloating. “Amelia, even though you didn’t get any rewards, at least you got into Oxford University. You can rent a place to live when you get to college, haha.” Looking at her smug expression, if she knew that this house originally belonged to her biological father, she’d probably be furious. A month before the interview, I accidentally overheard my parents talking about this house in the study. This house was bought by Jade’s father, who had saved money working at construction sites his whole life. He paid for it in full. Before he died, he left the property deed with my dad, to be given to her when she turned eighteen. Although it wasn’t in a great location, her biological father really loved her and made sure she had a safety net before he passed away. I never expected Jade to be so heartless. For the sake of becoming a rich heiress, she didn’t even want to keep her own last name. Moreover, her biological father was a taboo subject for her. She only acknowledged her identity as the young miss of the Wilson family. Her father’s identity as a worker only made her feel ashamed. Looking at her like this, I just found it laughable. I didn’t want to waste any more words on her. I’m moving into my big villa now!

When Grandpa found out I had been kicked out, he immediately gave me the most expensive villa in the city. He said that my acceptance into Oxford University brought glory to the family, and this was just the tip of the iceberg. In the future, all of the Wilson family’s assets would be mine. As soon as I arrived at the villa, the servants lined up to welcome me. This… is a bit too extravagant, isn’t it? I usually don’t like such a high-profile entrance, but who can refuse when their family is rich? Haha… “Welcome home, young miss!” At the end of the line of servants stood a small, white-haired old man in a suit, smiling kindly. That’s my grandpa. I immediately dropped my luggage and ran to him. “Grandpa!” “Oh my, my dear granddaughter, you seem to have grown taller.” I pouted, “Come on, we just saw each other last week, how could I change so quickly?” Grandpa laughed heartily and led me inside. The villa was very large, with a medieval-style interior, grand and luxurious. Grandpa first took me to sit in the pavilion. He had the servants bring some of my favorite cakes. I hadn’t eaten these cakes in a long time. Grandpa really loves me the most, it warmed my heart. I wolfed down several pieces. Seeing this, Grandpa frowned. “Did you suffer at your parents’ house? Tell Grandpa, I’ll go beat up your dad!” I drained my tea in one gulp. Pouting, I imitated Jade’s teary-eyed look and threw myself into Grandpa’s arms. “Grandpa~ They all bullied me~” I told Grandpa everything that had happened. After listening, Grandpa angrily slammed down his teacup.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “294768”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #现实主义Realistic #惊悚Thriller #重生Reborn #魔幻Magic #励志Inspiring #浪漫Romance

Emma didn’t do her winter break homework and got called to the principal’s office. I rushed to the school, fuming, only to discover her homeroom teacher was my arch-nemesis from high school. Emma hid behind me, giggling: “I did my research, sis. Our homeroom teacher is single. Don’t miss this chance.” What chance? The chance to get revenge for when he pantsed me in front of everyone back then?! In the office, Adrian glanced at me and quickly lowered his head, seemingly trying to hide a smirk. I never imagined that Emma’s new homeroom teacher would be Adrian. Everyone has a few people from their school days that they’ll never forget. As luck would have it, Adrian was that person for me. I cleared my throat, breaking the awkward silence. “Um, Mr. Huo, about Emma not doing her homework, it’s our fault as parents. We’re sorry about that.” Adrian pushed up his glasses and picked up a report card from his desk. “Emma’s grades are usually very good, and she’s been improving lately. But she suddenly stopped doing her homework these past couple days. I’ve asked her why, but she won’t tell me. That’s why I called you in.” I turned to look at Emma. She stuck out her tongue at me and said mysteriously: “This is all for your sake, you know.” Before I could process what she meant, Adrian asked: “What do you mean, ‘for her sake’?” I shot Emma a warning look, gritting my teeth: “What nonsense are you spouting?” Ignoring me, Emma quickly snatched her unfinished homework from Adrian’s desk and dashed towards the door. “Mr. Huo, I’ll go finish my homework now. You two can chat about the rest!” Emma vanished in a flash, leaving Adrian and me staring at each other awkwardly. What is that little devil up to now? The atmosphere in the office was tense. Despite the freezing temperature outside, I was sweating profusely. As I was about to wipe the beads of sweat from my forehead, I saw Adrian offer me a tissue. The tissue had a faint jasmine scent. Looks like Adrian’s taste hasn’t changed. “Thanks.” Adrian chuckled: “Since when did the Queen of the Moon become so polite?” I nearly choked. How could he still remember that ancient nickname? Well, if that’s how he wants to play it… “Long time no see, General Huo.” Adrian’s face finally showed a hint of embarrassment. “It has been a long time indeed.” I thought Adrian might say something like “long time no see, I’ve missed you,” but instead, he said: “No wonder Emma’s not doing her homework. Looks like you’ve been a bad influence.” I forced a smile, glaring at Adrian: “Maybe it’s just that the teacher isn’t very good?” “If I could teach even you properly, how could it be the teacher’s fault?” Adrian’s expression remained neutral, but I wanted to punch him. What kind of comment was that?! The atmosphere grew quiet again. Adrian sat at his desk flipping through lesson plans while I stood to the side, fidgeting. Come to think of it, it’s been seven years since we last saw each other. We were at a loss for words after so long. On the way home, I stared at the new contact in my phone, my mind drifting back to thirteen years ago. Adrian and I met in middle school when we were assigned as desk mates. Back then, he was the dumb son of a nouveau riche family, and I was a warmhearted tomboy. At first, I was pretty unhappy with my wimpy desk mate, but if anyone dared to bully him, it was like they were slapping me in the face! Maybe it was my influence, but he gradually became more and more sharp-tongued. We’d have small arguments every three days and big fights every five days, yet somehow we remained desk mates throughout. Of course, this wimpy desk mate had his good points too. He was great at studying. I managed to go from being at the bottom of the class to successfully applying for college, and that was largely thanks to his help. For a long time afterward, I suspected our homeroom teacher must have been blind. How could she not see Adrian and me fighting every day, yet still keep us as desk mates? When I got home, I was confused to see Mom had prepared a huge spread of dishes. “Mom, why did you cook so much?” Mom’s voice came from the kitchen: “Your aunt and cousin are coming over later. Oh right, how did it go at the school? Did Emma get in trouble?” “Oh, it was nothing. Just the new homeroom teacher getting to know the situation.” “That’s good. Emma has always been such an easy child, much better than you were in school. I still remember your teachers always telling me at parent-teacher conferences how you argued with your desk mate every day.” Mom said as she brought out a pot of soup from the kitchen. I pouted but didn’t say anything. After all, what Mom said was true. But now I was more worried about another issue – the uninvited guests, my aunt and cousin. Ever since we were kids, my cousin Vanessa always had to compete with me on everything. She’d come brag to me when she got better grades on finals, when she got into a better college than me, when she found a better job after graduation… I wonder what she wants to show off this time.

Soon enough, Vanessa arrived, strutting in with her swan-like neck and sitting on the sofa like some high-society lady. “Oh my, Lily, why is your makeup so cakey? I’ve told you before not to use cheap cosmetics. If you can’t afford good ones, just let me know. I’d be happy to buy some for you.” “Really, sis?” I pretended to be excited and grabbed Vanessa’s arm. “Then can you get me a set from Yves Saint Laurent?” Vanessa clearly wasn’t expecting me to be so thick-skinned. Her expression almost slipped. I’ve grown up over the years too. The old method of fighting fire with fire is outdated. These days, it’s all about sincerity. Sincerity is the ultimate weapon. Seeing the situation, Aunt Linda quickly changed the subject: “Lily, you have no idea how busy your cousin has been since she got promoted to manager. She doesn’t have time to go shopping for things like that anymore.” Aunt Linda emphasized the word “manager” heavily. Looks like this was the purpose of their visit. I pretended not to understand and continued: “Then I’ll just send Vanessa the link. All she has to do is pay.” Sensing the awkward atmosphere, Mom hurriedly called us to eat. I didn’t push it any further and happily sat down at the table to munch on my chicken wings. Mom knew what my aunt and cousin were like, but since she and Aunt Linda were sisters, she could only tune out when Aunt Linda started bragging. At the dinner table, Aunt Linda brought up Vanessa’s promotion to manager again. “Our Vanessa became a manager before she even turned 30. That’s quite an achievement in our family. But there’s even bigger news coming.” Vanessa blushed coyly and nudged Aunt Linda: “Mom, nothing’s confirmed yet. Don’t say anything.” Seeing Vanessa like this, Aunt Linda got even more excited. “I think Adrian is such a nice boy. You two should date seriously. Bring him over sometime to meet your aunt. Lily, you don’t have a boyfriend yet, right? You should start thinking about it. It gets harder to find a good match as you get older. Lily, you’ve always been so loud and boisterous. You can’t be like that after you get married.” Adrian? My heart skipped a beat. Was it the Adrian I was thinking of? Or just someone with the same name? Vanessa quickly answered my unspoken question. “Lily, you must know Adrian, right? He went to the same high school as you. I think you were even in the same grade?” I forced an awkward laugh: “How would I know any Adrian?” But Vanessa wouldn’t let it go: “Really? Adrian was the most popular guy in your high school. You didn’t know that?” I always knew Adrian was popular. In high school, lots of girls would crowd around our classroom door between classes to look at Adrian. They called him the “campus heartthrob” and “dream guy”. Many girls wrote him love letters. Some even gave their letters to me to pass on to him. When other classmates asked those girls why they trusted me to deliver the letters, weren’t they worried I might be a rival, the girls’ responses were quite cutting. They told me, “I can tell from the way you look at him that you’d never like Adrian.” Unfortunately, they were wrong. Mom noticed my strange expression and put a piece of steak on Vanessa’s plate. “Lily was always such a troublemaker in school. How could she remember any classmates? By the way, how did you two meet? What’s that boy’s family background like?” Mom’s questions successfully opened Aunt Linda’s floodgates. I couldn’t hear clearly what they said after that. My mind was filled with thoughts of Adrian. How could he be dating my cousin? That night, I tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. The little moon-shaped night light on my bedside table cast a soft yellow glow. Adrian had given it to me when we graduated high school. I’d kept it all these years – seven years had passed in the blink of an eye. Yeah, we hadn’t been in touch for seven years. It was normal for him to have a girlfriend. But why did it have to be my cousin? I dreamed about Adrian that night too. I dreamed about us spilling ink on each other while fighting over a pen, getting punished to stand in the hallway for arguing during class, him trash-talking me while I was running… Days passed slowly. My parents suddenly had to go on a business trip and asked me to pick up Emma from school on the weekend. From far away, I could see Emma standing next to Adrian, waving at me. Don’t just wave, come over here! Emma showed no signs of walking over, so I had to steel myself and approach them. Adrian’s face was as handsome as ever, but thinking about him dating my cousin made my heart ache. Emma looked very excited. She grabbed my hand and said: “Sis, Mr. Huo is coming to our house for a home visit tomorrow.” Compared to my shocked expression, Adrian seemed quite calm. Adrian smiled at me: “Is Emma’s guardian okay with the home visit?” “Huh? Oh, sure.” “Sis, why don’t you send Mr. Huo our address? Didn’t you two exchange contact info?” “No need.” My mouth moved faster than my brain: “He knows it.” “Knows what?” I realized I’d misspoken and quickly covered: “I mean I know, I know. I’ll send it later.” “Then I’ll trouble Emma’s guardian.” I felt an intense gaze on me. My cheeks burned as I dragged Emma away, practically fleeing. On the way home, Emma asked if I’d been chatting with Adrian. The answer was of course no. Emma sighed in exasperation: “Oh Lily, what am I going to do with you? Mr. Huo is young, handsome, and rich. I worked so hard to set you two up. If you don’t make a move, someone else will snatch him up!” So this was Emma’s true motive for getting called to the principal’s office. I felt like such an idiot. I suddenly remembered my cousin’s situation. “Emma, are you sure your Mr. Huo really doesn’t have a girlfriend?” “Of course I’m sure. I investigated for ages.” Then what was going on with my cousin and him? I turned to glare at Emma: “Can’t you focus on your studies? Why are you always thinking about useless things?” “Studying is so simple, how much of my brain power could it possibly take? Look, I got first in the school again.” Now it was my turn to break out in a cold sweat. I wanted to say more, but Emma cut me off. “Sis, you’re not getting any younger. It’s time for you to start dating. Stop thinking about that night light guy.” “What night light guy?” “The guy who gave you that moon night light.” Are kids these days all so precocious? I feel like I’ve been left behind by the times. “Don’t be ridiculous. The one who gave me the night light was just a friend.” Emma looked at me like I was an idiot: “If he was just a normal friend, why do you treasure that night light so much? There’s even a love letter hidden under it.” “Emma! You actually read my love letter?!” That night, I typed and deleted messages in the chat window over and over. It was past 10 pm when I finally sent Adrian my home address. Adrian replied quickly. “I know.”

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Karen loved spreading rumors about me. I said, “This meat doesn’t seem fresh. Let’s not eat it to avoid getting sick.” Karen told others, “My daughter-in-law won’t let me eat meat.” I secretly bound Karen to a “Make It Real” system. Every lie she told would become reality. Karen always spread rumors about me. She liked to cook and do laundry for her son, taking care of him. Worried she might overexert herself, I said, “Let me do it. You shouldn’t tire yourself out.” She immediately went around the neighborhood spreading gossip: “My daughter-in-law thinks I’m not capable enough. Oh, how I suffer!” I tried to explain: “You misunderstood. I meant you should just enjoy life, and I’ll handle the chores.” She went around spreading more rumors: “My daughter-in-law told me to hurry up and enjoy life while I can. She said she has many years ahead, so she can do more work. This old lady doesn’t have much time left, you know.” Over time, everyone in the neighborhood knew me as the “wicked daughter-in-law” who mistreated her mother-in-law. My reputation got worse and worse. People would point and whisper about me whenever I went out. I had no choice but to complain to my husband, Jack. But he was impatient: “Mom doesn’t mean any harm. Why are you making such a big deal out of it?” “So I’m just supposed to put up with this mistreatment?” My eyes welled up with tears. “It’s just people talking. You haven’t lost a pound of flesh, have you? Stop being so dramatic.” Jack ignored me, picked up his phone, and went to his room to play games. He even locked the door, claiming he didn’t want me to disturb his gaming session. But I could faintly hear a female teammate’s coy voice coming from the room. I was heartbroken. This family – not a single decent person among them. “My birthday is next week. Make some arrangements, will you?” Karen came over with a smug smile. If you didn’t know better, you’d think she was a kind and gentle mother-in-law with that fake sweet demeanor. Well then, I’ll give them one last chance.

I made a reservation at a restaurant in advance. It was a well-reviewed establishment that served Karen’s hometown cuisine. I figured she’d like it. I also bought her a bracelet as a birthday gift. On her birthday, I took Karen to the restaurant and ordered many of her favorite dishes. She was beaming with joy, praising me for being so thoughtful. I presented her with the bracelet, and her shrewd eyes lit up: “My dear daughter-in-law, I knew I was right to treat you well.” Jack looked at me approvingly. The whole family seemed satisfied with the birthday arrangements. I thought this might finally ease the tension between us. But Karen started gossiping again: “Oh my, that daughter-in-law of mine! She couldn’t even be bothered to cook for me on my birthday. She insisted on wasting my son’s money at some fancy restaurant. Young people these days just don’t know the value of money!” “And she gave me a bracelet. What use does an old woman like me have for such things?” These rumors quickly reached my ears. I was completely disillusioned with them. I would make them pay for this. That night in my dreams, a voice asked what I wished for. I said, “Since Karen loves to spread rumors, let all her lies become reality.”

When I woke up, Karen was chatting with the neighbors in the community as usual. She raised her voice dramatically: “My daughter-in-law won’t let me take a shower. Can you believe it? Who doesn’t let people shower?” In reality, last night when I was in the middle of my shower, she had insisted on going first. I was covered in soap bubbles at the time, so I said, “Wait a moment, let me rinse off first.” Just like that, I became the bizarre daughter-in-law who wouldn’t let her mother-in-law shower in others’ eyes. But I wasn’t upset, because the system on Karen had taken effect. That evening, when I was in the middle of my shower, Karen once again demanded that I get out so she could go first. Before I could even process it, my body automatically responded, “I’m sorry, Mom. Could you wait a bit?” Then I took my time finishing my shower. Just as I was about to turn off the water, the supply suddenly cut off. Soon after, a notice about an emergency water outage came through on the property management SnapChat group. Karen couldn’t take her shower and was very uncomfortable. The next day, she predictably spread more rumors: “My daughter-in-law deliberately dragged out her shower time to prevent me from bathing.” So that night, I showered exactly as she said – slowly and meticulously. I washed every inch of my body, exfoliated, and even applied body lotion. By the time I finished the whole skincare routine, an hour and a half had passed. Just as I got out, another water outage notice came from the property management. Karen glared at me, then started arguing with the property management in the group chat. She angrily sent dozens of 60-second voice messages, being extremely aggressive. The property management responded at first but eventually stopped replying. Furious, she cursed: “Useless bunch! I hope you all lose your jobs tomorrow!”

Sure enough, all the property management staff were laid off the next day, but no new staff were hired to replace them. Coincidentally, the neighbor across from us was renovating their balcony, which blocked the light from Karen’s bedroom. The neighbor was a fierce old lady with a muscular son, so Karen didn’t dare confront them directly. She wanted to complain to the property management instead. But since all the staff had been laid off, there was no one to handle the issue. Karen was beside herself with frustration. She started cursing at the neighbor’s house: “What’s the point of renovating? It’s just a stupid balcony. It won’t be any use even after it’s done.” A few days later, we heard that the neighbor’s son had been promoted and transferred to a big city. He was taking the whole family with him. When Karen heard this news, she was furious but couldn’t do anything about it since the neighbors had already moved away. With nowhere to vent her anger, she came to pick on me again: “Look at other people’s children. Why can’t you take me to a big city?” “Well, that’s because their son is capable. Why don’t you ask your own son?” I retorted. “You… you useless thing! Be careful, or my son might leave you. There were plenty of girls who liked him back then!” Karen snapped, her spit nearly flying in my face. But her words played right into my hands. I replied nonchalantly, “That’s right. Since so many girls liked your son, why don’t you find him a rich one?” “Oh, you have a point.” The old woman dropped her act in front of me, her eyes gleaming with greed. Perhaps she had also noticed that everything she said lately was coming true. She continued to flaunt her power: “You two should get divorced right away. My son will bring home a rich daughter-in-law soon!” “Alright then.” I immediately picked up my phone, ready to call Jack. Karen was stunned, not knowing what to say for a moment. In the past, I had always been good-tempered and prone to compromise. She had never seen me act like this before. Hearing me suddenly agree to divorce, she felt a bit uneasy. But then she thought that her words would surely come true, and Jack would definitely bring home a rich daughter-in-law tomorrow. She relaxed and cleared her throat, putting on airs in front of me again: “Don’t blame me for being too cruel. It’s your own fault for not having children or giving me money all these years of marriage. I’ve already been more than fair to you.” These past few years were crucial for the growth of my career. Although I had a soft personality, I would never give up my career just to have children. As for giving them money, I always bought whatever they needed or wanted, and even gave them pocket money from time to time. Perhaps in the eyes of such greedy people, I would only be considered filial if I handed over my entire salary. But now, I was about to start a brand new life. This family would have to face the consequences of their actions.

Jack answered the phone and readily agreed to the divorce. Although he tried to hide it, he couldn’t conceal his excitement. Karen was also at ease now. She started cursing me as she used to: “I’m not exaggerating, but women like you won’t find any man who wants you. With no husband and no children, you’ll just grow old alone!” Hearing this, I almost laughed out loud. In her shallow, backward thinking, not being able to get married and not having children were the worst curses for a woman. I found her pitiful and didn’t bother to say more. I immediately started packing my belongings to leave. I was halfway through packing when Jack returned with his new love interest. The woman clinging to Jack’s arm was beautiful, wearing a plain, light-colored dress and nestling coyly in his embrace, looking every bit the perfect wife. “Oh my, is this my new daughter-in-law? She looks like the daughter of a rich family at first glance. I can tell she’s very virtuous,” Karen said, grinning from ear to ear. The woman blushed shyly: “Auntie, you’re too kind. My father just owns a small company, it’s not much really.” “Don’t call me auntie, call me Mom!” Karen naturally took her hand. Well, I shouldn’t call her Karen anymore. I should call her Karen now. The woman seemed a bit flustered by Karen’s enthusiasm. Jack gently intervened: “Her name is Sophia. You can just call her Sophia, Mom.” Sophia. Of course it was her. When I suspected Jack of cheating, I checked his phone and found shopping orders with Sophia’s name as the recipient. Coincidentally, she was the daughter of a major client at my company. As Karen said, she was indeed a rich man’s daughter, genuinely wealthy. But…

After the divorce, I threw myself into work, bringing huge profits to the company. My boss greatly appreciated me and decided to promote me with a substantial raise. Karen still couldn’t shake her gossipy habits and kept sending me SnapChat messages bragging about Jack and Sophia’s happy life: “Sophia cooks voluntarily, and her cooking is excellent. You should really learn from her.” “Of course, I’ll learn well. So I can prepare a feast for you when I visit your grave,” I replied. Karen stopped responding. I found it amusing, like playing with a virtual pet. Recently, our company’s collaboration with Sophia’s father, Robert, achieved a significant milestone with high profits. My boss was very pleased. After my promotion, my boss valued me even more and assigned me to attend a dinner to build a good relationship with Robert. I gladly accepted. At the dinner, Robert brought Sophia along. After a few drinks, Robert squinted at me with drunken eyes: “You look quite pretty.” “You’re drunk. Let me have the driver take you home to rest,” Sophia quickly intervened before I could speak. “Thank you,” I said with relief, looking gratefully at Sophia. Robert was a well-known lecher, and everyone knew it. My boss sending me to this dinner was precisely because of this. Sophia tucked a strand of her smooth hair behind her ear and glanced at me casually: “I should be the one thanking you.” 8. With Sophia’s help, I successfully completed the collaboration with Robert. My boss was delighted and gave me a big bonus. My virtual pet Karen sent her usual greeting right on time: “I heard Sophia’s father’s business is booming lately. He made a fortune. We’re about to live the good life!” “Yes, that’s right. But it’s most important to hold the power in your own hands. You should arrange for Jack to work in Sophia’s father’s company,” I deliberately guided Karen. “Oh, you’re right. You finally said something useful,” she replied. Soon after, Sophia told me that Jack’s family was crying and making a fuss about wanting to work in their family company. Robert thought his son-in-law had potential, so he not only arranged an important position for Jack but also gave him some shares in the company. This made Jack ecstatic, and his family became even more arrogant and domineering. Karen went around bragging like a loudspeaker: “Our Jack is going to make big money!” Not long after, news came that Jack had been hospitalized. It turned out he had been hit by a car and broke his leg. The car owner was wealthy and, fearing trouble, immediately compensated Jack with $100,000 to avoid further responsibility. I almost laughed myself silly when I heard the news. Make big money? Indeed, he did.

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I was working at a bar when I saw my girlfriend dirty dancing with my trust fund roommate. In a fit of rage, I went home and inherited a billion-dollar fortune. Later, when my trust fund roommate publicly declared himself the young master of the Landson family, I almost laughed out loud. How come I’d never heard I had a brother? My dad transferred me $200, saying it was what was left after selling this year’s ducks and buying new ducklings. He told me to treat myself to a nice meal. Looking at my dad’s message, tears welled up in my eyes. I transferred the money right back. “Dad, keep the money to buy yourself some new clothes. I’m working three jobs now, I can totally support myself!” Putting away my phone, I wiped the plates with renewed vigor. At 8 PM, I quickly hopped on a shared bike to head to my next job. Though my family was poor, making a living by raising and selling ducks, I was lucky enough to have found a girlfriend who truly loved me. In just three days, it would be our one-year anniversary. I loved Tina with all my heart. When she wasn’t feeling well, I’d buy her lots of supplements. She loved looking pretty, so I’d work extra shifts to buy her new clothes and jewelry. At that moment, I was silently calculating that when this week’s paycheck came, I could buy Tina a necklace and treat her to a fancy dinner. Before I knew it, I had arrived at my last job of the day – Blue Ocean Bar. Manager Zhang cursed at me, “Lucas, why are you so late? Mr. Chad is here tonight, we’re swamped.” I quickly put on my uniform. “Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of Mr. Chad.” Chad was a well-known trust fund kid in the city and also my college roommate. He had always been a big shot on campus. Because I couldn’t be bothered to flatter him like the other roommates, drinking with him and playing games, Chad had never liked me much. Now he was drinking happily, and at his signal, one of his lackeys shouted, “Tonight’s drinks are on Mr. Chad!” The whole place erupted, the music growing even more upbeat. I carried a tray to Chad’s table, lowering my head to pour him a drink. Unexpectedly, another roommate Leo was there too. He used to always steal my stuff in the dorm, and after a big fight, we had completely fallen out. Seeing me, Leo finally found a chance to mock me. “Well if it isn’t our star student Lucas. You act so high and mighty at school, but here you are working as a bartender behind everyone’s backs?” Almost everyone at the table was in my class. Hearing this, they all looked at me in surprise. I kept my head down, silently doing my job. I was about to leave for the next table when I caught a glimpse of a familiar figure. Tina, who always claimed to be feeling unwell, was dancing provocatively in heavy makeup and hot pants, throwing herself into Chad’s arms. I stared in disbelief, the tray falling from my hands. To make sure I wasn’t seeing things, I grabbed the girl’s wrist and pulled her close. It really was Tina.

Tina was also startled to see me, frowning as she told me to let go. Without realizing it, my grip had tightened, turning her face pale. Chad kicked me to the ground and looked down at me with disdain. “Why are you hanging out with this trash?” Tina weakly leaned into Chad’s arms, tears falling. The scene made my blood boil. I punched Chad to the ground, pointing at his nose and cursing. “Have you no shame? This is my girlfriend!” Leo piped up, yelling, “Your family just raises ducks for a living. What made you think anyone would be interested in you? Chad could ruin you and your family with the snap of his fingers!” Manager Zhang had people throw me out of the bar, cursing me as a troublemaker. I wandered the streets in a daze. Memories of my time with Tina floated through my mind, bursting like bubbles at the slightest touch. Maybe Leo was right. How could anyone look at me twice? Just then, my phone rang. It was a message from my dad. “Son, come home for a bit. Dad has something important to tell you!” Since I didn’t need to buy Tina a necklace anymore, I splurged on a taxi home. When I got there, I saw my dad directing workers to move things. Remembering my dad’s serious tone on the phone, I had a bad feeling. “Dad, did something happen to our family?” My dad was too busy to answer me, so I kept pestering him. “Are we short on money and need to sell the house? How much do we need?” I started regretting taking a taxi home and planned to find two more jobs to help support the family. But my dad just laughed. “Son, you know about Landson Corp?” Of course I knew Landson Corp, a mega-rich company with over 10 skyscrapers. I could work my whole life and never come close to their level. “But what does Landson have to do with us? Aren’t we just duck farmers?” My dad smiled. “Duck farming is just one of our poverty alleviation industries. We have 30 other industries too!” My dad held up three fingers. I was still in shock. Just then, a well-dressed man came over and respectfully said to my dad, “Mr. Landson, we’re almost done moving everything.” My dad nodded slightly. “Be careful on the road. These are all the memories my son and I have from over the years.” I was so excited I could barely speak. “Dad, what did he just call you?” At that moment, my phone buzzed. I looked at the message: “Bank transfer received: $1,000,000.” My dad patted my shoulder. “Your dad is Mr. Landson. Son, all of this was a test for you. Now that I’ve seen you’re willing to work three jobs instead of asking your family for money, I know you’ve passed the test.”

The butler helped me move into a villa in the east side of town. It was decorated lavishly – I still wasn’t used to the change in status. “Young master, please let me know if you need anything.” I looked at the stern-faced man and tentatively asked, “Can you help me recover the chat history on my computer?” “Of course, young master.” Tina always deleted all traces after using my computer. Once when she logged into her SnapChat on my computer while I was looking something up, she got angry and told me not to touch it. I was certain she was hiding something from me on her SnapChat. The butler truly was capable of anything. He quickly recovered the chat history for me. Looking at the screen full of flirtatious messages between Tina and Chad, my hands trembled slightly. It turned out that while I was staying up late revising her papers, she was out on dates with Chad watching movies. When I was working three jobs a day to buy her a gift, she was doing unspeakable things in Chad’s car. When I was worried sick because I couldn’t reach her on the phone, she was drinking all night with Chad at bars. Even when Tina got angry saying I was disturbing her studying, she was asking Chad why he wasn’t coming to see her, if he had found a new girl. Tina wouldn’t even kiss me, saying she wanted to save it for our wedding day. But she was doing the complete opposite with Chad, their chats incredibly explicit. The bags I saved up to buy her, she used as trash bags for Chad to throw up in when he was drunk. Since she cherished them so little, we might as well settle the score. I gathered all the records of money I spent on Tina, transfers I made, gifts I bought over the years, along with these explicit chats, and made them into a PowerPoint presentation. I sent it to Tina and Chad’s shared thesis advisor. Professor Liu was known for being strict and upright. I didn’t need to do anything more.

The next day back at the dorm, Leo saw I hadn’t come back all night and started mocking me. “Weren’t you all tough yesterday, punching people? How come you didn’t even dare come back to the dorm last night?” I asked, “Where’s Chad?” Leo’s face twisted into a lewd grin. “Of course he’s spending the night with your precious Tina!” I kept my expression neutral. “Oh, I guess rats from the gutter and cheating dogs really are a perfect match. “And stop calling her ‘my Tina’. We’re not together anymore.” Just then, Chad stormed in looking furious. He grabbed my collar. “Did you do this?” I calmly gripped the hand holding my collar. A cracking sound came from his joints. I may not have had much, but working all those jobs had made me strong. Chad was no match for me. He let go in pain. I whispered in his ear, “If you don’t start showing me some respect, I don’t mind sending this PowerPoint to the whole internet.” Coming out of the dorm, the sun was shining and a gentle breeze lifted my mood. My phone rang. It was Tina, crying. “Lucas, why did you do this? Don’t you care about our relationship at all?” I scoffed. “If you had any conscience at all, you wouldn’t be able to say that.” “Can’t you help me explain to Professor Liu that it was just a joke? Otherwise I’ll really be in trouble! “Aren’t you afraid I’ll never forgive you, that you’ll never get me back?” I simply hung up. She was still trying to threaten me, really thought I was a good backup plan. I had been busy lately learning about the company’s business, running around all day. Tina and Chad couldn’t find me anywhere. Later I heard from classmates that they both lost their grad school offers. That PowerPoint was still in my hands. Chad didn’t dare retaliate against me, he could only grit his teeth and bear it.

We were now in our senior year. After losing their grad school offers, Chad and Tina were planning to start job hunting. I now had a basic understanding of Landson Corp’s operations. My dad wanted me to intern at Landson, but to observe me in the role of an intern. Landson had always promoted based on merit, so the intern identity was what I needed. Starting from the bottom and working my way up was undoubtedly the fastest way to gain experience. Before I left, my dad called out to me, “Oh right, there’s a scholarship student I’ve been supporting who’s also coming to intern at the company. I think he’s in your major at your school.” My dad scratched his head, thinking hard for a while. “I remember he was quite a humble kid. What was his name again? Oh right, Chad.” I couldn’t help but chuckle when I heard this. “I do know him, but he’s not very humble at all.” Chad had always bragged about being a trust fund kid and a prince of the city’s elite. After returning to Landson, I had learned about the famous families in A City, but I hadn’t come across any surnamed Chen. I had always been curious which family Chad was from, but before I could ask my butler to look into it, it turned out a surprise was waiting for me here. I just hadn’t expected Chad himself to be a scholarship student. Instead of cherishing this hard-earned opportunity, he used the money my dad gave him to party, looking down on poor students like me back then, never even glancing at us. Since he wanted to come to Landson, let him come. After all, my dad had supported him financially. I might as well evaluate the results for my dad personally. At a class meeting to discuss everyone’s job plans, Chad and Tina were cuddling in their seats, completely disregarding that they were on campus. Seeing me arrive, Leo the bootlicker spoke up first: “Lucas, after what you did to Chad, you have the nerve to show your face?” “Oh? How did I hurt him? Do tell.” Leo’s voice had been incredibly loud, quickly drawing the attention of our classmates. Chad’s face darkened as he scolded Leo to shut up. I asked Leo back, “If Chad is so great, he could go study abroad if he didn’t get into grad school, why isn’t he going?” Leo stammered, unable to answer. Chad lazily spoke up, “My dad is in a hurry for me to take over Landson, so I can only cut my playtime short by a couple years.” With those words, the whole class erupted in whispers. “I knew Chad was rich, but I didn’t realize he was this rich. That’s Landson Corp we’re talking about.” “I heard from my cousin’s sister’s friend that Mrs. Landson’s surname is Chen. His dad must really love his wife to let him take her surname.” “Wow, it’s like a novel come to life. I’m totally shipping this.” “Lucas is such a clown. He has the nerve to mock others when he doesn’t even know what he’ll do after graduation.” “Don’t worry about that. I heard his family raises ducks. He always smells like ducks, he can just go back and inherit his dad’s duck farm.” Chad had clearly heard these comments too. He pulled Tina closer, looking at me provocatively. Just yesterday I had my butler deliberately leak false information to Chad that Landson had no heir. Now he already dared to openly claim this title. He really wasn’t afraid of death. I tuned out the mocking voices and reported my intention to intern at Landson to the class president. I left under the scrutinizing gazes of my classmates.

On the first day of the internship, Chad still couldn’t change his bad habits. He arrived late with Tina in tow, both bowing and scraping as the manager berated them for a long time. After the manager left, Tina glared daggers at his back and asked Chad, “Why don’t you have any face at your own family’s company?” Chad explained, “You just don’t understand. My dad arranged for me to learn from the bottom up. If I don’t keep it secret from them, how can the work go on? “Look at you, the future Mrs. Landson without an ounce of grace.” Tina playfully hit his chest, calling him naughty. But her smile froze when she saw me. “Lucas, you really did get into Landson.” I ignored them, taking my coffee back to my desk to continue organizing documents. Chad quickly caught on, whispering to Tina, “This guy only knows how to study. Landson probably just barely hired him after seeing his resume. A bookworm like him won’t last long.” The reality was quite the opposite. This bookworm received plenty of praise from the manager for outstanding work. As for Chad and Tina, they still couldn’t get the hang of things after countless explanations, getting yelled at daily. After one such scolding, Tina angrily threw a project book onto my desk, still using her old commanding tone: “Lucas, do this for me.” I couldn’t be bothered to look up at her, I still had a lot of work to finish. Seeing no reaction from me, Tina snatched the pen from my hand and demanded, “Lucas, what do you mean by this? How can you just ignore me? You weren’t like this before.” “How else should I treat you? Who are you to me?” Tina bit her lip, tears welling up in her eyes. She clearly wasn’t planning to give up. I took the project book and flipped through it briefly, feigning confusion as I asked, “Isn’t this all basic stuff? Didn’t Chad teach you? He is the young master of the Landson family after all. Surely he wouldn’t let his girlfriend stoop to begging me, a nobody.” I said this while staring straight at Chad. As expected, he angrily pulled Tina away. I don’t know what they schemed together, but when they came back, Tina had regained her haughty attitude, even giving a cold snort as she passed by me. A few days later, rumors spread through my project department that Chad was the Landson heir. He must have been desperate, resorting to his old tricks in the company. These rumors were exaggerated beyond belief. Even the manager dared not yell at Chad much lately. Chad humbly stated to the department that he was here to learn, and asked everyone not to leak the news of him being the heir. People around him gradually began to flatter him. You could see they really wanted to build a connection. “Young Master Chen, when you inherit the group, don’t forget about us old colleagues.” Chad agreed to everything, then began to mock me indirectly. “But we should still rely on Lucas. He’s always been a top student at school, even I couldn’t get close to him. Someone like that is bound to rise quickly in the company. I just don’t know if he’ll still look at us by then.” Those people were all shrewd. They quickly understood Chad’s meaning and joined in ridiculing me for being arrogant. But while Chad was gaining a reputation by relying on a non-existent identity, I was memorizing the company’s current internal branches and business models one by one. On the day of the project presentation, Chad volunteered to go on stage first to show his PowerPoint. As soon as I saw that PowerPoint, I laughed. So this is what he was waiting for.

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I never expected that the day before the extreme heatwave hit, my husband Lucas would secretly bring his parents to live with us against my wishes. My mother-in-law Evelyn, always doting on her son, pushed all the housework onto me. She even demanded that I cook for the whole family in the sweltering 122°F heat of the kitchen. Lucas, usually mild-mannered, suddenly turned hostile towards me. Unable to contain my anger, I got into a huge argument with them. To my shock, Lucas and his parents threw me out of the house. I died of heatstroke outside. When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to the day before the extreme heatwave. This time, I would be the one enjoying the air conditioning and watermelon while watching them slowly starve in this scorching oven. “Honey, my parents want to move in with us. We can all enjoy the air conditioning together and save on electricity bills,” Lucas said, leaning against the doorframe in his t-shirt, nervously rubbing his nose as he looked at me. I froze, as memories flooded back. Looking at my smooth, hydrated skin in the mirror, I realized I had been reborn. I had bought this house outright specifically to avoid living with my in-laws. Lucas used to be a normal person, but whenever his mother was around, he would revert to being a mama’s boy. In my previous life, I had firmly refused. But on the day I returned to work after my vacation, Lucas secretly brought his parents over. Accompanying them was Chloe, his mother’s newly adopted goddaughter. Chloe was actually the daughter-in-law Evelyn had in mind for Lucas. As soon as they arrived, they started criticizing my new house. Evelyn even gave all my skincare and makeup products to Chloe. Lucas, who used to help me with housework and cooking, became completely hands-off. The whole family would sit on the couch watching TV, dumping all the chores on me when I got home from work. Evelyn would even throw pistachio shells on the floor while I was sweeping. Lucas just watched, never saying a word in my defense. Fed up, I got into a huge argument with them. To my surprise, the usually docile Lucas exploded in anger, joining his parents in throwing me out. By then, the outdoor temperature had soared to 122°F as the extreme heatwave hit. I nearly died of dehydration outside. When I tried to return home, I found that Evelyn and Lucas had locked the door, ignoring my desperate pleas no matter how hoarse I screamed. In the end, I died of heatstroke outside the door. That extreme heatwave lasted two months. The food I had stocked up was barely enough for them to survive… Recalling this, I shuddered and gulped down water from my cup. Even after finishing it, I still felt parched, the memory of that thirst lingering. “Honey, there’s hardly anyone left in our hometown now. My parents are getting depressed with no one to talk to in the countryside,” Lucas said cautiously. “Sure, let’s bring them over!” I replied with a cold smile. He carefully watched my reaction, knowing that not only had I bought this house, but I also paid for everything we ate, wore, and used. His initial promise was that his parents would never interfere with our lives. Just six months into our marriage, he was already eager to revert to being a mama’s boy. I suppressed the hatred in my eyes and said, “The countryside has lots of mosquitoes and no air conditioning. It’s perfect for them to come escape the heat.” I couldn’t wait for them to come to their deaths.

Lucas was both surprised and delighted by my response. This was the first time I hadn’t objected when he mentioned his parents. Due to my change in attitude, Lucas eagerly drove my new Audi back to his hometown the next day to pick up his parents. It was five days earlier than in my previous life. After he left, I installed cameras in the bedroom and living room, adjusted the angles, found good hiding spots, and made sure my phone could receive real-time footage. Then I requested time off work. With the two-month extreme heatwave approaching, who would still be working? I had a habit of stocking up during sales seasons, so we had plenty of food and dry goods at home. I selected most of the ingredients, packed them up, and put them in another car in the underground garage. Then I drove back to my in-laws’ old home in the countryside they were so eager to leave. This village was indeed deserted, with everyone having moved to the city. My in-laws would never expect me to spend the extreme heatwave in the place they wanted to escape. The countryside, surrounded by greenery, without exhaust-spewing cars or the urban heat island effect, was actually ideal for escaping the heat. I cleaned the house a bit, then unloaded everything from the trunk. I also contacted a large appliance store in the city to order air conditioners and several large refrigerators. Even in the countryside, it would be hard to survive temperatures over 122°F without air conditioning. Then I ordered a diesel generator and several hundred liters of fuel from an acquaintance. During the extreme heatwave, besides food and water, electricity was crucial. In my previous life, many elderly people were too frugal to use air conditioning. There were also some new mothers who followed outdated postpartum practices, refusing to use air conditioning or fans. They ended up dying of heatstroke at home. Since heaven had given me another chance at life, I was determined to survive this ordeal and live on. Seeing that the sun was about to set, I decided to purchase other items next time. I drove home to find that my in-laws hadn’t arrived yet. Lucas was probably showing them around before bringing them back. The chicken, duck, abalone, and sea cucumber I had taken out to defrost earlier were mostly thawed. I even extravagantly used the bottled mineral water we had stocked to cook. With the in-laws and goddaughter coming to visit, I had to properly entertain them, right?

By the time I finished cooking, I could hear Evelyn complaining loudly in the hallway. “Son, how can that Amber compare to our Chloe? Knowing we’re coming, she didn’t even come to pick us up. Who knows what kind of airs she’s putting on.” Through the door, I heard Lucas try to defend me: “Mom, keep your voice down. She bought this house, you know!” Hearing this, my father-in-law George got angry. “Bah! How could a woman afford to buy a house on her own? Women like her are just scammers. Who knows what shady business she was involved in before.” Evelyn quickly agreed: “Exactly. Son, you need to find a pure and innocent girl to spend your life with.” “Even if this woman has one apartment, she’s still not good enough for my son. Even if she owned an entire building, she wouldn’t deserve you.” These narrow-minded people were always like this. Without money themselves, they suspected others of having ill-gotten gains. They fundamentally didn’t respect women, seeing them only as men’s accessories. Even though Lucas was mooching off me, his mother would always think he was superior to me. Her rose-colored glasses when it came to her precious son were thicker than the Great Wall. It was my own fault for being blind back then. I thought he wouldn’t pose any threat to me, and with family pressuring me to get married, I just muddle-headedly went through with it. My hand unconsciously clenched into a fist at my side, nails digging into my palm. In this life, I would return all the suffering they had inflicted on me, with interest. As soon as the door opened, the whole family rushed in with their bags, shoving me into a corner. Acting like they couldn’t see me, they started moving their luggage inside. From the looks of it, they had brought their entire household, filling up my entryway and living room. “Sister, what delicious food did you make? It smells so good!” I finally spotted Chloe behind the luggage. She had deliberately dressed up in a cute pink dress and high heels, even wearing perfume. No wonder there was such a pungent smell. I quickly put on a facade, bringing out the dishes and setting a large table, inviting them to eat. But this only earned me a scolding from Evelyn. “Don’t you know we just came in from outside and are dying of heat? How can we eat now? Are you trying to give me diarrhea?” George, without taking off his shoes, propped his feet up on the sofa and lay down under the air conditioning vent, starting to order me around. “Bring the food over here. I’ll eat after I cool down.” Chloe raised her manicured nails, pretending to help me carry the plates. Evelyn quickly pulled her back: “You’re a guest. Why should you do any work? Let her do it alone.” Lucas glanced at me tentatively. Seeing that I didn’t show any displeasure, he also sat down reassured.

Once the food was on the table, they started eating without waiting for me. Even though I had deliberately made a lavish meal, they still had to find fault. “This meat is too greasy. Don’t you know how to cook? Making it like this!” “You sure know how to enjoy life, eating abalone and sea cucumber every day while leaving us to eat expired pasta in the countryside.” The old couple was putting on an act again. If you eat garbage, it must be because you love eating garbage. It has nothing to do with me. Besides, Lucas sends you plenty of money every month! I remained silent, letting them complain. After dinner, they all sat in the living room watching TV, leaving me alone to clean up the dishes. I opened the refrigerator, intending to put away the leftovers for tomorrow. Suddenly, Evelyn rushed over and knocked the plate out of my hand. “Keeping leftover food? Are you trying to feed us leftovers? Is this what you usually feed my son? No wonder he’s gotten so thin.” As she spoke, Evelyn started wailing dramatically: “Oh, my poor son! What a hard life you have!” It was like she was crying at a funeral. George also ran over, kicking me twice and spitting at me. Chloe stood to the side, gloating with her arms folded. “Sister, we’re used to eating leftovers in the countryside. We came to the city hoping to eat something nice.” I still didn’t resist them. Driving them away now would ruin all my plans. I packed up the leftovers and took them out to give to the homeless man under the bridge. The leftovers you look down on are delicacies others can only dream of. They talk as if they used to raise their son so preciously in the countryside. Now they’re disgusted by leftovers, but in a while, they won’t even have this to eat. In the evening, Evelyn barged into the master bedroom and took over my bed, moving all my skincare and makeup products from my vanity to the guest room for Chloe to use. Chloe put on an act of reluctance: “Mom, this doesn’t seem right! These belong to my sister-in-law.” She said the words of refusal but didn’t even glance at me. Evelyn glared at me fiercely: “Always wasting money buying this and that. Taking such good care of your skin, who are you trying to seduce?” Then she turned to her goddaughter and said softly: “Chloe, take these. Your brother likes it when you use these cosmetics.” She can have them. What I left behind were all opened products I hadn’t finished using, and I had added quite a few extra ingredients to them. As for those unopened skincare products, I had already sent them back to the countryside. Letting her enjoy them one last time before she dies is my act of mercy. The next day, I made another big table of food just like last night, watching them eat their fill. The food in the house was decreasing rapidly. I trembled with excitement.

After lunch, I rented a truck and went to the supermarket. I bought: 15 boxes of pasta 5 bags of flour 20 cases of bottled water 7 barrels of cooking oil 4 boxes of bread 5 boxes of milk 2 boxes of alcohol 5 cases of Coke Plus my favorite lobster, abalone, sea cucumber and various meats. At the market, I bought half a pig, 66 pounds of beef, and 66 pounds of lamb. No need to buy vegetables – my in-laws had planted some in their yard. I’d just pick those and refrigerate them when I got back. I also bought some fruits – watermelon, apples, pears. Fruits spoil easily in high heat, so no need to buy too much. To prevent heatstroke, I bought some common medications like heatstroke medicine. There are lots of insects in the countryside, so I also bought insect repellent. After meeting basic survival needs, next came things for mental stimulation. I downloaded over 10GB of novels, movies and TV shows. I bought Lego sets and puzzles, and selected some books from the bookstore. These things were enough for me to live on for a year, let alone the mere two months of extreme heat.

While I secretly built up my safe house, I continued cooking for my in-laws. Finally, after my unrelenting efforts, only some noodles, tofu skin and other dry goods were left at home. The weather was getting hotter and hotter. Starting tomorrow, temperatures would climb step by step to 122°F. During this time, Evelyn hadn’t been idle either. She kept praising her goddaughter in front of Lucas. “Chloe is like the apple of my eye. The more I look at her, the prettier and more pleasing she becomes.” As she praised Chloe, she would turn the conversation to criticize me, both directly and indirectly. “You’ve been married for over six months now, why haven’t I seen any sign of a baby? This woman only cares about working outside and not taking care of the home. What use is a woman who doesn’t have children?” “You’re our family’s only son. We can’t have you without an heir.” “Women only have these few young years. Once you pass this age, it becomes harder to conceive and give birth.” Before marriage, I had made a firm agreement with Lucas – these five years were the rising period of my career, so having children was out of the question. Perhaps he had gotten too comfortable over the past six months. After listening to his mother’s analysis, he also decided to have a child first. That night, he pressed his body against mine: “Honey, let’s listen to my mom and have a baby first!” I turned and slapped him across the face. Every time it was like this. Things we had agreed on in advance would immediately change as soon as his mother objected. If he’s going to listen to his mom so much, why bother getting married? He might as well spend his whole life with her. That way he’d never have to be weaned and could contentedly remain a mama’s boy forever. The night was still young, and everyone was sleeping lightly. This slap woke up the people in the two adjacent bedrooms. Evelyn ran over and saw the red mark on her precious son’s face. She immediately flew into a rage. “Amber, you wretched woman! I knew you were no good. How dare you hit your husband!” She picked up a broom and threw it at me. When she missed, she tried to run over and pull my hair. George also came to help, but I wasn’t going to just take it. I grabbed George’s toupee right off his head, instantly aging him by over a decade. Chloe took advantage of the chaos to caress Lucas’s face. “I’ll blow on it and the pain will go away.” I grabbed my pre-packed bag and headed for the door. You can just live and die here by yourselves! I heard the sound of the door being locked from inside. “Stay out there for the night, you wretched woman. Don’t even think about coming back!” They seemed to have forgotten that this was the house I bought. I drove both cars out of the garage, parking one in my company’s underground lot, then drove the other back to the countryside. I finally moved into the safe house I had prepared long ago. The outdoor temperature was already very high. I quickly turned on the air conditioning, finally feeling alive again. But this was just the beginning. The true extreme heatwave was about to arrive.

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In my past life, my stepmother secretly changed my college application, sending me to a bottom-tier school. In my past life, my novel’s rights sold for five million dollars, only for my stepsister to accuse me of plagiarism. In my past life, after my stepsister killed me, she inherited all my wealth and lived her life unscathed. But now, I’ve been given a second chance. I’m back, and this time, I’ll make sure my stepsister and stepmother pay for everything they did… Amber Collins pushed me off the rooftop from the 28th floor, and I died instantly. After I died, I became a wandering spirit, not knowing where to go. I stood among the crowd, looking at my own body within the police cordon and listening to the hushed whispers around me. “Did you hear? She’s the daughter from the sixth floor. Just started college, so young, and already gave up on life.” “Which daughter from the sixth floor? That family has two daughters.” “It’s the older one. I saw the younger one a little while ago.” Soon, my stepmother, Gloria Collins, arrived with Amber following closely behind. Gloria collapsed onto the ground, wailing hysterically, while Amber covered her face, quietly sobbing. I walked over, wanting to comfort my mom, to tell her that I didn’t commit suicide, but I couldn’t. I was only a ghost now. Gloria cried out, “Lauren, why would you do this? Why couldn’t you talk to me? Why did you jump? How am I supposed to explain this to your father?” People around tried to console her, helping her to stand, but I was standing right in front of her and saw it clearly—there wasn’t a single tear on her face. I turned away, heading back upstairs. The home was just as I remembered, but I searched desperately for any good memories from when I was alive, and there were none. I returned to my room, curled up in the corner, hugging my knees. I was dead now, and I had no idea what would happen to me. Would the Grim Reaper come for me? Or would I just drift as a ghost, wandering aimlessly forever? The despair of death, combined with the fear of the unknown and a crushing sense of loneliness, overwhelmed me. I don’t know how much time passed before I heard the door open. Gloria and Amber had returned. Amber collapsed on the floor, shaking. “Mom, I’m scared.” Gloria rushed to her side. “What happened? Don’t be scared, Amber. Tell me, and I’ll fix it.” “Mom, I killed Lauren. I pushed her off the roof.” Gloria’s eyes widened in terror. She clamped a hand over Amber’s mouth and dragged her into the bedroom. “What happened, Amber? How could you do something like this?” Amber explained everything. “I didn’t mean to kill her, Mom. I just wanted to scare her.” “What are we going to do? The police won’t come after me, will they?” “Don’t worry, Amber. You have me. I won’t let anything happen to you.” “What about Dad? He only has one daughter.” My mind was reeling. What did Amber just say? My dad only has one daughter? Then Gloria continued, “When your dad married me, he promised that if I treated Lauren well, he’d treat you like his own daughter.” “I’ve been putting on quite the show for him all these years, and he’s always been good to you. He’ll never suspect you.” “It’s actually a good thing that brat is gone. She was just like her dead mother. Now there’s no one to get in our way. And all her money? It’s ours.” Those words hit me like a lightning bolt. Everything suddenly made sense. Gloria was never my real mom. Amber wasn’t my sister. No wonder they were so horrible to me. No wonder Gloria always favored Amber. No wonder Amber never took my dad’s last name. As I stood there, my dad, George Adams, came home. He’s a long-haul trucker and is often away for work. The moment he walked in, Gloria rushed to him, putting on her usual act and crying as she clung to him. “George, you’re finally back! What are we going to do? Lauren, she… she couldn’t take it anymore.” After my death, they’d called him, and he had rushed home from out of town. He pulled his hand away from her and walked silently into my room. I followed him inside. He locked the door behind him, picked up the stuffed animal from my pillow, and sat on my bed. He sat there for a long time before tears started streaming down his face. He took out an old photograph from his wallet, and as I looked closer, I saw the woman in the picture looked just like me. It had to be my biological mother. He gazed at the photo, whispering over and over, “I’m sorry, Sarah. This is all my fault.”

My dad sat in my room the entire night, and I sat beside him, listening. It was the first time I’d ever heard him talk this much. He told the story of how he and my mom met, fell in love, and how she insisted on giving birth to me, even when the doctors advised against it. He spoke of how, when I was little, I’d always ask for my mom, which led him to marry Gloria. He talked about how much I looked like my mom and how much he missed her. He talked about how he regretted not being there for me all these years. Everything he said answered so many of the questions I had carried for years. When the sun came up, I noticed that my dad’s hair had turned much grayer overnight. Suddenly, I lost consciousness, and when I woke up again, I was in a strange place—the courthouse of the Afterlife. I heard a voice call out, “Number 7628, it’s time for you to be reborn.” But I didn’t want to be reborn. I said nothing and just cried, from silent tears to loud, gut-wrenching sobs. The judge grew angry with me and sentenced me to the Hall of Eternal Scribes, where I had to copy endless scriptures. I sat at the desk, looking at the pen and ink, and decided to comply. I wrote endlessly, pouring all my hatred, sorrow, and desire for revenge against Gloria and Amber into the pages. I don’t know how long I wrote. I kept going until all my energy was drained and my soul began to fade… Suddenly, I heard someone calling my name. Forcing my eyes open, I gasped. Where am I? Wasn’t I just copying scriptures? How am I back in my room? I shot up, looking around in shock as realization hit me—I had been reborn. I grabbed my phone and lit up the screen. I had gone back a year in time. Jumping out of bed, I rushed to open the door, but it wouldn’t budge. Then it hit me. Today is the day I fill out my college application. In my past life, the door had suddenly jammed, so Gloria and Amber had gone to the school to submit my application on my behalf. They had locked me in and taken my pre-written form. But instead of submitting it, they had changed it, sending me to the same low-tier school as Amber, even though my grades were good enough to attend a top university. I remembered confronting Gloria in my past life, holding the acceptance letter, confused as to why I had been accepted into that school. “Oh no, how did this happen? I must’ve accidentally mixed up the forms with Amber’s. I didn’t mean to, Lauren. You won’t hold it against me, will you?” she had said. Back then, I had naively comforted myself, believing her excuses. Now, I knew how foolish I had been. It wasn’t until I was on my deathbed that I learned from Amber that they had intentionally changed my application. This time, I knew the truth. There was no way I would let them get away with it again. Outside my door, Gloria called for me. “Lauren, the door’s stuck! We need to go to the school to submit your college application.” I played along, pretending to panic. “I don’t know what happened! I can’t get it open. What should I do?” “Just give me your application form, and I’ll submit it for you.” “Okay. I don’t have much choice, do I? Please don’t make a mistake.” “Don’t worry. Your sister will help me keep an eye on everything.”

After they left, I went back to bed for some more sleep. There were three days to submit the application, and I didn’t have to go to the school to do it in person. Gloria and Amber didn’t know that, though. In my past life, they had released me from the room the next day, making me work at my uncle’s store. My uncle, Jason Miller, ran a small convenience store, and his family had always been good to me. I had always suspected Jason was my biological uncle. Growing up, I spent a lot of time at Jason’s house, often sent there by Gloria to be looked after. Throughout high school, I spent most of my weekends helping out at his store. Jason never made me work hard, though. I’d usually just do my homework and help tutor his daughter, Rachel. It wasn’t until one day, I found out Gloria had been taking money from my uncle, asking him for my wages. That’s when I finally confronted her. It was the first argument I ever had with Gloria. I asked her why she was taking my money. She didn’t even bother pretending. “You’re working at your uncle’s store, so what’s wrong with me getting some of the money?” she said casually. “But Uncle Jason never made me do any real work, and he even gave me an allowance!” Gloria acted like it was the most natural thing in the world. “I sent you there to work. If your uncle didn’t make you work, that’s his choice. But your wages belong to me.” Her words made my heart ache. “What about Amber? Why don’t you send her to work at Uncle Jason’s?” Seeing me upset, she tried to soothe me. “Your sister isn’t as healthy as you are. She can’t handle heavy work, and she’s not as good at school as you are. She has to take extra lessons. She doesn’t have time.” In my past life, I had always thought Amber was just more lovable, which was why Gloria favored her. I had spent my whole life trying to earn Gloria’s approval. Now, I could finally see how laughable my efforts had been. The door to my room wasn’t unlocked until the next day. During that time, I hadn’t eaten a single bite. The next morning, I skipped breakfast and went straight to my uncle’s house. I ended up fainting from low blood sugar at their doorstep. When I woke up, the first thing I saw was my uncle and aunt’s worried faces. Suddenly, a wave of emotion hit me, and tears filled my eyes. Seeing me cry, they both panicked. “What’s wrong, Lauren? Where does it hurt? Tell us!” My aunt gently touched my forehead. “Is it a headache?” I held her hand tightly. “Uncle Jason, Aunt Jennifer, don’t worry. I’m not sick. I just missed you both.” I told them everything I had discovered—that Gloria was my stepmother and about all the ways she had mistreated me over the years. When I was little, Gloria had made me do all the household chores. If my dad wasn’t home, I did everything, even in the freezing winter, without hot water. When I asked why I had to do it all while Amber did nothing, Gloria would say, “You’re the big sister. You should be taking care of her.” After hearing all of this, Jason was furious and wanted to confront Gloria and Amber, but my aunt and I stopped him. They then revealed the truth to me. “Your mother’s name was Sarah Adams, and she and your dad loved each other very much.” “While pregnant with you, my sister was diagnosed with a tumor. The doctors advised her to terminate the pregnancy, but she refused. She insisted on having you, even though she knew it would cost her life.” “Your dad begged us to keep it a secret from you, hoping you’d grow up happy and healthy like other kids. But none of us could have known Gloria would turn out to be so cruel.” Now that I knew the truth, I asked my uncle for help with my college application. “Uncle Jason, I have something important I need your help with. As for Gloria, I’ll deal with her later.” He brought me his laptop, and I completed my application. When my uncle saw the school Gloria had signed me up for, he was both furious and guilt-ridden. Once I had changed my application, I ordered several hidden cameras online, preparing to set them up at home. I stayed at my uncle’s house under the pretense of working at his store, only going home twice to get my things. That summer was the happiest one I’d had in years. At my uncle’s house, I didn’t have to work. My only responsibility was to tutor Rachel, who was now a junior in high school. She was doing well, so tutoring her was easy. Uncle Jason even bought me a laptop so I could continue writing my novel.

One of my passions is writing novels, and it’s how I make a little extra spending money. In my past life, during my first year of college, a production company bought the rights to one of my novels. Suddenly, I had five million dollars. But that money ended up being the reason I lost my life. When I got the money, I excitedly told Gloria. But once Amber found out, she started spreading rumors at school, accusing me of plagiarism and telling everyone that she was the real author. Back then, I didn’t know how to defend myself. Even though I had proof, I kept quiet because Amber was my sister. I didn’t want to make things worse. Until the day I confronted Amber on the rooftop. I had asked her to meet me there to clear up the misunderstanding, but instead of listening, she became angry. We started arguing, and before I knew it, she pushed me. Amber might not have meant to kill me in my past life, but I certainly won’t let her get away with it this time. When the college acceptance results were posted online, Gloria did something she had never done before—she called me to ask where I’d been accepted. I played along, pretending to be upset. I told her I had been accepted to the same school as Amber. Then, I sweetly gave her an excuse. “Did you mix up our application forms when you were submitting them?” There was a pause on the other end, followed by a faux realization. “Oh no! I must’ve accidentally filled out the wrong form.” “It’s okay. It’s too late to change it now. Don’t feel bad—I don’t blame you.” After the call, I checked the hidden cameras I had installed. The footage showed Amber gleefully asking, “Mom, did that little brat get into the wrong school?” Little brat. That’s what they called me behind my back. Gloria burst into laughter. “That idiot still thinks I made an innocent mistake! She even said she doesn’t blame me. How stupid can she be?” “She got into your school, Amber. If I had known she’d be this easy to fool, I would’ve signed her up for a community college instead.” They laughed and cursed me, using the nastiest words they could think of. I saved the video evidence and returned to my novel. The acceptance letter was mailed to my high school, and mine arrived a few days before Amber’s, so they didn’t notice. The day I got my letter, Uncle Jason and his family took me out to celebrate. He even let me have a drink. Maybe it was the alcohol, but I felt emotional. I wanted to cry. This time, I had finally made it into my dream college. Later, I asked my uncle to take me to my mother’s grave. Looking at her picture on the headstone, her smile was as warm as the sun, as comforting as a spring breeze. I was certain my mom had been a kind and loving person. She must have loved me very much. If she had lived, I would have been the happiest child in the world. I placed flowers on her grave and whispered, “Mom, it’s been so long. I’m here to visit you. I’m sorry I forgot you for so many years. I’ve been calling someone else ‘Mom’ all this time.” “Uncle Jason says you were a wonderful person. You wouldn’t be angry at me for forgetting you, right?” I wiped the tears from my face and took out my acceptance letter. “Mom, I got into a great university. I wish you were here. They say the campus is beautiful. I’d love to take you and Dad to see it.” “In the past, Dad and I couldn’t tell who the good people were, but we won’t make that mistake again. I’ll live a good life from now on. I won’t let your sacrifice be in vain.” 5 The summer flew by, and before I knew it, the school year had started. My university was in New York City, while Amber’s low-tier school was in the same city where we lived. My school started earlier, so I packed up and moved to the dorms at Brentwood University. When Amber texted me, asking when I’d be moving, I was already lying on my dorm bed at Brentwood. I ignored her messages and kept chatting with my new roommates. The four of us got along really well. I thought about my past life and the terrible roommates I had then—girls who smoked, drank, cheated on exams, and gossiped behind everyone’s back. They even created multiple group chats and didn’t invite me to a single one. Back then, I thought I didn’t fit in because of something wrong with me. Now I understand that I didn’t belong in that circle because I was never like them. Amber sent me several more texts, but I didn’t respond. Half an hour later, Gloria called. I stepped out onto the balcony to take the call. Her voice was full of barely concealed frustration. “Lauren, where are you? Why aren’t you answering your sister’s texts?” “I was just chatting with my roommates. Didn’t notice the messages.” “Roommates? Which dorm building are you in? Your dad’s here too. Come out, and we’ll all go have dinner together.” “You know, your dad wanted to drop you both off together. Amber really wanted to come with you. Why did you have your uncle bring you instead?” She was getting worked up, so I interrupted her. “I’m in New York. I can’t meet up with you.” There was a moment of stunned silence on the other end. Then she blurted out, “New York? What are you doing in New York? Are you not going to school?” “I’m not going to college anymore. Uncle Jason found me a job here in New York. It comes with free meals and lodging, and I make $3,500 a month.” That night, I got a call from my dad. His tone was serious. “Lauren, your mom says you’re not going to college anymore. Is that true?” I had anticipated this call and prepared my response in advance. “Dad, I’m still going to school, but I need you to keep something a secret from everyone, especially Gloria and Amber.” “Of course. You can count on me. What’s going on?” “On the day of the application, Mom went to submit it for me, but when I checked the system the next day, I saw that she had accidentally submitted Amber’s form instead of mine.” “Luckily, I caught it in time and fixed it. Mom felt really guilty, so I want to surprise her by not telling her or Amber yet.” I sent him a photo of my acceptance letter, along with a picture of me and my uncle’s family in front of Brentwood University’s gates. Finally, my dad believed me. “Alright, Lauren. I know I’ve been too focused on work these past few years, and your mom has done so much for the family.” “But I’ll keep your secret. And don’t worry—I’ll send you more money each month for your expenses in New York.” I knew my dad had some reservations about Gloria. Over the years, he had kept control of the family’s finances. Gloria had no access to my tuition or living expenses, so she had never had a chance to interfere. But any money I earned from working for Uncle Jason had gone straight into Gloria’s pocket and spent on Amber. I had Uncle Jason send this summer’s earnings directly to Gloria, just like in my past life, making sure to note “Lauren’s Wages” in the transfer details. Gloria used that money to buy Amber a new phone. I saw it all in the hidden camera footage. I hadn’t told my dad the truth yet because I wanted to gather more evidence. I needed to make sure that when I finally exposed Gloria and Amber, there would be no way for them to escape. For now, my priority was to focus on living my life well. 6 After the grueling boot camp ended, I threw myself into university life. I joined the student council with my roommates, participated in every competition the school offered, and studied hard while continuing to update my novel every day. Writing was easier now that I had written this story in my past life. I even made improvements to the plot. My monthly earnings increased, and everything seemed to be moving in the right direction for me. I kept an eye on the “Crush Corner” page of Amber’s college. Amber was very pretty, with that innocent, delicate look that made her seem so harmless.

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The day of my brother’s wedding. I was all smiles, happily following my brother Brian to pick up his bride, but then I got slapped across the face by his future mother-in-law. “Why bother spending so much money on a girl’s education? It’s a waste! She’s just going to marry into someone else’s family. That money should’ve been used for my son’s wedding instead!” I was stunned. Who does she think she is, telling us how to spend our family’s money? Today was Brian’s wedding. I went with him to the Adams’ house to pick up his bride, Chloe. Out of nowhere, Chloe’s parents pulled a stunt—demanding an additional $40,000 for the wedding, otherwise, they wouldn’t let my brother take her to the ceremony. Is this some kind of joke? The wedding was about to start, relatives and friends were already arriving, and now they’re pulling this? This is nothing short of extortion! That’s exactly what I thought—and said out loud. I’ve never been one to hold back, and let me tell you, the looks on their faces turned green. Chloe’s mom, Mrs. Adams, with this puffed-up attitude, said, “Girl, do you even know how to talk? How is this extortion? This is for my daughter’s wedding. Shouldn’t your brother, the groom, be paying for it?” I was speechless. What in the world? Chloe’s brother is getting married, but they want my brother to foot the bill? Does Brian look like a complete fool to them? Chloe stood there in her white wedding dress, but she wasn’t smiling. She looked conflicted, torn between us and her family. She grabbed Brian’s arm and said, “Brian, I only have one brother. He finally found a girlfriend, and they can get married if he gets this dowry. Can’t you help him out? I know your parents can come up with the money. Consider it a loan to me, and I’ll pay it back, I promise.” Unbelievable! They were practically tossing the calculator beads in my face. “So, because our family has some money, we have to cover your family’s debts too?” I snapped, anger boiling inside me. “We’ve already given $40,000 and a house as part of the wedding. Now you want to take more from my parents? Are you even human? This money is what my parents saved for my education!” I had just gotten into grad school, and my parents set aside a fund for my tuition. And now, these people had their eyes on it! Before I even finished my sentence, I got slapped. SMACK— It was loud. Chloe’s mom, Mrs. Adams, yelled at me, “How dare you talk like that! What’s the point of a girl getting an education? It’s a waste of money! She’s just going to belong to someone else’s family. That money is better used for my son’s wedding!” Her father added, “No money, no wedding today.” I stumbled back, head buzzing, trying to steady myself. My face was burning from the slap. I had always known Chloe was the type to prioritize her brother over anything else, ever since I first met her. Two years ago, Brian brought Chloe to our house for dinner for the first time. Chloe immediately took a liking to the gaming action figures I had spent sleepless nights trying to get. I remember that day vividly—she didn’t even ask for my permission before waltzing into my room and looking through my stuff. First, she spotted the makeup on my vanity. She was amazed. That amazement soon turned into envy. Her eyes practically lit up. “Amanda, how do you have so many high-end makeup products? They must’ve cost a fortune. I’ve never used brand-name cosmetics in my life.” She picked up one of my favorite lipsticks, treating it like some kind of treasure, unable to put it down. Brian had told me before that Chloe’s family didn’t have much money, and she only managed to go to college thanks to financial aid. As for my family? Well, my parents run a small business. We’re not rich, but we’ve got a house, a car, and savings. I’ve never wanted for anything growing up. Honestly, I’m not a fan of people touching my things without asking. Sure, she was my brother’s girlfriend, but this was the first time we’d met, and to me, she was still a stranger. But I didn’t say anything. I just smiled. Chloe must have taken that smile as permission because she went further. “This lipstick looks like a nice color. I bet it would suit me. You don’t mind if I try it, do you?” Yes, I minded. But before I could say anything, she had already twisted the tube open and started applying it. Internally, I was losing it. That was my favorite lipstick! Chloe admired herself in the mirror, clearly pleased, then turned her attention to my eyeshadow palette. “My friend uses this one too. You’ve got great taste, Amanda. But you’re only twenty, you should focus more on your studies instead of just makeup.” Wow. Now she’s lecturing me? Not even my parents nag me like this. She was acting like she belonged here. I was getting angrier by the second, but Chloe’s hands still hadn’t stopped. After finishing her full face of makeup, she reached for my action figures.

“You actually have this? My brother begged me to buy one, but I couldn’t get it.” I thought Chloe was just making a passing comment. But I was wrong. The next moment, she gave me a hopeful look, saying, “Amanda, can I have this? You know, as a little gift from you to me? My brother really loves this, and it’s really more of a boy’s toy anyway.” Are you serious? I’ve never heard of a girl visiting her boyfriend’s family for the first time, not bringing any gifts, and then asking his family for presents instead. And for her brother, no less. On top of that, she was justifying it with the excuse that girls shouldn’t play with action figures. “No way,” I snapped, pointing at the figure in her hand. “Put it down.” I would’ve been heartbroken if she had damaged it. Chloe looked startled, probably shocked at how harsh my tone was. Then, as if she did it on purpose, she loosened her grip, and the figure fell to the floor, shattering into pieces. The commotion brought my parents and Brian running into the room. Before I could say anything, Chloe started crying. Tears welled up in her eyes, making her look as pitiful as possible, like I was the one who had wronged her. Thankfully, my parents and Brian were reasonable people, and they adore me. After I explained what happened, no one blamed me. In fact, Brian apologized to me. But Chloe wouldn’t give up. She made Brian ask me multiple times to give her the action figure until, tired of the hassle, I finally gave in and handed it over. A while later, it was my 20th birthday. My parents threw me a birthday bash, inviting lots of family and friends. Chloe brought her brother Tommy along. Tommy, who’s my age, had dropped out of school early and hung out with a rough crowd. He had red hair and tattoos—just exuding that troublemaker vibe. My best friend Sarah noticed too. “Amanda, did you get into some kind of trouble? That guy looks like he’s here to start something.” “He’s my brother’s future brother-in-law,” I said dryly. “Ah, I see…” I knew exactly what Sarah was thinking. And yeah, I didn’t like Tommy either. Toward the end of the party, I went to the restroom and saw Chloe helping Tommy, who was completely drunk and vomiting everywhere. Chloe looked annoyed. “I told you not to drink so much! Serves you right, throwing up like this. What a mess! The Taylors sure have money to burn, throwing a huge party for a girl’s birthday! So pointless.” “Exactly. Dad says daughters are just money drains. Everything at home is mine—mine!” Tommy slurred, gesturing wildly. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Are these people for real? And instead of being angry, Chloe agreed. “Yes, yes, everything is yours. You’re the only son, after all. It’s up to you to carry on the family name!” Family name? Are they royalty or something? After the party, when I was going through the gifts, I noticed my Cartier bracelet was missing. I searched everywhere but couldn’t find it. I suspected the Adams siblings, but I didn’t have proof, and my parents told me to let it go—for Brian’s sake. A few days later, Chloe added me on Instagram. She said she had something to discuss with me. I was curious, so I accepted. Chloe quickly sent me a message: “Amanda, I didn’t want to bother Brian with this, so I’m coming to you.” Me: “What is it? Go ahead.” I had a feeling it wasn’t going to be anything good. Chloe: “You know, you’re going to get married one day too. Once you do, you’ll belong to someone else’s family. Even if your parents and Brian spoil you now, you can’t just take what rightfully belongs to your brother, right?”

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Before bed, I habitually reached to unzip David’s pants, only to catch a faint whiff of cigarette smoke. He rarely smokes, except for the occasional cigarette after intimacy when he’s exhausted. And we hadn’t seen each other in two months due to his business trip. As I teasingly wrapped my arms around his neck, hoping to kiss him, he casually pushed me away. “My back hurts. Not tonight. Go to sleep.” I stared at the man now fast asleep in front of me, my brows furrowing. Instinct told me that David was cheating. And the girl? She had to be young—definitely draining his energy. My name is Lauren West. I’m 28, and my husband, David, is 12 years older than me, just turning 40 this year. Because of our age difference, I often call him “Old David,” and he would always joke about how our “older man, younger wife” dynamic made him look great when we went out together. I’d just laugh it off. When we first met, I was an outstanding college student intern at the United States Jewelry Convention, while he was already a suave, young business owner. Attracted to his sophisticated demeanor, we hit it off almost instantly at the event. Now, after five years of marriage, one child, and a stable, comfortable life, we appear to be a happy couple. But time has changed him—David has transformed into a middle-aged man with a bit of a gut and deep lines etched around his mouth. After having our child, despite relying on high-end spas and wellness centers, the stretch marks on my body never truly faded, making me feel far from the young woman I once was. “Marriage is like that,” I told myself. “When passion fades, it evolves into something more familial.” I reassured myself and gradually shifted my attention to our son and my career. David treated me the same as always—Valentine’s Day, anniversaries, birthdays—he never missed gifting me something special. On our anniversary, he had the housekeeper deliver a Cartier Diamond Necklace, a limited edition piece. “There were only two in the city, and I pre-ordered one just for you,” he said. He wrapped his arms around me from behind and kissed my cheek, the coarse stubble on his chin tickling my neck. David chuckled lowly, and suddenly, he seemed unusually excited, pushing me down onto my office desk. Blushing, I shoved him away. “What are you doing? We’re at the office…” He bit my earlobe playfully, unusually eager, like a young man again. “Then let’s go to the room.” After years of marriage, it was rare for David to be this impatient. My office has a small break room where I sometimes take naps when I’m tired. He scooped me up in his arms and carried me behind the curtain, all while the rest of the office remained blissfully unaware of what was happening. David’s hands moved with expert ease, and he suddenly whispered in my ear: “Lauren, I…” What he said made my face flush red instantly. Because of work, I often wore black stockings, though David had never shown any special interest in them. That day, he was unusually vigorous, to the point where I almost feared the employees downstairs might hear us. For someone in his 40s, David shouldn’t have had such intense energy unless something had triggered it. I vaguely recalled him taking a pill in the middle of it. When I asked what it was, he said it was for his back pain. David has issues with his lower back, so he often takes painkillers. But after that incident, I found an aluminum blister pack on the floor. On it, clear as day, were the words: “Performance-Enhancing Pills.” The purpose of these pills was obvious. But why would he need them? And why lie to me about it? This planted a seed of doubt in my mind. Two months later, as we prepared for the upcoming United States Jewelry Convention, I was swamped with work as a key organizer. Meanwhile, David was nowhere to be found. When I called him, he claimed to be out at meetings. It wasn’t until I tracked his location that I found him at a hotel in Boston. “Hey, honey!” I threw my arms around his neck, pretending to be excited as I ushered him into the room. “Hmm, missed you,” he said casually, his expression unchanged, though I noticed his exhaustion. He glanced down and lifted the necklace I was wearing. The Cartier Diamond Necklace he had given me. “You look the most beautiful when you wear it,” he said with an earnest smile. Before bed, I reached to unzip David’s pants again and was greeted by that same faint smell of smoke. He never smokes, except occasionally after intimacy when he’s tired. And we hadn’t seen each other in two months. As I tried to wrap my arms around his neck, seeking a kiss, he once again pushed me away, unenthusiastically. “My back hurts. Not tonight. Go to sleep.” I stared at the man soundly sleeping next to me, my brow furrowing again. I just knew it. David was cheating. And that girl? She was young, and she was draining his energy. When he was fast asleep, I carefully reached for his phone. David might be a small-time business owner, but he’s not exactly up to date with technology—still using his BlackBerry Key2. All his business dealings go through his assistant, Brandon Cooper, who handles the communication and manages his interactions through a smartphone. I looked at his phone, expressionless, and set it back down. From texts to call logs, everything was spotless. Clearly, I’d need to get to his assistant. The next day, I used an excuse about reviewing a design to ask Brandon if I could borrow David’s phone. He was cautious. “Sorry, Lauren, but Mr. West specifically said only he can access his phone due to business confidentiality.” I smiled, crossing my arms. “Business confidentiality? I’m the owner’s wife. What kind of ‘confidentiality’ is there between us? I’m just checking a file.” Brandon hesitated, clearly reluctant. I narrowed my eyes and casually said, “Fine, I’ll call David. If you won’t respect his wife, I’ll have him fire you.” Reluctantly, Brandon handed over the phone, and as promised, I only looked at a few business emails in front of him. After about ten minutes, I nodded calmly and returned the phone. But as I left his office, there was a small USB drive in the palm of my hand. While checking the files, I had discreetly copied everything from the phone onto it. Back home, I immediately plugged the USB into my computer, ready to uncover the truth. The messages seemed clean, everything looked normal. So why had Brandon been so secretive? I didn’t buy it. I clicked “Switch Accounts” and sure enough… Brandon had set up a second account for David with the username Casanova44—fitting for a sleazy middle-aged man. In one of the group chats, Kingdom of Vice, there were endless disgusting messages between David and his low-life friends. David’s most recent post? “These young girls are exhausting. Even with performance pills, my back can’t keep up.” The photo gallery had dozens of inappropriate screenshots, including video calls with a girl whose profile picture was a Hello Kitty icon. In the top corner was David’s face, looking as greasy as ever. Below him, a dimply, smooth-skinned girl. I clenched my mouse, committing her face to memory. Then I opened their chat logs: “Daddy, you’re amazing. Still going strong even in your 40s. 🌹😏” “Haha, it’s your tiny waist. My back just can’t handle it…” Everything fell into place. My face hardened, and my hand scrolled faster. How amusing. A “working student,” huh? Currently interning at our company, doing nothing more than fetching coffee. She claimed David was her “emotional support,” and he, in return, gave her financial assistance. Little did I know, that “support” had quickly turned into something physical. I scrolled through our summer interns in the HR records until I found a familiar face in a small ID photo. That soft, youthful face matched the girl in David’s screenshots perfectly. I narrowed my eyes and locked onto the name next to the picture: Chloe Parker.

When I first met David, he was in his early 30s—sophisticated, with a certain intellectual charm. Now, though? I would’ve thought by 40 he’d have outgrown his attraction to younger girls, but no, he had managed to attract another one. His hair had started to gray, he was balding, and he had a beer belly. What could she possibly see in him? Was it his age? His lack of personal hygiene? Or maybe it was his three-bedroom house? I chuckled darkly as I continued to flip through Chloe’s file, comparing it to the chat logs. Chloe Parker came from a poor background, claiming to be a “working student.” She looked shy and quiet, but her ambition was sky-high. She wanted to use David as a stepping stone to live the high life. They had been involved for two months now—just long enough for David to get hooked. No wonder he had been so aggressive in my office that day. He must’ve been “recharged.” In their chats, Chloe even hinted at divorce, throwing out comments like: “Daddy, I’d be happy to give you more kids. We could name them Do, Re, and Mi, like musical notes.” Such a fake, innocent front. David, however, gave the classic “woke cheater” response: “I have a wife. What kids are you going to have with me?” “We’re having an affair, not a relationship, Chloe. You need to get your head straight.” But she wouldn’t let it go, pushing the subject at every chance. I laughed to myself. A girl like her, so new to this game, thinking she could take my place. It was almost laughable. David, of course, continued dodging her hints. I knew deep down, David didn’t have the guts to ask for a divorce. Chloe was just a fun distraction for him. That’s how business works. David and I owned West Jewelers together—everything we had built was intertwined. If one thread unraveled, the whole thing could collapse. He couldn’t leave me, yet he crossed a line that my morality and sense of loyalty couldn’t forgive—he cheated. My expression darkened. I I never thought the strategies I used to deal with business competitors would one day be used on my own husband. Since you’ve betrayed me, David, don’t expect mercy.…

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