Three years ago, my sister-in-law ran off with another man right after giving birth. My brother went crazy looking for her for a long time, but eventually, he disappeared without a trace too. Recently, my niece fell into a dry well while playing. I quickly called an excavator for rescue, but my mom stopped me: “Don’t dig! Something bad will happen!” Everyone thought my mom was just being superstitious. But unexpectedly, while rescuing my niece, they dug up a skeleton. 1 My mom’s face turned ashen, and she trembled uncontrollably. I frowned, pulled her aside, and asked: “Mom, what’s wrong?” The look she gave me was full of terror. “Chloe, this…” Seeing everyone’s eyes turn to us, I smiled naturally. “Mom, don’t be afraid. Who knows how many years this skeleton has been here. The police will investigate and find out.” I motioned for her to relax. Then I handed my niece over to my mom and told them to go home first. As soon as my mom left, I heard the neighbors whispering behind me. “A few years ago, her daughter-in-law ran off with a man. Could that have been a lie? Did she die here?” “No wonder her son searched for so long without any news.” Noticing me standing nearby, they immediately shut their mouths. Three years ago, right after my sister-in-law gave birth, she finished her confinement month and ran off with a man. My brother couldn’t accept it and went crazy searching for her everywhere. He was gone for years, and his contact with the family was sporadic. Eventually, even he vanished without a trace. For these past few years, my mom and niece have been supported by the money I earned. Hearing these speculations, I felt a sudden tension in my heart. The police arrived very quickly and immediately set up a cordon. The forensic examiner was checking the bottom of the well. An older officer walked towards the crowd. “Who found this skeleton? Whose property is this?” Everyone pointed at me. His gaze fell on me, and he asked: “How did you find it?” I took a deep breath, gathered my thoughts, and said: “My niece was playing and accidentally fell into this dry well. I called an excavator to rescue her, and that’s when we found this skeleton.” The man nodded and took notes, continuing without looking up: “Has anyone gone missing in the past few years?” The onlookers instantly exploded, immediately bringing up my runaway sister-in-law. They described it vividly. The officer frowned and looked at me again. “Your sister-in-law ran away three years ago? And there’s been no news of her since?” My face instantly froze, and I nodded stiffly. Just then, the forensic examiner at the bottom of the well reported: “Time of death: Three years ago.” “Age: Around 25-30 years old.” Suddenly he shouted in surprise: “I found something else.” He picked up a wedding ring with tweezers and handed it to us. My face instantly drained of color. 2 “Do you recognize this?” I nodded. “This is my sister-in-law’s wedding ring.” In the interrogation room, I recalled my sister-in-law just after she gave birth three years ago. My dad sighed constantly at home. “Just a girl? And she ruined her body and can’t have any more? Is our Su family line going to end here?” My dad, who was hoping for a grandson, was so angry he fell seriously ill. The illness came very fast and fierce. My usually strong and healthy dad didn’t even last a week before he passed away. Before he died, he held my brother’s hand and pleaded: “Son, you must have a boy to continue the Su family line.” Hearing this, my sister-in-law, who hadn’t even finished her confinement month, turned pale. After my dad’s funeral, my brother started forcing himself on my sister-in-law, who was still recovering. It caused a huge scene, and my sister-in-law’s family came over twice. But after finding out it was about having a child, they didn’t ask much. Until one time my brother came home drunk and started beating my sister-in-law again: “If you can’t carry on the Su family line, what’s the point of keeping you around?” Hearing this, something different appeared in my sister-in-law’s eyes. She started fighting back against my brother’s domestic violence. But my sister-in-law had been malnourished since childhood and was relatively weak. Compared to my strong and healthy brother, the difference was significant. That day’s domestic violence ended with my sister-in-law covered in bruises. The day my sister-in-law ran away, I happened to be running errands in town. By the time I returned to the village, I heard from the neighbors that she had run off with a man. When I entered the house, I saw my mom holding the child, cowering and sobbing uncontrollably. My brother was throwing things around, trembling with rage. A few close relatives were gathered around, all trying to console him: “If the wife runs away, let her run. She can’t have kids anyway, so it’s a good thing you can find another one.” My brother was gritting his teeth in anger. “I won’t let this matter go so easily.” Then he took the child and went to my sister-in-law’s family home to make a huge scene. He forcefully took back the three thousand dollar bride price he had given them. Hearing this, the officer in front of me frowned deeply. “So you’re saying your sister-in-law was scared of being beaten by your brother, and that’s why she ran away?” “Isn’t it? If she stayed any longer, my sister-in-law really would have been beaten to death by my brother. Isn’t it normal for her to find a chance to run?” But the police officer’s next sentence made my entire body go cold instantly. “Your sister-in-law had no chance to contact the outside world. How did she connect with the man who took her away?” 3 The atmosphere instantly dropped to freezing point. “According to our investigation, your sister-in-law is traditional in her thinking and hasn’t seen much of the world. So how did she plan such a detailed escape?” I hadn’t thought deeply about this, and was stunned. “Then maybe someone else helped her make contact?” Just then, someone knocked on the door and handed him a few documents. After reading the contents, Officer Zhang, the older officer, changed his expression slightly. He glanced at me and said: “The skeleton was examined and found to be male. It’s not your sister-in-law.” This time it was my turn to be surprised. “If it’s not my sister-in-law, who else could it be?” “My sister-in-law always treasured her wedding ring. Even I haven’t touched it.” He then continued reading the rest of the documents, his expression growing more solemn. “We took DNA from the skeleton and your niece. It confirms a father-daughter relationship.” Hearing this, I was so shocked I stood up abruptly. Then I said in disbelief: “What? This skeleton is my brother?” “But that’s impossible. When my brother went looking for my sister-in-law, he still contacted the family.” Ever since my sister-in-law ran off with that man, my brother couldn’t swallow his anger. I don’t know who he heard it from, but he found out someone had seen my sister-in-law down south. My brother went crazy, took all the money in the house. He also said he wouldn’t come back until he found my sister-in-law. Then he took two sets of clothes and left the house. From then on, my brother never came back. My mom was worried sick and asked all the villagers who came back from working outside. But there was no news at all. Officer Zhang’s eyes were full of scrutiny. He glanced at me and continued: “But the DNA test between the skeleton and your mom does not support a mother-child relationship.” Hearing this, my mind went completely blank. My first reaction was that my sister-in-law had cheated. “I didn’t expect my sister-in-law to look so honest. After marrying my brother, she always managed the household chores at home, but behind our backs, she did such a shameless thing.” I was instantly filled with anger. But why would this man die in that dry well? 4 Officer Zhang shook his head and explained: “Your mom said your brother wasn’t her child, but the identity of the skeleton still needs to be confirmed.” I immediately got anxious. “That’s impossible. Since I was little, my parents always said I was picked up, and my brother was their biological child. They told me to repay them well when I grew up.” Officer Zhang’s eyes were a bit complex. “According to your mom’s confession, you are her biological child.” In an instant, my mind felt like it exploded again. Since I was little, I was instilled with the idea that my brother came first in everything. So every time I came home from school, I would work non-stop. On the other hand, my brother didn’t have to do anything, and it didn’t matter if his grades were poor. My parents doted on him very much. If he wasn’t their biological child, how could this be? Seeming to see my confusion, Officer Zhang spoke up: “When your mom had her first child, she gave birth to a girl. Your dad favored boys over girls, so he secretly swapped the baby with someone else’s.” I was instantly stunned, taking a long time to process this. No wonder my parents, who favored boys over girls, would agree to let me go to college. At the time, my aunt even pointed at me and said: “Brother, sister-in-law, I really don’t understand you. Why let a girl go to college? It’s better to marry her off early and collect a bride price.” A look of conflict flashed in my parents’ eyes, but they ultimately didn’t do that. Even though I paid for my tuition and living expenses with loans and part-time jobs. Their willingness to give me this opportunity to go to college moved me for a long time. Thinking about it now, it wasn’t my parents discovering their conscience. It was because I was their biological child, and they just happened to awaken a tiny bit of parental love at that time. Officer Zhang continued to flip through the identification materials and said: “The skeleton’s right leg has a traumatic bone injury, and the cause of death is a severe impact to the head. But traces of poisoning were also found on the skeleton.” “And your brother injured his right leg when he was twenty. The injury and location are consistent.” I was so nervous my hands trembled slightly, trying hard to keep my face calm. “So this skeleton is my brother?” My relationship with my brother has never been good. When we were young, he caused trouble, and I got beaten; he stole money, and I got scolded. Because of his framing, I was punished by kneeling on the ground for 2 hours in 100-degree weather. He just treated me like a servant to be ordered around. Officer Zhang didn’t answer me. Instead, he changed the subject and brought up the runaway sister-in-law again: “You helped your sister-in-law escape, didn’t you? Otherwise, how could a rural woman who doesn’t know anything leave so smoothly?” 5 My heart almost missed a beat. I smiled awkwardly: “Officer Zhang, you need evidence when you speak. Besides, what does this have to do with that matter?” He paused slightly and voiced a shocking speculation. “Your sister-in-law’s wedding ring was found at the scene. We suspect she is the criminal suspect. So if you helped her escape, you are an indirect accomplice.” Hearing this, I deflated like a punctured balloon and slumped into the chair. I couldn’t believe things would turn out like this. Officer Zhang’s sharp eyes stared at me intently, and he continued: “You said your brother contacted the family after he went out? But we found no communication records at all. You’re lying.” Saying this, he clasped his hands together and leaned back in his chair. I instantly felt like I was sitting on pins and needles. He was right. I did lie about this. Since my brother went looking for my sister-in-law, he had never contacted me. But my mom was always very worried. To comfort her, I pretended to receive messages from my brother. It’s been like this for the past few years, and my mom never suspected anything. “So, the last time you saw your brother was also three years ago?” I nodded in confirmation. “Did anything else special happen at that time?” I fell into deep thought, trying to remember. Suddenly I remembered a detail that I had overlooked all this time. “Before my brother left, he seemed to have a fierce argument with my mom. I was just coming back from outside holding my niece. When they saw me, they immediately shut their mouths.” “That night, my brother unprecedentedly wanted to take care of my niece himself, snatching her from my hands. But he had never taken care of her before. I was worried and told my mom. She didn’t say much, just told me to go to bed early, and then left the house alone.” Officer Zhang quickly took notes, occasionally looking up to ask for details. But after three years, my memory was a bit fuzzy. Upon getting this information, Officer Zhang immediately contacted someone to verify. A moment later, news came from the other side. “Your mom said that day your brother drank too much and wanted to sell your niece, but she disagreed, and an argument broke out. So when she knew your niece was taken by him, she chased after him.” “Your brother stepped on a bear trap near the dry well, and your mom snatched your niece from him. But after taking your niece home and going back, your brother was gone.” 6 My brother had indeed said before that he wanted to sell my niece for money. At the time, I thought he was joking. I didn’t expect him to actually do it. Just then, a female police officer hurried in. “The girl brought back earlier had an allergic reaction to something she ate and has been sent to the hospital.” I immediately stood up anxiously. “Did you guys feed her peanuts just now? My niece is allergic to peanuts.” The female officer immediately apologized, and then took us straight to the hospital. When we arrived, I saw my mom taking care of her nearby, followed by two police officers. Officer Zhang glanced at my niece, who was out of danger, and then kept looking at me. He asked: “Is your niece the only one allergic to peanuts in your family?” I instantly froze. It was my mom who answered for me. “Chloe is also allergic to peanuts. When she was little, she accidentally ate peanuts and had allergic reactions several times.” I saw the officers exchange glances, and I felt a sense of dread. “Chloe Su, please leave a blood sample for testing.” Under the guidance of the police officer, I was forced to leave a blood sample. Then my eyelids kept twitching wildly. I suddenly felt that some things really couldn’t be hidden anymore. The next day, I was brought to the interrogation room again. Watching Officer Zhang walk in holding a report, I felt a bit restless. He sighed and stared at me, saying: “This report shows that you and your niece have a mother-daughter relationship. Can you explain this?” I involuntarily felt a bit panicked. I sighed deeply. It was finally discovered. Officer Zhang frowned and continued: “The DNA of that skeleton has been compared with the sample your brother left at the police station, and the result is out. If you confess now, perhaps there’s still a chance for a reduced sentence.” Hearing this, I suddenly laughed. “That’s right, my niece is indeed my child. And my sister-in-law miscarried due to domestic violence shortly after confirming her pregnancy.” Clang. The teacup in Officer Zhang’s hand fell to the floor. “Then that skeleton must be my brother, right?” He nodded stiffly. “Compared with your brother’s DNA sample, it’s a match.” Then he asked in disbelief: “Your niece is the child of you and your brother?” “Yes.” I answered crisply, letting out a long sigh. “How did you get pregnant?” The voice asking the question was a bit shaky, and he involuntarily leaned back. That sentence ripped open another large gash in the bottomless darkness.

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My parents were cowards their entire lives. The only person they ever dared to throw their weight around with was my sister-in-law. They firmly believed: “She’s been chasing your brother since high school. She can’t live without him.” When they got married, my mom didn’t contribute a single cent. She even shamelessly took over the master bedroom that my sister-in-law had paid to renovate. My sister-in-law didn’t make a fuss about it. Because of that, my mom thought she had completely dominated this “pushover.” She bragged to everyone she met about how capable my brother was, landing a beautiful, successful wife who actually paid her own way into the family. But what they didn’t know was that every late night, after they had made things difficult for her, my brother would drop to his knees and beg my sister-in-law for forgiveness. Like a dog wagging its tail, begging for pity. In the second year of their marriage, my sister-in-law never came back. And neither did my brother. 1 My sister-in-law was my brother’s high school classmate. They had been together since college, dating for seven years. Whenever my mom brought her up, she always had a look of absolute certainty. “I saw her back then. Following your brother around with a huge smile, greeting me so enthusiastically.” “Your brother said they were just classmates, but I could tell even then she was throwing herself at him.” My sister-in-law really did do a lot. My brother admitted as much himself. “She’s too good to me.” He said that from Chicago to Boston, and then to New York, through all their moves, she handled everything. Renting apartments, buying furniture, settling in—she put in both the money and the effort. She worked hard, got promotions quickly, and eventually made twice as much as my brother. But she never minded. Even when it came to getting married, she took the initiative. In our rural town, taking in a daughter-in-law meant treating her like royalty. From the engagement to the wedding, money usually flowed out like water. But my sister-in-law was different. She loved spending money on our family. The first time she visited, she gave each of us a pearl necklace, packed in exquisite boxes. Seeing that our house was too dilapidated to be a proper bridal home, she paid out of pocket to have it fully renovated, inside and out. Later, when discussing the dowry, she only asked for ten thousand dollars. But the moment my mom heard that, she started crying poor: “Ten thousand? Where are we supposed to get that kind of money? Is she trying to drive us to the grave?” My brother got annoyed. “Mom, ten thousand is already the absolute minimum she could ask for under pressure. Any less, and she can’t justify it to her parents.” My dad, who usually took great pride in my brother, also pulled a long face. “It’s not that we don’t want to give it, but we’ve been paying for your education all these years. Where would we get savings?” “Son, Penny has a good temper. Just go coax her a little. She’s twenty-eight, a year older than you. Don’t you think her family is anxious?” “Mom,” my brother tried to reason. “Penny makes her own money. We just need to show some respect and do things properly so she feels valued. Won’t she be even more filial to you in the future?” “Filial?” My mom acted like she had heard a joke, her mouth twisting into a sneer. “Once she marries in, she’s a member of the Miller family. Isn’t it her duty to be good to her in-laws? Why should we have to buy that with money?” “What if she decides not to marry me?” My mom laughed, a shrewd glint in her eyes: “She’s been with you for so many years, everyone in town knows it! Who else is she going to marry? She knew our family’s financial situation from the start. I don’t believe for a second she’d throw away her reputation over a little money! If you won’t talk to her, I’ll go do it myself.” Terrified she would actually go and ruin everything, my brother bit the bullet and talked to her himself. When he came back, his face was ashen. And my sister-in-law, shockingly, asked for nothing at all. My mom excitedly slapped her thigh. “Really? I knew Penny was a good girl. Tell her not to worry, Mom will definitely love her like my own daughter from now on.” My brother didn’t reply and silently went into his room. But my mom was bursting with smugness, unable to hide her grin. “See, I told you. The more educated they are, the thinner their skin. They’re so easy to manipulate.” 2 On the day of the engagement, the bride’s relatives filled the room. But my mom stubbornly changed the agreed-upon $1,700 “meeting gift” to $1,100. She shoved the thin red envelope into my sister-in-law’s hands, sugarcoating her words: “$1,100. It’s a good omen, meaning you’re one in a thousand. You must accept it.” The bride’s parents’ faces instantly darkened. My brother anxiously pulled at her: “Mom! We agreed on seventeen hundred!” “This has always been the tradition around here!” She acted wronged instead, staring pointedly at my sister-in-law. “Penny, you’re not actually complaining it’s too little, are you?” My sister-in-law reached out to stop her parents, who were about to explode. The corners of her mouth lifted very slightly, and she pushed the envelope back. “Mrs. Miller, I can’t take this money. Leo and I can make our own money. It’s better if you two keep this for your retirement.” At the time, my mom completely missed the underlying implication in my sister-in-law’s words. She put up a fake show of declining twice, then turned to the in-laws with a radiant smile: “You’ve raised such a sensible daughter!” And just like that, the marriage was settled amidst my mom’s smug laughter. As soon as the guests left, she couldn’t wait to show off to the neighbors: “Oh my, our daughter-in-law is just too sensible. She knows we old folks have it hard, so she absolutely refused to take any money. She said as long as she’s with Leo, she’s perfectly happy.” Her smug face clearly broadcasted how capable she thought her son was. He didn’t have to spend a dime to marry a beautiful, capable wife who paid her own way. It allowed my parents, who had been cowards their whole lives, to finally hold their heads high with pride. The villagers were full of envy: “The Millers really lucked out. Marrying a daughter-in-law without spending any money.” “I heard she’s very successful too, even bought a house in the city!” “Tell me about it. Unlike our daughter-in-law, who asked for tens of thousands right off the bat. I lose sleep over it every night.” Hearing this, my dad proudly shared his “experience.” “Setups and blind dates are unreliable. You have to let the kids find an old classmate. There’s real affection there, so they don’t care about money.” “Sigh, my boy isn’t as capable as your Leo. He got into a great college!” The neighbor handed him a cigarette, his face full of envy. My dad immediately put on that same foolish, cowardly smile he’d worn for decades: “It’s just the kid working hard. We’re useless.” But before the ember on the cigarette even died down, he changed the subject: “Oh, by the way, that new AC in our house, and the fully automatic washing machine? Our daughter-in-law bought them. We told her it wasn’t necessary, but she insisted. Said she wanted us to enjoy life a little.” My dad tirelessly updated his “Daughter-in-Law’s Filial Piety Log” every single day. From her single-handedly organizing the wedding, to how meticulously she took care of me, his youngest daughter. In the winter, worried I’d be cold, she mailed an electric blanket directly to our house. Whenever new packages arrived, they were usually clothes or school supplies she bought for me. She would even frequently ask my brother to transfer me some pocket money, fifty or a hundred bucks at a time, never stingy. I liked my sister-in-law. She was ten years older than me, but she seemed to see my awkwardness from afar. Sometimes, before I could even voice a need, the thing I wanted would already be delivered to me. Her kindness towards me had clear boundaries; it was never overstepping, and it never felt like charity. Whenever I got a package and excitedly shared it with my mom, she would look at me with disdain: “Look, she’s at it again. Done sucking up to the old folks, now she’s sucking up to the kid.” My dad, after a couple of drinks, would smile in satisfaction: “Oh, she’s doing all this just to please your brother. If you ask me, she couldn’t survive without him.” But I always felt that wasn’t the case. I had video-called my brother once, and I clearly saw that with just one look from my sister-in-law, my brother would become incredibly careful and cautious. 3 But my parents didn’t see it that way. They ordered my sister-in-law around as if it was their divine right. Half a month before Thanksgiving, my dad urged my brother to come home: “This is the new bride’s first holiday with us. We have to visit all the relatives, and the gifts must be adequate. We can’t let people look down on the Miller family.” My brother agreed. They couldn’t come back right away, but he mailed a massive pile of things. My mom called every day to rush them. Finally, two days before Thanksgiving, they arrived. The moment their new car parked, my mom grabbed my sister-in-law’s hand, her smile hiding thorns: “Penny, you’re finally back! Making money in the big city really is different, you can only leave at the very last minute. Anyone would think the company couldn’t run without you. How much are they paying you that you can’t even get time off?” My sister-in-law smiled and nodded: “Yeah, the company is quite generous. They just gave me a ten thousand dollar year-end bonus, so I couldn’t just take time off casually.” My mom’s smile instantly froze on her face. Her mouth twitched, but she couldn’t find a response. She unconsciously let go of her hand and turned to dig through the gift boxes in the trunk. She raised her voice, as if trying to regain control of the situation: “This box is for your aunt! That carton of cigarettes is for your other aunt!” My sister-in-law didn’t reply. Meanwhile, my dad was squatting next to a case of premium bourbon, his fingers repeatedly tracing the gold lettering, his eyes wide. “Penny, you bought this? This… this must have cost a lot, right? Look at you, we’re all family, why are you being so polite? How is an old man like me worthy of drinking this?” He looked up and grinned, revealing a dark gap where a tooth was missing. My brother quickly walked over, helped him up, and said in a low voice: “Dad, Penny bought that specifically for her father. Since we didn’t give much money when we got married, her dad was pretty unhappy. We’re using the holidays to make him feel a bit better.” The smile lines on my dad’s face instantly froze. He let out a flat “Oh” and walked away with his hands behind his back. My mom’s face visibly darkened, and she immediately looked for another reason to exert authority. “Leo,” her voice was tight. “Before it gets completely dark, hurry up and take your wife to your eldest aunt’s house to deliver the gifts. We already arranged it, they’re waiting. Don’t be disrespectful.” My brother frowned: “Mom, I just drove for eight or nine hours, and Penny is tired too. Can’t we just go tomorrow?” “What kind of talk is that?” My mom kept smiling, but her words were forceful. “Relative etiquette is more important than anything. If you don’t go, people will say your wife doesn’t know any better. You need to think about your wife’s reputation.” Before she finished speaking, she looked up at my sister-in-law. “Penny, tell me, is Mom right or wrong?” My sister-in-law looked up, still wearing that docile expression, and nodded: “I’ll follow your arrangement.” I watched my brother and sister-in-law drag their exhausted bodies back into the car. “Mom, you’re rushing them too much. Leo is clearly unhappy,” I couldn’t help but say. “What do you know?” The smile vanished from my mom’s face, replaced by a cold, calculating gleam. “When a new bride enters the house, you have to establish the rules first. Don’t think that just because she makes more money, she can look down on our family. If you don’t grind down her temper right from the start, your brother will be the one suffering later. I’m doing this for your brother’s own good.” “I think my sister-in-law is perfectly fine. Don’t go overboard,” my dad said with a dark expression, pulling a bottle of the premium bourbon out of the case. “How am I going overboard? Your mom is right. Someone like her, who starts favoring outsiders the second she makes a little money, needs to be disciplined. Her dad is a dad, and I’m not a dad?” He stiffened his neck and poured himself a small glass. I was shocked. “Dad, isn’t that the bourbon my sister-in-law bought to give as a gift?” “I’m just trying it today. What’s she going to do if I drink it?” 4 My brother and sister-in-law came back very late. My sister-in-law was shivering from the cold, and my brother was busy boiling hot water for her. She turned around, saw me, and quickly pulled a red envelope out of her pocket, stuffing it into my hands. “Here, Chloe. Your brother and I’s holiday gift to you. Wishing you peace and joy every year.” She was still smiling gently. I squeezed the envelope, my throat tightening. The issue with the alcohol felt like a heavy stone pressing against the back of my tongue. But looking at her exhausted face, I couldn’t bring myself to say anything. It was my brother who noticed the open case. His face turned dark. “Dad, did you touch this liquor?” My dad shuffled out of the back room in his worn-out slippers. He reeked of alcohol, his face flushed red, and his usually hunched back was now standing straight. “So what if I touched it? The liquor my daughter-in-law bought… as the father, I can’t drink it?” My brother was trembling with anger. “Didn’t I tell you…” “Tell me what? If I want to drink it, I’ll drink it!” Perhaps the alcohol had given him liquid courage, stripping away his usual cowardice, making the veins bulge on his neck. He suddenly turned his spear toward my silent sister-in-law: “Penny, you tell me! This liquor, can I drink it or not?” All eyes were pinned on my sister-in-law. She stood quietly in the doorway, still wearing that faint smile. “Of course you can,” her voice didn’t have a single ripple of emotion. “Since it’s open, you can keep the rest of this bottle. I’ll just buy another one for my dad. But I don’t have any cash on me right now, so the envelope Leo originally prepared for you will probably have to go toward filling this hole.” The arrogance on my dad’s face vanished instantly, freezing in place. “Buy? You’re going to buy more?” My mom’s shrill voice abruptly cut in. “Did money fall from the sky, for you to waste it like this?! You wasteful, useless…” “Mom!” My brother let out a low, sudden roar, cutting her off. “It’s the holidays, what are you trying to do? Just go back to your room.” My mom glared at my brother, her face red and her neck thick with rage. “Why should I go back to my room? Look at your wonderful wife, trying to use your dad’s money to honor her own family! Does she have any manners at all?” She took a sudden step forward. “I’m going to teach her a lesson for you today.” My brother anxiously stepped in front of my parents, grabbed their arms, and without another word, shoved them toward their room. My heart was pounding in terror as I stole a glance at my sister-in-law. There wasn’t a trace of the anger I expected. She just looked at my brother’s tense back, turned around, and went into her room. I felt incredibly uneasy and couldn’t sleep. My sister-in-law’s calm, almost apathetic look was like the winter moon—cold and distant. The living room had long since gone quiet. I noticed a faint sliver of yellow light leaking from under my brother’s door. Driven by some strange compulsion, I crept closer. I heard my brother’s voice, kept extremely low, carrying a kind of broken, desperate pleading I had never heard from him before. “Honey, I know they’re being unreasonable, I’m furious too… just one last time, one last time, okay? If they keep acting this oblivious, we’ll leave immediately… I’m begging you…” That voice didn’t sound like a husband. It sounded more like a dog wagging its tail, begging for pity. My heart skipped a beat, and my suspicions were finally confirmed. As it turned out, the one being manipulated was never my sister-in-law. It was my brother. 5 The next morning, my mom woke up early and banged loudly on my brother’s door. “Leo, time to get up.” I quickly ran over and pulled her away. “Mom, Leo and Penny went to bed late last night, you shouldn’t bother them.” She glared at me, using the opportunity to scold me instead: “You have the nerve to talk? Sleeping in until the sun is high in the sky. When you get married, let’s see who can tolerate this attitude of yours!” I lowered my voice and tried to reason with her: “Mom, Penny is going to get mad if you do this. Just for Leo’s sake, give it a rest.” She looked as if she had heard the funniest joke in the world: “What right does she have to get mad? If your brother hadn’t said we shouldn’t make a scene during the holidays, you think I would have let that wasteful brat off the hook so easily yesterday? She’s lazy and ruins our finances, your brother will divorce her sooner or later!” I panicked and blurted out: “Mom, can’t you see? Leo only said that to save face! He’s absolutely terrified of Penny, that’s why yesterday…” “You ungrateful traitor!” My mom cut me off sharply, poking my forehead hard with her finger. “What kind of magic potion did she give you? Bought your loyalty with a few cheap clothes, and now you’re seeing things? Where do you see your brother being afraid of her? Of her?” Her yelling grew louder and louder. My brother walked out of the room with a dark expression and pulled her out into the yard: “Mom! Can you keep your voice down?!” Being disrespected by her son in public, my mom couldn’t save face. “Leo, you can’t spoil a woman too much. Your wife…” “Mom, what young person doesn’t sleep in nowadays? You never used to wake me up like this, why do you insist on knocking on the door now that she’s married to me?” “I’m disciplining my daughter-in-law for you! How can we let her act like she owns the place in our house?” “Enough, do you just have to cause trouble?” My brother looked utterly exhausted. “I’ll wake her up in a bit. We’re not eating at home today, I’m taking her to visit a few of my uncles.” Hearing “uncles,” my mom’s expression instantly brightened. “Yes, yes, you should go! Have your wife prepare some good stuff. Your uncles are wealthy, they look down on cheap things. Take those two bottles of premium liquor with you.” “Yeah.” My brother gave a vague reply and turned to walk back inside. She didn’t notice the profound annoyance on my brother’s face. Filled with excitement, she enthusiastically shoved all the gifts my sister-in-law had originally prepared for her own family into the trunk. Not long after, he took my sister-in-law and left. For the next two days, they always left right after waking up and only returned late at night. My mom’s smugness practically overflowed at the dinner table. “See that? That’s how you order a new bride around. Making her run around visiting relatives and learning the routes is the only way she can earn face for us!” I stared at the greasy food in my bowl and couldn’t help but talk back: “Mom, have you ever considered that maybe Penny just doesn’t want to be in this house, which is why she’d rather be out running around all day?” “She wouldn’t dare!” My mom slammed her chopsticks onto the table, her eyes wide. “It’s not up to her whether she wants to stay in this house or not. You think your brother would let her get away with that?” I gave a bitter smile and didn’t argue with her. I just hoped that once my parents’ anger subsided, they would stop causing trouble and pushing my brother away. However, the conflict exploded during Thanksgiving dinner anyway. 6 That day, the Thanksgiving dinner was already on the table when my brother finally brought my sister-in-law home. My mom looked thoroughly displeased. “Penny, come help out in the kitchen. Learn how to prepare the fish. Leo loves fish, so you’ll need to know how to make it for him in the future.” My sister-in-law didn’t move from her seat, just offered a slight smile: “There’s no need. I don’t like eating fish, and I don’t know how to cook it.” “If you don’t know how, then learn! Are you expecting Leo to serve you for the rest of your life?” My brother quickly stepped in, trying to push my mom back toward the kitchen. “Come on, Mom. If you’re too busy, I’ll help you. I like cooking, and I’m better at it than she is.” “Nonsense!” My dad sat on the sofa, pulling a long face. “Women’s work. What’s a grown man doing getting involved? You’re embarrassing yourself!” “What’s embarrassing about it?” My brother’s voice was full of exhaustion as he reprimanded my dad. “How is a man loving his wife embarrassing? You should have thrown out those outdated, feudal ideas a long time ago!” Seeing my brother’s dark expression, my dad’s lips trembled, but he didn’t say another word. I quickly went into the kitchen, helped my mom finish the fish, and brought it out. But the atmosphere at the dinner table remained stiff. My sister-in-law didn’t seem to care, picking up her chopsticks and eating on her own. Seeing that my sister-in-law wasn’t angry, my brother seemed to let out a sigh of relief, smiling as he placed a piece of ribs in her bowl. My mom watched this and suddenly let out a sharp laugh: “Penny, in the city… do you also enjoy this kind of luxury? Every meal served to you ready-made?” My sister-in-law chewed slowly, swallowed, and finally looked up, smiling gently: “Yes. Leo just loves cooking and serving me.” She paused. “When he works overtime, I hire a maid. Anyway, I can afford it.” “A maid?” My mom’s voice pitched up sharply. “Does money fall from the sky? Now that you’ve married in, that money belongs to the Miller family! How dare you waste it like that?” “The Miller family’s?” My sister-in-law gently set down her chopsticks, her voice remaining calm. “Do you still not know that everything Leo has is mine? Even he himself belongs to the Davis family now!” My mom looked at her in disbelief, her voice trembling: “What do you mean?” My sister-in-law smiled. “It means he gave me all of his money, and I used it to buy a house that’s solely in my name, purchased before we got married. He transferred his residency to my address and became a part of the Davis household. Therefore, the head of the household is me. Now, don’t you think it’s perfectly justified for him to serve me?” Dead silence fell over the dinner table. My parents shot terrified and furious glares at my brother. He took a deep breath, as if using the last of his strength: “Why are you looking at me like that? Our family is so poor, and you weren’t willing to contribute a single cent. If I didn’t pay up, what right would I have to marry a wife?” “Penny is so outstanding. What made you think she would willingly pay her own way to marry me?” My parents looked as if they had been struck by lightning, unable to speak for a long time. My sister-in-law casually finished her meal, pushed her bowl away, and went back to her room.

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On my first day back, I ran into a man in my father’s study. My father said he was someone our whole family needed to suck up to, holding enough resources to decide our family’s life or death. But I recognized him. When I was studying abroad, I had locked him in my room. And toyed with him for six whole months. 1 On the day after my father’s birthday, I timed my return carefully. I knew they didn’t want me appearing at the birthday banquet, so I simply stayed away to avoid being a nuisance. An unfamiliar car was parked in the villa’s courtyard, a place where vehicles were usually forbidden. Its aggressive parking job had crushed several of my dad’s most prized orchids. The inside of the villa was unusually quiet. The maids stood silently at attention, looking like they were preparing for battle. “Do we have a guest?” I asked. “Yes, so Miss, you’d better hurry back to your room,” said Mrs. Hughes, the most senior maid. Too lazy to argue about their attitude toward me, I lifted my foot to head upstairs to my room, but was suddenly yanked back by my suitcase. It was Olivia Vance, who had sprung out from nowhere. “Sister, I played a piano piece in front of everyone at Dad’s birthday banquet yesterday, and all the maestros present praised me. Good thing you didn’t come back, otherwise, what could you have possibly contributed?” She crossed her arms and looked me up and down. “Two years studying abroad, and your taste is still this trashy.” “Sister, you’re really an embarrassment to the Vance family.” I yanked my suitcase back and looked at her coldly: “Are you done?” “No matter what I’m like, it’s Vance blood running in my veins. But you, constantly emphasizing those things you can do, is nothing more than making excuses for your own insecurities.” I shook her off, picked up my suitcase, and headed upstairs. Just as I was about to step onto the final landing, I heard Olivia’s rapid footsteps behind me. She suddenly rushed up, grabbed my arm, and yelled: “Sister! If you’re mad at me, just take it out on me! How could you barge in and ruin Dad’s business!” “I already explained it to you! It’s not that Dad didn’t want to see you, he has important business in the study!” The urgency in her voice, the anxiety on her face—the Oscars owed her a golden statue. Funnily enough, amidst the roaring of this runaway Best Actress, my dad’s study door happened to open. He took in the entire dispute between Olivia and me. Wearing a formal suit, he glared at me viciously. Then, his face broke into an obsequious smile as he turned toward the man who had just emerged from the study. My dad’s furious glare hadn’t scared me. However, when I saw the other man, a mixed-race man in a black trench coat, the blood in my veins seemed to freeze. He slowly lifted his eyes, sharp as a falcon’s. And locked eyes with me, standing on the spiral staircase. 2 It was during my second year studying abroad in Melbourne that I picked up a man off the street. More accurately, I was forced to pick him up. In the darkness, I couldn’t see what kind of injuries he had, I could only feel the cold, hard barrel of a gun pressed against my waist. Lightning split the sky, casting an even sharper, colder light in his eyes. “Shut up and take me to a safe place, now!” I stared at him fixedly, not moving. He didn’t know that going out on a stormy night like this, I was originally looking to die. But I still took him back to my place. It wasn’t the gun against my waist that scared me, but his face, illuminated for a split second by the lightning. He was truly an unparalleled, exotic beauty. That was my only thought. Having wandered around for so long, I had seen my fair share of top-tier handsome men. But this was the first time I had seen someone with such aggressive, wild sex appeal. The more dangerous, the more captivating. Since I was going to die anyway, why shouldn’t I enjoy the eye candy heaven sent me? He was very alert. When I bandaged him, I could feel the tense muscles underneath, like an agile panther ready to spring and attack at any moment. His tan abs were sharply defined. When I placed my hand on them, he opened his eyes almost instantly. Like the alpha wolf in a pack, glinting with ferocity. But he still needed my help, so he temporarily forgave my intrusive touch. “Bandaging is done…” Halfway through my sentence, I remembered he didn’t understand Chinese. My spoken English was terrible. After I stuttered out a few words, he finally spoke, unable to bear it any longer: “Speak Chinese.” He actually understood Chinese? Without time to ponder, I continued: “Bandaging is done, but there’s not enough medicine for the next change. I’ll go buy some tomorrow.” He gave a slight nod, but didn’t put away the gun in his hand: “When you go out tomorrow, don’t draw attention.” Saying that, he pressed the gun forward threateningly. The next day, while buying medicine, the more I thought about it, the angrier I got. I was clearly the one who saved him, yet I ended up being viciously threatened by him. At the time, I was at the absolute rock bottom of my life, having been abandoned for the third time. The anger rising from my heart, combined with lusting after his looks, made me do the most insane thing I’ve ever done in my life— I locked up this highly dangerous man. I wanted to tame a wild beast. I find it hard to imagine now why I had so much guts back then. I can only explain it as being fueled by a massive adrenaline rush. So much so that when I mixed a sedative with his wound medicine and applied it to his injuries, my hands didn’t even tremble. Otherwise, given his sharpness, my neck would have been snapped right then and there. Perhaps he never imagined that an ordinary international student he bumped into on the street would have the audacity to lock him up. So when he woke up three hours later and saw the chains on his wrists, his first words were: “Who sent you?” And it took him a whole week to accept the fact that I truly wasn’t acting on anyone’s orders, but was purely insane and lusting after his body. He never expected that after riding the wind and waves, seeing all kinds of schemes, tricks, and monsters, he would end up being sexually assaulted by a little girl in a cramped, poor alleyway. If word got out, he’d be too ashamed to show his face anywhere. I never knew his name. I only saw the letters “Mu” on a bloodstained business card when I changed his clothes. So, I called him “Mu.” He never objected to it. That’s right, not only did I lock him up, but I also changed his clothes and took the opportunity to grope him. To be honest, on the second day after locking him up, I regretted it. The adrenaline rush was over, leaving me with a massive mess. Everyone has moments when they don’t want to live, and then they go crazy. Now the crazy phase was over, I was sober, and there was no crying over spilled milk. I could only bite the bullet and ride out my mistake. If I let him go now, he would definitely kill me; if he escaped later, he would definitely kill me too. Since I was going to die either way, I might as well take some liberties first. After all, dying under a peony flower makes even a ghost flirtatious. Ever since he found out I wasn’t an assassin sent by his enemies, his attitude became very subtle. For the first few days, he would darkly remind me that when he got out, he would flay me alive and make me die a thousand deaths. After I gagged him with a cucumber, he visibly wanted to kill me even more. But after realizing I was purely lustful, every time I changed his clothes, he would lean there, eyes narrowed, following my movements, his gaze roaming over me. Like a large carnivore assessing the prey it was about to hunt. Dissatisfied with his gaze, I lifted his tank top and rubbed him all over. I wanted him to know that right now, I was the master of this body. But the moment he moved his leg, I fell onto him in a very undignified posture. I bristled and bit him right on the neck. 3 As you can see, our past interactions were… not exactly friendly. So much so that seeing him again today, my first thought was— Run. Run away fast. That damn Olivia Vance, she just had to grab me at this exact moment. “Sister, are you leaving as soon as you get back? Mom and Dad will be sad.” “If you cause trouble, you have to admit your mistakes. Mom and Dad taught me since I was little that as a daughter of the Vance family, you have to take responsibility.” After trying to put me down with her fake-sweet act, she turned back to my dad and Mr. Mu: “Mr. Mu, my sister was a bit reckless with her management, but she absolutely didn’t mean it. I apologize to you on her behalf.” Olivia smiled sweetly, but he didn’t even spare her a glance, saying calmly: “Apologize for her?” “Who do you think you are?” I really wanted to live without manners for once, just like Mr. Mu. It feels so good. Olivia choked instantly. My dad smiled apologetically from the side: “My daughter has been living abroad year-round, without anyone to teach her properly. She doesn’t understand etiquette and has a cowardly personality. If she offended you, it’s my fault for not raising her right.” Mr. Mu remained unappreciative: “Yesterday at his birthday banquet, Mr. Vance was introducing his beloved daughter everywhere. When did he suddenly get another daughter?” That one sentence made my dad’s old face flush red. I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. But before I could hide my grinning teeth, Mr. Mu shifted his gaze to me again: “Cowardly personality?” “Mr. Vance probably knows absolutely nothing about his own daughter.” I only just realized that aside from his combat skills, Mr. Mu’s verbal sparring was also top-tier. In two minutes, he scolded all three of us. The three of us were completely dominated by him, none daring to speak. Until Mr. Mu dropped his gaze onto me again: “Since you say she offended me, then let her see me out.” My dad hurriedly said: “Yes, yes, yes, Chloe, go see him out…” Before he could finish, I interrupted him directly: “I don’t understand etiquette, so I won’t see you out.” Then I grabbed my suitcase and ran as fast as my legs could carry me. Back in my room, I leaned against the door, double-checking that it was locked before letting out a long breath. As tough as I acted just now, that’s how guilty I felt inside. Sure enough, people shouldn’t do bad things. Even if you do just one, it will come knocking on your door. I originally thought we were separated by mountains and rivers and would never see each other again. I never expected him to suddenly appear at my doorstep and become my dad’s company’s biggest client. A man with money and power, accustomed to being above everyone else, catching the culprit who kicked him while he was down and locked him up to play with—what would he do? I shuddered just thinking about it. Be alone with him? Even if you lent me ten guts right now, I wouldn’t dare. After living in fear for a few days, Mr. Mu still didn’t come looking for trouble. I deceptively let my guard down, becoming less vigilant. Tonight, Richard Vance asked me out to eat. The message Mrs. Hughes brought me was that it was a welcome-home dinner. I didn’t believe it for a second. Sure enough, as soon as we sat down, my mom, who hadn’t shown her face for days, scolded me. “You didn’t even come back for your dad’s birthday. Are you really that busy?” I moved my chair a bit further away: “But didn’t you guys also not want me to appear at the birthday banquet?” My mom choked on my words, turning pale: “Who said that.” I didn’t reply, just stared at her fixedly until she guiltily averted her gaze. Mom, I’m in my twenties, not a few years old. I’ve been able to read your emotions and attitudes for a long time. I got lost when I was four and was separated from them for twenty years. When I found them, I was more excited than anyone. They were probably like that at first too. Until they discovered that the university I attended was very ordinary, that I didn’t speak several foreign languages, and that I possessed no special talents. My value in their hearts plummeted. Knowing nothing about art exhibitions, unable to play the piano, not recognizing designer brands—this daughter, reunited after twenty years, gradually became the “poor relative” they couldn’t present in public. In contrast, Olivia, the adopted daughter they took in for comfort after I went missing, was the perfect high-society lady in their hearts. So they didn’t want me appearing too much. It was best if everyone didn’t know that the Vance family had a mud-covered sparrow. Olivia, acting like she was giving earnest advice, was actually fanning the flames: “Sister, no matter what, Mom and Dad are our closest blood relatives. You can’t ruin Dad’s business just because you’re holding a grudge.” ??? What a massive blame to shoulder. Reminded by Olivia, my mom reprimanded me: “Mr. Mu is our family’s biggest client. If you offend him, are we all supposed to starve?” “What kind of nonsense were you spouting at the study door that day? He’ll be here in a bit, apologize to him properly.” Wait, wait?! He’s, coming, here? I abruptly stood up: “Who did you say is coming?” “Mr. Mu?!” I stood up and ran toward the door. At that exact moment, the room door opened, and I almost slammed headfirst into the doorframe. Dodging backward hastily, I lost my center of gravity and fell backward. I was grabbed by the incoming person and yanked close. The person in front of me, like a demon from hell, smiled at me: “Don’t be in such a hurry, Chlo-e.” He recognized me. 4 The meal was agonizing; I didn’t dare lift my head the entire time. I didn’t hear a word of the pleasantries between my parents and Mr. Mu, until Mr. Mu suddenly spoke: “Miss Vance looks very much like an old acquaintance of mine.” My dad, hearing this, immediately became interested. This was a rare opportunity to bridge the gap. He hurriedly asked: “Is it a friend of yours?” Mr. Mu stared at me, a chilling smile on his face: “No, an enemy.” He twisted the thumb ring on his hand, the ruby set in the snake’s eye flashing an eerie light: “An enemy whose every bone I’ll crush if I ever see her again.” With a splat, the food in my hand dropped to the floor. Mr. Mu naturally picked up a fork, got a new piece, and placed it steadily in my bowl: “Just a joke, don’t be scared, Miss Vance.” My dad immediately smoothed things over: “Mr. Mu is truly humorous.” Olivia also chimed in at the right moment: “Mr. Mu, let me pour you some wine.” “This is an 18-year-old Triple Cask. I wonder if it suits your taste?” She watched Mr. Mu take a sip and said casually: “Dad said Mr. Mu might prefer the classic Double Cask, but I think the Triple Cask has a smoother texture and a richer finish. The distinct floral aftertaste is also more fitting for your collaboration with my dad this time.” Here she goes again. Olivia’s favorite thing to do is to show off her extensive knowledge of cigars, art exhibitions, wine, luxury brands, and so on in front of me. Mr. Mu’s large hand played with the wine glass, the golden liquid swaying slightly inside: “Mr. Vance’s daughter certainly knows her wine.” My dad laughed: “Not all of them. My youngest daughter is smart and sensitive, and likes these things. My eldest daughter is dull and completely clueless. It’s embarrassing.” “What a coincidence,” Mr. Mu gently set down the wine glass, a few drops of liquid splashing out: “I am also completely clueless.” As soon as he spoke, the father and daughter, who were naturally chatting and laughing just a moment ago, instantly became awkward. My eyes widened slightly. How could he be completely clueless. Back then, he clearly… I looked at him in shock, only to meet his teasing gaze. Is this… deliberately backing me up? Before I could finish being moved, as the banquet was ending, Mr. Mu spoke again: “Mr. Vance, your daughter looks so much like my enemy. I wonder if Mr. Vance would mind lending her to me to vent my anger?” ??? Is that something a human would say? My dad was also stunned for a moment, then braced himself and said: “Mr. Mu is joking again.” Mr. Mu laughed “Haha”, but his eyes swept over me: “Indeed, Mr. Vance saw right through me.” 5 I couldn’t stay here any longer. If Richard Vance went back, weighed the pros and cons, and actually sent me over to win Mr. Mu’s favor, I’d die even faster. Rather than staying here and being slowly boiled alive by Mr. Mu, waiting for the Sword of Damocles to drop, it was better to run away quickly. Luckily, I had just returned and most of my things hadn’t been unpacked, making it easy to pack up. If I can’t afford to provoke him, I can at least hide. No matter how many eyes and ears Mr. Mu has, he wouldn’t expect me to be so decisive and run away immediately. —Or so I thought. Just as I sneaked out of the villa, that familiar Cadillac stopped right in front of me. The window rolled down, and the person in the back seat took off his sunglasses and smiled at me: “We meet again, Chloe.” I turned and ran. Did he think I would surrender without a fight? In his dreams! Until I heard a familiar click-clack sound. The sound of a bullet being chambered. I stopped in my tracks in disbelief. We are in China, and he dares to carry a gun? “Chloe, take one more step, and guess whether I’ll shoot your leg or your foot first?” A smart woman knows when to yield. I braced myself and got into the car. I curled up in the back seat, my hands loosely tied by Mr. Mu with a necktie. It was less of a restraint and more of a tease. The streetlights outside the window flashed by rapidly, reflecting on his cold, sharp profile. Those dark brown eyes gleamed in the darkness, looking very much like a beast before a hunt, carrying a hint of danger. What made my eyes burn even more was the gun-shaped lighter he was playing with in his hand. Every time he pressed it, it made a click-clack sound like chambering a round, followed by a flame shooting up. I should have had faith in our motherland’s security. How could I fall for this bastard’s trick. Facing my indignant glare, he smiled mockingly: “A little handicraft, do you like it?” Like your a##… I cursed inwardly. Mr. Mu suddenly pinched my face: “Yes, exactly that look.” “The last time I saw a look of such unyielding defiance, it was that traitor who assassinated me and was caught by me again.” “I personally crushed over forty of his bones.” I blinked rapidly, trying my best to make my eyes look innocent. The car drove into a luxurious villa, and the iron gates slowly closed behind us with a dull thud. My heartbeat accelerated with that sound, my palms already soaked in cold sweat. I didn’t dare show too much fear, I could only keep my head down, trying to look obedient. A wise person submits to circumstances. In this situation, it was best for me to keep my tail tucked between my legs. Besides, I’m a coward by nature anyway. The lighting inside the villa was dim, and my nerves were taut. His jaw rested on my shoulder, like a venomous snake flicking its tongue against my neck. With a click, I felt a cold sensation on my neck. What did he put on me? A steel collar, attached to an iron chain on one side. Compared to the one I put on his wrist back in Melbourne, this one was clearly more degrading and controlling. But soon I realized in horror that this thing wasn’t just for restraint. Because it was tightening. Very quickly, I felt like I couldn’t breathe. Was he really going to strangle me like this? He lifted a chair with one hand and sat down with his legs spread. Due to the height of the chain, I could only kneel in front of him. His long fingers stroked my cheek: “Chloe, remember what you made me say in Melbourne?”

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I found a pair of male incubus twins at the black market, but because I was short on cash, I could only afford to buy one. So, I chose the younger brother, the one with the better physique. But he didn’t like me. He wouldn’t cooperate in bed, constantly ran away, and would sneak back to the black market to complain to his twin brother: “I don’t want to stay with that woman at all. She’s ugly and broke. I’m only going to suffer if I stay with her.” His older brother sat in the center of an iron cage, the heavy chain around his neck rubbing his skin raw. Listening to his brother’s complaints, he gently chided him: “Don’t say that. The lady who bought you is very kind. Since she bought you, she definitely won’t treat you poorly. Hurry back now, don’t make her worry.” I stood quietly by the door, listening. Suddenly, my eyes met his gentle gaze, and my heart skipped a beat. Later, I sold my house and bought the older brother, too. With nowhere else to go, I took the two incubi and moved into a basement apartment. Because there was only one bedroom, the older brother voluntarily grabbed a blanket and headed for the storage closet: “Master, I can sleep in here. I was only bought because of my younger brother, anyway.” I frowned, stopped him, and after a moment of hesitation, pulled out a contract from a drawer. I looked at the brother who didn’t like me and handed it to him: “It’s too cramped in here. Why don’t you leave? This way, you won’t have to suffer with me anymore.” The man was stunned. He stood frozen, his eyes slowly turning red: “You… you only want my brother, and you don’t want me anymore?” 1 The incubus I was keeping was acting up again. He bit me. When I got up to wash my face this morning, I noticed the bite mark on my neck had turned a stark, bruised purple. It hurt just to touch it. I tried to tell myself not to care, that it would heal in a few days. But stepping into the bathroom and looking at my painfully average, ordinary face in the mirror, I couldn’t help but tear up. Kaelen despised me. He despised everything about me. My looks, my voice. He even absolutely loathed the old, rundown house I lived in. We had a huge fight last night. He lost his mind and spat the truth at me during the argument. “Evelyn, you were the one who insisted on draining your savings to buy me! I didn’t volunteer to come with you. If I had a choice, I would never acknowledge you as my master, nor would I squeeze into this godforsaken dump with you!” “You’ve been with me for a year. Up until now, do you really not feel even a little bit of affection for me?” I pressed, unwilling to give up. “No. Not a single bit.” At the time, the man was tied to the headboard, completely immobilized. Yet his eyes remained sharp, his answer resolute. The last sliver of hope in my heart completely shattered. I splashed some water on my face, took a deep breath, and wiped away the tears threatening to fall. Then, I grabbed my foundation from the counter, pumped out a tiny drop, and carefully concealed the mark on my neck. 2 Kaelen was still tied up in the bedroom. Before heading to work, I planned to untie him. I pushed the door open. The man was quietly huddled on the rug, his head lowered, his long eyelashes trembling slightly. He was probably pretending to be asleep. I walked closer, crouched down, and began untying the slipknot around his wrists. “Kaelen.” I called him softly. The man refused to acknowledge me, keeping his eyes tightly shut. “I have to go to work. I’ll untie you, but can you promise me you’ll stay home and wait for me to get back?” “Heh. If you don’t want to untie me, just say so.” Kaelen finally opened his eyes, looking incredibly impatient. I smiled helplessly and released the ropes immediately. The man seemed to be caught off guard. His striking, peach-blossom eyes stared blankly at me. “You really untied me? I didn’t even promise to stay home and wait.” He used to run away all the time. But since I held his contract, he couldn’t run far. I only tied him up because I got sick of scouring the city to find him every time. I nodded, exhausted, and compromised: “Yeah. Just remember to take your house keys.” 3 I bought Kaelen at the black market last winter. There wasn’t any special reason. I just thought he was gorgeous. Tall, broad-shouldered, narrow-waisted—he had a great body. At the time, I had actually also noticed his older brother, Kaelen. They were twins, looking almost identical. The only difference was that Kaelen was completely healthy, while Kaeden had a slight limp in his left leg. But my entire life savings was only enough to choose one. I figured if I was buying an incubus to stay with me forever, I shouldn’t cheap out. So, I bought the most expensive one. But a year passed, and my mundane, quiet life didn’t become any happier. Instead, it brought me a mountain of stress. Looking back, I was full of regret. If I had chosen Kaeden instead, would things have been different? But that shady shop had a strict “no returns, no exchanges” policy. I sat at my cubicle, zoning out for a long time, before pulling out my phone to check my bank balance. I only had a few thousand dollars left. Whatever. Better not to think about it. 4 “Evelyn, the boss is treating us to dinner tonight. You coming?” Right before quitting time, my coworker Sarah walked over and patted my shoulder. I shook my head. She let out a delayed “Oh!” and smiled teasingly: “I forgot, you have a handsome little househusband waiting for you! He’s probably already got dinner ready, huh?” Kaelen cooking for me? It was a miracle if he didn’t tear my house down. I gave a bitter smile. Just as I was about to explain, Sarah looked highly motivated again: “That’s so nice! I have so much motivation to make money now. I’m totally going to buy a gorgeous guy to wait on me in the future.” I didn’t know what else to say, so I just offered a warning: “When you do buy one, make sure you go to a licensed, legitimate shop with a return policy. Whatever you do, do not go to the black market.” “Got it! Duly noted!” Usually, I was the first one out the door when work ended. But today, thirty minutes past quitting time, I was still dawdling at my desk, organizing my things. I kept checking my phone, opening the security cameras in my house to take a look. Sure enough, Kaelen was gone again. I was so annoyed I decided not to rush home. I walked down the street, turned down a few alleys, and wandered. Without realizing it, I had found my way back to the black market. 5 This place was a chaotic mix of the worst kind of people. Dirty and lawless. Beastmen merchants were everywhere. Some sickly ones were locked in tiny iron cages by the side of the road, the antlers on their heads half-sawn off, looking incredibly pitiful. “Hey, hey, miss! Care to take a look? A rare male elk beastman, name your price and he’s yours!” I only glanced twice before a burly merchant called out to me. Unfortunately, I was dead broke. I couldn’t help even if I wanted to, so I quickened my pace and walked deeper into the market. Following my memory, I found that shady shop from last year. It was still open for business. The boss was dozing off in a chair by the front door. I walked in, but he didn’t wake up. So, I slowed my steps and quietly sneaked around to the backyard. As soon as I stepped in, I heard a familiar male voice: “Brother, has anyone tried to buy you these past few days?” It was Kaelen’s voice. So, he was sneaking out to see his brother. 6 I stopped moving and stood behind the door, continuing to listen to their conversation: “A customer came last week and looked at me twice, but ultimately didn’t pay. I’m disabled. No one wants me.” “Brother, if you hadn’t tried to save me when we were kids, the traffickers wouldn’t have broken your leg. It was my fault for being greedy and running off to play. I dragged you down.” “Brother, I’m so sorry.” “It’s okay, Kaelen. It wasn’t your fault.” Kaeden was locked in a large iron cage, a heavy iron collar around his neck. He gripped the iron bars with both hands. Even though the collar was choking him, making it hard to breathe, he still comforted Kaelen with a gentle smile. “I’ve never blamed you. I only want you to live well. You’re free now, you’re not a commodity in the black market anymore. Forget about all the unhappy things from the past.” Kaelen squatted outside the cage, resting his arms on his knees, and let out an angry huff: “I’m not exactly free. That woman who bought me is terrified I’ll run away, so she keeps me on a tight leash.” Hearing the young man mention me. I slowly clenched my fists, my heart beating uncontrollably faster. “She’s really annoying. I’d rather stay here than be bought by her.” Kaelen frowned as he spoke: “She’s ugly, and she’s broke. The clothes she buys me are cheap knockoffs, they’re so uncomfortable.” “It’s only been a year, and I can’t even imagine spending the rest of my life with her. My life is going to be so miserable…” Before he could finish, Kaeden interrupted: “It won’t be. It’s normal for things to be tight in the beginning. The lady who bought you looked like a kind person. She definitely won’t treat you poorly in the future.” “Kind? What’s kind about her? She ties me up every day! Look at this, I still have rope burns on my wrists.” Kaelen rolled up his sleeves, pointing at the two faint red circles on his wrists. “I’ve really had enough. You have no idea what my life is like. If I could, I’d want us to switch places. You can go deal with that ugly woman.” “She’s your master. It’s her right to discipline you. And she’s not ugly. Stop talking nonsense.” “I’m just telling the truth. Who’s talking nonsense?” 7 Those words were like knives. They entered through my ears but slashed my throat. Making my throat swell and burn with acid. I couldn’t bear to listen anymore and was about to leave. My foot kicked an empty soda can, making a loud clatter. Drawing the attention of the two men inside. Kaeden looked at me first. The corners of his mouth lifted, and he gave me a gentle, obedient smile. Kaelen, on the other hand, looked awful. He stood up, looking a bit embarrassed: “You… why are you here?” I tried my hardest to look calm: “I came to take you home.” But before he could respond, I quickly turned and fled the backyard. 8 “Hey, Evelyn!” Kaelen jogged after me and grabbed the hem of my shirt. “Why are you walking so fast?” I ignored him, pried his fingers off my shirt, and kept walking. But my mind was entirely consumed by Kaeden’s friendly, gentle smile from just moments ago. Turns out he and Kaelen were actually a bit different. He had a tiny teardrop mole under his left eye. When he smiled, the mole would subtly shift upward. “Were you standing there the whole time?” “Did you hear everything my brother and I said?” Kaeden’s leg wasn’t a birth defect. He was crippled because he tried to save his younger brother. How pitiful. Much more pitiful than Kaelen. “Hey, I’m asking you a question! Why are you playing deaf?” The man’s voice suddenly rose behind me, snapping me out of my thoughts. I couldn’t help but frown: “I heard you. I heard everything.” Kaelen’s breath hitched. A flash of unease crossed his face, and his voice dropped significantly: “Everything I said was the truth… you literally tied me up every day.” “Yeah, it’s the truth. I’m ugly, I’m broke, and I abuse you. In your heart, I’m just an irredeemable, evil woman.” For once, I didn’t argue with him. I just agreed with his words. Kaelen fell silent. Maybe he was angry. He lowered his eyes and didn’t speak again. On the walk back, I kept glancing up at the young man, who was much taller than me. He had elegant brow bones and striking features. Even among incubi, a species known for having the highest average attractiveness, his beauty was god-tier. But the black hoodie he was wearing was a cheap knockoff. It was the same style as mine, and because it had been washed so many times, it was already pilling. Indeed, if he hadn’t been bought by a broke loser like me, his life would have been much better. If he wants to resent me, let him. 9 We returned to that rundown old house. I didn’t grab a rope and tie his hands like I normally would, nor did I scold him and forbid him from running away again. Instead, I quickly washed up, crawled into bed early, and locked the bedroom door. My mind was a chaotic mess. But it was no longer because of Kaelen. Knock, knock, knock— In the middle of the night, someone knocked on the bedroom door. “Evelyn, you’re not asleep yet, are you?” Kaelen called out to me softly through the wall. “What’s wrong? Do you need something?” “Open the door first, then I’ll tell you.” I stayed perfectly still in bed and squeezed my eyes shut. When I woke up again, I felt a shadow looming over me. Kaelen had found a spare key and opened my bedroom door. He was standing right by my bed, staring at me unblinkingly. I had no idea how long he had been standing there. I propped myself up, hugged my comforter, leaned against the wall, and curled into a ball. “What are you doing.” The man’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He opened his mouth, and the tail behind him swished restlessly from side to side. “Um…” “I’m sorry.” He spoke incredibly fast, as if those two words were scalding his tongue. I yawned and waved my hand: “It’s fine. I forgive you. Get out.” But he didn’t leave. He stood frozen in place. I patted the pillow next to me: “So you’re sleeping here?” For the past year, even though he resisted physical contact, we had always slept in the same room. Even when we fought, I never made him sleep in a separate bed. Maybe he wasn’t used to me suddenly ignoring him. Without a word, Kaelen pulled back the corner of the blanket and took off his pajama jacket. Then, I felt a tightening around my waist. He naturally climbed on top of me, his tail pressing against me in an almost fawning manner. “I’m really tired. Lay down and go to sleep.” I turned on my side and pulled away to create some distance. Kaelen immediately got annoyed: “Tch, it’s not like I wanted to touch you anyway.” I scooted closer to the edge of the bed, moving even further away from him. The man became even more flustered: “Also, you’re really fake.” Then he yanked the blanket twice and turned his back to me.

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I lied to my mom and told her I was heading to college a week early. My mom gave me a suspicious look: “The boy next door goes to the same college as you, and he hasn’t left early.” I rubbed my hands together guiltily. “You’re going to see a boy, aren’t you? It’s fine, I’m not some old-fashioned prude. Here’s an extra three hundred bucks, go have fun.” I accepted it with overwhelming gratitude: “Yes, yes, yes, whatever you say!” My mom bought it. On the train, I pulled out a brand-new physics textbook and scratched my head, desperately copying notes. What boyfriend? I was going back early to take a makeup exam! On the way to the makeup exam. My mom video-called me. “Sweetie, let Mommy see your new boyfriend.” 1 I’m doomed. I only have new test scores, not a new boyfriend! Driven by desperation, I could only point the camera randomly at a passerby. “Mom, he’s the reason I left for school early.” When I lie to my mom, I always commit fully. I was planning to just use the side of the passerby’s face to fool her. But no matter how softly I spoke. The handsome guy in the camera still turned his head. My mom screamed from the other end of the video: “He’s so handsome?! Are you dating a celebrity? Bring him home this weekend!” “Gotta go, I’m going to take screenshots and show off to my friends, hahahaha…” The video call ended with my mom’s exaggerated, boomer-style laughter. Leaving me and the handsome guy staring at each other in the wind. The guy stood tall and straight, his facial features sharp and handsome—a literal god. I scratched my head and laughed awkwardly. “Sorry about that, classmate. I was too embarrassed to say I came back early for a makeup exam, so I lied to my parents and said I was coming back to see my boyfriend.” The handsome guy expressed understanding. And he sped up his pace alongside me. Looks like we’re in the same boat. I struck up a conversation while practically jogging: “Classmate, are you here for the physics makeup exam too?” The handsome guy didn’t speak, just kept rushing forward. He didn’t have any study materials on him. At a glance, you could tell he was an honest kid. Cheating on such a hard class was a must; he was definitely going to fail! A plan formed in my mind: “Bro, how about this: I have a lot of cheat sheets on me, I basically copied down all the formulas. I’ll share some must-pass tips with you, and you come home with me this weekend to meet my parents, deal?” As soon as I said that. He stopped in his tracks. Seeing that he was bought off by me. The beginner’s guide to cheating begins now! I pulled out the tissue paper with key points from my pocket. Then I fished out a ten-fold formula sheet from my knee-high socks. The most, most important thing, of course, is the phone! The handsome guy was confused: “How do you bring a phone into the exam room? The proctors always use metal detectors!” I smiled wisely: “Heh, the teachers only scan your body, they never check what’s in your hand! And mine is a flip phone!” “What about the signal jammers?” “Those old jammers our school has can’t block 5G signals at all; the connection is perfectly fine.” The handsome guy nodded thoughtfully, and continued to ask sincerely: “Since you have so many tricks, how come you didn’t pass the final exam?” I waved my hand, patting his shoulder earnestly: “Let’s not dwell on past failures, let’s look forward together!” After arriving at the classroom. I saw a few of my suffering sisters. Great, our mutual aid group was assembled in a second. But I didn’t forget the handsome guy I just met. I quickly pulled him in. Seeing how breathtakingly handsome he was, the sisterhood agreed immediately. Everyone started sharing their cheat sheets and how they planned to pass answers right under the proctor’s nose later. The handsome guy must have been moved by me. He even proactively asked for the names of everyone in our mutual aid group. I raised an eyebrow at him, signaling no thanks needed. As good bros, this is how we do it. Enough for him to remember for a lifetime. 2 There were only ten minutes left before the exam. The students had finished all their preparations. But the proctor was nowhere to be seen. My best friend, Jessica, started gossiping about the proctor. “I heard the proctor for our room is the male god from University A, a second-year PhD student, super handsome, exaggeratedly better looking than Timothée Chalamet. He’s only proctoring at our University C today as a favor to a friend.” “Rumor has it he’s a research genius, already being fought over by research institutes from University A and University C before even graduating, with starting salaries in the seven figures.” Chloe from the sisterhood slammed the desk in regret: “Damn it, if I had known, I would have done a full face of makeup.” “Sigh, then we need to be careful when cheating.” “It’s fine! A good student like him, he’s never seen our high-tech cheating methods!” … It wasn’t until the roving proctor outside the classroom delivered the exam papers that everyone quieted down. “Hey, where’s your Teacher Gan? Wasn’t he supposed to be here early?” Teacher Gan? I whispered to the sisterhood: “What a weird last name, hilarious. If he’s Teacher Gan (Dry), am I Teacher Shi (Wet)?” (Translator’s note: In Chinese, “Gan” means dry. The protagonist makes a dirty joke contrasting it with “Shi” meaning wet). The dirty-minded girls instantly thought the wrong thing. Giggling endlessly below the desks. My face felt a bit hot: “I didn’t mean it like that!” But no matter how much I defended myself, it was useless. Just while everyone was still grinning. The handsome guy who had been sitting in the corner slowly stood up. He calmly accepted the exam papers, pulled a proctor ID from his pocket, and stood at the podium. “Hello everyone, I am your proctor for today, Arthur Gan.” No way. Excuse me? Is it too late for me to apologize with my death right now? 3 Obviously, it was too late. Forget the phones and cheat sheets. Even the smartwatch Jessica hid in her pant leg was confiscated. Arthur said he meant no harm. I agree. He simply didn’t want us to live. Without any suspense. The sisterhood and I were completely wiped out by Arthur, forcing us all to retake the class. In sheer desperation, I could only kneel to the sisters in our group chat: “I’m sorry, I invited the wolf into our house. To make amends, I’m willing to give you my life!” Chloe sent a “disgusted” emoji: “Only offering useless things.” Jessica immediately followed up: “Since you sincerely want to make it up to us, we will show great mercy and give you a chance to redeem yourself.” I nodded like a chicken pecking at grain: “Tell me, tell me.” “Arthur will be taking a part-time job at our University C this semester, and he just happens to be our physics teacher. Go seduce him, claim him, ravage him! Help the sisters vent our anger, and then get the exam paper from him at the end of the semester.” Huh? Me? What kind of thing am I, that I even deserve a second glance from Arthur? I was helpless: “Jessica, do you have a filter on me? What makes you think I can take down the male god of University A?!” Jessica was full of confidence: “Based on my years of experience navigating the world, the way Arthur looked at you that day was definitely not innocent. You just need to crook your finger, and he’ll take the bait.” I don’t know if Arthur’s eyesight is good or bad, but Jessica’s eyesight is definitely bad. But since things have come to this, I can only try to treat a dead horse as a living doctor. Besides, I failed the makeup exam. I absolutely can’t let my parents guess that I came back early for the makeup exam. The day after tomorrow is the weekend. No time to lose, I need to hurry to University A and find Arthur to go home with me this weekend. 4 Before setting off, the whole dorm helped me put on a super stunning succubus makeup look. The head-turning rate was indeed quite high. Our University C and University A are only separated by College Avenue. Arthur is very famous. I just asked a random student and found out his dorm building. When I arrived at his dorm building, I was shocked. As expected of a PhD student. A single room for one person is one thing. This dorm building was like a luxury apartment. It made me want to apply for a PhD too. Very luckily, after squatting downstairs for half an hour, I caught Arthur. He wore a crisp black shirt, the cuffs slightly rolled up, revealing his prominent wrist bones. Unlike the messy look when I first met him. Today, his hair looked meticulously styled, every single strand radiating handsomeness. I was so struck by his handsomeness that my breath hitched. Dressed up, he was far too high-profile. Passing girls all looked over. “Looking for me?” He raised an eyebrow. “How did you know?” I was puzzled. The corners of his mouth curved up slightly: “You’ve been squatting at this door for twenty-eight minutes. You didn’t stop any of the many guys walking by, but as soon as I came down, you came to meet me.” Taking him to play a murder mystery game would definitely be an easy win. I got straight to the point: “Yes, I want you to go home with me this weekend pretending to be my boyfriend to deal with my mom.” He crossed his arms: “Why should I?” “Because you used me to infiltrate our sisterhood, making me the target of public criticism, failing the makeup exam, and unable to answer to my parents!” I was anxious. He still had the nerve to ask me why. If it weren’t for him, I would have passed the makeup exam long ago. And I wouldn’t have to beg him to go home with me. He frowned slightly: “Is your cheating really that justified?” “You!” I licked my lips, unable to refute. True. He, a PhD student at University A, hadn’t done anything wrong either. What capability did I have to make him pretend to be my boyfriend? It seems Jessica’s eyesight really is problematic. Saying the way he looked at me wasn’t innocent. We’re the ones who are truly doomed if we mess with him. Seeing Arthur turn around, about to go back inside. A clear, cold voice interrupted my thoughts. “Mia, why are you here?” “Senior Ethan?” 5 Ethan is a senior at University A. We met at a mixer. He had a good impression of me. Gentle, considerate, polite, and proper. So I used the excuse of liking aloof men to reject him directly. At this moment, my eyes darted around, and I quickly grabbed his sleeve: “Senior Ethan, are you free this weekend?” Ethan had just opened his mouth. When Arthur turned back, looking at me coldly: “He’s not free.” “Huh? Teacher Gan, I…” “Have you submitted your graduation thesis?” Speaking of the thesis, Ethan was not only unpanicked but quite confident: “Not yet, but I’ll finish it next week!” “Too late, Professor Huang wants it this Saturday, he asked you to go see him on Saturday.” Ethan panicked a little: “There was no notice.” Arthur spoke slowly: “Professor Huang will notify you tonight.” Ethan nodded, then said to me: “Then I’m free on Sunday.” My originally dimmed eyes lit up again, hope rekindled. Arthur glanced at me, his tone calm but unquestionable: “Sunday won’t work either, the short essay for my class is due on Sunday.” Ethan gasped: “What? Teacher Gan, you didn’t mention that.” Arthur calmly took out his phone and operated it for a bit: “The notice has already been sent to your phones.” Seeing he still wanted to say something, Arthur continued: “The mock test that hasn’t been scheduled yet is also set for…” “I’m not free!!” Ethan turned his head, looked at me, and said firmly: “Sorry Mia, I’m not free this weekend. I have to study this weekend. I love studying. I’m going to go study now, bye.” 6 “I can agree to pretend to be your boyfriend, but you have to agree to one request of mine.” After Ethan left, Arthur leaned in close to me and said. His exquisite features suddenly magnified in front of me, and I leaned back a bit: “Sure, as long as you come home with me this weekend, I’ll agree to ten of your requests!” “Okay, my request is that you come home with me tonight first.” “Huh?!” I widened my eyes, suspecting there was something wrong with my ears. Arthur looked at me expressionlessly: “What, just said you’d agree to ten requests, and now you’re chickening out on the first one?” “No, your request… is it proper?” I shrank back warily. Arthur raised an eyebrow: “You want an improper one?” “I don’t!” He turned to leave: “Then forget it.” “Wait, wait, wait!” I grabbed his sleeve: “I’ll go! Who’s afraid of who! It’s a society ruled by law, what can you possibly do to me? But we have a deal, if I go to your place, you have to come home with me this weekend.” Arthur looked down at my hand gripping him, the corners of his mouth curving slightly: “Deal. I’ll pick you up for dinner at my place around mealtime.” While following him toward the apartment building, I frantically messaged the sisterhood group chat: [Sisters, Arthur wants me to go home with him tonight.] Jessica replied instantly: [Holy shit! You’re amazing, sis! This progress bar is moving faster than a rocket!] Chloe: [The girls at University A all say Arthur could outshine Timothée Chalamet and Tom Holland if he debuted. Mia, you should just start a masterclass.] Rachel types very slowly, with grandma-speed: [Remember to wear ultra-thin 0.01.] Concise, straight to the highway. Me: [Wear your head, I’m going to exchange favors with him.] Chloe sent a “let’s get dirty” emoji: [Going to his place to exchange? Exchange what? Positions??] Jessica: [Oh my god, Mia, you’re something else! A pure female college student on the outside, playing so wild behind closed doors?] Me: [Can you guys be a little pure! He’s a PhD! He’s about to be our substitute teacher! Do you have any professional ethics?] This group of women, whether it’s red or black, they’ll turn it yellow for you. (Translator’s note: In Chinese slang, “yellow” means pornographic/dirty). Chloe: [Tsk, he just caught you cheating, and turns around and asks you to his place. Savor this operation, savor it carefully.] Me: […Savor what, I can’t savor anything.] Jessica: [I savor that he wants to tutor you privately! One-on-one! Private lessons! Close-contact teaching!] Chloe: [The kind where you wear tight clothes.] Me: […I’m wearing a hoodie and jeans, thank you.] Jessica: [Tsk, so unromantic. Hurry up and go buy a battle outfit! There’s a new mall outside the school!] Me: [I have no money!] Chloe: [Didn’t you just scam three hundred bucks out of your mom?] Me: […] 7 Arthur’s apartment is in a high-end complex next to University A. In the elevator, I was so nervous I was picking at my fingernails. He, on the other hand, was completely composed, leaning against the elevator wall scrolling on his phone. I secretly glanced at his profile. Really handsome. Hiss, why does he feel a bit familiar? I seem to have seen him somewhere before. Sigh, handsome guys always look handsome in the same way. Only ugly men are ugly in all sorts of strange ways. “Have a seat anywhere.” Arthur poured me a glass of water. Holding the glass, I sat awkwardly on the sofa, not knowing where to look. Arthur sat across from me: “Your name is Mia Lin, sophomore in Computer Science at University C, living in Happy Community, Hangzhou. Right?” I almost spat out a mouthful of water: “How do you know?!” He gave me a flat look: “The day you cheated, I memorized the names of everyone in your mutual aid group, and casually checked your files.” I gasped: “What exactly do you want to do?” Arthur didn’t answer, instead asking: “When did your mom ask you to bring me home?” “Saturday noon.” “Okay.” He pulled his phone from his pocket, swiped a few times, and handed it to me. I took it and looked. It was a list: Two cases of premium liquor. Two boxes of bird’s nest. Two cartons of imported cigarettes. Two boxes of cherries. Two boxes of sea cucumber. Two boxes of abalone. Two cases of olive oil. Two cases of milk. “This is?” Is this trying to move a supermarket to my house? “The standard package for meeting the parents.” Arthur replied with his head down, looking at the list and pondering: “What do your parents like? Add it on, I’ll go buy them tomorrow.” I stared at him blankly: “Why does it feel like you sincerely want to go home with me?” “After all, I can’t let you squat for those twenty-eight minutes for nothing.” His tone was very calm, but I always felt something was off. Just then, his phone rang. The screen flashed two words: “Queen Mother”. He answered, and before he could speak, a powerful female voice came from the other side: “Son! Let me tell you, that boy Auntie Li introduced to you, he’s a piano teacher, super handsome. I sent you his photo on WeChat, see if you like him!” Me: “???” Boy??? Arthur rubbed his temples: “Mom, I don’t need it.” “Why don’t you need it? You’re so old and haven’t even been in a relationship once! Mom isn’t some old fuddy-duddy, whether you like boys or girls, Mom supports you! This one is really super handsome, just meet him once…” “Mom, I have a girlfriend.” The phone went quiet for two seconds. “What?!” “Really, you can come see for yourself right now.” “Stop lying to me! Last time you said you had a partner, you brought back a cat!” I couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing with a “Pfft”. Arthur shot me a chilling glare. The mom on the phone obviously heard it too: “Son, is there someone next to you? Who is it?” Arthur was silent for a second: “The cat.” “…” “…” Me: “???” You’re the cat! Your whole family is a cat! 8 After Arthur hung up the phone, he put on an apron and started cooking. I was still brooding over that “cat” comment. “Arthur, how am I like a cat?” Arthur glanced at me while chopping vegetables: “You squatting downstairs curled up in a ball, doesn’t look like a cat?” I looked at him suspiciously. Could it be that he had been staring at me from upstairs the whole time? But I was too embarrassed to ask. Arthur chopped vegetables very quickly. His wrist bones were prominent, his knuckles like jade. And very agile. Seems like he’s quite strong too. ? Why did my thoughts suddenly turn dirty? Sure enough, he who lies with dogs shall rise with fleas, and he who is near yellow gets yellow! Arthur skillfully heated the wok, poured oil, and stir-fried. In no time, the aroma of food filled the air. “Wow, I couldn’t tell you knew how to cook.” I started showering him with compliments. The corners of Arthur’s mouth turned up: “There are plenty of things you can’t tell.” Holy cow, one compliment and he’s already this cocky. “Can you cook?” He asked me while offering me a taste. Of course I can’t. I took his offering with my mouth: “Haha, when I cook, I mainly focus on forfeiting color, aroma, and taste.” Soon, the second dish went into the wok. Right then, the sisters in the group asked me how the battle was going over here. I sneakily took a profile photo of Arthur cooking and a photo of the food. Jessica sent a picture of a fitness pause: [Looks like a girlfriend-perspective Timothée Chalamet. No wonder they say cooking is the best plastic surgery for men. I’m not working out anymore, whoever wants to work out can work out, I’m going to be your fragile beauty.] Chloe sent a “666” emoji: [Sis, if you meet a culinary school chef, just marry him, you won’t have to worry about food for the rest of your life.] Rachel, as always, types the slowest but drives the fastest. [Why are you serving dishes, serve him!] [Have you been in rehab? Being with such a huge handsome guy, can you resist?] The black text made my heart race. Just then, Arthur poked his head over: “What are you looking at, your face is so red?” I immediately switched to a study app interface, and said seriously: “Doing my daily study modules, party members are required to get a daily average of 30 points or more.” He glanced at my phone screen and laughed: “So this is the reason for your total score of 300? Looks like you joined the party ten days ago?” I swallowed nervously: “No, no, the points reset every so often.” Sure enough, one lie requires countless lies to cover it up. “Oh? Then why do my points never reset?” He opened his study app interface, showing a score of 51,753 points. His mouth was curled up, the corners of his eyes full of amusement, even carrying a trace of malice. Even that little canine tooth was rippling with mockery towards me. I gave him a thumbs up: “Teacher Gan, you’re really amazing!” Hearing the word “Teacher”, he quickly waved his hand: “Hey, I’m just teaching you this semester, don’t call me teacher.” I said fawningly: “How can that be? A teacher for a day is a father for life.” “No, no, no!” Seeing how resistant he was to me calling him teacher, an evil thought popped into my head: “Since I can’t call you teacher, and you’re not my parent, how about I call you ‘Brother’?” As soon as my voice fell. His face turned completely red in a second. This much fun? I leaned on his shoulder, deliberately whispering with a light laugh in his ear: “Brother.” I saw his Adam’s apple bob rapidly, his body stiffening. He abruptly lifted me onto the dining table, resting his hands on either side of my body. A gentle, abstinent aura gradually washed over me. “Mia, did you do that on purpose?” I didn’t expect one “Brother” could make him react this strongly. I took the opportunity to wrap my arms around his neck: “Brother, do you like me calling you that?”

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I went to the hospital for my stomach issues, but the doctor held my B-ultrasound report with trembling hands: “Sir, you are pregnant.” I slammed my hand on the desk. “Bullshit! I’m a Beta! How the hell could I be pregnant?!” The doctor swallowed hard. “It’s highly likely… the father of the child is a top-tier Enigma, who forced your reproductive cavity to undergo a secondary development.” My vision went completely dark. The only Enigma in the entire city… Other than that bastard I took advantage of and slept with after he was drugged, who else could it be?! 1 The boldest thing I had ever done in my entire life was sleeping with Arthur Sterling. Afterward, I threw a fifty-dollar bill at his face and threw out a parting remark: “Mediocre technique. Take this money, buy some supplements, and try to last a bit longer next time.” That was Arthur Sterling. The untouchable heir to the city’s elite. A man whose influence reached the heavens and whose methods were notoriously ruthless. I figured if I was going to die, it was a worthy way to go. If you asked me now whether I regretted it, I could only tell you that my guts were green with regret. Especially right now. I pinched the lab report, hiding in a stall in the hospital bathroom, not even daring to breathe too loudly. And the report in my hand clearly stated two glaring words: [Early Pregnancy]. Below that was a line of small print: [Gestational age: 5 weeks. Fetus: Visible.] Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck. I’m a Beta! Sure, I might be a little bit more delicate-looking and have a slightly slighter build than average, but I am a bona fide Beta! I don’t even have pheromones! How the hell did I get pregnant? Asexual reproduction?! I tried to lie to myself and say it was a misdiagnosis. But my body’s recent reactions were far too honest. Lethargy, nausea, and the inability to stand even the slightest smell of greasy food. And the most fatal symptom of all: I had started craving the scent of Arthur Sterling like a madman. 2 Five weeks ago. It was a dark and windy night. My trouble-making, illegitimate half-brother, Oliver Vance, decided to drug Arthur in a desperate attempt to climb the social ladder. But the idiot lost his nerve and didn’t dare deliver himself to Arthur’s door. Terrified Arthur would kill him, he cried and begged me to go “save the day.” I was the unfavored, marginalized son of the Vance family, and I usually served as the designated scapegoat. I figured I’d just go drag the idiot out and bring him home. That would be it. Who knew that when I walked in, Arthur would already be on the verge of a total rampage? As a Beta, I logically shouldn’t have felt anything. But for some reason that night, my legs went weak the second I stepped inside. Arthur’s eyes were bloodshot. He looked at me like a starving wolf looking at a piece of meat. He called my name with a hoarse voice: “Silas?” At the time, I foolishly mocked him, oblivious to the danger. “Wow, Mr. Sterling, you sure know how to play hard. Need me to dial 911 for you?” The very next second. I was pinned to the carpet. I had practiced MMA for a few years, but in the face of absolute power, I was like a helpless little chick. “Let go of me! Arthur, are you crazy?! I’m a Beta! I don’t even have the right equipment for this!” I struggled desperately, kicking and punching. Arthur couldn’t hear a word. He bit down hard on the back of my neck—right on the flesh where a gland wasn’t even supposed to exist. It hurt so much I wanted to curse his mother. And then… Then came an entire night of nightmares. I couldn’t even remember how I managed to escape in the end. I only remembered that right before I left, to maintain my last shred of dignity, I pulled a fifty-dollar bill from my pocket with a shaking hand and tossed it onto his nightstand. Looking back now… That fifty bucks might just end up being the price I paid for my own life. 3 Footsteps echoed outside the bathroom. “Is the young Mr. Vance still inside?” It was Arthur. I held my breath, clamping a hand tightly over my mouth. Why the hell was this bastard here? Did he know I was pregnant with his… whatever this was? Impossible. I registered at the hospital under a fake name. The voice of a bodyguard came from outside. “Mr. Sterling, we saw Mr. Silas go into this room just now.” “Take the door down.” Me: “???” Hey, buddy, this is a hospital bathroom! Seeing that they were actually about to break it down, I braced myself, hit the flush button, and casually opened the stall door, pretending nothing was wrong. “What’s going on? What’s going on?” I bluffed while adjusting my belt. “What kind of fetish is this, Mr. Sterling? You like watching people in the bathroom?” Arthur stood in front of the sinks. He was dressed in a sleek black suit. Broad shoulders, narrow waist. That face of his was infuriatingly handsome, but so cold it made people shiver. He was absentmindedly playing with a lighter in his hand. When he saw me come out, he didn’t even blink. “Silas, what are you hiding from?” I felt guilty, but I forced myself to act tough. “Who’s hiding? Can’t a guy have a weak bladder?” Arthur’s gaze swept over my flat stomach. “A weak bladder?” He gave a half-smile. “In the gastroenterology department?” I froze. How did this guy even know which department I was in? “Uh… I ate something bad. Puking and the runs.” I let out an awkward laugh, just wanting to slip away. “Well, you look busy, Mr. Sterling. I’ll be going now.” I had barely taken a step. A large hand shot out in front of me. He slammed me directly against the tiled wall. Arthur leaned in. That familiar scent of cedar washed over me like a tidal wave. Damn it. My legs went weak again. I even felt a shameful urge to… rub myself against him. Was this the instinct of pregnancy?! This was way too humiliating! “Haven’t seen you in a month.” Arthur looked down at me, his tone deliberate. “Avoiding me on purpose?” My entire body tensed instantly. “Of course not! Hilarious. Why would I purposely avoid you?!” After we finished that night, I had run away immediately. Later, Oliver had gone into the room to take my place. So there was no way Arthur could know it was me. “Silas.” He asked suddenly, “Were you actually at that hotel that night too?” Was he trying to trick me? I shoved him away, reacting like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. “Are you sick, Arthur?! We’re sworn enemies! Why the hell would I go to a hotel you were at? Am I some kind of pervert stalking you?” Arthur lowered his eyes, hiding the flash of disappointment in them. “I see…” His gaze landed on the crumpled lab report clutched in my fist. “What’s in your hand?” My reflexes kicked in, and I hid my hand behind my back. “Toilet paper to wipe my ass!” Arthur: “…” He frowned in disgust and finally took a half-step back. “You’d better be on time for the Vance family banquet tonight.” “Your brother Oliver caused trouble. If you don’t show up, I don’t mind going directly to the Vance family for answers.” With that, he turned and walked away. At the door, he stopped. “Also,” he glanced back at me, “eat less cold food. It’s bad for your stomach.” “Get lost!” I leaned against the wall and let out a long breath. My legs were still shaking. I couldn’t live like this. 4 The cab pulled up to the entrance of the narrow alley in the inner-city slums. The meter read twenty-five dollars. Wincing at the cost, I scanned the QR code to pay and pushed the door open. The cold wind, carrying the stench of years-old garbage from the alleyway, hit me in the face. My stomach instantly turned upside down. I leaned against a telephone pole and dry-heaved twice, but nothing came up. To save money for that damn specialist consultation, I hadn’t even drank a sip of water since morning. I climbed six flights of stairs, pulled out my keys, and opened my door. Once inside, I collapsed onto the bed. Honestly, after that night, I was terrified too. Terrified that Arthur would actually trace it back to me. After all, before Oliver went into the room, I had leveraged my status as the Vance family’s young master to mess with Arthur quite a few times. So, I had played along with the narrative. When Richard, my father, pointed at my nose and called me “shameless” and accused me of “instructing my brother,” not only did I refuse to kneel and admit fault, but I also laughed out loud. In front of the whole family, I smashed everything in sight. I even pointed at Richard’s trophy wife and said, “Keep your son on a tighter leash. Next time you use those dirty drugs, remember to save some for yourself. Who knows, if you manage to get knocked up, you might sell for a good price!” It was highly effective. I didn’t even have to pack a bag. I was thrown out the front door by the bodyguards that very night. Richard threatened to disown me and froze all my cards. It was exactly what I wanted. As long as I left that circle, I was just an ordinary, poor Beta. No one would care if a stray dog got a little fatter, or… if it got pregnant. This was the freedom I wanted. Even if the price was living in poverty. But despite all my calculations, I never factored in Arthur Sterling as a variable. Who would have thought? I’m a freaking Beta. Not only did I get screwed. I actually got knocked up. 5 My phone suddenly buzzed. It yanked my thoughts back from my memories. A transfer notification popped up on the screen, followed by a text from an unknown number. 【A thousand dollars. Go buy a decent suit. 7 PM, my car will be waiting at the end of your alley.】 It was that same deadpan tone. Like typing an extra word would kill him. I stared at the thousand dollars, a whirlwind of emotions in my chest. Do I go? Or do I stay? If I don’t go, that maniac Arthur might actually expose what Oliver did. Then Richard, to save his own skin, would definitely throw me under the bus to take the fall. But if I go, my stomach… I looked down at my still-flat abdomen. It had only been five weeks. It shouldn’t be visible. As long as I don’t throw up, as long as I don’t faint, as long as I stay far away from that Enigma and his damn intoxicating scent… It should be fine. I gritted my teeth and accepted the money. Since I couldn’t hide, I might as well go. I also wanted to see exactly what Arthur was planning. Why did he insist on dragging me into this? I struggled out of bed, rummaged through my closet, and found the old suit I was wearing the day I was kicked out. It was a bit wrinkled. While ironing it, I declared war on my reflection in the mirror: “Hold the line, Silas. You are a Beta. You don’t have pheromones. You just have a bad stomach.” “As long as you deny it to the grave, what’s Arthur going to do? Cut you open?” At 7 PM sharp. The black Maybach parked punctually at the entrance of the grimy alley. The window rolled down a crack, revealing Arthur’s cold, sharp profile. “Get in.” 6 The car stopped smoothly at the gates of the Vance estate. The moment the doors unlocked, I heard the sound of hurried footsteps. A figure in a pristine white suit came practically flying out. It was Oliver. You had to hand it to Arthur’s prestige. The car hadn’t even fully parked before the main character rushed out to welcome him. Oliver wore a practiced, shy, yet thrilled smile, making a beeline for the rear door: “Arthur, you’re finally here. I’ve been waiting for you for so long…” The door swung open. But the person who stepped out was me. I gripped the car door, fighting the urge to gag, and forced a smile at his frozen face: “Good evening, little brother.” Oliver looked like he had swallowed a fly. One second he was a delicate, blooming white flower, and the next, his features practically contorted out of place. His eyes widened, his shrill voice spiking instantly: “Silas?! Why is it you? Why are you in Arthur’s car?!” “Didn’t Dad kick you out? You have the nerve to come back?” Before I could answer, the door on the other side opened. Arthur stepped out with his long legs. The temperature in the air instantly dropped a few degrees. Oliver’s face-changing skills activated once again. He immediately reeled in his vitriol, shifting into the image of a startled, innocent deer. With red-rimmed eyes, he leaned closer: “Arthur… I thought you were coming alone. My brother was kicked out of the house, after all. He’s dressed like this to a banquet… I was just worried he’d embarrass you…” As he spoke, he released a subtle, almost imperceptible trace of pheromones. It was a sickeningly sweet gardenia scent. Gag. The acid in my stomach instantly surged to my throat. In the past, I just thought his scent was tacky. But now that I was pregnant, this smell was a literal biological weapon. I covered my mouth, my face turning deathly pale as I stumbled two steps back, leaning against the car and gasping for air. It was too strong. Arthur cast a cold glance at Oliver, ignoring his fawning entirely, and turned to look at me: “Feeling sick again?” I waved my hand, unable to speak, terrified that if I opened my mouth, I’d throw up. Seeing Arthur looking at me, Oliver’s face twisted with jealousy. He said sarcastically: “Arthur, ignore him. He’s just faking it. He used to pretend to be sick at home to get sympathy all the time. His body is actually stronger than a bull’s. He’s just a thick-skinned Beta…” “Shut up.” Arthur cut him off coldly. Oliver choked, stunned. He bit his lower lip pitifully. “Arthur, why are you being so mean to me… That morning, you clearly…” That morning? My eyelid twitched as I caught the keyword. Oliver really did go into the room? Arthur narrowed his eyes, his sharp gaze sweeping over Oliver, his tone heavy with implication: “We definitely need to settle the score for what happened that night.” Oliver’s face paled. His eyes darted around nervously, but he stubbornly stood his ground: “Arthur, I know what I did was wrong. I shouldn’t have… shouldn’t have taken advantage of you while you were drunk… but I just liked you too much…” I listened, completely dumbfounded. Wow. This guy really had the guts to claim it. He didn’t even have a single bite mark on his body, and he dared to take the credit? “Liked me?” Arthur let out a soft laugh, though his eyes held zero amusement. “Liked me enough to drug me?” Oliver’s legs gave out, and he almost dropped to his knees. “No… I didn’t… it was…” His panicked gaze suddenly snapped to me, and he pointed a finger in my direction, screaming: “It was him! It was Silas! He gave me the drugs! He said as long as the deed was done, I could marry into the Sterling family! Arthur, you have to believe me, I was tricked by him too!” I laughed out of sheer anger. I was just standing by the car, and the blame literally fell from the sky. My anger actually pushed my nausea back down. I stood up straight and spoke slowly: “Oliver, a brain is a wonderful thing. It’s a shame you don’t have one.” “If I actually had drugs, why wouldn’t I just use them on myself? What benefit do I get from throwing you into Arthur’s bed? Did I think my life in this crappy house was too comfortable and I just wanted some excitement?” Oliver was speechless, his face flushing bright red: “You… you’re just jealous that I’m an Omega! You’re a useless Beta, nobody wants…” “Enough.” Arthur impatiently interrupted the farce. He walked up to me, looking down with a probing gaze: “You just said, if it were you, you would have used them on yourself?” My heart skipped a beat. Crap. I talked too fast. I braced myself and forcefully spun the narrative back: “It was a hypothetical! Do you know what a hypothetical is?! I’m not a masochist, why would I want to be with a human pile-driver like…” Before I could finish, Arthur’s face visibly darkened. Oliver, listening from the sidelines, was completely lost, but he caught the gist and shrieked: “Silas, what do you mean? Are you calling Arthur a…” “Let’s go inside.” Arthur didn’t give me another chance to speak. He grabbed my wrist. “Since we’re here, let’s not make a fool of ourselves at the door.” He dragged me toward the entrance. Left standing there, Oliver was unwilling to give up. He jogged after us, trying to hook his arm around Arthur’s other arm: “Arthur, wait for me…” “Get lost.” The low growl carried the terrifying pressure unique to an Enigma. Oliver froze instantly, his face deathly pale. It was as if an invisible hand was choking him. Even his gardenia pheromones shrank back in terror. I also felt my legs go weak from the pressure. The little cub in my belly seemed to sense something, twitching excitedly. It actually moved. I clearly felt a spasm in my lower abdomen. Fuck. What kind of monster was this? It could move at five weeks?! Dragged by Arthur, I stumbled into the banquet hall. The heating in the grand hall was turned up high, mingling with various perfumes and the cloying scent of sweet pastries. The moment I stepped inside, the churning in my stomach that had just settled down roared back to life. “Ugh…” I couldn’t help it. I let out a muffled groan and bent double. Arthur paused and looked back at me. I didn’t care about his expression anymore. I shook off his hand, covered my mouth, and bolted for the restrooms in the corner. “Silas!” Arthur’s voice echoed behind me. I ignored him completely. Right now, even if the King of Heaven himself came down, he couldn’t stop me from puking. 7 Charging into a stall, I hugged the toilet, feeling like I was about to throw up my own bile. Is this what pregnancy is? Fuck pregnancy. This was a literal trial by fire. I puked until tears and snot streamed down my face. Cold sweat drenched my body, and my legs felt like wet noodles. I couldn’t even stand, forced to kneel pathetically on the tiles. I finally managed to catch my breath. I flushed, pushed the door open, and stumbled to the sinks. The person in the mirror looked like a ghoul. My face was as white as paper, my lips lacked any color, yet the corners of my eyes were shockingly red from the violent vomiting. I splashed a handful of cold water on my face. It was bone-chilling. I finally felt a bit more alive. Just as I reached for a paper towel, I heard the sound of leather shoes clicking against the floor behind me. There was an arrogant swagger to the steps. “Silas, how much longer are you going to keep up this act?” I looked through the mirror. Oliver was leaning against the doorway, arms crossed, covering his nose with a look of utter disgust. Even though it was just the two of us in the bathroom, he still carried himself with the haughty air of a wealthy aristocrat. “Act?” I shook the water off my hands, leaned against the counter, and gave a weak, mocking smile. “What am I acting about? Acting like I’m throwing up for your entertainment? You’ve got some weird tastes.” Oliver sneered and took two steps closer: “Don’t think I don’t know what you’re planning. Showing weakness in front of Arthur, acting pathetic to gain his sympathy?” “Silas, you should take a good look in the mirror. You’re a Beta that no one wants. Do you really think a top-tier Enigma like Arthur would ever look twice at you?” There was that sickeningly sweet gardenia scent again. As he stepped closer, it grew thicker. My brows furrowed tightly. The nausea I had just suppressed began to stir again. “Stay away from me.” I turned my head and held my breath. “Your scent is giving me a migraine.” Oliver’s face changed, acting like his tail had been stepped on: “You’re disgusted by me? This is the pheromone of a top-tier Omega! It’s something a defective Beta like you could never possess in your entire life!” As if trying to prove a point, he deliberately released an even thicker cloud of pheromones. I was going to lose my mind. This wasn’t a pheromone; this was an emetic. I still couldn’t understand how a Beta like me had become so sensitive to pheromones. “Ugh—” I couldn’t hold it in. I turned toward the sink and started dry-heaving again. “You!” Oliver was furious. “Silas, you are truly disgusting! How dare you throw up at my pheromones…” Before he could finish his sentence. His voice suddenly cut off. Followed closely by a suppressed, agonizing sound squeezed out from his throat: “Ugh—” I froze. I even forgot to wipe my mouth, turning my head stiffly. The arrogant Oliver from a moment ago was now covering his mouth tightly, his whole body curled over like a shrimp. His face was flushed red, the veins on his neck bulging, his other hand gripping the edge of the sink in a death grip. “Ugh…” Another sound. He couldn’t hold it back this time. He shoved me aside, commandeered the sink next to mine, and puked his guts out. It was even louder than my episode. I was dumbfounded. My brain went blank, like I had been struck by lightning. I threw up because I was carrying Arthur’s seed in my belly. Why the hell was he throwing up? Did he eat something bad too? Or… A highly absurd thought popped into my head, making my scalp tingle. I stared at Oliver’s stomach, which, although flat, he was instinctively guarding with his hand. “Are you…” My voice trembled. “Are you pregnant?” 8 Oliver threw up until tears welled in his eyes. Hearing my words, his body violently stiffened. That reaction. There’s a ghost. There is absolutely a ghost here. He stood up in a panic, turned on the faucet, and haphazardly splashed his face. His eyes darted everywhere, refusing to look at me. “What nonsense are you talking about! I… I was just grossed out by your vomit!” “Who’s as filthy as you, having those kinds of thoughts in your head!” Stubborn. I narrowed my eyes, my brain working in overdrive. Five weeks ago, that night, it was just me and Arthur in the room. I was entirely certain Arthur only touched me. If Oliver was actually pregnant… Then there were only two possibilities. Either he cuckolded Arthur, and this baby wasn’t Arthur’s at all. Or, he was faking it. To solidify the lie that he was the person from that night, and to secure his place in the Sterling family, he was faking morning sickness! Regardless of which it was. This was a fatal piece of leverage against him. Suddenly, I wasn’t panicked anymore. I actually wanted to laugh. “Is that so?” “Just grossed out?” “Perfect. How about I take you for a blood test? An ultrasound?” “Or… should I call Arthur in here, and let him see how his ‘lover’ is throwing up just as enthusiastically as a useless Beta like me?” Oliver’s face went deathly pale. “Don’t you dare!” He growled, trying to sound tough but failing miserably. “Silas, if you dare say a single word in front of Arthur, I’ll have Dad break your legs!” “Tsk.” I chuckled softly. “Why so nervous? Good brother.” “I’m just concerned about your health. After all…” I leaned close to his ear and whispered so only the two of us could hear: “If this baby is born and doesn’t look like Arthur, that would be so awkward. Wouldn’t you agree?” Oliver reacted like I had poked his fatal weak spot. He violently swatted my hand away, his emotions spiraling out of control: “Shut up! Shut up! This is Arthur’s baby! I was the one there that night! Only me!” He broke. My eyes turned cold. I knew it. This idiot wasn’t just trying to steal my identity; he was actually trying to pass off a bastard child as Arthur’s. Or… he really was experiencing a hysterical pregnancy. Regardless of the truth, the waters were muddy beyond recognition now. I glanced down at my own flat stomach. I was speechless. What kind of situation was this? The actual pregnant person was terrified to admit it, while the fake one was puking his guts out, desperate to claim it. If Arthur knew the truth, he’d probably drown both of us in the river. Creak— The bathroom door was suddenly pushed open. The sound of steady footsteps echoed inside. Oliver and I turned our heads at the same time. Arthur stood in the doorway, a freshly lit cigarette pinched between his fingers. Through the swirling smoke, his deep eyes swept over the two of us. Finally, his gaze locked onto Oliver’s pale face. “Why have you been gone so long?” His voice was deep, devoid of any discernable emotion. “You’re both in here throwing up?”

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Because my breasts were too small, my mom suspected I was malnourished and dragged me to see a doctor. The doctor was my ex-boyfriend, whom I had just broken up with. His expression was cold, his tone distant: “Lift your shirt to your collarbone and undo your bra.” Then he deliberately teased me: “They are quite small.” I gritted my teeth and shifted the blame: “My breasts are small because my ex didn’t work hard enough.” The next second, I was pressed against the examination table, his voice dangerously low: “The examination wasn’t thorough enough. “Looks like I need to keep working hard.” 01 “Number 52, Chloe, please proceed to consultation room 2.” The moment the automated voice at the nurse’s station called my name, I stared at the large characters on the door plaque: [Thoracic Surgery – Dr. Arthur Vance]. I almost ground my teeth to dust. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of that lean figure through the glass door. The waistline barely visible beneath the white coat reminded me of some very NSFW scenes. Just a month ago, that waist was pressing down on me, panting “one last time.” Now, he looked like a refined gentleman, a wolf in sheep’s clothing. “What are you standing there for?” My mom slapped me on the back: “Dr. Vance is a specialist who just returned from abroad. It’s a bloodbath trying to get an appointment with him! I only managed to get this slot because his mother and I are best friends.” Before I could even ask how my mom knew his mom, I heard a cold, clear voice: “Next.” When the consultation room door opened. The man I hadn’t seen in a month was wearing a blue surgical mask, the sleeves of his white coat slightly rolled up. His eyes were indifferent, his long eyebrows slightly raised: “Follow-up?” “Consultation.” I kept my neck stiff. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his Adam’s apple bob once. “Where are you feeling unwell?” Before I could answer, my mom darted in with a quick step: “Arthur, it’s Auntie Susan. Could you take a look at my daughter? Her breasts are so small, is she malnourished?” My mom’s loud voice echoed in the consultation room. My toes had automatically curled hard enough to dig a three-story mansion into the floor. “Auntie.” Arthur adjusted his glasses: “Breast size is related to genetics, nutrition…” “Exactly!” My mom nodded repeatedly: “Do you think she might have drank the wrong formula when she was a baby?” As Arthur wrote [Patient’s family suspects formula caused breast underdevelopment] in the medical chart, My toes had already finished digging the second phase of the mansion. If I’m guilty, let the law punish me. Instead, because my breasts are too small, my own mother suspected I was malnourished and forced me to see a doctor. And the doctor was my ex-boyfriend, who I broke up with just a month ago. “I need to perform a physical examination.” Arthur stood up, giving my mom a professional smile. “Family members, please wait outside.” I clutched my registration slip, a fake smile plastered on my face. “Can I see a different doctor?” He didn’t even look up, his tone distant and cold: “Go out the door, turn right, and queue up again to register.” “Oh, no need, the queue will take forever.” My mom immediately pressed me onto the examination table: “What’s wrong with a male doctor? Why are you young people so conservative? In a doctor’s eyes, there is no gender.” I felt dead inside. In a doctor’s eyes, there is no gender, but what about in an ex-boyfriend’s eyes? Besides, he’s a thoracic surgery specialist. Does he even handle underdevelopment??? 02 Arthur reached out and pulled the privacy curtain, adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose, and signaled to me: “Lift your shirt up and undo your bra.” I gripped the hem of my shirt tightly, glaring at him in dissatisfaction. “You… you’re using your public office to settle private grudges!” He kept his hands in his white coat pockets, looking perfectly composed, and coldly reminded me: “Miss Chloe, first of all, you are the one who booked an appointment with me. “Secondly, I am a doctor. Treating patients and saving lives is my duty. “Lastly, is there any part of you I haven’t seen?” Me: … Fine, you win… I gritted my teeth, took a deep breath, and undid the clasp of my bra. Bracing myself, I closed my eyes tightly and lifted my shirt. His hands were slightly cold, and I couldn’t help but shiver when they touched my skin. “Don’t be nervous.” “Who… who’s nervous…” “Your heart rate is too high.” A barely noticeable smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He lowered his head, examining me very seriously. “Do you feel anything?” I turned my head to the side and huffed: “No!” “No?” He frowned, looking a bit confused. “No feeling means no feeling. Dr. Vance’s skills are too poor. We’ve already broken up, do I still have to act for you?” Unable to gain the upper hand physically, I chose to dominate verbally. “Oh? My skills are poor?” He slightly lowered his eyes, meeting my gaze through his lenses, his voice cold and deep. “Chloe, you can touch your conscience and speak.” I cursed inwardly. Isn’t my conscience being touched by you right now?! The pressure from his hands increased slightly. “How about this time?” Me: “I feel like you’re pinching me…” He looked up, stared straight at me, and sighed. “Any pain?” “No!” “Swelling or tenderness?” “No!” “Does it normally itch?” “Oh, the itchy spot isn’t there.” Me: !!! “Arthur, have you touched enough!” My face flushed red, and I pushed myself up so abruptly I almost bumped his chin: “Do you think you don’t know if I’m sick or not?” “From what I can see, there’s indeed no problem, but…” His hands finally released me, and his low chuckle suddenly echoed in the air: “They are quite small.” I gritted my teeth, refuting him defiantly: “My breasts are small because my ex didn’t work hard enough!” My waist was suddenly grabbed, and my momentum carried me right into his arms. The faint, woody scent of his cologne wafted from beneath his white coat into my nose. His breathing was a bit heavy, his voice carrying a hint of danger: “What, want me to keep working hard? So you’re trying your old tricks again?” His face bore undisguised mockery. 03 That’s right, we ended up together purely because of my relentless pestering, and he finally gave in because he couldn’t get rid of me. At that time, I was accompanying my best friend for a checkup, and I fell for Arthur’s unearthly good looks at first sight. White coat, gold-rimmed glasses, broad shoulders, and long legs—he maxed out the “forbidden desire” vibe. Plus, I have a thing for hands. Especially when he looked down, typing out a medical chart on his keyboard, those long, slender hands with prominent knuckles made my heart beat like a drum with every movement. I clung to the doorframe, gulping frantically, my heart rate soaring. I finally understood the “suspension bridge effect.” Someone build a bridge to my heart right now! My best friend, who had an irregular heartbeat from looking at male models, was forced by me to stay in the hospital for a month. From then on, I became an unofficial member of the thoracic surgery department. When I brought him bubble tea in the morning, he said the sugar content was too high. When I brought him a bento for lunch, he criticized it for being nutritionally unbalanced. When I stalked him at night for a “chance encounter,” he lectured me about my irregular sleep schedule. After I faked low blood sugar and swooned into his arms for thirty days straight, Arthur finally cornered me in the stairwell: “Chloe, what exactly do you want?” “You.” I gritted my teeth, standing on my tiptoes to pull his tie: “Yes or no? “Dr. Vance, whenever people see you, their heart rate spikes. What are we going to do about that?” Later, when I was pinned against the wall and kissed by him… I finally learned that even the most aloof flower will bite when pushed. But soon I discovered that this man was like a monk. We dated for three months before he let me hold his hand, and it took half a year to unlock kissing. Every time I wanted to communicate on a deeper level, he would use those bewitching eyes to firmly reject me: “This is too fast.” I engaged in a tug-of-war for half a year before successfully pushing him down using my feminine wiles. However, the aloof flower was anything but aloof in bed; he wore me out completely every time. Dating is supposed to be sweet, but his job was demanding. He practically lived in the operating room every day. Leaving home past seven in the morning and returning at eight or nine at night was the norm. When we got home, I just wanted to get down to business, but he still had to review medical charts, write papers, and take exams. Even a donkey on a farm would call him “boss” out of respect. At an age full of youthful vigor, I craved him! I couldn’t stand this feast-or-famine lifestyle. On my birthday, I had been fasting for half a month. I swore to take him down that day. But just as we entered the movie theater, one phone call sent him running back to the hospital. I watched the movie alone, ate hot pot alone, bursting with loneliness and grievance. I sent him WeChat messages, but he didn’t reply. When I brought him food at the hospital, he was sitting intimately with a female doctor, engrossed in discussing a medical condition. The two of them showed undisguised admiration for each other on their faces. They looked incredibly compatible. In an instant, the drive in my heart suddenly deflated. A guy like Arthur is good for a fling. But for marriage, it wasn’t a good fit. He was an outstanding doctor at a top-tier hospital, and I was just a broke writer and a sucker for a pretty face. It really was a mismatch. And at that moment, I suddenly didn’t want to sleep with him anymore. So, I brought up breaking up. When he asked why, I gave him a devastating reason: “Your skills are too poor.” Then I backhanded blocked him on all contact platforms. After we broke up, he never looked for me either. In short, I considered myself the one who dumped him. Now, accidentally booking his appointment made it look like I regretted it and was chasing him again. 04 I hurriedly reached behind my back to clasp my bra. “Dr. Vance, you’re overthinking it. My mom booked this appointment for me. “Also, I don’t play with the same man twice.” I retorted defiantly. But I couldn’t get the clasp fastened. His figure loomed in front of me, and he suddenly raised his arms to encircle my waist. He reached out and expertly fastened my bra clasp. I was caught off guard by this sudden movement. He spoke before I could, his voice cold and clear: “No need to thank me. “Practice makes perfect, that’s all.” In the past, I used to joke that he had a pair of nimble hands; not only could he wield a scalpel, but he could also unhook a bra with one hand. I gritted my teeth, deliberately acting passive-aggressive: “Dr. Vance is so considerate, even fastening a female patient’s bra.” He smiled faintly, remaining composed: “You’re welcome. “It’s also my first time encountering a female patient who came to me because her breasts were too small.” Me: … After a moment of silence, I was still trying to figure out how to retaliate. My mom knocked on the door and came in first. Seeing my complexion didn’t look good, she quickly asked Arthur: “Dr. Vance, does my daughter have some sort of condition?” Arthur retreated to a safe distance: “Auntie, don’t worry, there’s no problem.” My mom let out a long sigh of relief: “That’s good, that’s good…” Then she asked in distress: “But her sister and I are both D-cups, why is she only an A?” I silently buried my face in my hands. “It’s possible—” He held back a smile, adjusting his glasses: “She takes after her father.” The air went dead silent. My mom still hadn’t given up: “Is there really no hope for my daughter’s chest?” “I recommend eating more papaya.” Arthur’s gaze swept over me seemingly by accident, hooking a distinct smile: “Of course, auxiliary massage is also effective. “For some women, during lactation, they might experience a second growth spurt.” My mom slapped her thigh, sudden realization dawning on her: “I get it, I just need to find her a man.” Her eyes lit up as she looked at him: “Arthur, your mom told me you just went through a breakup. What do you think of my daughter?” My head buzzed. I hurriedly stopped my mom, whispering: “Mom, don’t play matchmaker randomly…” My mom stomped her foot anxiously: “I saw Dr. Vance’s profile outside. PhD, Deputy Chief Physician, successful at a young age. Most importantly, he’s handsome! What a great fit for our family’s genes! If your mom were 20 years younger, I would have snatched him up myself. “He just broke up, the rebound period is when people need comfort the most. You need to swoop right in! “Um, Dr. Vance, do you mind adding each other on WeChat? If Chloe feels unwell in the future, can she consult you online?” Arthur looked up at me. I blinked frantically, signaling him. Because he was still sitting in my blocklist right now. “Sure.” But he pulled out his phone, shoving the QR code page right in my face: “Miss Chloe, please scan it yourself.” I braced myself, took out my phone, and scanned the code. Beep. Arthur’s profile picture popped up on the screen, and under the WeChat chat page, a line of small text was glaringly displayed: The message has been rejected. You have been blocked by the recipient. “I haven’t received the friend request yet,” He reminded me. I gritted my teeth and sneakily took him off the blocklist: “Done.” He smiled and nodded: “Good. I’ll send the medical advice to Miss Chloe.” I silently rolled my eyes. Bullshit. What kind of medical advice is there for small breasts? A few minutes later, Arthur sent a WeChat message: [Comprehensive Guide to Breast Massage Techniques.PDF] [Appropriate massage can promote development and prevent breast hyperplasia.] I gritted my teeth and smiled: “Dr. Vance truly possesses a healer’s compassionate heart.” Dr. Vance: “I can provide free medical guidance.” 05 “Daughter, listen to your mother, bag this Dr. Vance!” On the way home, my mom gripped my wrist like a female demon who had caught a monk on a pilgrimage. “His dad is a university professor, and his mom is the center of my square dancing team.” “Mom, we’re not a good fit…” I clung to the car door, struggling in vain. “You haven’t even tried, how do you know you’re not a good fit?” My mom seemed to have been poisoned by Arthur. She wished she could personally catch him and throw him on my bed. The next day, while I was binge-watching shows and stuffing my face with snacks, she suddenly teleported in: “Go change your clothes. Your Auntie Xu will be here soon.” I grabbed my snacks and prepared to escape: “Then I’ll hide in my room and watch.” She pinned me down: “You kid, we have guests over, how rude would it be for you to hide!” I kept munching on my potato chips: “That’s your friend, I don’t even know her.” She grabbed me: “You know her son—” Just as she was speaking, the doorbell rang. My mom dashed over in one swift stride. The two besties started chirping the moment they saw each other: “Oh my, coming over is enough, why bring so many things?” “Well, didn’t I hear Chloe came home? I just brought some food.” “Oh, you really did. These are all Chloe’s favorites.” “Yes, yes, Arthur picked them all out. Isn’t this fate?” Until I heard a certain familiar voice: “Hello Auntie, we meet again.” My hand shook, and I instinctively looked up. Half a potato chip was still dangling from my mouth. I saw Arthur standing by the entryway, wearing a smoky gray high-waisted suit, standing behind his mom, his tie meticulously knotted. He was carrying bags large and small in his hands. He looked exactly like he was coming to propose marriage. “Oh my, this must be Chloe? So pretty!” I awkwardly greeted her: “Hello Auntie.” My mom poked me: “Go pour tea for our guests.” The two moms quickly occupied the center of the sofa. Arthur and I stood off to the side, smiling silently. “Oh my, my Chloe just loves to play every day. She’s nothing like Arthur. So young and already a Deputy Chief Physician. I heard he even skipped grades in school. Tall and handsome, Susan, you’re so lucky.” “Oh, my luck isn’t that good. I have such a sweet, considerate daughter. This one of mine is just like his dad, a real quiet type, only knows how to work every day.” The two moms started a mutual praise session. Arthur and I were quiet as mice. Seeing this, the two women said: “Oh, you young people have so much to talk about, go interact more.” “My Arthur is just too formal, doesn’t even know how to chase girls.” “Don’t be shy, you’ll get familiar slowly.” We weren’t unfamiliar at all. We’ve kissed each other’s lips raw… I silently played the quail. Arthur quietly peeled an apple. I watched his long fingers holding the fruit knife, peeling the apple like a work of art. 06 The two moms were chatting animatedly, and somehow the topic turned to us: “I heard Chloe is still single?” “Yes, she dated a guy before, didn’t even get to meet him before they broke up.” “Mine is the same, too quiet. Got dumped and still acts like nothing happened.” “That scumbag who broke up with Chloe was even worse. I heard he was flirting with female colleagues at the hospital.” I discreetly tugged at my mom’s sleeve. Mom, please say less… But she couldn’t be stopped. “I heard he’s also a doctor, right? Which hospital? Maybe Arthur even knows him?” I lowered my head and chugged water. The hand Arthur was using to hold the knife paused, and the apple peel snapped with a crack. He suddenly looked up, his gaze piercing through his glasses with a questioning look: “Is that so?” My mom complained indignantly: “Yes, and Chloe told me that scumbag’s body isn’t doing so well, right?” I almost choked to death on my water. I clutched my chest and coughed violently. Arthur raised his hand to pat my back. “Oh my, Arthur is so sweet.” “Look at these two kids, they look more and more compatible the more you look at them.” My mom grabbed Auntie Xu and bolted: “Right, isn’t it time to go dancing downstairs?” “Right, right, let’s go quickly.” 07 The two women slipped downstairs swiftly. I got up and walked toward my bedroom, with Arthur following behind me. “Dr. Vance, going into someone else’s bedroom in broad daylight, where’s your medical ethics?” I forcefully tried to shut the door. He propped his elbow against the doorframe and reminded me: “Your bedroom still has a certain someone’s Lotso Huggin’ Bear bedsheets.” “Then change them!” I glared at him: “Change them to your favorite blue sterile drapes!” A foot suddenly jammed into the crack of the door. The man used his long legs to force his way in: “Chloe, when did I flirt with female colleagues?” “My mom wasn’t talking about you anyway, don’t take it personally, Dr. Vance.” “Then why did we break up?” I kept my neck stiff and my mouth stubborn: “Poor skills, I got bored.” He suddenly leaned in, his nose almost touching my forehead: “Poor skills? Why did you have to change the sheets every time?” Me: !!! I was furious! He squeezed past me. I lifted my foot to kick him. But my calf suddenly cramped with a pop. “Ahhh!!!” I wailed and fell into his arms. God knows, a cramp really hurts enough to almost meet my great-grandmother. He caught me with quick reflexes: “What’s wrong?” “My… my leg cramped… “I’m going to die from the pain…” My arrogant attitude instantly withered. “Don’t move, relax.” He scooped me up horizontally and placed me on the bed. “Where does it hurt?” “Hiss… my… my thigh.” He kneaded the muscles above my knee with his thumbs: “Here?” I whined in pain: “Higher… higher.” His fingers moved up: “Here?” I grabbed the pillow, gritting my teeth: “Arthur, don’t take advantage…” He curled the corner of his lip imperceptibly: “It’s probably a passive muscle spasm caused by a sudden stretching of the leg. “Relax your leg.” His hands gently kneaded. Gradually, that tight, aching pain actually disappeared. I have to admit. His hands really are useful. His fingertips traced over the little strawberry pattern on my pajama pants: “Feel better?” I tried moving my leg: “Yeah, it doesn’t hurt anymore.” The cramp was on my inner thigh. Right now, the position was getting a bit ambiguous. I kicked him with my toes: “You don’t need to squeeze anymore.” But he took the opportunity to grab my ankle. His warm palm completely covered it. “It was wrong of me to leave you on your birthday, but the patient had a penetrating heart wound…” “Who wants to hear a work report!” I kicked him in the chest: “Anyway, you doctors only have eyes for your patients!” He completely didn’t understand why I was angry. Treating patients and saving lives is a doctor’s duty. In the face of human life, everything must yield. But anyone who gets stood up by their boyfriend on their birthday. And then turns around to see him smiling with another woman would be pissed off. And he didn’t even try to coax me! I turned my head away, ignoring him. “Chloe.” He suddenly looked up: “On the 21st day after you blocked me, there was a car accident patient with the same name as you. “That day, I was scared to death.” I froze. “That day I searched for you like crazy for four hours. “Finally, I found you clubbing with friends.” He lowered his eyes, carrying a bit of grievance. Like a wounded large dog. “Then I… I…” I suddenly didn’t know what to say. Things were perfectly fine. He suddenly threw me off balance. The air temperature rose sharply. He looked up and tugged at his tie. Then he unbuttoned the top three buttons of his shirt. Looking up slightly, the first thing that caught my eye was the half-open collar. And his faintly visible collarbones. He leaned forward, the corner of his lips almost brushing the tip of my ear: “Baby, don’t be mad anymore, okay?” His breath was scorching. The roots of my ears were hot and tingling. Looking at that face. I uselessly forgave him again. He leaned closer again, his voice trailing: “Baby, want a kiss?” This dog of a man is seducing me again. His fatal attraction is truly deadly. After abstaining for so long. I couldn’t wait to push him down right now. It’d be a waste not to kiss him! The faint sound of the square dancing song “Drunken Butterfly” drifted up from downstairs. It felt like we were having an affair. Mixed with the intimate sounds of kissing. It was incredibly stimulating. We kissed until the world spun. “The medical advice I sent you, have you put it into practice?” “Not yet…” His fingers roamed restlessly: “As your attending physician, I’ll guide you personally.” I suddenly remembered Arthur’s mom saying he was “too formal.” I cursed internally: What kind of formal person gropes someone while kissing? A beast in a suit!!! 08 Just as we were kissing passionately. My phone suddenly vibrated. On the other end, my mom was frantic: “Chloe, your grandma suddenly fainted downstairs!” I couldn’t care about anything else. Arthur and I hurriedly rushed downstairs. I saw my mom running around in circles with fast-acting heart pills. Arthur immediately switched to his professional doctor mode. “Did you call 911?” “Yes, yes, they’ll be here right away.” He placed his fingertips on my grandma’s wrist: “Acute myocardial infarction. “Don’t move her. Let the patient lie flat and wait for the ambulance.” With his other hand, he expertly loosened my grandma’s collar. And started CPR right there. The ambulance arrived very quickly. Our whole family followed to the hospital. We waited for a long time. Until the door to the emergency room was pushed open. “Fortunately, Dr. Vance’s emergency treatment was timely. She is out of danger. “After a few days of recovery, she’ll need a heart bypass. Dr. Vance will be the lead surgeon.” Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Only then did a doctor look at Arthur and tease: “Oh, Dr. Vance, your look today is quite something.” At this, everyone finally focused their attention on us. The collar of Arthur’s shirt was halfway open. There was a distinct hickey right on his Adam’s apple. My clothes were also disheveled. In our rush out the door, we were both wearing mismatched slippers. And both of us were sporting red, swollen lips. My mom realized what happened: “You two! Were you hiding in the room kissing?” The air fell silent. Arthur awkwardly buttoned up his shirt. I coughed lightly and lied: “We… well, it’s because the spicy strips we ate were too spicy…” Everyone looked doubtful. Just then, Arthur pointed at the hospital bed: “Grandma is awake.” Only then did the group shift their focus away from us. He stepped forward: “How are you feeling now? Does your chest feel tight?” The moment my grandma opened her eyes, she met that face of his. She suddenly exclaimed: “Oh my heavens, I really must be dead, I’m actually seeing a male Bodhisattva.” My mom, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, reminded her: “Mom, this is young Dr. Vance. You had a heart attack, and he saved you. “In a couple of days, he’ll also be doing your heart bypass surgery.” My grandma realized what happened and hurriedly said: “Thank you so much, young doctor. Are you married yet?” Arthur replied politely: “Not yet…” My grandma’s eyes suddenly lit up: “You’re giving me a bypass, let me give you a bridge too. “I can’t repay your life-saving grace, but I have a granddaughter. Let her pledge herself to you.” Me, standing nearby: ??? Sigh, our whole family are huge perverts. My grandma pointed at me: “Look, what do you think of my granddaughter?” He secretly glanced at me, a smile on his lips: “Very nice.” My grandma took my hand, a look of melancholy on her face: “Chloe, I just saw your great-grandmother. She said I won’t survive this year, unless you get married to bring good luck.” Me ??? Are you for real ??? Hearing this, the two moms immediately started looking for an auspicious date on the spot: “Let them get married!!!” My grandma chimed in repeatedly: “Is the bride price enough? If not, sell the Phoebe zhennan wood your grandpa left behind.” My head was buzzing. My grandma also seemed to have been poisoned by Arthur. Lying in the hospital bed, she constantly talked about her good-luck grandson-in-law. As soon as I walked in the door, she waved the cake in her hand, showing off to me: “Chloe, look, the little cake young Dr. Vance bought for me, it’s so delicious.” I pretended to be dissatisfied: “Didn’t I buy you some too? Why aren’t you praising me?” “The ones you bought grew hair.” “That’s pork floss cake…” As we were talking, Arthur walked in holding two cups of milk tea, a gentle smile on his face: “Grandma, the milk tea you wanted.” I looked shocked: “No, old lady, you just got out of the emergency room and you’re eating cake and drinking milk tea?” She slurped her milk tea: “So what?” Me: … Arthur held back a smile and handed the other cup of milk tea to me: “Roasted brown sugar boba milk, no sugar.” Hmph, at least he has some tact. I also slurped my milk tea. Seeing the situation, my grandma grabbed my hand and started nagging again: “Chloe, I just dreamed of your great-grandmother again. She said if you get married this year and have a baby next year, I can live to be a hundred.” Me: ??? “Yesterday you said you dreamed of great-grandmother saving a seat at the mahjong table for you down there!” “They don’t conflict,” The old lady righteously pulled up her oxygen mask: “You two standing here is delaying my longevity. Hurry up and get down to business, I’m waiting to hold a baby!”

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “394498”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

My roommate and I split the cost of a lottery ticket and won seven million dollars. That night, she transferred me six dollars and said, “Bestie, buying the lottery ticket was my idea. I’ve paid you back the money you chipped in, so this lottery ticket has nothing to do with you anymore.” I laughed out of sheer anger. Just as I was about to argue with her, I noticed that the small statue of the Virgin Mary I kept on my desk had suddenly lost an arm. A broken arm on a holy statue is an omen of extreme misfortune; it seeks to save a life. My face instantly drained of color, and I told my roommate, “I don’t want the lottery ticket! I don’t want it anymore!” 1 As soon as I found out the winning numbers, I sprinted back to the dorm in high spirits. “Fiona! That lottery ticket we bought together a few days ago won!” Bursting through the dorm door, I ran over and gave her a huge hug, unable to suppress the smile on my face. You have to understand, this ticket hit the jackpot—a full seven million dollars! Even after taxes, splitting the remaining money fifty-fifty with her would be enough for me to live comfortably for the rest of my life! My family is just an ordinary one. My parents make about four to five thousand a month. We aren’t poor, but we’re definitely not well-off. And I’m just a broke college student living on a tight budget, always busy hunting for coupons just to order takeout. But now, this seven million dollar prize was enough to completely turn my family’s situation around and give me financial freedom. “Fiona! Seven million! Seven million! I’ve never seen so much money in my life. Let’s get packed, we’ll go claim the prize tomorrow!” I thought Fiona would be as happy as I was, but I noticed her smile wasn’t very natural—it was even a bit stiff. Then, she gently pushed me back, creating some distance. Fiona sat in her chair, tapped on her phone a few times, and said, “Bestie, I was just about to talk to you about this.” The next second, I received a transfer notification on my phone. I opened my banking app. Fiona had transferred me six dollars. While I was completely bewildered, Fiona spoke up. “It’s like this, remember? When we were shopping, it was my sudden idea to buy a lottery ticket, and I picked the store. Even though you picked the numbers, if it weren’t for my suggestion, we definitely wouldn’t have bought this specific ticket that day, right?” I nodded, covering my mouth to hide a smile, still not fully processing what was happening. “Of course! We owe this all to your suggestion!” “So, logically and emotionally, this lottery ticket should belong to me. However, keeping in mind that you chipped in for the cost of the ticket at the time, I’ve transferred those six dollars back to you!” I finally realized something was wrong. My other roommates, who had been quietly envying us, also caught on. My face turned ugly. I was almost laughing from anger. Crossing my arms, I asked her: “Fiona, are you saying you want to buy out a seven-million-dollar lottery ticket from me for six dollars?!” Fiona, who had been calm and composed, instantly changed her tune. She raised her voice and yelled: “What do you mean? If it weren’t for my suggestion, do you think you would have ever come across this ticket? Besides, didn’t I transfer the six dollars back to you? Why are you making it sound like I’m taking advantage of you?” The atmosphere instantly became explosive, completely tense. The other roommates exchanged glances, afraid of getting caught in our crossfire. My face turned red, and my neck veins bulged as I retorted, “Am I that desperate for your six dollars? If it weren’t for my six dollars back then, you couldn’t have bought this ticket either! What the hell are you barking about?” She put her hands on her hips, completely tearing off her usually gentle mask. “Chloe, I never realized you were so selfish before. Anyway, I said this ticket is mine, and it’s mine. Take the six dollars or leave it! If you don’t want it, fine!” One of our roommates couldn’t stand it anymore and spoke up for me. “Fiona, I feel like… this ticket should be split fifty-fifty. After all, Chloe did put in money too…” “Shut up! Does anyone care what you think?” Fiona rolled her eyes and snapped at her. Just as I was about to continue arguing, I heard a crisp crack. I couldn’t help but look at my desk. The small statue of the Virgin Mary I kept there had lost an arm. The arm lay broken on the desk, the small statue still with its eyes closed in a serene expression. I was instantly terrified, my face turning deathly pale. My body trembling, I stumbled backward several steps. “I don’t want the lottery ticket! I don’t want the lottery ticket anymore!” 2 Seeing me finally back down, Fiona felt incredibly smug, but her words were still unforgiving. “What do you mean you don’t want it? It was originally mine anyway. Don’t act like you’re giving me charity, OK?” I put on a serious face. “Fiona, for the sake of us being roommates, I’m warning you—you better not want this ticket either. Hurry up and burn it!” As soon as I said this, not only Fiona, but the other roommates also looked at me strangely. “Get lost. What right do you have to order me around? This is my ticket, I’ll use it however I want!” I yelled loudly, “This is blood money! You’ll have the money but not the life to spend it—you’ll die!” The other roommates started chiming in. “Yeah, Chloe, this is seven million we’re talking about. How can you just say you don’t want it? Even if you don’t want it, you shouldn’t say things like that.” Another roommate, Sarah, who usually didn’t get along with me, sneered: “Stop acting, Chloe. Aren’t you just jealous that Fiona has the ticket? Blood money? I bet that statue on your desk is just cheap junk from a flea market, it broke because it’s poor quality.” “I think you know you can’t get the ticket, so you made up a lie to curse Fiona to die. I never realized you were so vicious.” Seeing people speaking up for her, Fiona’s arrogance grew even stronger. She grabbed Sarah and left, leaving one last sentence behind. “Dare to curse me? Chloe, you’re destined to be poor your whole life!” Instead of getting angry, I turned around to clean up the porcelain shards on the table first. The small statue of the Virgin Mary was smooth and rounded, its eyes slightly closed, a gentle smile on its lips, as if looking kindly upon the world. But the arm that had been extended in front of its chest was shattered into pieces, making it look twisted and strange. Back in my hometown, we have a custom. Every child who comes of age holds a ceremony at the local church, taking a specific saint as their patron. The blessed statue must be kept close, and one must maintain a heart of reverence toward it at all times. The saints are compassionate and can foretell great disasters. If something abnormal happens to the statue, it’s a warning. But if the statue’s arm breaks, it means a terrible misfortune has been encountered, and it seeks to save a life. It means the saint cannot block this great disaster, and can only break its arm to save a life, leaving alone, no longer accompanying the faithful. This means the presence of the “saint” is no longer inside the statue; it becomes an empty shell. If you want another, you can only go back to your hometown and pray for a new one. Since leaving my hometown with the statue, I had never experienced any abnormality with it. But this time, the very first abnormality was a broken arm, and it terrified me completely. I quickly called my parents and told them. They were also terrified, their voices trembling, telling me I must be careful lately. Hearing what Fiona did to me, they were furious, cursing Fiona for being ungrateful and bringing ruin upon herself. I didn’t care about the strange looks from my other roommates and complained about it with my parents. After hanging up, I warned the other roommates. “Whatever you do, do not take Fiona’s money! If you take it, you’ll die!” They looked at each other and nodded in agreement. That night, Fiona and Sarah didn’t return to the dorm, but went to stay in a hotel. I shook my head, carefully put the statue away, and waited for the next time I went home to pray for a new one. 3 Fiona was originally a somewhat famous internet influencer. That very night, she started a livestream from her hotel, showing off her seven-million-dollar lottery win to her viewers. The netizens in the livestream were incredibly envious, flooding the screen with gifts. Sarah also rode her coattails—having defended her in the dorm, she suddenly became her little assistant. For a moment, the two of them were living the high life. Fiona even twisted the story of me fighting for the lottery ticket, using it as content to complain about in her livestream. Our original agreement to split the cost of the ticket turned into me simply accompanying her to buy it. Fiona rested her chin on one hand, a look of disdain on her face, and said, “Family, who gets it? My roommate is so bizarre. She literally just went shopping with me, and when the ticket I bought won, she demanded I split it with her. Sorry, but I have no obligation to humor a giant baby roommate, OK~” “Hmph, when the time comes, I’ll definitely donate to help stray animals, but I won’t give her a cent, hehe.” The comments cheered her on. [I think she’s just jealous of you, the streamer has no obligation to help the poor.] [Supporting the streamer! Beautiful inside and out! Thanking the streamer on behalf of all the stray cats and dogs!] [I’m so sick of roommates like this, can they learn some boundaries? Not everyone has to humor her, OK?] The comments insulting me came one after another. The incident also blew up on the university forum, and someone quickly doxxed me as the person fighting Fiona for the ticket. When I woke up the next morning, I found myself completely exposed online. Harassing phone calls rang non-stop, text messages and direct messages on short-video platforms bombarded me. In just one night, my entire family, including me, was ripped to shreds online. A quick search online, and I understood the whole situation. I was instantly furious, but then I calmed down. I had to stay steady. Suppressing my anger, I called Fiona. She didn’t pick up; Sarah did. As soon as the call connected, Sarah started mocking me, “What’s up? Are you going to accompany her to claim the prize today?” “Sarah, if you guys want to die, I won’t stop you. But please don’t drag me down with you. Because of you, I’m getting cyberbullied, do you know that?” “Whoever is cyberbullying you, go find them, why are you coming to me? I didn’t insult you. Every wrong has its perpetrator, why are you venting your anger on me here?” Fine, there’s no reasoning with this type of creature. I swallowed my temper and said calmly, “I’m warning you one last time: burn the lottery ticket, and do not spend the money from it. Otherwise, you’ll regret it for the rest of your lives. You’ve provoked something you can’t afford to provoke!” “What is this ‘thing’? Tell me! Say it! Why did you stop talking? What happens if I spend the money? Will a ghost come knocking on my door, hahaha?” I lowered my voice: “Something more terrifying than a ghost.” Perhaps because my voice didn’t sound like I was joking, Sarah stopped laughing on the other end, her tone becoming a bit cautious. “Who would believe you? Besides, there are no such things as ghosts in this world!” I sharply caught the slight panic hidden beneath her words and repeated what I just said, “Something more terrifying than a ghost. It’s something you can’t afford to provoke.” She cursed me out as a psycho a few times and hastily hung up. As soon as the call ended, Maya rolled over in her bed, making it creak. I didn’t know if she heard my phone conversation just now. After a good while, there was no sound. Suddenly, Maya curiously peeked out from her bed curtains. “Chloe, is there really something more terrifying than a ghost?” 4 I didn’t answer her question directly. “The world is huge, and full of wonders. Just because you haven’t seen it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. There are still many undiscovered things in this world, and all we need to do is maintain a heart of reverence toward them.” “Knowing too much isn’t good for you. You just need to remember, damn it, don’t take a single cent of the money from that lottery ticket.” Maya is a very gentle and kind girl. When I was confronting Fiona, she was the only one who dared to speak up for me, even though she was immediately shut down. My eyes took on a strange look as I slowly began, “Do you know why the statue’s arm broke?” She was confused. “Your statue? I really don’t know.” “The Holy Mother is always serene and dignified. People often call her ‘Holy Mother Mary’. Actually, she is a protector, looking after the world. She listens in all directions, hearing all cries for help. From praying for children to praying for rain, she can do anything.” “Our Lady of Lourdes brings healing, Our Lady of Guadalupe brings miracles… There are many titles for her, corresponding to the different people she saves.” “But the statues from our hometown aren’t meant for all those things. Praying to them for other things won’t work. They only do one thing, and that is to provide warnings. In fact, many people’s statues will never give a warning in their entire lives. Even a matter of grave danger wouldn’t necessarily cause it to break an arm to save a life.” I looked at Maya with a half-smile. “Guess what kind of thing could be so terrifying that a divine protector, revered for centuries, would be scared enough to break an arm to save a life, and hide away before it even arrived?” Maya thought for a moment, and an inexplicable sense of creeping dread washed over her. She quickly covered her ears and shook her head. “No, no, no, I don’t want to hear it, don’t tell me! I’m really terrified of that kind of stuff!” Fiona didn’t listen to the warning. Instead, she publicized the fact that I had warned her out of good intentions, calling me a weirdo who worshipped a statue in the dorm. She was very good at playing the internet game and manipulating netizens’ emotions. “Since someone said whoever claims this lottery prize will die, I’ll livestream the whole process on the day I claim it. Everyone is welcome to come and see if I die or not, hehe~” The gossip-hungry netizens immediately attacked me en masse, spouting all kinds of rumors and smears. Some people were genuinely curious and booked the livestream early. I really couldn’t stand her continuous slander and demanded a face-to-face confrontation with Fiona, but she deliberately avoided me, staying in the hotel every day. Now the whole internet knew she was the lucky one who won seven million. Fiona struck while the iron was hot, starting the livestream at 7 AM on the day of claiming the prize. Once the livestream started, it hit the platform’s trending page within minutes, with over ten million concurrent viewers. All sorts of gift effects flooded the screen. Fiona put on exquisite makeup, wore a Chanel-style dress, and rushed to the lottery center looking like a celebrity. Sarah had clearly forgotten the warning I gave them. Her face was flushed with excitement. She hyped Fiona up enthusiastically in the livestream, praising her as a girl blessed by luck. I stayed in the dorm watching the livestream, shaking my head. “It’s hard to persuade a damned ghost with good words. What ‘girl blessed by luck’? ‘Girl cursed by misfortune’ is more like it.” I suspect Fiona had no idea just how terrifying the things that even the divine protectors feared truly were. 5 “Congratulations to Ms. Fiona for winning the seven million dollar jackpot! Let’s give her our warmest applause! Our city’s first millionaire jackpot winner of 2026!” As soon as the voice fell, Sarah was the first to applaud, followed by thunderous applause that washed over the scene like a tidal wave. Fiona’s face was glowing with health. She confidently announced to all the citizens present and the tens of millions of viewers in the livestream: “I, Fiona, will donate three hundred thousand to our city’s stray animal protection organization! And seven hundred thousand to the child protection organization!” The applause grew even louder. Fiona posed with a V-sign for Sarah’s phone camera, her eyes crinkling in a bright smile. “Chloe, I know you’re definitely watching this livestream. I’ve claimed the seven million, and then what? And then what? You said I would die because of the lottery ticket, but aren’t I standing right here, perfectly fine?” Sarah took the opportunity to add fuel to the fire: “I think someone is just jealous, right?” The netizens in the livestream were also riled up by Fiona and her friend, and started mocking me together. I just sat in the dorm, calmly watching the screen full of mocking comments. Maya was a bit worried about me. She came over and hugged me. “I believe you. You definitely wouldn’t say things like that without a reason. Don’t mind what they say.” “Thank you. But you don’t have to worry about me now,” my eyes darkened. “Fiona can’t escape. They’re here.” “Who?” I didn’t say anything, turning around to get water to wash up. Night fell. A sudden cold front hit the usually warm March weather, and the temperature plummeted. Fiona paid the taxes, pocketed the remaining millions, and the livestream of claiming the lottery prize had not yet ended. In just a few days, her account had gained nearly three million followers, transforming her into the hottest streamer of the moment. No one believed my words. Even the other two girls in our dorm gradually started having issues with me. Smack— My washbasin was roughly kicked into the farthest corner, cracking slightly. I frowned: “What’s that supposed to mean?” The roommate rolled her eyes and arranged her own washbasin, “Nothing, just thanking you.” Before I could understand, she added sourly, “You said Fiona would be unlucky because of that ticket, and told us not to take her money. But look at her now, she’s doing great hosting her livestreams, she’s got the prize money, and she’s got fame…” From her sour tone, I seemed to understand something. “Did she say she’d give you a share of the money before?” “Hmph, what else?” The roommate rolled her eyes as she walked past me. “If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have to miserably use delivery coupons every day.” The others remained silent, seeming to agree with her. I didn’t reply. The next second, that roommate’s phone rang. It was Fiona inviting her to a party. Fiona had already completed the withdrawal procedures from the university, and even Sarah had done the same. “Fiona! Okay, okay! I’ll be right there!” The roommate excitedly hung up the phone and scanned the dorm. “Fiona is being generous and isn’t holding a grudge about us rejecting her earlier. She’s throwing a party right now. Anyone who wants to go, just go. Oh, right, Chloe, don’t go, she didn’t invite you.” Half an hour later, only Maya and I were left in the dorm. The next morning, I received a summons from the police. Because Fiona had died last night. 6 The big influencer who had just claimed a seven million dollar jackpot during the day died bizarrely that night. This news swept the entire internet overnight. All netizens were sighing over the short life of this young millionaire, who died before she even had a chance to enjoy her seven million. I, who had once predicted she would meet with misfortune, was naturally listed as the prime suspect. But very soon, I was released. First, because I had a solid alibi. Second, because Fiona’s cause of death was too… bizarre. An ordinary college student like me simply couldn’t have pulled it off. Fiona was literally scared to death. The party was held at the hotel where she was staying. During the party, Fiona only went to the bathroom once, and never returned. When her friends found her, her body was rigid, her pupils bulging, her mouth wide open in an expression of extreme terror, collapsed on the floor. After coming out of the police station, I kept my head down in deep thought. Based on the police’s questioning and the fragments of information circulating online, I could roughly deduce the cause of Fiona’s death. It hadn’t even had time to act; Fiona was scared to death just by seeing its appearance. “Chloe!” It was Sarah, crying with tear-filled eyes, who pushed open the dorm door. As soon as she entered, she immediately fell to her knees and kowtowed to me frantically, all traces of her former arrogance gone. “I’m sorry! You can punish me however you want, I don’t want to die, I don’t want to die, I don’t want to end up like Fiona…” “Please save me! However much money you need to save me, I’ll give it to you. Even if it means being your beast of burden for the rest of my life, I’m willing, please! I don’t want to die, my parents worked so hard to put me through college, I haven’t even had the chance to work and provide for them!” Sarah thought I would be soft-hearted. After all, I was known in the dorm for having a good temper. But when she looked up, she met my utterly cold gaze. I shook my head. “I can’t save you. I told you, anyone who spends the money earned from that lottery ticket will die.” Maya’s heart softened: “Chloe, why don’t you just help her? We’re all roommates after all.” I still shook my head without speaking. Sarah broke down crying, coughing violently as she almost choked on her own breath. I sighed, sat down on a chair, and told her, “I can’t save you. But I can tell you this: if you encounter it, do not panic. Pretend you didn’t see it, and you might just escape the first encounter.” I didn’t do this out of the goodness of my heart, but because I was also curious to know what exactly that thing was. Sarah rushed up to me, her voice filled with fear. “Who is it? Is it very scary?” “I don’t know either.” I shook my head, then looked at her meaningfully. “Scary enough to kill.” I could only tell her that much, because I wasn’t entirely sure myself. But Sarah had her own ideas. She thought that places with more people had stronger ‘Yang’ energy, so instead of staying home, she ran to the town square and started a livestream. She said there were many people around, and many people online, so that kind of thing wouldn’t dare come looking for her. The person she was co-streaming with was me. As soon as the livestream started, tens of thousands of netizens flooded in. [Waiting, do you guys think the streamer will survive tonight?] [Don’t know, but who’s that co-streaming with her?] [I went and checked, it seems to be the person who originally said whoever won the lottery would die.] [Damn, this is getting crazy. Is this lottery ticket really cursed?] [Maybe it really is?!] 7 Sarah held up her phone tripod, aiming the camera firmly at herself. Many people in the square recognized her, taking photos and whispering. But Sarah had no time for that. She sat on a bench in the square drinking soda, her eyes darting around wildly, scanning her surroundings. I asked: “Nothing unusual, right?” Sarah had just nodded when she immediately lowered her head and stayed silent. I noticed in the livestream that her body suddenly sat up rigidly, as if she had suddenly become very tense. I sharply caught onto this point. “Sarah, what’s wrong!” Without lifting her head, she said something that made the hair of every netizen in the livestream stand on end. “It’s sitting across from me.” But the netizens saw nothing; the chair across from her was clearly empty. Maya immediately burst into tears in the dorm: “It… it… it’s here! What do we do?!” I rubbed my temples: “Don’t look at it, continue what you were doing.” “Sarah, I’m asking you, what does it look like?” Hearing my words, Sarah, with a trembling hand, picked up a cup of juice from the table and drank it, but ended up choking violently. “Cough, cough, cough!” “It… it has so many hands, it’s very tall and big, its body is densely packed with hands and feet. But… but it… it looks so familiar…” I quickly pressed: “Familiar how?” Sarah looked up, facing the camera, forcing a smile that was uglier than crying. “Chloe, its face looks exactly like your statue!” The next second, Sarah’s head separated from her body, bouncing towards the edge of a flowerbed like a rubber ball. Then her arms and legs snapped off out of thin air, and Sarah turned into a bloody, mangled pile of meat. That head ignited screams across the entire square, and the livestream comments were a blur of “Holy shit.” The next second, the livestream was banned for extreme graphic violence. But I just stared blankly at my phone screen. Sarah said its face looked exactly like my statue. In an instant, all sorts of speculations flooded my mind. I couldn’t help clutching my chest, panting, my heart pounding wildly in terror. Sarah died. The police cordoned off the square, and the city’s residents were in a state of panic. Fiona’s death could perhaps be called an accident, but now that Sarah had died a bizarre, violent death in front of countless netizens, everyone who attended the party was instantly fearing for their lives. This included the other two roommates who had previously complained about me not letting them take the money. Because they had all spent money obtained from that lottery ticket. By the time the roommates brought others to look for me at the dorm, I had already taken a leave of absence and left. Right now, I was kneeling and praying in the church back in my hometown. Afraid of being in danger myself, I had rushed home overnight to devoutly kneel and complete the ceremony, obtaining a new patron statue. My parents secretly rejoiced, because these statues aren’t something you can just get if you want to; you must complete a drawing lots ceremony. If you don’t draw it, it means the saint isn’t willing to go with you, and you can only come back a year later. After getting the statue, I stayed at the church. The new small statue looked exactly like my previous one, elegant in posture, eyes closed, smiling. I placed her in the most prominent spot at the head of my bed and knelt in prayer every day. Fortunately, she indeed didn’t show any abnormalities, and I finally felt I could relax. But in the middle of the night, I suddenly heard the sound of the statue shattering. I immediately turned on the light and looked at the nightstand, only to discover that the statue I had just prayed for that morning had also lost an arm! 8 I immediately sought out the head priest of the church. Since I was born, this priest had been the head of the church. He only took one look at the broken-armed statue and immediately closed his eyes. “You must not leave the church these next few days. No matter who calls you, you absolutely must not go out. Going out means certain disaster.” I grew anxious: “Priest, I clearly didn’t spend the money from that lottery ticket. Why did my statue break an arm again?” He patted my shoulder gently, his eyes dim. “When that lottery ticket was bought, you paid half the money. Although you didn’t spend it, you are still entangled in its karma.” “It’s fine. Listen to me and stay in the church, and nothing will happen to you.” The priest’s words were a reassuring pill for me, and I slowly calmed myself down. For those few days, I ate and lived in the church, but I could still contact the outside world with my phone. Through the internet, I learned that my two roommates and the others had been desperately searching for my whereabouts. But to no avail. I had never revealed my home address to them, and my counselor naturally wouldn’t disclose it easily either. Before they could find me, disaster struck. A few days later, the first roommate died at home. Her entire body was twisted like a pretzel and hung from the ceiling fan, her liver and blood constantly dripping down from the fan. Her parents fainted from terror the moment they opened the door, and were still in the hospital undergoing emergency treatment. The second roommate vanished into thin air at home. After her sister called the police, the police searched for a long time but didn’t know where she went. It wasn’t until the family cat spent all day scratching at the rug in the roommate’s room that her sister noticed something was wrong and forcefully pulled up the rug. She discovered there was another rug underneath. Only it was bloody and mangled. A long, sticky thread of blood stretched between the floor and the rug, with several teeth stuck to it. Half a month later, everyone who attended the party was dead. The state of their deaths was gruesome, the killer unknown, and the methods extremely cruel. Meanwhile, I knelt in the church, praying devoutly every day, offering incense to the saint daily. Just as I was offering incense, I heard a very familiar voice. “Chloe, so your home is here.” My back stiffened, and I slowly turned my head to look back. It was Maya. The moment I saw her, I instantly breathed a sigh of relief. Having lived in the church for so long, I only remembered the voice belonged to a roommate, but I had forgotten which one. Seeing the massive statue in the church, Maya also offered incense following my example. “Chloe, I haven’t dared to sleep in the dorm these past few days. It’s too terrifying to be alone in the dorm, so I thought I’d come find you.” “You know about what happened to them, right?” I nodded. “I know.” After offering incense, I brought her to my quarters in the church and poured her a cup of tea. She looked around curiously. “Chloe, your village is really strange, actually having its own dedicated church.” I also drank some tea and nodded. “Because our village has worshipped only these saints since ancient times, and no other gods or buddhas. You know the custom, everyone carries a small patron statue on them. This might be because our villagers have prayed devoutly since ancient times, so the saints trust us and are willing to go with us.” Maya was still very curious and asked me: “Is that so? But I didn’t see your statue in this room. I remember you always used to put it in the most prominent place.” “Didn’t you pray for a new one when you came back?” “Can outsiders pray for a statue?” “Is it really true that the statues can only give warnings and can’t block disasters?” I froze, suddenly feeling that the Maya in front of me was making my hair stand on end.

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At noon, my online boyfriend sent me a photo of his lunch, fishing for compliments. It was a steaming bowl of braised chicken and rice. [Baby, I’m eating my lunch properly, I’m being a very good boy, hurry up and praise me~] I was just about to reply, “Good boy,” when… I noticed four big red letters printed on the tray in the photo: Lanjing Technology. My heart instantly skipped a beat. Because… the company I work for is also called “Lanjing Technology.” I froze on the spot. Come on, bro, are you kidding me? The guy I’ve been dating online for over a year actually works at the same company as me? 1 It was lunchtime, and I was sitting in the company cafeteria, happily eating my favorite braised chicken. I remembered my online boyfriend telling me that he’s too busy at work and often forgets to eat lunch. So I sent him a kind reminder: [No matter how busy work gets, don’t forget to eat lunch. Be an obedient little puppy.] Ten minutes later, my phone lit up with a message from him: [Baby, I’m eating my lunch properly, I’m being a very good boy, hurry up and praise me~] [Image] I opened the image. It was a steaming bowl of braised chicken and rice. I was just about to praise him. But then I realized there was an inexplicable sense of familiarity about this photo. After looking closely, I knew exactly where that damn familiarity came from: The four big red letters on the tray: [Lanjing Technology] And this is exactly where I work. I looked at the braised chicken in front of me, then at the photo my online boyfriend sent. Suddenly, the meat in my mouth didn’t taste so good anymore. The company cafeteria is for employees only. My online boyfriend actually works at the same company as me? I was speechless! 2 [Baby, why aren’t you praising me? (Puppy pouting face)] [I really listened to you and ate my food properly. (Puppy crying)] [Are you mad? What did I do wrong? (Puppy hiding in a corner crying silently)] My online boyfriend’s messages came one after another. I still hadn’t recovered. Although I knew we were in the same city. I never expected we would be in the same company. This damn fate! “Puppy, what company do you work for?” “Puppy, are you at Lanjing Tech?” I typed and deleted the words repeatedly. I didn’t know what to say. If I asked, he would definitely ask me where I work. He might even find out I’m also at Lanjing Tech. And then he would look for me. What should I do then? The thought of someone in the company calling me “baby” all day long made me want to die of embarrassment. Before I could even digest this fact. My online boyfriend sent another message: [Baby, you’re not ignoring me because you’re eating with someone else, are you!!!] [Baby, what’s wrong? I’m getting nervous…] To keep him from noticing anything unusual, I replied: [I was eating just now and didn’t see the messages. Good boy.] Only then did he stop bombarding me with messages. [Baby, I’ve finished eating, going back to work now~] 3 I breathed a sigh of relief and looked around the cafeteria. There were hardly any people left. Most of them were women, and there was one white-haired older man. It couldn’t possibly be him. I forced my brain to calm down and organize my thoughts. Right now, I needed to figure out a few things: First, who is my online boyfriend? Second, what kind of person is he really? Third, if I find him, should I come clean, continue dating online, or break up? (After all, it really would be awkward.) Thinking back to when we first started talking. We had kept our privacy very well. For example, we never sent selfies, and we never shared our real names or addresses. He would only send me a few pictures of his abs when I specifically asked for them. Based on this alone, it would be really hard to find out who he is. I couldn’t just go around lifting guys’ shirts to compare their abs with the pictures, right? 4 After returning to the office, I looked at my male colleagues at their desks. I shuddered. We battle it out every day like sworn enemies. If my online boyfriend turned out to be one of them, I would literally die on the spot. I scrolled through my chat history with him, looking for clues. And I actually found something. Last month, he was struggling to choose a water bottle. [Baby, I’m shopping at Global Plaza with a friend and I want to buy a water bottle.] [Help me decide, which one looks better? I’ll buy one for you too.] He sent several pictures, and I helped him choose a titanium travel mug with traditional lacquer art. To ensure my privacy wouldn’t be compromised, I politely declined his offer to buy me one. [Whatever you choose is the best, baby.] He bought that water bottle right then and there, so I just needed to see who in the company was using it. I walked around the office several times, but I couldn’t find anyone using it. I messaged him: [Are you using the water bottle you bought?] He replied very quickly: [Baby, I’m using it right now!] [Image.] The water bottle was standing right on his desk. That’s weird. Why didn’t I see it? While I was still pondering this, a message from my boss, Mr. Shen, popped up on the software: [Lin Xu, there are still some issues with the proposal. Come to my office for a minute!] When I walked into his office, Mr. Shen was on the phone: “Baby, I miss you too. Come see me at the office tomorrow.” “Oh right, Arthur is coming tomorrow too, you can catch a ride with him.” “Aw, I’m just worried about you driving by yourself, it’s not safe~” “Okay, whatever you say. Come over whenever you’re ready, drive safe.” “I have to get back to work, hanging up now, mua~” I awkwardly turned my face away. I couldn’t bear to look, I really couldn’t. Our Mr. Shen actually had such a gentle side. He hung up the phone, coughed, and smiled at me. “Lin Xu, the investors looked at the proposal this morning. They’re generally very satisfied, but they brought up a few points. I’ve highlighted the details, so please revise it according to their suggestions.” “Okay, Mr. Shen.” Just as I was about to leave, I caught a glimpse of a water bottle sitting on the corner of his desk. It was the exact same titanium travel mug with traditional lacquer art! The exact same one I picked out for my online boyfriend! For a moment, I stood frozen in place, as if struck by lightning! Seeing that I hadn’t left, Mr. Shen asked: “Hmm? Something else?” His voice pulled me out of my shock. I took a deep breath, pretending nothing was wrong. I pointed at the water bottle: “Mr. Shen, that’s a nice water bottle, where did you buy it?” He slowly uttered two words: “Global Plaza.” Me: “…” Mr. Shen smiled slightly, his eyes curving into crescents. “Why, do you like it?” I quickly composed my facial expression and waved my hands. “Ah, it’s nothing, just asking casually.” Then, I fled in a panic. An absurd thought popped into my head: Mr. Shen is my online boyfriend! But if I’m his girlfriend, who was he calling “baby” just now? Is Mr. Shen cheating on me? Holy shit! 5 I was completely out of it for the whole day. I didn’t even reply promptly to the messages my online boyfriend sent me. After suppressing my emotions and finishing the proposal revisions. I went home in a daze. My phone was full of messages from him. [Baby, what are you doing?] [Baby? Where are you?] [Baby, why aren’t you replying?] [Baby, why are you acting so weird today? Did I do something wrong? Tell me if you’re unhappy, I’ll definitely fix it!] [Baby, don’t scare me!] … With trembling hands, I typed a few words. [Puppy, are you hiding something from me?] He replied instantly: [No, baby. I always answer whatever you ask truthfully.] [Baby, is there a misunderstanding between us?] [No.] I tried to calm my chaotic mind. Now that I knew he was highly likely Mr. Shen, my next step was to figure out if Mr. Shen was really cheating. And who the “baby” he was talking to actually was. What if I was misunderstanding him? My online boyfriend sent another message: [Oh right, baby, brand V just released their latest clothes. Help me pick one out? I want to wear it tomorrow!] [Image.] I specifically picked out a solid black sweater with a logo on the left chest, so it would be easy for me to identify. I still held out a sliver of hope. If Mr. Shen didn’t wear this sweater tomorrow, it would prove he wasn’t my online boyfriend. Then I wouldn’t have to agonize over whether my online boyfriend was cheating or not. 6 The next day, I walked into Mr. Shen’s office with the proposal. He was sitting on the sofa drinking tea, and he was wearing the exact same black brand V sweater I picked out yesterday. Blindingly black. “Mr. Shen, the proposal has been revised.” He gave me a warm smile. “Good work, Lin Xu.” “The investors are coming this afternoon, please prepare.” “Okay.” I stared at Mr. Shen’s sweater, pretending to ask casually: “Mr. Shen, I’ve never seen you wear this sweater before, it looks nice.” He smiled: “Bought it yesterday.” This made me even more certain that Mr. Shen was my online boyfriend. Sitting at my desk, I absentmindedly stared at his office. He said yesterday that his “baby” was coming to the office today. I really wanted to know who this “baby” was. If it really was what I thought, then this relationship had to end. 7 An hour later, a woman with exquisite features walked straight into Mr. Shen’s office. I pretended to go get water. As I passed his office, I heard talking and laughing from inside. “Baby, I missed you so much. This sweater looks really good on you, I just realized black suits you.” Mr. Shen’s voice was gentle: “Baby, as long as you like it. I picked it out specifically. Aren’t we meeting your parents tonight? I was afraid they wouldn’t be satisfied with me.” “How could they? My parents will naturally like the person I like.” Hearing this, it felt like my heart had been dealt a heavy blow. So he asked me to pick out clothes for him so he could meet his beloved girlfriend’s parents. Then what am I? A secret mistress? The next second, I took out my phone and with great difficulty, typed a few words to my online boyfriend: “You are rotten to the core, let’s break up!” Then, I swiftly blocked and deleted him. 8 Mr. Shen walked out holding his girlfriend’s hand, watching her leave. Completely without any sorrow. I felt more and more like a clown. Thinking back to all the moments we shared, I felt a wave of bitterness in my heart. The only thing worth celebrating was that I used a secondary account for online dating. Otherwise, I would have been so embarrassed. I consoled myself: since love is gone, I should just focus on work. After all, I’m a rational woman, I can’t possibly quit my job over this. 9 In the afternoon, Mr. Shen sent me a message. [Lin Xu, the investor has read your proposal and thinks it’s feasible. Come in and give a presentation.] I gathered my emotions, held my head high, and walked in. “Lin Xu, this is the investor, and also my good buddy, Arthur Gu. Don’t be nervous, just explain your ideas to Mr. Gu.” I ignored Mr. Shen and looked at the person sitting on the sofa. And my eyes met Arthur’s. Unlike Mr. Shen’s gentleness, the man in front of me exuded a noble and unapproachable aura. He was wearing a black V-neck suit, the neckline perfectly revealing a black, slim-fit turtleneck sweater underneath. The sweater outlined his pecs, which were ready to burst out but perfectly concealed by the jacket. It left much to the imagination. His long, fair fingers picked up a water glass, and he took a small sip. I was completely intimidated by this man’s aura and nervously swallowed. Urged by Mr. Shen, I explained my ideas to Arthur. Once in work mode, I was confident and poised. When I finished, Mr. Shen clapped. “Lin Xu, very well said. Arthur, what do you think?” Mr. Shen and I looked at Arthur simultaneously, but Arthur’s gaze was fixed on my neck. He suddenly said: “Miss Lin, that’s a very nice necklace.” I looked down. The neckline of my outfit today was a bit low, and my crystal necklace was perfectly exposed. I panicked a little, because when I bought this crystal necklace, I had sent a picture to my online boyfriend. [Puppy, look at my new necklace, isn’t it pretty?] [Image] The image was a close-up of my neck wearing the necklace. He replied: [Baby looks good in everything.] Now that the necklace was exposed, Mr. Shen wouldn’t recognize me, would he? I glanced at Mr. Shen. Thankfully, he didn’t react much. He was still eagerly waiting for Arthur’s reply. Of course, he had a girlfriend, and he was just playing with me. Why would he remember these details? Only I remembered every little thing about our online romance. I hurriedly pulled my hand back and said: “Just bought it casually, for fun.”

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When the female lead appeared, I was already pregnant with Ethan’s child. Unable to fight fate, he had once desperately broken off his engagement with the female lead for me, but that only made her hate me to the bone, detesting the very sight of me. Eventually, I grew tired. I threw away our tangled feelings, and even gave up the child. Until a late afternoon, six years later. A tender-faced child knocked on my door. He kept a straight face, acting like a little adult: “My dad doesn’t want me anymore, can I come live with you?” 1 I froze for a moment, speechless. Leo pursed his lips unhappily, tilting his pretty little face up, and said earnestly: “My teacher said that parents have the responsibility and obligation to raise their children…” The half-open door cut off the rest of his sentence. I stepped aside slightly and said calmly: “Come in.” The dim, yellow light inside illuminated his slightly widened eyes. His eyes flickered inexplicably. He lifted his chin, let out a “hmph,” and obediently walked in. Closing the door, I turned around to see Leo curiously looking around. Seeing me look over, he immediately retracted his gaze, nervously gripping his backpack straps, his little face tense: “My name is Leo Vance.” It sounded like a self-introduction, yet also a reminder of his identity—the child Ethan and I had together. I knew. From the first glance, I confirmed who he was. Because his features were almost an exact replica of Ethan’s. Seemingly disappointed by my calm reaction, he unhappily turned his head away, refusing to look at me. I placed his small, bright yellow backpack by the entryway and led him to wash his hands. “Let’s eat first.” Leo obediently said “oh,” and by the time I brought the food out, he had already climbed onto a chair by himself. I asked him why he came looking for me so suddenly. Leo kept his head down, poking at the small greens in his bowl. His little round, black head drooping, his voice muffled: “I had a fight with him. He threw things and told me to get out, saying I should never come back.” So it was just a temper tantrum and running away from home. Then Ethan should be coming to pick him up very soon. Makes sense. After all, the Vance family fought ruthlessly with me for Leo’s custody six years ago. Now, it was even more impossible that they didn’t want him. My chopsticks paused, unable to define the feeling in my heart at this moment. I didn’t know Leo was coming tonight, so I only had a simple meal of two dishes and one soup. He was a picky eater, avoiding onions and carrots, until eventually, he had no vegetables left to eat. Leo glared bitterly at the mashed vegetable leaves, stole a glance at me, and guiltily swallowed them. When we first met, he had a touch of arrogance and haughtiness. Now, being a picky eater who didn’t like greens, it was clear he was pampered and spoiled at the Vance house. He shouldn’t have suffered any real grievances. I relaxed a bit. After washing the dishes, I waited for Ethan to send someone to pick him up. I waited until nine-thirty. Six-year-olds get sleepy early. He pulled his pajamas out of his backpack, looking around with his eyes, and pouted: “There’s only one room.” “Are we squeezing into one bed tonight?” I glanced at the clock on the wall. For some reason, the Vance family still hadn’t sent anyone. I had to compromise. “Yeah, you’ll sleep with me tonight.” I originally thought Leo would throw a tantrum. After all, a modest one-bedroom apartment was naturally nowhere near as comfortable as the Vance family’s luxurious mansion. But Leo just pursed his lips, his eyes flickering. After wiping his face, he grunted as he changed into his pajamas, kicking his legs to climb onto the bed by himself. Just like how, despite looking disgusted during dinner, he silently finished the greens I put in his bowl. He wriggled under the covers, making a little mound, pulled out a fairy tale book from who-knows-where, and peeked out to look at me, urging: “Aren’t you going to coax me to sleep?” He looked quite happy. 2 After coaxing Leo to sleep, I pulled up Ethan’s number. I hesitated for a long time, but still didn’t dial. Ethan and I had been apart for six years. At first, we both thought we could fight fate. Back then, my family suddenly went bankrupt. The Vance family broke off our engagement and, hiding it from Ethan, engaged him to Mia. For me, he broke off the engagement with Mia regardless of the consequences. He even gave up his position as the heir, taking a beating from Grandpa Vance according to family law that left him bedridden for half a month. Seeing me cry, he endured the pain, a lazy smile on his lips as he coaxed me in a low voice. I thought everything would be fine. The bankruptcy would be fine, Ethan would be fine, the future would be fine. But it wasn’t. Ethan and I secretly got married, hiding it from everyone. Perhaps because of Ethan’s unwavering commitment to me from beginning to end, after getting pregnant, I never once thought about not wanting the baby. Until the eve of giving birth. I endured the pain and called him for a long time, but Ethan never answered. My neighbors rushed me to the hospital. When I woke up, I saw a cold and indifferent Ethan. I didn’t know why someone could change so drastically overnight. So much so that his eyes were filled with unfamiliarity and disgust when he looked at me. Mia came to see me once. From her, I learned the truth about this world. Due to a system error in timing, when the late female lead appeared, the male lead had already developed feelings for someone else. As the price of correction, the male lead’s erroneous feelings began to invert. However much he loved me before, that’s how much he hated me now. Mia looked at me with pity and sorrow. Before leaving, she asked in a low voice, have you thought about what will happen to your child’s future? I was suddenly stunned, feeling a bit lost. I didn’t know who to hate anymore. Should I hate Ethan? But he didn’t even understand his own feelings. Should I hate fate? But what’s the use of hating? I couldn’t change anything. At that time, my parents were in a car accident on their way to the hospital to see me. They were in a coma and might be vegetables for the rest of their lives. I was on the verge of breaking down. My mind kept replaying everything Mia had said. I just felt that this bastard world was so, so exhausting. When I pushed open the window and looked down, the baby by the hospital bed suddenly started wailing loudly. I thought in a daze, what would happen to him if I died? Would this world tolerate his existence? Would he be abused by Mia? Or would he be like me, despised by Ethan, enduring countless grievances alone, and finally dying silently while everyone hoped for it? I started trembling all over. I went back to the bedside, my hands shaking as they reached for his neck. I wanted to take him with me. But then he stopped crying. His red, teary eyes stared at me eagerly, as if no matter where we went, he just wanted to be with his mother. It wasn’t until the nurses and bodyguards noticed something was wrong, rushed in, and pushed me away hard. I looked down at my trembling hands, only then realizing what absurd thing I had almost done under Mia’s suggestion. The news quickly reached the Vance family. Grandpa Vance specifically asked to see me, starting a fight for custody of the child. I didn’t ask for anything. I threw away the Ethan who despised me, gave up custody, and straightforwardly signed the divorce papers. I only asked for two million dollars. Youth doesn’t know the taste of sorrow. The Miss Hastings who once casually threw around millions would now find herself at a dead end for a few thousand dollars in hospital bills. From beginning to end, Ethan never appeared. His disgust for me reached the point where he didn’t even want to look at me. So, I accepted my fate. I threw away our tangled feelings, and even gave up the child. I let him go, and I let myself go. I didn’t snap out of my reverie until a soft little bundle buried its head into my arms. Leo closed his eyes, let out a soft grunt, and curled up sweetly in my arms. As if finally finding a comfortable position, he fell fast asleep. He uneasily gripped the hem of my shirt tightly, as if afraid I would disappear the moment he opened his eyes. I looked at that innocent, tender face and couldn’t help but sigh softly. If he knew his mother had wanted to strangle him right after he was born, would he still have come looking for me? He would probably run as far away from me as possible. 3 By morning, Ethan still hadn’t appeared. I didn’t know what he was trying to do. Back then, the Vance family fought so ruthlessly for custody, and now they were acting like they could just throw him away. I woke Leo up early and called a cab to take him to school. The kindergarten he attended wasn’t in the same city as where I lived, but luckily, it was only an hour’s drive away. Before getting out of the car, he made me promise repeatedly that I would pick him up after school, whining and clinging to me, refusing to let go. Until he saw a car parked in front of the kindergarten. His eyes lit up. He hurriedly pulled me out of the car, but as we got closer, he deliberately slowed down, pretending to casually block the path of a chubby little boy who had just gotten out of a car. As if doing it on purpose for him to see, Leo waved our linked hands in front of him. Then, very loudly, so everyone could hear, he asked me: “Mom, you’re picking me up after school, right?” This was the first time Leo called me “Mom.” Perhaps because of my six-year absence, he had never proactively called me “Mom” even when he knocked on my door. The chubby boy stared at me intently, saying in disbelief: “If you have a mom, why didn’t she drop you off before?” Leo scoffed, his gaze disdainful: “My mom is busy with work. Today she specifically took time off to drop me off.” He emphasized the word “specifically.” He held my hand, walking up to the main gate of the kindergarten in front of everyone, as if showing off, wanting everyone to see. Before parting, he awkwardly asked one more time: “…You’ll come pick me up, right?” Seeing me stay silent, he glared at me, then said very frantically and quietly: “You promised me in the car. Adults aren’t allowed to lie!” I helplessly squatted down, flattened his turned-up collar, and ruffled his hair. His hair was dark and soft, feeling great to the touch. “Okay, I’ll pick you up.” He couldn’t help but curl his lips into a smile, then tried hard to keep a straight face, acting mature, lifting his chin and saying reservedly: “Hmm, I’ll remember to wait for you.” I only retracted my gaze after his figure completely disappeared from my sight. I found his teacher and asked about Leo’s situation in kindergarten. The teacher hesitated, finally sighing and complaining with a frown: “I know the Vance family is powerful, and my words might not hold much weight.” “But Leo’s Mom, no matter how busy you are, you can’t just completely ignore your child, right?” “Since he enrolled, no one has ever come to a parent-teacher meeting!” “Now all the kids in the kindergarten are saying he doesn’t have a mom. If this continues, it will be very bad for his physical and mental development.” No one has ever come to a parent-teacher meeting? Even if Ethan is busy and dislikes this child, is he too lazy to even have an assistant handle it? I frowned, feeling for the first time that I might have made the wrong decision. …Maybe I shouldn’t have given up custody back then. But I was penniless then, my parents were in a coma in the hospital, and I couldn’t even support myself. How could I talk about raising a fragile child? I pulled up Ethan’s number, hesitated for a moment, but still dialed it. I decided to have a good talk with him. If Ethan really didn’t want to raise him anymore, I would take him back with me. Although the current me couldn’t provide him with the excellent conditions of the Vance family, it was still enough to raise a child. Just as the call went through, a ringtone sounded behind me. As if realizing something, my fingertips trembled, and I turned around. I saw Ethan stepping out of a black Bentley. Six years had passed. He seemed to have changed, yet also seemed the same. He half-lowered his eyelashes, looking at the lit screen, his wrist bones clearly visible, his cold, sharp face hidden in the shadows. Unrushed, he slightly raised an eyebrow and suddenly looked up. “You’ve been hiding from me for so many years.” “Want to talk?” Unlike my disheveled state over the years, Ethan remained composed and steady. His features were exactly as I remembered, but the look in his eyes as he gazed at me was inexplicably deep. Even the dappled light filtering through the tree branches seemed to favor him. I heard he had already taken over the Vance family’s entire estate from Grandpa Vance. I heard the brand he founded was popular worldwide. I heard he had secretly married years ago and kept a low profile. The decades of memories I had deliberately ignored surged forward like a collapsing dam, a fine, dense pain spreading across my chest. It wasn’t until the moment I saw him that I suddenly realized. I thought I had moved on. It turns out I hadn’t. In our youth, he wove grass ring rings for me and kicked the person who bullied me into the pool. No one could have imagined that we would end up in such an awkward situation today. Actually, he hadn’t changed; he just didn’t love me anymore, that was all. It really has been a long, long time, Ethan. 4 We walked in silence and found a nearby cafe. Before the coffee even arrived, I got straight to the point, as if to cover something up: “Do you still want the child?” For the past six years, I had fantasized about reuniting with Ethan to the point of near torture. So much so that now I could pretend to be indifferent. Ethan raised his eyes, glanced at me, without hesitation: “Of course I do.” I pursed my lips, staring at the street sign outside the floor-to-ceiling window, let out a low “hmm,” and stood up. “Then remember to pick him up after school. If you don’t have time for parent-teacher meetings, you can notify me. I won’t disturb you and—” I still couldn’t say Mia’s name calmly. I couldn’t help but dig my nails into my palms, the sharp pain keeping me lucid, forcing myself to say: “…Won’t disturb your life.” I glanced at the time and was about to leave. As we brushed past each other, I only heard Ethan ask out of the blue: “So you only want to talk to me about Leo now?” My steps faltered, not quite understanding. Things between us were settled clearly six years ago. He found another love, and I took the two million and walked away cleanly. It was that simple. Besides Leo, what else was there for us to talk about? Ethan let out a soft breath, his pitch-black pupils fixed on me, and spoke again: “Alright then, I don’t want Leo anymore.” He sounded so self-righteous, as if he wasn’t the one changing his mind at the last minute. I furrowed my brows, unable to help but ask him: “What do you mean?” Ethan’s jaw lifted slightly, tapping the seat opposite him, motioning for me to sit back down. “Exactly what it sounds like.” “You want to raise the child, fine. The child is yours.” “Considering the child’s physical and mental health, every Friday night I will go to your current residence to fulfill necessary shared parenting duties with Leo, and drive back to the company Monday morning.” Watching him calmly spout nonsense, I only felt it was absurd. Driven beyond patience, I reminded him: “We are already divorced.” “Are we?” Ethan let out an ambiguous scoff. “I didn’t sign.” I belatedly understood the meaning of that sentence. When Grandpa Vance had me sign the divorce agreement, I thought Ethan despised me so much he didn’t even want to see me one last time, so he never appeared from start to finish. He said he didn’t sign. But why come looking for me only after six years? I wouldn’t flatter myself into thinking he still had any feelings for me. Maybe that agreement was lost, or there was some loophole that required a supplementary agreement; anything was possible. I pursed my lips, cooperating nicely: “Then we’ll sign a new one.” Ethan didn’t even look up: “Not signing.” I spoke to him in an even tone: “Signing it makes us even, isn’t that good?” “No, it’s not.” “Do you have any concerns? I don’t want shares or money, consider it me leaving with nothing.” “Don’t want it.” Those three ‘no’s made me angry yet dazed. Perhaps Ethan himself didn’t even remember, but this is exactly how he was in his youth. That day was his birthday party. Someone cornered me, their gaze frivolous and disrespectful, spouting nonsense. Ethan kicked the guy into the pool with one strike. It caused a huge scene. The guests were all prominent figures in Capitol City, and the elders from several families looked displeased. When asked for the reason, Ethan never offered an explanation. To avoid rumors and protect my reputation, Ethan didn’t even mention me from start to finish. He refused to admit fault and stubbornly took a beating from Grandpa Vance. I suppose no one could have imagined that this future business mogul spent his eighteenth birthday in a confinement room. The door was completely locked, not even medicine could be delivered. I curled up outside the door, saying very softly and guiltily: “I’m sorry.” Through the door panel, he paused for a moment, making some rustling sounds. It seemed he sat down by the door too. His voice was a bit muffled. He let out a soft “oh,” then said: “Not listening.” I buried my forehead against my knees, saying sullenly: “Actually, you didn’t have to kick him. Just waiting for him to finish would have been fine, he didn’t dare to actually do anything to me.” “Wasn’t going to wait.” I didn’t speak again. Maybe my voice was too muffled earlier and he misunderstood something. After a moment, he said again: “No crying.” He knocked on the door panel, clicking his tongue lightly: “I did it willingly, it has nothing to do with you, no crying.” I snapped back to reality, trying my best to hide the sourness in my eyes, but I seemed to hear his “no crying” from many years ago again. Ethan sat under the light, smiling faintly. The fine dust caught the scattered light, drifting down. His old silhouette had long silently sharpened over the years. He looked up and raised an eyebrow at me. As if answering what I had said earlier. “Chloe, we can never be even.” 5 I don’t quite remember how it ended. I only remember that I was so angry I left without even saying goodbye. Because I parted on bad terms with Ethan, I wasn’t sure if he was just saying that or if he really intended to do it. I hesitated for a moment but still didn’t take a cab back. Perhaps the round-trip fare was almost equal to a day’s wages for me, and taking time off seemed better than going back to work. Or perhaps it was the maternal love absent for six years acting up; I didn’t want to break my promise to Leo. I waited until four-thirty in the afternoon when kindergarten let out. Most of the children in this kindergarten came from prominent families. Among the coming and going luxury cars, I saw that Bentley stop in front of Leo. So I didn’t step forward. I turned around, slowly walking in the direction I came from, suddenly feeling my previous worries were ridiculous. What was I thinking? How could the Vance family really let the child leave with me? That Bentley quickly drove away, kicking up thick dust as we brushed past each other. I inexplicably thought of that tender little face. We probably won’t see each other again. Driven by some inexplicable impulse, I turned my head for one last look. After the black car left, the previously obscured road on the other side was revealed. Leo stood all alone at the kindergarten gate. His wide, round eyes met my gaze. His eyes lit up, and he was about to rush toward me, but was stopped by a teacher beside him. He scrunched up his little face, seemingly saying something to the teacher in frustration. Afraid he’d run blindly across the street, by the time I snapped out of it, I had already unconsciously taken several steps toward him. The teacher saw me, and only then did she let Leo come over. He ran over, panting, his dark, round eyes sparkling. He only slowed down when he got close, deliberately putting on an air of indifference, acting coy but happy: “…You, you really came to pick me up?” His soft little hand tentatively held my fingertips. Seeing I didn’t pull away, he pursed his lips, sneaked a glance at me, and gripped tighter. I gave a soft “hmm,” asking him a bit uncertainly: “Aren’t you going with him?” Mentioning Ethan, Leo’s face puffed up like a little gas tank ready to explode: “I don’t want him! Plus, he’s not here to pick me up!” “He said you work hard dropping me off and picking me up, that my constant clinging would annoy you, and told me not to bother you at work.” Looking very opinionated and seemingly quite disdainful of Ethan, he spoke solemnly and proudly: “I’m not as stupid as him!” “I talked to the teacher about transferring schools today, so you won’t have to spend so much time dropping me off anymore!” He tilted his little face up, his gaze expectant, seemingly waiting for me to praise him. I couldn’t help but rub his round, little black head. There was a lot of traffic on the way home. After buying groceries at the market, the sky grew dark as I led Leo home. Suddenly, as if remembering something, he muttered casually: “Oh right, Uncle Driver is picking me up after school tomorrow. Dad said I have to go home tomorrow to get my change of clothes.” “But I’m still coming back here to sleep! You’re not allowed to forget me!” Tomorrow was Friday. I unconsciously tightened my grip on the plastic bag holding the ingredients for braised pork, paused for a moment, and said gently: “Okay.” Children have short memories. Perhaps after one weekend, he would be coaxed by his family and then, forget me. Every time we met, I treated it as the last time. Because only by doing so would I not feel disappointed during the long waits. 6 By ten-thirty Friday night, Leo still hadn’t returned. I calmly put away the pajamas he had left on the edge of the bed that morning and stuffed the extra dishes I had made into the fridge. I turned off the lights, spaced out in the dark for a while, and closed my eyes. When I woke up again, I heard the sound of rain pattering outside the window. The sky was just getting light. I had nightmares all night and woke up with a splitting headache, throbbing in waves. There were a few unread messages on my phone. Before leaving yesterday, Leo hugged my leg, pestering me for my phone number. The earliest voice message was sent at midnight. It carried a hint of guilt, sounding a bit defensive, yet like an explanation. [I didn’t mean to be late!] [I had my clothes ready by six! But Dad got sick again and doesn’t seem to have the energy to drop me off.] [He’s so useless!] The second message came half an hour later. Cautious, with a hint of crying. [Mom, are you angry?] [Do you not want me again?] [I don’t want to stay here either, but, but I don’t have a choice. I don’t have Uncle Driver’s phone number—] … The last one was from ten minutes ago. He took a picture of the instructions for a fever reducer, asking me what it said and if kids could take this medicine. I quickly called his number back. The phone was answered in a second, and the sound of sniffling came from the other side. “Mom.” My phone automatically went on Do Not Disturb at night. I couldn’t even imagine how frightened and anxious Leo must have been all night. Afraid of scaring the child, I took a deep breath, tried to keep my voice steady, gripped the phone tightly, and asked gently: “Do you have a fever? Can you tell Mom where it hurts?” There was a sneeze on the other end of the line. He didn’t answer the question, but asked cautiously with a nasal voice: “Mom, can you come pick me up?” I knew it. I couldn’t refuse. 7 Following the location Leo sent, I found a villa complex in Capitol City. It seemed they had been informed in advance, as the guards didn’t give me much trouble and easily let me in. Standing in front of the door, I inexplicably felt this villa looked very much like my old home. Just as I was about to ring the bell, a hand blocked me first. I saw Mia’s reflection on the doorbell screen. My pupils shrank. My mind buzzed. Mia frowned, seemingly unable to understand: “Why are you here?” Almost like a conditioned reflex, I threw off her hand. Under her astonished gaze, I pursed my lips: “I came to pick up Leo.” Mia froze, seemed to think of something, and said pointedly: “Actually, you really shouldn’t have given up custody back then.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, revealing a trace of pity: “You know, Ethan doesn’t like this child.” “He’s stubborn and difficult, not lovable at all. He still refuses to call me ‘Mom’.” “Oh right, haven’t you experienced it before? Those who go against the protagonist never have a good ending.” She smiled faintly. A light sentence, yet it sent me right back to that cold winter six years ago. But this time, I didn’t step back. “He has a mother; he doesn’t need a second one.” “As for the ‘no good ending’ you mentioned—” I took a step towards her, staring into her eyes, retorting sarcastically: “Since you know exactly what happened back then, you should also know very well that I have nothing left to lose now.” “You can go ahead and try what you just said.” I smiled and said: “Anyway, I have nothing but a worthless life. When that day really comes, I’ll make sure to take you with me before I go.” Mia instinctively took a step back, seemingly not expecting the person who had broken down in despair six years ago to now know how to fight back. She bit her lip and didn’t speak. Ignoring her, I rang the doorbell directly. Not long after, the door was pushed open from the inside. The door revealed a sickly, listless face. Ethan seemed not to expect me to appear here, instinctively asking: “Why are you—” The next instant, his eyes grew cold, and he said almost indifferently: “Get out.” Was everything that happened six years ago going to repeat itself because of Mia’s appearance? I tugged my lips in a near-mocking smile: “Don’t worry, I’ll leave as soon as I pick up Leo.” But as if unable to bear it anymore, he grabbed my wrist. Then, without a word, he pulled me inside the house, using half his body to block me, and slammed the door shut with a cold face. Before the door closed, I clearly saw the smile Mia had just put on turn rigid. I looked up at Ethan blankly. …Ah. Did he grab the wrong person? 8 The temperature of the hand gripping my wrist was scalding. The burning sensation told me it wasn’t an illusion. Ethan explained to me in a low voice: “I wasn’t talking about you.” I belatedly realized I seemed to have misunderstood something and uncomfortably pulled my hand back. He just looked down at his empty hand, couldn’t help but curl his fingers, and then dialed the guard’s number. His expression was aloof and cold. “Didn’t I tell you not to let her in?” A flurry of panicked apologies came from the receiver, and something else seemed to be said. Not long after Ethan hung up, a surveillance video was sent over. He handed the phone to me. I looked blank and confused, so he explained: “I never let Mia in. She snuck in right behind you.” Seeing I didn’t take it, he seriously stuffed the phone into my hand and carefully closed my fingers over it one by one. “Evidence, hold onto it.” But I caught a faint scent of alcohol. Is Ethan a lightweight? I belatedly realized that Ethan right now did indeed seem quite different from usual. My vision went dark. Besides me, probably no one else knows just how difficult a drunk Ethan can be. Under Ethan’s pressure, I forced myself to finish watching the surveillance video under his supervision. He stood by me the whole time, and even used his gaze to urge me to speak after the video ended, seemingly waiting for my “post-viewing thoughts.” I laughed a bit nervously, forcibly changing the subject, and kindly reminded him: “You seem to have a fever.” He reached out to touch my forehead, seemed to think about it seriously for a moment, and said solemnly: “Oh, it seems so.” …He’s silly, there’s no saving him. I couldn’t help but turn my head and sigh, only to see Leo dragging a suitcase out of his room, panting heavily. He froze when he saw me by the entryway. He dropped the suitcase that was as tall as his shoulder, his eyes red, and was about to throw himself at me. “Mom!” Ethan unhappily swatted away Leo’s hands hugging my legs, his expression very fierce: “Don’t call out randomly, this is my wife.” Leo was pushed until he stumbled, so angry he was about to cry. His little face was flushed from the fever, and he scrunched up his face, glaring at him hatefully: “Are you a bandit? Mom clearly came looking for me!” My ears hurt so much. Chirping away, like I was raising two sparrows. Before I could speak, Ethan had already pulled me into the bedroom with a cold face. Leo indignantly kicked his little legs, trying to follow, but was stopped by Ethan pressing an index finger to his forehead, pushing him out expressionlessly. The door closed with a smack. The world was quiet.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “394495”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel