I’ve been dating Derek, the Alpha heir of Frosthowl pack, for three years. He’s never marked me, never mentioned marriage. I know he still can’t forget his deceased former mate Vivian, which is why he takes such good care of Vivian’s sister Moira. But I always believed that with time and companionship, he would eventually fall completely in love with me. Until one day, on my way home, I was attacked by a group of Rogues. I barely escaped, beaten and severely injured. I called Derek for help, but he accused me of lying and yelled at me: “You’re my girlfriend. How could any Rogue dare attack you? Are you making up lies just to get my attention?” “I told you, I won’t mark you until Moira finds her mate!” Then I heard Moira’s voice on the other end of the line: “Derek, I’m done with my shower. Your turn.” Derek snapped “Stop putting on a show, I need to take care of Moira” and hung up. The pain nearly made me pass out. I used every ounce of strength I had left to dial emergency services. Later, the doctor said I needed to be hospitalized for serious injuries. I called him over a dozen times, but no one answered. Then I saw Moira post something on social media. [These condoms are pretty good quality.] The picture showed several used condoms. After I recovered and was discharged, since I still hadn’t met my destined mate, I agreed to the arranged marriage my parents had set up. “Yes, the sooner the wedding date, the better.”

Mom was shocked and delighted to hear my words. She’d never approved of Derek, but she knew how deeply I loved him. If I wasn’t completely broken, I would never give up so easily. Dad was the Alpha of Shadowclaw pack and had never been optimistic about our relationship either. He spoke up. “Since you’ve decided to break up, make it clear to Derek.” “Part ways on good terms.” I swallowed the bitterness in my heart and shook my head. Just last week, while I was hospitalized. Moira posted on social media. [A spontaneous trip. This entire journey sponsored by Derek.] In the photos. Two suitcases, one black and one pink, side by side. I recognized it immediately. That black suitcase was the limited edition celebrity model I’d given Derek for his birthday this year. I called to confront him. Derek was dismissive. “Moira’s been feeling down lately. I’m just taking her out to clear her head.” “She’s Vivian’s sister. I have an obligation to take care of her.” From the other end of the phone. Moira’s voice came through at just the right moment. “Derek, can you grab me a towel?” Derek responded smoothly. Finally, as if to comfort me or justify his actions: “Clara, if it weren’t for you, Vivian wouldn’t have died. What I’m doing now is just helping you atone for your sins.” My heart felt like it had been stabbed, the pain suffocating. Even now, he still stubbornly insists that I was responsible for Vivian’s death. Then why did he even agree to date me? He’s been torturing me for three years! But all my questions died in my throat before I could voice them. I stared at the red notification on the screen. My vision blurred. Derek was afraid I’d disturb their trip, so he blocked me! His beta warrior relayed his message to me. “Tell Clara to stop making a scene. This trip is important for Moira’s mental health. She’s been emotionally unstable.” “When I get back, I’ll propose to her as promised.” But he was wrong. No one waits in the same place forever.

I thought the family I was arranged to marry into would be suspicious and doubtful about my request. I never expected. They seemed more worried I’d back out. They said if possible, next week would be best. My parents anxiously asked for my opinion. Without hesitation, I agreed. It was just short notice, and there were many things to handle. After dinner with my parents, I returned to the house where Derek and I had lived for three years. As soon as I turned the key. A figure jumped out in front of me. Blocking me at the door. “Master, if you have any requests, just tell me, I’ll definitely…” Before she could finish. Moira, dressed in a bunny girl maid outfit, recognized me. Or rather. She realized I wasn’t the person she was waiting for. I looked at the black stockings on her legs, her ultra-short skirt barely covering her private areas. She was only three years younger than me. Yet her whole body radiated a youthful vitality that seemed to endlessly mock my dullness and boring nature. “I’m sorry… Derek insisted I come over.” “If you don’t like it, I’ll leave right now.” Moira looked innocently guilty as she backed away. Turning around, she tripped over a suitcase. Almost simultaneously, a figure rushed out from behind me. Catching her protectively beneath him. After confirming Moira wasn’t hurt. Derek immediately turned on me with harsh accusations. “Clara! Can’t you be more tolerant?!” “Moira is still just a child. How could you lay a hand on her?” I watched this performance with cold eyes. “A child? A twenty-year-old child?” “Derek, what kind of child wears an outfit like that in someone else’s home?” “She clearly lacks discipline! No manners!” “Slap!” Derek raised his hand and struck me across the face. “Have you made enough of a scene? Clara, not everyone is like you, born into wealth with no worries about food or shelter!” Moira seized the opportunity to start crying. “Yes… I’m sorry, I really have no manners…” “But when I was born, my parents were already dead… no one taught me these things…” “The only person who was willing to teach me, my sister… she’s dead now too…” She buried herself in Derek’s arms, her whole body trembling with sobs. The look she gave me carried barely concealed hatred. “Moira, none of this is your fault. This has nothing to do with you…” Derek looked down at her with pity, instinctively reaching to wipe her tears. His hand froze in mid-air. As if he’d just noticed what Moira was wearing. “Why are you dressed like this…” Before he could finish, Derek’s Adam’s apple bobbed. The desire in his eyes was completely unconcealed. Moira was clearly pleased with his reaction. She lowered her head shyly. “I have to attend a party tomorrow night. This is just a performance costume.” “If you don’t like it, I’ll take it off right now!” As she spoke, Moira actually started to undress. Derek quickly stopped her. Their hands clasped together, palm to palm. I had clearly become an outsider. “Since it’s for a performance, there’s nothing wrong with it.” Derek shot me a pointed look. “Only people with dirty minds see everything as dirty!” I laughed mockingly. Watching Moira’s little schemes. I only felt that my three years of effort had been worthless. Since Vivian died, although I became his official girlfriend, for these three years, he never marked me. I thought time would fade everything. That one day, I would find my way into his heart. But reality kept slapping me in the face. One Vivian left. Another Moira arrived. Yet in his world, I was still just an accessory girlfriend. I tried to take our relationship further. I even bought the clothes my best friend recommended to please him. But he pushed me away every time. Looking at me with growing disgust. I thought I wasn’t charming enough. So I specifically took ballet lessons. But in the end, even this flexibility didn’t win Derek’s special attention. On the contrary, all these attempts to please him became “scheming” and “cheap tricks” in my boyfriend’s vocabulary. Now. Moira only needed to have a face fifty percent similar to her sister’s to easily move this supposedly ascetic man. All my efforts seemed like a joke in this moment. It turned out it wasn’t that I wasn’t good enough. I just wasn’t the person he held dear in his heart.

“I think I should go back to my rental apartment.” Moira pushed Derek away. She turned and started packing her suitcase. Several photos slipped out at just the right moment. Beach photos. From the background, they appeared to be taken on a Hawaiian beach. The poses were intimate, the gazes affectionate. And in Derek’s locked cabinet in his study, there was an identical photo album. Same location, same outfits, similar person. Derek used this method to repeatedly relive his past with Vivian. But I’d begged Derek for so long. Wanting him to take me to the beach just fifty kilometers away each summer, but he always made excuses. Derek snatched up the photos, treasuring them as he put them away. “It’s so late, you can’t get into your apartment anyway. Just sleep here tonight!” Moira looked at me anxiously. “Why are you looking at her! This is my home. I can let whoever I want stay here!” I looked at Derek calmly. “Yes. This is your home.” I should be the one to leave. Besides, I never planned to come back anyway. Walking past them both, I went straight to the bedroom to get my things. Derek grabbed me. “You sleep in the guest room. Moira likes watching the sunrise in the morning.” Just for some sunlight. “Fine.” Derek seemed surprised I’d be so generous. His cold expression finally softened slightly. His tone carried a rare hint of regret. “I shouldn’t have hit you.” I ignored him, pulled out my suitcase and simply packed a few clothes and important items. Moved directly to the guest room. As for everything else, I could replace it all. Out with the old, in with the new. Derek tried to follow me into the room. Only to find I’d locked the door. After knocking a few times. His voice carried some hesitation, a probing quality. “Clara, you’re not really angry, are you?” In the past, every time anything involved Moira, we’d fall into cold wars and arguments. Now seeing me so calm, not crying or making a scene, he seemed uncomfortable. My tone was mocking. “No. How could I be? She’s just Vivian’s sister, not your lover.” The air went silent for two seconds. Derek sighed with relief. “Clara, just get through this period. I promise, I will marry you.” Marriage? I couldn’t help but laugh. Derek, too bad I don’t need it anymore. “Derek!” Moira’s voice suddenly came from the bathroom. Derek rushed over anxiously. “What’s wrong? Moira? What happened?” “Moira?” No matter how Derek called, no more sounds came from inside. I looked at the semi-transparent bathroom door. Derek’s concern clouded his judgment. He hadn’t noticed the additional shadow by the door at all. After calling several times with no response. He hesitated for two seconds. Then reached out and opened the unlocked door. Almost the instant the door opened. That pale white figure threw herself directly onto Derek. Moira let out a muffled moan, her voice coquettish. “Derek, that time we had sex, didn’t you enjoy it too? Let’s do it again. Just pretend I’m Vivian.” “Stop it, you know last time I was drunk…” Derek tried to push her away, but his hand touched something soft. His whole body went rigid, at her mercy. Moira became even more brazen. Pressing herself entirely against him. “Why? Am I not as good as Vivian? Not even as good as Clara?” Derek sighed helplessly, softly comforting her. “Be good, we’ll talk about this tomorrow, okay?” I looked at the two intertwined shadows on the wall, gave a self-mocking smile, and closed the door again.

The next morning. When I got up, the house was already empty. On the dining table, Derek had specifically left macarons. Next to them was a note he’d left. [I’m taking Moira back to her apartment first.] [Wait for me to come back.] I picked up my suitcase. Threw the macarons directly into the trash. Along with the bracelet I’d worn for two years. This was the only gift Derek had ever given me. Even though it was just something someone else had casually given to Derek. I once treasured it like a precious gem. But now, these things. Had no value worth cherishing for me. When I got home, Mom joyfully took the suitcase from my hands. “We were just discussing booking the wedding venue with Leo.” I looked at the familiar home. My nose felt sour. “Is it booked?” “All set. This afternoon I’ll go with you to order your wedding dress. It’s so wonderful, you’re finally getting married.” As she spoke, Mom’s eyes reddened too. I was the only child in the family. I’d been showered with love and affection since childhood. Before meeting Derek, my entire life hadn’t encountered a single setback. Now, for a man like this, I’d let myself become wounded all over. My parents must hurt even more than I did. I raised my hand to wipe away her tears. “Why are you crying? I’m not getting married today.” The bridal shop wasn’t far from our house. Just a ten-minute walk. As we approached, Mom remembered we hadn’t bought invitations yet. I told her to go buy them first and meet me at the bridal shop. But before I even entered, I saw a familiar figure. Moira, wearing a pure white wedding dress, was blissfully leaning against Derek. The shop assistants were gushing about what a perfect match they made. Through the mirror, Derek immediately spotted me standing at the entrance. “Clara, why did you follow us here?” “Don’t misunderstand. I’m taking wedding photos with Moira just to make up for a regret.” I felt nothing inside. I walked straight into the shop. Moira saw me and looked livid. “That’s right, Derek just wants to make up for his regret with Vivian.” “It’s just wedding photos. I don’t even mind being a substitute. Surely you don’t mind either?” Several shop assistants gathered around, clearly enjoying the drama. I said expressionlessly. “Of course. Please continue.” I didn’t look at them anymore, seriously selecting styles I liked. But Derek froze. Looking at my back, he suddenly felt panicked. “Clara, why would you suddenly come here?”

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I was reborn on the day Alpha Ethan lost control to an aphrodisiac. In this life, I didn’t sleep with him. Instead, I called his destined mate. In my previous life, I fell in love with Ethan, my guardian who shared no blood relation with me. When I learned he’d been drugged and was losing control, I ignored his request to call Chloe and slept with him instead. Out of responsibility, Ethan was forced to marry me. However, on our wedding day, Chloe was kidnapped and killed by a group of Rogues. Before she died, she called Ethan ninety-nine times for help. But Ethan was too busy with the wedding ceremony to answer a single call. Afterward, Ethan stared at those ninety-nine missed calls without saying a word. Then, a month later, when he learned I was pregnant, he abandoned me in the forest and left me to be torn apart by his enemies. Before I died, I heard him say: “If you hadn’t deliberately climbed into my bed, I wouldn’t have been forced to marry you, and I wouldn’t have missed Chloe’s calls for help. You deserve to die…” When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to the day Ethan lost control.

“Lydia, don’t touch me! Call Chloe now!” Hearing those familiar words again, I jolted awake. I had been reborn. At that moment, I was clinging to Ethan’s waist. I’d already torn off his shirt, and his burning chest pressed against my face. Without a moment’s hesitation, I quickly pulled away from Ethan, ending this mistake. I grabbed my phone and dialed Chloe’s number. Ethan’s face was flushed red, his gaze burning and unfocused as he looked at me. Unable to control his impulses, he moved toward me when I pulled away. He tried to kiss my lips. In my previous life, I’d mistaken his aggressive behavior for love, thinking he felt the same way about me. So I made a terrible decision that led to my tragic death. This time, I backed away toward the door, avoiding his gaze as I said: “Ethan, just hold on a little longer. Chloe will be here in ten minutes!” Then, ignoring his reaction, I opened the door and escaped. The moment I closed the door, I heard Ethan force out a few words through gritted teeth, seemingly calling my name. But I pretended not to hear, firmly closing the door behind me and standing guard outside. Ten minutes later, Chloe arrived in a hurry. She looked at me with a complex expression, then relaxed when she saw my clothes were still intact. Before pushing open the door, she glanced at me: “You can leave now. You’re not needed here.” I turned and went straight upstairs to my room. It wasn’t until late that night that the room downstairs finally fell silent. I let out a long breath. In my previous life, I loved Ethan so much that I willingly became his lover. Later, he married me under pressure, but on our wedding day, Chloe died unexpectedly, and he lost the one he truly loved. Then he said nothing, waiting in silence until the day I discovered I was pregnant. He said he wanted to take me out to relax, but instead left me alone in the forest. I was surrounded by a group of rogues. I tried to intimidate them by dropping Ethan’s name, but they just laughed. That’s when I realized—those men had all been punished by Ethan and harbored deep hatred toward him. When I was barely alive from their torture, Ethan finally arrived and dealt with the rogues. Then he looked at me coldly: “If it weren’t for you, Chloe wouldn’t have been killed by them. Now you and your child have served as bait to lure them out. Consider it your atonement.” Ethan had known all along. He’d deliberately brought me there, wanting to watch me die. In this life, I followed his request and called Chloe. And soon I would leave this place, getting away from him completely. The next morning, when I came downstairs, I found Chloe already sitting in the dining room having breakfast. When she saw me, she immediately put on a flawless smile. “Lydia, good morning. Did you sleep well?” She deliberately lifted her head so I could clearly see the bite marks on her neck. “I hope I didn’t disturb your rest. Ethan has such stamina…” Growing up in the pack, I knew this meant Ethan had already Marked Chloe. They’d formed a mate bond and become true mates. I paused briefly but kept my expression neutral: “Morning. I slept very well.” Chloe cut a small piece of bacon and spoke as if casually: “Speaking of which, I really need to thank you for contacting me last night.” I looked up at her: “Don’t mention it. It’s what I should have done.” Chloe’s smile deepened. “I’m so glad you think that way. I was worried you might feel uncomfortable about it, especially since…” She raised an eyebrow. “The way you looked at him last night didn’t seem like you were looking at your guardian. But obviously, even though you were in his room last night, he wanted me, not you.” Blood seemed to rush to my head with a roar, but I forced it back down. I took a deep breath, about to speak— “Ah!” Chloe suddenly cried out softly, knocking over the glass beside her. At the same time, Ethan’s deep voice sounded from the dining room doorway: “What’s going on?” Chloe had already quickly switched to a panicked and aggrieved expression. “No—nothing… Ethan, I was just clumsy…” As she spoke, she glanced at me timidly. “Lydia?” Ethan walked to Chloe’s side, checked on her, then looked at me with displeasure. “What did you do now?” “I didn’t do anything.” “Ethan, it’s really not Lydia’s fault.” Chloe grabbed Ethan’s arm, her voice breaking. “I said something wrong… I shouldn’t have mentioned last night. I might have upset Lydia. Please don’t blame her.” Ethan’s eyes instantly became sharp. “Lydia, Chloe is my future partner and your mother. You need to learn to respect her.” “I told you, I didn’t do anything.” I repeated. “Are you saying Chloe is framing you?” Ethan’s anger seemed ignited. “Lydia, you make a mistake and won’t admit it, and now you’re turning it around on her? Is this what I taught you?” “I haven’t done anything wrong, and I don’t need to admit to anything.” I turned to leave. “Stop!” Ethan barked. “Did I say you could leave? Apologize to Chloe!” “Sorry for interrupting your breakfast.” I nodded slightly, then without looking at his instantly livid face, I turned and left the dining room. Behind me, I could hear Chloe’s fake attempts to mediate and Ethan’s suppressed angry murmurs. I shut them all out behind my bedroom door. Half an hour later, someone knocked on my door. I opened it, completely unsurprised to meet Ethan’s eyes.

I instinctively tried to close the door, not wanting to get entangled with him. Ethan blocked the door first, frowning as he looked at me: “You’re avoiding me? Why?” He leaned in closer, scrutinizing me: “Are you angry? Because of Chloe?” I quickly shook my head and explained: “I’m not angry. I’m happy for you, Dad.” His eyes held an unreadable emotion, as if he was dissatisfied with my answer. “Is that the truth? Are you sure you’re not just saying that out of spite?” Then he sneered: “Lydia, you haven’t gotten over me, have you? On your eighteenth birthday, you snuck a kiss while I was sleeping. You think I didn’t know? “I’ve read all those private diaries you’ve been secretly keeping over the years. You think you hide it well, but the love in your eyes is so obvious. Who in Shadowfang pack can’t see that you’re in love with me? “Not confessing your feelings to me was the smartest decision of your life, because I would have laughed at you! Laughed at you—a human—for being so delusional.” He laughed to himself, then walked around me to my desk and yanked open the bottom drawer. Ethan grabbed a box from inside. It was full of photos I’d secretly taken of him. Ethan scattered the contents all over the floor, then stepped on them: “Lydia, I’ve raised you since you were eight years old. I’ve taken care of you all this time, but you, at such a young age, developed inappropriate feelings for your guardian! You even secretly collected these things. Do you know how disgusting that makes me feel?” Then he leaned close to my ear and said softly: “I came here to tell you—I know you wanted to use yourself to calm me yesterday! But fortunately you didn’t go through with it, or I would have been disgusted for the rest of my life!” My heart suddenly clenched, aching sharply. Even though I’d decided not to love him anymore in this life, hearing these hurtful words still caused pain. After speaking, Ethan warned me several more times to keep my distance so Chloe wouldn’t misunderstand, then stormed out, slamming the door. I didn’t want to be an eyesore around them, and I needed to handle my paperwork for going abroad anyway, so I packed up and left the house. That evening, I deliberately waited until almost ten o’clock before returning. As soon as I entered my room, I noticed something was wrong—someone had gone through my closet. Then I saw Chloe had posted on her social media, showing off a full-length photo of herself in a luxurious gown. The caption read: “I only mentioned needing a dress, and he immediately gave me this one.” She’d taken the custom dress Ethan had made for me. That dress had been specially designed by a master for my coming-of-age ceremony. It was worth seventy million dollars. He’d told me the dress was one of a kind in the world. Just like I was one of a kind to him. He knew exactly what treating a young woman he’d raised himself that way would mean. He’d encouraged my feelings, letting me fall in love with him. Yet he stood on moral high ground, saying I shouldn’t have violated ethics by falling in love with my guardian. Now, with just one casual comment from Chloe, Ethan had the dress sent to her without even telling me first. Ethan heard me return and stood at my door, saying lightly: “Chloe needs a nice dress for the upcoming gala, so I gave her yours. You don’t have any occasions that require it lately anyway.” I didn’t even look up, just hummed in acknowledgment. Ethan frowned, staring at me intently: “Lydia, you’re suddenly so agreeable that I’m not used to it. What’s gotten into you these past two days? You’re not planning something, are you? I’m warning you, if you dare provoke Chloe, I won’t indulge you like I used to!” Only then did I look up and reply softly: “I don’t want to provoke anyone. In fact, I hope no one provokes me either. Besides, Dad, haven’t you always wanted me to be more sensible? You should be happy with how I am now.” Ethan pressed his lips together and said almost petulantly: “Fine, fine, fine! Lydia, you’re doing great!” He slammed the door and went downstairs. Whenever he said that, it meant he was angry. And I would always try every means to placate him. I’d prepare all his favorite foods or carefully make handmade gifts for him. But I didn’t want to placate him anymore. For me, I’d decided to stop loving him. Whether he was angry or not no longer mattered. Besides, I would be leaving soon.

The following days passed simply. Chloe made a point of flaunting her affection with Ethan in front of me every day. She even deliberately showed me the marks on her body, saying on purpose: “Lydia, that’s just how Alpha Ethan is. He always wants everyone to know I’m his.” But I didn’t care. Even when I saw them, I acted as if I hadn’t. Ethan was still holding a grudge against me, and this time I was determined not to placate him. A month later, Chloe announced she was pregnant. Ethan was so excited he wanted to announce the news to the entire world. He moved up his wedding with Chloe, and the entire Shadowfang pack was busy preparing for their ceremony. In this life, it was Chloe—the woman he deeply loved—who was pregnant. I decided to help them have their happy ending. As soon as my paperwork for going abroad was ready, I immediately booked a flight to Switzerland for the day of their wedding. Ethan finally couldn’t hold back and came to find me. He waited until Chloe wasn’t home, then came upstairs and pushed open my door. He pulled out his phone, opened an email, and held it in front of me: “You bought a plane ticket abroad? Why? Are you so devastated by my marriage that you need to go abroad to recover?” My heart skipped a beat. I’d forgotten that any purchases on that card would send notifications to Ethan. But his follow-up comment eased my tension somewhat. Seeing me looking down without speaking, Ethan’s tone grew cold: “Lydia, haven’t you thrown enough tantrums? You’ve been giving me the cold shoulder for an entire month. If I hadn’t come to you, were you planning to ignore me for the rest of your life?” “Ever since Chloe moved into this house, you’ve been cold to me. But she’s the woman I love. If you love me, you should love everything about me, not avoid me and Chloe all day long.” “Are you going to avoid me forever? Even after Chloe and I are married, you plan to keep this up?” I shook my head in denial: “Ethan, I think you’ve misunderstood. I only see you as the elder who raised me. I only feel gratitude toward you.” He laughed as if he’d heard the funniest joke, unable to stop. “Lydia, the whole world knows you love me beyond reason. You only feel gratitude toward me? Would you have wanted to sleep with me if that were true? Ask yourself—do you believe that?” Then he glanced at the display cabinet in my room and smirked: “All these gifts I’ve given you over the years—you’ve kept them in such perfect condition. And you’re saying you don’t love me?” He walked over, picked up the gifts from the cabinet one by one to admire them, then said seriously: “But you should probably put these things away. I’m about to marry Chloe, so you shouldn’t keep harboring inappropriate fantasies about me. You’re grown now. You should interact more with humans instead of revolving around me. After Chloe and I are married, I’ll have her make arrangements for you.” I hummed in agreement, not telling him I’d already decided to leave. I casually packed the items from the cabinet into a storage box. I was planning to get rid of these things before going abroad anyway, so I might as well pack them up now. Seeing my calm reaction, Ethan frowned deeply and stopped me: “Lydia, can’t you be more careful? Look, you’ve scratched the band of this watch!” I glanced at the luxury watch in his hand. After my parents died in an accident, Ethan, as their close friend, decided to adopt me. And this watch was the first gift he’d given me. The watch face was inlaid with priceless gemstones, and my name and adoption date were engraved on the back. Over the years, I’d treasured it, carefully maintaining and polishing it every day. I wouldn’t let anyone else even touch it. But now, I’d just casually tossed it into the storage box. I didn’t answer. Looking at my calm expression, Ethan actually couldn’t take it anymore. “Lydia, stop pretending! You’re obviously so upset about my marriage to Chloe that you need to go abroad to recover, but now you’re acting like you don’t love me anymore! This behavior is really laughable. But it’s good for you to go abroad and clear your head. Maybe you’ll actually get over me!” After speaking, Ethan handed me a supplementary card. “Use this. Visit several countries. Stay for a month before coming back. By then, Chloe’s baby will be stable too.” He looked at me meaningfully and handed me a key: “I’ll be a married man from now on. Living together would make Chloe unhappy, so when you come back, go live in this apartment.” I took the key, neither accepting nor refusing. Ethan gave me a few more instructions about precautions. But he didn’t know that this time, I was truly leaving for good. On Ethan’s wedding day, everyone in Shadowfang pack got up early to help with preparations. I left the key and card on the table, and while everyone was busy, I quietly slipped out the back door with my suitcase and headed straight to the airport.

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In the third year of our long-distance relationship, I secretly transferred to a hospital in Silva’s city without telling him. But on my first day at work, he became the first patient’s family member I received. “Doctor, my wife has been having severe morning sickness lately. Can you take a look at what’s wrong?” Silva’s hand rested on the slightly protruding belly of the pregnant woman beside him, his eyes full of heartache. Noticing my hesitation, he looked up at me with some confusion. I lowered my head and pulled my mask up as high as it would go, biting my lip hard as I suppressed my voice to ask. “How far along is the fetus?” “Three months.” Three months. But just one month ago, Silva had been beaming with joy as we registered our marriage at city hall. I let out a cold laugh and turned away from him to make a phone call. “Dad, take the marriage certificate I left in the safe and have it checked for authenticity.” “If it’s fake, freeze Silva’s bank cards, fire him from his job, and take back the penthouse we gave him.” “And if that marriage certificate is real, do the same thing anyway!”

After hanging up, I returned to the examination room. I adjusted my mask again, making sure Silva wouldn’t recognize me. I glanced at the name on the registration form again: Antonella. Very unfamiliar. I’d never heard Silva mention her to me before. I suppressed the shock in my heart and asked routine questions again under their puzzled gazes. “Have you been keeping up with your prenatal checkups?” Antonella nodded and turned to glance at Silva. “Yes, we’ve been on time with all of them.” “For the first prenatal checkup, my husband even left work and flew back overnight to be with me.” My chest swelled with an odd, bloating sensation, and my nose suddenly stung. Based on her pregnancy timeline, the first prenatal checkup would have been exactly the day after my wedding. No wonder Silva had changed his clothes before the wedding even ended that day, hastily packing his luggage. “Alice, something urgent came up at work. I need to catch the last flight back.” He’d held my hand apologetically, his eyes reddening for the first time in front of me. “Once I’ve handled everything, I’ll definitely take time off for a proper honeymoon with you.” I’d grabbed my wedding dress, wanting to call him back, but even after running until I lost a shoe, I still couldn’t catch up to his hurried figure. With the groom leaving mid-ceremony, the guests didn’t say anything outright, but the mockery in their eyes was impossible to hide. That absurd scene from that night—I never wanted to experience it again in my lifetime. I smiled stiffly, my tone sarcastic. “Your husband is so good to you.” I looked through the previous examination report again. “Last time you were slightly anemic. To be safe, we should draw blood for another test.” Hearing this, Antonella’s expression became nervous, her voice tinged with unease. “Is it necessary? My husband has been personally cooking for me every day recently. I’ve gained quite a bit of weight, so I shouldn’t be anemic anymore, right?” As she spoke, she shrank into Silva’s embrace, her eyes reddening, looking rather pitiful. Silva immediately gripped her hand gently to comfort her, then looked up to explain to me. “Sorry, Antonella is a bit afraid of needles, so she gets scared every time we need to draw blood.” Then he gently patted Antonella’s back to persuade her. “But for your health, let’s still listen to the doctor and get checked. It’s safer that way.” “After the checkup, I’ll go home and make soup for you myself.” I gripped my fingers, my eyes fixed on the computer screen in front of me. Silva was a male chauvinist at his core. Since we’d known each other, he’d always believed housework was women’s work.

The kitchen had always been his forbidden zone. Once when I had a high fever and was too weak to move, I asked him to make me a cup of fever-reducing medicine, but he coldly refused. “I’m a grown man. How can I step into a kitchen?” That night my temperature spiked to 104°F, and I remained in a daze until the cleaning lady found me the next day. Turns out he could set aside his prejudices and go to such lengths for the woman he loved. As they were talking, Antonella’s face suddenly turned pale, and she abruptly covered her mouth and stood up. It looked like she was experiencing morning sickness again. The next second, Silva helped her stand, skillfully pulling a bag from his pocket. Clearly he’d become very practiced at handling this situation. He steadied Antonella’s shoulders, letting her weight rest almost entirely on him. “Sorry, we need to use the restroom.” After the two left, I finally let out a sharp breath and opened Silva’s chat window. Our last conversation was from two days ago when I told him I had a surprise for him. As things stood now, this surprise would probably turn into a shock. Just as I was about to exit, a new message popped up in the pinned conversation. [The certificate is real, but I found out he purchased a fake marriage certificate online a few months ago.] I closed my eyes. I already knew the answer in my heart. Right after I replied to the message, someone knocked on the door from outside. “Doctor, we’re back.” The two sat down in front of me again, leaning on each other. Silva helped Antonella tuck the strands of hair by her face behind her ear, then adjusted her clothes. As he moved her collar, it revealed a bright red hickey on her neck. I frowned, trying to keep my voice calm. “Didn’t anyone tell you? The fetus isn’t stable during the first three months. You can’t have sex.” Antonella’s cheeks flushed red. She lightly punched Silva twice, her tone coquettish with reproach. “It’s all your fault.” “As soon as three months passed, you couldn’t wait. Now you’ve embarrassed me in front of the doctor.” My stomach suddenly churned, intense nausea rising to my throat. Silva smiled and good-naturedly accepted all her complaints. He asked me a few questions about pregnancy precautions, then pulled out his phone and recorded everything in his notes. I caught a glimpse of his note title: Darling’s Pregnancy Precautions. When the interface exited, I could see other notes inside: Antonella Baby’s Food Restrictions, Antonella Baby’s Health Cycle Records… I looked away, my heart cold. Such detailed life records—we’d known each other for four years, and he’d never done this for me. Last month, to fly over to see him, I’d swapped shifts with several colleagues. After working 36 hours straight, I rushed to catch the flight to see him. But when I got off the plane, I couldn’t even get through to him on the phone. After calling for a long time, the line finally stopped being coldly unanswered. But when I said I was already on my way from the airport to find him, Silva immediately raised his voice. “Don’t come over right now!” I sat in the taxi, somewhat bewildered. I’d told him my plans a week earlier, and we’d agreed on today. He’d readily agreed and promised to pick me up at the airport himself. But the Silva on the phone hemmed and hawed. “I… I forgot about this…” “I’m on a business trip out of town right now. Sorry, Alice, I didn’t get a chance to tell you.” “Just go back home today.”

My brain was foggy from staying up all night, and I hadn’t caught the panic and confusion in his tone. He must have had a beauty in his arms at that moment, having completely forgotten about our plans. After arranging their examination items, Silva took the forms to pay. Once Silva’s figure completely disappeared down the hallway, Antonella reluctantly withdrew her gaze. She touched her belly. “After talking so much, I still don’t know the doctor’s name?” I raised my eyes to look at her. “You can just call me Dr. Alice.” A flicker of emotion crossed her eyes, and she smiled as she spoke. “What a coincidence.” My heart stirred, and I pretended to ask calmly. “Do you also know someone named Alice?” Antonella smiled slightly and nodded, then her expression changed, disgust appearing in her eyes. “My husband’s ex-girlfriend is also named Alice, but that’s all in the past now.” “I heard his ex was really ugly, had a terrible temper, treated Silva badly, and was extremely controlling.” “Thank goodness he was brave enough to break up with her. Now he’s met me instead.” I gripped the pen in my hand tighter, laughing coldly inside. “Did your husband tell you all this himself?” “Of course.” She clenched her fist, her expression indignant, as if feeling wronged on Silva’s behalf. “She even threatened Silva with his future career, forcing him to marry her.” “Of course Silva refused and even gave her a good humiliation.” Hearing this, I raised an eyebrow, having already sentenced Silva to death countless times in my mind. When I met Silva, he was still a young man with nothing but his studies, penniless and naive. He said after graduation he wanted to work in Texas—it was the place he’d dreamed of since childhood. So I convinced my father to pull strings and build a highway for him to the top companies in Texas. I even bought him a house there. I held his hand and told him, “Do what you want to do. People in love won’t let distance change their feelings.” When he proposed, he admitted in front of all our friends that without me, there would be no him today. He knelt on one knee and solemnly placed the ring on my finger, saying he would be with me for the rest of his life. But in the blink of an eye, he’d betrayed me so completely. I looked at the girl in front of me, exhaled gently, and suddenly felt utterly tired of it all. Twisting the wedding ring on my finger, I suddenly changed the subject. “I really envy you for having a husband who loves you so much. I’m different.” Antonella quickly looked up at me, her eyes shining with gossip. I continued. “Actually, I’m already married. In the first month after marriage, I discovered my husband was cheating.” “He was hiding another family from me.” “Bang!” As soon as I finished speaking, Antonella slammed the table hard. “He’s such scum! Dr. Alice is so wonderful, and he doesn’t know how to cherish you at all.” I smiled helplessly and continued slowly. “And recently, I found out he got someone else pregnant behind my back.” This time Antonella stood up directly in anger, her chest heaving violently. “Scumbag!” “That kind of person deserves to be struck by lightning and die a terrible death!” Just then, Silva pushed the door open and asked with a smile. “What are you talking about? Who deserves to die a terrible death?” Antonella looked at Silva angrily. “We’re talking about Dr. Alice’s scumbag husband. You don’t know what vile things he’s done.”

Then she turned to look at me. “Are you two still together?” I smiled in acknowledgment, my gaze falling on Silva as he organized things. Hearing this, Antonella frowned, her tone somewhat earnest. “You should divorce him decisively. That kind of man is nothing but trouble.” “If Silva ever messed around behind my back, I’d definitely kick him to the curb the next second.” Behind her, Silva’s movements stiffened. He put away his smile, his expression turning somewhat unpleasant. Unfortunately, Antonella was facing me and didn’t notice at all. I nodded thoughtfully, then pulled out my phone and dialed a number in front of them both. “You’re right. I’ll bring up divorce with him right now.” The examination room fell quiet. Even Silva put down what he was holding and looked at me. Almost the instant the call went through, Silva’s phone rang from his pocket. Silva jerked his head up to look at me, then avoided my gaze and fumbled to pull his phone from his pocket with shaking hands. Then he decisively pressed the disconnect button. Antonella looked confused. “Who’s calling you right now?” A flash of guilt crossed Silva’s face. He lowered his eyes and quickly darkened the screen. “Unknown number. Probably a spam call.” I held up my phone and waited a while longer before an automated voice reported that no one had answered. I smiled bitterly and shook my head. “No answer. Probably busy with things I don’t know about.” Seeing my low spirits, Antonella grabbed my hand and tried to comfort me. “A week from now, Silva and I are having our wedding.” She pulled out an invitation from her bag and handed it over. “I happen to have an invitation in my bag. Come to the ceremony and soak up some good fortune.” “May Dr. Alice only meet good people from now on.” Hearing this, I was somewhat surprised and instinctively glanced at Silva. But I still nodded and readily accepted her invitation. After the two left with all their materials, I finally removed my mask. After rubbing my aching eye sockets, I looked at the recent call record on my phone. When I dialed, I’d deliberately deleted the last digit of the number, so it hadn’t actually gone through to Silva’s phone at all. Opening the invitation, I saw simple cartoon drawings of Silva and Antonella—clearly a thoughtfully designed piece. I noted the wedding venue address. My newlywed husband’s wedding—I definitely needed to carefully prepare a big gift. On the wedding day, I stood outside the hotel and saw Silva and Antonella greeting guests at the entrance. Seeing me, Antonella stood on tiptoe and waved at me. “Dr. Alice, over here.” I pointed to the mask on my face, my tone somewhat apologetic. “I’ve caught a cold recently. To prevent spreading it to others, you don’t mind if I wear a mask, do you?” “Of course not.” She arranged my seat at the front of the banquet hall, right next to the emcee’s stage. The ceremony began quickly, with all the steps proceeding smoothly according to plan. Until the final speech segment, when Antonella suddenly invited me up on stage. Her hand gripped my arm tightly, as if afraid I would escape the next second. I frowned, an odd feeling crossing my mind. The next second, Antonella suddenly turned and yanked off my mask in front of everyone. A beam of flashlight shone directly on my face. The intense light made my eyes sting painfully, and I couldn’t help but tear up.

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I was filling up at a gas station when I scrolled past a trending local post: “I want my mistress to come over for an affair, but my wife’s schedule is unpredictable. How can I avoid getting caught?” Someone replied: “I’ve got experience with this. I have two parking spots at home. Whenever I’m having an affair, I park my car horizontally across both spots. When my wife comes home and can’t park, she calls me to move the car. While I’m going down to move it, my mistress slips away. I’ve been doing this for six months without getting caught.” The comments praised his clever scheme, and the original poster even liked the reply. I rarely post online, but I couldn’t help responding: “A bunch of scumbags!” But when I drove home, I found my parking spot blocked by my husband’s car parked horizontally across both spaces. Seeing my husband, who always parked carefully and never crossed the lines, suddenly park horizontally across two spots, I slammed on the brakes. The post I’d just read flashed through my mind. It had to be a coincidence, right? Alexander was famous for being devoted to his wife. We’d been dating for five years and married for two—seven years total. He was attentive and considerate, treating me like a treasure. He never let me enter the kitchen or do any housework. Knowing I loved to drive, he’d even given me a Porsche as a birthday gift and bought the parking spot right next to his. Every time we parked, he’d always position his car closer to his side, leaving an extra eight inches of space for me to park more comfortably. How could a man who loved and protected me so wholeheartedly possibly betray me? But that post kept replaying in my mind. I stared at Alexander’s car for a long time before making a decision. I didn’t call him to move his car. Instead, I drove to a temporary parking spot nearby, turned off the engine, got out, and went home. I wanted to see if there really was an unfaithful husband inside, waiting for me to call about moving the car. When I reached the front door, I quietly pulled out my key and opened it as silently as possible. Once inside, I headed straight for the bedroom. The door was half-open. Through the gap, I saw the room was empty. I turned to the guest room. Pushed open the door—still empty. The study, bathroom, balcony, even the storage room—I checked every single one. Every room was quiet and empty. No one was there. Where was Alexander? Just as I was puzzling over this, the kitchen door opened. Alexander came out wearing an apron, carrying a dish. Seeing me, he froze for a moment, surprised: “Why are you home so early today?” He quickly set the dish on the dining table and gave me a simple smile: “I was planning to make a few more dishes before you got off work. You came home early—I haven’t finished cooking yet.” I glanced at the kitchen. Cut vegetables were arranged on the cutting board, and in the pot, my favorite soup was simmering. Clearly, he’d been busy in the kitchen for quite a while. I breathed a sigh of relief and smiled slightly: “There wasn’t much going on at the office today, so I came home early.” Alexander nodded. “Then rest for a bit. I’ll finish the last two dishes and you can eat.” He went back into the kitchen to continue cooking. Watching his busy figure, I couldn’t help asking: “Why did you suddenly park horizontally across my spot today?” Alexander looked back at me, somewhat embarrassed: “I was worried you’d be hungry when you got home, so I rushed upstairs to cook. I didn’t pay attention to parking properly—just left it there and ran up.”

Alexander’s behavior seemed completely natural, and his explanation was flawless. After all, every day when I came home from work, there was always hot food waiting for me. Alexander was a surgical doctor with an incredibly demanding workload, yet he always managed to find time to come home and cook for me. Sometimes I’d tell him to rest and not work so hard, but he’d always say: “You have a weak constitution. When you’re hungry, you get heart palpitations and trembling hands. We can’t be careless about that.” “I need to make sure you have hot, fresh food the moment you get home. Nothing can interfere with that.” After speaking, Alexander continued bustling about. Soon, the food was ready—all my favorites. After serving me rice, Alexander was about to sit down and eat with me when suddenly his phone rang. He answered, immediately frowning with concern: “Alright, I’ll be right there.” He quickly took off his apron and said to me urgently: “There’s an emergency patient at the hospital that only I can operate on. I need to go.” He grabbed his car keys, planted a gentle kiss on my forehead, then hurried out the door. The moment the door closed, the house fell silent. I sat at the dining table, looking at the spread of dishes, but had no appetite. That post stuck in my mind like a thorn I couldn’t pull out. Alexander’s behavior and explanation had no flaws, yet I still felt something was off. I set down my chopsticks, stood up, and found myself walking into the bedroom as if possessed. The bedroom was tidy. Alexander had made the bed with military precision. At first glance, nothing seemed wrong. But the neater everything looked, the more uneasy I felt. I began searching the bedroom thoroughly. The bed had no strange odors or out-of-place items. Even the trash can was spotlessly clean. Everything was exactly as it should be. Was I really overthinking this? I shook my head and was about to leave when, as I turned to close the door, I spotted something under the bed. My heart skipped a beat. I immediately walked over, crouched down, and pulled it out. It was an earring. And I didn’t have pierced ears. It belonged to another woman. Realizing this, my head started buzzing. I stood there, staring at the earring in my hand, frozen for a long time. Then I pulled out my phone and found the post I’d read earlier. Sure enough, the original poster had replied to the comment he’d liked just one minute ago: “I parked across my wife’s spot like you said, but she didn’t call me to move the car and came straight inside.” “If I hadn’t heard her opening the door and hidden my mistress in time, I would’ve been caught.” The commenter replied instantly: “Looks like your wife’s pretty sharp.” The poster responded: “Yeah. I made up an excuse and slipped out. I’m driving my mistress home right now.”

Alexander really had cheated on me, and he’d brought his mistress into our home. My hands trembled as I put away my phone and walked out of the bedroom. Looking at the food spread before me, my heart ached. Alexander remembered all my preferences. He remembered that I got heart palpitations and trembling hands when hungry. He remembered I loved his goodbye kisses. But he forgot that I despised betrayal above all else. How ironic. A person could express such deep love for me while bringing another woman into our home. At that moment, I found myself curious. How much of the love I’d once been so proud of was real, and how much was fake? And when did things start between him and that woman? I sat at the dining table, trying to compose myself for a long time. Then suddenly remembered something. The thought made me immediately call my parents and ask them to come over. Sensing my urgency, my parents arrived as quickly as possible. “What’s wrong, Grace? What’s so urgent that you called us over?” I didn’t hide anything. I told them everything about Alexander’s affair in one breath. After hearing it, my dad couldn’t believe it: “Grace, could there be some misunderstanding? Everyone can see how good Alexander is to you.” “Plus, you know his job—he’s a surgeon, on call 24/7. Maybe he really does have an emergency surgery?” “That post—could it just be a coincidence?” But my mom slammed her hand on the table: “Impossible! There’s no such thing as this big a coincidence!” “The post says park horizontally, and he parks horizontally.” “Grace doesn’t call and walks straight in, and the post describes the exact same situation.” “The post says he slipped out to take his mistress home, and Alexander made up an excuse to leave.” “Plus there’s a strange earring in the house. How could this possibly be a coincidence?” My dad frowned. “But Alexander has always valued Grace more than his own life all these years!” My mom scoffed. “So what?” “Just because he’s been good to Grace means he couldn’t be cheating now?” “Every man who keeps a mistress acts perfectly fine at home.” “The better they act, the more convincing their performance.” My dad had no response. My mom grew angrier: “That Alexander!” “When he was pursuing Grace, he knelt at our door for three days and nights, swearing he’d treat her well. That’s when I agreed to let Grace marry him.” “And what happened?” “It’s only been two years of marriage and he’s already bringing his mistress home? This is outrageous!” My mom was furious. But I felt more confused than anything. As my dad said, Alexander had been very good to me all these years. He was young, accomplished, handsome—never short of young women throwing themselves at him. Even the hospital director’s daughter had openly pursued him. She’d even publicly stated that if Alexander would be with her, she could give him the entire hospital. But Alexander remained unmoved. He even offended her over it and nearly got blacklisted from the medical field. Despite all that, he stayed firmly devoted, telling me: “I can lose the whole world, but I can’t be without you.” Precisely because I’d genuinely felt how good he was to me, I couldn’t understand. What kind of woman could make someone like Alexander, who treated loyalty as his faith, change his heart?

“Grace, what do you want to do?” My dad looked at me, his expression serious. I paused, then said firmly: “I want to catch them in the act.” My mom immediately perked up: “How?” I didn’t answer right away. Instead, I looked down at my phone and opened an app I’d never used before. It was a location tracking app. Alexander had insisted on installing a tracker on his phone to put my mind at ease, saying it would let me check his location anytime. I’d refused at first—I trusted him, and I believed couples didn’t need such things. But he’d insisted, saying it was just insurance. If something ever happened to him, I could find him immediately. All these years, I’d been proud that I’d never once opened this app. I never thought I’d be using it to catch him cheating. I took a deep breath and opened the app. The screen loaded for a few seconds, then a map appeared. A green dot was slowly moving across it. My dad looked at the map, somewhat surprised: “That’s Alexander’s real-time location?” I nodded without speaking. My mom said impatiently: “Let’s go. We’re going there now.” “I want to see what kind of woman could bewitch someone like Alexander.” My dad said nothing, just grabbed his car keys and headed for the door. My mom and I followed close behind and got into my dad’s car. In the car, my mom kept muttering: “I thought Alexander truly loved you. I never imagined he could cook for you while bringing women home.” “In all my fifty-plus years, I’ve never seen anything so disgusting!” “If he really didn’t love you anymore, if he’d asked for a divorce, I’d be angry but I’d respect it.” “But instead, he treats you like a fool! Plays you for a monkey!” “If I catch him keeping a woman today, I’m going to tear them both apart!” My mom’s eyes were red with anger. When Alexander was pursuing me, she’d been against it. She felt Alexander’s family background was ordinary and he wasn’t good enough for me. It was only after Alexander knelt at our door for three days and nights that my mom relented. My dad drove in silence, not joining the conversation. I saw his furrowed brow in the rearview mirror. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. After about twenty minutes, I suddenly saw Alexander’s location stop moving. I immediately told my dad to speed up. We stopped near Alexander’s position. When we arrived, I spotted Alexander’s car parked in front of a villa. I quickly got out of the car and headed straight for the villa. But I didn’t notice that in the car, my parents’ faces both changed dramatically when they saw the villa. Seeing me walking toward it, my dad immediately got out and blocked my path: “Grace, are you sure Alexander brought that woman here?” Seeing my dad’s strange expression, I sensed something was wrong: “What’s going on, Dad? Do you know this place?” My dad opened his mouth but made no sound. Then my mom caught up. She glanced at the villa, swallowed nervously with a panicked expression, then said gravely: “Grace, let’s go back. Stop investigating.” I looked at my mom in disbelief: “Why?” “Mom, you were the one who wanted to come investigate. You were the most insistent about catching them red-handed.” “Now they’re right inside that villa, so why are you telling me to stop?” My mom didn’t answer. Instead, she grabbed my arm, her voice breaking: “Grace, I’m begging you. Let’s go back.” “Let this end here, okay?” My dad also stepped forward, his face serious: “Grace, listen to your mother. Let’s go back first.” “We’re doing this for your own good.” I was completely baffled. I couldn’t understand why my parents, who’d been so eager to defend me just moments ago, suddenly changed after seeing this villa. Was there something wrong with the villa? Or was it the person inside? Consumed by intense curiosity, I ignored my parents’ objections, rushed to the villa entrance, and knocked on the door. The door opened quickly. The moment it did, I saw Alexander standing inside, and the woman behind him. The instant I saw that woman’s face, my eyes widened and I suddenly understood everything…

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On the third day after my C-section, the baby and I checked into the premium postpartum care center I’d reserved in advance. Worried about the cost, I gently suggested to my husband Santiago that we could just hire a nanny to take care of the baby at home instead. Santiago laughed and said: “Don’t bother.” “I withdrew this cash without going through the finance department. If Everett finds out, I won’t be able to deal with her stubborn temper.” I froze. My heart felt like it had been pierced by a thorn—I couldn’t pull it out, couldn’t swallow it down. It just throbbed with a dull ache. Every time Santiago spent money on me, he had to get approval from Everett, the new CFO at his company. He called her his Minister of Finance. But I never imagined that on the very night I checked into the postpartum center, Santiago’s reservation would be hit with a full refund request. Clinton, the center’s manager, threatened and cornered, threw the refund receipt in my face and kicked the baby and me out into the rainy night. That night, my incision became infected. I developed sepsis and a fever that wouldn’t break. I called Santiago crying for help, only to discover I’d been blocked. As I lay in the emergency room with no one caring whether I lived or died, Everett posted a photo on Twitter from an auction. In the picture, she nestled in Santiago’s arms, smiling coyly: “Without my approval, what does it matter that Mr. Santiago is worth hundreds of millions? He still doesn’t dare spend half a cent without my say-so.” “I’d advise certain people not to be so possessive of other people’s money. You just had a baby—where do you get the nerve to stay at a luxury postpartum center?” Only then did I see clearly that Santiago hadn’t just handed financial control to Everett—he’d also given her the power to hurt me.

When Everett arrived at the postpartum center with the legal team, it was already late at night. Learning that the baby and I were staying in the most expensive top-floor suite, jealousy flashed in her eyes and her delicate features twisted for a moment. Seeing me, she let out a contemptuous laugh and said coldly: “How does a useless freeloader have the nerve to enjoy such luxury with a clear conscience?” “Russell, surely you’re aware that I never approved the expense for this postpartum center stay?” The incision from my C-section hadn’t fully healed yet. The fine, persistent pain left my face pale and my forehead covered in cold sweat. Our eyes met. Everett stared at me arrogantly, her gaze full of smug confidence. I took a deep breath, forcing myself through the pain to respond hoarsely: “I’m spending Santiago’s money—my husband’s money. I don’t need approval from some company CFO.” “Now, you’re disturbing my rest. Please leave!” Everett’s face darkened. She snatched the contract from the lawyer’s hand and threw it heavily at me: “Is that so? Too bad the money Santiago spends on you goes through the company accounts. And guess what? I have the authority to recover that money.” I jerked my head up to look at the lawyer standing nearby. Meeting my questioning gaze, the lawyer pressed his lips together and said with some reluctance: “Russell, Mr. Santiago did give Ms. Everett this authority.” “I’m sorry. I can only follow company regulations.” I froze, suddenly gripped by a terrible premonition. My heart pounded so hard it hurt. Sure enough, the next second, Everett turned and presented a stack of legal contracts signed by Santiago to Clinton, the postpartum center’s owner.

A shallow smile played on her face, but her words carried heavy threat: “Refund this order in full, and I won’t make things difficult for anyone. But if I don’t get this money back, Clinton, you should know how easy it would be for Santiago’s company to destroy a small postpartum center, right?” “Government departments could shut you down for inspection with any random reason I give them.” “Or would you prefer to be charged with conspiring with Russell to launder money?” Clinton didn’t dare confront the aggressive Everett. He clutched the stack of legal documents tightly and shot me a sinister glance. Through gritted teeth, he said: “Ms. Everett, Russell is still Mr. Santiago’s wife. Aren’t you afraid Mr. Santiago will be angry if you do this?” “Why don’t I call Mr. Santiago right now and get his opinion?” This fifty-thousand-dollar contract was too tempting. Clinton couldn’t bear to give it up, so he tried invoking Santiago’s name, hoping to make Everett back down. But the moment Clinton finished speaking, Everett burst into laughter as if she’d heard the funniest joke. In the vast room, only her clear laughter could be heard for a moment. Piercing, sharp, dripping with mockery. She said: “Sure, let’s get Santiago’s opinion. I’ll make the call myself!” As she spoke, Everett pulled out her phone and directly dialed Santiago’s number. The moment the call connected, his lazy, infinitely indulgent voice came through: “Everett, who’s bothering you in the middle of the night?” “What, we’ve only been apart for a little while and you already miss me?” My face went deathly pale. Hearing Santiago’s achingly familiar voice, I felt like my breath caught in my throat. The discomfort made my heart race with panic. Everett glanced at me dismissively, then let out a coquettish hum and said in a wronged tone: “Santiago, there was a fifty-thousand-dollar order a while back that you paid without my approval again, wasn’t there?” “I’m really going to get angry. You don’t take me seriously as your CFO at all.”

Santiago let out a muffled laugh and said helplessly: “My mistake, my mistake. Just go recover the money, okay?” “I give you full authorization. Take the legal team with you. Don’t be angry anymore, alright?” My mind went completely blank, replaying Santiago’s words over and over in an endless loop. Every word, every sentence was like a blade glinting with cold light, stabbing into my heart again and again. Only then did Everett break into a smile. After hanging up with a proud flourish, she looked at me with a mocking expression. “Surely no one actually thinks they can throw their weight around just because they’re the CEO’s wife?” All the blood in my body instantly turned cold. I bit my lip hard, unable to make a sound. Malice flashed in Everett’s eyes. She leaned close and whispered: “You dare pull rank on me as the CEO’s wife?” “Russell, just wait and see how I destroy you!” As soon as she got close, the heavy scent of her perfume hit me in waves, making my temples throb painfully. I suddenly snapped back to reality and frantically reached for my phone on the nightstand, my voice shaking: “That can’t be right. Santiago wouldn’t treat the baby and me that way.” “I don’t believe you, Everett. I need to make this call myself!”

But the moment I grabbed my phone, Everett slapped it out of my hand. She looked down at me from above. Her high heel came down hard. The lit screen quickly went dark, and Santiago’s name on the display went black along with it. Everett smiled: “One excuse after another, Russell. You’re not deliberately stalling for time, are you?” “I’m very busy. I don’t have time to play games with you.” She stood up and walked leisurely toward the door: “This postpartum center has no reason to stay in business anyway…” Clinton shot me a venomous glare, then hurried after her: “Ms. Everett, I’ll process the refund right now. I’ll return the money immediately.” “Please, you and Mr. Santiago, show some mercy. Don’t make things hard for my small business.” Soon, the fifty thousand was refunded to Everett’s account. She lifted her chin and flashed me a triumphant smile: “Oh no, Russell, this is Santiago’s money after all. He trusts me, and I can’t let him down, right?” “Please don’t blame me. If just anyone could spend Santiago’s money, how exhausted would he be?” The last thread of rationality in my mind snapped. Ignoring the pain, I lunged desperately at Everett. My voice came out hoarse: “Everett, you did this on purpose, didn’t you!” “I don’t believe it…” In the scuffle, I pushed hard. Everett stumbled backward. Just then, a familiar voice rang out urgently: “Everett!” That shout made me freeze. Everett froze too. But she quickly recovered, deliberately falling heavily to the ground, saying with tears in her voice: “Russell, I only came out of kindness to check on you and the baby. Why did you push me?” Santiago suddenly appeared, taking the fallen Everett into his arms. The look he gave me was ice-cold: “Russell, apologize to Everett!”

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My husband had weak sperm. After our eighteenth round of IVF, I finally got pregnant. I came home with my eight-week ultrasound report, overjoyed, only to find Margaret with a dark expression. “This baby can’t stay. Your sister-in-law Madison is fighting her husband for custody of their son in the divorce. If she gets custody, it’ll be hard for her to find someone new with a kid in tow. We’ll raise little Tyler here instead.” I couldn’t believe my ears. “Margaret, what did you say? You want me to abort my baby? Are you out of your mind?” “If she can’t raise him, then let his father have custody. I’m not raising him, and I’m definitely not getting rid of my baby!” Madison’s expression immediately turned sour. “Jason already agreed. Who the hell do you think you are? This family isn’t yours to run!” I looked at my husband in disbelief. “Jason, you agreed to this?” Jason grabbed my arm, trying to persuade me. “Madison’s looking out for you. You’ve never raised a child before. Having Tyler here would give you practice for being a mom. Just listen to her.”

I was shaking with rage. “Jason, three years! I’ve done countless IVF cycles. My stomach is covered in needle marks. Now that I’ve finally succeeded, you want me to abort?” Margaret chimed in with her snide remarks. “Who’s fault is it that you’re useless? Jason’s been kind enough to keep going through this with you. Anyone else would’ve divorced you ages ago!” “I’m making the decision. Abort the baby. When Tyler’s older, you two can try again.” I looked at my husband, my face pale. “Is this what you think too?” He pulled me aside and lowered his voice. “It’s just weak sperm. If it worked once, it can work again. Just listen to Madison.” I stared at him in despair. He still didn’t know that he now had azoospermia—no sperm at all. “Jason, do you have any humanity left? That’s your own flesh and blood in my belly, and you want me to abort it to raise your sister’s kid?” Jason grabbed my hands, looking aggrieved. “Emma, please understand. Tyler is Madison’s son, born after ten months of pregnancy. I can’t bear to see them separated.” “But you can bear to let our baby die before it’s even born?” My eyes were red. “Jason, we’ve been waiting for this baby for three years. I’ve done eighteen IVF cycles. How can you not want our baby?” For this child, I’d taken ovulation shots for three years. My stomach was covered with tiny needle marks. The egg retrieval was so painful I wanted to die. Back then, Jason had held my stomach and cried tears of heartbreak. “Emma, you’ve suffered so much. From now on, you and the baby are my life. I swear, as long as I’m here, no one will hurt you.” But now, the man who’d sworn to protect us with his life wanted to be the executioner who killed his own child first. Jason looked torn as he glanced at Madison. “Madison, maybe we should think of another solution…” “Another solution, my ass! Who else could we trust to raise Tyler? We’re going today. From now on, Emma will be Tyler’s mom!” Margaret shoved Jason aside and dragged me toward the door. I clutched the table desperately, screaming at the top of my lungs. “Mom, this baby is your grandchild too!” Margaret sneered. “My daughter is my blood. Her child is the true heir of the Smith family. You’re an outsider. How can your child compare to my daughter’s?” “Besides, I’m not saying you can never have kids. Once you’ve put Tyler through college, you can have as many as you want. But this one has to go!” I was trembling with rage. “Margaret, I’m twenty-eight years old. Tyler is four. He won’t graduate college for another twenty years. I’ll be almost fifty by then. How am I supposed to have children?”

Before Margaret could respond, Madison added her mocking commentary. “If you can’t have them, someone else can. Jason can have children with another woman. You’re a barren woman anyway. IVF babies aren’t even healthy. Let Jason have kids, and you can just pay to raise them.” “You just focus on raising my Tyler. If I’m satisfied, I might consider letting Tyler take care of you when you’re old.” I was about to explode with fury. She wanted me to raise her son, while Jason had children with other women, and I’d have to pay for them? What did that make me? A complete fool? The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. I was about to reveal the secret I’d kept buried for three years. “The one who can’t have children isn’t me, it’s…” “Emma!” Jason dropped to his knees in front of me, frantically giving me meaningful looks. “Emma, I know you’re suffering. But Madison saved my life when we were kids. I owe her this. I have to repay her. I’m begging you, please just agree.” I was furious. “You owe your sister, so you repay her yourself. Why should my baby’s life be the price? I’m telling you, absolutely not!” Madison pulled him up, glaring at me coldly. “Why are you negotiating with her? You’re the father. You have the right to terminate the pregnancy!” Madison dragged me toward the door without another word. I screamed in panic. “This is illegal! I’m calling the police!” I grabbed my phone to call for help, but Margaret snatched it away. Then Madison slapped me hard across the face. “You dare call the police? This is a family matter. I’ll tell the cops you’re pregnant with another man’s baby and we were just trying to stop you from leaving. Who’s going to interfere?” My face burned with pain. I was shaking all over. I stared at Jason. “Jason, you’re just going to watch your sister hit me?” Jason cowered like a turtle, glancing timidly at his sister before pleading softly with me. “Emma, that’s just how Madison is. Please bear with it.” “Bear with it? How am I supposed to bear with this? Jason, your mother and sister want to kill our baby. Do you have a heart or not?” Before I could finish, Madison kicked me in the chest. “So what if I hit you? Let me tell you something, Emma. If you come with us quietly to get the abortion, it’ll be easier on you. Otherwise, I’ll kick that baby out of you myself. You’ll hemorrhage so badly you won’t even be able to save your uterus. Believe me?” I stumbled backward and fell to the ground, gasping for air. Jason took a half-step forward as if to help me, but didn’t dare. He looked at me pathetically. “Emma, just agree. I promise we’ll get you painless anesthesia at the hospital…” “What painless anesthesia?” Margaret shot him a displeased look. “She can’t have children. Spending money on her is wasteful. Save it all for Tyler!” She turned to look at me with a smile that held poison-tipped needles. “Emma, don’t blame me for being cruel. You can only blame your timing for being wrong. If you’d gotten pregnant three years ago when you got married, the baby would be running around by now. This is your fate. Just accept it.” I looked up sharply at Jason. “Jason, say something! Tell your mother the truth—I’m not the one who can’t have children. This baby can’t be aborted. You have azoosper—” “Emma!” Jason pulled me up from the floor and said earnestly. “Margaret’s just blunt. But I never looked down on you for not being able to conceive, did I?” “Tyler and Madison are my mom’s whole life. She can’t stand to see them suffer even a little. She’s just upset.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t make you wait twenty years to have another baby. Just terminate this pregnancy first. I’ll talk to Margaret and my sister later about letting you have one sooner.” He leaned close to my ear, his voice very low. “Come on, Emma. I have weak sperm, not no sperm. You’ll just have to work hard for a few more years. I’m sure you’ll get pregnant again.” My heart turned to ice. Three years ago, our premarital checkup revealed his weak sperm. He’d cried so helplessly, so pitifully. I knew he was afraid I’d leave him. I chose to marry him anyway because I couldn’t bear to give up our three-year relationship. For the sake of his pride, I’d accepted the narrative that I was the infertile one. Three years. Eighteen IVF cycles. Each one stripped away a layer of my being. And all I got in return was his “I never looked down on you” and “you’ll just have to work hard for a few more years.” I suddenly laughed, tears streaming down my face. “Tyler and your sister are your mom’s life. Isn’t my baby my life too?” I tried to grab his collar, but my fingers were shaking too hard to muster any strength. “Jason, do you realize this might be your only child? Are you really this heartless?” Reluctance flashed in Jason’s eyes. He turned to look at Margaret. “Margaret, maybe we should keep this baby. Emma’s pregnancy wasn’t easy. We can still raise Tyler. Whatever Madison wants, we’ll agree to it.” Margaret and Madison exchanged glances. Margaret’s tone softened. “I can’t bear to lose my grandchild either. Your sister’s just worried that once Emma has her own child, she’ll treat Tyler badly. How about this—to put your sister’s mind at ease, have Emma sign a property transfer agreement. Everything goes to Tyler. Then we can keep the baby.” Madison immediately pulled out an agreement and shoved it in my face. “Sign it!” “Emma, take a look. Make sure there’s nothing I don’t know about. Hand over everything so Margaret and my sister can feel secure.” I stared blankly at the agreement, which listed every single asset I owned in detail. A 2,000-square-foot apartment in a premium school district, worth $300,000. Two 1,000-square-foot commercial properties in the downtown business district, worth $2 million. A beauty salon business, worth $500,000. $400,000 in fixed deposits across three major banks. A Mercedes, 200 grams of gold, household appliances… From major assets like properties and savings down to every needle and thread, everything was documented clearly. I hadn’t even realized I owned this much. The last item on the agreement was particularly striking. [Assets to be managed by legal guardian. Manager: Madison Smith] A voice in my head suddenly made everything clear. I finally understood the real reason behind all this. Aborting the baby was just an excuse. Seizing my assets was the real goal. I looked up at Jason and asked through gritted teeth. “Jason, you’d kill our baby for this?” His eyes darted away. “Emma, you said the baby was your life, right? Trading all your assets for the baby’s life is worth it.” My face turned iron gray with rage. I threw the agreement on the floor. “I won’t sign! These are my premarital assets. They have nothing to do with you. This is extortion and blackmail. I’m going to report you!” Madison immediately flew into a rage. She grabbed my hair and slapped me repeatedly until my head was ringing. “Bullshit! You little bitch! You belong to the Smith family, so your money belongs to the Smith family!” She grabbed my hand and pressed it hard onto red ink pad. “We were being nice by discussing it with you. Just stamp your fingerprint and sign. Don’t make me get nasty!” Her strength was terrifying. My wrist bone felt like it was about to shatter.

I screamed in pain. “Jason, are you dead?” Jason stood there unmoved. Not only did he not intervene, but he spread his hands with a helpless expression. “Emma, giving the assets to Tyler is just giving him security. We’re all family. Why make such a fuss?” “Just sign it and you’ll suffer less.” My heart felt like it had a gaping hole in it, cold through and through. Margaret picked up a stick and struck my waist hard, saying viciously, “Are you going to sign or not? If not, the next hit is your stomach!” I screamed in pain. My waist throbbed, and my stomach felt an ominous heavy ache. My heart lurched with fear. I closed my eyes in despair. “I’ll sign…” My hands trembled as I pressed my fingerprint, tears falling. Seeing my clear fingerprint on the property transfer agreement, all three of them breathed a sigh of relief at once. “Should’ve cooperated earlier. Would’ve saved me the trouble!” Madison blew on the still-wet marks, then collected the agreement with satisfaction. Jason finally came over and reached out to help me up. “Emma, good girl. What do you want to eat? I’ll make it for you.” My stomach cramped in waves. My face contorted. “My stomach hurts. Take me to the hospital.” Jason looked at me nervously. “It’s okay, Emma. I’ll take you to the hospital right now. We’ll definitely save our baby.” He’d just gotten me to the door when Margaret stopped him. “Wait. You gave all your money to Tyler. Where’s the money for the hospital?” “Did you hide money from us? Unlock your phone. Let’s check how much she still has.” Margaret clutched my phone and walked over to slap me hard across the face. “What’s your phone password?” My already swollen cheek took another brutal hit. Blood seeped from the corner of my mouth. “That’s all the money I have left. I need it for childbirth…” “Childbirth? You’re Tyler’s mother now. Everything has to be about Tyler first. You’re already thinking about your own baby before it’s even born? That money belongs to Tyler. You have to hand it all over.” I looked pleadingly at Jason. Jason said helplessly, “Emma, just give it to them. Don’t make Margaret angry.” I shook my head stubbornly. “No. That’s my and my baby’s emergency money. You can’t have it…” “Thud!” A kick to my stomach. My back slammed against the door with a dull sound. Searing pain shot through my lower abdomen. A hot stream gushed between my legs. “Won’t talk?” Margaret grabbed my hair and bashed my head against the door. “Then you can forget about keeping this baby!” I screamed in agony as my vision went black. “Jason…” Jason grabbed Margaret’s hand. “Margaret, that’s enough. Emma’s pregnant with my child.” I slumped weakly against the door, blood streaming down my forehead and covering my face. Jason grabbed my chin. I thought he was checking my injuries. But instead, he held my phone up to my face for facial recognition. I struggled frantically, but couldn’t break free. The phone unlocked effortlessly. He opened my mobile banking app. His eyes grew wider and wider. “One, two, three, four, five, six, seven…” Margaret and Madison crowded over. Seeing the string of zeros in the balance, their voices trembled. “Two hundred thousand dollars!” Margaret grabbed my hair. “You little bitch! You hid this much money from Jason. Tell me, how much more do you have that we don’t know about?”

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On April Fools’ Day, I received a promotion email. I thought my five years of hard work had finally paid off—I was finally being promoted to Sales Director. Full of joy, I moved my belongings to the door of my new private office. But when I pushed open the door, there wasn’t even an office chair inside—just a pile of stinking garbage. That’s when I heard loud mocking laughter from my colleagues behind me. “Sasha, you actually fell for it? How pathetically shameless!” My boss also chimed in, “It’s just an April Fools’ prank. You can take a joke, right?” I became the laughingstock of the entire company, a complete fool. But they forgot—this afternoon, I was scheduled to sign a one-billion-dollar contract that would determine the company’s fate. Since my boss loved April Fools’ jokes so much, I’d give him a special April Fools’ gift of my own. …… “What’s wrong, Sasha? It’s just an April Fools’ prank. You can take a joke, can’t you?” My boss, Mr. Richards, looked down at me with unconcealed smugness. Faced with his mockery, the entire office area erupted in piercing laughter. “Exactly, Ms. Turner! Did you really think you could become Sales Director?” Lily from reception covered her mouth, laughing so hard she was shaking. “She should look at her own credentials—a community college graduate thinking she can become a phoenix? As if.” I didn’t lose my temper. I just stiffly crouched down and began picking up the personal belongings I’d just joyfully packed into the large cardboard box, one by one. I was like a clown being paraded through the streets. Under everyone’s unrestrained pointing and whispering, I walked step by step back to my cramped old desk in the main hall. “She usually acts so high and mighty just because she’s the top salesperson, bossing us around. Now she’s been put back in her place.” Behind me, I could hear my colleagues’ shameless gossip. Mr. Richards followed me over, tapping my desk with the bottom of his coffee mug. “Sasha, don’t take it to heart. Young people need to face some setbacks—it’s good for you. I’m just trying to build your stress tolerance.” He adopted the tone of a caring elder. “You’ve been with this company for five years. Even if you haven’t achieved great things, you’ve worked hard. But the director position isn’t something you can get just by working yourself to the bone. You need big-picture thinking, you need to understand office politics. Understand?” I looked at him coldly. “Mr. Richards, last week you personally told me that if I secured Mr. Wilson’s one-billion-dollar contract, the director position would be mine.” Mr. Richards scoffed. “That was motivational rhetoric. You couldn’t even tell? Besides, we could land Mr. Wilson’s deal even without you, just based on our company’s reputation. Don’t think too highly of yourself.” I clenched my fists, my nails digging deep into my palms. Five years of my youth, countless days and nights of struggle. In his eyes, it was all just a cheap game he could trample on at will. I felt utterly humiliated and degraded. But I forced myself to swallow this bitter pill. Because this afternoon, I still had to represent the company to sign that one-billion-dollar contract. It was the most important credential in my professional career. I couldn’t flip the table at this critical moment. “You’re absolutely right, Mr. Richards.” I forced out a smile completely devoid of warmth. Mr. Richards nodded with satisfaction. “That’s more like it. Girls shouldn’t always be fighting for power.” He turned to the other employees who were watching the spectacle. “What are you all standing around for? Don’t you have work to do? Even though it’s April Fools’ Day, performance reviews are no joke!” Everyone immediately scattered, but the looks they gave me were still full of undisguised contempt. Derek Shaw from the next desk leaned over. “Well, well, Ms. Turner, giving up so easily?” Derek usually got chewed out by me for his bottom-of-the-barrel sales numbers. Now seeing my misfortune, he was happier than on Christmas. “I’ve always said women in sales are just trading on their youth. You’re getting older now, you’ve lost your looks—how can you compete with those young girls?” He picked his teeth while giving me an extremely sleazy up-and-down look. “You should just find yourself an honest man to marry and be a housewife.” I whipped my head around, staring at him with icy eyes. “Derek Shaw, your sales this month are zero, and you still have time to worry about my marriage prospects?” His face stiffened, then flushed with embarrassed anger. “Who are you to act so superior! You’re not even a manager anymore—what right do you have to boss me around?” I didn’t bother with him. I needed to go over the final contract details one more time. No matter what, this contract was my personal achievement, and I wouldn’t allow any mistakes. Just then, someone gently tapped my shoulder. I turned around.

“Ms. Turner, are you okay?” Marcus, a subordinate who’d only been with us for two months, stood behind me. I shook my head. “I’m fine. Go back to your work.” I stood up, heading toward the break room to get some water. The corridor was narrow. Derek saw me coming and deliberately stretched his leg into the aisle. I tripped over it and fell hard to the floor. My knee hit the hard surface, sending a sharp, drilling pain through me instantly. “Oh my! Why is our great Director Turner bowing so low?” Not only did Derek not apologize, he mocked me loudly with heavy sarcasm. The surrounding colleagues burst into laughter again. “Sasha, are you blind or something?” I endured the searing pain in my hand and knee, struggling to get up from the floor awkwardly. I looked coldly at Derek. “Get your dog leg out of the way.” Derek slammed his hand on the desk and stood up. “You walk without watching where you’re going and blame others? You think you’re still that high-and-mighty top salesperson? You’re nothing but a joke now!” Marcus walked over, his eyes red. “Ms. Turner, ignore them.” He helped me to my chair, his voice choked with tears. “Ms. Turner, what am I going to do?” I frowned, looking at the paper in his hand. It was a demotion notice. It stated that due to Marcus’s failure to meet performance standards during his probation period, he would be demoted to reception assistant with his salary cut in half. “What’s this about?” I asked. Marcus wiped away tears. “Mr. Richards said I’m too stupid and can’t do anything right. Ms. Turner, I really need this job. I have a sick grandmother back home to support.” Seeing him like this, the anger in my heart subsided slightly. In this cold company, perhaps only this fresh graduate still retained some human warmth. Remembering how I’d trained him hands-on these past two months, I softened. I patted his shoulder consolingly. “Sales is tough for everyone. You just started—not having resources is normal.” I thought for a moment and pulled out a client list from my desk. “Tell you what—I have some repeat orders from old clients here. The profit margins aren’t high, but they’re enough to get you through probation. Take these and follow up on them. They’ll count as your sales numbers, give you a cushion.” Marcus’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Really? Ms. Turner, you’re really willing to share clients with me?” I nodded. “Everyone’s struggling. We should help each other out.” Marcus clutched the list tightly, breaking into a smile through his tears. “Thank you, Ms. Turner! You’re like a second parent to me!” Watching his joyful retreating figure, I sighed helplessly. The wounds on my hand were still bleeding. I went to the restroom to clean them up. Otherwise, meeting Mr. Wilson this afternoon looking like this would be far too unprofessional. I limped toward the restroom. I firmly believed that as long as I held that one-billion-dollar contract in my hands, I’d have the capital to turn things around. But I never imagined that what I thought was kindness was just another carefully crafted joke. A party popper went off in the office area. Immediately followed by everyone’s cheering and celebration. “Come on, everyone! Let’s congratulate Mr. Richards on his promotion to Sales Director!”

I froze in place. What should have been a quiet workspace now looked like a wild party. I stood at the office entrance. I saw Marcus, who’d just been crying to me moments ago, now sitting brazenly on my desk. He held a glass of freshly opened champagne, laughing his head off. “Did you all see how stupid Sasha looked just now? She actually believed I was getting demoted and condescendingly offered me some trashy clients! Those moldy resources of hers—I wouldn’t even use them as coasters!” Lily from reception approached with a wine glass, looking obsequious. “Exactly, Marcus! She doesn’t know her place. Just because she landed a few big clients, her tail’s pointing to the sky. She doesn’t even know whose name is on this company.” Derek circled around Marcus like a lapdog. “Marcus is Mr. Richards’s own nephew, an elite returnee from a prestigious university! The Sales Director position was always meant for Marcus. That nobody Sasha isn’t even worthy of carrying Mr. Richards’s shoes!” I stood in the corridor’s shadows, feeling all the blood in my body freeze instantly. His own nephew? I stared at Marcus sitting on my desk. So all of this was fake. The promotion email was fake. The demotion notice was fake. Only I was the fool, manipulated and mocked by the entire company in a conspiracy. Mr. Richards emerged from the private office, holding a wine glass. He looked at Marcus with a smile. “Marcus, how was my April Fools’ production? Pretty good, right? Did it help you vent?” Marcus jumped off the desk and threw his arm around Mr. Richards’s shoulder. “It was awesome, Uncle! You don’t know—these past two months she’s been making me memorize product materials every day and forcing me to run sales calls in the blazing sun. I’ve never been treated like this in my entire life—not even by my own mother! Seeing her today like a stray dog moving her stuff—I can’t tell you how satisfying that was!” Mr. Richards laughed heartily. “She’s just meant for grunt work. This afternoon, after she signs Mr. Wilson’s one-billion-dollar contract, I’ll just find some excuse to fire her. Then that massive achievement will be yours! I’m good to you, aren’t I?” I stood there watching their ugly faces, suddenly feeling my stomach churn. Five years. For this company, I’d given up all my vacation days. I’d pulled a nearly bankrupt workshop up by its bootstraps into a well-known industry player. I thought if I just worked hard enough, I’d earn the respect and rewards I deserved. But reality had slapped me hard across the face. I pushed open the door and walked in expressionlessly. The cheering stopped abruptly. Everyone looked at me like I was some kind of monster. The smile on Marcus’s face froze for a moment, then returned to that same arrogant expression. “Oh, Ms. Turner’s back? That demotion notice earlier was a misunderstanding. My uncle said for April Fools’ fun, all decisions and responses today had to be reversed!” He boasted, “So I actually got promoted!” I laughed coldly inside. Reversed. So that’s how I got that ridiculous promotion notice. Just then, Mr. Richards walked over with a cold expression. He slammed a thick stack of documents against my chest. “Sasha, you still have the nerve to chat here? Get your ass to the conference room right now!”

Mr. Richards pointed at my nose and cursed. “Mr. Wilson’s already here with his legal team—go sign that contract immediately!” I looked down at the contract that had fallen to the floor. Just flipping to the first page, my brow furrowed tightly. This contract was full of holes. Not only were the profit margins completely wrong, even the breach of contract clauses were reversed. “Mr. Richards, this contract is unusable.” “Shut up!” Mr. Richards rudely cut me off. “This is the proposal Marcus personally revised. He’s an elite returnee who understands advanced management concepts far better than you!” Marcus chimed in smugly from the side. “Exactly. Your outdated negotiation tactics are ancient history.” I looked at this ridiculous uncle-nephew pair, hardly believing my ears. Signing this hole-riddled contract would destroy my industry reputation and lose all client trust. Mr. Richards and Marcus could easily deflect all blame, but I’d be finished in the industry. Mr. Richards glared at me viciously. “Sasha, stop being alarmist! I’m ordering you to go to the conference room and handle this right now, or you’ll bear all the losses and get out immediately!” He shoved me, pushing me straight through the conference room door. Inside the conference room, the atmosphere was oppressively tense. Mr. Wilson sat across the long table with his elite legal team, their expressions dark. I looked at the wound on my knee from Derek’s trip, then at the disgusting faces of this uncle-nephew duo. Then at Mr. Wilson’s extremely displeased expression across from me. Five years of grievances, humiliation, and resentment reached their peak in this moment. Mr. Wilson pushed the contract toward me. I took a deep breath and picked up that contract. Then I announced loudly to Mr. Wilson: “On behalf of the company, I reject this partnership!” As soon as the words left my mouth, I gripped the contract with both hands. With a loud rip— In front of everyone, I tore that billion-dollar contract to shreds. Paper fragments floated down like snowflakes in the conference room. The smile on Mr. Richards’s face instantly froze. “Sasha, have you lost your mind!”

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When the arrogant and wild rookie, Vexx, first joined the team, he always loved to clash with me. But gradually, I noticed something changing in the way he looked at me. Fans flooded the comments: [Bro, you’re looking real good right now.] [Ray, your teammate is totally gay! Better guard your six and keep running!] Just when everyone was shipping us like crazy, living for the chaos, Vexx publicly announced his new girlfriend and posted: [I am completely straight! Stop trying to pair me up with a girly-man like Ray, okay? Anyone shipping us needs to get their head checked…] 1 Ten minutes after Julian posted his official announcement on X (formerly Twitter), it blew up the trending topics. Which wasn’t surprising. After all, he was highly skilled, insanely popular, and had a face handsome enough to cause a stir. For an esports player, a normal relationship announcement wouldn’t be this explosive. The reason it blew up was… Rather than a simple announcement, it looked more like Julian was desperately throwing a selfie with a beautiful woman in everyone’s faces just to prove he was straight. And, as a bonus, he completely severed ties with his teammate. Unfortunately, that teammate was me. My in-game ID is Volt. “Ray” or “Ray-mom” is the derogatory nickname haters gave me because they think I’m too effeminate, hence bestowing me with the word “mom.” To be honest, I wasn’t angry about this at all. Applying feminine traits to me… was actually a compliment. It represents the strongest, bravest force in the world. Besides… I actually am a girl. The esports circle is different from the entertainment industry. Esports fans never coddle anyone: [Lmao, does this kid not know ‘Ray-mom’ is a derogatory term? Volt has been carrying your team for two years, even if he hasn’t won it all, he’s put in the work, right? And this is how he gets treated by a rookie? @VG_Esports] [If the org doesn’t step in after this kind of public tear-down, Volt will probably transfer next season… maybe even retire. Sigh, three consecutive runner-up finishes is too heartbreaking.] [Getting first in the regular season went straight to your head, huh? Tearing the team apart before the playoffs even start, are you guys even going to play?] [Even as a hardcore Volt hater, I can’t stand this. Julian is way too arrogant. Is this the future of the LCS? What a joke!] Scrolling through these comments, I couldn’t help but let out a soft scoff. It was true. Julian had just debuted this year. Just a few days ago, he won Rookie of the Year and Regular Season MVP. He was widely acknowledged as the future hope of the LCS. Yeah. Widely acknowledged. I didn’t acknowledge it. Because I wasn’t a guy. “Volt” wasn’t me. It was actually my twin brother, Liam Sullivan. Two years ago, he hit rank one on the North American server and signed with the VG organization for a multi-million dollar contract. But then… The day before he was supposed to report to the team house, he slipped in the shower and broke his right hand. We originally planned to tell the truth, but the moment we saw the penalty clause for breaching the contract, we completely scrapped that idea. Left with no choice, I had to cut my hair short and pretend to be Liam to play Jungler for VG. In ancient times, Mulan took her father’s place in the army. Today, I, Lily Sullivan, was playing in my brother’s place. Thank God the game he played was League of Legends. If it had been any other game, my brother and I would probably be bankrupt and starving on the streets. I originally thought I’d just stall for a bit, and once his hand healed, we’d switch back. But who knew… Liam’s injury was too severe. Even after recovering, it was incredibly hard for him to regain his previous mechanical agility. And so… I stalled all the way to the final year of the contract. This year was my third year playing for VG. I had an agreement with Liam: whether he could make a comeback or not, I had to go back to living my own life. Therefore… Whether “Volt” would retire depended entirely on the results of Liam’s physical therapy. 2 After Julian threw that massive fit, our manager, Dave, couldn’t sit still. He rushed back to the team house in the middle of the night, only wearing one sock. He ran a hand through his thinning hair, his face etched with worry as he asked: “Jesus Christ! What the hell are you doing now?!” Julian was messing with his phone, non-stop arguing with people in the comments section, not even bothering to look up. Seeing he couldn’t get through to him, Dave forced a smile and turned to try and placate me: “Ray, man, why don’t you post on X and clarify things? Just say you guys have a great relationship and Julian just lost his head because of those crazy shippers.” I let out a cold laugh, turned my face away, and said nothing. The atmosphere in the practice room was heavy. Even our usually good-tempered Support, Marcus, uncharacteristically muted his mic and continued grinding solo queue with a bitter expression. Finally, our Top Laner, Ethan, stepped up to break the ice: “We have a scrim scheduled with TG at 10 PM. Let’s stop queuing up after this game. I’ll make the custom lobby.” “I’m good. I’m going out to the balcony for some fresh air. Call me when everyone’s ready.” Hearing my voice, Julian finally looked up: “My bad, Volt. I acted impulsively earlier and couldn’t control my temper. It wasn’t directed at you. I just think those fangirls shipping us are disgusting, don’t you think?” He flashed a toothy grin. But there was zero warmth in his eyes. His striking, arrogant face showed absolutely no sign of apology. Instead, it looked like… He was faintly expectant. I stopped, frowned, and replied: “First of all, we don’t have shippers. The entire league knows our relationship is garbage. It’s all just trolls and haters intentionally trying to disgust people. Girls aren’t that desperate. Stop fighting imaginary enemies and throwing around ‘fangirls’ like an insult. Second, apologies require a ‘sorry’. And obviously, even if you said it, I wouldn’t accept it. Finally…” I hooked the corner of my mouth, looking him up and down scrutinizingly: “Julian, homophobia is just closeted behavior. What exactly are you afraid of? Don’t worry, even if I were gay, I wouldn’t be interested in someone like you.” Straight guys really have this baffling delusion that everyone, male or female, is attracted to them. Julian was so furious he laughed. He sat there quietly, a storm brewing in his eyes: “Liam, before I actually get mad, you’d better take that back.” “Okay, you’re mad. Then what? You’re going to int the scrims? Or post a few more tweets and have your haters come flame me with you? Go ahead, knock yourself out. I just lost my verified badge anyway, you guys can help boost my engagement metrics.” I shrugged and smiled nonchalantly. Julian’s face darkened significantly. I continued: “Julian, you’re a pro player. Whether it’s an official match or a scrim, if you want to troll, I can’t stop you. The only career you’re throwing away is your own.” “You think I’m like you? What gives a three-time runner-up trash like you the right to lecture me?” Hearing this, my face drained of color. I clenched my fists tight. Seeing Julian about to say something else, Ethan stood up and said coldly: “Don’t cross the line.” “Mind your own business.” Seeing the situation spiraling, Dave quickly called the head coach over to separate us. I shook my head. Sighed. I pulled Ethan to the side, then raised my head, trying my best to look Julian straight in the eye: “You’re confident, and that’s a good thing. But Julian, in esports, no one wins forever.” We were currently on the same team. I wouldn’t curse Julian to lose matches just out of spite. But I would wait… For the moment he fell from his pedestal. “Ray, Ethan, TG’s Mid Laner is rushing us. Let’s just play the scrim first.” Marcus took off his headset, glaring blankly at Julian. Then he waved the two of us over. The three of us exchanged a look… and inexplicably let out a bitter laugh. Right. The three unlucky bastards with three consecutive second-place finishes were all right here. Julian really was a buy-one-get-two-free deal. Insult one, get the whole package. 3 The drama that night ended with the social media manager logging into both of our X accounts and posting a PR-crafted essay for each of us. They even posted a photo of the two of us with our arms around each other’s shoulders, looking chummy. They hoped to dispel the rumors of a Mid/Jungle rift. It was just a pity that observant fans quickly deduced from our styling that… The photo was from a commercial shoot last month. As for the scrim, there were no surprises. Julian still refused to listen to the draft plan or shotcalling. He locked in Fizz, and proceeded to int across all three lanes for the rest of the game. I knew it… A mad dog like him would never listen to a word I said. Right before bed. A friend request suddenly popped up on Discord, and the message attached sent a shiver of disgust down my spine: [Volt, sweetie, I’m Julian’s girlfriend.] … I can’t take this anymore. Could I get any more ridiculous nicknames? Holding firm to the belief that the enemy of my enemy is definitely my enemy… I simply blocked the friend request, pretending I never saw it. 4 After the Spring Split regular season ended, Julian absolutely crushed the competition with 14 MVP awards, securing both the Rookie of the Split and the Regular Season MVP honors. On the podium, he was as ill-mannered as ever: “The people I should thank the most for getting these awards are my teammates, right? Especially the Jungler. If Volt didn’t carry so hard, how would it ever be my turn to steal so many MVPs?” The regular season awards ceremony wasn’t a huge affair; they usually just breezed through it before the first Best of 5 (BO5) of the playoffs. So when Julian said that, I was sitting right behind him adjusting my peripherals. The broadcast appropriately cut to my camera feed, followed by a tidal wave of deafening screams from the crowd. Everyone knows esports doesn’t have fans, only trolls. So no matter how much Julian and I hated each other, there were always spectators in the audience who loved the drama and shipped our “pure hatred” dynamic. Especially after Julian’s announcement fiasco a few days ago. The number of our shippers didn’t decrease; it surged. Rumor had it they were all doing it just to piss Julian off. And this massive wave of engagement… The event organizers obviously weren’t going to miss out on it. So the host practically crossed the entire stage to shove a microphone in my face: “I wonder what player Volt has to say about this?” I flicked my bangs out of my eyes, deliberately lowered my voice, and replied: “Ah, nothing really. As long as he knows he stole them, that’s fine.” Seeing Julian’s face completely darken, I finally felt a bit of satisfaction. I smiled, pushed the microphone away, and went back to adjusting my gear. Marcus shook his head: “Why did you have to provoke him? He’s just going to int again later.” “Let him. Are we supposed to coddle him through every match forever? I’m not his mother.” Just as I finished speaking, Julian returned to the lineup to adjust his equipment. He strode past me and sneered: “That’s not impossible either. After all, you look like a girl anyway.” I opened my mouth, but didn’t retort. But Ethan, next to me, furrowed his brow: “Julian, can you watch your mouth for once?” “Why do you always butt in when I’m talking to Liam?” Julian glared at Ethan over my head, looking incredibly annoyed. “Uh, referee, please help me lower the Mid Laner’s volume. Thanks.” Our newly imported Korean AD Carry couldn’t understand English well, which was fine, but he was also completely oblivious and couldn’t read the room at all. He just thought Julian was being noisy. Consequently… Marcus and Ethan casually chimed in: “Referee, lower the Mid Laner’s volume for Support.” “Referee, lower the Mid Laner’s volume for Top Laner.” Me… I couldn’t lower it. Because I was the Jungler. League of Legends is a Mid/Jungle game. Even though Julian hadn’t trolled in an official match yet, I still couldn’t relax. I deliberately used his ID to give him a final reminder: “Alright, Vexx, knock it off. We’re entering draft phase.” Playoffs have a double-elimination bracket, so both teams played relatively relaxed. We ultimately moved on to the next round with a 3:1 victory. Team XY fell to the lower bracket to fight another day. I thought it was just an unremarkable BO5, but who knew… By evening, the hashtag #VGTeamBullying was trending on X. 5 It started because the pre-match conversation with the referee was cut into the official broadcast comms. Instantly, the internet exploded with different opinions: [Feel so bad for Julian. I didn’t expect Volt to be the only one who didn’t join in…] [Min-ho Lee (the Korean AD) leads the bullying and you do nothing? @VG_Esports. Koreans love pulling this seniority crap, and you just watch your own player get bullied?] [It’s not that serious… What are Julian’s mom-fans throwing a fit about now?] [The drama clearly started on Reddit first… Stop blaming Julian’s fans!] [What’s all the fighting for? It’s such a minor thing! Reddit guys are so petty, can you just leave?] Ethan scrolled through the comments section: “Wow, Ray. I got my verified badge taken away before you did.” “Congratulations.” I clapped calmly. Marcus had escaped disaster because he had already deleted his X account. Min-ho Lee looked at him with envy: “I just made account, you no tell me.” “Are you jealous? After we played the final game last year, I traded my whole family’s safety for it.” After the finals last year, “Marcus Mad Cow Disease” hung on the trending list for three whole days. His entire family was almost “confiscated” by the netizens. Thinking back on it, he still had lingering trauma. He glanced at Julian, who was sitting nearby with his headphones on, and muttered: “What a joke. Bullying him? He basically bullies the four of us…” “Vouch!” “+1” I also gave a thumbs up, agreeing with Marcus. Julian let out a cold snort: “It’s not a big deal. I’ll just clarify it and it’ll be fine.” “It’s all just people chasing shadows. Just don’t mention it and it’ll blow over. The official league is just milking our team for engagement…” Dave stopped Julian, smiling bitterly. I looked at his thinning hair and felt a rare pang of sympathy: “Let’s just focus on the matches first. Winning fixes everything.” “Tch! Stop looking so depressed, Dave! Just wait till I bring back that first-place trophy for you!” Julian deliberately emphasized the words “first place.” Looking at his arrogant, naive face, I sighed secretly in my heart. My final year… Will probably end with nothing to show for it either. 6 Since the start of the season, the most discussed topic around the VG team was— Could they break the second-place curse this season? The answer was… We broke it. Just in the opposite direction. This time, we didn’t even manage to scrape a second-place finish… We were unexpectedly knocked out in the semifinals, proudly taking home third place. In that moment… The word “DEFEAT” felt like a knife, stabbing viciously into my heart. It was over. My first half of the year. I closed my eyes in despair, then took off my headset. Ready to face the hurricane of the fans’ wrath. Marcus was crying so hard he couldn’t stand straight. Ethan and I exchanged a look, helped him up, and walked to the front of the stage together, bowing deeply and ashamedly to the fans: “We’re sorry for letting everyone down.” Julian wasn’t with us. The moment the match ended, he threw off his headset and walked off the stage. He hid in the locker room and refused to participate in the post-match interviews. Ethan knocked on the door to no avail, his face dark as he cursed: “Coward.” A few seconds later, Julian came out with red eyes. His voice was hoarse: “I’ll take responsibility for the match I lost.” “Take responsibility with what? How many times did I tell you not to play so aggressive without vision?! If you can’t win the trade, call for help! Aren’t you usually so talkative? Why do you turn mute the second you get into a game? You’re still young! You’re only 18! You have time to waste! We don’t!” Seeing Julian, Marcus, who had just calmed down, broke down again. He rushed forward, grabbed Julian by the collar, and roared. I rubbed my sore eyes, took a deep breath, stepped forward, and tried to mediate: “Alright, it’s fine. You guys go rest for a bit. I’ll handle the interview by myself.” “I’ll go with Ray. We’re top-tier damage sponges for getting flamed. Don’t worry, and stop crying.” Ethan patted Marcus, trying hard to force a smile. However, Marcus wiped his tears: “I’m coming too.” After arguing for ages, Min-ho Lee only understood the word “too.” So he quickly raised his hand: “Too, together, no matter what do.” I nodded. Then together it is. Julian didn’t say anything; he just silently followed behind us.

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To prevent me from living poorly after starting college, my mom deposited a hundred grand onto my campus meal card all at once. But when she saw the fruits and snacks I brought back for everyone to share, my “low-income” roommate suddenly got offended. “You’re so extravagant and wasteful. You don’t look like someone who knows how to manage a household at all. My mom despises girls like you.” I found her reaction completely baffling, so I just pulled up my meal card transaction history to show her. “These snacks weren’t even that expensive. Besides, it’s my money. I have the right to spend it however I want.” I never expected the “low-income” girl to explode. She pointed at my seventy-three-dollar dinner receipt and shrieked, “Eating a meal this expensive just for yourself? Aren’t you afraid of bad karma?!” “Every extra cent you spend now means my brother will have to work an extra shift after he marries you!” “My family can’t afford to worship a golden calf like you!” She gave me full-body goosebumps. I immediately went to our RA and requested a dorm transfer. I never imagined she would hold such a deep grudge. Not long after, she brought her entire family to campus, forcefully kidnapped me, and dragged me back to their remote mountain village to be her brother’s forced bride. There, under her brother’s relentless, day-and-night domestic abuse, I was beaten to death in a filthy pigpen. When I opened my eyes again, I had returned to the exact day Chloe was berating me for spending money like water. 01 I stood frozen, holding the bags of fruit and snacks. The stench of the pigpen was gone, and my legs hadn’t been shattered by Caleb’s iron rod. Looking around the dorm room, filled with the cheerful chatter of my roommates, my eyes instantly welled up with tears. I had actually been reborn! I was back to the day I brought welcome gifts for my roommates. Remembering the nightmare I had lived through in my past life, a sharp sting hit my nose. The very next second, taking advantage of the fact that Chloe hadn’t returned yet, I quickly shoved the fruit and snacks into my suitcase. I swore to myself I would never have the slightest connection with that crazy woman again. But just as I was getting up to find the RA to request a room change, I ran face-first into Chloe walking in. She looked at me with a dark expression, frowning impatiently. “What did you buy this time?” I gripped the hem of my shirt and quickly looked away. “N-nothing…” To my shock, she suddenly snatched my phone out of my hand and pressed my thumb against the sensor to unlock it. Staring at my transaction history, she shrieked, “This expensive?!” “What kind of cake costs over a hundred dollars?” “A cup of blended juice, and you spent twenty bucks on it?” She shot me a look of pure disbelief. “I’m telling you.” “It’s way too easy to take money from you spoiled little brats.” “Do you really think the money my brother makes in the future grows on trees?” Her words brought back a flood of memories from my past life. In my previous life, after her family kidnapped me and dragged me to the mountains, I never spent a single cent of their money. Instead, her “hardworking” brother forced me to sell my body to support their family. I had tried telling him that I had money—lots and lots of money. If they would just let me go, I promised to set them up for life. But after extorting a massive ransom from my mother, they locked me in a pigpen covered in filth. Chloe’s mother couldn’t resist mocking me: “Money always runs out eventually. But as long as we keep the goose that lays the golden eggs, we’ll never have to worry about a thing.” “We’re not stupid enough to kill the goose.” They used the ransom money to renovate their old house, living a life of luxury that made the whole village jealous. But the one time I simply said I was hungry, Caleb beat my face until it was swollen beyond recognition. “Hungry, hungry, hungry! That’s all you know how to do!” “Didn’t you just eat an egg yesterday morning?” “You lazy, gluttonous piece of trash!” That night, he grabbed a heavy farming hoe and beat me to death in the cold, freezing rain. Thinking of this, I couldn’t suppress the fury burning in my chest. I snatched my phone back. I glared at Chloe with absolute venom. “It’s my money, and I’ll spend it however I want! It’s none of your damn business!” With that, I turned on my heel and marched straight toward the RA’s office. Since I couldn’t avoid them anyway, I wanted to see who exactly belonged in the deepest pits of hell this time around! 02 Just like in my past life, the RA didn’t give me a hard time about wanting to switch rooms. She quickly approved my request and moved me to the dorm next door. However, when I went back to my old room to pack my things, Chloe was sobbing uncontrollably in front of the other girls. Soon, my former roommates were shooting me complicated looks. “Summer, I know as outsiders we shouldn’t get involved,” one of them started. “But you shouldn’t degrade yourself by being a gold digger, right?” “Chloe told us you’re already engaged to her brother.” “The money on your meal card—her brother put that there for you, didn’t he?” Listening to their baseless accusations, I froze. I couldn’t believe Chloe had reached this level of shamelessness. How could she invent such a ridiculous lie? Before I could even defend myself, Chloe wiped her tears. “Please don’t let me ruin the vibe in the dorm. Don’t make things awkward because of me.” “I just feel so bad for my brother.” “He works so incredibly hard, all so he can provide a stable home for the future.” The girls, overcome with sympathy, immediately shot me cold glares. “Having a gold digger as a roommate is seriously bad luck!” I couldn’t help but marvel at how right I was to switch rooms. Otherwise, I had no idea how I would have survived four years with these gullible idiots. Pulling my suitcase out from under the bed, I didn’t want to stay a second longer. But just as Chloe asked, “Sister-in-law, where are you going?” I spun around and snapped back, “I am not engaged to your brother.” “I don’t even know who your brother is.” “And for the record! I’m spending the allowance money I’ve saved up over the years!” That shut them up instantly. They all looked at Chloe in disbelief. Under their scrutinizing stares, Chloe looked uncomfortable. Her eyes turned red, and she started making her bed. The vibe in my new dorm was great. As soon as they heard I was the new transfer, they all eagerly introduced themselves and invited me to join them for lunch. I noticed a huge spread of takeout on the main table. So, I offered up the fruit and snacks I had hidden in my suitcase to share. But just as we were eating and chatting excitedly, a cold voice suddenly sounded in my ear. “Sister-in-law, aren’t you worried about getting fat eating all that?” “My brother doesn’t like girls who are too heavy.” I nearly jumped out of my chair. I spun around to see Chloe standing there like a ghost. 03 This time, I was so angry I laughed. I snapped back without holding back, “None of your damn business.” My new roommates also started asking who Chloe was. But Chloe acted like she didn’t hear them. She stepped forward, glanced at the takeout on the table, and pointed her fingers at me. “Sister-in-law, I came to apologize.” “But I’m only doing this for your own good.” “After all, the pig we’re raising for the holidays at home is already eating enough…” Hearing her call me “sister-in-law” twice instantly sparked my roommates’ curiosity. Before they could ask, I quickly cleared the air. “Chloe, I know your brother is getting older and can’t find a girlfriend.” “But you can’t just grab a random person and call them your sister-in-law, can you?” “Also, I have a personal trainer at the gym to manage my fitness. I don’t need you worrying about it.” Chloe jerked her head up in shock. “What?” “You spend money to eat and drink, and then spend more money to lose weight?” “That’s not how you use money. If it’s that bad, just come back to the farm with me and do some manual labor. That’ll slim you down.” But the dorm president, Sarah, fired back, “It’s her money. She can spend it however she wants. It’s none of your concern.” The other girls chimed in, “Exactly.” “If you love worrying so much, go to Mount Rushmore, tell Washington to move over, and you take his place.” “Summer already said she has nothing to do with your brother and told you to stop calling her that. How do you have the nerve to still stand here?” “You’re not welcome in our room.” “You’re in the wrong place. The trash can is in the bathroom.” She clearly hadn’t expected her “good intentions” to be met with this kind of reaction. Chloe’s eyes were wide with disbelief. Before anyone could physically kick her out, she shot me a venomous glare. “Sister-in-law, I didn’t think you were this kind of person.” “You’re totally fine spending my brother’s money, but you treat him like some kind of sugar daddy to string along?” “Since that’s how it is, I have nothing to hold back.” “I have proof that she’s my sister-in-law.” Saying that, she pulled out… 04 A photograph. Even though it was wrinkled from being hidden away and looked aged and yellowed, the woman standing next to her brother undeniably had my exact face. Looking at their bright smiles and the unfamiliar background, I felt completely surreal. I was absolutely certain that today was the first time I had ever met Chloe. Even if the photo was photoshopped and artificially aged, how would she even know who I was? It was so bizarre, I briefly wondered if my dad had an illegitimate daughter running around. I was too stunned to speak for a long time. Then, Chloe’s icy voice broke the silence. “What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue?” Seeing her smug, confident expression, I felt like I was choking. But even then, Sarah didn’t just take her word for it. She turned to another roommate. “Mia, you’re a graphic design major.” “Take a look. Is this photoshopped?” Mia immediately grabbed the photo. She stared at it for a long time but couldn’t figure it out. Finally, she scratched her head awkwardly. “Hehe, I skip class way too much. I can’t really tell.” “But it’s fine. I know a senior who does this professionally.” “I’ll snap a pic and send it to him.” However, she quickly received a reply that shocked everyone. “The photo is real. No signs of Photoshop.” At the same time, a triumphant smile spread across Chloe’s face. “See?” “Still going to deny you’re my sister-in-law?” “How do you explain the photo then?” I really didn’t know how to explain it, because the person in the photo definitely wasn’t me! Even in my past life, I had never seen this woman before. Seeing that I wasn’t reacting, Chloe scanned my roommates, a sneer on her lips. “Now do you see what kind of person your new roommate is?” But the response she got was a freezing cold order from Sarah. “Get out.” “Our room does not welcome you!” Chloe’s face stiffened. She immediately turned and stormed out. “You don’t know what’s good for you!” “You’ve messed with the wrong person! You’ll regret this!” 05 Over the next few days, my roommates tacitly agreed to never bring the incident up again. They continued to invite me to meals and gossip sessions as usual. Chloe didn’t bother me again either. I thought the whole farce was over and I could finally start my college life. But one afternoon, when all my roommates were out on dates, I was walking alone to the dining hall. On the main path, I bumped into an old woman peering around shiftily. As soon as I saw her face, I immediately turned around to run. But Chloe’s mother locked eyes on me and lunged, grabbing my wrist in a vice grip. She looked me up and down, her eyes finally settling on my hips, clicking her tongue and shaking her head. “Hmph. So skinny.” “Who knows if you’ll even be able to give me a grandson.” I glared at her icily. “Let go of me. I don’t know you.” The old woman suddenly pinched my butt hard. “You uneducated little brat!” “Is that how you talk to your mother-in-law?” “You might not know me, but I know you! Your name is Summer, right?” “Just hearing that name, I know you’re high-maintenance.” “I think you should change your name to something more traditional, like Martha.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Earlier, I had thought they just mistook me for the woman in the photo. But the fact that she knew my name meant it wasn’t a mistake. What the hell was going on? The tangled mess of thoughts made my brain short-circuit for a second. I immediately yanked my hand away, wishing I had eight legs so I could run away from this nightmare faster. But the old woman got straight to the point. “I heard from Chloe that you’re a money-burning waste of space.” “But I have no choice. My son is dead set on you.” “So I’ll give it to you straight.” “If you want to marry my son, the dowry has to include a car.” “My son has loved cars since he was a boy. It can’t be anything under fifty grand.” “I already looked at houses. It’s a nice little suburban home in our county.” “It needs at least six bedrooms so Chloe doesn’t have to share a bed with her brother anymore.” “I heard there’s a discount. We can get it all cash for about seven hundred grand.” Listening to her ramble in my ear, I instantly flashed back to the horrors of my past life. I immediately started screaming for the campus security guards. But Chloe stepped out, blocking the guard’s path. She pulled out her phone and played a video. In the video, under the old oak tree at the entrance to their village, I was wearing a pure white wedding dress, kneeling on one knee before Caleb. I looked pathetic, begging Caleb to marry me. Finally, after I cried and pleaded relentlessly, Caleb accepted the proposal. And the ecstatic woman in the video looked and sounded exactly like me. Even when Caleb said those gross, cheesy romantic lines, he used my name. Just like when they kidnapped me in my past life, she used a few words to completely dispel the guard’s suspicions. She smiled and walked over to the old woman. “Mom, what do you think?” “Is she to your liking?” The old woman shook her head, sucking her teeth. “Average.” Just then, Caleb arrived, driving his beat-up van. Seeing that I was about to fall back into the hell of my past life, I quickly pulled out my phone to call 911. But Caleb sprinted over, snatched my phone, and smashed it on the ground under his boot. Chloe laughed, throwing a smug look my way. “Well? Still think your money makes you better than everyone else?” “Why don’t you get on your knees and beg me right now?” “Maybe if I feel bad for you, I’ll toss you some scraps.” Despair swallowed me whole. It felt like I was constantly trapped in a dense fog. But just as they started dragging me toward the van… My eyes widened. Suddenly, it all made sense. I think I finally understood what was going on. The next second, I yelled at the mother and son. Hearing my words, the mother and son froze. Caleb gritted his teeth and slapped Chloe hard across the face. “Chloe! Is that how you talk to your classmates?” “Is this how Mom and I raised you?!” 06 Chloe was stunned by the slap. A trickle of blood seeped from the corner of her mouth. But Caleb wasn’t satisfied. He grabbed her by the hair and punched her in the face. Blood immediately sprayed from her nose. As she wailed and sobbed under the beating, the old woman turned to look at me. “Are you sure you have a way to make Chloe marry your brother?” Given the desperate situation, I had no choice but to use my brother, who was overseas, as a shield. I just hoped that when he found out, he’d feel sorry enough for his little sister not to accidentally kill me. Thinking of this, I nodded firmly. “You know my family is rich, but as a girl, I can’t inherit the business.” “My brother is different. Not only is he more capable than me, but he also built a publicly traded company from scratch.” “He’s definitely going to take over the family business in the future.” The old woman’s eyes gleamed greedily. She immediately glared at Caleb. “Beat her!” “Beat her hard!” “She almost cost our family a one-way ticket to the top, and she still claims to be some ‘main character with a script’?” “I think she’s a jinx!” The words “main character” made my expression freeze. Just a moment ago, I had wondered if Chloe had superpowers or was an alien. But reality was even more absurd than I imagined—she was a time-traveler with a “system”! No wonder she could casually pull out “evidence” to deceive everyone. I wanted to see how she planned to thrive in a family that sucked the marrow from their own bones! When I looked back, Caleb had already beaten Chloe half to death. The old woman pressed me again about my earlier promise. I nodded with absolute certainty. “Of course.” “My parents spoil me the most.” “If he wants to bring someone home, it just takes one word from me.” “It’s just that…” I looked at Chloe with a feigned expression of difficulty. “You know, wealthy families value capability over looks.” “Chloe is just too pretty.” “I’m afraid people might think she’s just a trophy wife. If rumors start spreading, it could affect my family’s stock price.” Hearing this, Chloe, who had just regained consciousness, gasped in shock. “Bullshit!” “Mom! Caleb! Don’t listen to her! She’s lying!” “I’m the only one who knows the plot!” “You have to listen to me! Tie her up, and we’ll have more money than we can spend!” “If she hadn’t accidentally died in her past life! I wouldn’t have…” At that moment, I finally realized that Chloe had been reborn just like me. But facing her impotent rage, I covered my mouth in feigned concern. “Chloe! Kidnapping is a felony!” “Are you trying to help them, or ruin them?” That comment made Caleb frown deeply. He walked toward Chloe again. “Still spewing nonsense at a time like this?” “I think Summer makes a lot of sense.” “Instead of focusing on dressing up, you should be figuring out how to be worthy of a billionaire’s wife!” With that, he grabbed a handful of mud from the ground and smeared it all over Chloe’s face. “No more makeup for you from now on!” “Do you think my money grows on trees?!” Seeing her face covered in foul-smelling mud, Chloe completely broke down. After all, despite her poor background, she was incredibly vain. In my past life, all the money I made from selling my body went straight to buying her makeup. Seeing her hysterical breakdown, I finally let out a sigh of relief. It seemed my gamble had paid off. Everything that happened made me realize that she didn’t actually like me. In fact, she despised me. The only reason she wanted to kidnap me was to wring every last drop of value out of me. Now, all of that was going to backfire spectacularly on her. It was time for me to personally send this entire family straight to hell.

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Carter Hayes broke up with me out of nowhere and immediately eloped with a younger girl. Nearing thirty, I was rejected at every blind date my mother set me up on. Five years later, we had a college reunion. They were the picture-perfect, wealthy couple: driving a Mercedes, wearing Arc’teryx jackets, and carrying Louis Vuitton. I, on the other hand, showed up on a bicycle and was immediately isolated in the corner. Until… A busybody intentionally asked, “Chloe, why didn’t your husband come?” I smiled and said, “He’s busy ringing the opening bell at NASDAQ.” 01 I met Carter Hayes the year I first arrived in this city. Right outside the campus gates, I ran into an older couple desperately asking for bus fare. When I refused, they chased me down the street, screaming curses. “You’re so young, yet you have absolutely no heart!” “You heartless little bitch, no man is ever going to want you!” My face flushed crimson, and I was shaking with anger. That was exactly when Carter appeared. A massive group of young frat guys was walking by, right at the peak of their reckless, hot-blooded years, and they immediately shielded me behind them. Carter was the most handsome, most arrogant-looking guy in the pack. He was spinning a Wilson basketball on his finger, wearing limited-edition sneakers. He flashed me a row of white teeth. “You alright, freshman?” Naturally, he quickly found out that I wasn’t a freshman—we were in the same graduating class—but that didn’t stop him from pursuing me. And just like that, we got together. He came from a comfortable, upper-middle-class suburban family. I came from a small, rural Midwestern town. During our sophomore year, Carter took me home to meet his parents. I carried a fruit basket, trailing nervously behind him. But to my surprise, Carter’s mother was incredibly friendly to me. I breathed a sigh of relief. Carter winked at me and whispered, “See? I told you my mom would like you.” I couldn’t hide my happiness. At the time, I didn’t know that his mother didn’t actually like me. She was just lenient because Carter was a boy. It was just a college fling; in her eyes, he wasn’t the one who stood to lose anything. Just like that, we dated all the way to our senior year. The year we graduated, my parents wanted me to move back home. I knew moving back meant I wouldn’t find a decent job. I brought it up with Carter. He grabbed my hand in a panic. “No way, you can’t go back!” “But the cost of living here is too high. I’m not sure I can survive on my own.” Carter pulled me into a tight hug. “It’s fine. I’ll have my dad get you an easy administrative job. I’ll handle the money. All you have to do is focus on being Mrs. Hayes.” In that moment, all my anxiety and hesitation melted away. But I didn’t actually need his dad’s help to find a job. I just wanted a safety net, an option in case I failed. My degree was much more marketable than Carter’s. In the end, Carter went to work as an HR recruiter at his dad’s friend’s company. I went through grueling rounds of interviews and landed a job as a Product Manager at a top-tier tech firm. I stayed in the city. But life isn’t a fairy tale where reaching a milestone guarantees a happily ever after. Acing your finals doesn’t mean you’re set for life. Getting into a good college doesn’t either. Staying with him wasn’t the finish line. Even walking down the aisle or having kids isn’t the absolute end. 02 Regarding marriage. The second year after graduation, my parents urged me to get Carter to make a commitment. I was too embarrassed to push it, afraid of looking desperate, so I brought it up casually as a joke. Carter’s hands paused on his gaming controller, pretending he didn’t hear me. His mother remained friendly, but she never once brought up the topic of a wedding. The fourth year after graduation. My former college roommate asked why we still weren’t married. I forced a lighthearted tone and said, “We’re still young! No need to rush into the grave of romance.” In the blink of an eye. The sixth year after graduation. Also our tenth anniversary. Valentine’s Day. I booked a restaurant with incredible ambiance. Halfway through dinner, I smiled and asked, “Should we… maybe start thinking about getting married?” Under the romantic candlelight, the soft, affectionate look on Carter’s face instantly went ice-cold. He said, “Fine. I’ll go back and talk to my mom.” I exhaled, relieved to have escaped the suffocating awkwardness, and quickly changed the subject. But there was never any follow-up. I asked a few more times, and every time, he looked intensely annoyed. Finally, during an argument sparked by something trivial, he blurted out the truth— “Chloe, my mom refuses to let me marry you!” I froze. Yet, deep down, I wasn’t even that surprised. The argument came to a screeching halt. Carter realized what he had just said. But he didn’t try to take it back. He didn’t say another word and even pulled out his phone to scroll. My anger wasn’t hot like fire; it was more like freezing lake water creeping up my body. Suffocating and bone-chilling. “So, you never planned on marrying me at all. Did you?” Carter irritably rubbed his temples. Acting like he had nothing left to lose, he snapped, “We were doing perfectly fine dating like this, weren’t we? Why the hell do we have to get married?” “What does a piece of paper even do?” “Besides, your career is peaking right now. Wouldn’t getting married just ruin your trajectory…” Every word was an excuse. Every sentence was a deflection. I cut him off. “Carter, you seriously disgust me.” He was the person I knew best in the world, yet in that moment, he was a total stranger. I couldn’t stop the tears from falling. But Carter had long passed the phase of his life where my tears made him feel protective or guilty. He cursed under his breath, then looked at me with pure mockery. “Chloe, stop acting like you’re such a victim. Stop pretending you love me so much.” “You just want to marry into a higher tax bracket. My mom’s country club is full of small-town girls with the exact same agenda.” “I am the absolute ceiling of what you could ever hope to pull. You’re pressing me so hard because you’re terrified I’ll get away.” Before he could even finish, I turned and walked out. That night, I crashed at a friend’s place. The next morning, I stared at my swollen, red eyes in the mirror and quickly washed my face. When you’re an adult, no matter how heartbroken you are, you still have to clock in for work. It wasn’t like Carter and I hadn’t fought before. We’d always broken up and gotten back together. My friend told me Carter went way too far this time, and I shouldn’t forgive him easily. I had just typed “Okay,” when a text from Carter popped up on my screen: “My family requires someone from our own social class. Chloe, let’s break up.” My phone nearly slipped from my hands and shattered on the floor. 03 After the abrupt, cliff-drop of a breakup, I couldn’t stop myself from stalking all of Carter’s social media accounts. I was desperately searching for evidence that he still loved me. I found absolutely nothing. I checked again and again. Until he posted a short video. It was public. He was holding hands with a girl, walking in the sunlight. I clicked the video and heard his mother’s voice behind the camera: “You two look so perfect together! Get closer!” This new relationship was proudly displayed in the daylight, receiving the exact blessing I had never been given. The caption read: [Stop peeking at other people’s happiness like a rat in the gutter.] I didn’t shed another tear. My fingers were trembling violently. When I went to block and delete his number, I missed the button several times. Once my mom heard we broke up, her hopes of dragging me back to my hometown reignited. “You guys broke up, what’s the point of staying in that expensive city?” My aunt chimed in, “Hurry up and come back! Sigh, I’ve already contacted a few high-quality young men for you, but their families think your age is a bit of an issue…” I rejected them, just like always. The only difference was that Carter was no longer my reason for staying. I stayed at that tech giant for six years. My resume and capabilities had hit a hard glass ceiling there. My status as a thirty-something, unmarried, childless woman was viewed as a massive liability by the executives. After the breakup, I threw my entire soul into my work. For a long time, I practically slept at the office. By the end of the year, my team had crushed our KPIs better than anyone else. But in the end? I got a pat on the back and empty promises. The highly coveted promotion was handed to a male colleague who had a wife and kids. In the company Slack channel, the newly promoted colleague announced he was treating everyone to coffee. A long line of “Thanks, boss!” emojis flooded the chat. Followed by a few jokes about “don’t forget us when you’re rich.” I looked out the floor-to-ceiling windows. Skyscrapers pierced the clouds; the traffic below was endless. The people sitting in these cubicles cycled out year after year, every single one of them exactly like me, and yet completely different. Maybe. Maybe it was time for me to change lanes. I submitted my resignation that very day. Years later, whenever I recalled that moment, it was crystal clear. The biggest, most life-altering decisions usually happen on the quietest, most ordinary days. 04 Five years later. The college reunion. Only about half the graduating class actually showed up. Classmates I hadn’t seen in years subtly eyed the bicycle I had ridden in on. “Wait, is that Chloe?” I smiled and waved. “Long time no—” Before I could even finish my sentence, a sleek Mercedes pulled up, and a stunningly dressed young woman stepped out of the passenger side. She was wearing a Chanel tweed suit and looked quite a bit younger than the rest of us. It took me a solid minute to put the pieces together. That was Carter’s wife, Tiffany Brooks. She was four or five years younger than our graduating class. She had the pristine face of someone who never had to suffer the stress of a 9-to-5, immaculately manicured down to her toes, clutching a Chanel bag. “Carter practically dragged me here. So annoying, I don’t even know anyone.” Hearing her complain, a classmate immediately kissed up: “Come to a few more of these and you’ll know everyone!” The crowd swarmed her, escorting her inside. The male classmate I had been talking to never gave me a second glance. Once seated, they reserved the seats of honor for Tiffany and Carter, who had just finished parking. I was squeezed into a corner, finding a random empty chair to sit down. But after a few drinks, I don’t know how, but the topic of conversation landed squarely on me. Tiffany looked across the table. “So you’re Chloe?” I paused. Few people called me by my first name like that anymore. It was usually Ms. Bennett. “Carter’s mentioned you to me.” “I want to say ‘sorry’ on his behalf.” She said the word “sorry,” but her expression looked anything but apologetic. “You guys were just way too young back then. And honestly, it’s his fault too. He should have known that girls like you can’t afford to waste time. Aside from your youth, you really didn’t have anything to offer.” The words were incredibly harsh. But no one stepped in to stop her. Everyone was enjoying the drama. Some looked at me with pity; others with thinly veiled glee. Tiffany glanced at my bare fingers and let out a light laugh. “Don’t tell me you still haven’t managed to get married?” “Carter has a new coworker at his firm. He’s in his thirties and hasn’t settled down either, just like you. I mean, sure, he’s a little short and starting to go bald, but he’s a nice guy. I can have Carter set you guys up.” Just as she finished her sentence, Carter walked into the private dining room. Maybe it was because his corporate HR job wasn’t too taxing, but at thirty-three, he still had a boyish, youthful energy. He was wearing a sleek Arc’teryx jacket and carrying a black LV men’s bag, looking as polished as a lifestyle influencer. The moment Carter walked in, his eyes locked onto me. For a split second, he looked stunned, but he quickly recovered and tore his gaze away. He sat down next to Tiffany, affectionately pinched her cheek, and scolded lightly, “Stop messing around.” “My coworker already has a girlfriend.” Tiffany let out a disappointed “Oh.” Watching Carter drape his arm around Tiffany, I felt a strange sense of vertigo. Deeply buried memories flickered in my mind. During the first few years of our relationship, he used to love holding me like that. He practically wanted to be glued to my side. I listened to them chat. Apparently, they had lived a fantastic life these past few years. They traveled abroad, adopted a Corgi, bought a house. Back in college, my roommate had heard the story of how Carter and I met. She had said that a guy brave enough to step in and save a stranger would definitely be a responsible, loving husband someday. I had spent years looking forward to that future. I just never factored in that he didn’t actually want to be my husband. The table endlessly praised Carter for his early success, raving about how becoming an HR Director at a major firm at his age made him a winner in life. A female classmate suddenly chimed in: “Speaking of winners in life, did you guys see the cover of Forbes this week?” “The new partner at Sterling Tech. He’s only twenty-seven and already financially free!” “I heard he’s representing Sterling Tech to ring the opening bell at NASDAQ today!” As she spoke, she pulled up the photo on her phone. Dressed in a sharp bespoke suit, with striking, chiseled features, he looked like a high-fashion runway model. He was so handsome it drew audible gasps from the table. If Carter was the kind of successful guy that made his peers burn with jealousy, this tech billionaire was on a stratosphere so untouchable that jealousy wasn’t even an option anymore. Right then, my phone buzzed. It was a text from Liam Sterling: [Reporting in, Boss. Arrived in New York.] He attached a photo of the view from the airport, though his face took up more than half the frame. The weather didn’t look too warm, but he had already shed his suit jacket. His tie was loosened, and the top two buttons of his dress shirt were undone. He looked a million times better than the stiff, serious photo on the magazine cover. Suddenly, someone at the table called out: “Since Tiffany is so eager to play matchmaker, we haven’t even asked—do you have a boyfriend, Chloe?” I answered instinctively: “I’m married.” The room abruptly went dead silent. Carter’s hands stopped mid-air as he was peeling a shrimp for Tiffany. “Chloe, stop joking around, none of us heard you got married!” “Well, if you’re married, why didn’t your husband come today?” I smiled. “He’s busy ringing the bell at NASDAQ.” 05 Five years ago. When I resigned, I took my two most capable subordinates with me. The hardest part of building a startup is the first step. Finding the right direction, and locking in the absolute resolve to jump. I met Liam Sterling during my second year in business. At the time, Liam had just returned from studying abroad and refused to inherit his family’s empire. He was going to interviews everywhere and hitting wall after wall. His resume was too elite, his salary demands were absurdly high, yet his practical experience was worse than a local state college grad. He peppered his sentences with unnecessary business jargon and came off incredibly pretentious. He bombed the first-round interview at my company. I, the CEO, didn’t even see him. But when I finally left the office after midnight, I saw him. It was 12:00 AM. The night was pitch black. The streetlights flickered. And he was right there. Doing push-ups on the sidewalk. Me: “…” Seeing me, he immediately scrambled up and marched toward me. “Ms. Bennett! I’m Liam Sterling. I interviewed for your company today!” “I strongly believe your company’s trajectory aligns perfectly with my skills. Refusing to hire me is entirely your loss.” There was a very good reason he couldn’t find a job. But it’s true what they say: obscenely good-looking people get away with murder. At the very least, I chose not to call the cops. My rented apartment was just a block away from the office, a ten-minute walk. All the way there, Liam followed me, yapping endlessly about his stellar academic background and trying to showcase his brilliance. I hadn’t slept properly in days. Right now, this man was nothing but a giant, buzzing fly in my ear. We cut through an alley in the older part of the neighborhood. From a distance, I smelled the vile stench of cheap alcohol. Two massive, drunken men had cornered a young woman who, like me, was clearly just walking home from a late shift. The girl shot us a desperate, pleading look. The two drunks noticed us. Their expressions didn’t change; they just sneered, looking entirely unbothered. But when they looked past me at Liam, one of them let out a loud, “Holy shit.” I had just pulled out my phone to dial 911 when a dark shadow launched from behind me. He was as fast as a champion greyhound at the races. Before the two drunks could even react, Liam had them both pinned to the concrete in a single, devastating move. The young girl looked at Liam with stars in her eyes, overflowing with worship and gratitude. And in that exact split second, I decided to hire him. It wasn’t just his heroic bravery that moved me. I wasn’t the naive freshman who had just moved to the city anymore. I hired him because I had to walk this exact dark alley every single night. Plus, with a face like that, I could totally drag him to investor pitch meetings as eye candy. In this day and age, plenty of VCs are willing to throw money at a pretty face. When a person can serve two highly functional purposes, what possible reason did I have to reject him? So, I cleared my throat. “Mr. Sterling, welcome to the team.” A brilliant, blinding light of surprise erupted in Liam’s gorgeous eyes. He genuinely believed his relentless persistence had won me over. I wasn’t wrong. A long time later, when he wrote his autobiography, he wrote this exact line: [Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Water cuts through stone. And that’s how I secured my wife!] But in that moment on the street, I had to put on a very difficult face. “However, Mr. Sterling, as you can see, our company is in its absolute infancy. We simply cannot match your expected salary…” Liam shook his head frantically. “Not a problem! Uh—can you do three thousand a month?” I grimaced. “That might be pushing it… I’ll have to discuss it with the board.” Liam looked deeply disappointed. But the next day, when he was told he could get four thousand, he showed up to his first day of work absolutely thrilled. He completely forgot that during his initial interview, his asking salary was easily triple that number. Just like that, he became my employee. We fought shoulder-to-shoulder in the startup trenches. At the very beginning, he showed up to the office every day looking impeccable and highly fashionable. His hair was perfectly styled with pomade, his jaw cleanly shaved, wearing a tailored three-piece suit, and radiating the expensive scent of Creed Aventus. He looked like he was walking a runway. Just like a fresh grad who still bothers to put on full makeup for a 9-to-5. Thankfully, it didn’t take long for him to become just as ragged and unkempt as the rest of us. One time, we worked overtime for an entire month straight. The final night, we pulled an all-nighter and everyone collapsed on the office floor. When I woke up the next morning, I caught Liam pinching his stomach, dramatically wailing, “Where did my abs go?!” The second he saw me, he sucked his stomach in so hard he turned blue. I could faintly make out a six-pack. For a long time after that, he practically lived at the gym. Even if we logged off at 10 PM, he’d drag himself to the gym for an hour. As for the moment his identity as a billionaire heir was finally exposed… that happened at a client dinner.

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