Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The taut string in my heart finally went slack, and I really did faint.

When I opened my eyes again, the wounds on my body had already been bandaged. My rain-soaked hair had been blow-dried, and I was lying clean and dry in a warm bed.

I sat up and looked around.

I was in Jiang Shengchen’s detached villa. This was probably a guest room.

Aside from me, there was no one else in the room.

The door wasn’t fully shut, and voices drifted in from outside.

I crept over and pressed myself against the door.

I saw Jiang Shengchen’s sharply defined profile. His friend was sitting across from him.

I knew that friend of his. I thought his name was Lin Cuo.

Or rather, there wasn’t anyone in our grade who didn’t know Lin Cuo.

It was said that he was incredibly talented at esports, a genius jungler. His family was rich too, so he played professionally while still in high school and became an esports star.

In any case, with his family backing him up, even if he didn’t study, he could get into any university overseas with ease.

I straightened up and looked out the window.

A crowd of fans had already gathered at the villa entrance, both men and women. Some were holding banners, while others waved light signs. The signs had Lin Cuo’s name on them, along with his esports ID, “Error.”

So it really was him.

I heard Lin Cuo say, “Ah Sheng, what were you thinking, bringing this girl to your house? If Shiqing finds out, she’ll cry herself to death.”

Jiang Shengchen ignored the mention of Zhu Shiqing and only said, “Her name is Cheng Xin. She’s the Zhu Family’s real daughter.”

Lin Cuo laughed. “Hey, young master. A year ago, news got out that Zhu Shiqing was a fake and that the real daughter was someone else. You’re the one who personally suppressed that news. What, are you going soft now? Feeling sorry for the real one?”

Jiang Shengchen toyed with a lighter in one hand, looking irritated.

His thumb flicked, producing a flame and the sharp click of metal.

“I helped Zhu Shiqing suppress the news back then because she kept coming to me crying. That pitiful look was annoying as hell.”

Lin Cuo frowned. “And Cheng Xin, the real one, isn’t pitiful? I just went to take a look. Tsk, tsk. Those injuries all over her body. The life she should have had was nothing like this.”

Lin Cuo tilted his head and tossed a game controller up and down as he went on. “But then again, that’s how the world works. For every lucky person, there’s someone unlucky. Cheng Xin is just unlucky. We aren’t gods, so why the hell should we care? Besides, Ah Sheng, don’t forget, Shiqing is the one who grew up with us. Someone from the bottom like Cheng Xin is probably filthy inside and out.”

I saw Jiang Shengchen’s hand pause on the lighter. His voice was cold when he spoke.

“Get out.”

Lin Cuo froze in surprise, then spread his hands. “Hey, Ah Sheng, what did I say wrong? And besides, my stalker fans are all outside. If you make me get out now, aren’t you basically throwing me to the wolves?”

Jiang Shengchen ignored him, his expression still icy.

A butler in a suit immediately stepped forward and invited Lin Cuo out.

Lin Cuo had been humiliated, and his face darkened at once. Gritting his teeth, he grabbed his coat and left.

I immediately tiptoed back to the bed, my mind racing.

A year ago, the news had leaked that Zhu Shiqing was the fake daughter and that I was the real daughter.

If that news had continued to spread, the Zhu Family might have been forced by public opinion to take me home.

The Zhu Family couldn’t suppress the news, so Zhu Shiqing went to Jiang Shengchen to beg for help, and Jiang Shengchen helped her bury it.

A faint hatred began to spread through my heart.

Jiang Shengchen, Zhu Shiqing, Father Zhu, Mother Zhu-I would make every last one of them pay.

I took off the metal bead necklace around my neck and split the bead open, revealing the tiny listening device inside.

I planted the listening device I had always carried with me on the underside of the bedside table drawer.

Although this was only a guest room, maybe I would still be able to hear the servants talking.

That night, after I woke up, Jiang Shengchen asked me who had bullied me at school.

I acted terrified and panicked, refusing to say a word. He decided to investigate it himself.

I was very satisfied with that. After all, it would be much more effective if he found out on his own.

I looked forward to the day he uncovered the truth.