Ning Yun soon emerged from the house. “Sweetheart, out here playing so early? Aren't you going to have breakfast?” “Mommy!” The little boy immediately abandoned his rocking horse and threw himself into Ning Yun’s arms. She swept him up. “Daddy said he'd tell me a story last night, but he left right after dinner.” “When Mommy gets to the office, I'll have Daddy video call you to say he's sorry, okay?” “Okay!” Rong Jin approached them, her movements stiff, her face deathly pale. “You… you two…” The boy didn't look like a toddler. He had to be at least three. Ning Yun turned, the child still in her arms. A flicker of panic crossed her face when she saw Rong Jin. “Rong Jin, you… what are you doing here?” She spun around with the child and hurried back toward the house. But Rong Jin closed the distance in a few quick strides, grabbed Ning Yun by the hair, and slapped her hard across the face. “How could you do this to me, Ning Yun?” she seethed. “You came from some poor village, and I was the one who paid for your college! I got you a job at Shenhe, I bought you a house! And in return, you took everything from me…” She had thought Song Shi and Ning Yun had only recently gotten together, never imagining their child could be so old. What a fool she’d been. Betrayed all those years ago by the two people she loved most. They hadn’t just stabbed her in the heart; they’d twisted the blade, leaving a bloody, mangled mess. Blinded by hatred, Rong Jin rained slaps down on Ning Yun, so frantic the maids couldn't pull her away. Suddenly, a hand shot out, grabbing Rong Jin by the hair and yanking her away. Thrown aside, she slammed onto the floor, the impact knocking the wind out of her. Rong Jin looked up to see Song Shi standing over her, his expression cold and detached. “Rong Jin,” he said, “what is this insanity? Barging in here like this?” “Why?” Rong Jin scrambled to her feet, her gaze fixed on the man she had loved for over a decade. “Your parents were dead, and my father took you in! He brought you into our home, he cared for you! He gave you everything the Rong family owned… so why did you have them killed?!” Song Shi’s expression darkened. He had ordered Ning Yun to handle it; no third person should have known. How did she find out? Rong Jin forced herself to stand right before him, tilting her head back to meet his gaze, every word dripping with blood. “Why, Song Shi? Why did you go to such lengths to frame me, to throw me into another man's bed?” “Because I wanted to destroy the Rong family. And you,” Song Shi said, his eyes utterly cold. “Shenhe was never your father's to begin with. Over thirty years ago, he and my father founded it together. My father was the majority shareholder. Yours had no real power, and he was consumed by resentment. Right after the company went public, my family was slaughtered in our home. I only survived because I was sleeping over at a friend’s house…” “Lies! You're lying!” Rong Jin shook her head, unable to accept this version of the truth. “My father treated you like his own son! He gave you everything, he arranged for us to be married…” “That was his guilt talking,” he sneered, leaning down to loom over her, his eyes predatory and filled with a thick, consuming hatred. “He didn't take me in because he was a good man. He did it to become my legal guardian, to get his hands on the Shenhe shares my father left behind!” He hadn't known any of this until he met a man whose face was scarred beyond recognition. The man claimed he’d escaped the fire that killed Song Shi's family, and he revealed the truth of what had happened. No wonder Rong Jin's father had treated him so well. It was nothing but guilt. Staring at Rong Jin's pale, defiant face, Song Shi felt a surge of irritation. He grabbed her by the hair, yanked the door open, and hurled her outside. “This is the last time, Rong Jin,” he warned, his voice low. “Next time, I won't be so gentle.” The door slammed shut, and with it, the last of Rong Jin’s hope vanished. She never could have imagined it. The man she had adored for more than a decade, the one she believed was an angel sent to her from heaven, was really a demon bent on revenge. He had destroyed the Rong family, and he had destroyed her… Rong Jin wandered the streets in a daze. As she stepped off the curb into the road, a car's headlights flared to life. It accelerated, barreling straight toward her, intent on impact. Blinded by the light, Rong Jin squeezed her eyes shut. A sudden, profound calm settled over her, and she stood perfectly still. She had nothing left. Maybe it’s better this way, she thought. To just die.