An Mi was dead. Tang Shi sat numbly on the edge of the bed, a chill seeping deep into her bones as she stared at the divorce papers Bo Ye had thrown at her. An hour ago, his fingers had dug into her throat as he demanded, “Did you push An Mi down the stairs?” Now, an hour later, he’d had his lawyer draft these papers and slammed them down in front of her. “Tang Shi,” he’d snarled, “you owe her two lives.” That’s right. Two. An Mi had been pregnant with Bo Ye’s child. And who was Tang Shi? Bo Ye’s lawfully wedded wife. And a complete joke. Her eyes, red-rimmed and burning, met his. Her entire body trembled. “I didn’t push her. How many times do I have to tell you?” He didn’t listen, his merciless gaze sweeping over her as if she were nothing more than a pathetic spectacle. “And you think explanations matter now?” They didn’t. It was too late. In Bo Ye’s eyes, she was guilty. No defense she could offer, no truth she could speak, would ever outweigh the silence of the dead. A bitter laugh escaped Tang Shi’s lips. She rose to her feet, snatched the pen, and began to sign. Divorce? Fine. “Bo Ye, I, Tang Shi, have loved you for ten years. Let’s just call those ten years a joke. From this day forward, you go your way, and I’ll go mine!” The love is yours. But I’m taking my heart back! She fought back the tears, forcing a smile prouder than any she had ever worn, and scrawled her signature across the page. Bo Ye watched her, a cruel sneer twisting his lips. “You don’t actually think it ends with just signing a piece of paper, do you?” The color drained from Tang Shi’s face. “What more could you possibly want?” “I want your entire Tang family to join An Mi in her grave.” His voice was cold, merciless, stating an undeniable fact. “Starting tomorrow, hell is coming for the Tang family.” Tang Shi collapsed back onto the bed, the trembling now a violent shudder. She looked at the man before her, his features so sharp and devastatingly handsome, the same face she had loved for so long, yet suddenly, she couldn't see him at all. He was a stranger. Five years of a secret crush, five years of marriage. She had occupied such a long stretch of his life, but now, for a crime she didn’t commit, he was ready to cast her into the abyss. “Isn’t my life enough for you?” Her eyes flared with a desperate pain. “Why go after my family? My parents treated you like their own son! What has our family ever done to wrong you?” “An Mi’s death *is* the wrong your family has done to me.” His fingers clamped around her chin, forcing her to look at him. His smile was demonic. “Forcing me to marry you with your little tricks wasn’t enough, was it? You had to take her life, too. Tang Shi, I’ve never met anyone as ruthless as you.” The words hit her like a cascade of ice water, and a violent shiver wracked her body. “Is that really how you see me?” “How I see you?” Bo Ye laughed, a sound devoid of any humor. His hate-filled eyes raked across her face. “You think you’re even worthy of my notice? Tang Shi, have you ever overestimated yourself. Starting today, you will pay for An Mi’s death.” Outside, the sky opened up. Fat raindrops slammed against the windowpane with sharp cracks. As the downpour intensified, Tang Shi’s heart grew colder and colder. Her voice was a ragged whisper, laced with an agony that felt absolute. “Bo Ye, if one day… if you ever find out you’ve wronged me…” For a fleeting instant, a pang of something sharp and sour twisted in his chest. But just as quickly, the mask of cold indifference slammed back into place, his eyes burning with an undiluted hatred. “Wronged you? Tang Shi, in this life, you are the one who has wronged me!” At that exact moment, a clap of thunder split the sky, the explosion ringing in Tang Shi’s ears. The strength drained from her legs. She stumbled back two steps as the rain roared, and the tears she had held back finally broke free, streaming down her face. The man beside her snatched the contract from the bed and stormed out, the slam of the door a final, deafening sound that sealed her off in a world of her own. From that moment on, her world shattered.