Lu Tingyan’s peach blossom eyes were filled with a deep, menacing hostility as he stared fixedly at Xie Ning.
Xie Ning, still reeling from shock and disbelief, had just come to terms with the fact that Lu Sibo was actually Lu Tingyan’s older brother. She shook her head and said, “Lu Tingyan, I didn’t cause your brother’s death.”
“Wasn’t it because you insisted on going abroad and leaving him, and he went looking for you, that he died in an accident?” Lu Tingyan’s gaze was icy cold. “He treated you so well, he loved you so much! Xie Ning, how can there be a woman as heartless as you in this world? Why wasn’t it you who died back then?”
With a sharp slap, a clear imprint of five fingers appeared on Lu Tingyan’s jaw, abruptly cutting off his accusations.
All the intense energy in the room instantly dissipated, and the air seemed to freeze.
Xie Ning gently flexed her stinging palm. The anger she had carried from the wedding had strangely faded quite a bit.
Lu Tingyan’s face was turned to the side from the force of her slap, his jaw flushed red, the veins on his neck standing out prominently.
His hands clenched into fists, his breathing growing heavier. His features turned even colder, the corners of his peach blossom eyes sharpening into a fierce line, his thin lips pressed tightly together. The oppressive, turbulent aura around him felt like a hurricane or tsunami, threatening to swallow Xie Ning whole.
“Let me say it again: your brother’s death has nothing to do with me. You have no right to accuse me, and even less right to judge whether I should live or die.” Xie Ning’s eyes were slightly reddened, whether from grievance or anger, and a mist gathered in them, though no tears fell.
She stared at Lu Tingyan, a bitter curve forming at the corner of her lips. “No wonder you sought me out as soon as I returned to the country. No wonder you married me after just a few months of dating. It turns out you didn’t like me—you just wanted revenge.”
By the last sentence, her voice had begun to tremble.
She kept telling herself not to show weakness, but she couldn’t help it.
Bitterness and pain spread through her, cutting deep into her bones.
The cruel reality shattered all her hopes, making the Lu Tingyan before her feel like a complete stranger.
He gripped Xie Ning’s chin, his voice cold and mocking. “You’re right. To be honest, every time I see you, I feel utterly disgusted. All I can think about is how my brother will never come back. Xie Ning, since you wronged my brother, this marriage will be your grave! You owe the Lu family a life, and you’ll spend the rest of yours paying it back!”
With that, Lu Tingyan released her face and stood up.
Tall and slender, his posture upright, the slightly disheveled shirt from their earlier struggle didn’t make him look the least bit disgraced. Instead, it added a touch of roguishness to his noble, arrogant demeanor.
Lu Tingyan walked to the sofa to straighten his attire. Xie Ning watched his back, her mind still clear enough to remember to take out her phone and snap a photo of his retreating figure.
Lu Tingyan didn’t spare her another glance. When he left, he slammed the door so hard it shook the room.
The oppressive atmosphere left with him, and Xie Ning finally caught her breath.
The fitted waist of her wedding dress still felt suffocatingly tight. She wanted to take it off but couldn’t reach the zipper hidden beneath the intricate layers of tulle at the back.
Losing patience, she pulled a pair of scissors from a drawer and, with a sharp rip, turned the million-dollar wedding dress into tattered rags.
She felt no regret. After all, this dress, like the wedding itself, held no beautiful meaning. It was merely meant to adorn her in the most dazzling way, only to deliver the deepest humiliation.
She stepped over the pristine wedding dress and entered the bathroom to wash her face.
Leaning against the sink, she stared at her reflection in the mirror.
She couldn’t help but recall Lu Tingyan’s earlier question: Why wasn’t she dead yet?
How could she possibly die? Hadn’t she endured so much hardship just to live a better life? She had suffered countless cold stares and mockery in the past, and she hadn’t yet paid them back—how could she die?
Her parents divorced when she was six. At eight, she followed her mother into a remarriage, where she endured endless humiliation and torment from her stepfather and stepsister. At twelve, she sent her stepfather, who had attempted to molest her, to prison, only to be driven out by her own mother. From then on, she lived under others’ roofs, passed around like a burden among relatives.
It wasn’t until she was fifteen that she met the young philanthropist and entrepreneur Lu Sibo. He sponsored her, helped her transfer schools, and provided her with a better learning environment, ultimately changing her fate.
Suddenly, a young face from among the wedding guests flashed in her mind—one that had been thrilled and overjoyed by the disruption at the ceremony. It was her stepsister, Bai Ying.
During her childhood in the Bai household, she not only had to stay vigilant day and night against her lecherous stepfather but also endured daily humiliation, beatings, and insults from Bai Ying. Bai Ying never acknowledged her as a stepsister, calling her a punching bag, a slave, and even aiding her father in his attempts to molest her.
Back then, Xie Ning planted a tiny seed in her heart—one day, she would take revenge on Bai Ying.
Later, she learned that Bai Ying was deeply, madly in love with Lu Tingyan. So, she decided she must have Lu Tingyan for herself.
Even if her initial approach to Lu Tingyan was driven by revenge against Bai Ying, over time, she found herself genuinely drawn to him and truly fell in love. After all, he was so outstanding, so head and shoulders above the rest.
She pressed one hand to her chest and wiped the water from her face with the other.
Bai Ying must be overjoyed to see her humiliated like this today.
Leaving the bathroom, she lay on the bed with her phone, which displayed the photo she had taken of Lu Tingyan.
Her photography skills had always been good. The man’s broad back, slightly disheveled clothes, and the faint sliver of light filtering through the curtains together created an ambiguous “post-intimacy” atmosphere.
Exactly the effect she wanted.
Logging into WeChat, she posted the photo to her Moments, setting it to be visible only to certain people. The caption consisted of just two words: “Not bad.”
Like a noble empress bestowing favor upon a male consort, she offered a brief, dignified evaluation. The deeper meaning behind the words “Not bad” was left for others to interpret.
If he pretended, must she be entirely sincere?
If he sought revenge, couldn’t she use it to her advantage?
In this game of truth and deception, who was truly nobler than the other?
The only difference was that his revenge had just begun today, while her scheme had been ten years in the making.
Lu Tingyan stormed out of the manor through the back hall, slamming the door behind him.
His phone rang urgently. He glanced down and answered.
“What’s going on, Third Brother? Not letting us be groomsmen is one thing, but why didn’t you even show up as the groom? And you even found a stand-in?”
Lu Tingyan ignored the question. “Where are you?”
“Where else? Zero Point! You didn’t let us attend the banquet, so we had to find our own fun. What, you coming, Third Brother? Not spending your wedding night with that beautiful bride?”
Nightclubs weren't Lu Tingyan's usual scene, but right now he inexplicably felt a strong urge to drink.
He spat out the words "wait for me," hung up the phone, and said to the driver, "Take me to Zero Point."
A little past nine in the evening, Xie Ning received a call from her best friend, Song Ziyan.
She picked up her phone: "Ziyan?"
But it wasn't Song Ziyan's voice on the other end—it was a gentle male voice: "Hello, your friend has had a bit too much to drink. Could you come pick her up? You're listed as her emergency contact."
Xie Ning could also hear Song Ziyan's distant voice: "Ugh, that scumbag! After all these years my best friend liked him, he could actually do something so… hic… despicable! Men only behave when they're six feet under…"
Remembering that Song Ziyan was allergic to alcohol, Xie Ning immediately sat up: "I'll be right there. Where is she?"
"Zero Point Nightclub."
"Okay." Xie Ning hung up and got out of bed at once.
This was the Lu Family Manor, a venue specifically for weddings, so she didn't have any casual clothes here.
Xie Ning opened the wardrobe and took out a red gown—it was the simplest style inside, but still a bit extravagant for everyday wear.
However, with a few snips of her scissors, the long gown became a little camisole and a short skirt.
After putting it on, she headed straight out.
Night had fallen, and the guests had long since dispersed.
Cumulus clouds filled the sky, blocking the moonlight. Summer weather was unpredictable—clear during the day, but turning stormy at night.
Xie Ning walked for twenty minutes to reach the main road, where she hailed a taxi.
Zero Point was located in Huacheng's CBD, a large-scale nightclub.
In a booth on the second floor, several trendy young men in their twenties were playing dice.
A guy with blue hair dressed in workwear was chugging beer when he caught sight of something and nearly spat out his mouthful.
"Third Brother, Third Brother," he elbowed the man smoking beside him, saying excitedly, "Look, isn't that your wife?"