Even the doctors had been fooled by Tao Ran — how could these two young fools before her possibly see through her act?
Neither of them had the slightest idea that she hadn’t gone through with the surgery.
Her frail appearance — as if she could barely breathe — combined with that strange mix of disinfectant and blood made Xiao Ai and Liu Jie both want to kick her away and dump her beside the nearest trash bin.
Heaven knew they had just spent over a thousand dollars again!
Adding in the extra four hundred for anesthesia and tips, thanks to Tang Ran’s “trouble,” they’d already shelled out a total of fifteen hundred dollars.
And if there was a follow-up appointment… who knew how much more they’d have to spend?
Xiao Ai had run out of cash and even had to use Liu Jie’s card. Both were thoroughly displeased.
Meanwhile, Tao Ran was quietly calculating.
Step one of her plan — complete.
Now for step two: she needed to shake these two off her tail.
That scumbag Fang Ming had reminded Xiao Ai a thousand times to “look after” Tang Ran for a few days. But Tao Ran wasn’t about to spend another minute facing Xiao Ai’s disgusting face — not when she could easily lose her temper and stab her on the spot.
Besides, she needed to make preparations to return home while Fang Ming was still away.
This foreign land was Fang Ming’s territory. It was time for her to switch battlefields.
The three of them walked in silence to the roadside.
Broke and bitter, Xiao Ai refused to take a cab — she wanted Tang Ran to suffer a bit more.
“No money left. Guess we’ll take the bus,” she said deliberately.
Tao Ran shot her a glance. Perfect — she was planning to make things difficult for Xiao Ai anyway.
If she didn’t have to act sick, she would’ve slapped her long ago.
Instead, Tao Ran suddenly grabbed both Xiao Ai’s and Liu Jie’s sleeves, crouched down, and wailed, “It hurts! Help me!”
Before either of them could react, she swayed and nearly collapsed onto the street. Startled, they both rushed to support her.
Her convincing cries of pain instantly drew the attention of the surrounding pedestrians.
How annoying!
Their guilty consciences flared — and so did their disgust. Especially when her blood-stained hand clutched at them—
So dirty!
Liu Jie hissed, “Let’s just take her home already!”
Desperate to get rid of her and avoid any more public attention, they finally hailed a cab.
As the taxi meter ticked up, their moods grew fouler by the second. Another twenty dollars gone. What a miserable day.
“I’m in pain… I can’t walk up the stairs… Liu Jie, carry me…” Tao Ran moaned the moment they stepped out of the cab.
Liu Jie’s mouth twitched. “I’ve got something to do. I’ll go first.”
Xiao Ai snapped, “Quit whining! Where I’m from, women go back to work in the fields the day after giving birth! You just had a minor surgery — what’s with the princess act? It’s only the third floor, climb it yourself!”
Tao Ran instead began hobbling toward the first-floor apartment.
“Then I’ll ask the landlady or Mr. Donnie downstairs to carry me. He should be home right now…”
Xiao Ai kicked Liu Jie’s leg. “Are you crazy? You want everyone to know she just had surgery? Fang Ming told us a thousand times to keep this quiet!”
Grinding his teeth, Liu Jie reluctantly went over and lifted her onto his back.
The mixture of antiseptic and blood clinging to Tang Ran made him want to vomit. He’d never even carried his own mother like this! The moment he set her down upstairs, he muttered a quick goodbye, wiped his hands, and bolted — ignoring Xiao Ai’s shouting.
Tao Ran smirked.
Just a small trick, and one of them was gone. Who’d be foolish enough to stay? Spending money and doing labor — what a deal.
Now it was just her and Xiao Ai.
The moment they stepped inside, Xiao Ai started demanding money.
She and Liu Jie had paid fifteen hundred dollars, but she was asking Tao Ran for two thousand.
Tao Ran’s expression turned cold — what a vile woman.
“Ask Fang Ming for it,” she said, collapsing onto the sofa.
“The surgery was for you, so you should pay! Fang Ming’s not rich, you know—”
“The surgery was for me, sure. But was the pregnancy my idea? Was the surgery my decision? Shouldn’t the one who insisted on it pay the bill? Besides, this is between me and my husband — what’s it got to do with you? Why do you care how he spends his money? Or is it actually your money he’s spending?”
Her voice was weak but sharp, cutting right into Xiao Ai’s chest.
Truth was — Fang Ming had borrowed plenty from her.
“Debts must be repaid. That’s only fair—”
“Well said,” Tao Ran interrupted lightly. “You slapped me earlier, didn’t you? How about we settle that too? Come on — hit me three times. My hands are too weak to hit back, so three slaps should make us even.”
A faint smile played on her lips.
Xiao Ai’s face twisted with rage. She’d always despised Tang Ran — she wanted to replace her, not lose to her again! That slap in the clinic had been her little moment of satisfaction, and now this woman dared mock her?
“You know, Fang Ming must’ve been blind to fall for someone like you!”
“Mm. Blind enough to end up with someone like you as a sidepiece — guess you’re even blinder.”
“You—” Xiao Ai’s finger trembled as she pointed at Tao Ran. “You pretend to be so gentle, but underneath you’re a venomous snake! So filthy! I should record your face and show the world what kind of woman you really are!”
“Too bad you can’t afford a camera, you leech.”
“You—You—You—!” Xiao Ai was trembling with fury. She lunged forward, trying to snatch Tao Ran’s bag.
“Think carefully about what you’re doing,” Tao Ran warned, her expression darkening.
That bag couldn’t fall into Xiao Ai’s hands. Even if it was empty, it contained Tang Ran’s important documents — losing them would be a disaster.
Her voice hardened. “This isn’t the first time I’ve wanted to call the police. Assault, robbery, forced surgery — you’re the main culprit.”
Xiao Ai froze mid-motion. “The surgery was your husband’s idea! That slap was an accident! And this isn’t robbery!”
“Doesn’t matter. The moment you grab my bag, I’ll call the cops. And once they show up, everyone will know I was pregnant — and that you dragged me to get an abortion. You think Fang Ming wants that kind of attention?”
Tao Ran loosened her grip on the bag, gesturing toward Xiao Ai. “Go on then. Try it.”
The bag hung loosely from Xiao Ai’s hand — but she didn’t dare open it.
She dropped it back in frustration.
Seething, she grabbed her phone and called Fang Ming, complaining that Tang Ran refused to pay back their “expenses.”
A minute later, she shoved the phone into Tao Ran’s hand.
Tao Ran didn’t even listen to Fang Ming’s words before speaking:
“I’m in pain. I feel awful. My mood’s terrible. The money’s in the bank — are you saying I should drag my post-surgery body out just to withdraw cash?”
“I’ve been humiliated enough today.”
“You want her to take my card? What if she steals it? You think I’d hand over my PIN?”
“Well, I won’t. I’m tired and need rest. If she’s not happy, she can call the police.”
With that, Tao Ran hung up.
Ha. That scumbag still relied on the original Tang Ran to survive — a parasite through and through.
Tang Ran may have loved him once, but that didn’t mean Tao Ran would obey him forever.