I stood on the balcony, taking a deep breath as the early summer breeze carried floral scents. The laughter of girls playing downstairs drifted up, and for the first time in a while, I felt my body and mind ease.
Months ago, I too had dreamed of a scene like this—a daughter born to Lin Xuyan and me, running freely under the sun just as they do now, if only she had made it safely into this world."
But reality leaves no room for 'what ifs'.
I returned to the living room, where Candy told me the group chat was blowing up today—apparently a minor influencer from our company had trended. "Wanna hear the tea?" she asked. My heart dropped. Could it be her?
I opened the screenshot Candy sent me: #QingqianBaby homewreker
"So soon?" I stared at my phone in shock.
Turns out, someone in the thread had clipped my comment from before I was booted from the livestream. Netizens had even doxxed Sun1014's real identity—Lin Xuyan, an executive at a finance firm in S City. They even found our wedding photos and that post from my hospital days: 'The baby's gone. And so is my heart.
"This..."My fingers trembled as I scrolled through the screen. "How did it spread so fast?"
But Qingqian Baby wasn't a major influencer, so the backlash was quickly contained. The trend was buried, and most people lost interest in some no-name minor celebrity.
"The internet may have a short memory, but she's definitely getting roasted these two days,"Candy remarked.
I reopened the livestreaming platform and searched for Qingqian Baby. Her channel was still up, but the viewer count had skyrocketed to 50,000+, and the chat was flooded with accusations:
"Care to explain the homewrecker rumors?"
"Heard you caused a miscarriage by breaking up a marriage?"
"Top donor = certified scumbag!"
Qingqian Baby had lost her earlier composure. Beads of sweat glistened through her flawless makeup as she stammered, "Th-These are all lies... I... We..."
Suddenly, the livestream cut off.
For the first time, it hit me—this double-edged sword called the internet might just become my own blade.
'I want to go out for a while,' I said to Candy."
I guided Nan Zhi's brand-new white Porsche into the gated community where I'd once lived for three years. My fingers tightened around the steering wheel until my knuckles turned white—this was the place where I'd lost everything in my past life.
Even from a distance, I recognized the black BMW. I rolled to a stop twenty meters behind them, cut the engine, but didn't get out.
They seemed to be in the middle of a heated argument. Qingqian Baby—no, Zhou Yuqing now, her real name exposed in the doxxing—was gesticulating wildly, her peach-pink manicured nails practically jabbing at Lin Xuyan's face. Meanwhile, Lin Xuyan unfastened his seatbelt with a look of utter exasperation, ready to storm out.
Looks like the show's about to begin.
I took a deep breath and pushed open the car door, deliberately slamming it shut with a loud "BANG!"—enough to instantly snap the quarreling pair's attention toward me.
Lin Xuyan turned, his expression shifting from irritation to shock, then settling on something akin to awe. His eyes widened, lips parting slightly, as if he'd seen a ghost.
"Nan... Nan Zhi?"Zhou Yuqing recognized me first. She quickly stepped out of the BMW, her stilettos clicking sharply against the pavement. "What are you doing here?"
I casually tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, letting the scent of gardenia perfume drift toward them. "Oh, what a coincidence! I seem to be lost,"I said, flashing a perfectly practiced look of helplessness. "And my car won't start. I was just coming to ask for help when I spotted you."
Lin Xuyan finally snapped out of his daze, closing the distance between us in three quick strides. "Do you need assistance, miss?"His gaze clung to my face like glue, not even sparing Zhou Yuqing a glance from head to toe.
Zhou Yuqing's expression darkened instantly.
"Oh, we haven't been properly introduced,"I said, extending my hand with practiced grace. "I'm Nan Zhi."
"Lin Xuyan."He seized my hand eagerly, his thumb brushing over my palm in a lingering, suggestive caress. "No wonder you looked familiar—you're the Nan Zhi everyone's talking about."
I suppressed the bile rising in my throat and smoothly withdrew my hand. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Zhou Yuqing glaring daggers, her fingers digging into Lin Xuyan's arm as she hissed, "Xuyan, didn't we have urgent matters to attend to?"
I feigned sudden realization. "Xuyan? As in... that trending topic?"
Zhou Yuqing's face drained of color before flushing crimson. "Slander!" Her voice cracked shrilly. "Someone's framing me!"
"Don't misunderstand—I believe you, of course."I patted her shoulder reassuringly, relishing how her body stiffened under my touch. "The internet has the memory of a goldfish. In two days, no one will remember a thing."
Ignoring Zhou Yuqing entirely, Lin Xuyan turned back to me. "Nan Zhi, if your car's acting up, let me take a look."
Zhou Yuqing's jaw dropped. "Xuyan! We were supposed to—"
"Just five minutes,"he cut her off, already holding my car door open with obsequious enthusiasm.
I shot Zhou Yuqing an apologetic smile. "How kind of you, Mr. Lin."Slipping into the seat, I made sure my skirt flared just enough for the rearview mirror to capture Zhou Yuqing stomping her foot in fury.