The truce under the stars didn't last. Reality, in the form of the Mo matriarch's ruthlessness, crashed down upon them just days later.
Ye Xia was in the middle of a physics lecture when Silas's emergency alert vibrated on her wrist. She excused herself and took the call in an empty hallway.
"There's a problem," Silas said, his voice tight. "A major one. The press has the story."
"What story?" Ye Xia asked, a cold dread settling in her stomach.
"Someone has leaked documents to the financial press. They're claiming your initial wealth came from a sophisticated hack of a European bank's disaster recovery system. They're calling it the 'heist of the century.' They're linking it to a unsolved cyber-crime from three years ago."
Ye Xia's blood ran cold. It was a complete fabrication, but a brilliant one. It provided a plausible, illegal explanation for her mysterious seed capital. The Mo matriarch was making her move, using the media to paint her as a criminal.
"The articles are hitting major outlets in the next hour," Silas continued. "They've been carefully planted. The narrative is already set."
This was far more damaging than accusations of cheating on exams. This was an attack on the very foundation of her legitimacy. If this story gained traction, her banking relationships could be frozen, her assets seized for investigation. The Yun family would distance themselves instantly. Yun Ming would withdraw his offer.
She ended the call and leaned against the cool locker, her mind racing. She had to contain this. She needed to discredit the source immediately.
Her phone buzzed again. It was Mo.
[I assume you've seen. My grandmother's work. She's using Lin Wanwan as a supposed 'whistleblower' to add a personal touch.]
Ye Xia's fury was incandescent. Lin Wanwan had betrayed her already. The pathetic girl had chosen the Mo matriarch's certainty over Ye Xia's threats.
[I'll handle it,] she typed, her fingers shaking with rage.
[You can't,] Mo replied instantly. [This is a multi-pronged attack. The media is just the first wave. She has regulators in her pocket. She will move to have your assets frozen by the end of the day.]
The walls were closing in. The matriarch was using the full weight of the Mo family's influence to crush her.
[What do you suggest?] Ye Xia asked, hating the feeling of desperation that crept into the question.
[You need to disappear. Now. Before the story breaks. Go to ground. I have a safe house. A place she doesn't know about.]
It was a huge risk. Trusting him completely. Putting herself in his hands.
[Why would you help me? Your grandmother will see it as a direct betrayal.]
The reply came after a long pause. [Because I am making a choice. I am not an asset. I am a person. And I choose you.]
The words were simple, but their impact was seismic. In the midst of the impending storm, they were a lifeline.
Ye Xia made a decision. For the second time, she chose trust over suspicion.
[Send me the address.]
She didn't go back to class. She walked out of the school, got into her car, and gave Silas the coordinates. They were going off the grid. The Gaokao, the school, the city—it all faded away. The battle for her future had just escalated into a war for her very freedom.