Chapter 1

After I found out my best friend was hooking up with my boyfriend, I turned around and hooked with her older brother.

If we’re talking about being disgusting, who can’t be?

There wasn’t really any deep reason. I just wanted revenge. I know what I was doing was pretty trashy, but I couldn’t bring myself to care. I just wanted to feel good. Don’t start preaching to me about morals or values—those are the last things I need right now.

My best friend’s older brother is named Zhou Si. He’s eight years older than her. The fact that I had his contact info wasn’t anything weird, since Zhou Wan and I had been close since we were practically in diapers. Zhou Si basically watched me grow up, like an older brother, even though we didn’t interact that much.

Zhou Wan used to joke all the time about setting me up with her brother. She’d laugh and say if I dated him, I’d be her sister-in-law and her best friend which was like having double relations so double the love. But I was always pretty against the idea of getting involved with her brother, mostly because Zhou Si just felt like he was on a completely different level from us, age-wise.

I’m 22 now, just graduated college six months ago, a total newbie in the workplace, constantly feeling like a wilted vegetable. But Zhou Si? He’s already the boss of his own company, calm and confident in everything he does. We didn’t talk much, but every time we did, he gave off this superior vibe. Or maybe not "superior" exactly—but he’s nearly ten years older than me, and he always had this look in his eyes, like he was watching a little kid. It made me super uncomfortable.

I was a little nervous when I called Zhou Si.

When he picked up, his deep voice came through the phone and it felt like it brushed gently against my eardrums. He said my name right away, “Xie Li?”

Come to think of it, I think that was actually the first time he called me by my full name. He usually just called me “Lizhi,” my nickname. But whether it was “Lizhi” or “Xie Li,” Zhou Si’s voice always sounded amazing. I’m not even someone who's super into voices, but hearing him speak so seriously still gave me the chills.

It was Saturday, so I figured someone like him—big boss and all—probably wasn’t working, so I asked him where he was.

Zhou Si didn’t ask why, he just gave me an address: No. 108, Pingchang Road.

People from out of town might not know, but locals all recognize Pingchang Road—it’s the city’s most famous luxury neighborhood.

Zhou Si is already thirty and has been living apart from his parents for a long time.

So I gathered up all the courage I had and said to him, “I’m coming to see you!”

It was like I was giving myself a mission.

On the other end of the line, Zhou Si chuckled lowly and said, “Where are you? I’ll send a driver to pick you up.”

I was going to refuse, but then I thought—why say no to a free ride? So I gave him my location.

The sky was just starting to dim. I stood alone on the overpass, watching the traffic flowing beneath me, and my chest felt like someone had just ripped my heart out. One was a boyfriend I’d been with for three years, the other someone as close as a sister. The two people who meant the most to me had done something so disgusting behind my back. I couldn’t wrap my head around it.

Reality really knows how to be a damn soap opera.

To be honest, when I first confirmed that my boyfriend Chen Zhicheng was cheating on me, I didn’t even feel that upset.

Women’s intuition is sometimes scarily accurate. There had already been so many signs that his heart wasn’t with me anymore—I just didn’t want to face it.

About a month ago, I found a long hair on Chen Zhicheng’s coat that clearly wasn’t mine. Around the same time, he put a privacy screen on his phone. Lately, he had this habit of going out to the balcony under the excuse of smoking and would stay out there for an hour, just glued to his phone. Totally out of character.

We started dating in college. He chased me hard back then, made all kinds of sweet promises. I used to naively think that even if most guys were trash, Chen Zhicheng was different.

What’s hilarious is that before I knew he was cheating with my best friend Zhou Wan, I actually called her in a panic and asked what I should do.

Back then, Zhou Wan even pretended to comfort me, saying stuff like, “That jerk’s not worth it. Just let him go. The next one will be even better.”

And I actually believed her. I comforted myself by thinking, no matter what happens, at least I still have my bestie Zhou Wan.

Fate really loves to mess with people.

Just an hour after pouring my heart out to her, I saw her and Chen Zhicheng walking out of a restaurant holding hands. All lovey-dovey, acting like a couple in the honeymoon phase—those two absolute dogs.

I don’t know if anyone can truly understand what I felt in that moment. My hands clenched into fists, my whole body was trembling. I wanted to cry, but couldn’t. I honestly felt like throwing up—it was physical, not just emotional.

It was so goddamn messy.

So disgusting.

Seriously, I didn’t even feel this awful when I found out Zhicheng was cheating. But Zhou Wan? I practically saw her as family. It was in that moment that I truly felt what betrayal meant.

My mind was a complete mess. My feet felt like they were made of lead—I couldn’t move.

It wasn’t until those two walked far enough away that I mechanically took my phone out of my bag and, without really thinking, called Zhou Wan’s brother.

It wasn’t even five minutes after I hung up before a driver showed up—in a black Rolls-Royce Phantom. I figured it must’ve been the cheapest model, probably something businessmen buy just for appearances.

A lot of people in Wenshi are in business, and they love to keep up a flashy front. Even if they don’t have much money, they’ll pretend they’re rich.

My family isn’t that bad financially. I’m an only child, and both my parents run their own businesses. But compared to the Zhou family, we’re not in the same league. Their business is overseas and they hit the jackpot a few years back, made tons of money. Still, I’d heard from Zhou Wan that her brother Zhou Si struck out on his own and didn’t rely on the family business.

She used to brag about how amazing he was—got a direct admission into high school, started his own business in college, made his first fortune right after graduation... I always felt awkward listening to her gush. Sure, I knew Zhou Si was impressive, but that was his thing. What did it have to do with me?

After I got in the car, Zhou Si called me again. He asked if I’d eaten dinner yet.

It was right around dinnertime, and I honestly answered that I hadn’t. Actually, I hadn’t eaten anything all day.

Zhou Si asked, “What do you feel like eating?”

I said I had something in mind. And then, I don’t know where I got the guts, but I said, “You.”

There was a pause on his end, and then I heard a low, amused hum—kind of like a chuckle, kind of not.

Then he gave a barely audible, lazy-sounding “Hmm. Let’s talk when you get here.”

After the call ended, that’s when my heart started racing.

I seriously wondered if I’d been possessed by something—how else could I have dared to say something like that to Zhou Si?

Was it too late to get out of the car?

Obviously, yes.

While I was battling with myself and second-guessing everything, the car pulled up in front of a modern-looking villa—No. 108, Pingchang Road.

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