Chapter Twenty-Eight: Spoiling Her Like a Princess...

"Three years ago, you abandoned your husband and son to pursue your own future."

"Three years later, you knowingly play the homewrecker, destroying someone else's family, obsessed with money, and utterly devoid of any sense of shame or morality."

"Yu Zao, tell me, should I believe a bitch with such a venomous heart, or should I believe my fiancée, whom I treasure above all else?"

Bitch...

Fiancée!

Every cold, sharp word hit like a gaping maw filled with jagged fangs. Again and again, they tore her to pieces, leaving her bleeding in the wake of their cruelty.

Fu Shiyong could no longer be bothered to even look at Yu Zao. He waved his hand impatiently and commanded, "Make her kneel. Make her kowtow and apologize to my wife until she is satisfied."

"Shiyong, let it go. I know you still have feelings for your sister, after all, that cufflink..."

Snap!

The "sapphire" cufflink she had struggled so hard to retrieve was tossed carelessly onto the floor. Right before Yu Zao’s eyes, Fu Shiyong, wearing high-end leather shoes polished to a mirror shine, slowly and deliberately crushed the worthless trinket into dust.

And with it, something else shattered. She could clearly hear the sound of her own heart—the one that had been struggling to keep beating despite the ravages of illness.

*Thump, thump, thump...*

The crisp sound of her forehead hitting the floor continued without pause as the bodyguard gripped the back of her thin, fragile neck.

On the hospital bed, Yu Yue snuggled softly and tenderly into the man's arms. She pouted playfully, "Shiyong, can you stop spoiling me like this? You’re really going to ruin me."

As she spoke, her gaze, sharp and mocking, pierced straight into the eyes of the devastated, bedraggled Yu Zao.

"What are you saying, silly?"

"You are my fiancée, the woman I, Fu Shiyong, will take care of for the rest of my life. Isn't spoiling you my duty?"

Yet, Fu Shiyong had once said, "Little Yu, grant me a privilege, won't you? Let me spoil you for a lifetime and turn you into a useless, pampered treasure!"

Back then, the boy had knelt on one knee, holding a cheap 925 sterling silver ring, begging her sincerely. Back then, he had loved her deeply. And she had loved him just as much!

But now, that simple, honest country boy was gone. In his place stood the richest man in Jingbei—the man who cherished the daughter of a mistress, Yu Yue, as the apple of his eye. Fu Shiyong...

*Gag!*

A mouthful of thick, viscous blood spilled from her lips.

Fu Shiyong, on the bed, instinctively moved to stand up, his brows furrowed tightly. In his dark, deep pupils, there was a flash of irrepressible nervousness and worry.

Yu Yue, however, was faster. She grabbed his arm tightly, coughed a few times, and let tears well up in her eyes.

"Shiyong, I’m so scared. Every time I think about how I almost fell off that cliff and died to save Yiyi, my heart just races."

"Hold me, stay with me always, please?"

The bodyguard, receiving a silent signal from Yu Yue, dragged the half-conscious, half-awake Yu Zao away with a look of utter disgust. Blood left a wide trail on the floor, and the wounds all over her body continued to seep bright, jarring crimson.

...

For a fleeting moment, her mind was truly clouded. She even instinctively reached out a trembling hand toward Fu Shiyong.

"Hubby..."

Yu Yue clung to him. By the second the door closed, the man had eyes only for the pampered wife in his arms.

Out in the bustling hallway, Yu Zao lay prone in a pool of blood like a dead fish, motionless. Someone walked around her with a look of revulsion, rolling their eyes. "Is this that homewrecker ex-wife from the internet? How unlucky. I heard her mother was a bitch who stole someone else's boyfriend too. Like mother, like daughter, both trash."

"More than that, haven't you seen the latest trending topics?"

"That vixen's own mother plagiarized the works of Miss Yu's mother and even won international awards for them."

"But now the truth is out. With Chairman Fu protecting his wife so fiercely, just you wait—the real show is yet to come."

One by one, they kicked her, aiming specifically for her open wounds.

Inside the VIP suite, managers of top luxury brands arrived in person, coming and going, serving the picky future Mrs. Fu with the utmost sycophancy.

Yu Yue covered her mouth in feigned shock. "Oh, Shiyong, there’s no need. Isn't this too extravagant?"

"My wife, this is only the basic standard."

*Rrrrip!*

A malicious passerby, claiming they wanted everyone to see what the "vixen" looked like, tore her already thin hospital gown into shreds. She curled into a ball, desperately trying to cover her modesty.

A few minutes later, nutritionists from all over the world lined up to enter. Fu Shiyong ordered, "From today until my fiancée is discharged, her three meals a day must be of the highest quality."

When it came to Yu Zao’s turn, the nurse who brought her back to the crowded general ward tossed her a box of leftovers.

"Your deposit is running out. This is what you get—take it or leave it!"

On the day of discharge, Mr. Fu, obsessed with pampering his wife, threw a grand banquet to celebrate with the whole world. It was to wash away the "bad luck" Yu Yue had encountered after her injury.

Yu Zao bypassed the joyous crowd, slipped out the back door, and got into Yang Chen's car. The man, who had been missing for over a dozen days, was wrapped up tightly despite the fact that it wasn't even the dead of winter. He even had a wool scarf wrapped around his neck.

"Brother Yang, you..."

She was sensitive and immediately sensed that something was wrong. She leaned in, trying to force open his coat.

Yang Chen blocked her, his eyes darting away. "I'm fine. What about you? You were in such big trouble, and yet I..."

*Rip!*

The zipper of his leather jacket burst open.

The T-shirt underneath was stained with blood. The scarf hung loose, revealing a dense network of whip marks and various bite marks that were shocking to behold.

"Was it Chen Ya? Did she force you again? Did she force you to play with her lover again?"

The worst time had been when Chen Ya drugged Yang Chen. When he woke up and realized what had happened, his depression flared up, and he had scrubbed his own skin with a steel wool pad for over an hour, peeling away half his layers.

"Little Yu, once the divorce is final, it will all be over. I'm fine, don't worry."

He pulled his clothes together tightly. The car started.

All over the city, LED billboards were filled with videos of Fu Shiyong and Fu Yiyi professing their love. The husband was filled with deep, ocean-like affection, and the son was well-behaved and adorable. They made it clear to the entire world that Yu Yue was the happiest woman alive!

"Brother Yang."

The car drove steadily across the overpass. Yang Chen replied with an "Hmm?"

Yu Zao looked through the car window at the happy family of three she couldn't escape. She said, "Can you really let go just by getting a divorce? If you could, why do you still keep the amulet Chen Ya gave you hanging in the car?"

Three steps, one kowtow; nine steps, one bow. The former Chen Ya had also sacrificed so much for Yang Chen. It was just a pity that while some people change, others remain trapped in the beautiful, happy past.

After a moment of silence, Yang Chen gave a bitter laugh and shook his head. "Little Yu, if we could let go like they do, maybe life would be a lot easier."

Easier?

She imagined it would be something they would take to their graves.

For the next week, the only thing that brought Yu Zao any comfort was the resumption of her job at the University for the Elderly. When her first month's salary arrived, she saved 80% for her medical treatment and decided to use the rest to treat Yang Chen to a decent meal.

On her way to the meeting, she unexpectedly received a phone call.

Across the street, in a small shop, Fu Shiyong stared at a handmade musical snow globe on the display shelf, lost in thought.

Yu Yue, holding Yiyi’s hand, walked in behind him and asked curiously, "Shiyong, do you like it?"

"She liked it. We couldn't afford it back then, so she would come to look at it every week. I never expected that even after three years, it still hasn't been sold."