Chapter 2 — Turns Out My Boyfriend Is a Billionaire Heir

So, I am supposed to express gratitude for being deceived by you? You possess both wealth and power, yet you could watch me endure hardship with utter indifference, all for the sake of such a vapid and cruel little test? Last year in the northern city, the rain fell in sheets, cascading down like a relentless waterfall. I went out to escort you home, only to be harassed by a band of thugs who very nearly violated me right there in the downpour. You stood by the entire time, motionless and silent. Back then, I foolishly thought you were simply helpless against them, but looking back now, perhaps that agonizing ordeal was merely another carefully orchestrated trial designed by the young master himself. How utterly grotesque.

At that exact moment, Qin Zhaochuan's phone began to ring persistently, though he was currently occupied in the washroom.

Qin Zhaochuan, your true identity has already been brought to light, so will you still grace the Origin Tower with your presence hereafter? Without your company, even the finest vintage loses its flavor.

I picked up the handset, trembling with a fury that consumed my entire being. So this so-called arduous part-time labor was nothing more than an elaborate masquerade! His employment at the prestigious tower was merely a convenient vehicle to reclaim his privileged status and resume his life of boundless luxury.

What are you doing with my phone?

I remained utterly mute. Seizing the device, he immediately returned the call I had abruptly terminated. Hello? Scarcely a moment later, he emerged from the balcony, his countenance etched with a practiced semblance of remorse.

A Ling, since matters have escalated to this point, we ought to lay our cards upon the table. I did not deceive you regarding the core of who I am. I am indeed the Qin Zhaochuan of the Qin Corporation, but I remain none other than your Qin Zhaochuan!

My relationship with Jiang Yiru is entirely pristine and untainted. It is simply that her parents entrusted her to my family's care, and I bear a heavy responsibility for her well-being.

Just now, Ruru mentioned she encountered a slight predicament, and I must go attend to her immediately.

With those words, he drew a thick stack of banknotes from his leather wallet and laid them before me.

From this moment onward, our A Ling will no longer need to toil away in exhaustion. Once Ruru’s birthday arrives, I shall formally introduce you to everyone in high society.

Did he truly believe these meager gestures would melt my heart and move me to tears? My expression remained cold, almost devoid of life. Before crossing the threshold, Qin Zhaochuan paused, offering a final, condescending instruction. Oh, by the way, you should really toss away that old gold padlock pendant of yours. If Ruru hadn't brought it up, I would never have known. The young lady of the Kim family happens to possess an identical one. Should you ever cross paths at a banquet, a genuine socialite would surely take displeasure in such a blatant imitation.

And what if a Kim is precisely a true daughter of the Kim family?

Every single syllable dripped with condescension and arrogant benevolence. Yet the heirloom resting against my collarbone was authentic beyond a doubt, its intricate engraving a masterpiece of craftsmanship scarcely found anywhere in the country. Qin Zhaochuan would rather blindly believe it to be a cheap counterfeit than entertain the notion that I was the true heiress of the Kim household.

Do be careful on your way out.

May you be fortunate enough not to be struck by a carriage. He leaned down and pressed a parting kiss upon my brow. I know you well, A Ling. You are always so sensible, and such a disposition is precisely what makes a fitting mistress of the Qin household. I lowered my gaze, concealing the profound contempt burning within my eyes. In the sanctuary of his own mind, he undoubtedly imagined I was overflowing with ecstatic joy, discovering that the impoverished suitor of the past three years had miraculously transformed into an heir of immense, billion-dollar fortunes. Yet I felt nothing save for a nausea that penetrated to the very marrow of my bones. For the man I had loved was the youth of our earliest days—the one who poured his soul into his aspirations, sincere and virtuous to a fault.

Once the door clicked shut behind him, sealing his departure, I rummaged through the depths of an old chest, unearthing the discarded telecommunication card of my past. Slipping it back into the apparatus, I illuminated the screen. Jiang Yiru’s virtual journal remained active. Barely three minutes prior, she had broadcasted a dispatch to the digital world. The backdrop was an opulent private club, where she and Qin Zhaochuan reclined in intimate proximity. The man beside her lazily fingered a stack of high-stakes gaming chips, his features chillingly aloof and unfathomable. Where had the impoverished, idealistic scholar who once studied diligently by candlelight vanished to?

I had been nothing if not a fool. Years ago, my mother merely cast a single glance in his direction and declared him far too complex to be ordinary. Yet I had fiercely argued in his defense, insisting that those burdened by poverty simply matured at an accelerated pace, their minds far more resolute and steady.

Come meet me, your prospective fiance.

The summons came from Li Cenhong, and the geographic coordinates transmitted by his device matched the exact location where Qin Zhaochuan was currently entertaining. I applied a fresh layer of cosmetics and materialized at the venue. Li Cenhong fastened a delicate velvet mask across my face, drawing me down beside him until a mere breath separated my shoulder from Qin Zhaochuan’s back.

Ling Ling, had you simply chosen to accept my hand sooner, you would never have been subjected to such trivial suffering. You always harbored an inexplicable fondness for melodramatic romantic tragedies.

Behold the fruit of your stubbornness; you have drawn calamity entirely upon your own head.

Li Cenhong and I shared the bond of childhood sweethearts, having stood side by side through countless trials during our years abroad. I was well aware of his romantic inclinations toward me. Yet my obstinate spirit had driven me to flee secretly back to our homeland, deliberately severing all ties and concealing my lineage to prevent his pursuit. Little did I anticipate that I would inadvertently entangle myself with Qin Zhaochuan—another soul who wore a false identity like a tattered cloak. Truly, fate possessed a wicked sense of irony.

Why have you summoned me here? Merely to inflict further torment upon my soul?

Having barely survived the agonizing dissolution of a romance, I possessed scant patience for pleasantries. Accustomed to my caustic barbs, Li Cenhong merely slid a familiar arm around my waist, his intent unmistakable: to force a clean and definitive severance from the wreckage.

True to expectation, a figure detached themselves from a nearby table, strolling deliberately toward Qin Zhaochuan to initiate polite conversation. When inquired whether Jiang Yiru held the status of his cherished companion, Qin Zhaochuan offered no denial, letting the ambiguity linger. In that singular fraction of a second, the numbness in my chest fractured into an agony so sharp it felt as though my heart were being rent asunder. I moved to rise, intending to flee the suffocating atmosphere, but Li Cenhong restrained me with a firm grip. Snatching my mobile device, he rapidly tapped out a clandestine message under the guise of my signature, informing Qin Zhaochuan of a sudden, debilitating illness and demanding his immediate return to our hearth.

Observe closely.

I stared unblinkingly at the glowing screen across the room, watching as Qin Zhaochuan merely glanced down at the notification before dismissing it entirely. He displayed not a shred of urgency, utterly indifferent to my supposed plight! Yet at the mere whisper of a summons from Jiang Yiru, he would abandon me without a second thought.

The night had deepened into its darkest hours when Qin Zhaochuan finally stumbled across our threshold, redolent with the heavy stench of fermented spirits, his hands bearing a fragile package containing a slice of tiramisu.

I procured this especially for your palate.

It seemed almost absurd that a fragment of his consciousness still remembered my preferences, yet the prospect of consuming the sweet remnants of his evening indulgence turned my stomach. Unaware of the pallor that had overtaken my features, he reached out, pressing a warm palm against my abdomen.

Does your stomach still ache? Shall I summon a carriage to convey you to the hospital?

The hospital? Do you truly believe your lawful companion lacks the standing to command your household’s private physician?

The proficiency and discretion of a private practitioner far surpassed the chaotic corridors of a public infirmary; had genuine concern motivated him, such hollow inquiries would have been utterly superfluous. But by then, his patience had evaporated entirely.

Must you forever be so contentious? I am well aware you suffer from no physical malady; you are merely consumed by green-eyed envy toward Jiang Yiru! A Ling, I harbor no fondness for such infantile theatrics.

Perhaps realizing the harshness of his own cadence, his tone shifted into a gentler coaxing.

The hour is far too advanced for medical interventions in any case. Even should we require a private physician, we must await the dawn. Be a sensible girl now.

I maintained a stony silence. Believing the dispute amicably settled, Qin Zhaochuan scooped a morsel of the confection, extending it toward my lips.

Still harboring resentment within your heart?

I shook my head slowly.

I was merely pondering the appropriate attire for Miss Jiang’s upcoming celebration.

A flicker of suspicion crossed his features. You are genuinely contemplating such matters? Clearly finding it difficult to reconcile with my typical temperament, which would usually have erupted into a tempest of accusations by this juncture, he hesitated. How had I grown so tranquil?

To share in your happiness and prosperity brings me joy; why should harbor resentment?

Utterly placated by this manufactured compliance, he beamed with satisfaction, graciously assisting me in selecting an evening gown for the festivities, completely oblivious to the silent vow of departure I had sealed within my breast.

When the day of the grand gala arrived, Qin Zhaochuan excused himself under the pretext of assisting his family with preliminary preparations at the main estate, dispatching a chauffeur to collect me later. Disregarding his carefully laid plans, I bypassed his arrangements entirely, arriving at the opulent ballroom in the company of Li Cenhong.

To my lack of astonishment, before the festivities had even commenced, Jiang Yiru cornered me, eager to deliver the opening blow of her campaign.

Miss Kim, the house of Qin shall never lower its standards to accept your presence. Your humble origins render you utterly unworthy of standing beside him!

Before I could formulate a suitable rejoinder, Jiang Yiru seized my wrist, a cruel smirk twisting her lips as her eyes fell upon the magnificent diamond ring Li Cenhong had bestowed upon my finger.

Gather round, everyone, and feast your eyes upon this! Surely this glittering bauble is nothing more than a vulgar forgery, is it not?

A young woman draped in cascading pink silk chimed in immediately: That piece is known as the Morning Star. Rumor dictates it was personally acquired by Chief Executive Li as a token of his devotion to the true daughter of the Kim household—the heiress of the nation's wealthiest dynasty.

To think that the maiden favored by the young master of the Qin family would stoop to such pathetic pretensions for the sake of social climbing!

Though she shares a surname with the true Kim heiress, their destinies exist in entirely separate universes!

Hearing these hollow declarations, a wave of profound amusement surged within me, threatening to break through my facade of indifference. In former days, these very sycophants had buzzed around me like obedient bees, honoring me with obsequious titles of reverence. Scarcely had I been absent from their social circles for a few short years than their loyalties shifted faster than turning pages in a book.

Have you exhausted your repertoire of nonsense, Miss Jiang? Does this spectacle finally satiate your bitter heart?

My unwavering composure clearly disconcerted her, causing the triumphant smirk on Jiang Yiru’s lips to falter.

It appears I severely underestimated your resilience.

Shall we cast lots to determine who among us truly holds the sanctuary of Qin Zhaochuan’s affections?

Before the echoes of her challenge had even faded into the ambient music, she lunged forward with unexpected malice, shoving me violently backward. My spine collided heavily against the edge of the lavish buffet table, sending a towering seventy-tier pyramid of crystal champagne glasses crashing down in a cataclysmic cascade of shattering glass.

Look out!

Qin Zhaochuan materialized from the crowd, standing but a few paces distant, yet I witnessed with my own eyes how he bypassed my falling form entirely, hurtling instead toward Jiang Yiru to shield her within his embrace. Meanwhile, I was engulfed in a deluge of cascading alcohol and razor-sharp crystal shards, slipping rapidly into unconsciousness amidst the glittering ruin.

A Ling! A Ling!

Only after he had thoroughly assured himself of Jiang Yiru’s safety did he finally scramble toward me, scooping my broken body into his arms with frantic desperation. A nearby guest shrieked in unadulterated terror: There is blood! The young master’s companion is bleeding profusely!

It was only then that Qin Zhaochuan looked down, his gaze locking onto the crimson stain spreading across his palms—bright, vivid, and damning.

Blood... why is there so much blood?!