Chapter 4 The First Slap
"What are you doing?" Lu Chen's voice was dangerously low, a furious rumble that vibrated in the air. He stopped two feet away from me, his dark eyes blazing with barely concealed rage. "I told you to stay out of sight tonight. Are you intentionally trying to humiliate the Lu family?"
"Humiliate the family?" I raised an eyebrow, meeting his furious gaze without flinching. "I'm merely having a drink, CEO Lu. The only one humiliating the family is the married man parading his mistress around at his own Centennial Gala."
The collective gasp from the crowd sucked the oxygen out of the room.
Lu Chen's eyes widened in genuine shock. For three years, I had never, ever spoken back to him. I had been a submissive, quiet shadow. His jaw clenched, a muscle ticking in his cheek.
"Su Yan," he warned, his tone lethal. "Apologize to Wan'er immediately. You know she is fragile."
Lin Wan stepped out from behind him. She was a master actress. Her large, doe-like eyes were already brimming with unshed tears.
"Brother Chen, please don't be angry with Yan-yan," Lin Wan said, her voice quivering with angelic sweetness. "She's just jealous. I shouldn't have worn this necklace... I know it's a Lu family heirloom."
She touched the massive, dazzling blue diamond resting against her collarbone. The Heart of the Ocean. The necklace that was supposed to be given to the matriarch of the Lu family. Lu Chen had given it to her instead of me.
This was the trap. This was the exact moment she ruined me in my past life.
Lin Wan took a step toward me, reaching out as if to take my hand. "Yan-yan, please, let's be friends. I don't want to fight with you."
As she reached out, she deliberately twisted her ankle. She let out a sharp cry, stumbling forward and grabbing onto the bodice of my dress.
With a swift, practiced motion hidden by her body, her hand snapped the delicate platinum clasp of the necklace.
She fell to the floor, taking the necklace with her. The heavy blue diamond shattered against the solid marble floor with a sickening CRACK.
The crowd erupted.
"My heavens! The Heart of the Ocean!" "Did you see that? Su Yan pushed her!" "She shoved Miss Lin and broke a hundred-million-yuan heirloom out of spite! What a vicious woman!"
Lin Wan sat on the floor, clutching her "injured" ankle, staring at the broken blue diamond in absolute devastation. "My necklace... Brother Chen, she pushed me! She tried to rip it off my neck!" She buried her face in her hands, weeping bitterly.
Lu Chen's face was thunderous. The air around him practically dropped below freezing. He looked at me with a gaze so filled with loathing I felt it in my bones.
"Security," Lu Chen barked, his voice echoing through the silent room. "Take this madwoman to the police station. Press charges for grand theft and assault. I am divorcing you tomorrow, Su Yan."
In my past life, I had dropped to my knees. I had cried until I vomited, begging them to check the security cameras, only to find out Lin Wan had ordered them turned off. I had been dragged out like a rabid dog.
Today, I threw my head back and laughed.
It wasn't a nervous chuckle. It was a loud, ringing, genuine laugh that echoed off the crystal chandeliers.
Lu Chen froze. The security guards hesitating mid-step. Even Lin Wan stopped fake-crying for a second, peering at me through her fingers.
"Call the police," I said, a terrifyingly bright smile on my face. "Please, Lu Chen, call them. Because I'd love to see the police arrest the great Lin Wan for insurance fraud."
"What nonsense are you spewing?!" Lu Chen roared.
I looked down at Lin Wan, whose face had suddenly gone rigid. I engaged the System.
[Target: Lin Wan. Secret: The 'Heart of the Ocean' she is wearing is a 200-yuan cubic zirconia replica bought on Taobao. The real necklace was secretly pawned by her mother, Madam Lin, two weeks ago to pay off a 50 million yuan debt to the Black Dragon underground casino in Macau.]
"That diamond," I pointed at the shattered blue stone on the floor, "didn't shatter like a diamond. It shattered like cheap glass. Because it is cheap glass."
I stepped forward, my high heel crunching loudly on the fake gems.
"Isn't that right, Lin Wan?" I purred, my voice carrying across the silent ballroom. "Didn't you order that replica online last week? Because your lovely mother, Madam Lin, took the real Heart of the Ocean to the Black Dragon Casino in Macau to pay off her 50 million yuan gambling debt?"
Lin Wan's face turned the color of ash. Her entire body began to violently tremble. "Y-you're lying! Brother Chen, she's lying! She's trying to cover up her crime!"
"Am I?" I pulled my phone from my clutch.
[System prompt: Would you like to spend 200 Schadenfreude Points to hack Madam Lin's phone and project the pawn shop receipt and casino ledgers onto the main ballroom screen?]
Yes.
Suddenly, the massive LED screen at the back of the stage—which was displaying the Lu Corporation logo—glitched.
A collective gasp ripped through the crowd as high-definition images splashed across the screen.
There was a photo of Madam Lin handing the real Heart of the Ocean to a shady pawn shop dealer.
There was a glowing red casino ledger showing a massive 50 million debt being cleared.
And finally, a screenshot of Lin Wan's own Taobao account, showing an order for a "High-Quality Replica Blue Glass Necklace" for 250 yuan, with free shipping.
The silence in the grand ballroom was so profound you could hear a pin drop.
[DING! Massive Face-Slapping Achieved! Major antagonist utterly humiliated! Reward: +2,000 Schadenfreude Points!]
I looked at Lu Chen. His eyes were wide, darting from the colossal screen back to Lin Wan, who was now hyperventilating on the floor, her facade completely destroyed.
"So, CEO Lu," I said softly, stepping right into his space. "Are we still calling the police?"