The gala was a battlefield in silk and champagne.
Chen Ying's smile slithered toward Luong, his breath reeking of expensive scotch and lies. *"Such a shame your father isn't here tonight,"* he murmured, fingers brushing her elbow. *"He'd want you to consider my… proposal. A marriage would ease his* ***dying*** *worries."*
Luong's glass cracked in her grip, crystal biting into her palm.
**"Say 'dying' again,"** she whispered, **"and I'll show you how a Zhou handles threats."**
The crowd around them laughed, oblivious to the venom in her voice.
**The Father's Ultimatum** *(Scene break for tension)*
Later, in her father's sickroom, Zhou Weng clutched her wrist. **"Marry Chen Ying. Merge our companies. It's the only way to protect"**
*"Protect* ***who****?"* Luong wrenched free. *"Him? The man who sabotaged our shipments last quarter? Who just* ***threatened you to my face****?"*
Her father turned ashen. **"You don't understand what he—"**
*"Then tell me!"*
But his silence screamed louder than words.
**The Confession**
Yin found her on the rooftop, her tears glinting under the city lights.
*"My mother's death wasn't an accident."* Her voice shattered. *"The police report lied. The brakes were cut."*
A shadow crossed Yin's face—too fast to decipher. Then his arms wrapped around her, his heartbeat steady against her ear.
**"I'll help you burn whoever did this."**
But as Luong melted into him, she missed the way his grip tightened.
The way his phone buzzed with a new message:
**>> Chen Ying: We need to talk. She knows.**
**🔥 Nuclear Cliffhanger**
Back in her penthouse, Luong opened her mother's old diary—and froze.
There, sketched in faded ink, was a face she'd recognize anywhere.
**Yin Zhang.**
*At age twelve.*
*Standing beside Chen Ying.*