Chapter 2: The First Gambit
The luxury sedan glided to a silent halt before the imposing gates of the Li family estate. Familiar, yet unsettlingly pristine. Li Yuwei watched the wrought iron swing inward, a theatrical curtain opening on a stage she'd once performed on as a wide-eyed ingénue. This time, she'd rewrite the script.
Shen Mochen turned off the engine, plunging the car into a hushed stillness that was instantly filled by the rapid thumping of Li Yuwei's own heart. He turned to face her, his expression unreadable, a perfectly sculpted mask. "We're here. Are you sure you're feeling well? You've been unusually quiet since the city."
She met his gaze, her own eyes now devoid of the trembling adoration he was accustomed to. They were steady, clear, and disconcertingly calm. "I'm perfectly fine, Mochen. Just lost in thought." She paused, letting a beat of silence stretch before adding, her voice laced with a subtle, almost imperceptible edge, "After all, not everyone's mind is as… empty as yours must be to miss certain details."
He blinked, a flicker of something akin to confusion crossing his face before it vanished. He was used to her demure responses, her gentle acquiescence. This sharp retort was new.
Li Yuwei reached for the door handle, her movements precise, unhurried. Her mind, however, was a whirlwind of calculated steps. First, assess the immediate players. Shen Mochen is here. Li Meili will undoubtedly be waiting. My parents, blissfully ignorant then, likely still are. She recalled the layout of the house, the locations of the safes, the key documents, the hidden cameras she'd later discover Meili had installed. Her internal journal, meticulously updated with every memory from her past life, was already open.
"Ready?" Shen Mochen asked, his hand hovering over her arm, a gesture she recoiled from internally. The ghost of his betrayal, the chilling memory of the crash, was too vivid.
"As I'll ever be," she replied, a cool politeness in her tone that belied the storm raging within. She stepped out onto the gravel driveway, the crunch under her heels satisfyingly crisp. The air was thick with the scent of blooming jasmine and the faint, underlying metallic tang of something she knew was pure, unadulterated opportunity.
As they walked towards the grand entrance, she noticed a gardener tending to the rose bushes, humming a familiar tune. She remembered him, Old Man Wei, always kind. Her network. She had neglected them in her previous life, blinded by a love that wasn't real. Not this time.
The massive mahogany front door swung open just as they reached the porch, revealing Li Meili, radiant in a flowing white dress, her smile a dazzling, saccharine lie. "Yuwei! Mochen! You're finally here!" She rushed forward, arms open for an embrace, her eyes, however, darting quickly to Shen Mochen before settling on Li Yuwei with a predatory gleam only Yuwei could now recognize.
Li Yuwei did not meet her halfway. She stood her ground, an unyielding pillar. As Meili's arms went to encircle her, Li Yuwei simply sidestepped, smoothly, politely, turning her body just enough so Meili embraced empty air. The forced smile on Meili's face faltered, replaced by a momentary flash of bewildered annoyance.
"Sister," Li Yuwei said, her voice even, almost sweet, but with an underlying current that was chillingly devoid of genuine warmth. "Such enthusiasm. One might think you orchestrated this grand entrance yourself."
Meili's laugh was a little too loud, a little too strained. "Oh, Yuwei, you're always so funny!" She tried to recover, linking her arm through Shen Mochen's instead, her touch possessive.
Li Yuwei simply watched, a faint, almost imperceptible curl of her lip. Let her cling to him. For now. "I don't argue," she thought, the mantra a silent vow. "I end things." Her revenge wouldn't be a messy confrontation. It would be a calculated demolition.
As they stepped inside, into the familiar, echoing foyer, Li Yuwei's eyes scanned the ornate chandelier, the polished marble floor, the grand staircase. Every detail was a piece of the puzzle, a tool in her arsenal. Feelings won't build my future. Plans will. And her plans had just begun.