The next morning, Tang Xinyue arrived at Lu Corp earlier than usual.
She needed silence—time to think before the building woke up with ambition and politics.
The glass skyscraper reflected the hazy gray of the overcast sky, as if holding its breath before the next wave of gossip. Inside, the air was crisp with chilled sophistication: marble floors, sleek panels, hushed voices.
In the executive elevator, she caught her reflection. Her eyes were calm, calculating. Not the eyes of a woman scorned, but of a woman preparing for war.
By the time she reached her office floor, her assistant, Li Fen, had already brewed her tea and placed a neat stack of reports on the desk.
"Morning, Director Tang."
Xinyue offered a nod. "Any response from PR?"
"They've drafted three official statements. One neutral, one dismissive, one aggressive. Lu President said you'd decide which to use."
Xinyue glanced at the reports but ignored the folders.
"Leak the aggressive one."
Li Fen blinked. "Leak it?"
"Anonymously. Just enough to spark debate, but not enough to confirm it came from us. And alert the tech team—flag the most active gossip accounts. I want a report on who's pushing the story hardest."
"Yes, ma'am."
When Li Fen left, Xinyue leaned back in her chair, tea in hand, and scrolled through her phone.
The comments were worse this morning.
> "She's pathetic."
"Imagine being dumped and still chasing your ex."
"I feel bad for Jiang Yuze—he deserves better than two crazy women fighting over him."
She paused at that last one.
Because it wasn't entirely wrong.
Jiang Yuze did deserve better.
And she was going to give it to him—by taking herself completely out of the equation.
---
An hour later, Lu Zeyan strode into her office without knocking.
"You told them to leak the attack statement?" he asked, holding a tablet displaying the brewing media frenzy.
Xinyue didn't even blink. "Yes."
"You're feeding the fire."
"I'm redirecting it."
His eyes narrowed. "What's your plan?"
"I want them watching me. I want them laughing, gossiping, underestimating me. While they're focused on the drama, I'll be moving."
Zeyan studied her for a long moment before setting the tablet down.
"You were different before," he murmured.
She looked up. "Before?"
"When we first met. You were still smiling like someone who believed in second chances. Now you smile like someone who writes war strategies in her sleep."
She smirked faintly. "Second chances are wasted on people who don't learn from the first."
He stepped closer. "You're playing a dangerous game. If this goes wrong—"
"It won't."
"—and if it does, I'm not cleaning up your mess."
"You won't have to. I already have someone in mind for that."
That earned a short laugh. "God help them."
---
By noon, the story had evolved into a digital wildfire.
Reporters staked out cafes, trying to catch a glimpse of her. One even attempted to sneak onto Lu Corp's executive floor posing as a delivery person. Security escorted him out.
But the damage was already circulating.
Headlines blared across entertainment blogs and financial gossip sites alike:
> Tang Xinyue Obsessed? Inside the Socialite's Latest Meltdown
Tang Sisters' Feud Explodes—Are They Fighting Over More Than Love?
Why Jiang Yuze Might Be the Real Victim in This Corporate Soap Opera
And then it happened.
Tang Xinyi finally took the bait.
Her post appeared on Weibo just after 1:00 PM.
> "People see what they want. I won't stoop to defend myself, but it breaks my heart that jiejie still can't move on. I wish her healing and peace."
—Tang Xinyi
Xinyue stared at the screen for a long moment.
"Oh, how sweet," she murmured. "She's playing the wounded saint now."
She forwarded the post to Lu Zeyan with one line:
"Release the Lu Mei testimony. Redacted. Enough to stir doubt."
Within minutes, a vague transcript was released via a "third-party whistleblower blog," carefully scrubbed of names but specific enough for anyone familiar with the rumors to connect the dots.
The impact was immediate.
> "Wait... someone spiked the drink at that party?"
"Are we sure Xinyue did anything wrong?"
"Now it's getting murky..."
"Maybe we judged her too fast."
A small shift—but a crucial one.
Doubt was a seed.
And Xinyue had just planted it.
---
Later that afternoon, a familiar face appeared outside her office door—without a scheduled meeting.
Jiang Yuze.
Tall, poised, expression unreadable as always. But something in his eyes had changed.
"May I come in?" he asked.
She gestured without looking up. "You're already inside."
He shut the door behind him. "You're really stirring the pot."
She looked at him now, tilting her head. "Is that concern I hear?"
He approached slowly. "It's a warning."
"To stay quiet?"
"To be careful. Xinyi… she's not as sweet as she pretends. But she's still dangerous. She's surrounded herself with people who will do anything for her."
"I know."
"And Mo Zihan?" he added.
Xinyue smiled coldly. "He's nothing but a pawn. And I no longer play with broken pieces."
He studied her for a moment.
"You're not the same person I was engaged to," he finally said.
She rose from her seat. Walked to stand across from him, barely a breath of space between them.
"No," she said softly. "I'm not. The girl you were engaged to died the night she was betrayed by everyone she trusted."
He looked away first.
When he turned back, she was already seated again, dismissing him with a flick of her gaze.
"Close the door on your way out."
---
That evening, as the sky turned molten gold, Xinyue sat alone in her penthouse apartment, a glass of wine untouched beside her.
She stared out at the city—its skyline glittering like a sea of diamonds.
Below that beauty was a world of shadows, secrets, and schemes.
But she would conquer it.
Not as a princess.
Not even as a villainess.
But as something new.
Something no one would see coming.