The Bauer & Cie bank in Zurich was a temple of discretion, housed in a building that whispered of centuries-old wealth. Inside, the air was still and cool. Ye Xia, dressed in a simple but expensive cashmere coat, felt the weight of history.
She presented the small brass key and her passport to a stoic manager. "Safety deposit box 747. Under the name Lijuan Ye."
The manager, after verifying her identity with silent efficiency, led her down a marble staircase to a vault door that looked like it belonged in a movie. Inside, there were rows of gleaming metal boxes. He inserted his key, she inserted hers, and the box slid open.
Inside, there were no stacks of gold or jewels. There was only a single, thick manila envelope.
She took it to a private viewing room. Her hands trembled slightly as she opened it.
The first document was a birth certificate. Not hers. Her mother's. But the name was different. It read: Yun Lijuan. Father: Yun Zhi. Mother: Yun Meiling.
So it was true. The Yun family was real.
The next document was a will, handwritten in elegant Chinese and notarized in London. It stated that in the event of her death, her entire separate estate—held in trust outside of her marriage—was to be passed to her daughter, Ye Xia, upon her eighteenth birthday. It listed the assets: a portfolio of stocks and bonds held in a numbered Swiss account, and a deed to a property in London.
Ye Xia's breath caught. She shuffled through the papers until she found the most recent portfolio statement. The total value made her dizzy.
It was 50 million US dollars.
Fifty million. A fortune that had been sitting here, waiting for her, while she lived in poverty and abuse. The injustice of it was so profound it was almost funny.
But the final document was the most shocking. It was a letter, handwritten by her mother.
My dearest Xiaxia,
If you are reading this, then I am gone, and you have found your way to the truth. I am so sorry I could not be there to watch you grow. Please know that I loved you more than life itself.
The money is yours. Use it to be free. To be happy. But please, be careful. My family, the Yun, are not to be trusted. My father, your grandfather, is a ruthless man. He believed love was a weakness. My marriage to your father was an act of defiance he could never forgive.
I fear my death may not have been an accident. If you ever feel you are in danger, contact the man whose number is on the card enclosed. His name is Silas. He was my personal bodyguard and is utterly loyal. He will protect you.
Be strong, my daughter. Be smarter and braver than I was. Your true legacy is not this money, but the strength in your heart. Don't seek revenge for me. Live a full and happy life. That is the greatest victory.
With all my love,
Mother
Tears streamed down Ye Xia's face, hot and silent. The love in the words was a balm and a torment. Her mother had known. She had tried to protect her.
And the final instruction—Don't seek revenge—clashed violently with the fire that had burned in Ye Xia's soul since her rebirth. She couldn't obey that. Forgiving was not in her nature anymore.
She found the card. It was simple, with a UK number and the name "Silas." She pocketed it.
She spent the next hour with the bank manager, transferring the assets into the control of Xing Guang Capital's new Swiss entity. The paperwork was complex, but her experience with Attorney Li made it manageable. By the time she left the bank, she was no longer just wealthy from her own efforts; she was an heiress in the truest sense of the word.
Her net worth had just multiplied by a factor of twenty-five. She had resources now that could challenge even the Yun family.
As she walked along the pristine Zurich lakefront, her phone rang. It was Attorney Li, and she sounded panicked.
"Ye Xia! There's a problem. A big one. The Ye family villa… it's been seized by creditors."
"What? What creditors? The settlement gave me clear title."
"Not your father's creditors," Attorney Li said, her voice tense. "These men are from a company called Orion Capital. They're claiming Wang Yan took out an unauthorized loan using the villa as collateral before the settlement was finalized. They have documents."
Orion Capital. Gavin Strickland's fund.
The war had followed her home. Strickland had found a way to strike back, using the weak link in her chain: Wang Yan.
Mo's warning echoed in her mind. "A cornered rat will leap at any opening."
Strickland was the cornered rat. And he had just taken a bite out of her past.
Ye Xia's tears dried instantly, replaced by a cold, hard resolve. The game was entering a new, more dangerous phase. She had the resources of the Yun family fortune now. It was time to stop playing defense.
It was time to crush Gavin Strickland and everyone who stood with him.