The scene before her made her blood run cold.
The living room—once quiet and tidy—was now decorated for a celebration.
Empty wine bottles littered the coffee table.
Beside them sat a half-eaten cake, a large bouquet of flowers, and an unwrapped gift box.
Colorful ribbons trailed across the floor.
On the wall where she once hung their university photos now hung a paper banner, cut in cheerful letters:
"Happy Anniversary, Sally.
Happy Seventeenth Anniversary —
Wang Zehao and our son, Mumu."
Li Kexin's eyes widened in disbelief.
Her body went cold, her mind blank.
The scent of wine and sweet cream still lingered in the air, as if the celebration had just ended hours ago.
It felt like ice water had been poured over her head. Her chest tightened painfully, and a ringing filled her ears.
Seventeenth anniversary… Wang Zehao… and our son, Mumu?
Her trembling hand rose to cover her mouth.
Her heart pounded so violently she thought it might burst.
She tried to steady her breath, but no matter how hard she blinked, the image before her remained unchanged.
The party had been real.
It had happened last night.
And the occupants were none other than men and women whose clothes had been stripped off and thrown across the room.
She slowly lowered her hand and looked down at the parquet floor. Her eyes came to rest on a familiar red dress — the same one she was sure had been in the closet at their pension. Nearby lay dark slacks and a brand-name shirt she remembered buying for Wang Zehao, her beloved husband.
Li Kexin felt as if someone had struck her on the head with a hammer. She moved forward like a sleepwalker. Her gaze fixed on the pieces of socks and underwear strewn by the bedroom door. Her weakened legs carried her to the small gap where the door had been left ajar. Her heart pounded so violently she felt it might burst; she peered inside.
The scene that met her eyes shattered her world in an instant. Her best friend, Zhao Yuanyuan, lay entwined with Wang Zehao — the husband she loved with her whole heart. Both of them were unclothed. Sweat glistened on their bodies, as if they had just finished a passionate, forceful tryst. The bed was in chaotic disarray.
Li Kexin stood, rooted to the spot, as if cursed. She could not move.
"Seventeen years," the words on the wall echoed in her ears. The truth had revealed itself: this was not a fleeting affair. It was not a casual betrayal. It was a love that had endured for seventeen years — longer than her relationship with Wang Zehao.
Shock slowly curdled into rage. She clenched her fists until her nails bit into her palms. Wang Zehao — the man she had always loved and trusted — had been secretly involved with Zhao Yuanyuan, a close friend she had treated like a sibling. They had betrayed her for a very long time.
Li Kexin pressed her lips together and stared at Wang Zehao as he stroked Zhao Yuanyuan's hair with a pleased expression. Her chest heaved with burning fury; the harrowing sight confirmed she had been made a fool of, someone they had mocked in private countless times.
"Jiehao, when are you going to tell Kexin the truth? I can't keep sneaking around like this — it's killing me, baby. It's unbearable," Zhao Yuanyuan said in a teasing, petulant voice.
Wang Zehao chuckled softly, clearly pleased. His large hands caressed her smooth, pale skin; despite being past his twenties, he still moved with a certain suppleness.
"Calm down, my dear. It'll take time. You know I had to remove the old woman and the two matriarchs first. If another woman dies, people will get suspicious. I don't want anyone poking around and discovering us," he said.
"But… how long must I wait? We've been seeing each other for so long. I hate watching Li Kexin fawn over you with Mu Mu. Honestly, I want to scream at her all the time." Zhao Yuanyuan fretted, crawling closer to him in a half-naked embrace.
Wang Zehao, unfazed, leaned back against the headboard and pulled Zhao Yuanyuan to his chest. "Be patient. I haven't finished yet. First I'll get Kexin to sign over the shares. Once I have the company, I'll take you away — to the mountain park where we used to flirt. I'll deal with your parents like I planned. But for now, it's crucial to make Kexin transfer the shares," he said in a cold, calculating tone that made Zhao Yuanyuan shiver with something like pleasure.
Zhao Yuanyuan reached up to kiss the tip of his chin. Wang Zehao bent and returned the kiss. Then, his voice still chillingly detached, he continued, making Li Kexin tremble where she stood.
"We must stay calm, darling. Otherwise everything we've done will be for nothing. I'll push her off a cliff — then all the wealth will be ours."
Zhao Yuanyuan bit her lip. "But… Mu Mu is my son, born of me. I just want him by my side. Look, it's been five years. Every time Mu Mu calls me 'Aunt Yuanyuan,' my heart aches. I am his mother, yet I must endure him calling Li Kexin his mother. Do you understand how that feels?"
Each of Zhao Yuanyuan's words pierced Li Kexin like knives. She stood frozen. Why would Zhao Yuanyuan say such things? Weren't they close friends once?
And Mu Mu — she had never known. This child belonged to the two of them. If Zhao Yuanyuan were telling the truth, then what of the child Li Kexin had borne five years ago? Where was that child now?
"No — why would Yuanyuan be upset? Just wait a few months," Wang Zehao soothed, as if trying to steer the conversation back on script.
Zhao Yuanyuan pouted in displeasure. "What do you mean? Don't tell me you're delaying things — you know how much I want it." Her voice carried the tone of someone who expected to be indulged.
"Are you crazy? I said I don't want anyone to get suspicious. Don't make a scene," he replied, his voice low and guarded.
Wang Zehao's words only inflamed Yuanyuan's jealousy. She pushed at him in exaggerated anger. "See? That's exactly it — you really like her, and you hide it like this."
Wang Zehao softened and tried to calm her. Seeing his girlfriend on the verge of a tantrum, he said, "No, stop — why are you starting again?"
"The important thing now is to get Kexin to sign the share transfer to us first… Yuanyuan—"
Those words were the last straw for Li Kexin, who had been eavesdropping in secret. The mention of her parents' accident made something inside her snap. She burst into the room without thinking, screaming in fury, "Wang Zehao — you monster!"
At her sudden appearance, the couple immediately pulled apart instinctively. Zhao Yuanyuan scrambled to cover herself with the blanket and cried out in alarm. "Ah!"
Wang Zehao tried to explain, but Li Kexin's face was already a mask of fury. Without a word, she lunged at him like someone possessed, fists flying and nails raking. Wang Zehao tried to fend her off, but soon long scratches marked his arms and face; blood showed where her nails had torn skin.
Spitting out words of bitter revenge, Li Kexin hissed, "You bastard, you traitor. How could you do this to me?"
"In the past I cared for you with everything — gave you money, gave you my whole self, trusted you completely — and you repay me like this, behind my back. You evil people!" she cried.
"Wait — don't go crazy—" Wang Zehao tried to parry, speaking as he defended himself, but his protests failed to stop her. Li Kexin kept biting and scratching, her accusations never ceasing.
Frustrated at the scene, Zhao Yuanyuan rushed to intervene and tried to pull Li Kexin away from her man. "Kexin, my dear friend, calm down. Jiehao and I are not what you think," she pleaded.
Li Kexin wheeled around, eyes blazing with betrayal. "Back off. You're the same — I will never forgive a traitorous friend like you!" She swore and shoved her so hard she staggered.
Then Li Kexin turned and slapped Wang Zehao. "I will never let a man like you have everything. I'll file for divorce. I'll take back every coin I gave you. I'll put you in jail. You murdered my parents!"