“Here’s 20,000 dollars...”

In an elegant and luxurious café, a middle-aged woman dressed in expensive, refined clothing slowly pushed a Black Card toward me.

“You want me to leave your son?” I raised an eyebrow, a strange excitement creeping into my voice.

This scene was so familiar – I’d read it countless times in those cheesy romance novels back in high school.

But never in my wildest dreams did I imagine it would actually happen to me one day.

Wait a second, wasn’t 20,000 dollars a bit too low? It didn’t really fit the image of a rich, domineering mother.

But hold on, I was single! I didn’t even know anyone rich.

Clearly, this woman had mistaken me for someone else.

Trying to hide the greed in my eyes, I asked, “Ma’am, are you sure you have the right person?”

The woman looked at me with disdain. “I’m offering you money to ruin my son’s engagement party with his girlfriend.”

It felt like a slap to the face, waking me up from a dream. “Huh? Why me?”

Could it be that I had some unique qualities, a rare beauty that made me her ideal choice?

The woman glanced at me indifferently. “Don’t ask why or how I know you.”

Rich people, they really did things so decisively. I liked it.

“So, what exactly do you want me to do?” I asked.

Could it be that she disapproved of her son’s current girlfriend but somehow saw something in me?

She quickly crushed that fantasy. “Just follow my instructions when the time comes.”

Okay, got it.

I then asked tentatively, “Who’s your son, anyway?”

Her response hit me like a bolt of lightning. “Chase Foster.”

I froze in shock, feeling my courage drain away. “Ma’am, I don’t think I’m the right person for this. You should find someone else.”

The woman’s eyes narrowed. “60,000 dollars.”

“Deal.”

Thinking about the new apartment complex in that prime location, I gritted my teeth and agreed to the deal.

I could almost see myself a few months from now, sitting on a spacious balcony, sipping coffee, and enjoying the city’s nighttime skyline.

As I walked out of the café, I was still in a daze.

I wandered back to the office, only to run into Chase Foster, who was there to request leave.

Feeling guilty, I tried to avoid him, but he cornered me in an empty meeting room.

I looked at him with dread.

Sure enough, he sneered and said slowly, “Windy, you’re kind of shady, aren’t you? Didn’t think you were that type of person.”

I let out a nervous laugh. “You saw it, huh?”

Of course, he had seen that post on my social media.

Even if he didn’t, the whole company must have been talking about it by now.

Awkwardly, I tried to apologize, “Don’t take it personally, I wasn’t talking about you.”

Chase gave me a look like I was an idiot. “I didn’t take it personally.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. I had been worrying all day, and it turned out he didn’t even care.

But then, why was he so upset?

Chase leaned in closer, his handsome face almost touching mine, his gaze intense, but I couldn’t read his mood. “Windy, did you know how I managed to secure our clients in the beginning? And here you are, swooping in and taking over.”

Guilt started to creep in. Admittedly, taking clients like that wasn’t the nicest thing I had done.

Just as I was about to apologize, he continued, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

“Why are you so bitter? You tried to pursue me. I turned you down, and now you’re out for revenge, is that it?”

I wasn’t angry at first, but hearing him bring this up made my blood boil. If he wanted a fight, so be it. “Yeah, that’s right. I’m taking back every bit of pride I lost when I was chasing after you.”

I glared at him and added boldly, “You can call me Windy the Strategist.”

Let him chew on that.

Yes, it was true – I used to be Chase’s lovesick puppy.

I was a sucker for a pretty face, and unfortunately, he had one.

When he first joined our company, I was instantly captivated by his looks and swore I’d win him over.

So, I made sure there was a carefully prepared breakfast on his desk every morning and ordered his favorite afternoon tea.

Whenever he encountered difficulties at work, I was there to offer support. If he got sick, I’d show up with medicine.

I was moved by my own efforts, but it never seemed to touch him at all.

Each time, he either told me to stop wasting my time or gave me a cold stare and said, “Can’t you show some restraint?”

After half a year of such efforts, one day, I just stopped chasing him. I decided to go back to being my normal self.

It was not like I had some sudden epiphany or divine intervention. I just happened to find out that he came from a wealthy family and was here at our company to gain experience before eventually taking over the family business.

No wonder he looked down on me – we were from totally different worlds.

Going back to my normal self wasn’t so much a realization as it was just accepting reality.

I thought we could just get along like regular colleagues, but things started taking some bizarre turns.

First, I started publicly clashing with him in front of our coworkers, and then I inadvertently undermined him in front of our boss.

I swear, I wasn’t doing it on purpose.

But to Chase, I was the bitter, jealous woman who was out for revenge because I couldn’t have him.

So, when a client he had been nurturing for a long time unexpectedly visited the company, and he was on leave, our boss assigned me to handle it.

Luck was on my side again. Following the principle of “clients first”, I somehow managed to charm the client, who immediately agreed to sign the contract.

I was dumbfounded and tried to push back, saying I didn’t have all the necessary information and suggested we should wait for Chase to come back.

Our boss wasn’t having it. He insisted it was a once-in-a-lifetime chance. After finally landing this tricky client, he pressured me to sign immediately.

I had no choice but to go along with it.

Well, it was clear I had really landed myself in hot water with Chase.

Initially, I felt pretty guilty and planned to explain things to him once he got back, and maybe even treat him to a meal as an apology.

But he brought up the old issues, and I had to retaliate.

Word was, Chase was having his engagement party at the city’s most luxurious hotel today.

That was why Chase had taken these days off.

I knew this was my chance to execute my sabotage plan.

I carefully did my makeup like a bride and put on a bright red engagement dress. Then I headed straight to the hotel.

At the engagement party, the couple looked blissfully happy. The small gathering seemed to mostly consist of the bride-to-be’s family.

Chase’s family didn’t approve of the marriage, so it turned out that he was quite the rebellious youth.

Without giving it too much thought, I just went up and started my act.

I played the role of a quietly heartbroken lover, not taking the route of a shrew.

I walked straight up to the stage and looked at Chase.

He and the bride-to-be were both looking bewildered.

I put on a sorrowful expression. “I came here today to ask you – are you choosing me or her?”

Chase’s face darkened. “Windy, what on earth are you doing?”

“So, you’ve chosen her, haven’t you?” I continued, looking as though I was about to cry.

Everyone around looked confused, and the bride-to-be’s parents were frowning at the scene.

The bride-to-be glared at Chase. “Who is she?”

The place was buzzing, with everyone’s attention locked on the drama of having two brides. The guests couldn’t help but watch the spectacle unfold.

Chase was thrown off by my sudden drama and tried to calm down the bride-to-be. “Stay calm, I’ll handle this.”

The bride slapped his chest. “You’d better give me an explanation.”

Chase’s brow furrowed deeply, and I sensed a storm brewing as he turned to me. “Are you going to leave on your own, or should I have the security throw you out?”

For that 60,000 dollars, I was all in. “Leave? So you really did choose her. What does she have that I don’t? Youth? Beauty? Money?”

Chase’s face was stony as he said, “I’ll count to three. If you don’t stop making a scene, I promise you’ll be carried out.”

I threw caution to the wind, looked down at my red dress, and said, “If you choose her, I’m stepping aside.”

Two security guards quickly appeared and started dragging me out.

I kept up my performance, shouting, “Don’t drag me. I’ll leave on my own, but before I go, I need to mourn my lost love.”

The bride-to-be’s parents stood up, their serious faces finally breaking. They couldn’t hold back and said, “What’s going on? Is this what you call an engagement? This is nonsense.”

And with that, they left, their expressions cold.

That was exactly the reaction I wanted.

As the security threw me out the door, I continued lamenting, “Why, why did you have to do this to me?”

With the way things were going, it looked like the engagement party was going to be a bust.

The day Chase found me, his anger evident, I knew my plan must have worked.

He dragged me to a secluded spot, fiddling with his lighter as he demanded, “What the fuck is wrong with you? Who told you to do that?”

As I watched the flame flicker high, illuminating his handsome face, I felt both guilty and scared, my legs instinctively going weak. “Don’t burn me.”

There are some things you just don’t interfere with, like a wedding.

I felt pretty guilty, but since I had taken the money, I had to get the job done.

Chase laughed in exasperation. “Now you’re scared, huh?”

He continued, “I knew there was something twisted about you – if you can’t have it, you destroy it, right?”

I steeled myself. “It’s already done. What else can I do?”

Chase laughed again. “You think you can just say ‘it’s done’ and walk away?”

I lowered my head. “If it comes to it, I’ll just give myself up to you.”

Chase’s eyes swept over me, lingering on a particular spot before he scoffed, “In your dreams.”

He stared at me with disdain. “From now on, stay the fuck away from me. I don’t want to see you again.”

He started to leave, then suddenly turned back, his deep eyes locking onto mine. I had no idea what was going on.

He asked, “What did you just say?”

I replied, “I said it’s already done. What else can I do?”

“Not that part.”

Tentatively, I said, “I’ll give myself up to you?”

He narrowed his eyes. “Deal.”

I was stunned, unsure of what to say.

Wasn’t he supposed to look down on me? What was he playing at now?

Come on, man, we were supposed to be enemies. Get a grip.

“As you wished. Didn’t you always have a thing for me?” Chase stared at me with a mocking smile.

I was still standing there in a daze, feeling like I was in a dream.

Did I just land myself a boyfriend as easily as that?

That same day, he dragged me to meet his mother, announcing that I was his new girlfriend. His mom stared at me, momentarily speechless.

I could tell she was trying hard to keep it together. Finally, she asked, “Didn’t you just get engaged? How can you already have a new girlfriend?”

Chase, looking like he was just playing around, said, “Yeah, well, your son’s just too irresistible.”

I was pretty sure his mom was looking at me like she wanted to kill me.

She probably thought I was there to solve the problem, but it turned out I was the problem.

I might not have been in a relationship before, but I knew this wasn’t how relationships worked.

I wasn’t dumb enough to believe Chase really saw me as his girlfriend. After that day, when he used me to mess with his mom, we didn’t do anything remotely like what a couple would do.

First of all, he never contacted me on his own. Secondly, we were so distant at work that we might as well have been strangers. Thirdly, we never did anything like go on dates or have any kind of intimate interaction.

There was no way I was going to lose out on that money, so I secretly approached his mom and explained that I was just a tool he was using to piss her off.

She seemed relieved.

Finally, one day, I was at a club negotiating a contract with a client. As I left, I spotted Chase.

He was surrounded by beautiful women, drinking and seeming to have a great time.

Even though I knew what our relationship was, I still felt a bit upset.

I pretended not to see him and was about to walk away when he called out to me.

I walked over slowly, unsure if I was really angry or just pretending to be. “You’ve got a girlfriend; yet you’re still out here messing around? What do you take me for?”

Admittedly, I was being provocative, trying to force a conversation.

But he just smirked and said, “That’s just who I am.”

Was that how all scumbags talked?

I gave him a sideways glance. “What exactly are we? We need to sort this out now.”

Chase gave a cold chuckle. “Sort out what?”

I laughed. “Chase, you’re not trying to get back at me, are you?”

Chase snorted. “You think I’m like you? Treating me like your nemesis every day?”

He stood up, staring straight into my eyes. “Honestly, I never gave it a second thought.”

The words didn’t hurt much, but the inherent insult was sharp.

It turned out I was the only one who saw him as a rival. To him, I was nothing. All those little schemes and tricks I’d tried – they just made me feel like I was using a petty heart to judge a noble soul.

Seeing him with that carefree attitude, I felt a bit humiliated.

The whole “girlfriend” thing was just a joke; he had only said it to provoke his mom.

Hadn’t I thought of this already? I was just clinging to a sliver of hope.

I laughed, surprising myself, and nodded. “Got it.”

Then, with a bow, I said, “Sorry for the trouble. Goodbye.”

Not someone I wanted to mess with, not at all.