Just then, Jimmy's call came in. He said the results were back, and it was indeed birth control pills.

I hung up, staring at the address sent by my friend from the tech department, my mind in turmoil. It was a villa district in the suburbs.

On Sunday, I took Janet to the hospital, lying that a friend of mine knew an international expert who specialized in infertility, but we needed some information from her.

I also told her not to mention it to York, and she agreed.

Even though I had seen many of her past medical reports, and Janet always believed her infertility was her own fault, I couldn't buy it.

Those reports were always taken by York after Janet's hospital visits and brought back with the doctor's comments.

If York could tamper with her fertility medication, who was to say he wouldn't do the same with the reports?

The hospital results weren't out yet, but York had returned.

6

He still carried that air of disdain, his hair impeccably groomed. Seeing me at home, he gave a habitual snort and then went into the bedroom to argue with Janet.

The usual ending followed—he stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

This time, I was prepared. The moment he left, I put on a hat and mask and followed him.

Just outside the complex, I saw him drive off in his car.

I pulled out my phone to hail a ride, but fearing he'd get away before the car arrived, I hurriedly grabbed a bike parked at the entrance and set off after him.

But how could two wheels catch up with four? Soon enough, his car was out of sight.

Just as I was feeling desperate, a small car stopped in front of me.

The window rolled down to reveal Jimmy's face.

"Get in."

Without asking why he was there, I abandoned the bike and got into his car.

But even with this brief delay, York's car was lost in the traffic.

I then remembered the address from the tech department and directed Jimmy to head there.

Sure enough, we spotted York's car at the entrance of a high-end villa district.

Visitors had to register and get confirmation from a resident to enter.

We were stopped at the gate.

"I'll handle this," Jimmy said, heading to the security office.

After a while, a chubby security chief escorted him out with a smile, opened the gate for us, and even provided York's house number.

Parking the car, we hid in the greenery next to York's house, using an apple tree for cover.

Our eyes fixed on the tightly shut villa door.

"How did you convince the security chief?" I asked Jimmy, trying to ease my nerves.

"Take a guess." He handed me a bottle of water.

I waved it off, indicating I didn't want any.

He opened it and drank himself.

Looking at his handsome face, I couldn't help but joke. "Did you use your looks to seduce the security chief?"

Jimmy spat water all over me.

"Yvonne, what on earth is going on in that head of yours?"

"So, what was the reason?" I asked, now feeling sorry for Jimmy, picturing the rotund security chief.

Did he make too big a sacrifice?

"I have a friend living in this community. I called him, and he called the security office to let us in," Jimmy replied, annoyed.

"You sure have a lot of friends!" I laughed dryly. The next second, I swung my hand and slapped Jimmy across the face.

7

Jimmy was stunned.

I held up the dead mosquito in my hand and awkwardly explained, "There... there was a mosquito."

There were indeed a lot of mosquitoes.

The crisp autumn weather brought out mosquitoes in the greenbelt who greeted us like long-lost relatives, overly enthusiastic.

Jimmy and I were squatting outside, feeding the mosquitoes, while York was sleeping soundly in his villa. This made me feel very unfair.

When I had been bitten by mosquitoes one hundred and one times, I couldn't take it anymore. I picked up half a discarded brick from the ground and stormed toward the villa.

"What... what are you doing? Don't be impulsive," Jimmy grabbed me.

I glared at the window, about to speak.

Jimmy snatched the brick from my hand, saying, "I have a way to expose him."

I thought Jimmy had some clever idea, but he just lit a cigarette and ran to trigger the fire alarm in the villa district, scaring everyone out of their homes.

I quickly ducked back into the bushes, watching as more and more people gathered outside, even alerting the patrol car.

After a while, Jimmy finally returned.

"What kind of stupid method is that? Mine is better!" I fumed.

"Your method is to bash someone's head in with a brick and get us both locked up?" Jimmy still wouldn't admit his foolishness.

"I wasn't going to hit someone with the brick!" I was confused.

"Breaking the door won't work either. If York denies everything, we have no evidence. How will you seek justice for Janet then?"

"I... I was going to break the window!" I was speechless.

That night ended with Jimmy being taken away by the police for disturbing the peace.

The next day, I angrily went to bail him out.

"You're good for nothing but causing trouble."

"How am I good for nothing? Didn't I scare York out? He was holding a child and calling him 'Daddy' several times," Jimmy said, raising his phone.

"Really? How come I didn't see that?" I tried to grab his phone.

He wouldn't give it to me.

"I'm good for nothing?"

"No, you can accomplish great things!"

"I'm always causing trouble?"

"No, you never fail."

"Call me 'dear Jimmy' then."

"Screw you!" I kicked him, and Jimmy handed over the phone.

On the phone was indeed a video of York running out of the villa, holding a child.

The child was the same little girl I had seen online.

Following him was a short-haired woman, not the secretary I had seen before.

"Scumbag!"

He had swapped fertility pills for contraceptives and tricked Janet into taking them, then used her inability to conceive as an excuse to manipulate her.

Meanwhile, he had already started a family outside and even had a child.

Just thinking about how Janet ate those medicines every day without a frown just to have his child made me furious.

"Have you decided how to handle this?" Jimmy suddenly asked.

"Of course, divorce! He bullied Janet like this. Kicking him out with nothing is too lenient. I want him to lose everything, to ruin his reputation. He deserves to suffer!"

I gritted my teeth, wishing I could tear him to pieces.

"She hasn't worked or socialized for years. Her whole life revolves around York. To her, York is everything. If you suddenly tell her that everything she knows is a lie, do you think she can handle it?"

"So, what should I do? Just sit back and watch him destroy her?" I retorted.

"That's not what I mean, Yvonne. You need to think this through carefully. York is so bold because he knows there's no one to challenge him.

"Your parents are gone, and you don't have any brothers. You just graduated and have no interest in hotel management. The hotel is entirely in his hands. He's confident you won't confront him, which is why he's so reckless."

I fell silent, knowing Jimmy had a point.

Over the years, Janet had stayed home, feeling guilty about not being able to have children. She accommodated York in every way and never got involved with the hotel.

I never got along with York and didn't want to make things difficult for Janet, so I hadn't planned to work at the hotel either.

But that didn't justify him bullying us without consequence!

"I'm going back to work at the hotel," I declared, my resolve firm.

9

When Janet heard about my decision, she was thrilled.

She cooked a big meal to celebrate and even invited York home.

Janet was a fantastic cook, and the hotel had originally been her restaurant.

But she had chosen to focus on family, preparing for pregnancy and caring for our parents, rarely involving herself in hotel matters.

Now, almost everyone believed that the hotel belonged to the Kingsleys, and Janet was just a childless trophy wife.

When York heard about my plan, he frowned so deeply it looked like his face might crack.

He used every excuse he could think of to dissuade me, claiming I didn't have the right background and couldn't handle the work.

I knew what he was worried about, so I swallowed my disgust and poured him a glass of wine.

I said to him that I had been immature and didn't appreciate his hard work. After my internship at the new company, I realized how difficult making money was.

I hoped he could forgive my past mistakes and give me a chance to help at the hotel.

With Janet also pleading with him and the fact that I had shares in the company, York reluctantly agreed.

On my first day at the hotel, I saw the woman York had been with, his secretary.

She strutted over in her black high heels, looking down at me. "Hey, your office is over there. Find your way."

York hadn't announced my identity. He said that since I was new and had much to learn, it was better to keep a low profile.

So, apart from a few senior executives, no one knew who I was.

The secretary clearly didn't like me because my office was right next to York's, and he often dropped by.

This made things inconvenient for her.

A week into my job, I discovered that York's office had a private room where he frequently held "meetings" with his secretary.

For convenience, he even kept various stimulants in the drawer for their "meetings".

Of course, York also tampered with the shares. My dividends had been entirely swallowed by him.

His secretary was constantly watching me, tattling that I wasn't working properly, that I wandered around the hotel, and made personal calls during office hours. She even berated me in front of York.

This made it difficult for me to investigate, and the things I found were limited.

York never stopped her. He seemed to enjoy watching me struggle, waiting for me to either quit or come begging to him.

I chose the latter.

I shared my plan with Jimmy, hoping for his help. To my surprise, he reacted with shock, calling me crazy and refusing to assist.

How dare he refuse?

I got him drunk and sent him back to his countryside home overnight.

If he wouldn't help me and tried to stop me from getting revenge, he could stay there and farm!

The day of my plan arrived quickly.