The day before the competition, Sarah was busy at school all day.She worked with the events and planning teams to decorate the auditorium, even Professor Wells stayed late out of concern."Are the competition questions secure?" Professor Wells asked.Sarah nodded. "They're locked in the counseling room's safe, and I’m the only one with the key."Professor Wells looked relieved. "Good."After he left, Sarah double-checked all the auditorium equipment.By the time everything was ready, it was already 11:30 p.m. She let out a tired sigh. No matter how exhausting, as long as tomorrow's competition went smoothly, it would all be worth it.Back at the counseling room, she was gathering her things when her phone rang. "Mia?"Mia's concerned voice came through. "Sarah, why aren’t you home yet?""Don’t worry, I’m just wrapping up and heading back now. It’s late—go to sleep. You need to be ready for the competition tomorrow," Sarah said, her voice hoarse from fatigue.Mia yawned sleep
"I don't want to go to the hospital. Some painkillers will do," Sarah protested.Zachary's knuckles whitened on the steering wheel. "Has it always been this severe?""No, it usually doesn't hurt this much. I just skipped lunch and had too much coffee today," Sarah admitted sheepishly."You should have known better." His voice carried gentle reproach.She paused. "I did. I just got caught up in work and forgot to eat."The hospital's emergency entrance was quiet at this hour - no lines, just the on-call staff. Luckily, the gynecologist was available and quickly prescribed pain medication."Take these after meals, and don't skip any doses," the doctor instructed.Sarah nodded obediently. She wanted to explain that it wasn't usually this bad - skipping meals had just been a mistake.During the drive to her apartment, Zachary remained silent, his expression taut. Once they arrived, he grabbed the medication bag and strode toward the elevator.Sarah stared for a moment before hurry
Zachary waved his hand dismissively as he stepped into the kitchen. The medicine was already prepared. He poured soup into a bowl and brought it over together with the medicine.“Drink it while it’s hot. I added extra water, so make sure you finish it all.”Sarah stared at the bowl in front of her—a large soup bowl that was even bigger than her face. “That’s way too much.”Zachary had already brought over the pot. There was still another full bowl’s worth inside.“It’s for your health.” Zachary smiled gently.Sarah felt a tingling discomfort down her scalp. She picked up the spoon and started taking small sips. Sneaking a glance upward, she caught sight of Zachary’s deep, focused eyes, which only made her feel more uneasy.“Mr. Reynolds, it’s already late. You should get some rest.” She didn’t want Zachary watching her as she forced down the medicine.This time, Zachary didn’t argue. “Make sure to drink it all.”With that, he turned and left.The medicine was unbearably bitter
One test set missing?Sarah stared intently at the damaged safe. When she left last night, it had been securely locked, and the only key was with her.“What do we do now, Ms. Sanders?” The student beside her was on the verge of tears.The principal’s speech was nearly over, and it would soon be time for the judges to speak. Sarah made a quick decision. “Here’s what we’ll do—discard all these test questions.”“Discard them?! But the test sets have already been handed to the judges. Where are we going to find a new set of questions now?”Sarah pulled out a USB drive. “This drive contains a completely new set of questions. Originally, I set it aside because the difficulty level was a bit high. Now, take this and find two trusted people to help you. Make 500 copies as quickly as possible and bring them back.”The participants were already seated, and their phones had been collected. Once the new tests were printed, they could be distributed immediately without risk of further leaks.
Jane, Professor Wells, and the other judges were surprised when they received the new test questions—it was clear they were different from the set they’d been given earlier that morning.The participants were given only ten minutes to complete the test. To everyone’s shock, only forty contestants advanced to the next round.Mia was among the finalists, but Lucy was eliminated.Furious, Lucy yanked the crumpled test paper from her bag. Lindsey tried to console her, saying, “It’s okay, Lucy. It’s just a competition.”“Get lost! Stay away from me!” Lucy exploded, tearing the paper into shreds and throwing it to the ground.Annoyed, Lindsey walked away, muttering under her breath, “What’s her problem? She failed to cheat and now she’s blaming me.”The second round proceeded smoothly. Each time a video clip was played, the groups would start writing furiously on their sheets. The entire auditorium was filled with nothing but the quiet scratching of pens on paper.When the second roun
Just as Mia stepped onto the stage, Lucy suddenly stormed up and pointed at Sarah, shouting loudly, “I want to report something! Sarah helped Mia cheat! This is unfair!” Her words echoed through the auditorium, and the room fell silent. Zachary’s cold gaze swept over Lucy, while Sarah responded in a steady, icy tone. “Lucy, you can’t make accusations without proof.” “I have proof!” Lucy screamed, her voice frantic. Dean Larson exchanged a glance with Professor Wells, while Jane looked on with a cold, unreadable expression. Lucy continued, her voice filled with righteous indignation. “The original test questions were supposed to be a different set! But just thirty minutes before the competition, Sarah swapped them out. Isn’t that suspicious? And look at this!” She held up Mia’s bag and pulled out a crumpled sheet of paper. “I found the original test questions in Mia’s bag!” Dean Larson turned to Sarah, his tone heavy. “Ms. Sanders, what’s going on here?” He was awar
Sarah’s gaze grew sharper as she locked eyes with Lucy. Her voice was steady but commanding. “Who told you?”Lucy avoided her stare, her eyes darting nervously. Still, she clung to her argument. “That doesn’t matter! The fact is, this test paper is from the competition! Don’t deny it. If you won’t admit it, we can have the events committee investigate to see who’s lying! You’re just helping Mia cheat because you’re close to her!”The crowd grew restless, their anger reignited. If Lucy’s claims were true, then Sarah had crossed a line, betraying the trust of the entire competition.The psychology department’s reputation had been built on the long-standing tradition of these annual competitions. And now, someone was accusing a faculty member of cheating in one of its most important events.But Sarah remained calm. She smiled faintly and raised a hand to quiet the room. “Everyone, please listen. Lucy is correct. This is indeed the first set of test questions—the ones prepared for toda
Sarah’s face was cold and composed as she gestured toward the screen. The projector lit up, displaying grainy, green-tinged footage from the office’s night-vision camera. Despite the low light, the scene was clear.After about ten seconds, the office door creaked open. Two figures snuck inside, moving cautiously. One of them was unmistakably Lucy.“Turn it off! Turn it off!” Lucy screamed, her panic evident. A moment ago, she had been full of bravado, but seeing the footage made her realize the truth—this had been a trap. Sarah had set her up from the start.The video paused, freezing on Lucy’s face in perfect clarity.“Lucy Chancer,” Dean Larson said, his face alternating between pale and flushed with anger, “so you’re the one who stole the test questions. And now, at the competition, you dare accuse others to cover your own actions?”The dean’s fury was palpable. In front of so many reporters, this wasn’t just embarrassing—it was a direct blow to the university’s reputation.St
None of the watching students dared intervene. They just stood there, most filming with their phones.Professor Letito had been absent during the earlier incidents, but now he stood face to face with Amy.The scene was deeply ironic. Just days ago, Amy had been the aggressive one, playing the victim while painting Henry as the villain.Now the tables had turned, yet Henry looked at Amy with a mix of sympathy and guilt.Something about that look struck Sarah as odd. This situation seemed more complicated than it appeared.The woman's eyes were filled with despair and resignation, nothing like her previous aggressive behavior.Gone was her hunger for money - she seemed to have accepted her fate.Henry's mother continued, "Henry, she wronged you and the whole family. We won't let someone like her get away with this. Your father and I saw the interview - she took your house, our life savings were in there. We're getting everything back, plus compensation!"The woman remained silent
"Stay away from me. I never want to see your face again!"BANG!The door slammed shut, the sound echoing through Amy's broken heart.Just yesterday they'd been loving and everything had been perfect. How had it all fallen apart in a single night?Thirty minutes later, Dan emerged with his bags. He gave Amy and the child one cold glance before walking away."Dan! How can you be so cruel?" Amy sobbed.She watched him disappear into the distance, never once looking back, not even at his own child.Wiping her tears, she hugged her crying son. She had to stay strong for him.But where could they go now? The world suddenly felt very big and very empty.As they were about to leave, several middle-aged men appeared and escorted them away.Back at Adams University, the reporters had vanished as if the whole scandal had been just a bad dream. Sarah's reputation was restored, the forum threads were cleared, and Professor Letito was back teaching.Sarah walked into school with Mia, who
Amy never imagined her vision of love could shatter so violently. She wondered if the Dan she'd loved had never shown his true nature before, making this moment of brutal honesty almost impossible to bear."Dan, how can you say such things? I was with you even before I married Henry. After that incident... I barely recovered, and now you're saying you don't know whose child this is? Why else would I divorce Henry if not to be with you?" Amy's eyes filled with tears.Only those we love most know exactly where to stick the knife to cause the most pain. She couldn't accept Dan speaking to her this way.Dan continued packing, barely paying attention. "You divorced Henry because three years ago he...""Shut up!" Amy screamed. She couldn't believe Dan would be so callous about such a sensitive matter."Face it, Amy. You did all this to get revenge on Henry for what he did. I was just a tool." Dan sneered.Amy clutched her child, choking back tears. "Say what you want about me, but how
Sarah was still thinking about what Scarlett had said earlier. "What's this about Zachary?" she asked quietly.Scarlett looked uncomfortable. "Steven gave me the video and sent me to help you. I made up that part about Mr. Reynolds.”"Made it up? That was bold." Sarah drew in a sharp breath.Scarlett shrugged it off. "Why do you think Steven got this video? Zachary ordered it. Pretty expensive too - cost a million.”Sarah felt confused by all this, but any mention of Zachary made her reluctant to ask more."Sasa, you should have let me come earlier. A good slap is exactly what someone like her needs!" Scarlett fumed.Mia finally noticed something was wrong. "Sarah, what happened? Did that woman cause more trouble?"Scarlett jumped in eagerly. "Mia, you should have seen how cool I was! I gave her a solid slap..."She retold the story with extra flair, leaving Mia wide-eyed."What?! You had all this excitement without me?" Mia pouted."I didn't know Scarlett was coming." Sara
Faced with this question, Amy hushed him. "Those kinds of powerful people aren't for us to speculate about. In this world, if you want to make money, do more and ask less."Seemingly worried she'd sounded too distant, she quickly added, "Never mind about what those big shots think - how would people like us know? Let's just do our job. Look, this is a hundred thousand! Do you know how much we can buy with this?"Dan ignored her question and pressed on, "But what's that lady's ultimate goal?"This time Amy didn't hold back. "I don't really know all the details. I just know she wants me to insist Sarah's a homewrecker, and she said she'd help with everything else."The video continued with Amy and Dan discussing other private matters, but nothing could match the impact of what had just been revealed.Scarlett turned off her phone screen. "Did everyone record that?"The reporters exchanged glances, looking at Amy with obvious contempt.Amy collapsed to the ground in disbelief. How
Soon, some reporters turned their attention to Sarah.Just then, a luxury car pulled up at the school gates. A woman with big wavy hair and sunglasses stepped out.Sarah was startled. "Scarlett, why are you here?"Scarlett walked straight through the crowd to stand beside Sarah. She stared directly at Amy and sneered, "If I hadn't come, I would've missed seeing the most shameless woman in the world."Amy snapped as if triggered. "Who are you calling shameless? Sarah's the one who steals married men. She's the shameless homewrecker!""Twisting the truth - I'm impressed by your nerve. You have the gall to call yourself an honest, ordinary person? Do you fit that description at all? Oh wait, I suppose you are quite 'ordinary' looking - and not young either."Scarlett flipped her hair dramatically. The reporters chuckled at her comment, while Amy glared at the newcomer furiously. "Who are you? Why are you butting in? I get it - you're Sarah's friend. You must be just as bad as her."
"Never mind if they believe it or not. If we play our parts well, everyone will believe us. The world always sympathizes with the underdog and resents the wealthy. Once we do this, even without proof, her reputation will be ruined," Amy said coldly.The recording fell silent for a moment, with only the rustling of clothes. Some reporters instantly understood what was happening during that gap, though thankfully the recording had been edited to skip over it.Then the man spoke again. "Honey, what about Henry Letito?"Amy replied impatiently, "Who cares about him? He's just a pathetic coward. After I get the money, I'll squeeze more out of him, then leave East Coast for good..."Suddenly, a child's sharp cry came through, and the man blurted out, “My son..."As the recording played, Amy stood frozen in shock. When she heard the child's cry, she snapped back to reality. Before the man in the recording continued, she lunged at Sarah, trying to grab the phone.But Sarah easily stepped
People began digging up previous incidents, using them to paint Sarah as a villain.While Amy cried on the outside, she was laughing inside. She was close to success! Close to getting that five million.With that money, she and Dan could run away, buy a small house somewhere remote, start a small business, and live peacefully for the rest of their lives.The more she thought about it, the harder she forced herself to cry.Meanwhile in the counseling office, Sarah had to hold Mia back from rushing out."Mia, calm down." Sarah had placed psychological exercises in front of her, prepared earlier to help ease her anxiety.Of course Sarah knew what was happening at the school entrance. Scarlett had already called several times, wanting to rush over and slap Amy, but Sarah had talked her down each time.Under Sarah's guidance, Mia reluctantly focused on her exercises. Sarah stroked her head. "I'll handle this."Mia nodded, not mentioning that she'd already begged her brother to deal
At Troy's signal, his men immediately understood. They dragged Dan aside and gave him a brutal beating.After they left, Dan collapsed on the ground, gasping for air, his face and head bloody from the beating.The door was still open when a well-dressed man in a suit walked in, chuckling softly.Dan startled, thinking it was Troy. "Troy, please... Wait, who the hell are you? Get out!"The man smiled faintly. "After that beating, you still haven't learned? I'm here to offer you money. Interested?"Money?Dan sized up the visitor, his eyes fixed on the man's watch. He'd seen it on TV - worth millions, easily enough to clear his debt.His demeanor changed instantly, putting on a fawning smile. "Please, sit down, Sir!”Still covering his bleeding nose, he added, "Let me clean up first."The man found a relatively clean spot to sit, drumming his fingers on the table. "Do something for me. Payment is one million."Dan's eyes widened as he nodded frantically. "Anything, just name it