Chapter 3

Tang Ruochu went straight home after she parted ways with Lu Shijin. She immediately saw Gu Ruoruo and her mother, Zhao Xiaowan, chatting happily with her father the moment she walked through the door. They looked like a happy family of three, and Tang Ruochu suddenly felt as though she had walked into the wrong house. She seemed like a misfit in her own home. Her face hardened as she closed the door and started to head upstairs without greeting them. "Stop right there!" Tang Song berated her when he saw that she was walking upstairs without a word of greeting. "Yes?" Tang Ruochu stopped in her tracks and said coolly. ... "Does this home still exist to you? You're a young woman and yet you spent the entire night outside and didn't even greet us when you finally returned home. Is this the kind of respect you should be showing your parents?" Tang Song berated her sternly and he looked extremely upset with her. ... Tang Ruochu scoffed and said sarcastically, "It has been a long time since my mom passed away, and although my dad is still alive, he is dead to me." "How dare you speak to me that way, you unfilial woman!" Tang Song roared as he slammed his hand against the table and jumped to his feet. ... "Dad, please calm down. Don't let Ruochu's words affect your health," Gu Ruoruo said as she patted Tang Song's back soothingly. She looked exactly like a well-behaved and caring daughter. ... Zhao Xiaowan immediately put on her motherly act and kindly said, "Ruochu, you shouldn't speak to your dad that way. He is your dad after all." "Look at how you're behaving and compare that to your sister's behavior. When will you learn to be more like her?" Tang Song said angrily. He seemed upset that she failed to see the error of her ways. Tang Ruochu scoffed and shot back angrily, "What do you want me to learn from her? Should I learn how to seduce someone else's fiancé? Or should I learn how to be as shameless as her?" "Tang Ruochu, how could..." Gu Ruoruo's face twisted in anger and she was about to flare up at her sister when Zhao Xiaowan snapped furiously, "Ruochu, how could you say such things about your elder sister?" ... "My mother had only given birth to me, so why do I have to acknowledge her as my sister? Hmph, I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree after all. Your daughter is just following in your footsteps and she took pleasure in stealing someone else's man. What a great mother-daughter pair you guys make," Tang Ruochu said harshly. ... Gu Ruoruo's and Zhao Xiaowan's faces turned pale. "Tang Ruochu, you've gone too far this time!" Zhao Xiaowan spat out as she trembled in rage. "I've given everything to this family, so no matter how much you hate me, you should still give me credit for that. Moreover, I am older than you are! How could you speak so rudely to me?" ... "Does that change the fact that you had an affair with a married man? Aren't you thinking too highly of yourself?" Tang Ruochu said with a sneer. ... "How dare..." Zhao Xiaowan's face twisted in rage. She hated more than anything else being labeled as a mistress who ended up marrying her lover. ... She had suffered through so much when Tang Ruochu's mother was still alive, and it wasn't until Tang Ruochu's mother passed away that she managed to firmly establish herself as the mistress of the household. No one had dared to label her a "mistress" after so many years had passed, and Tang Ruochu hardly mentioned this either. She felt extremely humiliated now that Tang Ruochu had spelled it out so clearly. "Mom, don't be mad," Gu Ruoruo said soothingly when she saw that Zhao Xiaowan was about to explode in rage. Her eyes glinted coldly as she walked toward Tang Ruochu. ... Tang Ruochu looked coldly at her and her expression hardened. "Haha, Tang Ruochu, you're accusing someone else of being a mistress but I see it as you being extremely useless. Since you failed to keep an eye on your man, you can't blame others for his change of heart. I know you must be very upset, so let me tell you why Yinfeng chose me..." Gu Ruoruo spoke so softly that only Tang Ruochu could hear her. She continued spitefully, "He chose me because I'm pregnant with his child. What a pity that your long-term relationship fell apart so easily after my one attempt at seduction." "Boom—" Tang Ruochu felt as though something had exploded within her. This news came as an absolute shock to her. She couldn't believe what she had just heard. "Is Gu Ruoruo pregnant? "Is she truly pregnant with Ji Yinfeng's child?" This clearly wasn't the first time Gu Ruoruo had seduced Ji Yinfeng, but she had been kept in the dark the entire time and had been oblivious to their relationship. They.... had totally humiliated her! "I will inform Dad about this soon and I'm sure he won't object to our relationship. I will be engaged to Yinfeng very soon, so you have been eliminated!" Gu Ruoruo smiled smugly as though she took great pleasure in Tang Ruochu's pain. ... "Gu Ruoruo, how shameless can you be!" Tang Ruochu spat out angrily as she trembled in rage. She felt extremely cold and bitter. ... She couldn't bring herself to stay in this house any longer, so she went upstairs to change before she went straight to work. Times Entertainment News was the leading local entertainment gossip tabloid that mainly reported on celebrity dating scandals to attract the public's attention. It was a very fast-paced work environment, and Tang Ruochu had joined this firm as a reporter after she graduated from college. She had written several popular news articles and was rather well-known within the industry. Tang Ruochu didn't perform well during the morning meeting, which resulted in her being admonished by her manager. She looked even more haggard and worn down after the meeting. When her friend Song Anyi saw that Tang Ruochu seemed exhausted, she brought her out to a cafe under the pretense of chasing a lead. She asked with concern, "Ruochu, weren't you supposed to do your gown fitting yesterday with Mr. Ji? Why do you look so pale? Did something happen?" Tears pricked at Tang Ruochu's eyes when she saw the concern in her friend's eyes and she started to cry. It was as though the sadness and misery found an outlet and came gushing out of her. "Ruochu, why are you crying? What happened? You should tell me about it!" Song Anyi asked. She was shocked when she saw how upset her friend was and didn't know how to react. She had been friends with Tang Ruochu for many years and knew her to be a determined and gentle woman who was always optimistic and positive. This was her first time seeing Tang Ruochu looking so upset. Tears continued to flow down Tang Ruochu's cheeks as she unloaded her grievances on her friend. Song Anyi slammed her hand against the table and rose to her feet in anger after she heard her friend's story. "How shameless and despicable of them! I can't believe how shameless Gu Ruoruo can be! I really regret how I once looked up to Ji Yinfeng as an exemplary boyfriend. I didn't expect him to be such a scumbag!" "Why did it have to be Gu Ruoruo? He knew how much I hated her..." Tang Ruochu tried to put up a brave front but she felt extremely upset and reacted like an injured animal. Song Anyi's heart went out to her friend. After having been friends with Tang Ruochu for many years, she was familiar with her family background. Tang Ruochu's dad had an affair with Zhao Xiaowan when Tang Ruochu's mother was still alive, and Tang Ruochu's mother was always in low spirits because of this affair. ... Zhao Xiaowan brought Gu Ruoruo to the Tang family home and married Tang Song after Tang Ruochu's mother passed away and became the mistress of the household. Zhao Xiaowan and Gu Ruoruo were extremely devious. They would pretend to treat Tang Ruochu very well when Tang Song was present but they were always making things difficult for her when her father wasn't around. They took her father's love away from her and persuaded her father to name Gu Ruoruo as his heiress, who stood to inherit half of his assets. Tang Ruochu's position within the family had fallen drastically, and now, Gu Ruoruo had even taken her fiancé from her. Song Anyi empathized with Tang Ruochu more than anyone else. She knew that Tang Ruochu was just putting on a brave front and that her heart was bleeding inside. "Ruochu, don't be too upset. It is better that you unmasked his true colors before you married him. You've saved yourself a whole lot of trouble," Song Anyi said softly as she hugged her friend. She tried her best to comfort Tang Ruochu. Tang Ruochu wiped her tears away before she nodded and said, "Thanks, Anyi. Don't worry, I'll be fine. And I'll make sure that Gu Ruoruo and Ji Yinfeng regret their actions."