My best friend, a "fake heiress" who married into wealth, had a habit of using me as a cover. She stole a project proposal from her husband's company, telling him I was new and just wanted to learn. She transferred ten million dollars from his account, claiming she was buying me a villa to settle down. She sold the luxury car he gave her as a wedding gift, saying she wanted to give me a means of transportation. When her affair with his assistant and their embezzlement of company assets were discovered, she claimed I had deceived her and used her as a pawn. In the end, her husband sent me to prison. There, I was murdered by her lover to silence me. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day her husband confronted me. Chapter 1 Every time Sophia needed to scheme with her lover, she used "shopping with me" as her excuse to leave the house. This time, her husband, Ethan Cole, messaged me again, demanding to know when I would let her go home. I frowned at the message and deleted the chat thread without replying. Just as I put a face mask on, my phone rang abruptly. My hand, scrolling through TikTok, accidentally hit the answer button before I could pull back. The next second, his voice, suppressing anger, rang out: "Emily Zhang, when exactly are you planning to let my wife come home?" "The baby has cried three times already. Don't you know she's a mother? How selfish can you be? It was one thing before, but she's not alone anymore!" "Please get this straight: I am her husband. You're shopping with my card, riding in my car. What do you mean by making her block my number every time?" "I've tolerated you for a long time. Don't you feel like a third wheel?" His tone grew heavier with each sentence, clearly at the end of his patience. But my anger far exceeded his. If not for his "perfect" wife in my past life, how could I have ended up in prison for no reason? Just because I came from the same small town as her and was her only friend here, I became the convenient fig leaf for her scandals! Back then, I didn't know what she was up to every day. Since she got married, our contact had dwindled. Countless times, Ethan called me, and I, confused but kind-hearted, covered for her. Once, I was asleep in the middle of the night and had to face Ethan's angry interrogation. "What are you doing this late? Does styling hair take this long?" I almost slipped up in my grogginess, but Sophia hurriedly sent a message. [Just say we're getting our hair done, and a massage place opened next door so we tried the sisters' package. I sent him the photos! Thanks babe~] So later, in Ethan's eyes, I became the culprit destroying his family harmony. The next day, he sent me a warning message. After that, I gradually reduced contact with Sophia. But I never expected to be sent to prison by her in the end. Ethan already resented me, so sending me away felt like getting rid of a pest to him. Reborn, I won't be her stepping stone again! Seeing I didn't speak for a long time, he lost patience. "Is Sophia with you? Put her on. Her son misses his mom." I raised an eyebrow, a cold sneer curling my lips. I held the phone away and pretended to shout: "Sophia? Sophia? Your husband is calling." She wasn't there, so naturally, no one answered. So I acted surprised. "Oh, sorry Mr. Cole. Your wife is getting her hair washed. The water is too loud, she can't hear. It's the same salon as last time!" "She'll contact you when she's done~" After speaking, my face went cold instantly, and I hung up hard. But unexpectedly, five minutes later, just as I peeled the mask off my face, violent knocking sounded at the door. I opened it, and the immense force from outside almost knocked me to the ground. Ethan had actually brought a group of bodyguards to my home. Held down by bodyguards, I could only watch as he rummaged through my house with a face full of rage. The small apartment was quickly turned upside down, but Sophia was nowhere to be found. Only then did he walk up to me, frowning with impatience. "Where is Sophia? Where did she go? You said shopping, but I watched downstairs for ages. Your lights were on; you couldn't have gone out!" Looking at his face, distorted by anger to the point of irrationality, a sense of vengeful pleasure rose in me. How could Sophia tell me where she went? I was just the scapegoat she prepared in advance! Under Sophia's subtle influence, Ethan had long hated me and would never believe my explanation. Seeing me silent, he shot a glance to the side, and the bodyguards held me firmly. He stepped forward, grabbing my jaw tightly, his gaze like a poisoned blade. He gritted his teeth: "I'll give you one last chance. Where did Sophia go?" Chapter 2 I couldn't help but laugh sarcastically. "You know she's a mother, an adult with hands and feet. Can I control where she goes? Even her mother couldn't control her." The next second, the grip on my jaw loosened abruptly. That hand raised high and slapped me across the face. A crisp sound rang out. My eyes turned red with hatred. But the more anxious Ethan got, the more ridiculous I found him. He bent down to pick up the phone I dropped, grabbed my finger to unlock the screen. He tapped the phone threateningly against my face. "Do you think I can't do anything to you if you don't speak?" "I got you into that company; I can make you roll out!" "What if your boss knew all your proposals were plagiarized?" Under my murderous gaze, he found the contact I labeled "Boss" and dialed. Before it connected, he seemed to remember something, hung up, and switched to a video call. The call connected. My boss was still working overtime. Frowning at the man on the screen, his eyes widened a moment later. He stammered: "Mr... Mr. Cole?" Ethan said coldly: "It's me. Do you know this person?" He pointed the screen at my face. The boss quickly said: "Yes, yes. Is something wrong?" "Can your company tolerate an employee who rose through plagiarism? Do you know how her work is completed?" As he spoke, he stared at me threateningly. Mouthing: "This is your last chance." But I pressed my lips tight and didn't make a sound. My indifferent attitude ignited Ethan's rage. He roared: "All of Emily Zhang's proposals are plagiarized from our company! If you can't handle this today, I'll have my legal department contact you!" "I brought my lawyer today. Looks like you haven't left work yet." He crossed his arms, clearly adopting a "you deal with it" attitude. Two sentences completely destroyed any thought my boss had of speaking up for me. He couldn't afford to offend the Cole Group. I suddenly laughed coldly. "Mr. Cole, demanding the company fire me without any evidence... I can sue you for this. It's slander!" Hearing my words, Ethan laughed disdainfully. "Can't handle it already? I have worse. Want to tell me where Sophia is? I'll give you one last chance." "Took ten million, sold my car, and now you kidnap my wife. Emily Zhang, I've really given you too much face!" As he spoke, several bodyguards held me tighter, making it hard to breathe. Getting the boss's decision to fire me, Ethan sneered and continued burying his head in my contacts. Seeing the darkness in his eyes, I had a bad feeling. Gritting my teeth, I said: "This is trespassing. Aren't you afraid I'll call the police?" He didn't stop his movements, lips curling into a sneer as if hearing a joke. "Police? Need me to dial for you? You kidnapped my wife, the mother of my son. Who do you think the police will arrest?" "My last chat with Sophia says she's with you tonight." Then, his eyes lit up. "Found it." I watched helplessly as he dialed the landlord's number. A plan gradually formed in my heart. Chapter 3 Ethan terminated my lease with the landlord right in front of me. When I tried to explain to the phone, a bodyguard slammed his hand over my mouth, silencing me. Physiological tears welled up in my eyes. I just felt Ethan was stupider than me. If I really got the villa, why would I still be in this rental apartment? He cut the call, eyes almost spitting fire. "Still won't talk?" The bodyguard loosened his grip. I said coldly: "Why don't you ask your assistant? Maybe he knows." Ethan's eyes flickered. After a moment, he suspiciously took out his phone and called his assistant. The moment it connected, the panting on the other end stopped abruptly. "What's up, Mr. Cole?" "Check Sophia's location for me. I need to find her, it's urgent." Silence on the other end for a moment, then a troubled voice: "The last few times I drove Mrs. Cole and her friend shopping, as soon as she got out, that girl pulled her away, didn't give me a chance to speak." "Later I got out and ran up to ask, and that girl scolded me, told me not to be nosy. I didn't dare ask again. Now you suddenly ask me, I don't know either..." Ethan's face darkened with his words. I just wanted to sneer. Worthy of being Sophia's lover; even the blame-shifting moves are identical. After hanging up, just as he was about to speak, his phone rang again. It was the nanny at home, saying the baby couldn't be comforted and was crying harder. Hearing this, Ethan frowned deeply, losing all patience. He hung up and ordered the bodyguards to drag me into the car. "Since you won't talk, I'll search every shop!" Arriving at the beauty salon street, he grabbed my collar and roughly dragged me to the ground. Surrounded by bodyguards, our group quickly attracted the attention of passersby. A few minutes later, crowds had formed circles around us. Hearing Ethan say his wife was kidnapped by her best friend, they all showed expressions of gossip. Someone even shouted: "These days you never know what's under a best friend's skin. An aunt in my hometown was taken by her sister to run away. When the police found them, it was bigamy!" "There are many news stories about trafficking victims falling prey to best friends. Look at those girls taken abroad, weren't they all tricked by friends?" "She doesn't look rich. If she's that bad, she wouldn't be this poor, right?" "What do you know? Dressing plainly makes the act believable! Look at those criminals, who doesn't look pitiful?" Their discussions rang in my ears constantly. Ethan's face was black as the bottom of a pot. He had bodyguards take me into the first shop. But the owner said she didn't know me, never saw me. Yet photos of this shop had been used countless times by Sophia as an excuse to go out with me. Hearing this, Ethan instantly ignited with rage, grabbing my hair on the spot. My head was forced back. "Emily Zhang, you've been playing me from the start!" The group rushed out of the shop. Ethan said coldly: "Call the police. Let them help search. Even if I have to turn this street upside down today, I will find her!" My eyes flickered. I whispered: "Police? Why don't you call reporters too? Nail me to the pillar of shame?" He squinted at the bodyguards. "Heard that? Satisfy her request." Hearing this, a triumphant smile appeared on my lips. Make a scene. Better if the whole world knows. I want to make sure Sophia never recovers in this lifetime! Chapter 4 Bodyguards dragged me through every shop on the street, getting the same result. This street was way above my consumption level; naturally, I couldn't have been here. On the way back, Ethan was video calling his son. Hearing the bodyguard's report, he almost crushed the phone on the spot. Gritting his teeth, he said bye to his son, hung up, and smashed the phone onto my head. The expensive phone was fine, but my forehead swelled up instantly. More passersby gathered. Hearing the helpless crying of the child calling for mom in the video, they looked at me with disgust. "What kind of person is this? Kidnapping from a family with a child? Watching a family break apart, isn't that sinful?" "Look at how scary this woman's eyes are! She committed the crime, but you'd think this man killed her whole family!" Just then, police and reporters arrived together. Several people followed behind them. As they approached, my eyes widened instantly. Ethan saw my expression, face full of gloom. My parents, far away in the village, were brought over by him. Hearing the news that I kidnapped Sophia on the way, they were sweating with anxiety. Seeing me, they rushed over. The bodyguards holding me let go at Ethan's signal. Thinking of my mother's disappointed face when I went to prison in my past life, tears instantly filled my eyes. Just as I reached out to hug her. A solid slap landed on my face. I covered my burning face, looking at her in disbelief. Mom's eyes were red, hating iron for not becoming steel: "I thought you were working hard in the big city. What have you done?" She was so angry she couldn't stand steady, falling backward the next second. I rushed to pull her, but my hand mid-air was ruthlessly swatted away by her. "Mom—" I shouted in shock. Dad supported Mom, turning to roar indignantly: "Don't call us. We can't bear it. We don't have a daughter like you! Don't know when we'll be sold by you!" Having experienced the past life, I regretted everything. I originally planned to go back to my hometown to accompany them after solving Sophia's matter. But I didn't expect my parents to be brought by Ethan first. I quickly turned to look at Ethan. He was standing in the distance whispering to the police. Just as I wanted to speak, my ear was yanked violently. Mom was crying, eyes full of disappointment. "Tell Mr. Cole where you took Sophia! Otherwise, don't call us Mom and Dad anymore. We don't have a daughter like you!" Seeing this, the curses from passersby grew louder. I reached out to cover my ear, which was already torn with pain and bleeding. But just as my hand touched my face, my dad found a stick from somewhere. He hit me hard on the back of my knee. I screamed and knelt on the ground on the spot. Mom didn't stop in time. Blood gushed from my ear, soaking one side of my shoulder. Ethan walked slowly up to me and told my parents about me taking his ten million and a car. My parents were so angry they couldn't stand. They were disappointed to the point of collapse. Yelling: "Sinful! It's us old couple who wronged you..." The police whispered something in Ethan's ear. His gaze instantly became sharp. Then he turned and ordered: "Take her away. Search the property under Emily Zhang's name!" I knew that was the evidence Sophia arranged to frame me. And the paradise for her and her lover before the incident. It's finally ending.
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