The snow came exceptionally early in City A this year, and a thin layer of ice had formed on the artificial lake in Xi Garden.

When Qin Buwan fell in, there was a “thump” sound.

The ice shattered, and her hand, frozen to a ghastly white, only managed to grasp the edge of the broken ice before she quickly sank into the water.

“Help…”

She choked on several mouthfuls of water, frantically thrashing about, begging for help from the shore.

Her stepsister, Qin Zhiyu, stood there, her usually innocent and charming face now displaying hatred and gloating as she watched her.

“Save me…”

Qin Buwan couldn’t swim. She barely surfaced for a few seconds before the water completely submerged her head.

“What are you pretending for? Don’t you know how to swim?”

Just then, Qin Buwan heard the voice of her fiancé, Xu Nanhe.

Qin Buwan looked towards Xu Nanhe on the shore. His handsome face was filled with indifference and impatience. He didn’t even bother to give her a second glance. Instead, he turned and grabbed Qin Zhiyu’s hand, “It’s so cold outside, you’re not feeling well, let’s go inside.”

Qin Buwan watched their intertwined hands. Her heart felt as if it had fallen into an ice cellar, completely chilled.

The lake water was icy and bone-piercing, like thousands of needles stabbing her, pulling her downwards.

She gradually lost the strength to struggle, feeling her body sinking further and further.

“…Quick, save her!”

In a semi-conscious state, Qin Buwan heard the sound of ice cracking above her head. She felt a force pulling her up.

Someone was frantically pressing on her chest and abdomen. She felt a sharp pain and spat out a mouthful of water.

“She’s awake!”

Qin Buwan coughed a few times, her mind gradually clearing.

The moment she opened her eyes, she saw Qin Zhiyu standing in front of her, nestled in Xu Nanhe’s arms, crying pitifully:

“…I thought my sister could swim. If I had known, I would have jumped in to save her!”

Qin Zhiyu was petite and delicate, looking like a porcelain doll. Tears hung on her long, curled eyelashes, and no one could help but feel pity for her.

“She slipped and fell in herself. How does it concern you?” Xu Nanhe said, his face full of concern, softly comforting Qin Zhiyu.

“You don’t know, maybe because today is my sister’s birthday, and also the anniversary of my mother’s death, so she…”

Qin Zhiyu covered half of her face, tears falling like broken beads.

Her skin was fair and tender. Even though she covered it, she couldn’t hide the clear five finger marks on the left side of her face, and the trace of blood at the corner of her mouth.

Qin Buwan’s reputation was that of being arrogant and domineering, so this incident didn’t surprise anyone.

Qin Buwan had forgotten how long it had been since Xu Nanhe had shown her such a look of concern.

She stared blankly at Xu Nanhe, treating Qin Zhiyu like a precious treasure, as if she were his fiancée.

She had been awake for several minutes, soaked to the bone, sitting alone on the ground.

“I didn’t hit her.” After a long while, she endured the pain all over her body and pushed herself up from the ground.

Only then did Xu Nanhe notice that she was awake.

He turned to look at her, his eyes instantly filled with disappointment and impatience, “There were only the two of you standing by the lake. If it wasn’t you, who else could it be?”

Qin Buwan stared straight at him.

She wanted to give Xu Nanhe one last chance, and give herself one last chance. Because this man was someone she had loved for more than a decade.

“If I said, she hit herself, would you believe me?”

“Sister, are you crazy? What are you talking about?” Before she could finish her sentence, Qin Zhiyu interrupted her in surprise.

“Wasn’t I the one who asked you to come out? I said I was tired of not being able to celebrate my birthday for so many years. I hate you and your mother, I reached out and hit you, and then I accidentally slipped and fell down. How could I…”

Qin Zhiyu paused, crying even more sadly, “If you don’t believe me, you can check the surveillance footage from today.”

“I’m very sorry, the weather has been getting warmer, and there have been strong winds. The surveillance cameras over there were damaged and haven’t had time to be repaired yet,” the Xi Garden manager said apologetically.

Xu Nanhe looked at Qin Buwan again.

“She’s still lying!” His expression and tone were filled with disgust.

The surrounding crowd gradually quieted down, staring at Qin Buwan with various expressions.

Qin Buwan could barely breathe, just like when she had fallen into the lake. That suffocating feeling suffocated her throat.

She took a few deep breaths, trying to suppress the urge to vomit.

After a long while, she gritted her teeth and turned to stare at Qin Zhiyu, “Qin Zhiyu, do you dare to swear to God and say it again! How did you fall down just now?”

Qin Zhiyu was silent for a few seconds, sobbing as she said, “Sister, I’m sorry. Although today is your birthday, it’s also the anniversary of my mother’s death. I can’t lie for you anymore, otherwise I’ll be sorry to my mother!”

Qin Zhiyu was about to break down from crying.

Qin Buwan couldn’t help but laugh.

She suddenly understood that she still didn’t know Qin Zhiyu well enough after all these years.

Qin Zhiyu was an illegitimate daughter, her half-sister.

Illegitimate children were seen as something shameful everywhere else, but in the Qin family, it was the opposite.

Ever since Qin Lang brought the twelve-year-old Qin Zhiyu back to the Qin family after Qin Zhiyu’s mother passed away, Qin Buwan’s world had been turned upside down, collapsing suddenly.

From that year on, no one in the Qin family dared to celebrate Qin Buwan’s birthday anymore.

From that day on, Qin Buwan began to live in the shadow of her and her mother.

She was silent for a long time, took a deep breath, and said to Qin Zhiyu word by word, “Grandma once said before she died, illegitimate daughters…”

Before she could finish speaking, something suddenly hit Qin Buwan.

The object wasn’t light, it was a blanket, but it made Qin Buwan disheveled and even more embarrassed.

“Enough!!!” Xu Nanhe’s face was extremely dark.

“Qin Buwan! Do you have to be so aggressive, tearing open other people’s scars over and over again?!”

Being an illegitimate daughter was a taboo in the Qin family, and even more so with Qin Zhiyu. For so many years, no one had dared to mention those three words.

Qin Buwan stared at Xu Nanhe without blinking.

Although Xu Nanhe was always indifferent to her, they had been together for almost ten years.

Since they were young, she and Xu Nanhe had been an enviable couple in everyone’s eyes, childhood sweethearts, perfectly matched in everything from family background to appearance.

His nature was naturally cold, the same to everyone. But now, her fiancé, Qin Buwan’s last weakness, her last bit of dignity, was hurting her in front of everyone, and for the sake of protecting another woman.

It could have been for anyone, but it had to be for Qin Zhiyu.

“You believe her, don’t you?” She looked at Xu Nanhe and asked softly.

Xu Nanhe looked at her shivering body in the cold wind, at her pale lips, and hesitated for a moment.

“Give me a reason to believe you,” he said.

Qin Buwan closed her eyes and said, “Fine, Xu Nanhe, from today onwards, we’re done!”

After saying that, she felt something by her hand, raised it, and threw it hard towards Qin Zhiyu.

In an instant, Qin Zhiyu’s screams and cries mixed with everyone’s comforting voices, becoming a chaotic mess.

Qin Buwan watched Qin Zhiyu cover her forehead, blood gushing out from between her fingers, dripping onto her snow-white skirt.

If I can’t have it, then we’ll all perish together.

“We’re even.”

She struggled to get up from the ground and smiled coldly at Qin Zhiyu, “There’s no surveillance footage, and I can’t produce any evidence to prove that what I said is false.”

So what if no one believed her? They disliked her, but they couldn’t get rid of her.

Xu Nanhe turned to look at her, his eyes full of disappointment.

He let go of Qin Zhiyu, turned and strode towards Qin Buwan, raising his right hand high.

“Is what she said wrong?” Just then, a voice came from behind the crowd, steady and carrying a frightening deterrent force.

Xu Nanhe’s hand, raised in mid-air, was forcibly stopped.

Qin Buwan secretly tightened her breath and looked towards the person who had helped her.

A line of men in suits and leather shoes were parked at the corner, and Qin Buwan’s gaze settled on the man at the head.