Shang Xinglu was truly moved at this moment.

In this absurd world where the plot doesn’t follow the expected script and the characters don’t fit their roles, she was the only one, a clever little player, still struggling to piece things together, aiming for the perfect ending of “single, wealthy, single and wealthy.”

This was such a difficult and extraordinary task, comparable to the intricate schemes of a palace drama!

The motivational quotes shared on WeChat finally had the effect they were meant to today.

Yes, yes, effort will be rewarded.

Yes, yes, as long as you work hard, you will definitely succeed!

This bowl of chicken soup for the soul—she, Shang, will drink it with respect!

However, Shang Xinglu’s joyful tears shocked the women around her.

They not only didn’t think she was happy, but they also thought she was immersed in a dual fire of sadness and anger.

The private room fell silent.

At that moment, the group of friends didn’t know what to say.

To be honest, Shang Xinglu wasn’t the leader of this “vibrant and lowly gang,” but she was definitely their typical representative.

On the surface, this circle looked high-class, but in reality, its intellectual depth was about the same as that of a high school cheerleading squad in the U.S.

They compared appearances, bodies, family backgrounds, education levels, and who was better at socializing. Of course, husbands (or boyfriends) were also important comparison factors.

And they had their own scoring system, after a round of “evaluations,” they could “calculate” who the leading figure in this circle was.

Mrs. Lin was undoubtedly one of those so-called “leading figures.”

She had good relations with many people in the circle, although there were also people who disliked her, but they could only continue disliking her because, even if they disliked her, they couldn’t do anything about it.

In such occasions, even if they were just pretending, no one would really make things awkward.

Shang Xinglu slammed the table, and after a brief silence, everyone began to indignantly speak up.

“Too much!”

“This is just being a mistress! No wonder she’s so close to Lu Xiaotao, huh, the same type of person!”

“I used to think Yin Yao was all prim and proper, pretending to be a white lotus, but turns out she’s just a green tea!”

The women around her each chimed in.

But while saying all of this, they were also observing Shang Xinglu’s expression.

This time, with Yin Yao and the camp issues, everyone had stronger opinions. But with Lin Heng’s conditions, even if his personality was terrible, beautiful women would still be rushing in.

This wasn’t the first time, after all.

In the past, Shang Xinglu would have only complained a little, and they all knew her relationship with her husband was rather average.

Marriage was essentially just a partnership.

Shang Xinglu wasn’t at parties or working as a male escort, and in private, she was much wilder than Lin Heng. She had no time to worry about lipstick stains on her husband’s shirt.

So what made her change her attitude now?

They were talking bad about Yin Yao but thinking about Lin Heng and Shang Xinglu’s relationship in their minds.

Even if they thought like this, they wouldn’t ask outright. Instead, they tried to comfort her, saying, “Louise, don’t be sad, don’t be angry, there will be opportunities to deal with her.”

Shang Xinglu was confused.

Who said she was sad?

She was incredibly happy! She was so happy she almost wanted to set off fireworks!

Shang Xinglu wasn’t planning to hide it. After all, this was her sisterhood, and they all knew her relationship with Mr. Lin was more like plastic.

She wiped away her tears with a tissue and said, “I’m not sad, really, I don’t care about these things. How could Yin Yao make me unhappy?”

Yes, she didn’t make her unhappy.

Because right now, Yin Yao was her little source of happiness!

However, as soon as she finished speaking, the room fell silent again.

Logically and emotionally, even if a marriage is purely transactional, such things still cause unhappiness.

Because it doesn’t affect feelings, but it affects interests.

So how could Shang Xinglu be happy?

The women soon realized…

Hmm, Louise is definitely putting on a brave front…

Two or three of the friends who were really close to Shang Xinglu got angry!

They stopped cursing Yin Yao and began to scold Lin Heng.

Their logic was simple: because relationships are mutual, if Yin Yao was acting this flamboyantly, it must be because she encountered something and got involved with Lin Heng. Lin Heng must have given her unnecessary signals!

Shi Rui said, “How could Lin Heng be so careless? It seems like all men are the same, filthy.”

Shang Xinglu was stunned.

Careless?

…Mr. Lin’s impotency, and you want him to still be careful?

Xue Shaoying said, “Yeah, the red flag at home is still flying, while outside there are colorful flags fluttering. He’s calling it ‘brother and sister,’ ‘bosom friends,’ and doesn’t even feel embarrassed. It’s really… disgusting!”

No, no, no.

Lin Heng becoming the one at fault wouldn’t make her get more money.

And maybe if Mr. Lin got furious and hired a top lawyer, she would be the one who got screwed…

Shang Xinglu decided to defend Lin Heng’s “reputation.”

“You’re misunderstanding. I’m not upset, and it has nothing to do with Lin Heng…”

“No, don’t say anything! Sister, when did you become such a self-sacrificing, submissive woman? I feel so sorry for you!”

Were you pretending to care about me before?!

Shang Xinglu was really angry.

“No, don’t act like this. I promise, Lin Heng didn’t have anything going on with Yin Yao, no brother-sister thing, no ‘bosom friends’…”

Even if there was, it would be in the future.

If it’s happening now, she would go crazy with joy.

“I really can’t listen to this anymore!” Xue Shaoying said, “How can you be so sure? Are you watching Lin Heng 24/7?”

Shang Xinglu had no reply.

Am I… opening my eyes to the truth?

“Are you implying that it’s Yin Yao who seduced Lin Heng, and that Lin Heng is blameless?” Shirui retorted sharply, “Wasn’t it you who used to hate this kind of reasoning? Didn’t you always say that when a scumbag cheats, both the scumbag and the mistress should be punished equally?”

“I… I…”

Shang Xinglu stammered.

She couldn’t exactly say they were wrong, but she couldn’t say they were right either!

Shirui and Xue Shaoying spoke in unison, “You’re still defending Lin Heng? Look! Look what he’s done to you, Louise! What kind of potion has he poisoned you with?”

Shang Xinglu: “…………”

Okay, the more she tried to explain, the worse it got.

She chose to stay silent.

Was it not fine to keep quiet?!

…

Two days later, Lin Heng returned from New York.

Shirui was also at the airport. She had been on vacation abroad, and while waiting for her flight, she just happened to run into Lin Heng.

It would’ve been fine if they hadn’t crossed paths, but once they did, Shirui became furious.

Look at this man! This refined beast, this man of hypocrisy—what exactly has he done to their direct and lovable Louise?!

Shirui was boiling with anger as she stepped forward to confront Lin Heng.

…But she was stopped by a bodyguard.

The burly man had a fierce look and was obviously not someone to mess with.

Shirui wasn’t unfamiliar with bodyguards, but she’d never seen one this intimidating. She immediately felt a little apprehensive.

But an angry woman isn’t one to back down.

Shirui called out to Lin Heng.

He looked over.

At first, he didn’t recognize her, and even the second time, he still didn’t remember. But he did recall seeing her around Shang Xinglu quite often.

Lin Heng walked over, signaling for the bodyguard to relax.

Lin Heng didn’t know exactly what Shirui wanted to say, but he certainly didn’t expect her to immediately begin criticizing him.

Shirui said, “You’re something, aren’t you? Go to New York and what do you do? What kind of potion did you give Louise? Don’t think that everyone doesn’t know what you’ve been up to. Yes, Louise defends you, and so does Yin Yao, but everyone has their eyes open. Love doesn’t happen with just one hand clapping. If it wasn’t for you, would Yin Yao be behaving like this?”

Lin Heng’s face was emotionless.

He seemed to be in a bad mood…

In truth, he was still processing what Shirui was saying, completely confused.

Seeing his expression, Shirui was even more certain of her assumptions.

She said, “Before, you and Louise weren’t exactly close, but at least you gave each other space, and that was fine. I really don’t understand. If you don’t love Louise and you’re only hurting her, then why would you make her fall in love with you again?”

Lin Heng remained emotionless.

Shirui was starting to feel a little uneasy because of his “no expression” and the intimidating bodyguard behind him.

Her impulsive anger faded, and she pretended to stay calm as she said, “Anyway, take care of yourself.”

After putting on her act, she quickly shook her hair and left.

Lin Heng, on the other hand, stayed where he was, still expressionless.

Or perhaps he was just stunned.

Forget about Yin Yao—that wasn’t important.

Louise… fell in love with him again?

Fell in love… again?

When did she first fall for him?

And when did she fall for him the second time?

Lin Heng: “…………”

Lin Heng took off his glasses and wiped them with a handkerchief.

He wondered to himself—was he blind?

Lin Heng had initially planned to go back to the apartment near M&E since he had an important meeting the next morning, and it was more convenient for commuting.

But now he changed his mind and decided to head back to Shanhai Guan instead.

At this moment, Lin Heng couldn’t quite explain what he was feeling.

But one thing was certain—he wanted to see Shang Xinglu.

He didn’t have any clear reason for it, but he felt that if he saw her now, maybe some of the doubts that had piled up earlier could be resolved.

The drive took an hour, and even the mighty CEO couldn’t do anything about the traffic jam.

When Lin Heng arrived at home, the butler had already been informed of his arrival, so despite it being late at night, the lights in the villa were still on.

Lin Heng entered the house and took off his suit jacket.

It was summer, and even though the air conditioning in the car and house was set to a constant 21 degrees, Lin Heng still felt hot from rushing, and the jacket felt stuffy.

Lin Heng asked Marilyn, “Where’s Louise?”

Marilyn replied, “Madam just left in the car. She said she’d be a little late tonight.”

It was already past 11, and she had just left not long ago, but hadn’t said exactly why she’d be late.

Lin Heng remembered the excitement he had seen when he told Shang Xinglu to go back to China.

He took out his phone and dialed Shang Xinglu’s number.

Marilyn timidly asked, “Sir, do you need to talk to Madam about something?”

Lin Heng heard her and pursed his lips, not replying.

Marilyn didn’t dare ask again.

The first call went unanswered.

He dialed again, and this time, the call was picked up quickly. Shang Xinglu’s voice was faint as she said, “Shhh—how dare you answer the phone?!”

Then came the sound of the call ending.

Lin Heng stared at the phone screen, as the call ended and the screen automatically returned to the dialer page.

If he wasn’t mistaken, the voice he had just heard was a man’s voice.

In the middle of the night, a strange man, and Shang Xinglu, he didn’t know where, telling her to be quiet and saying, “How dare you answer the phone?”

Lin Heng: “……………”