"I'm sorry, there's no such person as Su Yanchen."

"This ID number is fake, and the phone number is a dead one."

Standing at the entrance of the police station, Xu Youxi felt utterly absurd.

She had been in love with Su Yanchen for half a year, yet the day after his proposal, he suddenly disappeared. Upon investigating all information and traces related to him, she found that such a person didn't exist at all.

How is it possible for the man who had been with her for half a year, sleeping in her arms every weekend, to simply vanish?

She remembered news reports of people who scammed for money and then fled, quickly checking the balance of all her bank cards.

Not a cent less.

He didn't cheat her out of money, so did he deceive her with sleep and emotional manipulation?

Did he seduce her into falling in love with him and then play a vanishing act without a trace?

What was he after?

Just the night before, he was tirelessly courting her, proposing to her!

Today, when she dialed his number, it became a dead line.

The addresses of his work and home that he had once told her about, even the records and surveillance footage of their hotel stay the previous night, contained no traces of him. It was as though all their memories and affection were conjured up by her imagination.

Except for the diamond ring on the ring finger of her left hand- he had personally placed it there after his proposal.

He said, the ring finger connects directly to the heart. He wanted to capture her heart, and the latter half of her life.

Tears fell heavily from Xu Youxi's eyes.

She wandered aimlessly through the streets, looking down at the ring on her hand, she suddenly collapsed to the ground, sobbing silently.

"Are you alright? You…"

There was a faint voice calling her, but Xu Youxi simply felt too tired. She lacked the strength to reply; even the voice slowly grew indistinct...

Drip, drip.

When she awoke, she found herself attached to an IV drip, a nurse in a white coat was adjusting its flow.

"Are you awake?" the nurse's voice was slightly elated, "Don't worry, this is just a nutrient solution, it won't harm the fetus inside you."

"Fetus?" Xu Youxi asked with confusion.

"Yes, ma'am, you're pregnant."

It took Xu Youxi nearly a day to come to terms with the reality that she was pregnant and that the father of her child had disappeared.

Somehow afterwards, news of her pregnancy slipped out, and both she and her parents were expelled from the Xu family.

Even their names were removed from the family tree.

Within a short span of a month, the prestigious Miss Xu and her parents had become the pitiful targets of the high society.

"What an unfilial daughter, behaving recklessly outside, discarded by a man, dishonoring the family is one thing, but she's even caused her parents to be homeless."

"Indeed, it's such a bad karma, let's see how that small family of theirs can survive without the Xus!"

...

Five years later.

Xu Youxi was sitting on the tatami mat by the bay window, tapping on her laptop keyboard.

Suddenly, an anonymous email popped up: "Today, the first financial magnate in Up-Hill city is holding a birthday banquet, and the rumored heir specially returned home for the celebration!"

As she saw the photo of the so-called heir, Xu Youxi's breath hitched.

This man... wasn't he the same boyfriend who claimed to be "of ordinary family background" and then disappeared without a trace five years ago?

"Xiaochuang! Quick, let's go out with mommy!"

A flashy purple motorcycle sped out.

She barrelled all the way to the Victoria Hotel.

As the motorbike came to a halt, a five-year-old boy named Su Qianchuang agilely hopped down from the back seat, took off his small helmet and handed it to Xu Youxi, then tidied his curls that were ruffled by the wind: "Mommy, are you sure daddy is here?"

"Positive."

Xu Youxi removed her helmet too. She was wearing a loose cardigan, her long hair tied up casually. Her exquisite facial features were masked by her indifferent demeanor, making a stark difference with the ladies in evening gowns in the hall.

She had not attended such a party since being kicked out of the Xu family.

But she wasn't intimidated.

"Oh, isn't this the ostracized missy from the Xu family?"

In a bustling crowd, it didn't take long for people to notice Xu Youxi, uttering mocking laughter.

"Indeed, look at her now, looking so poor and squalid, yet daring to show up at such a high-end birthday banquet? I wonder if she just snuck in without an invitation, pretending to be a server?”

"Hahaha, I bet she did…"

Several entitled misses were disparaging Xu Youxi without holding back, not realizing their words were beneath their status.

Xu Youxi, busy looking for someone, had no time to pay them any mind.

Until a woman carrying red wine barred her way.

"Xu Youxi, why are you here making a fool of yourself! Haven't you heard what they've been saying? Thanks to you, I've become the subject of ridicule too. So scram."

Xu Yimeng furrowed her brows, reaching out a hand to push Xu Youxi away.

Xu Youxi remained unmoved, her arms folded as she looked down at Xu Yimeng: "Do you think, being referred to as cousins with you, gives me some sort of honor?"

Xu Yimeng felt humiliated at having any connection with her cousin, while Xu Youxi scorned having such an incompetent cousin!

"Move." Xu Youxi said coldly.

Just then, a woman wearing a large red rose evening dress approached. As soon as she saw Xu Youxi, her smile instantly froze: "Xu Youxi? Is it really you? Why are you here…"

Xu Youxi glanced at her indifferently, "Can't I be here?"

"Xu Youxi! How dare you talk to Miss Zhao like that! Just look at your current situation, are you in any position to have such an attitude?"

Hearing this, Xu Youxi let out a cold laugh. Indeed, she was no longer Miss Xu, nor was she once equal to Zhao Wenjing, one of the two exceptional beauties in the capital.

"But... what's the point?"

"Do you mean to say that if she’s not the missy of a prestigious family, she doesn't even have the right to speak?" Xu Youxi retorted sarcastically.

"Yes!" Xu Yimeng defended Zhao Wenjing decidedly and haughtily, "Did you know that Miss Zhao is about to become the future daughter-in-law of the top conglomerate? She’s about to get engaged to Su Yanchen soon!"

The future daughter-in-law of the top conglomerate?

No wonder she’s dressed so flamboyantly today.

Xu Youxi deliberately scrutinized Zhao Wenjing from head to toe, and casually commented, "Pardon my frankness, but this color is not quite suitable for you."

Red looks stunning on others, but it inexplicably ages her.

"Wait, who is Zhao Wenjing getting engaged to?" A beat later, Xu Youxi asked, "Su Yanchen?"

"Do you think you’re even qualified to mention Master Su’s name?" Xu Yimeng hurled insult after insult, "You, a wench who was tarnished and abandoned by a lowly man, kicked out of her own home..."

"Xiao Meng, that’s enough!"

Zhao Wenjing feigned an attempt to suppress the situation, as the future daughter-in-law of the Su family, she did not want to stir up extra trouble on a day she was responsible for hosting.

She glared at Xu Youxi.

Although casually dressed, with her fair skin and red lips, a captivating mole on the tip of her nose, her entire face expressed a chilling sense of misanthropy.

"Do you know how much betrothal gift money Miss Xu brought this time? The seats for Old Lady Su's birthday banquet are strictly divided based on the amount of money given."

"The lowest tier calls for a betrothal gift of one hundred thousand."

“If Miss Xu isn't ready with a dowry, I would advise her to leave as soon as possible...”

With eyes as cold as a fox, she squints slightly, “How much dowry can the old lady’s grandson count for?”

Meanwhile, a small head popped out from behind Xu Youxi. His face was delicate, with his eyes corners slightly lifted, revealing a cunning and playful appearance.

Nobody had noticed him earlier, not knowing where he came from.

Grandson?

Upon hearing this word, all the high-born ladies present were dumbfounded!

“She must be desperate by now, even resorting to deceptive schemes…”

“Exactly! Just some wild child from nowhere, and dares to claim to be a bloodline of the Su family! She thinks we don't know about her parade of scandals!”

News of her being discarded after fooling around had already started circulating within social circles…

Because Su Yanchen was the illegitimate child of the Su family, the gossiping ladies who had never seen Su Yanchen in person did not know how much Su Qianchuan resembled Su Yanchen, and started pouring scornful glances at Xu Youxi and her child.

Xu Yimeng was equally shocked, “Xu Youxi, you’re saying this wild child is Master Su's son?”

At this point, Zhao Wenjing was completely baffled. She looked deeply into Su Qianchuan's face, the solemnity in his eyebrows and features indeed resembled Su Yanchen's.

Just as she was about to say something, the little guy quirked his lips, “What a bunch of weird aunties!”