Chapter 20: Don't Touch Me. You're Filthy

Jingwan brought up the photos and videos on her phone and set it before them. Her eyes fixed on Leyin. “Why didn’t you tell me you’d slept with Ji Huaizhi?”

Leyin stared at the screen, her face ashen and lips trembling. “I… I…”

Ji snatched the phone and looked twice before anger overtook him. “They’re fake! Where did you get this? You’ve chased me for years. Don’t you know what kind of person I am?”

Jingwan rested her chin on her hand. “I didn’t know before. Now I do. You’re trash.”

He slammed the table and stood, eyes red. “You dare insult me? Have I been too good to you? Believe me, I’ll cut you off for good!”

She smiled and applauded as though he’d offered wonderful news.

Whenever she saw his face, she remembered him driving a dagger into her chest in her previous life, and how he hadn’t spared Little Yu. The icy hatred made her sick.

“You’d better keep your word. From now on, we’re strangers.”

Her resolve frightened Ji. He didn’t want to lose his source of money. His eyes shifted, and his pointing hand dropped. At last he noticed Leyin’s pale face and pushed the blame onto her. “It was all her! She seduced me. She set me up!”

Leyin stared at the man who’d been on her side moments ago. “You’re vicious! You couldn’t get Jingwan into bed, so the moment another woman beckoned, you pounced like a dog in heat.”

At university, everyone knew Jingwan pursued Ji. He enjoyed being chased by a beautiful girl and boasted to his friends. He had wanted to sleep with her without taking responsibility, but she had held to her boundaries. Angry and humiliated, he’d accused her of pretending to be virtuous and turned to Leyin, who flirted with him behind her friend’s back. Their affair had been inevitable.

Jingwan watched them turn on each other, revealing the ugly things they’d done over the years. She couldn’t bear to hear more.

“Enough.” She threw her coffee in Ji’s face, then flung the empty cup at him. “Get out.”

Veins bulging at his temple, he wiped his face. “Wanwan, you believe her instead of me?”

“Get out!” She pointed at the door, her eyes cold.

Afraid of provoking her into cutting him off without another cent, he backed down. “I do care about you. I know you’re angry. I’ll come back when you’ve calmed down.”

Ji was clever enough not to rely on Jingwan alone. He’d used her money to present himself as a free-spending rich heir and kept two or three well-off women interested. If one source failed, he had others; he wouldn’t starve.

* * *

After he left, Leyin moved beside Jingwan and clutched her arm. “Believe me, Wanwan, Ji deceived me. You believe me, don’t you? I’m your best friend!”

Jingwan pulled free and slapped her. “Don’t touch me. You’re filthy.”

Leyin held her stinging cheek, stunned. “I know you’re angry. I’ll accept the slap. But how can you say that? I’m a victim too. Ji used me…”

“You’re a victim?” Jingwan’s eyes stung. Her friend’s betrayal hurt terribly. “Then what am I? I truly considered you a friend. Betraying me wasn’t enough; you came to my house and hurt Little Yu…”

“What…?” Leyin’s sobbing stopped. Panic showed plainly on her face. “How could I hurt him? I didn’t… It wasn’t me…”

Jingwan stood and stepped away, disgusted. “Did you forget there are cameras all over the house? Everything you did was recorded, even in places you couldn’t see. You tampered with his milk, then made an excuse to leave when Congli’s mother came to accuse me.”

Tears glimmered in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. These people wouldn’t care; they would only laugh at her.

“Oh, I almost forgot. You came to the house for Huo Congli. Did you think he’d be like Ji? Did you plan to use the same tricks on my husband?”

She wiped the corner of her eye. “I wish I’d never known you. You don’t deserve to be my friend.”

She played the surveillance footage on a loop. “What you did can send you to prison. You can’t afford to cross the Huo family. Spend your money on a good lawyer…

“Though I doubt any lawyer will dare take your case against the Huo legal team.”

Leyin’s legs gave way. She fell from her chair. “Wanwan! You can’t let them sue me. My life will be ruined!”

She wrapped her arms around Jingwan’s leg. “It’s all Ji’s fault. He told me to do it and got the drug. He wanted to teach you a lesson.”

In that respect, Leyin and Ji were a perfect match: each wanted the other to take the blame.

Jingwan pushed her hands away. “Tell your lawyer.”

As she walked off, Leyin’s malice showed at last. She smashed a cup and lunged at her, shrieking, “Even if I die, I’ll drag you to hell with me!”

The sharp shard came within half a meter before two bodyguards in black appeared and blocked her. They restrained Leyin, covering her mouth, then asked Jingwan, “Madam, are you all right?”

Jingwan wiped two drops of coffee from her face. Only then did she realize the café had been cleared. It had to be the Huo family’s doing; their discussion concerned private family matters.

“I’m fine. Handle her as you see fit.”

Outside, the driver held an umbrella over her against the fierce sun. Her thoughts gradually settled. Then she looked up and saw a familiar Rolls-Royce parked by the street. It was Congli’s car…