Chapter 103 Falling in Love, and the Whole World Became My Rival (3)

When Bai Yao returned to the house, Fu Huairen was already gone, but all his belongings remained. He had left a note on the table: "There’s too much stuff, I can’t move it all. Don’t throw anything out. I’ll come back to get it when I have time!" The force behind the final punctuation mark had sliced a long scratch across the paper, a testament to how furious he must have been when he wrote it.

Bai Yao knew Fu Huairen well; he was arrogant and proud, and would never humble himself to plead, “Let’s not break up.” In a way, it was a relief—serving a young master was no longer her burden, and her financial pressures eased considerably.

She tossed the note into the trash without a second glance, sat at the dining table, scrolling through her phone and eating. Without Fu Huairen’s constant, disdainful remarks, the world felt so much brighter.

The next morning, Bai Yao left early to prepare her onboarding documents; in a few days, she would start at Lanshan Hospital. She considered herself fortunate—landing a formal job right after graduation was no small feat, while many of her classmates were still scrambling for exam opportunities.

On the bus, she absentmindedly scrolled through her phone, killing time. Perhaps her finger slipped—an advertisement for a novel popped onto the screen.

“The real heiress returns, and she becomes the despised impostor. Her fiancé falls for the real heiress, her parents constantly urge her to yield, and with every concession, the real heiress only grows bolder! Everyone says she’s stolen the real heiress’s identity, so she deserves to step back. But is it her fault she was switched at birth? Without being cast out, she draws a line and leaves her adoptive parents behind. Everyone waits for her downfall. But in the blink of an eye, she’s welcomed home by her powerful brothers. People wait and wait, only to see her adored by the CEO brother, the superstar brother, the genius brother, even the rumored demon lord is obsessed with her, missing her if he doesn’t kiss her daily, cherishing her like a treasure. When the green tea real heiress’s family falls apart, everyone realizes the joke is on themselves!”

She finished reading the lengthy synopsis, thinking, “Art really does imitate life.” The book title: “After Becoming the Impostor Heiress, I Was Spoiled by the Big Shots.”

The bus arrived at her stop. Bai Yao closed the novel page, put away her phone, got off, and spent some time sorting out her documents. Then she headed to a hotel where she’d worked part-time; now that she had a formal job, it was time to resign from the old one.

Fate, it seemed, had its own sense of humor. Just as Bai Yao collected her final paycheck and prepared to leave, she ran into a man and a woman in the hotel lobby.

The man wore sunglasses and fashionable clothes, tall and handsome, making the girl beside him look all the more delicate. His air was cold, but when he spoke to her, his eyes softened—this girl clearly held a special place in his heart.

As Bai Yao approached, they noticed her. The girl curled her lip in disdain, a look of dislike flickering across her pretty face; their grievances dated back three years, and could fill three days and nights of quarrels.

Back then, the Bai family had bullied her mercilessly—who would have guessed that fortunes would turn? Now, the Bai family was bankrupt, while she had become the cherished little princess of the Huo family.

Sensing his sister’s foul mood, Huo Zhiyuan’s handsome face lost its warmth, cold as frost as he removed his sunglasses and sneered, “When did the hotel’s standards get so low? Anyone off the street can walk in here.”

Bai Yao blinked in surprise, “Oh, why are you speaking about yourself like that?”

A muscle twitched in Huo Zhiyuan’s cheek. “I meant you!”

Bai Yao glanced down at the floor beneath Huo Zhiyuan and Huo Ruanruan’s feet. He realized his words had dug a pit for himself, and decided to change the subject, his refined features breaking into a smile. “I heard the Bai family sold their villa, Mr. and Mrs. Bai have fled overseas, yet Miss Bai remains. Is it because you’ve found yourself a new boyfriend?”

The three Huo brothers had always resented the Bai family for bullying Huo Ruanruan. The Bai parents’ favoritism was one thing, but especially Bai Yao—she’d oppressed Huo Ruanruan from the very day she returned home.

The Bai family had first forced Huo Ruanruan out of her room, giving the best room to Bai Yao. Then Huo Ruanruan’s fiancé gravitated toward Bai Yao, and because of Bai Yao, the sycophants around her ostracized Huo Ruanruan to please her. The Huo family was furious when they learned all this.

Their little princess, meant to be treasured, had suffered so much humiliation while lost to them all those years. The Huo family, masters of global financial power, could shake the nation with a word from any one of the three young masters. Once they brought Huo Ruanruan home, the Bai family faced swift and relentless retribution.

Huo Ruanruan hadn’t forgotten how Bai Yao, upon returning, quickly became the center of attention. Those seeking Bai Yao’s favor bullied her at school. If she hadn’t intervened, her brothers would have destroyed the Bai family entirely.

The Bai family had been unkind to her, but she couldn’t be ungrateful. In her mind, she’d settled the debt for twenty years of upbringing. But that didn’t mean she would continue to endure everything as before.

Hearing Bai Yao had a boyfriend, Huo Ruanruan raised an eyebrow, amused. “I remember Long Tao said our engagement didn’t count, and chased after you. So, have you moved on?”

Bai Yao’s smile was radiant. “You mean the matter of your admirer pursuing me? Sorry, I really wasn’t interested in the person you liked, so it’s hardly a case of moving on.”

Huo Ruanruan felt slighted. In her youth, she’d been bewitched by Long Tao’s sweet words, but once Bai Yao appeared, he claimed the true Bai family heiress was the one he should marry. Whatever the case, Long Tao was someone Huo Ruanruan had once liked. But Bai Yao’s words made it clear she didn’t think much of him, which was also a subtle jab at Huo Ruanruan herself.

Neither Huo Ruanruan nor the Huo family could have predicted that, after the Bai family’s decline, Bai Yao would not be frantic or begging for mercy. She still stood tall, her beautiful face unbowed by hardship, and her gaze remained proud and commanding.

She should have been fallen, yet compared to Huo Ruanruan, Bai Yao seemed even more like the untouchable heiress.