Chapter 1

"Lila, you have to take the fall for her."

My fiancé, Gabriel, wanted me to take the blame for his beloved mistress.

The counterfeit beauty cream had killed someone. He wanted me to admit to product selection errors and retire from the internet for good.

I agreed. And asked for five hundred million as a breakup fee.

He thought I'd accepted my fate and praised me for being so understanding.

He didn't know that money was meant to destroy them.

He had no idea that the necklace I was wearing was recording Bella admitting to the fraud herself.

Until the night of the livestream, when hundreds of millions of viewers heard the truth.

He fell apart.

And I was already thirty thousand feet in the air.

Goodbye, Gabriel.

Everything you owe me, I'll take back myself. One piece at a time.

Lila POV

The air conditioning in the conference room was turned up too high.

I felt the cold seeping through my bare ankles, drilling into my bones bit by bit.

Across from me on the leather sofa sat Gabriel.

He was my fiancé and the CEO of Starshine Media.

This top MCN agency in the country was something I had built with my own hands.

His handsome face was now etched with exhaustion and irritation.

"Lila, you know how serious this situation is."

Gabriel's knuckles tapped against the mahogany table, a dull thud with each knock.

"The Chris beauty cream Bella sold killed someone. The entire internet is watching us right now."

I said nothing. I just looked at him quietly.

Those eyes that once made me lose myself now held only cold calculation.

"Bella can't be implicated."

Gabriel's voice was low, carrying the weight of a command.

"She's the company's future. Her image is clean, and she has the most followers."

"This matter needs someone to take the fall."

My nails dug into my palms.

Bella was Gabriel's so-called "little sister."

She was a resource hog who barely squeezed into the top tier thanks to Gabriel's endless support.

That girl who said in her livestream with a sickeningly sweet voice, "This beauty cream was personally selected for me by Lila, it's absolutely safe," was now the one who needed protection.

And I, Lila, the number one shopping livestream host, co-founder of StarShine Media, the woman who spent six years of her youth building this company from zero to a hundred billion in market value, had become the one who "needed to take responsibility."

"So what?" I finally spoke, my voice very calm.

Gabriel was satisfied with my composure. He leaned forward, his tone softening slightly.

"Lila, I know this is unfair to you."

"But only you have the weight to put this matter to rest."

"Tomorrow night at eight, go live."

"Admit that you made an error in product selection, that you didn't vet the products properly, which led to this tragedy."

"Then announce that you're permanently retiring from the livestreaming world."

Permanently retiring from the internet.

Those words were like four needles piercing my heart.

For a top livestream host, this was the death sentence of a career.

I looked at Gabriel, trying to find a trace of reluctance or guilt on his face.

There was none.

Only an urgency to solve the problem.

"Why should I?" My voice was still light, but carried weight.

"For the sake of our relationship all these years."

Gabriel stood up, walked around the table to my side, crouched down, and tried to hold my hand.

"Lila, we're going to get married."

"If the company collapses, how does that benefit us?"

"This is just temporary. When things blow over, I'll definitely..."

The moment his hand touched my skin, I felt a wave of nausea.

I withdrew my hand imperceptibly, but forced an ugly smile onto my face.

"Alright."

I heard myself say.

"I agree."

Gabriel visibly relaxed, unable to hide the joy in his eyes.

He reached out to hug me, but I gently blocked him.

"I'm really tired. I want to be alone for a while."

"Okay, okay." Gabriel nodded quickly. "Get some rest. Don't overthink it. I've got everything under control."

He walked out of the conference room, considerately closing the door for me.

The moment the door closed, the smile vanished from my face.

I walked to the massive floor-to-ceiling window.

This was the second floor of the company building. I could clearly see the scene at the main entrance below.

Next to a van, a figure in a white dress was pacing anxiously. It was Bella.

Gabriel rushed downstairs and pulled Bella into his arms.

I could see it all clearly. Bella was trembling in his embrace, tears streaming down her face like a broken string of pearls.

And Gabriel, the man who had just told me "I've got everything under control," was lowering his head to gently kiss the top of Bella's head, his lips moving.

Even from this distance, I could almost hear what he was saying.

"Don't be afraid. I'm here."

I laughed silently, but tears slid down my face.

One got "Don't be afraid, I'm here."

The other got "You need to be understanding."

Six years of a relationship turned out to be a joke.

I wiped away my tears and turned back to the conference table.

A few minutes later, Gabriel pushed the door open and came in, looking relaxed.

"Lila, I've already had the PR department start writing the livestream script. They'll give it to you tomorrow morning. You..."

"Gabriel," I interrupted him, lifting my head to look directly at him. "I'll agree to retire from the internet, but I have one condition."

"Name it." Gabriel was in a good mood now and seemed magnanimous.

"I'm destroying my entire career for you, for the company."

I said each word clearly.

"Your compensation can't just be verbal."

Gabriel's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

"What do you want?"

"StarShine Media currently has a market value of twelve billion. I own thirty percent. I won't ask for that anymore." I said calmly.

Gabriel's eyes lit up instantly.

"Lila, you..."

"But," I changed my tone, "over these years, what I've earned for you is far more than that."

"Using the title of fiancée, you made me sign countless unfair contracts. Most of my personal income went into your pocket."

My gaze fell on the million-dollar Richard Mille on his wrist.

"I want a sum of money."

"How much?"

"Five hundred million."

Gabriel's expression changed instantly. "Lila, have you lost your mind?"

"I've lost my mind?" I laughed, the sound desolate. "Gabriel, I've helped you earn more than five billion, haven't I?"

"I want five hundred million as my breakup fee and hush money. Is that too much?"

Breakup fee.

Hush money.

These two terms made Gabriel's face darken completely.

He stared at me, his eyes sharp, as if trying to see through me.

I looked back at him calmly, without a trace of fear.

I was gambling.

Betting that he would pay this price to protect Bella and the company.

Also betting on his pitiful "confidence."

He would think I was just an abandoned woman trying to get some compensation.

He would never imagine that I wanted their lives.

After a long standoff, Gabriel finally squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth.

"Fine. I'll give it to you."

He walked behind the desk, took out a checkbook from the drawer, signed his name, then tore it out and threw it on the table.

"After tomorrow's live ends, the money will be transferred."

I walked over and picked up that thin piece of paper.

The string of zeros on it stung my eyes.

I carefully folded the check and put it in my inside pocket.

"Thank you, Mr. Sterling."

I lifted my head and gave him a brilliant smile.

"Pleasure doing business."

Seeing me apparently satisfied with just getting the money, Gabriel seemed to completely let down his guard.

"Lila, I know you resent me."

He stepped forward, wanting to play the role of a devoted lover one last time.

"But remember, I did have feelings for you."

The smile on my face deepened.

I nodded, turned around, and walked decisively out of the conference room.

The door closed behind me.

At the end of the corridor, my best friend and manager Annie was waiting anxiously for me.

Seeing me come out, Annie immediately rushed over, her eyes rimmed with red. "Lila, you..."

I made a "shh" gesture to her.

I pulled Annie into the empty fire escape.

After confirming no one was around, I took out the check from my pocket and unfolded it in front of Annie.

Annie gasped.

"He... he really gave it to you?"

"He did."

My eyes were as cold as ice.

"He thinks this is my breakup fee."

I paused, a curve forming at the corner of my mouth.

"He doesn't know this money is meant to destroy them."