A Beijing socialite stole my boyfriend; she went crazy after I got married.

On Monday, as soon as Jiang Chu arrived at the classroom, she noticed that many people were staring at her.

Although she's always the center of attention wherever she goes because of her looks, these classmates weren't seeing her for the first time, so they were behaving rather strangely.

"...Is it her?"

"Millions in compensation? Really? That car must have been incredibly expensive!"

"Isn't her earring worth tens of millions? Does she need this little bit of money? Why is she being so aggressive?"

"Although, the video clearly shows it was a rear-end collision, and the driver in that situation should bear full responsibility."

They whispered among themselves while glancing at her.

Some people looked at their phones and then at her.

Jiang Chu found a seat on the side. The classmate next to her was reading a book, seemingly immersed in the ocean of knowledge. He only looked up when he heard the noise.

The classmate looked at Jiang Chu blankly: "...Why is everyone looking at us?"

Jiang Chu: "It seems like they're looking at me, but I don't know why."

The student in the seat in front of her turned around upon hearing this, held up his phone to show her, and asked, "Is this you?"

Jiang Chu looked down.

The sound in the video is chaotic, with horns mixed with shouting and talking.

"Officer, I was wrong! I was really wrong! My family can't afford to pay for it! My parents are just ordinary working people, and they still have a mortgage to pay!"

A young man in a red down jacket knelt on the ground and begged.

"And this gentleman, I really can't afford to pay five million! Even selling our house wouldn't be enough. That lady was decked out in designer jewelry; she certainly doesn't need the money!"

The man wailed pitifully, "Uncle, please beg your wife for me, I've kowtowed to her..."

The video automatically starts replaying in the last few seconds, showing the previous content.

A young woman wearing a camel-colored cashmere coat stepped out of the back door of the Bentley and approached with a sullen face.

Next, a man in a bright red down jacket was grabbed by the wrist and pressed to the ground.

"That's exactly what I'm going to do!"

The woman said coldly.

The live chat is already filled with insults.

Although the video is blurred out, the blurring is done subtly; the face isn't fully visible, but it's not completely covered either.

If someone knows her, they can usually tell.

not to mention--

Related prompts kept appearing in the comments section.

"She looks like that Kyoto University beauty queen who went viral before!"

"Is that the one dancing?"

"So she was a kept woman too."

"That's hilarious! Some people like to sell themselves, but they assume everyone else does too. Who knows, maybe they're just rich kids!"

Jiang Chu looked at the video title again.

[A female luxury car owner was rear-ended; her bodyguard assaulted a boy in the street and subsequently demanded a staggering five million yuan in compensation!]

Jiang Chu laughed.

Jiang Chu: "That is indeed me."

The student in the seat in front of her nodded, looking at her with some sympathy. "This video was edited, wasn't it?"

Jiang Chu: "Isn't it obvious?"

"Yeah," the classmate next to me craned his neck to look, "It's so obvious. The editing is terrible, it's obviously pieced together. Oh my god, a 'boy'? This guy looks older than me! Are all men except old men considered boys these days?"

"Look at what you're saying. Why can't an old man be a boy? He was a boy until he died."

Jiang Chu took out his phone and searched.

Several self-media outlets shared similar videos, which were also posted this morning. They gained a lot of attention and had different titles, but they were all basically in the same style.

[A wealthy woman in Beijing's elite circle, after being rear-ended, called her bodyguards to beat up a boy and demanded 5 million yuan for a private settlement!]

[Hit a Bentley and got beaten up? Female driver threatens: "If you don't pay five million, I'll send you to jail | Let's see who's tougher"]

[Male college student accidentally rear-ends luxury car; bodyguard assaults him in the street; female homeowner sneers: "I'll make you bankrupt."]

He only rear-ended a Bentley—then three bodyguards in black pinned him to the curb, and she demanded five million, threatening to ruin his family if he demanded even a penny less.

The comments section has become increasingly outrageous.

"So now hitting a luxury car is considered a crime, right? This kid didn't run away, why call bodyguards to beat him up?"

"Five million, hahaha, that's blatant robbery! Is a young man's entire future worth a piece of paint?"

"That guy looks pretty strong, it's not appropriate to call him a boy, is it? Oh, I get it, it's to make it easier for him to play the victim. But this woman is really too arrogant."

"Is this really a student from Kyoto University? Don't smear my alma mater."

"We hope the traffic police will retrieve the complete surveillance footage and prevent the wealthy from covering up everything."

Jiang Chu swiped twice, and among the top comments were even people offering to pay money to buy her name and school major.

"This is really interesting," she said speechlessly. "If they want to play this, then let them play."

-

Meanwhile, Sun Hong's home was bustling with activity, like it was Chinese New Year.

On the coffee table in the living room were takeout boxes, beer cans, and several cell phones. Sun Hong sat in the middle of the sofa, his face still pale from a hangover, but he was clearly much more excited.

His father sat on the other side, his brow furrowed, a cigarette dangling from his hand, unlit for a long time.

The mother was across from me, her face filled with unease.

"Mom, stop worrying about it." Sun Hong picked up his phone and scrolled through the comments section. "Look, now it's all people cursing her, nobody's mentioning my drunk driving anymore. Uncle's trick really works."

The "uncle" he was referring to was his father's cousin, Sun Zhiqiang, who was sitting with his legs crossed on a single sofa, a cup of tea in front of him, looking relaxed.

He worked for several years at an MCN agency in the east of the city, nominally as the content director, managing seven or eight sub-accounts, and his daily work consisted of tracking trending topics.

When Sun Hong got into trouble and asked him for help, he listened to the whole story and took on the task without hesitation.

"Zhiqiang, I still feel like this matter isn't quite right..."

Sun's mother rubbed her hands together, her voice low, "What if that woman really does have connections? Wouldn't we be making a huge mistake by doing this?"

Sun Zhiqiang smiled as he held his teacup. "Sister-in-law, you don't understand. The richer and more powerful a person is, the more afraid they are of scandals. Think about it, if her husband is really some big boss with several companies under his name, once this matter goes viral and netizens find out who her husband is and what the company is called—the stock price will plummet, and the losses won't be just a few million."

He put down his teacup, leaned forward, and said, "By then, they'll realize that it's better to settle things privately than to fight us head-on. We won't just make Xiao Hong pay compensation or go to jail; we can even negotiate with them and get them to pay a 'settlement fee.'"

"You can do that?"

Sun Hong's eyes lit up.

"Why not?" Sun Zhiqiang patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, Xiao Hong. I've been in this industry for so many years and I've seen plenty of similar things. Rich people care about their reputation, so we'll take advantage of that reputation. That's our bargaining chip."

Sun's mother opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but seeing the rare smile on her son's face, she swallowed her words back.

The atmosphere in the living room became slightly more relaxed.

Sun Zhiqiang picked up the remote and changed a few channels, humming a little tune as if he had everything under control.

Sun Hong buried his head in his phone, reading aloud the comments section filled with insults directed at the female driver, his face beaming with excitement.

Until the doorbell rang.

Mr. Sun stubbed out his cigarette, got up, walked to the door, and looked out through the peephole.

His body stiffened.

Three people were standing outside the door. In front of them was a police officer in uniform, followed by two men in plainclothes. One of them had a body camera on his waist, and the other was carrying a file bag.

Who is it?

Sun Zhiqiang was still sitting on the sofa when he asked a question casually.

Sun's father did not answer, but slowly opened the door.

The police officer remained calm, speaking in a businesslike tone: "Is Sun Zhiqiang here?"

Sun Zhiqiang's hand, which was holding a teacup, froze in mid-air. His composure hadn't yet faded, and he just stood there stiffly.

Sun Hong suddenly looked up, almost dropping his phone to the ground.

"I...I am." Sun Zhiqiang put down his teacup, stood up, and forced a smile. "What's wrong, comrade?"

The police officer walked in, followed by two men in plainclothes. Their eyes quickly swept over the people in the living room.

"Sun Zhiqiang, you are suspected of fabricating facts to defame others and provoking trouble. Please cooperate with us to go back for investigation."