The Heiress's Game

When Shen Ziqian came out of the laboratory, the clock in the corridor already pointed to 10:30 pm.

He rubbed his sore shoulders, took his phone out of the locker, and pressed and held the power button.

The phone screen lit up, and a series of missed call notifications popped up like a queue, all from the same number.

He squinted at the nickname and his lips curled down slightly.

Dong Yuwei, there were a few more text messages, but he didn't open them; he could guess the content just by looking at the preview.

They just ask him the same old questions, like why he doesn't answer the phone or reply to messages.

With a swipe of his finger, he cleared all the notifications at once, and then decisively dragged that number into the blacklist.

This woman is like a persistent ghost.

He put his phone back in his pocket, greeted his junior who was still organizing data, and walked towards the dormitory, keeping time with the motion-activated lights in the hallway.

He never believed Dong Yuwei's trip to Milan from the beginning.

A jewelry designer without formal training, who graduated only two years ago, has just joined a new company.

Why would the company send her to Milan for further studies? They have so many people with proper jewelry design backgrounds in their company, why choose a newcomer like her?

Only someone like Dong Yuwei, who hasn't done graduate school, would believe in such a windfall.

When he saw the photos of Milan she sent him, he frowned. These days, scammers are getting more and more sophisticated.

Forging company notices, photoshopping airport pictures, and stealing other people's locations to send messages—the whole process is seamless and efficient, specifically designed to scam naive and unsophisticated people.

Dong Yuwei is the perfect target.

She has a gentle personality, is easy to talk to, and is completely open with everyone. If she gets scammed, she'll probably still be helping the scammers count their money.

On the fourth or fifth day after she arrived in Milan, Shen Ziqian almost came to the conclusion in his mind that this woman was most likely no longer in Europe and had probably been tricked into going to northern Myanmar.

Her phone had been confiscated long ago. Those photos and messages were sent by a scam gang with the aim of phishing her contacts into believing that she was doing well abroad, and then setting a trap step by step.

Who is Shen Ziqian? He's a graduate student from Yunjing University; his intelligence and academic qualifications speak for themselves. How could he possibly fall for such a scam?

Walking along the main road on campus lined with plane trees, the refreshing feeling of being blocked spread from my fingertips all the way to my whole body, as if I had unloaded a burden that I had carried for two whole years.

Actually, if you really think about it, he didn't owe Dong Yuwei anything during the two years they were together.

Dong Yuwei did spend a lot of money on him. He didn't keep detailed records, but he had a general idea. She even helped him pay his tuition for graduate school.

She picked out and delivered the two new phones to him, and she paid for eight out of ten meals and shopping trips.

And that high-spec drawing workstation—she said she needed good equipment for her graduate studies and research, so she swiped her card without hesitation.

All in all, it must be around 100,000.

But which of these money did he ask for?

No, every single payment was given voluntarily by Dong Yuwei.

She was willing to spend money on him; that was her own choice.

He never pressured her, never lied to her, and even refused several times. Of course, despite his refusal, he eventually accepted the money because she said, "I will feel at ease if you accept it."

He accepted it to put her mind at ease; isn't that a thoughtful gesture?

On the contrary, the time and emotional cost that Shen Ziqian has invested in her over the past two years is probably worth more than the tens of thousands of yuan.

He is a graduate student at Yunnan University, a prestigious university.

He was also a key player on the school basketball team, standing at 1.85 meters tall. Every now and then, girls would approach him on campus and ask for his WeChat.

With his looks and qualifications, finding a girlfriend ten times prettier than Dong Yuwei wouldn't be a problem at all, but he still ended up with her.

Dong Yuwei's appearance can be described as delicate and pretty, but to put it bluntly, she's so beautiful you couldn't even pick her out of a crowd.

Ultimately, it was Shen Ziqian who suffered the most in their relationship over the past two years.

As for the things Dong Yuwei left in the rented room, he felt that his way of dealing with them was reasonable.

People have been tricked into going to northern Myanmar, and their belongings are just sitting there collecting dust. The rent is still being deducted every day. What is this if not a waste?

He took photos of all the clothes, small appliances, and miscellaneous daily necessities and listed them on a second-hand platform, clearing them out within a few days.

Her handmade jewelry sold surprisingly well; she priced it reasonably, a few hundred yuan a piece.

It sold out in just two days, and several buyers even asked him if he had any more styles.

If he had known it would sell this well, he should have doubled the price.

He returned the apartment, and the deposit he got back was enough to offset the lab dinner expenses he had paid last month.

Everything was handled perfectly and neatly.