Chapter 7

Those watching the live stream saw Celeste holding the paternity test report high above her head. "Look closely! The baby I'm carrying is Howard Anderson's! He raped me! I'm going to sue him!" But she didn't seem to notice that everyone around her was staring with eyes full of contempt and disgust. "Sue whoever the hell you want! I only have one question for you—are you paying us back today or not? If you don't, we're taking this poster straight to your hometown." Faced with the bald man's accusation, Celeste's expression froze. She clenched her jaw tightly. "As long as I win the case, I'll pay you back. This child belongs to Howard. He has to compensate me!" But under the man's pressure, Celeste's words started falling apart. Everything she said circled back to money. Stella tugged hard at her mother's sleeve, silently begging her to stop talking. However, by then, Celeste had lost all sense of rationality. Between the giant naked photo of herself and the unrelenting loan sharks, she had completely snapped. The hall descended into chaos, and the once-explosive paternity report now felt oddly irrelevant. Suddenly, out of nowhere, one of the tattooed men appeared with a bucket of water and dumped the whole thing onto Celeste's face. She shrieked. Stella rushed to help, using her sleeve to wipe Celeste's face. But as she wiped, her "bruises" smeared off. Celeste's supposedly battered face turned into a painting of smudged cosmetics. The bruises vanished. The entire process unfolded live for the entire internet to see. The paternity test became irrelevant and was completely ignored by the commenters. "Wait… what? Those injuries were fake? I don't trust that test one bit now." "Here's what I think—this housekeeper must've stolen a used condom from her employer." "It's a total setup. Either she seduced the professor, or she's using some kind of tech voodoo." "This livestream is wild. 10/10 drama!" As I scrolled through the endless comments, I felt a complex mix of relief and disbelief. For the first time, public opinion was finally on my side. Nobody knew the truth behind this sudden twist, that I was the one who invited those loan sharks over. Yesterday, I wired half of our household savings to them, just to make sure they showed up and caused a scene at the paternity testing center. And looking at the results now, it was absolutely worth it. When the police came to our home again, their tone had noticeably softened. They reassured us that, so far, there was no evidence suggesting we had done anything wrong. We were granted limited freedom, but we still weren't allowed to leave the province. That night, my parents called. They told us to come stay in the countryside for a while, to get some fresh air and calm our minds. Howard's hometown was in a different province, and we weren't allowed to leave, so we chose to go to mine instead. After reporting our plans to the police, we drove to my hometown. My parents were waiting for us at the village entrance. The moment I saw Mom, my eyes welled up. Tears streamed down my face before I could stop them. "Wendy, don't cry. We know everything, and we believe you. We know you're both innocent," Mom reassured. Dad took our luggage and gently comforted us as well. Howard stayed quiet, but I could see that his eyes were red too. That evening, my parents cooked a full table of delicious food. We ate together, chatted happily, and for a brief moment, put all our troubles behind us. That night, surrounded by chirping crickets and the rustle of leaves, I lay in bed with Howard's arms around me. It was the best night of sleep I'd had since my rebirth. … The next afternoon, after lunch, I turned on my phone and saw that Celeste's account had blown up. Unlike my past life, where she rose to fame as a "survivor", this time, she was flooded with comments that contained pure vitriol. Some netizens, ever the mischief-makers, had even turned her nude photo into memes and posted them in the replies. At the same time, Stella wasn't spared either. People discovered that she was Howard's student, and someone even dug up dirt on her about being financially supported by an older man. The internet quickly reached its verdict—these two women were rotten to the core. Seeing that, I let out a deep sigh of relief. At least now, with things the way they were, Howard wouldn't end up in prison. Dad took him to the pond to fish. I knew he was just trying to help Howard relax. I stayed at home with Mom and helped her wind yarn into balls. "Wendy, are you sure Howard's condition hasn't been cured?" she asked softly. Hearing the concern in her voice, I knew what she meant. She still had her doubts. "I went with him for his check-up this year. Nothing's changed. There's no way he could've gotten someone pregnant." Mom finally looked relieved. She patted my hand and said, "These days, anything can be faked. Don't worry too much. Let the police sort it all out." I was just about to agree when she suddenly looked past me, eyes focused on the doorway. "Uncle Sam? You're here!" I turned to see an elderly man walking in. For a man of his age, his posture was still straight and his eyes were still bright. "Great-Uncle Sam! I haven't seen you in ages! You're still as strong as ever." I quickly put down the yarn and rushed over to greet him. As a child, I used to visit my great-uncle often. His house was full of strange little trinkets, and he always had time to play with me, never once losing his patience. But after I moved to the city, we rarely saw each other anymore. Now, looking at him again, he was just as I remembered—only with a few extra wrinkles on his face. He grinned from ear to ear when he saw me, gripping my hand tightly as he launched into cheerful conversation. Mom invited him to stay for dinner and then disappeared into the kitchen after telling me to keep my great-uncle company.