Qin Man, caught up in her fantasy of glory and redemption, grew more and more excited. She didn't notice the gasoline had begun to seep toward her feet.
She had nearly emptied the bottle when she triumphantly raised the lighter and flicked it—ready to ignite panic, not fire.
But in her frenzy, her foot slipped.
She stumbled back, her hand slamming against the wall, and the lighter flew from her grip.
Click.
It hit the floor.
Fsssh—
A spark danced.
Gasoline met flame.
Woosh!
A ribbon of fire burst to life.
Qin Man screamed, leaping backward in horror. "Ahh! No! No—!"
Panic broke across her face as the flames rose faster than she expected. She had miscalculated.
Badly.
Security guards, already rushing after her suspicious behavior, rounded the corner just in time. One tackled her to the ground, another sprayed the extinguisher at the base of the fire, suppressing the flames before they could spread.
Qin Man thrashed violently. "Let go! I'm pregnant! I'm pregnant—don't touch me!"
The security guard was unmoved. "You just committed arson in a hospital. That's a criminal offense."
He twisted her arm behind her back.
Qin Man's voice cracked in hysteria. "Let me go! It was a mistake! I didn't mean it—Mingyuan! Help me!"
Her gaze locked onto Su Mingyuan.
But Su Mingyuan didn't move.
Didn't even flinch.
His face was pale with fear, eyes locked on the smoke curling up from the floor. The sprinkler systems kicked in, and just then—
BEEEEEEP—BEEEEEEP—
The hospital's fire alarm shrieked through every floor.
From the operating room, someone shouted in panic:
"Fire! There's a fire in the corridor! There's a patient on the table—help us! The surgery can't stop!"
The scene descended into chaos.
And Su Jin… stood quietly to the side, watching it all unfold with calm, cold eyes.
When Gu Xiangyun heard the shouting from the operating room, her legs froze—rooted to the ground.
Her brain blanked.
Nuo'er!
She was still in there.
Her daughter. Her everything.
And now the corridor outside was filling with smoke.
How could she forget?
"No… Nuo'er… My Nuo'er!" Gu Xiangyun wailed as the weight of reality crushed her. She lunged forward, wild with panic, trying to rush into the smoke-filled hallway—but Su Mingyuan caught her just in time.
"Calm down!" he shouted, gripping her tightly. "The fire hasn't reached the operating room. They're putting it out!"
"No! I want my daughter—I want my Nuo'er!" Gu Xiangyun's voice cracked as she sobbed, struggling with everything she had, like a mother about to be ripped from her child.
A few steps away, Su Jin stood silently.
She watched the scene unfold with a chilling stillness, her expression unreadable—but the glint in her eyes spoke volumes.
Finally.
This was just the beginning.
Compared to the pain they once made her endure, this was only a small taste.
Now, it was their turn.
Their turn to drown in helplessness.
Gu Xiangyun turned, as if sensing that cold gaze behind her, and pointed a trembling, bloodstained finger at Su Jin.
Her voice trembled with hatred.
"Why… Why wasn't it you? Why isn't the person burning in there you?"
Su Jin met her eyes calmly, and then—she smiled.
Softly.
Cruelly.
"Because the one meant to die… isn't me, Mom."
"Bitch! Bitch! Bitch! Why aren't you the one in there? Why couldn't you die instead of my daughter?" Gu Xiangyun shrieked, her voice raw and hoarse.
Her screams pierced the hospital corridor like broken glass.
People around them froze, shocked—not just by the words, but by the twisted madness on her face.
How could a mother say such a thing?
About her adopted daughter. In public.
Gasps and murmurs rippled through the crowd.
"She's insane..."
"Is that really her adopted daughter?"
"Monstrous..."
Su Mingyuan heard every word—and panic rose in his throat. He rushed forward, trying to silence her. "Enough, Xiangyun, stop! People are watching!"
He reached to cover her mouth, but Gu Xiangyun whipped around and bit down on his hand, hard.
"Get your disgusting hands off me!" she spat, eyes bloodshot. "Your touch, your voice, even your breath—it all makes me sick!"
At the thought of his betrayal with Qin Man, her fury reached a breaking point.
Su Mingyuan staggered back, clutching his hand, face flushing with rage. "You're completely unhinged! I've had enough!"
And then he did the unthinkable—he shoved her.
Hard.
Gu Xiangyun stumbled backward, rage blazing in her eyes. "Fine!" she screamed. "If no one will save my daughter, I'll do it myself!"
And before anyone could stop her, she turned and ran straight toward the fire.
"Xiangyun!" Su Mingyuan shouted, but it was too late.
She didn't make it more than a few steps before the flames licked at her clothes, then roared to life around her.
Her screams filled the corridor.
The fire caught fast—her hair, her sleeves, her back.
She dropped to the floor, writhing, trying to roll out the flames—but they clung to her like curses.
"Fire! Get the extinguishers!"
Security rushed in with fire extinguishers, foam blasting in every direction.
As the flames were doused, a thick silence followed—broken only by the hiss of chemical spray and Gu Xiangyun's ragged sobs of pain.
And Su Jin?
She stood at the edge of the chaos, her face pale, unreadable.
No satisfaction.
No guilt.
Just a quiet, steady gaze.
She hadn't laid a finger on anyone—yet they were all burning.
Gu Xiangyun's hair and exposed skin were scorched in patches—red, blistered, raw. Smoke still clung to her as the nurses rushed over with a stretcher.
"Emergency room, now!" a nurse barked, and they quickly wheeled her away, her weak cries trailing behind them.
The fire was finally under control.
Sprinklers hissed, and the smell of burnt plastic and smoke lingered in the air. The hospital's chaos slowly settled. Surgeons re-entered the operating room, and Su nuo's surgery continued as planned.
Standing at a distance, Su Jin watched it all coldly.
Then, a faint smile curved her lips.
It was done.
Whether Suno survived or not no longer mattered—because Gu Xiangyun was finished.
Her once-proud face was scorched. Her elegance, her power—gone in a flash of fire. Even if she healed, Su Jin knew one thing: Su Mingyuan would never look at a disfigured woman the same way again.
No matter how noble her past status, no matter how long she held the title of "Mrs. Su," the illusion had shattered.
And tomorrow?
Tomorrow, the scandal would explode.
"Su Family Heir's Mother Disfigured in Hospital Brawl and Fire."
"Lover Accuses CEO in Public Meltdown."
"Suspected Arson Linked to Illicit Affair."
The media would have a feast.
Su Mingyuan's life would spiral—his spotless reputation crumbling under headlines and shame.
Su Jin let out a breath, long and slow.
The years of anger that had been trapped in her chest… finally loosened.
She felt lighter.
She felt free.
It was the most relaxing day Su Jin had experienced since her rebirth.
She strolled out of the chaotic hospital with a calm heart, like someone who had just finished watching a satisfying play.
But just as she turned a corner, a voice sharp and cold as ice echoed behind her.
"Su Jin."
She stopped and slowly turned around—only to see Fu Siyan standing there, his expression dark, his eyes filled with suppressed fury.
Her lips curved into a calm, almost polite smile. "President Fu."
Fu Siyan stepped closer, his gaze like a blade. "I don't care what grudges you carry or what games you're playing—but this is a hospital, not your battlefield. If you dare stir up chaos under my watch again, I won't show you any mercy."
The intensity in his voice sent a chill through the corridor.
Su Jin's smile faded slightly, replaced by something more bitter. He thought she had planned all of this. That she had ignited the fire. That she had set everything in motion.
And maybe… he wasn't entirely wrong.
Even if she hadn't sent that message to Qin Man, the woman would have come anyway. She remembered clearly—in her past life, today was the day Qin Man almost burned the hospital down. The flames had devoured lives, ruined reputations, and left scars across the Su family's name.
This time, all Su Jin had done was tilt the first domino. The outcome had already been written.
But how could she possibly explain that?
Who would believe she had already lived through it once?
So instead, she simply met Fu Siyan's accusing gaze and said quietly, "You think I did this."
Fu Siyan didn't respond. He didn't have to. His silence was sharper than words.
Su Jin gave a faint, tired smile. "President Fu, some disasters don't need planning. They just wait for the right moment."
She turned to leave, her steps steady, her voice lingering in the air behind her like a shadow.
"But thank you for the warning. I'll be careful not to get caught in the flames next time."
Assistant Xu came over quietly, a bit hesitant, and leaned close to Fu Siyan's ear.
"Sir, we… may have misunderstood Miss Su."
Fu Siyan's brows tightened. His voice was cold and clipped.
"What do you mean?"
Xu lowered his voice further.
"Just now, one of the security guards reported that before the fire broke out, Miss Su had warned them about the aging circuit in the corridor near the operating room. She insisted on additional fire prevention measures. That's why the fire was put out so quickly and didn't spread."
Fu Siyan's eyes darkened, and the tension in his jaw shifted. The lines on his face were still grim, but a flicker of doubt crept in.
Xu hesitated, but added cautiously,
"Thanks to her warning, there were no casualties—except for Gu Xiangyun, who ran into the fire herself. The hospital's equipment suffered only minor damage. We avoided a disaster… all because Miss Su sounded the alarm in time."
A heavy silence followed.
Fu Siyan's expression didn't ease much, but a sliver of guilt flickered beneath his usual indifference.
"Why didn't anyone tell me sooner?" His voice was low and tight.
Xu wisely said nothing else. It was clear that Fu Siyan was reflecting—and not liking what he saw in himself.
His gaze turned in the direction Su Jin had gone.
She had stood there, taking the blame, letting him believe she was the one fanning the flames—when in fact, she had been the one who quietly prevented the worst from happening.
A storm brewed in Fu Siyan's chest, but this time… it wasn't directed at her.
Fu Siming's furrowed brows relaxed ever so slightly, but his face remained dark.
"Why didn't you say this earlier?"
Assistant Xu lowered his head, guilt thick in his voice.
"It's my dereliction of duty, sir."
In truth, he had tried to report, but Fu Siming hadn't given him the chance. Still, he knew better than to shift blame—this was a pot he had to carry himself.
Fu Siming didn't reply. With long strides and a face like thunder, he turned and walked off, leaving Assistant Xu behind in a daze.
Xu glanced after him, troubled.
What about Miss Su?
She must have felt terrible being wrongly accused… and she never even tried to explain herself.
Meanwhile, Su Jin was indeed sad—but the breeze brushing across her face seemed to carry the weight of her sadness away.
She had saved lives today. She had prevented disaster.
If she was misunderstood along the way, so be it.
---
In the emergency room, Gu Xiangyun lay on the hospital bed, her body smeared with thick layers of scald ointment. Her limbs trembled with pain, her face wrapped in gauze, her voice hoarse.
The moment Su Jin stepped into the room, Gu Xiangyun's eyes shot open, rage lighting them up like fire.
Even in this state, she found the strength to screech,
"You vicious little bitch—came to laugh at me, didn't you?"
Her voice cracked, shrill and unrestrained, trembling with humiliation.
Su Jin stood calmly at the door, her eyes cool and detached.
The sight of her silence was more unbearable to Gu Xiangyun than any words.
The fire had singed most of her hair, leaving it in charred, uneven clumps. Gu Xiangyun's once-prized porcelain face was now wrapped in gauze, but the edges peeked out—raw, blistered, angry red. Her arms were bandaged too, but even the thick layers of medical wrap couldn't hide the trembling.
She didn't know yet.
She didn't know how ugly she had become.
Su Jin's gaze swept over her slowly, silently. No mockery. No pity. Just… cold detachment.
Gu Xiangyun saw that look and suddenly stilled. Panic flickered in her swollen eyes.
"What—what are you staring at?" she rasped.
Su Jin's lips curved into a faint smile, "Nothing, Mom. Just wondering… how long it'll take before you're willing to look in a mirror."
Gu Xiangyun's breath caught.