The moment Qin Xiu uttered those words, a flicker of terror involuntarily flashed in Tang Lingyi's eyes.
"What did you say!?"
Of course, she was faking it.
Just moments ago, she had deliberately created the illusion for Qin Xiu that she was happiest here—making him mistakenly believe that sending her back to school to face old acquaintances would be the ultimate punishment.
But in truth, Tang Lingyi was desperate to get out. Once outside, she could find a way to contact the outside world.
"You've been away from your classmates for quite a while now," Qin Xiu said, spreading his hands as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "So I've decided to stop confining you and let you go back to see your old friends."
Tang Lingyi's mouth hung open. After a few seconds of stunned silence, she threw herself onto the bed, buried herself under the covers, and muffled her voice: "No! I won't go to school! You bastard—you're just trying to humiliate me!"
"You don't have a choice. Wu Feng!" Qin Xiu called out toward the door.
The door cracked open slightly. Wu Feng peered through the gap, confirmed everything was secure, then stepped inside. "What is it, Mr. Qin?"
"Miss Tian is going back to school tomorrow. You're in charge of watching her. I want a full, real-time account of her every move, and a detailed report of her daily schedule."
Wu Feng glanced at the lump under the blankets and nodded. "Understood, Mr. Qin."
A former reconnaissance soldier, Wu Feng was one of Qin Xiu's most loyal and capable subordinates—keeping constant surveillance on a single person was child's play for him.
"I won't go!" the girl under the covers shrieked desperately.
"Someone will pick you up tomorrow morning. Prepare yourself for your return to school life," Qin Xiu declared, satisfied that he'd finally cracked the code to truly punishing Tian Suimei. With that, he left.
After all, this girl—once a pampered, arrogant heiress—was now publicly disgraced, branded a shameless harlot by everyone who knew her. Such a fall from grace would crush anyone.
And crucially, it was all her own doing. So really, Qin Xiu wasn't being cruel—it was simply her just deserts.
This time, he would make sure Tian Suimei deeply regretted everything she'd done.
Unfortunately for him, the moment he left, the girl under the covers quietly revealed a triumphant smile.
You've fallen for it, Qin Xiu.
If this were the real Tian Suimei, she might indeed collapse under the weight of public shame. But she wasn't Tian Suimei—she was Tang Lingyi.
Since you're convinced I'm Tian Suimei, I'll keep playing the role you expect to see.
That was her escape plan.
As long as she got out—even just once—she'd find a way to break free entirely.
Sorry, but a phantom thief like me would never surrender!
...
Early the next morning, while Tang Lingyi was still pretending to sleep soundly, a car horn blared from outside the window.
The instant the horn sounded, Tang Lingyi's eyes snapped open.
She'd been waiting for someone to come get her—but she absolutely wouldn't get up yet. She had to maintain the act of being utterly unwilling to leave. That way, Qin Xiu would push even harder to force her out.
From their previous interactions, she'd already figured out that Qin Xiu was the type who always did the opposite of what you wanted.
She liked gaming—so he took her console away. She loved good food—so he fed her nothing but plain vegetables and broth.
So, if "Tian Suimei" liked something, Qin Xiu would take it away. Conversely, if she hated something, he'd force it on her.
To secure her freedom, Tang Lingyi had to perform reluctance flawlessly—only then would she get her chance to step outside.
Though she'd been too excited to sleep all night, she forced herself to stay calm, lying perfectly still in bed, waiting for someone to come fetch her.
A few minutes later, footsteps echoed from downstairs. Then Qin Xiu himself strode into the room and barked at the figure in bed without an ounce of mercy: "Get up. We're leaving."
Afraid of another incident like the last time—when she'd been caught naked in bed—Qin Xiu had come up alone this time.
Tang Lingyi peeked out from under the covers, fixing him with pitiful, pleading eyes. "Qin Xiu… can we talk about this? Just a little—"
"No discussion. You have one minute to get downstairs, or I'll have someone drag you down." Qin Xiu raised his wristwatch and started the timer.
"How can you be so heartless? We were married once, weren't we? Can't you show a little mercy?" To ensure her escape, Tang Lingyi fully committed to the role of Tian Suimei.
But she had no idea just how monstrous Tian Suimei's real actions had been. Her words only enraged Qin Xiu further.
"Show mercy because we were married?" he snapped. "What about when you cheated on me, stole my assets, and even pushed me out of a plane—did you think of our marriage then?"
Tang Lingyi froze.
Wait… this Tian Suimei actually tried to murder him by pushing him out of a plane?!
If that was true, maybe Tian Suimei wasn't the innocent victim she'd imagined at all. Perhaps this whole mess wasn't just one-sided abuse—but a toxic clash between two terrible people.
"Thirty seconds left," Qin Xiu reminded her coldly, snapping her out of her daze.
Forgetting her act entirely, Tang Lingyi threw off the covers, hopped out of bed in her light blue pajamas, and walked over to the wardrobe. Just as she was about to change, she suddenly turned to look at Qin Xiu.
He stood there, arms crossed, with no intention of leaving—in fact, he watched her calmly. "What are you staring at? Want me to help you undress?"
"No…" Tang Lingyi had initially wanted to ask him to leave, but then she realized—if Qin Xiu truly had any ulterior motives, she wouldn't have survived this long unscathed.
Gritting her teeth, she began changing right in front of him.
Qin Xiu watched silently, his eyes tracing the curves of her body. A thought struck him:
Has Tian Suimei… grown?
He'd never actually seen Tian Suimei's naked body, but this "Tian Suimei" definitely seemed… fuller in the chest than before.
Then he remembered her earlier claim—that she wasn't Tian Suimei at all, but an imposter, a phantom thief.
His eyes widened.
Could it be…?
Did she get breast implants just to back up her lie that she wasn't Tian Suimei?
But that didn't make sense—if she'd gone that far, she would've gotten facial surgery too. More likely, it was just natural secondary development.
As Qin Xiu pondered this, Tang Lingyi finished dressing. She hadn't bothered to coordinate an outfit—just grabbed random clothes from the wardrobe and threw them on.
She followed Qin Xiu downstairs. For the first time in nearly twenty days, Tang Lingyi stepped outside.
Her heart raced with exhilaration. The green grass, the garden swing, the white clouds drifting across the blue sky—everything looked dazzlingly vivid to her.
But she kept her expression carefully blank.
She had to pretend she hated leaving, so she locked all her joy deep inside, wearing only a heavy, sullen look on her face.
Seeing her dejected expression, Qin Xiu felt a brief pang of sympathy.
But then he remembered everything Tian Suimei had done—especially how she'd laughed and chatted with the pilot right after "killing" him. That fleeting softness vanished instantly.
Don't blame me, Tian Suimei. You brought this on yourself.
Qin Xiu ushered Tang Lingyi into the car. With a roar of the engine, the vehicle sped off toward its next destination—Qianlan University.