Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"Benjamin Lin, my love must have made you forget how to look in the mirror."

I pushed past the stunned him and went back home. After this little incident, I had no mood to go out for a walk anymore.

In the afternoon, while I was watching a drama at home, I received a friend request. From the profile picture, it seemed to be a girl. I accepted it, and she immediately sent me a long message—so long that I wanted to throw my phone away.

"Miss Shaw, hello. I'm Mr. Lin's assistant, Ella Liang. Mr. Lin has told me about the things between you two. Don't worry—he only told me, and I haven't told anyone else. The reason Mr. Lin was willing to hire me and take such good care of me is because I look like you. It just goes to show how much Mr. Lin really likes you. If you're unwilling to get back together with Mr. Lin because you mind my existence, I can leave. As long as Mr. Lin can be happy, I'm willing to do anything."

How many years of pretending did it take to become such a hypocritical person? This was ridiculous. Every word she said was dripping with fake sweetness. "Mr. Lin only told me", "he takes good care of me"... Wasn't she just trying to say that Benjamin Lin treated her differently from others, that he was nice to her? And she even wanted to give me a warning? She didn't even stop to think if she was worthy!

I replied, "Do you live in Dunhuang? Because you're full of lies (literally 'murals' in Chinese, a pun meaning someone is full of lies). You must be good at cooking, right? Because you're so good at adding extra drama (literally 'adding oil and vinegar') to your words."

"We're both girls—let's stop pretending. You just like Benjamin Lin and are afraid that my return will take him away from you, right? There's no need to worry so much. I don't even look down on him—you're the only one who's willing to dig through the trash."

I blocked her before she could reply. I said what I wanted to say and ran—giving her no chance to fight back.

But these two were too close —impossible to shake off.

I went out for afternoon tea with Mia Moore. We hadn't been sitting there for long when we saw Benjamin Lin walk in with Ella Liang. I didn't know if it was Benjamin Lin's intention or if Ella Liang had dressed herself that way, but from her hairstyle to her clothes, she looked exactly like me. Especially with her makeup on—standing next to her was like looking in a mirror.

She followed behind Benjamin Lin, looking timid, like a little rabbit that had been scared.

Benjamin Lin walked up to me. "Serena, I know I was wrong before. But no matter what the mistake was, it was all my fault. You shouldn't take your anger out on Ella Liang—she's innocent."

I let out a cold laugh. "So? What do you want me to do?"

Benjamin Lin said firmly, "Apologize to her."

This was hilarious. I took a sip of my coffee, looking at Ella Liang behind him with a mocking smile. "Was I wrong? She does like you, and I really do look down on you. Was that so hurtful? I didn't even insult her—why should I apologize to her? Besides, I haven't even gotten mad at you for giving my contact information to someone else and disturbing my normal life."

"Serena, how did you become like this?" Benjamin Lin looked at me in disappointment. "You used to be such a sensible girl."

Sensible? Being called "sensible" was probably the cruellest compliment a girl could get. In the past, I never cried or made a fuss in front of Benjamin Lin—I obeyed him in everything and always thought of him first. That's why he thought I was "sensible". But that was all because I loved him—I was willing to do those things. Back then, he didn't cherish it. Now he's putting on this fake show—it's disgusting.

I didn't care what he thought of me now. "Actually, I've always been like this. I just was good at pretending in front of you before."

With that, I picked up my bag and got ready to leave. But as I walked past Ella Liang, she suddenly fell to the ground. She held her shoulder, looking at me with a terrified expression, tears welling up in her eyes—such a perfect act of being weak and helpless.

Benjamin Lin quickly helped her up. "Serena Shaw, if you're angry, take it out on me. I owe you—you can do whatever you want to me, and I won't say a word. But Ella Liang is innocent. How many times do I have to say it? She shouldn't be dragged into this between us."