Chapter 1

My fiancé was trapped by hundreds of venomous snakes in the exhibition center.

A massive python was coiling around him, tightening its grip with each turn. Its slick scales rubbed against his skin as it constricted, causing his veins to bulge and his breathing to become labored.

Several starving king cobras had even brazenly slithered up his legs, attempting to crawl into his waistband.

His brother Samuel, red-eyed, pleaded with me:

"Rachel, you know better than anyone how dangerous these snakes are! You're the only one who can control them now. Please, go save him!"

My best friend Claire, her eyes also red with panic, cried out:

"Rach! Those vipers are deadly! Lucas is your fiancé! For the sake of your future happiness, please go rescue him!"

I casually opened a bag of chips and a can of soda, watching my fiancé's struggle with a cold smirk:

"No need to get your panties in a twist. Sit back and enjoy the show."

1

My words exploded like a bombshell among the crowd.

"Is that Rachel woman insane? She's just standing there doing nothing! Two lives are at stake!"

"Now I understand why they say women who handle snakes are heartless! She's not even human!"

"What the hell! Lucas must have been blind to fall for such a vicious woman!"

Samuel immediately knelt before me, his eyes brimming with tears:

"Rachel! I'm begging you! I'll kowtow to you! Last year, Lucas almost fell off a cliff while collecting snake venom for you. He even gave up an arranged marriage for you. How can you treat him like this?"

I stepped aside, letting him fall flat on his face.

"Save your groveling. My family's ancestors would roll in their graves if I accepted that."

Seeing that I wouldn't budge, my best friend Claire put on a righteous expression:

"Sis! If you won't do it, I will!"

"Even if it costs me my life, I won't let Lucas be in such danger!"

With that, she took a deep breath, pulled out a bamboo flute, and started playing as she walked towards the mass of snakes.

Surprisingly, the agitated snakes seemed to calm down under her music.

Even the python wrapped around Lucas loosened its grip slightly.

[Way to go! Now that's a true heroine! That Rachel doesn't even deserve to shine her shoes!]

[Now this is a damsel saving her knight in shining armor! I'm falling for her already!]

Claire couldn't help but let a smug smile creep onto her face.

But in the next second, a king cobra suddenly reared up, letting out an angry, piercing hiss!

As if on cue, the entire mass of snakes erupted into chaos again. Countless serpents frantically slammed against the glass enclosures.

The glass was instantly covered in cracks, on the verge of shattering completely and unleashing the snakes onto the crowd!

"Ahh—!"

People scrambled backwards in panic.

"W-what's happening? Why did the snakes go berserk again? Was the music wrong?"

Seeing the king cobra lunging towards her, Claire no longer cared about Lucas. She crawled away from the center of the exhibition, tumbling to a stop at my feet like a dead dog.

I set down my soda can and nudged her arm with the tip of my shoe, sneering:

"Amateur hour's over. Stop embarrassing yourself."

Claire's face instantly turned the color of a ripe tomato.

Samuel rushed to help Claire up, then turned to berate me in front of the crowd:

"Everyone, look! This is the heiress of the Zhou family animal sanctuary!"

"Not only does she refuse to save a life, but she's also mocking her best friend who tried to help!"

"She's deliberately stalling, wanting Lucas to die! She even wants to let the snakes loose and kill everyone here!"

His words ignited the crowd's fury.

[You beast! She's a psychopath! She won't save him herself and won't let others save him either. She wants to drag everyone down with her!]

[Someone call the police and arrest her! This is attempted murder!]

[Mr. Lucas, you can't marry a woman like that! I feel dirty just looking at her!]

Facing the crowd's condemnation, I didn't even bat an eye. I just smirked coldly at Claire on the ground.

"You want me to step in and save him? Fine."

"Just kneel down, kowtow to me three times, then slap yourself and shout 'I'm an ungrateful wretch' three times."

"Then I'll go save your dear Lucas."

2

As soon as I said this, everyone looked at me like I was insane.

[Is she crazy?! What kind of demand is that?]

[A man's life is at stake, and she's making her best friend kneel and kowtow? What kind of grudge is this?]

[God, how could Lucas fall in love with such a heartless demon! It's terrifying!]

Samuel was stunned for a moment, then shouted with even more indignation:

"Rachel! You've gone too far! Claire risked her life to save your husband, and she's even pregnant! How can you treat her like this? Have you no conscience?"

I just smirked and settled back into my lounge chair, opening another bag of chips.

"The solution's right here. Take it or leave it."

Claire glanced at Lucas, who was once again surrounded by the snakes.

"Claire, save me!" Lucas cried out, his eyes filled with tears.

Finally, she gritted her teeth and put on a long-suffering expression.

With a loud thud, her knees hit the tile floor in front of me.

Then she bent down, slamming her forehead against the ground.

"Thud!"

"Thud!"

"Thud!"

Three loud, heavy kowtows left a purple bruise on her forehead.

She then raised her hand and slapped herself hard across the face.

"Slap!"

"I'm an ungrateful wretch! I've betrayed Rachel! I don't deserve her kindness!"

"I'm an ungrateful wretch!"

"Slap!"

"Slap!"

Each slap was crisp and loud, filled with humiliation.

I watched her swollen cheeks with glee, bending down to pat her face as I laughed so hard tears nearly came to my eyes.

"That's a good girl. See how easy that was?"

"If you'd been this obedient from the start, none of this would have happened."

My laughter stung the onlookers, who were furious:

[Devil! She's nothing but a devil!]

[I've never seen such a vicious woman in my life! Someone record this and post it online! Let everyone see her true colors!]

[Mr. Lucas! Listen to us! This woman will ruin you!]

But I seemed not to hear their curses. I stood up lazily, stretching and even adjusting my collar.

Only then did I put my fingers to my lips and let out a sharp whistle from deep in my throat.

"Shhhh—"

Instantly, all the frenzied venomous snakes froze in place. A second later, they all turned around, retreating like the tide.

In just a few seconds, they cleared a path straight to Lucas.

Everyone was stunned speechless by this scene, their mouths hanging open.

However, I didn't even glance at Lucas.

I just walked up to Claire, who was still kneeling, and kicked her arm.

She stumbled and fell to the ground.

Looking down at her, I smirked:

"What are you waiting for? Your dear Lucas is scared stiff. Go help him up."

3

A flash of humiliation crossed Claire's eyes. Samuel quickly ran over to help her up, glaring at me:

"Claire, let's go! Don't bother with this narrow-minded bitch! She's not fit to shine your shoes!"

The audience also reacted:

[Holy shit! So she could control them all along! She deliberately didn't step in just to watch her friend kneel and kowtow! ]

[That's disgusting! She had the ability but didn't use it earlier when lives were at stake. Instead, she used this opportunity to humiliate her own friend! Her heart must be made of stone!]

[This kind of woman deserves to be struck by lightning! She'll meet a bad end!]

Claire and Samuel walked into the center of the exhibition hall, humiliated. They supported Lucas on either side and led him out of the venue.

Lucas slumped weakly into a chair backstage, his whole body still trembling.

Concerned onlookers immediately crowded around, offering water and tissues:

[Mr. Lucas, are you alright? Don't be afraid, we're all here for you!]

[Don't take it to heart. Marrying a woman like that would ruin your life! You deserve better!]

[That's right! Break up with her immediately! We can all testify today that she's a complete scumbag!]

Lucas shook his head at the crowd, his voice weak but with a hint of magnetism:

"Thank you, everyone. Really, thank you all."

"Please don't blame her. Rachel, she's... she's not usually like this..."

"She must not be feeling well today, or maybe she was upset seeing Claire rush in, feeling like she lost face..."

"She didn't mean it. She still cares about me deep down."

His "turning the other cheek" attitude further ignited everyone's anger and sympathy:

[Look at that! What a good man!]

[Even at a time like this, he's still defending that vicious woman! Sir, you're too kind! You're wasting your love on her!]

"It's not like that, Rachel usually..." Lucas hadn't finished speaking when Claire beside him let out a sharp scream, her face contorted in pain.

Everyone followed his gaze.

Large patches of blood were seeping through Claire's white dress!

"My stomach, my baby... my baby..."

She went limp, sliding off the chair.

The scene instantly descended into chaos.

[Oh my God! She's bleeding! Call an ambulance! It might be too late if we wait!]

[She risked her life to save someone while pregnant! If she loses the baby, it's all that vicious Rachel's fault!]

People scrambled to comfort Claire while Samuel immediately pulled out his phone to call 91