As Feng Suyin slipped out of the ornate dressing room, her heart knocked hard against her chest. The opulent bridal shop was deserted. No store assistants in sight. Her eyes swept over the luxurious fabrics and intricate designs adorning every corner. Her mind was somewhere else entirely.
This place catered only to the wealthiest and most influential individuals, where a single dress could easily cost the annual income of a middle-class family. Unsurprisingly, her family and the wealthy Ji family had chosen this exclusive boutique for their wedding preparations.
The secluded area was closed off to other patrons tonight, ensuring complete privacy for the bride-to-be. As Feng Suyin took a moment to appreciate the extravagant setting, she was certain her sister had ulterior motives for choosing this place. Feng Yilan had always been drawn to luxury and extravagance. The gap between all this opulence and the dread pressing down on her was almost unbearable. None of it felt real. None of it felt hers.
Tonight, Feng Suyin's heart had broken under the weight of betrayal and hurt. The man she loved—Ji Hanjun, the man she was set to marry—had used their relationship as a tool to get closer to her sister and their affluent family. Rain hammered the windows outside.
The door to another private dressing room was half-open, bright light seeping through the gap. With each step toward it, Feng Suyin's heart sank as she heard faint voices coming from inside.
She paused. Then, on instinct, she pulled out her phone and opened the voice recorder. Her thumb hovered over the red button.
No hesitation. She pressed it.
Her hand shook against the doorknob. This wasn't Feng Yilan performing to make a fool of her. This was a reality she was about to confront.
Despite being located on the third level of the boutique, the distant voices grew louder, echoing in Feng Suyin's ears as she pushed the door open just a crack—wide enough for the microphone to catch every word. Her worst fears were confirmed when she recognized Ji Hanjun's voice, followed by a woman's laughter.
Initially, Feng Suyin wondered if Feng Yilan had intentionally lied to cause pain and jealousy. After all, Ji Hanjun had never been involved in their wedding preparations. He often left Feng Suyin to her own devices.
Now, as she listened to their conversation, it was clear that their relationship was a sham. With each word spoken, something cold moved through her chest. Every syllable confirmed it. The man she loved and trusted was in there, laughing with her sister.
The phone in her hand felt heavy. Or maybe that was just her grip tightening.
"Stop messing around, babe. What if someone sees us?" Ji Hanjun's voice echoed faintly through the hallway, followed by a woman giggling softly.
Feng Suyin couldn't bear to hear anymore and turned to leave.
No. Stay. Let it record.
Then she heard Feng Yilan's seductive voice reply, "Even if someone sees us, it's none of their business."
"But if Feng Suyin sees us..." Ji Hanjun continued. "We can't afford to upset her now. Not when she hasn't finished the research study your family funded."
"Shh..." Feng Suyin watched as Feng Yilan pushed Ji Hanjun against the wall, wrapping her slender arms around his neck.
"You'll have to be silent then. The walls might be thin, but I already kept her occupied. Knowing Yin-jie, she would want her dream wedding to be perfect. She would surely beat herself up, worrying about every little detail."
Feng Suyin froze, a hand covering her mouth. The words landed like something cold and heavy. They were using her for their own gain. She had never known either of them at all.
The recording kept running.
As tears threatened to spill from her eyes, Feng Suyin watched as Feng Yilan and Ji Hanjun kissed. How could they do this to her?
Even as she stood there, unnoticed by the two people who had broken her world, memories pressed in without asking. The restaurant where they first met. The way he had looked at her like she was the only person in the room. The night he proposed in the rain and she had cried, and he wiped her cheeks with his thumb.
From the moment she met Ji Hanjun until he proposed on bended knee, every moment was fixed in her memory like a beautiful dream. She had finally found someone who loved and cherished her—something she had never experienced with her adopted family.
Despite living in Feng Yilan's shadow and struggling to find real love due to her family name, Feng Suyin believed that Ji Hanjun was different. And here he was, cheating on her with her own sister, without any shred of guilt or remorse.
A tear rolled down her cheek. She was the only one who had ever been in love here. And as she listened to Feng Yilan's words about keeping her occupied and Ji Hanjun's concern about not upsetting her during the research study, it was plain: she had been used from the start.
She glanced down at her phone. Still recording. Good.
Her hands clenched into tight fists, her nails digging into her palms. The words she had just heard confirmed it: what she had experienced was real. She had been betrayed by the man she loved and her own sister.
Feng Suyin refused to accept this fate without a fight.
She stopped the recording. Saved the file. Tucked the phone back into her clutch.
With a deep breath, she tried to steady herself. As she watched them through the crack in the dressing room door, anger moved through her in slow, deliberate pulses. Anger at Ji Hanjun for his betrayal. Anger at Feng Yilan for her heartlessness. Anger at herself for being so blind to their deceit for so long. Her tears of sadness transformed into tears of rage, fueled by years of swallowed pride and bitten tongues.
Feng Suyin couldn't believe the scale of their deception. How long had Ji Hanjun and Feng Yilan been carrying on this affair behind her back? Months? A year? It made her question everything — every date, every late-night call, every time he had said her name. Had he ever loved her, or was she just a piece in their game from the beginning?
The thought of revenge crossed her mind. Feng Suyin had always been the quiet one, keeping her true feelings hidden away. Now, a fire burned within her, threatening to consume everything in its path.
She stood there watching them. She knew she couldn't let them get away with this betrayal. Confronting them now would only tip her hand. No. She would wait. She had the proof. The timing would be hers.
Feng Suyin tiptoed out of the dressing room and gathered her belongings. As she made her way down the corridor of the bridal shop, she could hear the shop assistants trying to stop her amidst the pouring rain. She paid no attention. She hailed a taxi and gave the driver an address with a steely look in her eyes.
As the taxi pulled away from the bridal shop, Feng Suyin dialed her best friend Xia Lingling's number. Her voice shook as she spoke, a mix of anger and sadness clear.
"Lingling," she said, "I need your help. Are you free right now?"
Xia Lingling's voice filled with concern. "What's wrong, Suyin? You sound upset. Of course I'll come. Just tell me where you are."
Feng Suyin leaned her head against the taxi window. The rain streaked down the glass. In her clutch, the phone sat dark and silent.
The recording was there.
And one day, so would be their reckoning.