Broken trust

Chapter 1: The Pain of Betrayal

The night was as dark as ink, thick and impenetrable. Zhong Hua curled up on her bed in the bedroom, the excruciating pain in her stomach surging like a tidal wave, assaulting her nerves in wave after wave. The pain was like a sharp knife, twisting cruelly into her internal organs, cold sweat instantly covering her forehead, large beads of sweat rolling down her cheeks and soaking the pillow.

Her body trembled violently and uncontrollably, and the world around her seemed to be spinning wildly. In the midst of this dizzying sensation, the only thing that gave her a glimmer of hope was the phone she was clutching tightly in her hand. With the last of her strength, her fingers trembled as she swiped across the screen, and with great difficulty, she finally managed to dial Ah Yu's number.

A voice came through the phone quickly, but the crisp sound of porcelain clattering in the background was like a heavy hammer blow to Zhong Hua's heart, filling her with a strong sense of foreboding. Then, Lin Wanqing's all-too-familiar voice pierced her ears clearly: "Don't answer. I added croton powder to the honey water she drank; the medicine should be working by now."

These few words struck Zhong Hua like a bolt from the blue, leaving her mind blank and frozen in place as if struck by lightning. Her eyes widened in disbelief. How could Lin Wanqing, who had once been so close to her, with whom she had laughed, joked, and cried, possibly commit such a heinous act?

Before she could recover from the immense shock, the phone was abruptly disconnected. At that moment, the anger, despair, and pain that Zhong Hua had suppressed for so long erupted like a burst dam. With her last ounce of strength, she slammed the photo frame on the bedside table to the floor. With a crash, the frame shattered into pieces, glass shards scattering everywhere. The photo inside, a picture of the three of them when they first met, now seemed so glaring, so ironic. In the photo, their smiles were radiant, overflowing with youthful energy and pure friendship; but now, all of that was like a dream, utterly shattered.

Chapter Two: Struggling for Survival

The excruciating pain in her stomach was relentless, threatening to consume Zhong Hua's remaining consciousness. But the instinct for survival, like a faint yet steadfast beacon in the darkness, drove her to begin her arduous crawl toward the living room. Each movement felt like a thousand pounds, every inch of her skin groaning in agony, as if all her strength was being drained away with each simple action.

Her vision was blurred, the world a chaotic mess, leaving only a vague sense of direction—the living room, perhaps where her hope for survival lay. As she struggled to crawl, her weak arm accidentally bumped into a vase on the coffee table. The vase wobbled a few times, making a clattering sound, before crashing heavily to the floor with a bang, the crisp sound of shattering particularly jarring in the silent room. Water spilled from the vase, flowing freely across the floor, gradually winding into a blurry "Save" character.

Zhong Hua stared at the "rescue" character formed by the water stains, and a faint flame ignited in her heart—a yearning for life. She tried to open her mouth wide, wanting to scream for help, but her throat felt constricted, and she could only utter extremely weak, almost inaudible sounds. As her consciousness faded, memories of her time with Ah Yu and Lin Wanqing began to surface before her eyes. Those days of laughing together on the school playground, those moments of embracing and weeping together after heartbreak—now felt like sharp needles, piercing her heart again and again. Her heart was filled with confusion and pain; she couldn't understand why her once close friends had become so cold and heartless in the blink of an eye, why they had treated her so cruelly.

Chapter Three: Memories and Regret

Zhong Hua's thoughts drifted back to the day the three of them first met. It was a bright, almost blindingly sunny afternoon, golden sunlight streaming through the library's tall windows, casting dappled shadows on the rows of bookshelves. Zhong Hua wandered among the shelves, and by chance, she spotted an ancient book she had been searching for. Just as she reached out to take it with great joy, another hand reached for the same book at the same time. She looked up and met Lin Wanqing's slightly stubborn gaze. Neither of them would give in, and they began to argue.

Just as the atmosphere was becoming tense, Ah Yu walked over as lightly as a spring breeze. With a gentle smile and eyes that curved like crescent moons, she softly advised, "Oh, don't argue, this book is so interesting, let's read it together." And so, the three of them became friends because of this book, and from then on, they were inseparable, like conjoined twins. They buried themselves in their studies together in the classroom, burning the midnight oil for exams; they shared their food in the cafeteria, discussing which dish was the best; they strolled along the campus paths, chatting and dreaming about their bright future. Those days, filled with youthful energy and carefree laughter, are the most beautiful memories of Zhong Hua's life.

Later, they left campus together and entered the complex world. Facing life's challenges, Zhong Hua always firmly believed that their rock-solid friendship could withstand any storm. However, she never imagined that this friendship, which she thought was unbreakable, would be so vulnerable in the face of immense temptations of profit and desire. Lin Wanqing, in order to obtain a crucial project for the company and for the so-called promotion, raise, and success, meticulously plotted to frame Zhong Hua, pushing her into an abyss of no return. Ah Yu, who was once her closest confidante, not only failed to stand up for Zhong Hua but also chose to stand idly by, even cooperating with Lin Wanqing's evil deeds, becoming an accomplice in this betrayal and conspiracy.

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