Chapter 144: The Wicked Are Tormented by the Wicked

"What did you say?"

Lin Biji's face darkened as she demanded an explanation.

Shen Ci smiled, her tone casual. "You lost our bet last time. You haven't forgotten the penalty, have you?"

"You..."

"I told you, if you tried to welch on it, I'd call you that from now on. Did you really think I was joking?" Shen Ci said, her gaze sweeping over her with a look of confusion.

Given her usual pride, how could she allow herself to look like this?

She hadn't even bothered to cover her haggard appearance with makeup, and even her clothes today were worn with total indifference.

But Shen Ci soon realized: people only self-destruct like this when they've suffered a major blow. Lin Biji and Li Xiao had both vanished from school for a while; clearly, some messy, tangled disaster had occurred between them.

And then it hit Shen Ci—they were currently standing right outside a hospital.

Her eyes flickered. Could it be...

"I'm pregnant!"

The next second, Lin Biji looked at Shen Ci and suddenly, without any warning, dropped the bombshell.

Shen Ci didn't react for a moment, simply blinking at Lin Biji's triumphant, gleeful expression.

Before Shen Ci could respond, Lin Biji took the initiative to wave her medical report in front of Shen Ci's face. "It's Li Xiao's!"

"Ha?" Shen Ci couldn't help but let out a scoff. She looked at Lin Biji, smiled, and nodded. "That's wonderful. Congratulations!"

Shen Ci didn't feel particularly surprised, because in her past life, Lin Biji had aborted Li Xiao's children twice, and to disgust her, she had even mailed the miscarriage reports to Shen Ci both times.

This time, it had just happened two years earlier, and the method of notification had changed from a courier delivery to a face-to-face announcement—it felt almost more formal.

Her heart remained completely unmoved.

Faced with Shen Ci's playful reaction, Lin Biji's provocative expression turned to shock. She asked suspiciously, "What is this attitude? Aren't you angry?"

"Why would I be angry? Pregnancy is a happy event. I'm happy for you!" Shen Ci said, then put on a look of sudden realization. "Oh, I forgot. You aren't married yet. So, are you planning to give birth before getting married? Or get married before giving birth?"

"If you get married first, you'd better hurry. Otherwise, once your belly gets big, you won't look good in a wedding dress, don't you think?"

Shen Ci's words made Lin Biji's face turn from red to white, and then from white to red. She couldn't miss the mockery in Shen Ci's tone.

"Shen Ci, are you mocking me?" Lin Biji asked, her face full of rage.

Shen Ci's smile vanished instantly. She looked at Lin Biji and said, "You think too highly of yourself. You're the one choosing to debase yourself; I can't be bothered to mock you."

As she spoke, she glanced at Lin Biji's lower abdomen and added, "It really is true that the wicked are tormented by the wicked. I haven't even done anything yet, and the two of you have already managed to torture each other into this state. It's truly hilarious!"

A ride-hailing car pulled up beside Shen Ci just then. She didn't look at Lin Biji again, opened the door, and got in.

Lin Biji watched the car drive away, her heart churning with turbulent resentment and unwillingness, mixed with an endless sense of shame that threatened to swallow her whole.

Sitting in the car back to school, Shen Ci's mind was flooded with memories of her past life once again.

In this lifetime, the trajectories of many people and events had changed. She didn't know if this was the "butterfly effect" caused by her rebirth, and she didn't really care, because she wanted to live a different life anyway.

But regarding Lin Biji's pregnancy—it had happened twice in her past life, and Shen Ci knew those times were because Li Xiao had fallen out of love with her and had willingly slept with Lin Biji. Back then, she was the only one who had been humiliated and hurt by having those reports sent to her.

But this time was different. Shen Ci wasn't interested in what methods Lin Biji had used to "borrow the seed," but she could vaguely guess that Li Xiao might not have been a willing participant.

This girl was just as crazy as she was in her past life. The madness manifested differently, but she would never again suffer even the slightest bit of harm from these two people.

Just as she returned to school, Shen Ci ran into Li Xiao's mother at the foot of her dormitory building.

She was still dressed in luxury, holding a parasol in one hand and a Hermès bag in the other. She seemed to have just arrived and hadn't had time to go upstairs yet.

Perhaps because her purpose for coming this time was completely different from before, her expression turned stiff and awkward when she suddenly saw Shen Ci.

Shen Ci looked at her with confusion and asked first, "Are you here to see me, ma'am?"

Li Mu nodded slightly. She stepped forward with graceful elegance, stood before Shen Ci, took off her sunglasses, and said in a flat tone, "I came to see you to apologize."

The words were spoken very softly. If she hadn't been standing so close, Shen Ci wouldn't have heard them at all. It was clear how much psychological preparation Li Mu had needed to face Shen Ci and say those words.

Shen Ci was slightly startled; she was genuinely surprised.

What kind of maneuver was this?

"You're joking, ma'am. I'm a bit flattered," Shen Ci replied with a calm demeanor once she regained her composure.

Li Mu lowered her head slightly, her expression still retaining the haughty pride of a wealthy socialite. "I know you hold a grudge against me..."

"Isn't it you who has held a grudge against me all along?" Shen Ci interrupted her attempt to flip the narrative, smiling lightly. "Otherwise, you wouldn't have made such a grand production of arranging a meeting to order me to break up with Li Xiao."

The word "order" was used with great precision, highlighting Li Mu's past behavior of using her status and power to apply pressure.

Li Mu's breath hitched at the remark, but she nodded. "You're not wrong. I did think you weren't good enough for Xiao Zai. But I've thought it over. Since Xiao Zai truly likes you, I will no longer oppose the two of you being together."

If this had been in the past, Li Mu would never have been able to say such things.

Every single word had been taught to her by Li Wanchang the night before.

She had expected Shen Ci to be overjoyed by her "sincere" words, but all she got in return was a mocking scoff.

Shen Ci looked at Li Mu with a playful expression and laughed. "You're too funny, ma'am. If you don't approve, we have to break up; if you don't oppose it, we have to get back together? Who do you think you are?"

Li Mu lost all control of her expression at these words. Shen Ci's contemptuous remarks, delivered straight to her face, made her complexion turn as black as the bottom of a pot.

"What did you say?" Li Mu was so angry she was embarrassed, her voice rising by three octaves.

Shen Ci simply looked at her rage with a playful smile. "Don't act like an elder and take yourself so seriously. While the Li family might be considered a wealthy clan, it's not something everyone is desperate to covet."

"Oh, by the way, there is someone who has racked her brains and broken her head trying to get into your family. Why don't you consider her, ma'am? Who knows, you might be holding a big, fat grandson by this time next year!"