Chapter 1

After Tobias Bennett went bankrupt, everyone laughed at me, the real heiress, for choosing the wrong man. They waited for us to become beggars.

At that time, Tobias lay penniless under a bridge. His face looked defeated as he said to me, "You should leave. I have nothing left."

I stayed silent for two seconds, then said, "Don't be so quick to deny yourself. At least you can still drag your lame leg around and deliver food to support me."

He propped himself up. "You're right."

In truth, I was poorer than he was because I had to stick to my persona as his mistress and could do nothing on my own.

I was bound to a system and could only obtain money through Tobias. If he didn't support me, I would starve.

Tobias' true love and my younger brother broke into my place and emptied everything, leaving not even a cent in my bank account.

Just when we felt completely helpless, a voice sounded in my head.

It announced, "Villainous Ex-Girlfriend System activated. As long as the host bullies the male lead, she receives cash rewards.

"Current task: step on his chest and call him trash! Reward: 15 thousand dollars."

My eyes lit up. I looked at the dejected Tobias, saying, "Tobias, the system finally woke up. It told me to trample you. Then we'll have money."

*****

Yeah, I knew I was the villainess in this story, the true heiress of the Emerson family, swapped at birth.

And the fake heiress? She was the female lead.

Not only did the whole family adore her, but she was also one true love in the hearts of all the big shots in the capital.

When I returned to the Emerson family, all they did was humiliate me. They didn't give me a single cent to spend.

With the system locked onto me, I couldn't do business, couldn't earn money from anyone but Tobias, and couldn't even hide away a penny for myself.

Everything was set up for Tobias to lose everything, so I'd be the one to humiliate him, push him to fight for the heroine, and watch them patch things up in the end.

As for me, the female lead would torture me to death as payback for the humiliation she thought I caused Tobias.

The system promised me that if I finished every mission, I'd actually get to live.

At long last, that day was finally here.

Tobias stared at me, not moving an inch. "Are you crazy too?"

I tugged at his sleeve, putting on my best pleading look. "Come on, help me out here, will you?"

I always knew I was pretty, even as the villainess. Tobias had spoiled me rotten all these years, even though in the story, his true love was the female lead, my so-called sister.

But honestly, I couldn't care less.

The system told me from the very beginning that as long as I played my part and finished the plot, I could make a clean exit, return to my original world, and pocket 3 billion dollars!

So all these years, I played the perfect pampered lover, waiting for this day to finally arrive.

Tobias gently patted my head. "You're right. I can't give up. I still gotta keep you fed."

He fought through the pain from the leg his half-brother had broken and struggled to stand up.

"Tobias, I'm serious!" I grabbed his hand. "I am bound to the Villainous Ex-Girlfriend System. Can you play along with me? If we milk the system for all it's worth, we can get your leg fixed."

Tobias had always been good to me, whether it was daily life or between the sheets.

He was one hell of a lover, and used to be a killer CEO.

Under his leadership, Bennett Group reached heights it had never seen before.

If his family and the board hadn't stabbed him in the back, he never would've ended up like this.

He had started a bunch of kids' charities, so even girls in remote areas could get an education.

So when the system latched onto me, I made up my mind not to actually hurt him. I only wanted to be upfront with him and get him to go along with it.

Anyway, the system only cared about what I did. It didn't give a damn about anything else.

Tobias grabbed a long stick to steady himself. "Kathy, as soon as I get some cash, I swear I'll take you to see a doctor."

I was speechless.

He limped out from under the bridge, and I hurried after him.

I yelled, "Tobias, don't make me do this the hard way—"

Before I could finish, a few figures came down the steps.

"Well, well, so this is where my dear sister's been hiding." Tricia Emerson, the fake heiress, sauntered down the steps, my birth parents, my brother, and Tobias's half-brother all in tow.

I rushed to help Tobias stand upright. The guy had just gotten his leg busted by a mob of thirty people, all because he dared to talk back to his half-brother.

Tricia saw Tobias looking like a total wreck, and she looked absolutely devastated. "Tobias, you've really disappointed me.

"I went abroad, not died! Why did you have to make her my stand-in? And you know it was because of her that I left in the first place.

"I wanted you to taste what it's like to lose it all."