Chapter 4
When I hailed a taxi, the driver recognized me instantly.
"Weren't you that girl from the concert tonight? You're number one on the local trending list."
I nodded awkwardly, bracing for his judgment about my weight.
Instead, he voiced his support.
"You're young, girl. Don't waste your time on a man like that. Anyone with eyes can see what really happened. That guy looks decent on the outside, but he's rotten inside."
So, not everyone was blind.
I opened the local trending list.
Sure enough, the hashtag 200PoundGirlIgnoredByBoyfriendAtConcert was exploding.
Countless netizens mockingly dubbed us the "gender-swapped version of the 'simp' and the pretty girl."
I was the unattractive, eager simp, and Ethan was the beautiful, unattainable pretty boy.
Scrolling through those comments, I took a deep breath.
I immediately contacted the most renowned fitness coach and nutritionist in the city.
I would lose 100 pounds in three months!
Then I would take that scumbag down a notch.
When I got home, I instructed the housekeeper to immediately pack up and remove every single trace of Ethan from the house.
His extreme cruelty was clearly a ploy to force a quick breakup, so I wouldn't stand in the way of his dream of becoming a major influencer.
After swiftly blocking him on all platforms, I plunged headfirst into a rigorous weight-loss regimen.
But within a single day, I overheard coworkers whispering Ethan's name again.
Rumor had it he was scheduled to go live at 8 PM that evening.
At 8 PM sharp, I found his account on the list of trending new live streams.
In just two days, he had already amassed several hundred thousand followers.
Entering his live stream now, the screen was flooded with virtual gifts.
Porsche sports cars, giant rockets, and countless smaller gifts like flowers and hearts.
Amid the constantly refreshing comments and gifts, Ethan's face was practically splitting from his grin.
He was showing off his shoulders, his delicate collarbones and deliberately made-up face creating a strong visual impact.
[We've sent the gifts, now tell us about what happened at the concert!]
Public opinion online had been divided: some claimed he was a kept man I had funded; others believed it was all my one-sided, shameless pursuit.
"Actually... this was supposed to be a private matter. I never intended to make it public," he began, feigning reluctance and building suspense.
"She's just the live-in help who cooks for our family. This ticket was originally for my sister, but it went missing. I only found out at the venue that she had stolen it."
I had imagined countless possibilities, but I never expected him to concoct such an absurd story.
Live-in help? A sister? Stolen tickets?
I was the one who paid for his ticket, and now he was slandering me?
[Ethan, you are utterly despicable.]
I couldn't resist sending the comment.
Even though it quickly disappeared into a flood of messages like "So the woman really is a bad person", I knew Ethan had seen it.
People were always sensitive to their own names.
His pupils constricted, and he immediately moved to end the stream.
"I've already fired her. Please, everyone, stop the personal attacks. I'm ending the stream for today."
Did he really think a single statement like that could undo the damage of his lies?
Ethan, I would make you pay for what you've done.
When it came to manipulating public opinion and traffic, Ethan was indeed skilled.
Within half a day, netizens were attempting to dox me.
Fortunately, my weight and aversion to having my picture taken meant my identity remained hidden.
Ethan, however, was mistakenly anointed the "Yuohs City Scion" by the public.
Resourceful netizens, using clues like his expensive clothes and his mentions of a sister and a live-in maid, quickly "identified" him as the son of the prominent Gomez family of Yuohs City.
Rumors spread that he had been studying abroad, never showing his face, and had only recently returned.
These netizens were capable of anything, except they had placed the crown on the wrong head.
The actual Gomez family heir, Sebastian, had just signed a contract with me last week.
He had even outright asked if I needed a professional nutritionist and offered to arrange one.
And his sister, Luna, who was actively building her career in the entertainment industry, probably had no idea she had suddenly gained a brother.
While the internet was busy vilifying me, I chose to ignore it.
Instead, I hired plenty of paid commentators to further promote the narrative that Ethan was the Gomez family scion.