Chapter Twenty-Eight: Darling, I Was Wrong. I Want to Go Back Home!

"This is rebellion! Pure rebellion!"

"You bunch of unruly rabble!"

"Do you know who I am? I am the eldest son of the Lin Group! I am my father’s only son!"

"One day, after my father passes, I will inherit the entire Lin Group and become one of the wealthiest names on the Huaxia rich list!"

Lin Ruozhi was trembling with fury, his finger pointing shakily at Zhang Fan. "You—you actually want these two lowly laborers to slap me? Where did you get the nerve? What right do they have?"

The four bodyguards had initially intended to intervene, but Lin Ruozhi’s outburst had already drawn a crowd of onlookers. When he referred to everyone as "lowly laborers," the bystanders began to turn on him one by one.

"What the hell did you just say? Who is a lowly laborer? Watch your mouth!"

"I break my back from dawn till dusk to earn a couple hundred bucks just to feed my family, and in your eyes, I’m just bottom-feeding trash?"

"Screw you! You were just born with a silver spoon, weren't you? Did you earn the money for that car or those clothes yourself?"

At first, Lin Ruozhi tried to snap back, but soon, hundreds of people had swarmed him. The angry crowd even flipped his car over on the spot. Terrified and trembling, Lin Ruozhi sat frozen in his vehicle, not daring to move a muscle.

Zhang Fan stepped forward, spreading his hands and calling out loudly, "Alright, alright! Everyone, calm down!"

"Even though this guy is brain-damaged, if you actually hurt him, you’ll be the ones paying for it. Let it go!"

With that, Zhang Fan’s expression turned menacing. He sneered at Lin Ruozhi. "Well? Aren't you going to apologize to everyone? Do you want to be torn apart by them? Huh?"

Lin Ruozhi had lost every shred of his earlier arrogance. He scrambled out, disheveled and covered in dirt, and knelt in the middle of the crowd. He wept uncontrollably, begging for forgiveness from everyone.

"Uncles, aunts, brothers, sisters, I was wrong! I’ll never do it again! You are all hardworking and worthy of respect—I really won't do it again..."

But his perfunctory apology did not satisfy everyone. By the time Zhang Fan left, the angry mob of hundreds had swelled into thousands, blocking the road completely. Videos of Lin Ruozhi berating the workers and then kneeling to apologize went viral across the internet.

When Lin Changfeng received the news, he was horrified and rushed to retrieve his son.

*Smack!*

Ignoring the injuries on his son's face, he slapped him hard and pointed a finger at him in a rage. "Lin Ruozhi, are you an absolute moron? The economy is struggling, unemployment is high, and every industry is hyper-competitive—and you go out in public to insult ordinary people?"

"Offending one person is one thing, but how did you manage to offend thousands at once?"

A secretary walked over, looking worried. "Boss, the entire internet is calling for a boycott against us."

"And our competitors are using this opportunity to dig up our dark history. The tax bureau has already received at least a hundred reports of tax evasion. What do we do?"

Hearing this, Lin Changfeng nearly died of anger. He grabbed an object and beat Lin Ruozhi severely. If not for the employees intervening, Lin Changfeng truly would have beaten his foolish son to death.

"Young Master, get out of here!" the secretary whispered, frantically gesturing to Lin Ruozhi while holding back Lin Changfeng.

Lin Ruozhi stumbled out of the office and collapsed into his lounge. "Damn you, Zhang Fan! You deserve to die! If it weren't for you, how could things have ended up like this? I’ll kill you! I’ll find a way to kill you!"

***

Meanwhile, it was late at night, but Liu Yan couldn't sleep.

John’s demands had become increasingly perverse, and she was covered in bruises. Furthermore, when she brought up the green card and citizenship again after John had played his "games" all day, he remained silent.

Watching John sleep, a cold realization finally dawned on Liu Yan. How could the paperwork be this difficult? Could it be... that he only sees me as a toy?

Recalling the skeletons she had seen in John’s living room, she felt a chill run through her bones, terrified to the point of madness. She rose slowly, not daring to turn on the lights, and retreated to the bathroom to check her phone.

After scrolling through short videos for a while without finding a way out, her expression grew increasingly grim. "Why are there so many videos about Zhang Fan? And why is he so famous online now?"

She searched for his name and saw the videos of the incident with Lin Ruozhi. In the comment sections, Zhang Fan was practically being hailed as a saint.

While her own suffering was unbearable, Zhang Fan’s success twisted the knife in her heart. "He pays his workers fifty thousand a month, and he turned down a thirty-million contract to sell his company? That’s thirty million!"

"Does this mean Zhang Fan didn't borrow money to start his company—that his family was wealthy all along?"

The more she thought about it, the more miserable she became, her regret deepening. *If I hadn't come to America... wouldn't I be as famous as Zhang Fan? After all, I am still his wife.*

Liu Yan’s heart was bleeding. Suddenly, a voice dripping with mockery came from behind her.

"Yan, why are you hiding in the bathroom scrolling through your phone?"

Liu Yan shuddered. She turned around to see John standing there. His eyes were cold—the facade of affection he had maintained was completely gone. Now that his wounds had healed, he looked at her as if she were prey.

Feeling a chill, she stammered, "Honey, my stomach doesn't feel well. I... I want to go to the hospital."

John snatched her phone, pulled out the SIM card, and handed it back with a smile. "If your stomach hurts, just take some painkillers. It’s nothing. Yan, let’s go back to sleep, shall we?"

Liu Yan was truly terrified. Seeing him pull the SIM card, she looked toward the front door and bolted. John was prepared; he grabbed her by the hair, his expression turning vicious.

"You Chinese woman, you come into my house and then try to run? Where do you think you’re going?"

For the next ten minutes, John beat her mercilessly until she was bruised, bloody, and sobbing. "John, don't hit me, please stop. I’m going to die..."

He dragged her to the bed, tied her down, and went to sleep without a word.

Liu Yan’s tears ran dry, but John remained unmoved. Overcome by fear and panic, she grabbed her phone. Without the SIM card, she couldn't call the police. After much deliberation, she made a video call.

It was just past five in the morning in Huaxia. Zhang Fan was waiting for his daughter to finish school when he saw the call from Liu Yan. A look of mockery crossed his face. The system had warned him that John was a psychopath. Had this woman finally run into trouble?

Intrigued, Zhang Fan answered. Seeing Liu Yan disheveled and covered in blood, even he was taken aback.

"Oh, look at that. My dear American citizen, what happened to you? Did you get robbed on the street again?"

Liu Yan sobbed, her face swollen and tear-streaked. "Husband, help me! Please, save me! John—he’s a monster. He’s killed people. The room is filled with human remains. Please, call the police for me, I beg you! Husband..."

"I shouldn't have cheated. I shouldn't have tried to take our daughter away. I was wrong, I was so wrong..."