Chapter 3 A Smile Forged in Betrayal.

The Jin Family manor, a sprawling monument to old money and carefully curated prestige, stood bathed in the amber glow of the evening. To the casual observer, the formal dining room, set for an intimate, "welcome home" dinner, was the picture of domestic bliss, rich with the scent of imported roses and gourmet cuisine. But to Jin Yaotian, stepping across the marble threshold, the atmosphere was a pressurized chamber of thinly veiled hostility and calculated deceit. This was not a dinner; it was an interrogation wrapped in silk and served on gold-plated porcelain.

​Yaotian had spent the hours since her calculated escape from the hospital transforming her body into a fortress. She arrived wearing a simple, elegant black dress that emphasized her flawless bone structure and the chilling, cold luminescence of her skin, a stark contrast to Jin Meifen's intentionally delicate pale pink lace. She had chosen black not for mourning, but for war.

​The moment she entered, two pairs of eyes-one shrewd, the other deceptively innocent-latched onto her. Director Xu, the stepmother, sat at the head of the table, her face a serene mask of authoritative concern. Beside her, Jin Meifen radiated a nervous, amplified warmth, her peach Omega scent trying, and failing, to soften the edges of the room.

​"Yao-Yao! You truly gave us a fright, darling," Director Xu said, rising with a performance of maternal relief that deserved a dramatic award. Her arms opened in a gesture of welcome that was immediately belied by the icy glint of suspicion in her eyes. The confrontation in the hospital room had clearly rattled her, but the Beta was far too practiced to let it show for long.

​Yaotian allowed herself to be embraced-a brief, perfunctory contact she endured with the detached patience of a spectator observing a mildly annoying insect. She noticed Xu's hands felt strangely clammy, betraying the turmoil beneath the polished surface.

​"I apologize for the fright, Mother Xu," Yaotian replied, her voice smooth and neutral, carrying no hint of either deference or distress. "The doctor assured me it was merely exhaustion. Nothing that a good night's rest and a thorough review of the Jin Corporation's financial stability won't fix."

​The sudden insertion of the word 'financial stability' into the conversation was a deliberate spike designed to pierce the veneer of domesticity. Director Xu's smile twitched.

​"Oh, you silly girl," Xu laughed, a brittle, high sound. "Leave those dreary figures to me! I am handling all those tiresome details while you focus on your magnificent future with Zhenyu. Come, sit, Yao-Yao. Meifen prepared your favorite jasmine tea."

​Jin Meifen, who had been anxiously watching the exchange, immediately rushed to Yaotian's side, placing a hand gently on her elbow, radiating that fake sisterly submission. "Yes, Yao jie-jie. You look pale. You must take care of yourself before the engagement. We simply must ensure that darling Zhenyu is captivated by your beauty, not worried by your workload."

​"Thank you, jie-jie," Yaotian responded, accepting the seat Meifen offered. She held Meifen's gaze for a beat too long, forcing the stepsister to quickly avert her eyes. Yaotian knew Meifen was secretly terrified-terrified that her jie-jie's sudden change of demeanor meant her meticulously planned life of stealing Zhenyu and the inheritance was already in jeopardy.

​The dinner began, but the meal was merely a prop for the verbal sparring. Director Xu quickly deployed the juicy scheme-a calculated probe to ascertain the depth of Yaotian's knowledge.

​"Yao-Yao," Xu began, carefully cutting into her steak. "About the Li family. Zhenyu's father called earlier. They are concerned about the terms of the pre-nuptial agreement, specifically regarding the handling of your ancestral estate. They find the current stipulations... ambiguous."

​This was the scheme. Xu and Zhenyu needed Yaotian to confirm that she was still willing to sign over control of her grandfather's vast, unlisted assets-assets that were immune to public corporate audit. Her past Omega self would have obediently agreed, eager to please her Alpha.

​Yaotian paused, lifting her glass of water. She felt the sudden, frantic focus of both antagonists upon her. She took a slow, deliberate sip before delivering her cutting counter-attack.

​"Ambiguous, Mother Xu?" Yaotian repeated, her voice laced with cool surprise. "How intriguing. I thought the terms were perfectly clear: the ancestral assets remain entirely separate until the marriage has successfully lasted for a minimum of ten years, with strict non-encumbrance clauses for the duration. Why would the Li family, with their vast wealth, find those terms ambiguous? Are they perhaps concerned about their ability to sustain a marriage for a full decade without resorting to undue financial influence?"

​

​The remark was a direct, lethal hit to the Li family's pride, suggesting they were marrying for necessity, not love. Director Xu's perfectly manicured hand, holding the knife, actually froze mid-air. Meifen choked on a sip of wine, coughing dramatically to cover her shock.

​"Yao jie-jie!" Meifen sputtered, her eyes wide with alarm. "That is terribly rude! Zhenyu loves you! He is a dominant Alpha! He doesn't need our money!"

​Yaotian turned her icy gaze to the stepsister, her smile forged in the furnace of betrayal. "Of course, jie-jie. I am sure you truly believe that. But love, like loyalty, is a commodity best secured by careful contract, wouldn't you agree? I simply find the Li family's sudden, disproportionate interest in my ancestral holdings highly illuminating. It suggests a lack of confidence in their own future."

​Director Xu slammed her knife down onto the plate, the sharp sound echoing in the sudden, charged silence. The Beta's facade had been punctured, and raw fury simmered in her eyes.

​"That is enough, Yao-Yao!" Xu snapped, dropping all pretense of maternal affection. "You will not insult the family of your future husband! You are still an Omega, and you will show respect! I am only managing this conversation to protect you from your own foolish comments."

​Ah, the desperation. Yaotian realized it was time to deploy the first subtle test of her Enigma power, not to win the argument-she had already won that-but to break Xu's psychological resilience.

​Yaotian gave a slight, dismissive wave of her hand. "Protect me, Mother Xu? I sincerely doubt that. I believe you are merely trying to protect your plan."

​As she spoke, Yaotian focused the chilling, silent energy of her Enigma core-that profoundly cold, latent power-and directed a minute, subtle pulse towards Director Xu's temporal lobe. The action was purely mental, undetectable, and designed only to disrupt the Beta's neurological processes by a fraction of a second.

​Xu, fueled by adrenaline and rage, immediately reached for a small, leather-bound notebook beside her plate-the notebook that contained her next planned line of attack.

​But the subtle Enigma influence worked perfectly.

​The moment Xu's fingers touched the cover, her motor reflexes lagged. Her mind, already strained by Yaotian's cutting remarks, stuttered. She experienced a sudden, inexplicable moment of mental fog, making her movements clumsy and slow.

​In that half-second of disruption, Yaotian, acting with the terrifying speed and precision granted by her new constitution, leaned forward and smoothly picked up the notebook herself. Her movement was so fluid and unexpected that it appeared entirely natural-as if Xu had simply decided to hand it over.

​"Were you reaching for this, Mother Xu?" Yaotian asked sweetly, holding the book aloft. "My apologies. I thought you might have been reaching for a pen. I wanted to note down the exact date and time of the Li family's 'ambiguity,' so I can have my own legal team review it before tomorrow morning."

​The victory was small, symbolic, and utterly shattering to Director Xu's confidence.

​Xu stared, her eyes wide and blank, her mind still struggling to process the lapse in control. What happened? Why did I freeze? She felt a strange, cold emptiness in the air around Yaotian-a profound lack of the Omega softness she was used to controlling.

​"G-give that back, Yao-Yao!" Xu stammered, her voice thin. "That is private! It contains confidential details about the family finances!"

​"Exactly," Yaotian countered, her smile widening into a predatory, beautiful crescent. "And since I am now so concerned about financial stability, I will ensure the contents are thoroughly reviewed tonight. You needn't worry, Mother Xu. After all, I am only trying to protect Yao-Yao's future."

​The words, parroting Xu's own fake concern, were a final, humiliating whip-crack. Meifen watched the scene unfold with barely suppressed horror. Her jie-jie was no longer the pampered, naive fool; she was a stunning, cold-blooded serpent who had just stolen critical information in front of their eyes, masked by a facade of polite concern.

​Yaotian stood, placing the small notebook securely into the slim clutch on her wrist. "The jasmine tea was delightful, jie-jie," she said, nodding politely to Meifen. "Mother Xu, I look forward to discussing the 'ambiguities' of the ancestral assets further after I have completed my independent audit. Please ensure my private office remains untouched in my absence."

​She turned and walked out, leaving behind a battlefield of shattered composure. The moment the manor's massive doors closed behind her, Jin Yaotian allowed herself a single, profound sigh of satisfaction. The first test was passed. The Enigma was awake, controlled, and utterly devastating. The notebook in her hand contained the contact details of the notary public and the true, concealed terms of the ancestral assets-information she would use immediately to sever her financial ties to Li Zhenyu.