Evening. The sun was setting.
The scorching heat wave slowly receded, leaving a hint of coolness in the air.
Sherwood Villa.
Today, the three members of the Vaughn Family were invited over as guests. James Vaughn and his wife, Fiona Goldsmith, had already arrived at the Sherwood residence, but Morgan Vaughn was running late due to some business.
A burst of laughter came from the living room. James Vaughn was sprawled on the sofa, pulling his eldest nephew, Tristan Sherwood, into a conversation. His booming voice could be heard throughout the entire villa.
"Tristan, it's not that I'm trying to rush you, but you need to take this matter of the assessment for the Young Master Sherwood candidacy seriously. If Mervin had your favorable circumstances, he would've become the Vaughn Family's Young Master ages ago."
"This time, Mervin's advisor gave him a task. Once that piece of land is converted into an experimental zone, his direct admission into the doctoral program is a done deal."
James Vaughn's face was beaming as he spoke. "Once Mervin graduates and gets an internship at the Vaughn Family lab in Valerium, and you pass your assessment and get connected over there, you two brothers can support each other. Then, I can finally rest easy."
The conversation inevitably circled back to how outstanding Morgan Vaughn was and his direct admission into a doctoral program.
James Vaughn's joy was plain to see, tinged with a subtle hint of showing off.
Tristan Sherwood's brow furrowed into a knot.
The mere mention of the assessment for the Young Master Sherwood candidacy made his chest tighten. He didn't want to say another word about it.
Only those with a five-star rank on UmbraNet were qualified, and he couldn't even get his foot in the door.
With only half a year left, going from one star to five was next to impossible!
Just then, his phone rang. As if granted a reprieve, Tristan Sherwood immediately got up from the sofa, excused himself, and walked out to the terrace to take the call.
He would rather stand on the terrace and space out than listen to his uncle's nagging.
His entire life, he had lived in Morgan Vaughn's shadow.
They were the same age and cousins, so it was inevitable that they would be secretly pitted against each other in every aspect.
And the great families loved this kind of drama.
'I'm so sick of it!'
While Tristan Sherwood was on the phone, Vivian Morton fidgeted restlessly in a corner of the living room, looking nervous and awkward.
She had been at the hospital with Mr. Morton these past few days and had only managed to find time to come back because the Sherwoods were having guests.
The Sherwoods' attitude toward her was the same as always: lukewarm, neither good nor bad.
She didn't feel much of anything.
'I'm used to it.'
'It's just...'
'There's a huge weight on my chest, crushing me until I can barely breathe.'
Vivian Morton sat alone to the side, wringing her hands, her gaze distant.
'My husband has no time for me. How am I supposed to bring up my brother?'
'If I don't send the person over tonight, my brother will have both his legs broken!'
'What should I do?'
'I'm going to lose my mind...'
Completely distracted, she stole a glance at Serena Sherwood, who was dressed in a gorgeous haute couture dress, a flicker of hesitation in her eyes.
'If I ask the second young miss for help, will my husband get angry?'
After a moment of internal conflict, Vivian Morton stood up and quietly followed Tristan Sherwood to the terrace...
On the other side of the living room.
Serena Sherwood was imperiously ordering the maids to help her pack.
They had already packed dozens of boxes with just her clothes, and shoes and bags were piled all over the floor.
Seeing the results, she smiled in satisfaction, a trace of anticipation in her eyes.
'All my effort wasn't in vain.'
BING BONG BING BONG—her phone vibrated nonstop.
Serena Sherwood glanced around, and seeing that no one was paying her any attention, she stealthily took out her phone and opened Weibo.
Her notifications were covered in red dots.
At the very top of her feed was a post she had made ten minutes ago, specifically tagging @IrisDalton.
Within ten minutes, it had been reposted over ten thousand times.
[@SerenaSherwoodV: Packing is so tiring [Heartbreak]. My sister, who was lost for eighteen years, came home and insisted on taking over my room. *sob* I have no choice but to pack up and move out. I'm so pitiful [Innocent][TearyEyes]. I'm the older sister, so I know I should be accommodating. My little sister suffered for eighteen years in the mountains; if you want anything of mine, I'll give it all to you. She even got her wish and was admitted to the experimental class at Lumin-Umbra High School. Please don't throw any more tantrums. While I'm away from home, you have to treat Mom and Dad well. I'm begging you, little sister @IrisDalton.]
Below the post was a nine-photo grid showing Serena Sherwood and the maids packing, with boxes of all sizes neatly arranged and covering the floor.
When Serena Sherwood debuted, she signed with Stellan's top entertainment company, Elysian World. Backed by the wealthy Sherwood Family, with the young master of the Adler Family as her boyfriend, she quickly amassed a legion of loyal fans.
Everyone envied her background.
A true heiress from a great family—she was the kind of winner in life that everyone looked up to!
The comments below the post were filled with fans expressing their shock and pity for her.
[Oh my god, I'm shocked. Serena has a sister who was lost for eighteen years and just returned to the family, and she's an evil sister? What kind of web novel plot is this?]
[My heart aches for Serena. *hugs Serena* My parents are biased toward my younger sister too. I totally relate.]
[Shouldn't a kid from the mountains be kind? Why is she so evil, bullying kind-hearted Serena?]
[She was probably sold to the mountains as a child. After being missing for eighteen years, she must be married already, right? I heard that in those remote villages, several brothers share one wife. Did she suddenly return to a rich family and get jealous of Serena? Is she trying to steal everything from her? The more I think about it, the scarier it gets!]
Soon, the hashtag #PitySerenaSherwood shot up the trending charts, climbing rapidly.
More and more fans and casual netizens jumped in to watch the drama and join the discussion.
Two minutes later, a post from a major influencer appeared out of nowhere!
Shaun Adler shared the topic and immediately followed up with his own post.
[@ShaunAdlerV: Don't cry, Serena. Don't be sad. You're the kindest darling @SerenaSherwood. A certain manipulative drama queen is playing games, and it's disgusting. @IrisDalton, shouldn't you apologize to your sister?]
The onlookers were stunned!
A top idol publicly showing off his relationship? This was him risking his career to support his girlfriend!
He might be a bit of a lovesick fool, but his boyfriend-power was off the charts. You couldn't fault him for it.
We love to see it! We love to see it!
Everyone chimed in, savoring the drama that was sweeter than candy, absolutely reveling in the chaos.
Suddenly, another post appeared that blinded everyone!
Just thirty seconds later, under Elysian World's official account, Vincent Thorne also shared the post, dropping the hammer himself.
[@VincentThorneV: Scheming woman @IrisDalton, apologize now!]
The moment this post went live, the already bustling internet exploded into a new tidal wave of commotion.
A new trending topic shot up from the bottom of the list to firmly occupy the number one spot.
#HasTheSchemingWomanApologized#
The onlookers, with stars in their eyes: "Love it! Love it! Let them fight! Let them fight!"
The paid commenters and keyboard warriors: "Let the cyberbullying be even more vicious! We love watching rich sisters tear each other apart!"
Casual netizens: "..."
'What's going on?'
'Who's this scheming woman? How can something like this get on the trending list?'
Shaun Adler had been in the entertainment industry for just over a year and already had twenty million fans.
Vincent Thorne himself was a handsome and wealthy scion, as well as the president of Elysian World. He had over eighty million fans, and his online traffic was comparable to that of an A-list celebrity.
These two men were not ordinary figures. For them to post almost simultaneously to support Serena Sherwood, righteously demanding that Iris Dalton apologize...
...was solid proof that Iris Dalton was a vicious sister, a manipulative, attention-seeking bitch!
The fans and casual netizens had no idea who Iris Dalton was—they hadn't even seen a picture of her. All they could do was imagine what she looked like.
But with a rich heiress and a wealthy, domineering CEO entering the fray, they got excited too.
'It's confirmed, she's a manipulative ugly hag. Otherwise, the rich young masters would have taken pity on her just for her looks.'
'Serena Sherwood is just average-looking and she's still doted on by a rich young master. Iris Dalton must be a real horror show.'
Within seconds, a hundred thousand people flooded the Weibo comments, all sympathizing with Serena Sherwood and viciously cursing Iris Dalton.
[Go die, you scheming bitch! How dare you bully our Serena! We'll cyberbully you to death!]
[You evil sister can't stand to see your older sister doing well. An ugly heart for an ugly face. I hope you get hit by a car and die the next time you go out, you ugly hag. I'll send a funeral wreath in advance.]
[Get back to the countryside, you evil, ugly hag! My sister is the real heiress. Get the hell away from her.]
[Serena is just too kind! You evil drama queen, hurry up and die! If you don't, I'll stomp you every time I see you!]
Serena Sherwood scanned through all the comments. Seeing that everyone sympathized with her and was clamoring to cyberbully Iris Dalton, she put her phone away in satisfaction.
* * *
A large horde of paid commenters stirred up the sentiment, and the online storm raged with increasing intensity.
Fans flocked to the official website of Lumin-Umbra High School, posting threads and howling for the school to expel Iris Dalton. They also attacked the third-year experimental class on the forums.
[Even a vicious country bumpkin from the mountains can get into the experimental class. Birds of a feather flock together, so you all must be trash too!]
[This class must be full of spoiled rich kids. I heard your tests are different and you aren't ranked with the other classes. Haha, you're all probably a bunch of useless slackers!]
[The poster above is telling the truth. This is a bunch of losers. Verdict's in!]
Lumin-Umbra High School's term started tomorrow, and many students had already arrived on campus early to settle into their dorms.
A boy ran in, panting, and shouted to his dorm mates, "Quick, look at the school forum! Our class is getting cyberbullied!"
Everyone: "..."
A boy sitting by the window paused, his pen hovering over paper. He immediately opened his phone, went to the forum, and scanned the thread that already had several hundred replies.
His gaze grew colder and colder, his brow furrowing deeply, and the corners of his handsome mouth tightened into a thin line.
The other boys in the dorm also looked at the forum and were so angry they were practically jumping up and down.
"Who the hell is Iris Dalton? Is she a new transfer student this year? What a bitch!"
"Why should the rest of the experimental class take the blame for her scandal? Ugly people sure love to cause trouble!"
"Class President, what do you think we should do?" They all turned to look at the boy by the window.
The boy put his phone away and slowly looked up, an arrogant chill in his eyes. "The experimental class doesn't need disgusting trash like her. Make her get out!"
* * *
During the evening rush hour, the roads were gridlocked.
The FM radio was on in the Maserati, playing a love song with a haunting, winding melody that made one's heart yearn.
["Thank you to Tatum Monroe for joining us in the studio today to present his new song, 'Can't Forget the Face in My Dreams.' Tatum Monroe's new album has won this year's Yamei Golden Melody Album of the Year award, with record sales surpassing one million copies..."]
Iris Dalton was listening, captivated, when an abrupt, electronic, mechanical sound shattered her mood.
DING—
[Slick]: "Broadcasting an important notification: Your Highness, the Pond Lord's Weibo account is under a cyberbullying attack!"
DING—
[[YellowFish]]: "Real-time monitoring has detected a Network Hostility Index of ninety-five, Danger Index of eighty, and a projected Attack Index as high as ninety. This far exceeds the safe threshold. Requesting permission to initiate defensive counterattack! Requesting permission to initiate defensive counterattack!"
Iris Dalton was a bit bewildered. She took out her phone, opened Weibo, and saw two trending topics.
Number one on the trending list: #HasTheSchemingWomanApologized#
Number ten on the trending list: #PitySerenaSherwood#
Her private messages were flooded with red dots. Countless people were telling her to go die!
Iris Dalton's expression froze for a moment. Her eyes hardened with a cold light, and a murderous aura began to rise around her.