My wedding starts at 12:00 pm on the dot.

There are 58 tables, each table costing 8888 dollars.

120 bottles of premium liquor have been opened. 300 packs of top-tier cigarettes are unsealed.

At 2:30 pm, all the guests have left the scene, leaving nothing but a huge mess behind. That's when a server hands me the bill.

"It'll be 510 thousand dollars, miss."

I'm left gobsmacked. "I'm a wedding guest, not the organizer."

The groom is Charlie Humboldt, my ex-boyfriend. At the moment, he takes his pregnant bride, Sasha Fitch, by the hand while sneering at me.

"Since you're here, you might as well foot the bill. Think of it as your way of compensating for my youth."

Charlie's mother, Melissa Carlton, moves to block the door. "If you're not paying the bill, then you can forget about leaving. No one wants you anyway, so you might as well stay here and pay off your debt by working as a dishwasher!"

As I stare at the shameless family, I dig out my phone quietly.

What they don't know is that this five-star hotel is a gift from my dad to me.

"It will be 510 thousand dollars. Will you be paying by cash or card?" Charlie Humboldt, my ex, asked as he thrust the payment terminal in my face, nearly poking me in the eye.

He hadn't even taken off his boutonniere yet. The bright red color was glaringly obvious.

I scoffed and shoved his hand aside. "Do you have some loose screws in your head, Charlie? Why do I have to pay for your wedding?"

Charlie straightened his tie with a self-righteous expression. "You should be paying the bill, Lily Rosewood. We were together for three years. I've grown sick and tired of living like a pauper.

"To protect your pride, I gave up on furthering my studies in Volpena. I gave up on my future. I also missed the promotion interview at the company two years ago to take care of you when you were running a high fever."

Charlie held his hand up and counted how many times he made sacrifices for my sake on his fingers. Spit flew from his lips and spattered across my face.

"I lost so much because of you. I'm already giving you a discount by only asking for 510 thousand dollars."

I looked at Charlie.

Three years ago, I was the one who kept vigil by his bedside for three days when he was running a high fever and calling out for his mother. To pay for the astronomically-priced, imported cold medicine, I even pawned off the gold bracelet that Grandma had left for me.

And yet, he wanted to twist the truth and accuse me of holding him back now?

"And what if I refuse to pay?" I asked, glaring at him coldly.

Charlie scoffed and snapped his fingers.

A waiter—Larry Ford, according to his nametag—immediately fixed a smug expression on his face. "Your signature is on the booking confirmation, miss."

He then slapped a wrinkled piece of paper on the table.

A wonky version of my signature had been scribbled on the dotted line. The penmanship was absolutely awful.

"I didn't sign this," I said, reaching out to grab the paper to take a closer look.

Larry hastily snatched it away, looking enraged. "Planning to destroy the evidence, huh? Not on my watch! Besides, the surveillance cameras are recording everything that you do."

I couldn't help but think that Larry was acting more like a hooligan than an actual waiter.

I scanned my surroundings.

Most of the guests had already left the large hall. The only ones left were Charlie's aunts.

They surrounded us, acting as if they were watching a show while they nibbled on their snacks. Greed and malice shone in their eyes, giving off the impression that they wanted to swallow me whole.

"I'm going to call the police," I said, pulling out my phone.

I had just unlocked it when it was snatched out of my hand.

The phone was ruthlessly hurled to the ground. The screen shattered immediately, and the battery popped out.

Charlie stomped on my phone and ground it under his shoe. The sounds of the broken glass shards scraping against the leather soles of his shoes grated on my ears.

"You want to call the police? This is an economic dispute. Even if they do show up, they'll demand that you pay the bill."

Charlie stepped closer to me. The stench of alcohol wafting from his mouth made my stomach churn in disgust.

"Don't test my patience, Lily. Be good and pay the bill. I'll let you walk away unscathed if you do. If you don't, you can forget about leaving this hotel."

Charlie's relatives also chimed in.

"He's right. What's wrong with paying the bill for him when you were together for three years?"

"I'm guessing that she can't afford it. Just look at her shabby clothes."

"Why did she show up for the wedding if she doesn't have money? How shameless!"

Their insults were like needles stabbing my heart.

I took a deep breath and forced myself to calm down.

It was a set-up.

Charlie had planned to ensnare me in his trap from the moment he sent the wedding invitation to me. The toast earlier was a lead-up to the moment he would force the exorbitant bill on me.

Everything was connected.

Charlie and the others were convinced that I was a doormat they could trample all over.

Unfortunately for them, they were sorely mistaken.

A high-pitched, feminine voice cut through the air. "Oh? If it isn't Ms. Rosewood."

Charlie's wife, Sasha Fitch, waddled over to us, escorted by her bridesmaids. Her belly was quite large. Her wedding dress was made of cheap lace, and the rhinestone necklace around her neck was blinding. It was obvious at just a single glance that the stones were from a warehouse.

She approached Charlie and locked arms with him. She pressed close to him and asked, "Why are you wasting your breath on a piece of trash like her, honey?"

Sasha shot a look of disdain at me. She pulled out a stack of hundred-dollar bills from her handbag and threw them in my face.

The sharp edges of the bills sliced across my cheek, leaving a stinging sensation in their wake. They fluttered through the air before scattering all over the floor.

"Take the money and get out of our sight, Lily. There should be enough there to cover your cab fare. As for the 510 thousand dollars that you owe us, I don't care if you have to donate your blood to collect enough money to pay off your debt."

I didn't budge an inch and let the bills fall around my feet.

Sasha mistook my silence for fear. She pulled out her phone and started livestreaming.

"Look, everyone! My husband's ex-girlfriend came to crash the wedding on our happy day! She enjoyed the food that we provided for free, but she wants to weasel her way out of paying her debt!"

Sasha thrust the phone at me, nearly hitting my nose with the screen. She intentionally turned off the beauty filter and filmed me from an unflattering angle that made my face look bigger and greasier than it actually was.

The number of viewers in the live stream rose rapidly. A flood of comments appeared on the screen.

"Is she supposed to be Charlie's horrible ex-girlfriend? She looks very average."

"I can't believe she's shameless enough to crash the wedding while dressed like an old hag."

"I've seen plenty of gold diggers like her. She just wants to extort money from them!"

"We have to find her! We can't let people like her get away with their schemes!"

A smug smile stretched across Sasha's lips as she read the comments.

"Look, everyone! She's not saying a word because she's feeling guilty. Charlie treated her so well. He invited her to our wedding even though they had already broken up. And how did she repay his kindness? By scheming with others to steal our money!"

It was clear that Sasha was trying to twist the truth in her favor, painting me as the villain.

Fury burned within me as I looked at the endless stream of angry comments.

"Spreading malicious rumors is against the law, Sasha," I spat coldly.

Sasha covered her mouth in an exaggerated manner. "Oh, I'm so scared!" she exclaimed. "But tell me, can a pauper like you even afford to hire a lawyer? Instead of preaching to me about the law, why don't you settle the bill for dinner first?"

Just then, Charlie's mother, Melissa Carlton, approached us, holding a pot.

It was the leftover fish stew from the main table. A thick layer of oil floated on the surface, and there were cigarette butts and phlegm mixed in the stew.

It was extremely disgusting.

"You don't want to pay?" Melissa demanded as she slammed the pot onto the table, causing the stew to splash everywhere. "That's fine. But you have to finish this entire pot of stew. I think I'll be able to find it in myself to remove a zero from the amount you owe us if you do!"

The people around us burst out into raucous laughter.

"Drink the stew!" they chanted as they slapped their hands against the table.

Melissa lifted the pot again and tried to forcefully pour its contents into my mouth.

Its nauseating scent permeated my senses.

"Drink! Why aren't you drinking it? Do you think it's too bland?" Melissa demanded before spitting a thick glob of phlegm into the stew. "It should be quite flavorful now. Drink it!"

She then tried to force-feed the stew to me again.

I knocked the pot away, causing it to tumble to the floor.

The fish stew splashed everywhere. Most of it soaked Melissa's red gown, while some of it drenched Sasha's wedding dress.

Sasha let out a shrill shriek. She grabbed the hem of her dress and began hopping around.

"My wedding dress!" she screeched. "It's a haute couture piece! Can you even afford to compensate me for dirtying it?"

Meanwhile, Melissa looked like a cat that had its tail stepped on.

"You bitch! How dare you splash the stew at me?"

She then raised her hand and tried to slap me.

I shifted my body to the side and dodged her attack.

Melissa stumbled forward when her hand lost its mark, and she nearly fell face-first onto the fish stew.

Charlie steadied Melissa before turning to glare at me.

"How dare you raise your hand against your elder, Lily? Do you have a death wish?"

His groomsmen immediately surrounded me when he waved his hand.

All of them were sleazy-looking men. Their eyes shone with a salacious glint as they roamed all over me. Some of the men even tried to tug at my clothes.

"No need to be so fierce, beautiful."

"It's perfectly reasonable for them to demand that you pay your debts."

"You can use your body as payment if you don't have any money. We don't mind at all."

Their disgusting words echoed in my ears. I retreated until my back hit the cold wall. I was trapped.

Larry had locked the doors to the banquet hall some time ago.

A few security guards stood near the exit. Their arms were crossed as they watched us, looking as if they were watching a particularly entertaining show. It was obvious that they were in cahoots with Charlie and his family.

Charlie pulled out a piece of paper from his coat.

It wasn't the bill from before. Instead, it was a promissory note.

"I'll take into account how we were once together, Lily. On top of the 510 thousand dollars that you already owe us, you also have to compensate Sasha for her soiled wedding dress and Mom for causing her emotional distress. That's an additional one million dollars. I'll let you go after you sign this note."

One million dollars?

It became blatantly obvious that Charlie and his family weren't just seeking compensation. They were attempting to commit daylight robbery.

"And if I refuse to sign?" I demanded, glaring at Charlie.

A sinister smile stretched across Charlie's lips. "You'll have to forgive me for using more forceful methods then."

He shot a look at his groomsmen, prompting two of them to lunge at me and grab either side of my shoulders.

My bones ached from how tightly they were gripping me.

Charlie stalked toward me, holding an ink pad.

"Make sure to get her fingerprint on the note!" Melissa shouted as she lunged at me and grabbed a fistful of my hair, forcing me to look up.

My scalp felt as if it would be torn clean off my skull.

"You're the one who made things difficult for yourself, you bitch. You're going to sign that note whether you like it or not!"

Meanwhile, Sasha aimed her phone at us and happily exclaimed, "Look, everyone! This is how you deal with a loser who refuses to pay her debts! This is what justice looks like! Hurry and like the livestream! I want it to reach the top of the front page!"

I struggled wildly. I bit Melissa's wrist, sinking my teeth into her flesh until the taste of blood permeated my tongue.

"She's trying to kill me!"

Melissa screamed in agony before letting go of me. She then delivered a hard slap across my face.

There was a loud buzzing in my ears. Blood stained the corner of my lips.

Charlie seized the opportunity to grab my hand and press my thumb against the ink pad.

The bright red ink pad looked just like blood.

My thumb was seconds away from touching the promissory note when Charlie suddenly sidled up to me and whispered in my ear.

"I'm willing to help you if you beg me, Lily. I'm meeting with a big client tonight. He's interested in rather… extreme activities. I'll cover half of your debt if you spend the night with him."

Disgust roiled in my gut.

Charlie was the epitome of repulsiveness.

How could I have been so blind in the past to fall in love with such a scumbag?

At that moment, the last bit of sympathy in my heart completely disappeared.

Since Charlie and his family had a death wish, I would be more than happy to send them to their graves.

I stopped struggling and relaxed my body. My eyes were ice-cold as I glared at them, looking as if they were dead men walking.

"Let go of me," I said icily.

I didn't raise my voice, but my words sent a chill down their backs.

Charlie was stunned and subconsciously loosened his hold on me.

I knocked away the groomsmen's hands before smoothing down my messy hair and wiping the blood from the corners of my lips.

"One million dollars, was it?" I asked.

My lips curled up into a mocking smile as I looked at Charlie. "Fine. I'll pay."

Charlie and his family were stunned by my words. A few seconds later, they burst into laughter.

Melissa held her bitten wrist as she roared in laughter, wrinkles deepening on her face.

"Why didn't you say so from the start? You damned wretch! I guess we had to shake you up a little to get you to listen to us."

Meanwhile, Sasha made a victory gesture in front of the camera.

"Justice always prevails, everyone! A stronger existence will always come along to put evil people in their place. She's finally accepting defeat!"