When the company announced the annual retreat—a luxury trip to Southeast Asia—I had a bad feeling. My mom snatched the glossy brochure from my hand. "Your company has been around for years, why would they scam you? If you don't know how to enjoy a blessing like this, let your brother go!" I frowned and tried to argue, but my brother, Kyle, cut in: "Sis, are you jealous again? This is your own fault for not wanting to go. Don't tell me you're regretting it now that you see I can go have fun?" I was worried about putting Kyle in danger. I gritted my teeth, ready to just go myself, when suddenly, glowing text—like a livestream chat—scrolled across my vision: [Here we go! The Female Lead is about to get packaged and sold by her company! Can't wait for her to meet the Mafia Boss in the Zone and unlock that spicy, toxic romance~] [How did this get past the censors? But this setting... kinda hot, ngl.] [Totally. Once the FL becomes the top girl, the ML falls in love at first sight. Then it's forced love, captivity play, gaslighting, enemies-to-lovers... inject it into my veins! A masterpiece!] I couldn't understand what was "sweet" about any of that. Terrified, I answered my brother: "I don't regret it. You can have my spot." 1 [??? Why did the FL change her mind???] [No way, no way. If she doesn't go, how does the plot happen?] [Impossible. The plot will force her to go, right? I'm still waiting for the dark, handsome Mafia Boss to save her from being humiliated in the club. The 'crazy bad boy' trope is too good!] [Humiliated? Is the FL not... pure?] [She dresses like the innocent white flower those bosses love. She gets picked immediately upon entering the Zone. Her first night sells for a high price. She only meets the ML after becoming the top earner.] [What trash writing. FL isn't pure? Gross. Vomit!] [Purity police, exit left. Bye. Later on, the ML's rival kidnaps her to humiliate him. After the rival forces himself on her, he lets his subordinates take turns...] [What? And this still has a Happy Ending? I feel bad for the ML, having to be a stepdad to trauma...] [Is the commenter above sick? The ML is a crime lord in a lawless zone. You think he's clean?] My blood ran cold. The comments mentioned specific terms. The Zone. Line workers. Ice... And the "top girl" they mentioned was undoubtedly a "Gold Medal Hostess." Drinking with clients, partying, sleeping with them, even doing drugs with them... Girls who fall into that life, after being exploited for every ounce of sexual value and surviving inhuman abuse, are often used as breeding stock. In the end, they are drained of blood or harvested for organs, dying miserably on the streets, disappearing from the world completely. And all of this was just an "exciting and interesting story" to them? The comments even gleefully spammed a famous line from the "novel": [Welcome to the North of M Country, the place where I grow. Welcome to my world, my precious little princess.] They were dying of happiness in the chat. They shamelessly declared: Even if the Female Lead lost so much, she gained the Male Lead's sweet love~ I only felt a chill deep in my bones. 2 A notification popped up in the company group chat: HR: @Everyone The Year-End Company Retreat is go! A special 7-Day Tour of Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand! All expenses during the trip—flights, hotels, meals—are covered by the company. No budget worries, no planning stress. Just follow the company's arrangement. Free your hands, free your mind, and enjoy the team building~ Plus, the company has booked an international 5-star hotel for the Annual Gala. Activities include: Cash Lottery: Grand Prize $25,000! First Prize $15,000! Third Prize $8,000! Plus ten runner-up prizes of $1,000+! Everyone gets something! Gift Raffle: Latest MacBooks, iPhones, Dyson vacuums, hairdryers, upgrades to Couple Suites and Presidential Suites! All-inclusive: Buffet meals, open bar, and free SPA services at the hotel. We invite all partners to participate enthusiastically. Wishing everyone a prosperous New Year! CEO Wang: ??? Secretary Zhang: Thank you to the leadership! Grateful! ? Manager Li: The company treats us so well. We must work harder to not disappoint the leaders! ? Zhao: Grateful for the mentorship! ❤️ Intern Wu: What? The retreat is this good? ? But I'm still an intern, I probably can't go, right? HR: No worries! We are all family here. I applied specially for you interns. You can go too! Intern Wu: Yay! Thank you leaders! Thank you company! ??? ... After the official announcement, the group chat exploded. Everyone was happily thanking the company for its generosity. Thinking of the comments, I couldn't smile. My brother, Kyle, snatched my phone after seeing the notification. "Sis! Your company benefits are insane! Holy crap, the lottery has a $25,000 grand prize! Since you said I could go, no take-backs! Even if I win the lottery at your gala, you can't ask for it back!" Thinking of the future described in the comments, I tried to stop him. "Kyle, average companies don't do international retreats like this. Plus, I haven't even passed probation..." Kyle interrupted impatiently: "Sis, stop making excuses. You just don't want to give me the spot. You're jealous that I'm about to go on an international trip, right?!" I opened my mouth, but before I could speak, Mom threw the brochure back at me, looking heartbroken. "Lily, I raised you with blood and sweat. Since college, you've been traveling everywhere, but we haven't even left the state once. Now you're begrudging your brother one trip..." But I was running around working odd jobs. It wasn't tourism; it was survival to save for tuition. She got more upset as she spoke, her voice choking up. "Kyle, your sister is so stingy. She won't let you go. She's definitely holding a grudge about when you were little, thinking I favored you. Kyle, if we can't go, we won't go. Mom will pay for a tour for us!" Kyle immediately wailed: "Mom, Sis's company gala has a lottery! The grand prize is $25,000, and there are tons of smaller cash prizes! My luck has always been better than hers. If I go, I'll definitely win!" Mom's voice went up an octave. "That much?!" Kyle hugged my phone, reading the notification word for word. The two of them were beaming, a picture of familial bliss. As if they had already won the $25,000. Mom glanced at me, pointedly saying: "Kyle, it's about time you bought a house. If you win that money, it's better for you to hold onto it than your sister..." 3 It had always been like this. In this family, my parents seemed to only belong to Kyle, not me. My brother was named Kyle—strong, classic. I was the unwanted older daughter. My name was Lily, but it felt like "Leftover." Growing up, I only got to play with toys Kyle broke. I didn't like the headless action figures or the broken cars. I wanted pretty dolls and magic wands too. But Mom said: "Lily, you're a big girl, why do you still play with toys? Your brother is small, let him play. Mom will buy you new clothes for New Year." But Mom never bought me those clothes. On my birthday, Mom would buy two cakes because Kyle cried about not having his own. But on Kyle's birthday, there was never a cake for me. I got into a top-tier university. Kyle failed his SATs twice and went to a community college. Mom held my hand and said: "Lily, look how many families don't even let girls go to college so they can save money for the son. Remember how good the family is to you. Don't dwell on small things." I believed her. I swallowed my grievances and told myself to be content. So I worked everywhere, gritting my teeth to pay my own tuition. But late at night, seeing Kyle post about his new Jordans on Instagram, I would sob into my pillow. One pair of his shoes cost a semester of my tuition. Why? We were both their children. Why was my life so hard, while Kyle was lifted up by the whole family? After graduation, Mom started asking for money. "Lily, your brother is still in school. Everything costs money. You graduated, you should share the burden." Kyle was at a no-name college, yet "everything cost money." I went to a top university and never took a cent from home. Even though I was numb to it, hearing these words still stung. When Mom brought Kyle to live in my rental apartment, she cried, screamed, and threatened to hang herself until I gave her my debit card. She said: "Lily, you just started earning money. You'll spend it recklessly. Mom will save it for you. It'll be there later." But under her pillow, she hid brochures for real estate, whispering with Kyle behind my back. Now, hearing about the trip and the lottery, she couldn't wait to give everything that belonged to me to Kyle. Even my well-intentioned warnings were labeled "stingy," "petty," and "immature." 4 I picked up the brochure from the floor. Below the photos of beaches and temples, there was fine print: Trip Notice: To ensure smooth travel, please hand over passports to the company for safekeeping before departure. During major events, please hand in phones as per regulations. Participate fully, look up at the world, don't be a zombie scroller. The Retreat and Gala are mandatory. Employees who do not participate lack team spirit. The entire department will forfeit their year-end bonuses! Seeing these rules, the chat comments exploded: [Okay, seriously? This is too suspicious. If she goes, she's an idiot.] [But it's vicious. If one person doesn't go, the whole department loses their bonus. Anyone who refuses becomes public enemy number one.] [Who collects passports? Only traffickers. If she falls for this, she deserves it.] [Above comment, stop victim-blaming. How is being scammed the victim's fault?] [To be fair, the FL is pitiful. Sexist family, vampire brother.] [Later, after she gets sold, she tries to contact her family. But her family just asks if the bonus money came through. When they hear she needs ransom, they hang up and block her. Only when her video goes viral do they show up again, asking her for money to buy the brother a house.] [The 'Brother-Helper Demon' FL is tragic. Luckily the Male Lead will slap the vampire family in the face later. Guaranteed sweet ending~] [Welcome to the Zone, my precious little princess~] [So now the FL senses something wrong, stops her brother, and forces herself to go?] Reading these comments, my heart turned to ice. So this was my future? Sold to a foreign land. Imprisoned as a plaything for some "Boss." Squeezed dry by my family and then discarded. And everyone watching found this entertaining. No one cared about my pain. I was cold all over, forcing back tears. I refused to accept this terrible future. I would not be anyone's "little princess." I would not go to the hell those demons prepared. And I certainly wouldn't give up my freedom and life for their so-called "sweet romance"! I swallowed the words I wanted to say about the suspicious rules. Since they wanted Kyle to go, I would let him. "I didn't mean to fight. Kyle is more suitable than me." Mom and Kyle beamed. "Lily, I'm glad you figured it out. That's what a big sister should do!" I matched their smiles, the corners of my lips curling into a mocking arc. "Yes, Mom. I don't have the fate to enjoy this blessing. Let Kyle have it."
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