After being reborn, I submitted my resignation, left the medical examiner's office, and broke away from the Foster family who raised me, bearing the infamy of being an ingrate. Why? Because in my past life, Julian Foster, the police chief's only son, lost the love of his life, Bella Han—a woman supposedly born with "Yin-Yang Eyes"—in an accident while chasing a suspect. I married him and became the chief's daughter-in-law. For twenty years, Julian and I fought side by side. I deciphered the dead's last words; he quelled their grievances. Together, we solved every cold case in Cloud City from the last fifty years. But at my award ceremony, Julian, the man I thought was my soulmate, publicly denounced me for fraud. He claimed all the key clues in the cases I solved came from the notes Bella left behind using her "Yin-Yang Eyes." "Elara Lin, you stole the life that belonged to Bella." Even the son I raised looked at me with disdain. "Mom, I can't believe a medical examiner like you got ahead using superstition." Under their scornful gazes, I collapsed at the station entrance. Every case I handled was investigated. He found "negligence" everywhere, sending me to prison. There, criminals I helped catch tortured me until I was eventually hanged. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day the department was selecting a medical examiner for the Major Crimes Unit. 1 Chief Foster sat in his office, expression grave. "Julian, for the Major Crimes Unit ME spot... Elara or Bella?" Colleagues chimed in teasingly: "Is that even a question? Julian and Elara are childhood sweethearts. Who else but her?" I grew up in the Foster household. I was their designated daughter-in-law, so naturally, this position was mine to lose. But this time, Julian interrupted anxiously. "Dad, let's keep personal matters private. Selection should be fair. It's not my call." I realized instantly: He was reborn too. Since he was still hung up on his unrequited love for Bella, I decided to grant his wish. "Uncle Foster, I know I'm not capable enough. I don't deserve Julian or the Major Crimes Unit." I grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled "Resignation Letter" in bold letters. Seeing this, Julian turned and ran out without a word. In our past life, right at this moment, Bella was surrounded by angry family members refusing an autopsy. In the chaos, a frantic relative injured Julian's wrist, ending his surgical career as he tried to protect her. Reborn, he naturally rushed to take that hit for her again. Chief Foster was furious, pushing my resignation letter back. "Elara Lin, what nonsense is this!" "I taught you everything hand-in-hand, and now you want to quit?" Uncle Foster, who raised me like a father, looked at me with pure disappointment. I met his gaze, wanting to explain, but instead bowed deeply. "Uncle Foster, I'm sorry. I will leave the Foster family. I'll find a way to repay your kindness later." "Julian has someone else in his heart. Forced love isn't sweet. Please let them be. He and I aren't meant to be." Chief Foster wanted to argue, but remembering the rumors about his son and Bella, he swallowed his words. I packed my things and moved out of the Foster home completely. The day I left, Julian stood in the yard, glancing at me from afar. Twenty years of past life bonds ended there. Once the handover was done, I'd never have to see them again. News of their engagement spread through the station. Red invitations sat on every desk, piercing my eyes. People whispered in the hallways, glancing at me. Everyone knew I had chased Julian for over a decade. From a teen crush to a forensic expert, everyone thought I'd be the one in the wedding dress. But I just glanced indifferently at the gold-stamped invitations and buried my head in case files. Bella loved to brag in the office lately, voice raised just enough for me to hear. "Julian bought me another necklace yesterday, to match my wedding dress." "He says after our honeymoon, he'll let me handle even bigger cases." I ignored her showing off, focusing entirely on autopsy reports. Until that day, I heard arguing from the Chief's office. "Dad, Bella should lead the Serial Killer case. You've seen her ability." Chief Foster sounded displeased: "Julian, Elara has been on this case for a long time. Switching now is risky. Bella is new; she lacks experience." Julian persisted, "But Bella has her unique gift! She can crack this! Dad, you can't favor Elara just because of personal feelings!" I remembered this case clearly. In my past life, I pieced together tiny clues from the bodies to solve this city-shaking serial murder. The whole department got credit, and I became famous as the "Beauty ME," my career skyrocketing. Reborn Julian knew this. He just wanted Bella to steal that glory in this life. Thinking this, I pushed open the office door and handed over all the files. "Uncle Foster, here are all the materials and reports." Chief Foster looked at my calm face, eyes complicated, before hesitantly taking the files. "Elara, the Foster family has wronged you." My voice was steady. "It's fine, Uncle. You raised me. Consider this repayment." Chief Foster looked up, eyes full of guilt. He raised me like a daughter. But I couldn't compare to his own son. The scale tipped to Julian. 2 Julian's face flashed with shock when I voluntarily handed over the reports. He probably expected me to fight, to cry. He didn't expect me to let go so cleanly. These files were my blood and sweat, nights of work. Every page held my expertise. "Elara, don't think playing hard to get will catch my attention." Julian quickly recovered his cold mask, tone disdainful. "You'll never compare to Bella. You should have realized that long ago." Right. He always believed Bella's "Yin-Yang Eyes" nonsense. I died never knowing what was in that notebook that made him so sure I rode her coattails. Julian shoved the thick report into Bella's hands. Bella took it, flipping through eagerly, but her face soured. "Julian, these are just procedure logs. Where are the conclusions?" she asked, panicked. I chuckled, a hint of sarcasm in my voice: "Conclusions? Shouldn't be hard for Bella, right? With your unique gift and all." Hearing my tone, both scoffed and left. I watched them go, shaking my head with a smile. Bella was a rookie who hadn't even done an independent autopsy. How could she analyze complex clues? I waited to see how Julian would make his beloved famous now. At the joint autopsy, as expected, Bella humiliated herself. "ME Han, scalpel for cartilage, please." Bella handed a cranial saw to my old partner, Dave. "Not that! ME Han, can you not tell a saw from a scalpel? That's basic!" Bella's voice trembled: "I... I'm just not familiar with the layout here." Julian immediately jumped to her defense: "Dave, watch your tone! Bella just took over. You're all Elara's old colleagues, biased against her. You haven't seen her true ability." Dave sneered like he heard a joke. "Ability? What ability? Is Captain Foster saying she solves cases with superstition? Yin-Yang Eyes? I'll believe it when she summons my dead mother for a chat!" Other MEs whispered, faces skeptical. Seeing the tension, I walked in, interrupting coolly. "Dave, I'm here to pack my things." The room went silent. All eyes on me. I packed my desk items one by one. Bella watched, face darkening. When I picked up the photo of me and the Fosters, she knocked the box out of my hands. "Elara, are you proud of yourself now?!" Crash. The box hit the floor. The photo shattered. The ceramic doll Julian gave me for my 18th birthday broke into pieces. A sharp edge cut Bella's finger. Blood welled up. Julian's face paled instantly. He blew on it carefully, voice aching: "Bella, are you okay? Let me see! Don't move, I'll treat it!" "Elara Lin, face reality! You have nothing to do with the Foster family or the station anymore!" 3 I looked at the shards of my youth on the floor. The last bit of bitterness in my heart vanished. Good riddance. As I turned to leave with my few belongings, Bella grabbed me. "Since you're not a Foster anymore, shouldn't you leave Julian's things behind?" "Julian, isn't that right?" I looked at the couple. Bella gloating, Julian defending her before I could speak. "Bella is right. Leave the things our family gave you." I laughed at their shamelessness. Everything I wore was indeed bought by Mrs. Foster. "Julian, what do you want me to leave? Do you plan for me to walk out of here naked today?" Chief Foster rushed over and slapped him. "Bastard! Even if she's not your wife, she's your sister! Is this how you treat her?!" Seeing Julian's gaze full of disgust, I smiled. "Uncle Foster, they're right. We should settle accounts." I raised my hand, pointing at Julian from head to toe. "That watch, I bought it with my first bonus. Remember? You said you liked it." "Your cufflinks, limited edition from Germany. I hunted them down for you." "Those shoes, I ran across the city to order that color." "From head to toe, what isn't bought with my salary?" Julian's face turned ugly. He gritted his teeth. He actually started unbuttoning his shirt, taking off the watch, kicking off the shoes. Threw them all on the floor. Bella pointed at me triumphantly: "Then return what the Fosters gave you! That necklace, those earrings, your clothes—didn't the Fosters pay for them?" I ignored her barking, not even looking down. My eyes stayed on Julian, voice calm but heavy. "Three years ago, the West City dismemberment case. I spent ten sleepless days piecing together the victim from a pile of rotten meat. Uncle Foster got promoted to Chief because of that." "Two years ago, if I hadn't come back early from my trip, Mrs. Foster would have died from that gas leak..." I stepped closer, staring him down. "Julian, I saved your mother's life. I paved your father's career. How do you repay that?" "And now, you want me to strip off these so-called 'Foster things'?" Julian retreated, eyes darting, unable to meet my gaze. Finally, he squeezed out: "One thing doesn't cancel another." I laughed loudly. Laughing at the Fosters' so-called grace, laughing at my past stupidity. "From now on, I owe the Foster family nothing. We are strangers." Bella jumped in: "Stop your smooth talk! Take off the clothes!" I started removing the necklace, earrings, bracelet. They hit the floor with crisp clinks, like my once-broken heart. I placed them neatly on the desk, changing into my old, yellowing lab coat. I thought living two lives made me tough. But looking at his familiar face, tears still fell. I wiped them dry and walked to the door without looking back. Whispers followed me out: "Heard she wasn't resignation, but fired." "Tsk, head ME falling this low." "Chief's son is ruthless, didn't even spare his childhood friend." I paused but didn't stop. Just as I was about to exit the gate, Julian called out: "Elara." I stopped, not turning. "I've made calls. No place in Cloud City will hire you as a medical examiner." So, not just ruining my name, but cutting off my livelihood. Cruel, Julian. I strode forward, vanishing from his sight. Around the corner, I saw a police car. I opened the door and got in. "Chief Chen, congratulations on finally getting what you wanted." She turned, shaking my hand with a smile. "Elara Lin, happy cooperation." 4 I moved to the Capital quickly, joining their ME team as the lead. The office was decorated with a banner: "Warm Welcome to Team Leader Elara Lin." The whole team gathered, faces excited. "Dr. Lin... is it really you? I read your paper on the West City case. Textbook reconstruction!" "Leader Lin, we're your soldiers now!" "Been waiting for you!" Chief Chen walked over with tea, smiling satisfied. "Elara, regret it now? Should have come earlier instead of wasting your youth in that backwater Cloud City." I looked at her, smiling with relief. "You joke, Chief. Better late than never. Now is the perfect time." In this life, it's time to live for myself. Soon, I saw news about Bella. She was eloquent in front of the camera. The headline screamed: "Genius ME Emerges, Cloud City Forensics Reaches New Heights." Talking about her predecessor (me), she hinted heavily that I was "fired" for major errors. "Bullshit!" Chief Chen snatched the phone, furious. "Who does she think she is? Stepping on you isn't enough, she has to ruin your name? Julian Foster is blind; that woman will ruin him." I laughed at her anger, taking the phone back and closing the video. "Chief, don't be mad. Let her be." "How can I? She's destroying you!" I shook my head, eyes cold: "She won't last long. Some people just love digging their own graves." Sure enough, two days later, comments on Bella's interview turned. The families of victims I helped became my strongest shield. "Genius ME? Without Dr. Lin's attention to detail, my daughter's killer would still be free! What does this Bella know?" "Exactly! Dr. Lin solved my brother's case! Our family owes her everything! Who is this Han to slander her?" "Heard about the '511 Serial Murders' in Cloud City? The killer is brutal, yet this 'Genius' has done nothing? Can she only buy trending topics?" Public opinion backfired. The tricky 511 case pressed on Bella like a mountain. Julian sat in his office, brow furrowed over the 511 files. He desperately tried to recall memories from his past life, but the names escaped him. Bella entered, pale. "Julian, any progress?" Julian put all hope on her. "Bella, your Yin-Yang Eyes..." "Julian, I'm... not in good condition lately. The Eyes need a special trigger. I can't see the victims' memories right now..." Chief Foster barged in with a group of leaders. "Five dead! The city is in panic! And you tell me you're waiting for a trigger? Julian, is this the talent you fought to keep??" Julian's face shifted colors under his father's scolding. He knew his dad meant he was blind to drive away Elara, the one who could actually read clues. Under the pitying or mocking gazes of colleagues, Julian stood up, looking his father in the eye. "I take full responsibility." "If I don't catch the killer in three days, I, Julian Foster, will strip off this uniform and never be a cop again!" Bella opened her mouth but couldn't say a word.
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