My Chat Screen Warned Me to Run, But I Married the Billionaire Anyway

After returning to my biological family, they arranged a marriage for me. On the eve of the engagement, a stream of floating bullet comments suddenly appeared in my vision, begging me to run away. I believed them. But on my flight, I was kidnapped, dragged into a van, and brutally tortured to death in front of countless live-streaming cameras. When I opened my eyes again, I was back in the fitting room on the night before the engagement. The screen in my mind was scrolling frantically. [FL, whatever you do, do NOT marry Julian Vance! He’s a toxic sociopath who keeps a harem of trashy girls!] [If Iris marries him, Julian will dump her at a private club for his sick friends to abuse. She’ll die a horrific death!] [Run, girl, run! Your Prince Charming is waiting for you outside!] Unlike the shock I felt in my past life, this time, I read these comments with nothing but pure hatred. You don't want me to marry him? Well, watch me. In the mirror, I wore a custom designer gown, brilliant and gorgeous. Yet my mind was flooded with the horrific memories of my past life—kneeling on the floor, obeying countless strange men, begging for mercy, and swallowing garbage just to survive. I still remembered the very last comment I saw before I died. [I hope the FL lives a long and happy life.] I let out a cold laugh. So, these comments were all a setup. In my past life, I had just been brought back to the wealthy family from the slums. My life was getting better by the day, and my parents had even arranged for me to marry Julian Vance, the richest young billionaire in the city. But I foolishly trusted those floating words and abandoned everything to run away on my engagement day! [The FL looks so pretty in that dress. It’s such a shame that Julian, that psycho, is going to abuse her to death.] [Run, Iris! The Vance family is a literal hellhole!] I looked up at the scrolling text, my heart cold with resentment. "Iris," Chloe’s voice echoed from outside the door. "Can I come in?" I forced my emotions down, sat on the sofa, and waited for her to enter. She walked in holding a hand-crocheted bouquet, a sweet, innocent smile plastered on her face. "Iris, look! I made this bouquet for you myself. Do you like it?" As Chloe handed me the flowers, she deliberately showed off the band-aids on her fingers. Before I could even speak, she lowered her head bashfully. "It’s my first time crocheting. I got cut so many times. I'm so clumsy." [Aww, sisterly love is so sweet! Chloe is so nice to Iris. She didn't even hate Iris for taking back her status as the biological heiress. She just wants to be her best friend.] The comment popped up, making me swallow the words I was about to say. If the comments always told the opposite of the truth, then Chloe’s sisterly act was a complete lie. She hated my guts. I took the bouquet. "Thanks." "Iris, there’s something I don’t know if I should say." Chloe sat down beside me, looking deeply troubled. "Actually, Julian isn’t as charming as he looks. He’s a total playboy. He’s gotten so many girls pregnant and forced them to get abortions." "You’re the real daughter of this family now. I don’t want to see you drag yourself into that nightmare." "Maybe... you should run away from the wedding tonight!" [Yes, Iris! Listen to Chloe! It’s not too late to run!] [Chloe is telling you the truth because she’s kind-hearted. Don’t wait until you’re dead to regret it!] These new comments confirmed my suspicions. Chloe wasn’t innocent at all. She wanted me dead more than anyone. "You're worrying too much." I smiled, pulling Chloe up and gently nudging her toward the door. "This marriage was arranged by Mom and Dad. How could I just run away?" "But—" I cut her off. "Go help welcome the guests at the entrance. The makeup artist still needs to touch up my look." I shut the door, sat back down, and calmly watched the screen to see what it would try to make me do next. [The FL is so pathetic. She’s so desperate for a man that she’d marry anyone.] [She’s going to get herself killed. If she doesn't run before the ceremony starts, Julian’s thugs will drag her into a dark room and leak her explicit photos everywhere!] Oh, really? Then I couldn't wait to see what would actually happen.My makeup was barely finished, and before I could even step out of the dressing room, the hotel's fire alarm blared. Panic erupted outside, followed by screams and rushed footsteps. "Fire! Everyone, get out!" The makeup artist grabbed my hand to pull me out, but I stood frozen. Because a bright comment flashed: [FL, run! The fire is spreading fast, it’s going to disfigure you!] "Miss Iris, we have to go! We're on the ninth floor! If the fire spreads, we're trapped!" I shook off the artist's hand. "Go ahead. I need to grab something first." The artist hesitated but quickly ran for her life. The more the screen screamed at me to [RUN], the further I squeezed myself into the corner of the dressing room. I was gambling my life on this. "Where the hell is Iris?" "Damn it! Search the entire ninth floor! Send men to guard the lobby! We must find her!" It was Chloe’s voice. [Thank God, Chloe is here! Our FL is saved!] [Chloe ran back into a burning building just to save Iris. This is true sisterly love!] [FL, go out now!] Hiding behind the sofa, I used my silenced phone to send out a few quick text messages on WhatsApp. Right after sending the last one, a shadow fell over me. A face peeked over the couch. "Found you." When I opened my eyes again, I was surrounded by a group of rough-looking men. My hands and feet were tied tightly with thick ropes. "Well, well, Miss Iris. You were hard to find. We pulled the fire alarm, and you still didn't run out." "What do you want?" The leader let out a disgusting laugh. The foul stench coming off them made me shiver. It was the exact same smell of the men who had tortured me to death in my past life! [FL, don’t be scared. They’re just business rivals your dad pissed off. Just apologize nicely on behalf of your family. Whatever you do, don't mention money! People like them hate rich snobs the most!] I forced down my panic and ignored the floating text. Just as the men reached out to touch me, I screamed, "I’ll give you five million dollars!" "I’m about to marry into the Vance family. Why make an enemy of Julian Vance when you can walk away with five million in cash?" The men paused, exchanging glances. Seeing them hesitate, I quickly added, "I can give you even more than five million. You can work for me in the future. The Vance empire has more than enough resources to make you all rich." Just then, a familiar female voice sneered from the doorway. "What are you waiting for? Do it already!" The leader laughed, turning to her. "Well, Chloe, she’s offering us a better deal. Why don't you match it?" Chloe stomped in, cursing. She gripped my chin tightly, her face twisted in malice. "Iris, who do you think you are, promising Julian’s money?" "Once these dirty videos of you are leaked to the public, do you really think the Vance family will still want you?" [Chloe doesn't mean any harm. She’s just playing a prank on Iris. Iris, just cooperate and submit.] Looking at the comment, I slammed my head forward with all my might, smashing my forehead directly into Chloe’s nose. I heard a sickening crack as her expensive nose job shifted visibly out of place.Once the hotel fire was confirmed to be a false alarm, the engagement ceremony resumed. The guests took their seats, and both sets of parents sat at the VIP table, waiting for the host to begin the ceremony. "Now, please welcome the beautiful bride, Iris!" The host’s voice boomed through the microphone. But when the grand doors opened, the entrance was empty. Whispers broke out. People began murmuring that the bride had run away. But just as the host was about to make a backup announcement, the doors opened again. I had changed into a fresh gown and walked gracefully down the aisle. [FL, run! This is your last chance! If you marry Julian, he will beat you half to death tonight!] [FL, slap Julian across the face and tell him the wedding is off!] "Iris, do you take Julian Vance to be your lawfully wedded husband, to love and to cherish, in sickness and in health?" Looking at Julian's handsome, stoic face, I thought of everything I had suffered. If everything in this world was trying to stop me from marrying him, then I was absolutely going to marry him. "I do." [Is the FL insane?! She’s practically begging to die!] Just as Julian slid the flawless, sparkling diamond ring onto my finger, the heavy doors of the ballroom were slammed open. A man rushed down the red carpet, yelling, "No! Iris, you can't marry him!" "Who is that?" "Interrupting Julian Vance’s wedding? He must have a death wish." The guests gasped, and the media cameras flashed frantically. The intruder fell to his knees right in front of me. "Iris, I know you only chose Julian because I’m poor, but we’re the ones who truly love each other! Have you forgotten how happy we were? Have you forgotten the two babies we lost?!" [OMG, the FL's first love is here!] [The FL only lost her memory in a car accident. This guy is the actual Male Lead! He’s the love of her life! Iris, run away with your true love!] The comments were getting more ridiculous by the second. I stepped toward the man. "You're saying I'm your ex-girlfriend?" "Do you have any proof?" "If we loved each other for years, we should have photos or videos. You have absolutely nothing, yet you stand here trying to ruin my reputation?" The man looked left and right, his eyes finally landing on my parents. "That's because your rich parents forced us apart when they brought you back! They deleted all our memories and photos!" The screen read: [Your parents did that for your own good.] Before I could process the opposite meaning of that comment, my mother, Eleanor, grabbed a microphone. With a look of helpless pity, she sighed. "Iris suffered so much before she came back to us. What she did in her past doesn't matter. As her parents, we will guide her and teach her better from now on." Her words were a thinly veiled attempt to validate the man's lies and ruin my character. I turned to Julian. I expected him to look furious and call off the wedding, but his expression remained calm. "Without proof, I believe nothing." Suddenly, the strange man screamed louder. "I have proof!" "I have a video of Iris sleeping with multiple men!""Oh my god, is this real? The future Mrs. Vance has such a wild private life?" "Miss Iris, is this really your ex-boyfriend? Did you dump him and pretend to be innocent just to marry into wealth?" Faced with the whispers of the guests and the aggressive flashing of the reporters' cameras, I simply looked up at the comments. [FL, just get down on your knees and beg for forgiveness. The Vance family won't do anything to you. They're friends with your parents. Just beg and apologize!] Instead, I looked at the man and said coldly, "Talk is cheap. Show the video." The man glanced at my dad, Richard, then grabbed his phone and ran to the tech booth. After a brief hushed conversation with the staff, the massive projector screen behind the stage began to play a self-recorded video. The next second, the entire hall erupted into shocked screams. "This is disgusting! One woman with so many men... ugh!" But someone with sharp eyes immediately shouted, "Wait, that woman on screen doesn't look like Iris at all. She looks exactly like her sister, Chloe!" I stood on the stage, watching my parents scramble to block the reporters' cameras while the guests gossiped loudly. Beside me, Julian reached out and held my hand. "It seems the rumors about my fiancée are completely baseless. However, Mr. and Mrs. Lin, perhaps you care to explain why your statements contradicted the facts?" "The video must have been deepfaked!" Eleanor rushed to the stage, trembling. "Our Chloe would never do something like this!" She grabbed my arm and whispered frantically, "Iris, you have to help your sister! Tell them the girl in the video is you! Otherwise, how is Chloe ever going to marry into a good family?!" Looking at my mother's anxious face—so desperately protective of Chloe, yet so willing to throw me under the bus moments ago—the contrast was sickening. I smiled, holding the microphone directly to her mouth. "Mom, why don't you say that a bit louder? How exactly do you want me to help Chloe take the blame?" Hearing the guests start to murmur about Eleanor's extreme favoritism toward her adopted daughter, her face flushed red with anger. She pointed a shaking finger at me. "You!" Then, she spat out, "Do you even respect us as your parents?!" [Iris's parents actually love her so much. If she continues to be ungrateful, the Lin family won't help her when the Vance family goes broke. She’ll end up working at a cheap strip club!] The comments warned me again. So, if being "disobedient" meant I would regret it forever, then I was absolutely going to expose Chloe’s ugly side to the world. "Everyone," I said, my voice echoing clearly over the microphone, silencing the room. "The background of this video looks exactly like one of the suites in this very hotel. In fact, I just had the hotel management pull up the security footage." "Why don't we all take a trip to Room 902? We can see if my dear sister, whom we haven't seen all evening, is in there. Let's see who really has the wild private life—me, or my parents' beloved Chloe." The moment I mentioned "902," Richard's face turned pale. "No! Absolutely not!" "Dad, why do you look like you already know what's inside Room 902?" [What is the FL talking about? Her parents love her the most!] [She's such a backstabbing bitch, I'm dropping this novel!] [Don't worry, guys. The FL is going to beg her parents for forgiveness soon. Chloe isn't even in 902. When they find nothing, Iris will have to crawl back to her parents.] "Someone tried to ruin my engagement party," I said, smiling at my father. "Of course I have to prove my innocence. Or would you rather the world believe your biological daughter is a whore?" Richard tried to step forward to stop me, but Julian cut him off with a chilling glare. "Until this is resolved, no one leaves this hotel."