Title: Rebirth of the Broken Crown
Prologue — The Price of Trust
Rain poured over Shanghai, turning the neon lights into blurred scars of color.
At the top floor of Jinlong Tower, a man stood before the glass wall—
Shen Mo, age 32, founder of MoTech Group, once hailed as the youngest business king of China.
Tonight, he was nothing but a discarded pawn.
Blood dripped from his forehead, warm and slow.
Behind him stood the people he trusted most.
His best friend, Zhou Kai, smiling calmly.
His lover, Lin Xue, eyes cold like frozen jade.
The board members—once bowing to him—now watched like vultures.
"Why…?" Shen Mo asked, voice hoarse.
Zhou Kai adjusted his cufflinks.
"Because you were too naive, Mo. Power is not built on friendship."
Lin Xue stepped forward, heels clicking like a death countdown.
"You loved the company more than me," she said softly.
"So I chose someone who could give me the future."
The screen behind them lit up—
MoTech's ownership transfer.
Shen Mo: 0% shares.
He laughed.
Not because it was funny.
But because it hurt too much to cry.
"All these years… I built an empire," he whispered,
"Just to hand it to dogs."
A gunshot echoed.
As his body fell, his mind screamed one name—
"Mom…!"
Last Regret — A Mother's Empty Room
Darkness swallowed him.
But before death claimed him, a memory surfaced.
A small apartment.
A thin woman forcing a smile.
"Mo'er, I'm just tired," his mother said, holding her head.
"You focus on work. Don't worry about me."
He remembered how he waved her off, eyes glued to financial reports.
He remembered ignoring her hospital calls.
He remembered returning home to find silence.
Brain tumor. Late stage.
By the time he arrived…
She was already cold.
In his past life, he ruled cities—
But couldn't save the woman who gave him life.
Tears fell into the void.
"If… if I could do it again," he begged,
"I would trade everything."
Chapter 1 — Return to Eighteen
"Shen Mo! Wake up!"
A familiar voice pierced his ears.
He opened his eyes violently.
White ceiling.
Old desk.
Cracked fan buzzing above.
His dorm room.
His trembling hands grabbed the phone.
Date: April 12, 2011.
He was 18 years old.
Alive.
His breath broke.
"I… came back?"
Memories collided.
The betrayal.
The gunshot.
His mother's lifeless face.
Shen Mo sat up slowly.
This time, his eyes were no longer youthful—
They were deep, dark, and cold.
"This life…" he muttered,
"I will not lose."
Chapter 2 — A Promise to the Living
He rushed home that night.
When he opened the door, he saw her.
His mother, standing in the kitchen, humming softly.
She turned around.
"Mo'er? You're early today."
His chest tightened.
He walked forward and hugged her tightly.
So tightly she almost lost balance.
"Eh? What's wrong with you?" she laughed.
Shen Mo buried his face in her shoulder.
This warmth…
This heartbeat…
In his past life, it was gone forever.
"I'm sorry," he whispered.
"For everything."
That night, he secretly booked a full medical checkup.
Early-stage brain tumor. Treatable.
The doctor said,
"If she came even one year later…"
Shen Mo clenched his fists until his nails dug into his palms.
"I won't let history repeat."
Chapter 3 — The Birth of a New King
Back at university, he looked at familiar faces.
Zhou Kai—still pretending to be his brother.
Lin Xue—smiling sweetly, acting innocent.
Shen Mo smiled back.
But in his heart—
You don't know yet.
Your hell hasn't started.
This time, he avoided flashy success.
No reckless expansion.
No emotional weakness.
He quietly invested.
Bought future tech stocks before they exploded.
Intercepted business deals before Zhou Kai even knew they existed.
He founded a new company—
Black Swan Capital.
Invisible.
Deadly.
Money flowed like an obedient weapon.
And relationships?
He cut them clean.
"Love?" he whispered to himself one night,
"In my last life, it was a knife."
Chapter 4 — Revenge Begins
Three years later.
A boardroom fell silent.
Zhou Kai stared at the screen, sweat dripping.
"Why… why are all our partners withdrawing?"
Shen Mo entered the room.
Suit tailored perfectly.
Aura crushing.
Zhou Kai's face went pale.
"You… Shen Mo?"
Shen Mo placed the acquisition contract on the table.
"From today," he said calmly,
"Your company belongs to me."
Zhou Kai collapsed into the chair.
"Why…?"
Shen Mo leaned down, eyes cold as winter.
"Because in my last life," he said softly,
"you killed me."
Across the city, Lin Xue watched her luxury crumble overnight.
Blacklists. Lawsuits. Reputation destroyed.
She called him crying.
"Mo… please… I was wrong."
Shen Mo ended the call without a word.
Some apologies don't deserve sound.
Epilogue — A Different Crown
Years later, Shanghai hailed a new legend.
Shen Mo, the shadow emperor of capital.
A man who never lost.
A man who never forgave.
But every evening, he returned home early.
He cooked dinner.
He listened to his mother complain about TV dramas.
The empire could wait.
This life—
He chose family first.
And for those who betrayed him?
He didn't need hatred anymore.
Because watching them kneel—
Was more satisfying than death.