The Traffic Jam

The sun on the National Day highway was like a furnace, and the traffic outside the windshield hadn't budged an inch—not for a solid forty minutes. Cici, riding shotgun, had her head resting on my leg, her tongue lazily sticking out, ignoring even her favorite toy ball, only flicking her tail now and then to brush against my pants. Suddenly, urgent honking came from the car behind—"beep—beep beep"—nonstop, ringing in my ears until they hurt. I frowned and looked back. In a red sports car, a girl stuck her head out, glaring at me while hammering the horn. Before I could even react, she'd already pushed open the door and stomped over, wearing a black miniskirt that hugged her legs, her high heels clicking on the asphalt. She reached my car window, slapped it hard, her rhinestone-studded nails sparkling in the sun and making my eyes go blurry. She kept yelling, "Are you deaf? Honking all that time and you still didn't hear?" I rolled down the window, trying hard to keep my temper: "There's a traffic jam up ahead, honking won't do anything, I can't move." Her spit nearly hit my face, eyes dripping with contempt: "I don't care if there's a jam! I'm honking at you to move, can't you understand me?" "I'm Yolanda Lincoln, heiress to the Lincoln Group!" She put her hands on her hips, chin held high like her status could crush me, "You're blocking the way with your crappy car, making me late today. Are you doing this just to mess with me?" I glanced at my car—it was custom-made by a foreign designer my dad hired, with the emblem in a low-key matte finish. But to her, it was just a crappy car. I didn't want to get into it, so I was about to roll up the window. "If you're in such a hurry, wait until the road clears before driving off." She grabbed the edge of the window, stopping me from closing it. "You still dare talk back to me? You know who my dad is? In Sea City, no one talks to me like that!" Just then, a guy in his twenties hopped out of the front passenger seat of the red sports car. His jacket zipper was undone, showing off a gold chain, and he swaggered unsteadily—obviously a spoiled brat. He was Harry Lincoln, Yolanda Lincoln's brother. He came over, yanked open my car door, and reached to grab my keys, moving so roughly it was like he was trying to snatch something. "Trying to leave? Not that easy!" Harry waved the keys in front of my face, his expression full of challenge. "Apologize to my sister first, or you'll be stuck here all day. Even if the traffic clears, don't think you're going anywhere!" I stood up, half a head taller than him, staring him down. "I didn't do anything wrong. Why should I apologize? Or because she thinks I'm driving a crappy old car?" "You still have the nerve to talk back?" Harry Lincoln shoved me; I lost my balance and stepped back two paces, almost hitting the guardrail by the side of the road. "In Sea City, when the Lincoln family says you're wrong, you're just wrong!" "I suggest you do as we say, or else forget about surviving in Sea City. No one will hire you, no one will even dare serve you food!" His words got more and more ridiculous, like the Lincoln family could rule the world. I suddenly found it hilarious. I know pretty much all the big companies in Sea City. When the Lincoln Group was on the brink of bankruptcy last year, Mr. Lincoln was running to my dad's office every day, groveling and begging for investment, crawling on his knees for half a month before finally scoring a bailout. My dad's soft-hearted—he didn't just give them money, he even landed them three huge deals to pull the Lincoln Group back from the edge of bankruptcy. Didn't expect that in just six months, their kid would get this arrogant. "The Lincoln family?" I purposely dragged out my tone, staring at those smug looks on the brother and sister's faces. "You didn't go bankrupt last year—who do you think bailed you out? Don't forget that, okay?" Yolanda Lincoln froze for a second, then got cocky again: "Who bailed us out is none of your business! You, driving that clunker, have the nerve to talk about our Lincoln family?" "Let me tell you, my brother's about to get engaged to the heiress of Luke Group. You know Luke Group, right? The richest company in Sea City!" She acted like just dropping 'Luke Group' would make me tremble.