My husband, Julian Thorne, was one of the world’s wealthiest men, and a notorious workaholic. In our five years of marriage, he abandoned me for work countless times. The first time was on my birthday. I had meticulously chosen and booked a restaurant, but he jetted off abroad for an acquisition deal, leaving me to wait from dawn till dusk. The second time was after my car accident. I urgently needed my spouse’s consent at the hospital. Mustering what little strength I had, I messaged him, only to receive his cold reply: “I’m in a very important meeting. Handle it yourself.” The third time, my father was critically ill. My dying father wanted to see him one last time, but Julian was too busy with a multi-billion dollar project signing ceremony to make it. As I held my father’s gradually chilling hand, listening to the busy signal on the phone, my heart went completely cold. Time after time, I finally understood. In Julian Thorne’s heart, nothing and no one could ever compare to his business empire. I told myself this was the price of a business marriage. He had always said he wouldn’t love me, but at least, he didn’t love anyone else either. But just as I was almost accustomed to this icy despair, a shocking piece of news suddenly exploded within our social circles— Julian Thorne, known for his indifference to women and his singular focus on work, was reportedly spoiling a young woman rotten! Rumor had it that he ditched a multi-billion dollar deal just to accompany that girl on a skiing trip to the Alps;
Rumor had it that he canceled all his meetings for an entire week, solely to care for her sick kitten; Rumor had it that he let the girl doodle on his priceless contracts, and even halted a meeting with long-standing business partners because she claimed it “wasn’t fun” anymore… My first reaction upon hearing these things was disbelief. How could it be? That was Julian Thorne! The man who valued time above all else, rational to the point of being ruthless! As if compelled by an inexplicable urge, I used all my connections and savings to secretly investigate that girl. However, Julian had her existence under wraps. Despite expending immense effort and spending a fortune, I only managed to obtain one extremely blurry candid photo of her profile. The girl in the photo looked young and delicate, carefully shielded in Julian’s arms. That protective stance was something I had never received in our five years of marriage. That very afternoon, after I got the photo, I left the house feeling restless. Just as I reached the roadside, a black Rolls-Royce, as if out of control, careened directly towards me! I didn’t even catch a glimpse of the person in the car. My body was thrown into the air, then slammed back down. Excruciating pain instantly swept through my entire body, and my consciousness swiftly succumbed to darkness. I woke up again to the pungent smell of disinfectant in the hospital. The first thing I saw was Julian’s chief secretary’s formal, unreadable face. “Mrs. Thorne, you’re awake.” The secretary’s voice was devoid of emotion. “Mr. Thorne asked me to convey to you: do not pry into things or people you shouldn’t. Otherwise, next time, it won’t just be an ‘accident’.” My eyes flew open, the pain in my chest almost choking me! Him? It was *him*?! Just because I found a profile photo of that girl, he didn’t hesitate to stage a car crash just to warn me! A tidal wave of shock and heartbreak crashed over me. The man I had loved for so many years, the man I thought would only ever be passionate about work, was capable of such a crazy and cruel thing for another woman! I couldn’t believe it, yet I had to. I thought I would never truly see that girl’s real face. However, a week later, an unexpected call came through. It was the County Clerk’s Office. “Is this Mr. Julian Thorne’s family? Someone has filed a complaint here… accusing Mr. Thorne of soliciting, please come down here…” My mind went blank with a “WHIZZ.” Soliciting? Julian Thorne? I rushed to the County Clerk’s Office almost mechanically. As soon as I entered, I saw a young girl, dressed in a delicate, fancy dress, sitting casually, legs crossed, on the reception chair, complaining petulantly: “Why haven’t you notified him yet? I said I want to accuse him of soliciting, didn’t you hear me? Or is it because he’s a global billionaire that you’re too scared to arrest him?” The surrounding officers looked embarrassed, sweating profusely, repeatedly explaining, “Miss, is there some misunderstanding? Mr. Thorne, he…” “What misunderstanding could there be!” The girl stomped her foot in annoyance. “If you’re too scared to arrest him, I’ll go to another police station to file my complaint!” No sooner had she spoken than the screech of tires echoed from outside the police station. A black sedan pulled up, and Julian Thorne walked in, dressed in a perfectly tailored black suit, his face grim. His impossibly handsome face and overwhelmingly powerful aura instantly silenced the entire lobby. His gaze found me first, his brow immediately furrowed, his voice icy cold: “What are you doing here?” My throat tightened, and I answered hoarsely: “The police… they called me.” Julian’s face grew even colder, his tone imperious: “There’s nothing for you here. Go home.” With that, he didn’t look at me again but walked directly towards the girl causing a scene. The next moment hit me like a lightning bolt, my blood freezing in an instant! Julian Thorne, who was always aloof and as cold as ice, actually humbled himself and knelt down before that girl, looking up at her, his voice imbued with a tenderness and indulgence I had never heard from him, even a hint of careful coaxing: “Baby, who upset you now? Hmm?” Chloe’s eyes welled up, her lips pouted, acting as if it were her absolute right: “You! You didn’t reply to my SnapChat in three seconds! So I was so mad, I came here to report you for soliciting!” Such a ridiculous reason made everyone around gasp. However, Julian, far from getting angry, chuckled softly. He reached out and stroked Chloe’s cheek, his voice incredibly indulgent: “Alright, alright, it’s my fault. Since you reported me for soliciting and want to arrest me, then I’ll truly go to jail for a few days to make you feel better, alright?” As he spoke, he actually extended his hand towards a nearby officer, signaling for handcuffs, which made the officer’s face go pale with fright!
His assistant quickly stepped forward to explain: “Miss Sterling, you’ve misunderstood! Mr. Thorne had a bit of an accident this morning and injured his arm. He’s been at the hospital getting his wounds treated, and his phone ran out of battery and turned off automatically, which is why he couldn’t reply to your messages in time. Please, don’t be angry!” Upon hearing this, Chloe immediately panicked. She grabbed Julian’s hand and indeed saw the white gauze peeking out from beneath his suit cuff. Her tears instantly fell: “You’re hurt? Why didn’t you say anything sooner!” Julian merely gently wiped away her tears: “Regardless, I promised to reply to your messages instantly. Not doing so is my fault and I should be punished.” Chloe cried even harder, burying her face in his chest: “How can you be so good to me…” Julian embraced her, his voice so soft it could melt steel: “Because I love you, baby. Since I was wrong, how do you want to punish me?” Chloe’s tears turned into a smile, her eyes darted, and she pouted, pointing at the ground: “Then I want to ride on your back like a horse here!” The assistant’s face changed, and he was about to object, but Julian raised a hand to stop him. He looked at her, his eyes filled with indulgence: “Must it be here?” “It must be here!” “Alright.” Julian agreed without hesitation, and right there, in front of everyone, he humbled himself and got down on his hands and knees, saying softly, “Come on.” Chloe giggled happily, skillfully climbed onto his back, like a proud little princess. And the business magnate, who dominated headlines in global financial news and whose word was absolute, was now willingly carrying his little princess on his back, crawling on the floor of the police station. There wasn’t a hint of impatience on his face, only pure indulgence and affection. The entire police station was utterly silent, no one daring to even breathe. Only I clamped my hand over my mouth, tears streaming down like a burst dam. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it even if I died—that cold, emotionless Julian Thorne, whose eyes were only on his work, could have such a side! Memories flooded back, carrying a suffocating bitterness. Before marrying him, I had heard Julian Thorne’s name. The media exhausted every superlative to describe his dashing looks, his capability, his business acumen. He was the perfect heir; within a year of taking over the conglomerate, he propelled Thorne Industries to the top of the Forbes list. His only flaw, perhaps, was his indifference to women, as if he were a machine built solely for work. Yet, one fleeting glimpse at a banquet, his aloof, almost ascetic demeanor, his distinguished bearing, instantly captivated me. My heart could hold no one else. So when my family proposed a business marriage, I agreed ecstatically. My best friend at the time tried to persuade me: “Julian Thorne is great, but he’s a heartless work machine. You won’t find happiness in that marriage.” But I naively believed that if I was good enough, if I loved him enough, I could melt his cold heart someday. What was the result? On our wedding night, he coldly went through the motions, then emotionlessly told me: “I have no interest in romance or emotional attachments. Our marriage is purely for business. As long as you stay in your place, I will fulfill my marital duties and ensure you enjoy the prestige of being Mrs. Thorne for life. Don’t expect anything more.” So, after we married, no matter how many times he ignored me or abandoned me for work, I endured it. I told myself, he didn’t love me, but he didn’t love anyone else either. That was enough. But until today, witnessing with my own eyes how he treasured Chloe, how he bowed his proud head for her, how he spoke the “I love you” that I yearned for three years but never received… I could no longer deceive myself. It wasn’t that he was indifferent to women, or inherently cold; it was simply that the person he loved wasn’t me, Elara Vance. All my persistence and endurance had become an absolute joke. I wiped away my tears, turned, and walked out of the County Clerk’s Office. Then I took out my phone and dialed a number: “Mr. Harrison, please prepare a divorce agreement for me.” The next day, I arrived at Thorne Industries headquarters with the freshly drawn-up divorce papers. But the receptionist informed me: “Mrs. Thorne, Mr. Thorne hasn’t been to the office in a long time.” My heart felt as though it had been pricked by a needle again. Not been to the office in a long time? Julian Thorne, the workaholic who once lived and worked at the company for a month straight for a project? I swallowed the bitterness and asked, “Where did he go?” The receptionist looked troubled and whispered, “He’s accompanying Miss Sterling to a Sotheby’s auction.” An auction… I recalled the rumors: he would spare no expense to make his beloved smile. I took a deep breath and drove to the auction house. Inside the venue, there was a dazzling array of socialites and celebrities. My eyes immediately found Julian Thorne sitting in the front row, and beside him, the delicate and lively Chloe Sterling. The auctioneer was introducing the grand finale item, a blue diamond necklace rumored to have once belonged to a British queen. The starting bid was already exorbitant.
The bidding was fiercely competitive, but whenever someone bid, Julian would raise his paddle without hesitation, directly outbidding them, his demeanor nonchalant yet utterly determined to win. Finally, he secured the necklace for Chloe at a jaw-dropping, astronomical price. The entire room gasped in shock, all envious or jealous gazes focusing on Chloe Sterling. Chloe happily wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. I stood not far away, watching this scene, my chest aching with a dull, numb pain. In all our years of marriage, he had never even given me a single decent gift. I always thought he was just emotionally detached, unromantic. It turned out he just wasn’t willing to be romantic *with me*. I clutched the divorce papers in my hand, took a deep breath, and walked towards that dazzling yet searing pair. Julian Thorne noticed me first, his casually smiling face instantly turned cold. Almost instinctively, he shielded Chloe behind him: “What are you doing here?” That instinctive protective gesture was like a sharp knife, piercing deeply into my heart. I tried my best to remain composed and handed him the document in my hand: “I have a document that needs your signature.” Just then, a staff member came over, asking Julian to go backstage to finalize the handover of the necklace. Julian’s voice was icy: “I’m busy right now. We can discuss whatever it is later.” Later? I didn’t want to wait another second. “It’s a very important document, it will only take a few minutes.” I insisted, my voice carrying a barely perceptible tremor. “Julian Thorne, let’s get a divorce. Once you sign this, and the mandatory waiting period is over, we’ll have no ties to each other. Since you have someone you truly love, I’ll let go, and you let me go free. We’ll both find our own happiness, neither of us holding the other back.” I spoke in one breath, mustering my courage, waiting for his reply. But Julian merely frowned, and after a long while, he slowly turned his head, as if he hadn’t heard what I said at all: “What did you just say? I told you I’m busy. We’ll talk later.” With that, he followed the staff member backstage. **CLIFFHANGER** I took a deep breath. He was always like this. Five years of marriage, and every single word I said was just air to him! Just as I was about to follow him, Chloe suddenly walked over and snatched the document right out of my hand. “Oh, you’re Julian’s arranged-marriage wife?” Chloe looked me up and down, a hint of disdain in her eyes. “Just let me sign any documents! Julian gave me a personalized seal with his name engraved on it! He said I could sign any documents for him!” My heart felt as if an invisible hand had gripped it tightly, squeezing the breath right out of me! A personalized seal… to sign *all* documents? Everyone knew Julian was meticulously careful, personally reviewing and signing every important paper! Yet now… Chloe seemed intent on proving it. She actually took out a small, exquisite personal seal from her tiny purse. Without even glancing at the contents, she flipped to the last page and, *thwack*, stamped it! “There, it’s signed,” Chloe said, pushing the document back into my hand, her tone a mix of condescension and warning. “Julian told me you two are just a business marriage. Since that’s the case, you should know your place. For small contracts like buying houses or jewelry, just bring them directly to me to sign in the future. Don’t bother Julian for no reason; he doesn’t want to see you.” I looked at the vibrant red imprint on the agreement, the symbol of Julian Thorne’s authority, and felt an overwhelming sense of irony. I opened my mouth, about to tell her this wasn’t some house purchase contract, but divorce papers… Suddenly, the blaring fire alarm rang throughout the venue! “Fire! Run!” Someone screamed, and instantly, the crowd descended into utter panic, stampeding towards the exits! Chloe and I, standing towards the interior and being relatively small figures, were instantly knocked to the ground by the chaotic, terrified crowd! “Ah!” “Don’t step on me!” Countless feet trampled over us. Excruciating pain shot through me. My bones felt like they were being crushed. I tried desperately to get up, but I was completely helpless! “Julian! Julian, help me!” Chloe cried out in terror. “Baby!” Julian’s anxious voice reached me. I saw him return, pushing through the crowd with effort, and a pathetic flicker of hope ignited deep within my heart. But he rushed over, his gaze unerringly locked onto Chloe. Without a second’s hesitation, he bent down, scooped Chloe into his arms, shielding her, and turned to rush out! He didn’t spare a single glance for me, lying helpless on the ground! “Julian Thorne! Julian Thorne!” I shouted his name with my last bit of strength, my voice swallowed by the cacophony of screams and cries.
Did he hear me? Perhaps he did, but he didn’t look back. Just as I despairingly thought I would be trampled to death here, that familiar figure actually came rushing back! My desolate heart suddenly flickered with a faint light. He had come back for me after all… However, Julian rushed to my side, but he didn’t even look at me. Instead, he swiftly picked up a bracelet that had fallen from my hand at some point, clutched it tightly, and turned to leave again. “Oh, thank goodness! I’m so glad you got it back for me!” Chloe’s tear-streaked smile turned into laughter from afar. “This is my favorite bracelet! If it had been crushed, I would have cried for a day and a night!” Julian hurried back to Chloe’s side, his voice filled with the relief of finding what was lost, and his usual indulgent affection: “So, to keep my baby from crying, I got it back, didn’t I?” “You’re so good!” Chloe happily kissed him. So… he had only come back for a bracelet. In his heart, I, his wife of five years, was apparently worth less than Chloe’s bracelet! A crushing wave of despair and heartbreak, like a final boulder, completely overwhelmed me. My vision went black, and I passed out completely. I regained consciousness again on a cold operating table. The surgical lights stung my eyes. The doctor was preparing instruments: “Mrs. Thorne, you’re awake? You have multiple soft tissue contusions, indications of fractured ribs, but the most severe injury is internal bleeding in your abdomen from being trampled, requiring immediate surgery…” The anesthesiologist was preparing to administer anesthesia. Suddenly, with a loud *bang*, the operating room door was violently kicked open from the outside! Several black-clad bodyguards rushed in. Without a word, they ripped out the IV in my arm and brutally dragged me off the operating table! “What are you doing! The patient needs immediate surgery!” The doctor exclaimed, both shocked and furious, trying to stop them. But the bodyguards ignored them completely, forcibly dragging me, weak and covered in blood, out of the operating room. “Let go of me… Where are you taking me…” I struggled weakly, the wounds agonizingly painful from being dragged. No one answered me. I was dragged directly to the VIP ward and roughly dumped onto the cold floor of a private room. I looked up and saw Julian Thorne sitting by the bedside, carefully giving Chloe Sterling water. Chloe looked merely a little shaken, with a few scrapes, nothing serious. Julian saw my bloodied, disheveled state, but his eyes were completely devoid of emotion, only cold indifference. He spoke, his voice as if淬了冰: “Chloe wants mini fruit tarts. I remember you make the best. Go to the hospital kitchen now and make her some.” I couldn’t believe my ears! I was covered in blood, yet he didn’t spare me a thought. Instead, because Chloe wanted fruit tarts, he had me dragged off the operating table? Years of accumulated resentment, pain, and despair finally erupted at this moment! I struggled to sit up, my voice hoarse and broken, filled with a heartbroken accusation: “Julian Thorne! You’ve gone too far! Where were you when I was being trampled to death at the auction? Your eyes were only on *her*! Now I’m severely injured and need surgery, yet you drag me here because of *her* whim! After all these years, what am I to you? I’m your lawfully wedded wife! Are you just going to degrade me like this?!” I screamed my accusations with all my might, tears mingling with the blood on my face, a pathetic and miserable sight. But Julian’s expression didn’t change at all; not even his eyes flickered. Instead, Chloe, in his arms, covered her ears in distaste, whining petulantly: “Julian, it’s so loud… She’s giving me a headache…” Julian immediately hugged her tighter, covered her ears, and gently soothed her: “Shh, don’t be scared, baby.” Then, he looked up at me, his eyes instantly turning cold and sharp: “So, after all that, you’re still unwilling to go?” My heart ashen, I stared at him. Julian lost the last shred of his patience, his voice chillingly cold: “Since that’s the case, lock her in the cold storage. She can come out when she’s willing.” The bodyguards immediately stepped forward, and despite my struggles and cries, they dragged me towards the hospital’s low-temperature cold storage for medications! The cold storage door slammed shut. The sub-zero temperature instantly enveloped me. My wounds felt as if pierced by countless icy needles, my blood almost freezing. The internal bleeding seemed to worsen. I could feel my life slipping away bit by bit… Despair and cold consumed me. Just as my consciousness was about to completely fade, and I thought I would die there, my survival instinct finally overcame that pathetic shred of dignity. With my last bit of strength, I crawled to the door, sobbing desperately, I banged on the cold metal door: “I… I’ll do it… I’ll do it… Let me out…” The cold storage door opened. I was dragged out like a rag doll and dumped in the hospital’s small kitchen. Dragging my cold, aching body, I mustered my last bit of willpower and made those mini fruit tarts. When I brought the pastries to the ward, Julian merely glanced at them, then waved his hand at the bodyguard, saying, “Take me to surgery.” Pushed back onto the operating table, the anesthetic flowed into my body, and my consciousness began to fade. My last tear slipped from the corner of my eye. Julian Thorne, from this day forward, we are strangers. I will never love you again. The days after surgery were long and agonizing. I lay alone in my hospital bed, watching the IV slowly dripping into my veins, feeling the dull, throbbing ache from my wounds. Each dressing change felt like torture. The nurse tried to be as gentle as possible, but the unmistakable pity in her eyes hurt more than the wounds. “Just bear with it a little longer, it’ll be over soon,” the nurse whispered. After she left, I faintly heard her low whispers with a colleague outside the door. “It’s truly pitiful… so severely injured, and her family hasn’t visited once. She had to force herself to sign the surgery consent forms…”
“I know, right? Meanwhile, Miss Sterling in the VIP room next door, who only has a few scrapes, Mr. Thorne has been by her side constantly. I heard he canceled several multi-billion dollar projects just to be with her…” “Such different fates!” These words were like tiny needles, pricking my heart relentlessly. But I was already numb. I just closed my eyes, turned my head towards the window, and pretended not to hear anything. On the day of my discharge, the sky was overcast. After completing the procedures, as I stepped out of the hospital entrance, my childhood friends were waiting in a car. “Elara! Over here!” Seeing the familiar smiling faces of my friends, my frozen heart finally felt a flicker of warmth. That evening, they took me to a bar we frequented, saying they wanted to celebrate my “escaping a sea of suffering and regaining my freedom.” “Good riddance! Julian Thorne doesn’t deserve you at all!” “Exactly! Our Elara is beautiful, stunning, and from a good family. Without Julian Thorne, the line of people wanting to date you would stretch from here to France!” “Yeah! Tomorrow, I’ll introduce you to some hot young guys, guaranteed to be a hundred times better than Julian’s ice-cold face!” My friends joked around and teased, trying hard to cheer me up. I sipped my drink, and a long-absent smile finally returned to my face. Yes, why should I degrade myself for a man who didn’t love me? Midway, I got up to go to the restroom. When I returned, I found the booth empty, my friends gone. “Excuse me, where are my friends?” I asked a passing bartender. The bartender looked uncomfortable, pointing to a luxurious private room at the end of the corridor: “Earlier… a drunk lady insisted on ordering male escorts, and she wasn’t satisfied with anyone she saw. When she saw your friends… she just had her bodyguards drag them into that private room… There were a lot of bodyguards, we couldn’t stop them…” My heart sank instantly! My friends were well-known and respected in our social circles; ordinary people wouldn’t dare mess with them. Unless… A sense of dread instantly gripped me! I rushed forward and violently pushed open the private room door! Sure enough! Inside the private room, Chloe, completely drunk, was pulling one of my friends’ hands, trying to rub it against herself! My friend’s face was livid, but he was trying his best to hold back, as she was a woman. “Chloe Sterling! Let go of my friend!” I sharply commanded, stepping forward to pull her away. Just then, with a *bang*, the private room door was violently kicked open from the outside! Julian Thorne stormed in, his face frigid, and grabbed Chloe’s wrist, his voice laced with suppressed fury: “Chloe! What are you doing in a place like this?!” Chloe immediately shook off his hand, her eyes blurry with intoxication, pointed at my friends, her tone haughty: “I came to order male escorts! Can’t you see?! These guys are good; I want them to keep me company!” “Nonsense! Absolutely not!” Julian’s face darkened further, and he reached out to pull her away. But Chloe violently pushed him away and started crying pitifully: “You can mess around, so why can’t I?! You can smile at other women! And spend hours alone in your office with that female client! Why can’t I come out and order male escorts!” His assistant quickly stepped forward to explain: “Miss Sterling, you’ve misunderstood! Mr. Thorne was in a very important business deal; there was absolutely nothing between him and the client…” “I don’t care!” Chloe wouldn’t listen, throwing a drunken fit, she reached out to grab my friend’s hand again, “Anyway, if you can be intimate with other women, so can I!” “Enough!” I couldn’t take it anymore. I stood in front of my friends: “Your flirting and bickering are your business! Don’t involve and harass my friends!” Julian’s icy gaze finally fell on me, then swept over the group of handsome, distinguished men behind me, his face instantly darkening horribly: “Elara Vance, I warned you, don’t harbor any ill intentions towards Chloe. What, isn’t it enough that *you* won’t back off, now you’re having your friends try to seduce her?” I couldn’t believe my ears! Seduce?! “Julian Thorne, are you blind?! Chloe is clearly the one harassing my friends!” Julian was about to say something else, but Chloe, seeing that he didn’t instantly soothe her, stomped her foot in anger and ran out! “Chloe!” Julian immediately chased after her, his voice instantly turning anxious and doting: “Alright, alright, don’t be mad. It’s my fault. I’ll never have a private meeting with any other woman again, okay? Hmm?” He even looked back, and coldly ordered his bodyguards: “For these men, whoever touched Miss Sterling, break their hand.” With that, he ran after Chloe without a backward glance. The bodyguards immediately stepped forward, ready to strike. I couldn’t believe it. I lunged in front of my friends, my voice sharp and furious: “How dare you! Open your eyes and see clearly! Were *they* the ones who started it?! Chloe was harassing them first! They are my friends, well-known and respected in our social circles. Try to lay a hand on them, I dare you!” The lead bodyguard said expressionlessly: “Miss Vance, please don’t make this difficult for us. Your friends may have good family backgrounds, but in Mr. Thorne’s eyes, they’re nothing. It would be effortless for Mr. Thorne to bankrupt their families with a single word. I have to answer to Mr. Thorne.” My entire body went cold. Anger and powerlessness almost drowned me.
I knew the bodyguard was speaking the truth. For the first time, I hated myself for marrying Julian Thorne. Not only had I endured endless humiliation, but I’d also dragged my best friends into this! I took a deep breath, suppressed the surging emotions, my gaze resolute: “Alright, I’ll give you your answer!” I snatched up a decorative metal rod nearby and, under the shocked gaze of everyone and my friends, brought it down hard on my left wrist! A sharp *crack*! Excruciating pain instantly flared, and my left hand fell limp. “Elara!” My friends cried out in dismay, rushing over to support me. My face was ashen, cold sweat pouring down me, but I forced myself to say to the bodyguard: “Now, you can go report back, right? I took this blow for my friends!” The bodyguard gave me a complicated look, then finally said nothing more and turned to leave. “Why are you so foolish!” My friends were heartbroken, hurriedly helping me up. “We could have fought them!” “We can’t win against them…” I shook my head weakly, my lips trembling from the pain. “It’s alright, my hand… my hand can be fixed…” My friends were distraught. They quickly helped me out, preparing to take me to the hospital to get my hand treated. Just as we stepped out of the bar, we suddenly heard a fierce argument coming from the second-floor balcony. I instinctively looked up and saw Chloe, somehow, had climbed onto the balcony edge, swaying precariously! “Don’t come any closer! I haven’t forgiven you! If you take another step, I’ll jump!” Chloe cried out. Julian Thorne stood a few steps away, his usually calm and composed face showed a rare panic: “Chloe! Don’t do anything foolish! Come down! Anything you want, I’ll do it!” “Really, anything?” Chloe asked, sobbing. “Really! Even if it means my life!” Listening from below, I felt both absurd and chilling. How much did he love Chloe to accept even such a ridiculous threat? Just then, seemingly appeased by Julian, Chloe carefully tried to step down from the balcony edge, but suddenly her foot slipped! “Ah—!” Amidst everyone’s horrified gasps, Chloe plummeted straight down from the second floor! And directly below, was me, who had just stepped out the door! CRASH! The tremendous force of the heavy impact made my vision go black. I was instantly slammed to the ground, serving as a complete human cushion, excruciating pain sweeping through my entire body! Julian Thorne rushed down from upstairs like a madman. Seeing the scene on the ground, he desperately, without hesitation, scooped up a terrified Chloe, his voice trembling: “Chloe! Chloe, are you alright? Don’t be scared, I’m taking you to the hospital right away!” He held Chloe and rushed to his car at top speed. From beginning to end, he didn’t spare a single glance for me, lying beneath the woman he loved most, my fate unknown. My friends watched Julian’s car disappear into the distance, shaking with fury, but could only hurry to take me, severely injured, to the hospital. When I next woke up in the hospital, only a nurse was beside me. “Miss Vance, you’re awake? Luckily, your friends brought you here in time… They had urgent company matters and left, saying to notify them once you woke up…” “No need,” I interrupted, my voice hoarse. “They’re very busy; don’t bother them.” The nurse looked at me, her eyes filled with sympathy: “But you need someone to take care of you…” “I’ll be fine on my own.” I closed my eyes, locking away all my vulnerability deep inside. Thereafter followed long and lonely days of recovery. I ate alone, changed my own dressings, took care of myself. On the day of my discharge, I completed the procedures myself and returned to the mansion. I began to pack my things, throwing all the gifts, clothes, and even so-called ‘couple’s items’ I’d secretly bought—all chosen with so much love, yet never once truly noticed by Julian—into the trash. Just as I was dragging my exhausted body, clearing out the last of my belongings, the main door opened. Julian Thorne walked in, his arm around Chloe Sterling’s waist. He didn’t even glance at me, standing there, discarding things. He spoke directly to Mr. Peterson, who was waiting nearby: “Chloe needs quiet recuperation for a while, she’ll be staying here. Prepare the master bedroom with the best natural light. Replace all the furnishings with new ones, according to her taste. She likes pink, the bedding must be silk, the curtains the best blackout ones, fresh white roses to be changed daily in the room, and her food…” He gave meticulous instructions, down to the smallest detail, his tone earnest and focused. I stood at the top of the stairs, listening to these words, my heart feeling like it was soaking in ice water. I remembered when I first moved in here, Julian had merely had his assistant escort me to the guest room, with a cold “If you need anything, ask the butler.” Love and indifference, they truly were this stark. I lowered my head, intending to silently go upstairs. “Stop!” Chloe suddenly called out, her eyes red-rimmed, pointing at the dress I was wearing: “Why are you wearing matching clothes with Julian?” I paused, realizing then that Julian was wearing a dark blue shirt today, and I was in an old dark blue dress. The colors were just similar. I was about to speak, but Chloe was already throwing an unrelenting tantrum: “Julian is *mine*! No one but me can wear the same color as him! Take it off! Take it off right now!” I couldn’t believe my ears: “It’s just a coincidence…”
🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “298902”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #浪漫Romance #现实主义Realistic
