Category: English

I “killed” my sister-in-law and made my brother hate me for six years. For those six years, the words I heard from him most often were, “Why don’t you just die?” He humiliated me every chance he got and even adopted a “sister” in front of me—someone he allowed to bully me relentlessly. That girl made me kneel on broken glass for pictures, forced me to drink nine bottles of vodka despite my advanced stomach cancer, and strip naked to dance for her birthday. I didn’t fight back. But on the final day of my life, I gifted my own death to my brother as a birthday present. Brother, this time, will you finally forgive me? “Nancy, are you out of your mind?!” The sound of my best friend Lily’s choked scream echoed through the hospital room. “You have three days left to live, and you’re telling me you’re still going to track down the people who killed your sister-in-law?! Are you insane?” She didn’t stop there—her face was red with fury. “Your brother? That coward? He had no right to blame you for what happened back then! None of this was your fault!” I ignored Lily’s anger and forced myself to sit up despite the stabbing pain in my stomach. A faint smile tugged at my lips as I replied hoarsely, “Don’t blame him. This was my fault from start to finish.” My brother had hated me for six years. Six years of burning resentment because I was the reason my sister-in-law, Charlotte, was dead. Charlotte had been my brother’s first love. They were inseparable—gentle, loving, and never once raising their voices at each other. She was warm, kind, and endlessly patient. Every time she saw me, she would bring me gifts, sit with me, help me with my homework, play games with me, or take me shopping for clothes. Her favorite thing to say to me was, “Our little Nancy is the best gift your brother ever gave me. She’s the best girl in the whole world.” And to me, Charlotte was the best sister-in-law anyone could ask for. But I killed her. It was my brother’s birthday, a cold and rainy night. Charlotte and I had gone out to buy him a LEGO set he’d been wanting for months. We wanted it to be a surprise, so I took her through a shortcut I often used—a dark alley I thought I knew like the back of my hand. The rest of the night is a blur. The next thing I remember is waking up in the hospital, my brother standing over me with rage in his bloodshot eyes. He slapped me across the face—hard—twelve times. His voice was hoarse with grief and fury as he screamed, “Nancy, are you even human?! Why would you do this to her?!” “Charlotte loved you so much—why would you betray her like this?! You knew she was afraid of the dark!” That’s when I learned the truth. There had been twelve drunk men in that alley. When they saw us, they surrounded us like predators closing in on prey. Charlotte had stepped in front of me, shielding me with her body. She begged them to let me go. But those monsters didn’t care. They beat me unconscious and dragged her away. Charlotte endured horrors I can barely imagine. They assaulted her, then stabbed her 33 times. Her thigh bone was snapped in half, and the injuries to her body were so severe the doctors couldn’t even stitch her back together. I remember kneeling in the morgue, staring at her lifeless body, unable to move or think. I had killed her. My brother was never the same after that night. The man who once adored me now drowned himself in alcohol and avoided our home entirely. The words he used to say the most were: “Why aren’t you in hell yet, Nancy? If you died, Charlotte could finally rest in peace.” “Did you know? She didn’t even close her eyes when she died. She couldn’t rest because of you.” “Don’t you hear her crying at night? How do you have the audacity to still be alive?” He was right. If Charlotte hadn’t gone out with me that night, none of this would have happened. If I hadn’t insisted on taking that shortcut, she’d still be alive. The guilt and shame consumed me. I spiraled into depression, but I didn’t dare end my life—not yet. I had to find the men who killed Charlotte. I had to bring them to justice. Only then could I face her. Two weeks ago, I finally got a lead. The private investigator I’d hired told me those twelve men had resurfaced in Bay City after committing other crimes. And two weeks ago, I was also diagnosed with terminal stomach cancer. It felt like fate. This was my last chance to make things right—for Charlotte, for my brother, and for myself. I didn’t have much time left, but I didn’t need much. All I needed was to finish this. Then I could let go.

When I returned home, I found all my belongings thrown out onto the front lawn. I looked up to see Renee Grant smirking down at me from the porch. “This room’s mine now,” she said with practiced arrogance. “Take your junk and get lost.” I glanced at Renee. She was the girl my brother, Nathan, had taken in as a “little sister.” When Renee first came to live with us, she was shy and timid. But after seeing how Nathan constantly humiliated me, her attitude toward me shifted. I bent down, picking up my things, ready to move them to the storage room. But as I passed the trash can, something made me stop in my tracks. There, buried among the garbage, was my necklace. I frantically pulled it out, only to find that the pink gemstone in the center had been shattered. A buzzing sound filled my ears. Charlotte, my sister-in-law, had given me so many gifts when she was alive. But after her death, Nathan had taken them all away, saying I didn’t deserve to keep anything that reminded him of her. That necklace was the only thing I’d managed to hold on to. It was the last piece of Charlotte I had left. And now it was broken. I held the ruined necklace up, my anger boiling over as I turned to Renee. “Who gave you permission to touch my stuff?” I demanded, my voice shaking with fury. Renee rolled her eyes. “My brother said everything in this house is mine now. I can throw out whatever I want. What’s it to you?” “This necklace was a birthday gift from Charlotte!” I spat, emphasizing every word. Renee didn’t even flinch. Instead, she sneered, “So what? She’s dead. What’s the point of keeping it?” Before I could respond, she smirked and added, “And anyway, it’s only a matter of time before I’m more than just Nathan’s ‘sister.’ I’ll be the next Charlotte. Go ahead, call me—” She didn’t get to finish. I slapped her so hard she stumbled back, clutching her cheek. “Nancy!” Renee shrieked. “How dare you hit me? Aren’t you afraid I’ll tell Nathan?!” Rage surged through me. How dare she insult Charlotte like that? But before I could raise my hand again, I was shoved back with such force that I slammed into the windowsill, knocking over a large vase. The vase shattered on impact, shards of glass cutting into my face and arms. I looked up, dazed, to see Nathan standing there, his face dark with fury. “Nancy,” he said coldly, “have you completely lost your mind? Now you’re bullying your family too?” I opened my mouth, my voice trembling. “Nathan, she was the one who—” “Brother, please don’t blame her!” Renee interrupted, tears streaming down her face as she played the victim. “I shouldn’t have assumed I could stay in Charlotte’s room. If Nancy doesn’t want me here, I’ll just leave.” She turned, pretending to walk away, but Nathan grabbed her arm and stopped her. “You’re my sister,” he said firmly. “No one has the right to make you leave.” A sharp pain shot through my chest. Before I could say anything, Nathan turned his icy glare on me. “Some people clearly don’t know how to behave,” he said. “If that’s the case, you can kneel here all night. Don’t get up until Renee feels better.” Renee’s tears disappeared in an instant. She smirked, triumphant, and said sweetly, “Well, if that’s what you say, Nathan, I guess I’ll listen.” The pain in my stomach grew sharper, but I said nothing. I knew there was no point in arguing. I lowered myself onto the glass-covered floor, feeling the shards dig into my knees. Blood began to seep through my jeans, but I kept my head down. Nathan snorted and walked upstairs without another word. Renee lingered for a moment, pulling out her phone to take pictures of me kneeling on the broken glass. After snapping a few shots, she stuck out her tongue and skipped up the stairs. The house soon fell silent. The cold seeped into my bones, and the stabbing pain in my stomach became unbearable. I reached for my painkillers but collapsed before I could inject myself. I was jolted awake by a splash of icy water. I opened my eyes to see Nathan standing over me, his expression full of disgust. “Cut the act,” he said sharply. “You didn’t look so pitiful when you killed Charlotte or bullied Renee.” He sneered, his voice dripping with disdain. “Today’s Renee’s birthday. I sent you the party details. Your job is to make sure she has a good time.” Before leaving, he added with a bitter laugh, “Don’t think acting all guilty will make me forgive you. You owe Charlotte too much, and you haven’t even started to pay it back.” As he walked away, I smiled bitterly and whispered to myself, “Soon, Nathan. Very soon, I’ll pay it all back.” There was only one day left.

I injected the last two doses of painkillers into my arm, each one barely dulling the searing ache in my stomach. After tidying myself up as best I could, I limped to the curb and hailed a cab. By the time I arrived at the bar, Renee’s birthday party was already in full swing. The room was packed with her friends—loud, laughing, and buzzing with energy. But what caught me off guard was seeing Nathan there, seated right in the middle of the group. Nathan—my brother. The same man who never once showed up to my birthday parties, claiming he had no interest in “wasting time with kids.” And yet, here he was, happily celebrating Renee’s birthday. The bitterness in my chest spread like poison. Renee spotted me from across the room and immediately put on her fake, saccharine smile. She hurried over, looping her arm through mine as though we were the closest of sisters. “There you are, sis! I’ve been waiting forever for you! My birthday wouldn’t be complete without you!” She dragged me to the center of the room, where everyone’s eyes were on us. “This is my sister,” Renee announced with mock affection. “She’s an amazing dancer. I’ve always been so jealous of her!” Her friends laughed, their faces full of mischief and malice. Something felt off. I had a sinking feeling in my stomach, like I was walking straight into a trap. Sure enough, one of the guys in the group spoke up. “Since she’s such a great dancer, why doesn’t she perform for us? You know, as a birthday gift for you, Renee!” “Yeah!” a girl chimed in, her grin wicked. “How about something sexy? Like the kind of dances those girls at the clubs do?” I clenched the fabric of my shirt in my fists and turned to Nathan, silently begging him to intervene. But he didn’t even glance at me. His attention was entirely on Renee, his expression soft and indulgent. “Please, sis,” Renee pouted, her voice dripping with mock innocence. “It’s my birthday. Can’t you do this for me? Just this once?” Her eyes sparkled with malice that only I could see. Before I could respond, another voice chimed in. “Dancing is better with a little liquid courage!” Suddenly, nine bottles of vodka were slammed onto the table in front of me. One of the guys winked at me. “Drink up, pretty lady. We’re all friends here. Don’t be shy—this’ll make it more fun!” I froze, unsure of what to do. Renee’s expression turned solemn. She lowered her eyes, pretending to be hurt. “Maybe we should forget it,” she said softly, turning to Nathan. “I shouldn’t have asked. I forgot that my sister doesn’t really like me.” Nathan finally looked at me, his gaze cold and indifferent. “Nancy,” he said in a low, commanding voice, “did you forget what I told you to do?” The air seemed to leave my lungs. I swallowed hard, tightened my fists, and picked up the first bottle. The vodka burned like fire as it traveled down my throat, the sensation spreading through my chest and into my stomach. The painkillers I’d taken earlier seemed completely useless now, the alcohol amplifying the stabbing pain in my gut. But I didn’t stop. As Renee’s friends cheered and laughed, I drank bottle after bottle until all nine were empty. By the time I finished, my vision was blurry, and my legs felt like jelly. “Take it off! Take it off!” someone shouted, and the chant quickly spread through the group. Though I was drunk, the humiliation was sharp and clear. But Nathan didn’t say a word. He just sat there, watching as if none of this had anything to do with him. My chest ached, but not from the pain—it was something deeper, something hollow and cold. I staggered to my feet and began removing my clothes, piece by piece. Renee and her friends erupted in laughter and cheers as I stripped down to my underwear. One of the guys pulled out his phone and started recording, his face twisted in a cruel grin. Then, suddenly, the sound of a bottle shattering on the floor silenced the room. I blinked through my haze and saw Nathan standing, his expression one of pure disgust. “You’re pathetic,” he said, his voice cutting through the silence like a blade. “You’ve ruined Renee’s birthday. Get out.” The words stung, but at the same time, I felt a strange sense of relief. I grabbed my clothes and stumbled out of the room, the vodka and pain in my stomach making every step heavier than the last. I wanted to stop somewhere—anywhere—to buy more painkillers, but my body gave out before I could. Everything went black. When I woke up, I was in a hospital bed. Nathan was sitting in the chair beside me, his arms crossed and his face a mask of irritation. “Get up,” he said coldly. “You’re fine. Stop wasting my money lying here.” His tone was sharp, full of disdain. “You were drunk, not dying. Stop making it look like the end of the world—it’s pathetic.” My lips parted to speak, but the words caught in my throat. He didn’t even bother to get me checked out. To him, I was just an inconvenience. “Brother,” I said softly, my voice trembling with desperation. “What can I do to make you forgive me?” Nathan laughed bitterly, his eyes filled with cruelty. “Nancy,” he said, “how many times do I have to tell you? If you want my forgiveness, then just die.” With that, he stood and walked out of the room. I stared at his retreating back, my hands trembling as I whispered, “I’ll grant your wish, brother. Soon.” There was only one day left.

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On the day of our wedding, my mother-in-law jumped from the second floor and died instantly. From that moment on, Anthony Reed hated me. The security footage showed that his mother had seen me shortly before she jumped. But I was in the bridal suite, getting my makeup done. I never even saw her. No matter how much I explained, he refused to believe me. He locked me in the mansion, tormenting me however he pleased, while parading woman after woman in front of me. At my breaking point, a fire consumed everything. When I opened my eyes again, I was back—back on the day of our wedding. “Quinn, I finally get to marry you. I’m not dreaming, am I?” A voice filled with excitement sounded next to my ear. The next second, I was pulled into a warm embrace. The familiar scent made my entire body freeze. I shoved him away with all my strength, raising my hand to slap him across the face. “Get your hands off me. You make me sick.” The crisp sound of the slap echoed through the room. Anthony stared at me, stunned. “Quinn, what’s wrong? Why did you hit me?” My pupils shrank as I looked down at my trembling hand, red from the force of the slap. My gaze swept the room in confusion. This… was the bridal suite? Had I been reborn? Anthony frowned, concern flashing across his face. He reached out to check my forehead. “Quinn, did you not sleep well last night? Why don’t you rest for a bit? The ceremony won’t start for a while.” In my last life, it was on this very day that Anthony’s mother died. I could still see him holding her lifeless body, sobbing uncontrollably. When he watched the security footage, he completely lost his mind. The wedding I had once looked forward to became the start of my personal hell. Taking a deep breath, I suppressed the fear rising in my chest and grabbed Anthony’s hand tightly. “Anthony, listen to me. There are a lot of people here today, and things could get chaotic. Please, keep an eye on your mom. Don’t let her out of your sight, okay?” He frowned, confused by my serious tone, but eventually nodded. “Don’t worry, Quinn. I’ll make sure she’s fine. You’ve been working so hard to prepare for this wedding—you must be exhausted. Leave everything else to me and just focus on resting.” As soon as Anthony left, I collapsed into the chair, my legs weak. My mind was a mess. What if something happened to her again? I couldn’t go through the same nightmare twice. If only I’d been reborn a few days earlier, maybe I could’ve stopped this wedding altogether. But fate had thrown me back to today, forcing me to face it all over again. I paced back and forth in the room, anxiety eating away at me. It wasn’t until the officiant’s voice echoed through the venue that I finally exhaled in relief. In my past life, Anthony’s mother had jumped before the wedding began. It seemed Anthony had taken my words seriously and kept an eye on her, preventing the tragedy. After the ceremony, I finally let my guard down. Anthony wrapped me in his arms, gently massaging my shoulders. “You were so tense, Quinn. See? The wedding wasn’t as bad as you thought, was it?” “From now on, my mom has fully accepted you. We’re a family now. Remember, you can always share what’s on your mind. I want to know how you feel, no matter what.” I nodded, a weight lifting off my chest. That night, Anthony brought me a warm glass of milk, as he always did. Noticing my low spirits, he didn’t press me or try to get intimate. Half-asleep, I was startled awake by the sound of my phone buzzing. Anthony answered it, frowning slightly. He sighed, leaned down to kiss my forehead, and whispered, “Quinn, something came up at the office. I need to head out for a bit. You rest, okay?” The door clicked shut behind him, and I drifted back into a deep sleep. I wasn’t sure how much time had passed when I was abruptly yanked awake. Rubbing my drowsy eyes, I looked up to see Anthony’s furious face hovering above me. “Quinn Taylor,” he spat, his voice trembling with anger, “what the hell do you think you’re doing?”

I stared blankly, frozen in confusion. Anthony Reed didn’t care that I was wearing nothing but a thin nightgown. He grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the bedroom forcefully. Panicked, I clutched my chest to keep myself covered, my heart pounding so hard it felt like it might burst. No matter how much I screamed or begged him to stop, he didn’t listen. He was like a man possessed, his grip unrelenting as he pulled me through the house. The mansion was fully lit, and the household staff stood in two neat rows, their faces tense and uneasy. Anthony flung me down the stairs. I tumbled, rolling down step after step, until I finally hit the cold, hard floor. Disoriented and aching all over, my hand brushed against something icy and wet. Ignoring the pain, I turned my head to look. What I saw made my breath catch in my throat. It was… my mother-in-law. She lay in a pool of blood, her lifeless eyes wide open, her pupils dull and dilated. Her face was twisted in terror, as if even in death, she couldn’t find peace. How was this possible? The wedding had gone perfectly. She had survived that day. How could she be dead now, in our home? I couldn’t understand. Why, despite my second chance, had she still died? Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through my scalp. Anthony grabbed a fistful of my hair, yanking my head back to force me to look at him. His eyes were bloodshot, his jaw clenched so tightly I thought his teeth might crack. “Quinn Taylor,” he hissed, “don’t you have anything to say for yourself?” “My mom had finally come around to accepting you. She even gave you the family heirloom bracelet to show she welcomed you into the Reed family. What more could you possibly want? How could you be so cruel?” I sobbed, shaking my head violently. “It wasn’t me, Anthony! I swear, it wasn’t me! I was asleep! When you left, I was already asleep—I couldn’t have done anything to her!” The Reeds were a prominent family, wealthy and powerful. My family, by comparison, was ordinary—completely out of their league. At first, my mother-in-law was vehemently against our relationship. Anthony, however, was determined to marry me. He defied her, rejected every woman she tried to set him up with, and even threatened to give up his position as the heir to the Reed family fortune. This only made her hatred for me grow stronger. She once declared that I would only enter the Reed family “over her dead body.” But Anthony’s resolve didn’t waver. If anything, her opposition only strengthened his commitment to me. Later, when his mother fell ill and needed a bone marrow transplant, I turned out to be a match. When she learned that I was her donor, her attitude softened. Slowly, she began to accept me. I had saved her life. How could I possibly be the one to harm her? Anthony let out a bitter laugh and shoved my head away. “Oh, really? So you’re saying the security footage is lying to me?” He glared at me with disgust, his voice dripping with venom. “Quinn Taylor, I never thought you’d be the kind of person to stab someone in the back. To act so respectful and obedient in front of my mom, only to turn around and kill her behind closed doors. Look at this, and tell me it’s not you!” My head hit the floor with a thud, leaving me dizzy and in pain. Anthony held up his phone, showing me a surveillance video. On the screen, a woman wearing a nightgown identical to mine appeared. Her build, her face—everything about her screamed that it was me. In the footage, the woman said something to my mother-in-law, causing her expression to change drastically. She raised her hand as if to strike the woman, but the woman shoved her instead. My mother-in-law stumbled backward, falling down the stairs. She landed hard at the bottom, groaning in pain. But the woman didn’t stop there. She picked up a vase and smashed it over my mother-in-law’s head. Again and again. Finally, my mother-in-law’s neck twisted at an unnatural angle, and she stopped moving. The woman stood there, disheveled and cold-eyed, before calmly walking back upstairs to the master bedroom. I watched in horror, my body trembling uncontrollably. Anthony grabbed me by the throat, his grip tightening as he leaned in close. “Look at yourself,” he snarled. “There’s blood on your nightgown—my mom’s blood. And it matches exactly with the video. Are you still going to deny it, Quinn? Are you still going to pretend you didn’t kill her?” My eyes dropped to my white nightgown, and sure enough, there was a large stain of dried blood on it. It was in the exact same spot as the bloodstain on the woman’s nightgown in the video. How… how could this be? Was it possible that I really had killed her? I clung to Anthony’s shirt, tears streaming down my face as I broke into uncontrollable sobs. “Anthony, I… I think I’m sick. I don’t remember anything—I don’t remember! I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…” In my first life, I had been so sure of my innocence. Even after being reborn, I had clung to that belief. But now? Now I wasn’t so sure.

Anthony Reed tilted my chin up, his voice hoarse and bitter: “Quinn Taylor, you’ve finally admitted it, haven’t you? Tell me—how can you be so heartless? How could you do something so cruel?” Tears streamed down my face as I gasped for air, barely able to breathe. Scenes from my previous life flashed through my mind like a nightmare I couldn’t escape. In that past life, Anthony had locked me away, forcing me to share a cage with the dogs I was terrified of. He had replayed the footage of his mother jumping to her death over and over, making sure I saw it every waking moment. He knew I loved him, so he brought women into the house, flaunting them in front of me, using them to humiliate me. My body trembled uncontrollably as the memories suffocated me. The world around me seemed to darken. Anthony stood up, towering over me with cold indifference. “Quinn,” he said, his voice sharp and cutting, “you didn’t just ruin my mother’s life. You destroyed my sister’s as well. Lila came home from school just to meet you, her new sister-in-law. But what did she see the moment she walked through the door? She saw you kill our mom with her own eyes.” His words hit me like a punch to the gut. “When you pushed her,” Anthony continued, “did you even notice Lila standing there? No, of course not. You scared her so badly she fainted on the spot. Do you know how long she lay there, unconscious? Do you know she’s still in the hospital, in a coma?” He took a step closer, his voice dropping to a chilling whisper. “You need to atone, Quinn. You need to beg forgiveness—from my mom, from my sister.” Lila Reed. In my past life, she had been a graduate student studying abroad. By the time she returned home, her mother was already gone. I had only met her once—at the funeral. She had seemed so sweet and gentle, but when she attacked me, her strength was terrifying. If Anthony hadn’t stopped her, I had no doubt she would have beaten me to death. She hated Anthony for not handing me over to the police. She thought he spared me because he still loved me. She didn’t know the truth—that he kept me around only to exact his own revenge. Anthony never explained himself to her. Furious and heartbroken, Lila cut ties with him and left the country. She never came back. This time, though, Lila hadn’t left. Maybe that was the reason Anthony didn’t lock me up like before. Instead, he dragged me to the hospital and made me serve as Lila’s caretaker—his way of punishing me until she recovered. After I calmed down, I asked Anthony to take me to a psychiatrist. I needed answers. I needed to know if I was sick—if there was something wrong with me that could explain everything. Anthony’s lips curled into a mocking sneer. “Oh, I see. You want to fake a mental illness now? Is that your plan, Quinn?” He leaned in closer, his voice dripping with venom. “Don’t think for a second that claiming insanity will get you out of this. Even if you were diagnosed, I wouldn’t let you off the hook.” His words cut deep, but I forced myself to push past the pain. “Anthony,” I said, my voice trembling, “I know you hate me right now. But we’ve been together for years. You know the kind of person I am. “When your mom hated me, I still donated my bone marrow to save her. She finally accepted me, and we were happy. Why would I hurt her after everything? “I love you, Anthony. And I love your family. I just want to know the truth. Please, let me do this.” For a moment, something flickered in his eyes—hesitation, maybe even guilt. But it was gone as quickly as it came. He sighed, his jaw tight, and finally relented. The test results came back a few days later. I wasn’t mentally ill. My heart sank as I stared at the report. If I wasn’t sick, then why… why had I done something so monstrous? Before I could process what that meant, Anthony snatched the papers from my hands. His expression darkened, and the air around us seemed to grow heavier. “Well?” he snarled. “What’s your excuse now?” He threw the report onto the table, his voice rising. “Quinn Taylor, stop lying to me. You killed my mom. Just admit it!” “No!” I shouted back, tears streaming down my face. “It wasn’t me, Anthony! I swear!” My voice cracked as I pleaded with him. “Please, just wait. Lila saw everything. She might wake up and prove my innocence. Please, Anthony, I’m begging you—just give me one last chance. I don’t want our relationship to end in nothing but hatred.” Anthony’s jaw tightened, his eyes bloodshot. Finally, he growled through gritted teeth, “Fine. One last chance, Quinn. Just one.”

I looked at Lila Reed, still unconscious in her hospital bed. Maybe, just maybe, this time, she was the miracle sent to save me. For three long days, I stayed by her side. During that time, Anthony was busy organizing his mother’s funeral. He only came by occasionally to check on things. He wasn’t worried about me escaping. He’d rented out the entire hospital floor and stationed guards everywhere to watch my every move. The security was airtight—nothing could get in or out, not even a bird. When Lila finally woke up, Anthony happened to walk into the room. I barely had time to feel relieved before she suddenly let out a blood-curdling scream. Her eyes were wide with terror as she pointed at me, her hand trembling. “You… You’re the murderer!” “Anthony, it’s her! She killed Mom! It was her!” She clung to Anthony’s arm, sobbing uncontrollably. “Why is she here? She killed Mom! Why is she still here?” I stood frozen, unable to react. A chill ran down my spine, leaving me paralyzed. Anthony held his panicked sister tightly, gently stroking her back to calm her. “It’s okay, Lila. You’re safe now. Don’t get upset.” “Call the police, Anthony! Arrest her! She killed Mom—you have to call the police!” “Lila, look at me,” I pleaded desperately. “That night, it wasn’t me. Please, look carefully—it wasn’t me!” I inched closer, hoping for her to see reason, to remember something that could clear my name. But the closer I got, the more hysterical she became. The room descended into chaos. Nurses rushed in, trying to restrain her. Then, out of nowhere, a sharp slap echoed through the room. Pain erupted in my left cheek. I stood there, stunned, the side of my face burning. Anthony’s voice cut through the air, cold and furious: “Get out, you murderer.” His finger pointed toward the door, his eyes blazing with hatred. I felt as though I’d fallen into an abyss of ice. My last shred of hope was gone. At his mother’s funeral, Anthony forced me to my knees in front of the grave. The guards pressed down on my head, making me bow again and again against the cold, unforgiving tombstone. Every time my forehead hit the hard stone, stars burst in my vision. But until Anthony gave the order, the bowing wouldn’t stop. I didn’t know how long it went on. My head was spinning, my entire body weak from the blood rushing to my head. Just when I thought I couldn’t take another second, someone shoved the guards aside and pulled me into their arms. “Anthony Reed, have you lost your mind? What are you doing to Quinn? If you want revenge, go find the real killer instead of torturing her like this!” I forced my swollen eyes open just enough to see the figure standing over me. It was Lily Hart—my best friend, my sister in everything but blood. From high school to now, Lily had always treated me like family, protecting me no matter what. “Lily,” I whimpered, tears finally streaming down my face. “You believe me, don’t you? I didn’t kill her. I didn’t kill his mom.” Lily’s eyes filled with tears as she gently wiped the blood off my face. “I know, Quinn. I believe you. You’d never do something like that.” The cemetery was almost empty now, only a few people lingering. Anthony waved his hand, and the guards immediately separated me from Lily. Barely able to support myself, I leaned on the ground to keep from collapsing. Anthony let out a cold laugh. “How touching. Sisterhood at its finest.” He leaned down, his voice low and venomous. “Quinn Taylor, if you think this is the end, you’re sorely mistaken. My revenge is far from over.” I was dragged back to the mansion and locked in the same cage as before—just like in my previous life. The security footage of that night played on a loop in front of me, over and over. I began to have visceral reactions. My body would shake uncontrollably, and every time I closed my eyes, I saw his mother’s bloody face, accusing me, asking why I killed her. “I didn’t,” I whispered into the darkness. “I didn’t kill you. I swear I didn’t.” I didn’t know how much time had passed. My nerves were frayed beyond recognition. I couldn’t eat, couldn’t sleep. The nightmares never stopped. My body withered. My reflection in the mirror was barely recognizable—gaunt, hollow-eyed, and lifeless. One day, I collapsed in the cage. When the maids found me, I was unconscious. Anthony had me taken out of the cage and put on an IV drip. But even as my body recovered slightly, my mind remained a fractured mess. That afternoon, I wandered near the window, staring listlessly outside. Then I saw them. A figure in the distance, slipping through the garden. My heart stopped. My pupils dilated, and my chest tightened as my breath caught in my throat. There they were—the real murderer. The one who had killed Anthony’s mother.

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In the middle of the night, my girlfriend sent me a chilling message: “I just looked out the peephole, and there’s a maniac with a knife in the hallway! He’s going crazy and killing people! He noticed me! He’s trying to get in!” I panicked and immediately texted her back: “No matter what, don’t open the door. I’m coming over right now.” I rushed to get back to her place as quickly as I could. But as I was on my way, she sent me three more messages: “Wait, are you actually coming? I was just kidding! You didn’t take it seriously, did you? Haha.” “There’s no killer, I was just messing with you.” “Go back home!” For a moment, I felt my heart drop. By then, I was already in a cab, my nerves on edge. I saw her messages and texted back, trying to calm myself down: “You almost gave me a heart attack! You should’ve told me right away that you were joking.” Her response was casual, almost dismissive: “How was I supposed to know you’d actually come over? I was just playing around. What’s the big deal? You’re not mad, are you? Haha.” I sighed. “No, it’s fine. I’m just glad you’re okay. But seriously, don’t joke about stuff like this again—it’s scary, especially at night.” She replied: “Okay, I won’t. Haha.” Even though she said it was fine, I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling. Just to be sure, I decided to video call her. To my surprise, the call only rang once before she declined it. I texted her immediately: “Why didn’t you answer?” Her reply came quickly: “I’m going to bed—I’m so tired. Haha.” I stared at the screen, unsettled. That “haha” felt off. “What are you laughing about?” I asked. She replied: “Nothing, I’m just in a good mood tonight.” That’s when I started to feel like something was seriously wrong. Normally, my girlfriend was pretty serious—she wasn’t the type to use “haha” or act playful in her texts. A terrifying thought crossed my mind: What if someone else was using her phone? The moment that thought hit me, a chill ran down my spine. I immediately tried calling her again—this time, she didn’t decline the video call, but it rang for a long time without anyone picking up. I switched to a regular phone call. To my surprise, she answered. Her voice sounded tired. “What do you want? I told you, I’m going to bed. I’m exhausted.” I pressed her: “Why didn’t you pick up the video call?” She repeated, almost mechanically: “I’m going to bed. I’m so tired.” Before I could say anything else, she hung up. The cab driver glanced at me through the rearview mirror. “Hey man, are you okay? You don’t look so good.” I caught my reflection in the mirror—my face was pale, my hands trembling. The sense of dread was overwhelming. I told the driver, “Please, drive faster. I think my girlfriend’s in trouble.” Sensing my urgency, the driver didn’t hesitate. He stepped on the gas and sped toward her apartment. As we drove, I sent her another text: “Say something—anything.” This time, she sent back a voice message. Her voice was flat, almost robotic: “Say what? I told you, I’m going to bed. I’m so tired.” 2 Hearing her voice, I let out a long breath of relief. “Didn’t you say there was a guy with a knife outside your door? You even said he was killing people! You scared the hell out of me.” She texted back: “I told you, it was just a prank. Relax, I was just messing with you.” “That’s really not funny,” I replied, still uneasy. She didn’t respond again. The more I thought about it, the stranger it seemed. Sure, she’d answered my call earlier, but what if she’d been forced to? What if there really was a knife-wielding maniac, and he had gotten inside? What if he was threatening her, making her pretend everything was fine? Maybe when I called, he had the knife to her throat, and she had no choice but to act normal. As I spiraled, she sent another message: “I’m going to bed. I’m so tired. Just go home.” I started typing a response, but before I could hit send, another message popped up: “Haha.” That “haha” again. Those two letters were driving me insane. Before I left for her place, I had already called the police. Now, I was even more convinced something was wrong, so I called them again. The dispatcher assured me that officers were already en route and would arrive at her apartment complex in about 25 minutes. I asked the driver how long it would take us to get there. He sighed and pointed ahead. “There’s been an accident on the overpass. It’s going to take a while.” My anxiety spiked as I stared out the window at the sea of red brake lights. I tried calling her again, but this time, I sent a video call. It rang for what felt like forever before she declined it again. I texted her: “Let me see you. I’m at your building. If you don’t pick up, I’m coming upstairs.” She started typing immediately, but no new messages came through. At this point, I was barely holding it together. The driver glanced at me. “Look, man, there’s nothing we can do. Even if you got out now, you’d be stuck on this overpass for an hour.” I looked ahead. The overpass was jammed with cars, all crawling forward at a snail’s pace because of the accident. The driver inched forward, but it was agonizingly slow. Finally, a new message came through: “You actually came here?” “Yes, I’m downstairs. I’m coming up!” I replied. Her response came quickly: “Don’t. I have company.” “Who?” “A coworker. You don’t know her. She’s another girl. It’s just… not convenient right now.” I insisted: “Then turn on your camera.” She replied: “We’re all in bed already.” I didn’t dare tell her I had called the police. If someone really had her at knifepoint, I didn’t want to provoke them into doing something reckless. But then, she sent another text: “Did you call the cops?” I froze. She continued: “The building manager just called me. Apparently, the police received a report about a knife-wielding murderer in the hallway outside my apartment. They asked the building manager to confirm it. Do you have any idea how embarrassing that was? I had to explain everything to the manager.” “The building manager and security already came to my door. They scolded me for causing trouble. I told you—it was a joke! Why did you take it so seriously?” “Just call the police back and cancel it. You know filing a false report can get you arrested, right?” Her messages kept coming, urging me to cancel the report. The more she texted, the more uneasy I felt. Something still didn’t sit right. She sent another message: “You’re being ridiculous. It’s the middle of the night, and you’re freaking out over some imaginary killer. What’s wrong with you? This is a civilized country. You don’t actually believe there’s a murderer with a knife roaming the halls, do you? It’s absurd!” Just as I was reading her latest message, my phone buzzed with an incoming video call—from her. Oddly enough, instead of calming me, the call made me even more nervous. The driver glanced back at me. “You okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” I took a deep breath and hesitated before answering. What if the person on the other end of the call wasn’t her? What if it was the killer, calling me as some sick joke? What if, the moment I answered, I’d be staring at her lifeless, bloodied body? My hands shook as I accepted the call. The video connection lagged for a few seconds because of the bad signal on the overpass. When it finally connected, the room on the other end was dimly lit, with only a bedside lamp casting a faint glow. Her voice came through first: “I told you, I’m tired.” But the camera wasn’t on her—it was pointed at the ceiling. “Let me see you,” I said, trying to keep my voice steady. There was a pause. For a moment, I was convinced it wasn’t her on the other end—that the killer had her phone. But then she adjusted the camera, and her face came into view. She was wearing a sheet mask, looking annoyed. “I’m going to bed. I’m exhausted.” She tilted the camera slightly, and I saw another woman in the background, sitting at a vanity in light blue pajamas. “See? My coworker’s here. That’s why I didn’t want you coming up,” she said, sounding exasperated. I sat there, stunned. So there really wasn’t a killer? It had all been a stupid prank? And she hadn’t wanted me to come up because her coworker was staying over? Before I could say anything, she ended the call and sent me a follow-up text: “Happy now?” She attached a photo of her living room. In the picture, the building manager—wearing a baseball cap and holding a clipboard—stood by the door, probably confirming the police report. It seemed like everything was fine. But for some reason, I still couldn’t shake the unease in my chest. 3The driver hesitated before asking cautiously, “Was that your girlfriend on the call? She looked fine. Seems like she was just joking around. Do we still need to go? The traffic’s awful up ahead.” I hesitated. Should I call off the police? Should I just head home? Meanwhile, my girlfriend sent another message: “Cancel the police already! The building manager called me again to confirm the report. This is getting so annoying!” I replied firmly: “I’m almost there, and the police should be there soon too. This could be serious, so I’ll just explain everything to the officers in person.” She didn’t respond immediately. After about half a minute, though, she sent another message: “Don’t you dare come over!” I froze. Just then, my phone vibrated again. It was a message from her younger sister, Jackie: “Hey, are you there yet?” I was taken aback. “Wait, you’re there too?” Jackie replied, sounding anxious: “You’re not there yet? My sister texted me saying there’s a guy with a knife outside her door, so I rushed over!” I froze, confused. “She told you that too?” Jackie pressed on: “Why aren’t you there already? You were closer than me! Don’t tell me you didn’t come.” I quickly explained: “I’m stuck in traffic on the overpass!” Jackie’s reply came fast: “Hurry up! Something’s seriously wrong with her!” “She told me it was just a joke,” I replied, my hands starting to tremble. “She said not to come over, that she had company, and even FaceTimed me to prove it.” Jackie’s response was sharp: “She said the same thing to me. Told me the guy with the knife wasn’t real, that it was all a joke, and to stay home.” “And?” “Then she told me not to call the police.” I was stunned. “She told you that too?” “Yeah,” Jackie replied. “She’s in trouble. I’m sure of it.” “How can you be so sure?” I asked, my pulse racing. Jackie responded with urgency: “Because we have a code phrase. If she’s ever in danger, she’ll send me this phrase.” “What phrase?” Jackie’s next message sent chills down my spine: “I’m going to sleep. I’m so tired.” My heart stopped. I scrolled back through our messages, my hands shaking. “What do you want? I’m going to sleep. I’m so tired.” “Say something. I’m going to sleep. I’m so tired.” “I’m going to sleep. I’m so tired. Just go home.” I felt a cold sweat break out across my body. She had been begging for help the whole time. Jackie sent another message, sharing her conversation with my girlfriend: Jackie: Is the guy with the knife still outside? Girlfriend: No, I’m going to sleep. I’m so tired. Jackie: I’m on my way over. Girlfriend: Don’t come. I’m going to sleep. I’m so tired. Jackie: Okay, I’ll go back home then. Girlfriend: Yeah, I’m going to sleep. I’m so tired. Jackie texted again: “I’m at the building now, but the front door is locked, and the call box is broken.” She sent a photo of the building’s front entrance. The door was locked tight, and the call box looked like someone had smashed it with a knife. I asked quickly: “You didn’t tell her you were coming, did you?” “No,” Jackie replied. “I’m sure she’s being threatened by that guy, so I didn’t say anything!” “Are you alone?” “Of course not! I brought my boyfriend, Nate. He went to find the building manager and security.” I told her: “Stay hidden somewhere safe. The police should be there soon. I’m still stuck in traffic, but don’t go upstairs alone! That guy could be wandering the halls, and if he sees you…” “I know! I’m waiting for Nate,” she replied. “Has he found anyone yet? If not, let me add him. Send me his contact info.” I had only met Nate twice before, and we didn’t have each other’s numbers. Jackie quickly sent me his profile. His avatar was a cartoon sheep. I sent him a friend request: “Hey, I’m Jackie’s brother-in-law. I’m on my way. Add me.” The request just sat there, unanswered. The driver let out a frustrated sigh as the car crawled forward. The overpass was still a sea of brake lights, and we were barely moving. I messaged Jackie: “Why isn’t Nate adding me?” She didn’t respond immediately. I thought about calling her but worried that a ringing phone might alert the guy with the knife if he was nearby. After a few agonizing minutes, Jackie finally texted back: “It’s bad. Nate just texted me—there’s no one in the property management office.” She sent a short video Nate had taken. The office, marked with a “Building Management” sign, was completely dark. The door was locked, and the lights were off. “What now?” Jackie asked, her panic clear in her typing. “The manager’s not there, and the security guards are nowhere to be found!” I replied: “Tell Nate to stop wandering around and add me already.” “I told him! He’s adding you now. Just wait a second,” Jackie said. I waited tensely, staring at my phone. A notification finally popped up—but it wasn’t Nate accepting my friend request. It was another message from Jackie. “Nate just messaged me. He says he found someone from property management.” 4 “Where did Nate find them?” I asked Jackie. She quickly responded: “He ran into them downstairs near the apartment complex. The property manager was doing rounds, and Nate happened to catch them. He explained everything, and they seemed shocked to hear about a killer in the building. They said it was the first time they’d ever encountered something like this. Nate wants me to meet him in the management office so we can go check on my sister together. The security guard is there too, so we should be fine. Don’t worry, I’ll text you if anything happens.” I panicked and quickly typed: “Wait! Don’t go yet!” While trying to stop her, I scrolled back through my previous messages. When my girlfriend had insisted I cancel the police report earlier, she had said the property manager had already come to her apartment to verify the situation. She’d even sent me a photo of the manager standing in her living room, taking notes with a clipboard. But this raised a critical question: If the property manager had already gone to her apartment to confirm the situation, why would they act surprised when Nate told them about a killer in the building? Shouldn’t they already know about it from my girlfriend? I explained my thoughts to Jackie: **”Listen to me carefully. It doesn’t matter if your sister is being threatened or not. If the property manager actually went to her place, there are only two possible outcomes: 1. She told them the truth—that there’s a blood-covered killer outside her door. 2. She lied because she was being coerced and said the killer was just a prank. Either way, the property manager would have known something was going on. So why would they act completely clueless when Nate told them about it? That’s the biggest red flag here!”** Jackie hesitated but eventually countered: “Maybe my sister was too scared to say anything! Maybe the killer was threatening her, so she couldn’t tell them the truth. That would explain why the property manager didn’t know.” I typed back urgently: “You’re missing the point! Even if she lied to them, the property manager would still know there was some story about a killer in the building. They wouldn’t act like it was the first time they’d heard about it!” As I was explaining this, I remembered something else my girlfriend had said: she claimed the police had contacted the property manager to verify the situation. To confirm, I called the police again. The dispatcher confirmed that they had called the property manager and informed them about the report. This meant one thing: the real property manager was already aware of the situation. The people Nate had met weren’t the property staff at all. My heart raced as I quickly sent Jackie another message: “Don’t go! Those aren’t the real property managers!” But Jackie didn’t reply. I couldn’t wait anymore. Ignoring the risk of my phone’s ringtone attracting attention, I called her directly. The line rang and rang, but no one answered. I tried again. And again. Each time, my calls went unanswered. Finally, as the car inched past the worst of the traffic, I sent her a flurry of messages: “Don’t go to the office!” “Those aren’t the real property managers!” “Please, just respond!” Just as I hit send, my phone buzzed with an incoming message. It was Jackie: “Sorry, I put my phone on silent because I was afraid a ringtone might make too much noise. That’s why I missed your calls. What’s going on?” I quickly typed: “Don’t go to the office! Hide somewhere safe. I’m almost there. Wait for me!” Her reply sent a chill down my spine: “It’s too late. I’m already at the office, but Nate’s not here. There’s no one here. Where are they?” I could feel her fear through the screen. Anyone in her situation—being lured into an empty office under false pretenses—would be terrified. Her messages kept coming, her panic growing: “Nate isn’t answering his phone. I can’t get in touch with him at all. The office is completely empty. What do I do? My sister just texted me asking if I’ve gone home yet. She says she’s coming to find me. How does she know I’m here? Should I reply? I’m hiding in the storage room behind the office. I told Nate to come find me, but he hasn’t responded. Is he okay?” I typed back quickly, my hands shaking: “No! Don’t tell him where you are! The fake property managers will know if you do! Get out of there, now!” But just as I sent the message, another one came in from her: “Nate’s here. He came to find me.” My heart sank. I replied immediately: “Don’t go out! That’s not Nate! It’s the killer! Hide somewhere else, now!” But there was no response. In the car, clutching my phone, I opened my girlfriend’s chat. The last message she’d sent still lingered on the screen: “Don’t you dare come over!” Then, my phone buzzed again. It wasn’t Jackie. It was a new message from my girlfriend: “What the hell are you doing? Are you crazy? Why would you get my sister and Nate involved in this?”

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Four months after marriage, my husband took in his pregnant and divorced distant cousin. He killed the dog my late mother left to keep me company and used it to nourish her body. He gave her our meticulously decorated newlywed room, which he had prepared for me, and made me sleep on the couch. When I got angry, he scolded me, saying he was just doing what a brother should do. But he didn’t know that I also had a childhood friend who was like a brother to me. When he heard I was wronged, he flew back from abroad specifically for me. Late at night, after returning from the hospital where I had been cleaning up after my mother-in-law, I discovered that my husband had killed the dog I had raised for nine years to nourish his pregnant cousin. I grabbed the bones I found in the trash and rushed into what used to be our wedding room. There, I saw my husband pressing his ear against Zoe’s belly, grinning like an idiot. “Mia, ‘Buddy’ was so smart,” Zoe taunted me. “He was barking non-stop when Jack was killing him, but he quieted down when he heard your voice recording. Haha, I’m sure it’ll be very nutritious for my baby. Jack just said the baby enjoyed it.” I clenched my fists, tears in my eyes, as I looked at Jack. The smile he had worn earlier while watching me call out for “Buddy” in the yard was still lingering on his face. “Alright, Mia. I’ll buy you another dog after Zoe gives birth. Now, go prepare a basin of warm water for Zoe to soak her feet,” Jack said dismissively. I stared at him in disbelief, as if I had never known him before. I had found Buddy seven years ago when I first got into college and brought him home. My mom had taken care of him for seven years. She said when she missed me, she would pet Buddy, and it was as if she was seeing me. Eight months ago, she passed away in a car accident, and Buddy became like my mom’s presence accompanying me. Just four months ago at our wedding, Jack had ignored the mocking voices of others and publicly offered a toast to “Buddy,” tearfully promising to take care of me for life. But now, just four months into our marriage, he easily killed Buddy for Zoe. Enraged, I threw the bones at Zoe’s belly. Jack reacted quickly, pushing me to the ground and shielding Zoe behind him. He scolded me angrily, “Enough, Mia Russell! Are you really treating this dog as your mother? Your mom is long dead, why are you throwing a fit here?” I glared at him coldly. Since the first day of our marriage, my mother-in-law had fallen ill and been hospitalized. I had been running back and forth between the hospital and home, while Jack focused all his attention on Zoe. Every time I returned home late at night, only Buddy was waiting for me at the dark alley entrance. I stood up angrily, glaring at Jack, and ran to the living room where we kept his father’s ashes. I grabbed a handful and sprinkled it over their heads, coldly saying to them, “Zoe, didn’t you want snow? Here, I’ll give you some.” I recalled the social media post Zoe had made earlier that day in the hospital room. Jack’s hand was holding hers, touching her belly, with the caption: “When we were young, you held an umbrella for me in the snow. Now there’s no snow, but you still shield me from the world’s hardships.” I continued sprinkling the ashes in a frenzy. Jack angrily grabbed my hand, shouting if I had gone mad. “Your dad died even earlier. Are you really treating this urn as your father?” I mimicked his tone. His face darkened as he yelled at me to get out. Zoe took the opportunity to cling to Jack, saying she was scared. I looked around the messy room. Just half a month ago, Jack had covered my eyes and proudly showed me the scene he had meticulously prepared for a week. The memory was still vivid. Now, our wedding photo on the wall had been replaced by Zoe’s shoes, and the “double happiness” decorations we had laughingly put up on the windowsill were quietly lying in the trash can. The blanket they were using was hand-sewn by my mother. Perhaps our relationship, like this wedding room, had already been in shambles since Zoe’s arrival. With a dead heart, I uttered the word “divorce” to Jack. He didn’t try to stop me but instead roared “Get out!”

Braving the cold wind, I returned to my mother’s old home. I curled up on her old bed, nestling in her lingering scent. I kept saying “I’m sorry” over and over, and then repeatedly murmuring how much I missed her. In my daze, the phone rang. I answered to hear William’s voice. He was the son of my mother’s friend, a childhood friend who grew up with me like a brother. He had gone abroad in his second year of high school. “Congratulations on your marriage, Mia. I sent some gifts…” he said softly. I held back my tears and forced myself to respond, then hung up, claiming I was tired. He had surgery just last month, and I didn’t want him to worry about me again. The next day when I woke up, my mother-in-law called. She said angrily that she knew everything now. She cursed Jack for being so cruel and begged me to come to the hospital to talk. I initially wanted to refuse harshly, but hearing her weak cough, my heart softened, and I rushed to the hospital. Throughout the long period I had been dating Jack, she had always been kind to me, saying many times that if Jack and I didn’t work out, she would adopt me as her goddaughter. When I arrived at the hospital room, I found Jack and Zoe already there, and my mother-in-law was happily touching Zoe’s belly. Seeing me, she quickly grabbed my hand. Before I could speak, she snatched the jade bracelet from my wrist and gave it to Zoe. “Zoe, this is our family heirloom. Keep it as a gift for the baby,” she said fawningly. Looking at her expression, I was stunned for a moment, bitterly smiling at what this “talk” she mentioned on the phone had turned out to be. “Mom, I’m your daughter-in-law,” I said with a heavy heart. But my mother-in-law angrily shouted at me. “How dare you! Don’t think I’ve accepted you just because you’ve taken care of me for a few days. Even a nurse can clean up shit and piss. A hen that can’t lay eggs has no right to crow!” It felt like a knife stabbing deep into my heart. I looked at Jack with a bitter smile, but he just held Zoe’s hand tightly and turned his head away. I ran out of the hospital room, with Jack following closely behind. He cornered me at the door and said softly, “Mia, to tell you the truth, the child in Zoe’s belly is mine. Mom’s illness is psychological; she’s always wanted a grandchild. I can’t be unfilial, can I? Zoe is already four months pregnant. You’re the only one in my heart. After the child is born and Mom’s psychological issues are resolved, we can raise the child together, okay?” I laughed bitterly and looked at him with contempt, asking if he had forgotten who had deprived me of the right to be a mother. During our years of dating before marriage, I had been pregnant eight or nine times, all of which Jack had forced me to abort with excuses like “I’m busy with my career” or “We’re not ready yet.” My mother-in-law had also told me to focus on taking care of Jack, comforting me that I could have children anytime. Now, it had become very difficult for me to get pregnant again. Jack had once comforted me, saying not to force myself and that we could always adopt. But now that it had come to this point, he was already discarding me. Jack tried to hug me with some guilt, but I dodged him. He reproached me, saying it was just a bracelet and that he could buy me ten more. I rushed to the hospital room door, took off my wedding ring, and threw it at them before turning to leave. “Where do you think you can go? Your dad is in jail, your mom is dead, and all your relatives think you’re bad luck. Who else can you rely on besides me?” Jack said indifferently. I gritted my teeth but had no words to refute. “She has me.” A figure emerged from the corridor nearby, grabbing my hand and looking at me with concern.

“I’m late, Mia. You’ve been wronged. Let’s go,” William said, holding me in his arms and taking me away. I looked at him in surprise, shocked to see him here. Suddenly, tears started flowing, and I sobbed in his embrace. Jack angrily asked who he was. He was about to step forward when his mother cried out that Zoe’s stomach was hurting, calling him back urgently. He left with a parting shot: “Mia Russell, go home now, or we’re getting divorced.” William and I sat in a coffee shop. I asked him why he suddenly came back to the country. He said with a heavy heart, “How could I not hear that you were crying?” I laughed awkwardly, bitterly recounting the heartaches of the past four months since my marriage. I tried to make it sound like a joke, but William’s furrowed brow showed only concern and pain for me. “This isn’t funny at all,” he said. He asked if I would be willing to go abroad with him. I politely declined, saying I hoped to reopen my mother’s beauty salon. He didn’t insist but said he wanted to help me. I murmured a thank you. After spending a night in my mother’s old home, I woke up to find my phone bombarded with messages from Jack. “Zoe’s pregnancy was affected by your scare the other day. Come back and take care of her!” “Mom still needs someone to look after her. Mia Russell, you’re really something, spending the night with that strange man. Now we’re even, okay?” “Where are my suit and tie? Don’t you know I have an important meeting today?” … All I could see were reproaches. Annoyed, I broke my SIM card and flushed it down the toilet. William arrived early at my mother’s beauty salon. As I looked at the familiar scenes, memories flooded back. This was my mother’s lifelong effort. But after my father went to jail, her health deteriorated, and she closed the shop soon after. William and I carefully wiped every corner. Looking at a faded lipstick mark in the corner, I fell into deep thought. It was during a college break when Jack had traveled 1000 kilometers to secretly find me at the shop and was discovered by my mom. He pretended to be a customer, and I was doing his makeup. He tilted his head back, smiling at me, saying I was beautiful. He suddenly tried to kiss me, but I dodged, causing him to stumble and hit the wall, leaving that mark. At the time, we stared at the lip print and laughed for a long time. He smiled and said that when we were 80 years old, we would bring our grandchildren to see this trace of our love. I sniffled and wiped it clean with a cloth, severing ties with my past completely. Halfway through cleaning, Jack inopportunely walked in. He looked at me with displeasure and shouted, “Mia Russell, are you serious? Leaving all the housework undone to come and fix up this rundown shop? Come home with me now.” He reached out to grab my hand, but William stepped in front of me protectively. “Who are you? This is our family matter,” Jack said angrily. William smirked and made a phone call, then looked at Jack with disdain, saying he would know who he was soon enough. Confused, Jack’s phone rang. After answering, he looked at William with surprise, then hurriedly left, but not before throwing one last comment: “Mia Russell, you’ve gone too far. We’re getting divorced tomorrow.” William explained to me that he had just notified his company to cut off business with Jack’s company. I was surprised that he had business dealings with Jack’s company. “It’s because of you. And every time I sent gifts to Jack’s company under the guise of ‘Mrs. Gordon,’ they were actually specially chosen for you,” he said, looking at me without hesitation. I turned my head away, feeling unworthy. Even a blind person could see how good William had been to me since childhood, but I had always only seen him as a brother. Now that I had gone through a failed marriage, I naturally felt even more undeserving of him. Suddenly, he clutched his chest, his face pale. He had had heart surgery a few days ago. Frightened, I immediately took a taxi to take him to the hospital. After registering, while waiting in the corridor, I saw a pregnant woman being rushed to the emergency room on a stretcher. Looking closer, I saw Jack following behind with an anxious face. The doctor said William needed to rest in the coming days. After he thanked the doctor and prepared to leave, I curiously pulled him to the emergency room door. As we arrived, we saw Jack yelling at the doctor. “You tell me she miscarried, but why is the baby Asian? Why is my child Asian?!”

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When I turned sixty, I joined the ranks of the divorced. All because my husband berated me for spending two dollars to take the bus. My daughter and her husband didn’t understand, thinking I was being too dramatic. However, what they didn’t know was that very day on the bus, I happened to see her dear father dining with his sweetheart at a restaurant that cost five figures per person. I resolutely chose to divorce him. But a week later, they came crying, begging me to come back. ***** “Enough, stop watching TV there. All you do is waste electricity!” Jackson said impatiently as soon as he entered the house. “Go bring me today’s bills.” “Okay.” I got up, went back to the bedroom, and took out an account book. Ever since we got married, Jackson required me to record every penny I spent. Of course, it only applied to my salary. As for Jackson’s salary, I never saw it in forty years of marriage. I handed the account book to Jackson, and he began to scrutinize it. “Aubrey, you spent two dollars taking the bus today?” Jackson looked up at me, frowning. “Don’t you have a senior card?” “I forgot to bring it,” I explained softly. “Forgot? Are you stupid?” Jackson glared. “Don’t you know these two dollars could buy a big bundle of vegetables! “Besides, couldn’t you have walked back if you forgot it? You have nothing to do all day. Why are you even taking the bus!” At this, I froze in place. In addition to taking on all the housework, I also had to take care of Ella, Dylan, and my grandson, and cater to Jackson. I was so exhausted that my back ached and I couldn’t straighten up, yet Jackson actually said I had nothing to do. Most importantly, these two dollars came from my retirement salary. I felt even more upset and looked at Jackson with growing coldness. “All these years, the money spent has been from my salary. Where’s yours?” At this, a flash of unease showed in Jackson’s eyes. “What do you mean, yours and mine? Isn’t it all for this family? “Aubrey, you’re sixty years old. Can’t you stop being so petty?” I thought, “Petty? If I was really like that, Jackson wouldn’t be dining with Madison in such a fancy restaurant today!” Thinking of how my decades of hard work were met with scolding for spending two dollars to take the bus, I couldn’t bear it anymore. I glared at Jackson. “Jackson! You will hand over your salary details to me today!” At that, Jackson instantly became enraged with shame. “Aubrey, are you out of your mind, making a big fuss over such a small thing? “Do you still care about me or this family at all? “Money, money, money, that’s all you think about!” At this, a hint of mockery flashed in my eyes. I thought, “Did Jackson forget how he just insulted me over a mere two dollars?” I suddenly felt the man I had been with for decades was a complete stranger. But thinking of Ella and her family, I decided to give Jackson one last chance. I said coldly, “Where did you go today?” “Why… why are you asking that?” Jackson’s eyes flashed with a hint of unease. “Why do I feel like there’s a scent of perfume on you.” I moved closer to Jackson step by step, my tone meaningful. However, Jackson still refused to tell me the truth. “Enough, stop making wild accusations! “I played cards with Mason Blake and the others all day. How could there be perfume on me.” With that, Jackson tugged at his collar and sniffed. “Stirring up trouble every day. Why don’t you spend more time reading or catching up on the news instead? “Uneducated bumpkin!” With that, Jackson headed towards the bedroom. Watching his back, I stood frozen, my eyes brimming with deep disappointment. Even now, he was still unwilling to be honest with me. And he even looked down on me for being uneducated! Back when I got into graduate school, it was Jackson who begged me to drop out, begged me to keep the child in my belly. Now, he looked down on me for lacking education. I was utterly heartbroken, my heart slowly turning cold and hard. At that moment, I realized that this marriage, this man, was no longer worth it.

Early the next morning, before dawn, Jackson yanked me out of bed. “Aubrey, didn’t I tell you a few days ago that Mason wanted to drink the meat soup you stew! “Why aren’t you hurrying to go make it? “I’m going to take it with me when I go play cards later!” At this, I didn’t say anything but looked at the clock on the wall. The hands just pointed to four o’clock! I instantly felt a burst of anger! This was already the eighth time this month Jackson had woken me up before 5 AM to make nutritious breakfasts for his few card-playing buddies. “Aubrey, why aren’t you moving? There won’t be enough time later!” “Why should I make it for your card buddies? Make it yourself!” I said unhappily and crawled back under the covers. Anyway, I had already made up my mind to leave Jackson, so why should I still serve him? At that, Jackson’s face instantly darkened. “Aubrey! Are you making it or not!” “No!” The next second, Jackson went directly to the bathroom, got a whole basin of cold water, and poured it on my head. “Are you crazy!” I glared at Jackson, my body shivering uncontrollably from the cold. “Do you know how cold that water is!” At this, Jackson said coldly, “Serves you right! “If you had obediently gotten up to make the soup, would I be doing this? “This is punishment for your disobedience!” At this, I froze in place. I didn’t expect Jackson to be so cruel to me. I only rebelled against him once, and he punished me like this. Perhaps in his heart, he never treated me as a wife. My heart ached terribly. I was heartbroken to the extreme, and my eyes reddened. “Alright! Get to the kitchen!” Jackson urged impatiently. I walked silently to the kitchen. I really didn’t want to have any interaction with Jackson anymore. I stewed soup for a full two hours in my wet clothes, and my heart completely turned cold and hard. After Jackson left with the lunch boxes, I didn’t hesitate to start packing my things, clothes, shoes… Only then did I realize how pitifully few things I had, not even a single piece of jewelry. My heart grew more and more bitter. I didn’t understand how I had lived so poorly for the past few decades. Just then, the phone rang. I quickly looked at the screen. Seeing it was Jackson’s number, I hesitated for a few seconds but still pressed the answer button! “Hey! Hurry and bring 10 thousand dollars to the hospital!” Jackson sounded extremely agitated. “What happened?” I couldn’t help frowning. “Don’t ask! Just hurry and bring the money! It’s a life or death situation!” With that, Jackson hung up the phone. After struggling for a few minutes, I sent Ella a message, then hurried to the bank to withdraw 10 thousand dollars and rushed to the hospital. However, when I arrived at the hospital out of breath, I saw Jackson in the ward carefully peeling an apple for Madison, who was lying in the hospital bed. I froze, a strong bitterness welling up in my heart. Since knowing Jackson, this was the first time I had seen him be so gentle and attentive. It was a pity that side of him only belonged to Madison, the sweetheart who had remained unshakable in Jackson’s heart for decades! Seeing that nothing serious had happened to Jackson, I turned to leave with the money in hand. Just then, Madison saw me and waved at me through the ward door. “Aubrey, come in!” At that, a hint of struggle flashed across my face. I hesitated for a few seconds but still pushed open the door before me.

“Aubrey, what took you so long!” Seeing me, Jackson frowned, his tone filled with impatience. I ignored him and looked at the diamond necklace around Madison’s neck. I had seen it before, in the drawer of Jackson’s study. I thought it was a surprise Jackson had prepared for me and was happy for a long time. It turned out I was deluding myself. It was never meant for me. I was so sad as if a huge hand was tightly gripping my heart, suffocating me! “Enough! What are you waiting for? Hurry up and take out the money!” Jackson’s voice rang out, only then bringing me back to my senses. “What exactly happened? Why do you need so much money!” I asked as I unzipped my bag. “It’s nothing, Aubrey.” Madison looked at me, smiling from the hospital bed. “I just want an eyebrow lift, and Jackson insisted on paying for the surgery.” At this, I paused and looked at Madison in disbelief and then at Jackson. “Eyebrow lift surgery?” “Yes, I feel like my eyebrows are drooping…” Madison went on and on, and my face grew paler and paler. Last night, Jackson flew into a rage at me for spending two dollars, but today, he could so generously take out 10 thousand dollars. It turned out the difference between loving someone and not was really obvious. I was utterly disappointed! I silently zipped the bag back up halfway. Jackson’s eyes widened in surprise at this. “What are you doing?” “Are you really going to use my salary for your lover’s surgery?” I looked at Jackson and said coldly. At this, Jackson’s face immediately darkened. Madison saw this and raised an eyebrow. “Jackson, if Aubrey is unwilling, then forget it. “But I’m a little curious. How could you let Aubrey, a rural woman, control the finances in your family?” My eyes turned cold. “What’s wrong with being a rural woman? “Without farmers, where would the food you eat come from?” At this, Madison looked at Jackson, her eyes instantly reddening, and she looked quite aggrieved. “Jackson, Aubrey is angry. Should I apologize to her?” “No need!” Jackson glared at me viciously. “Was Madison wrong? “Aren’t you a rural woman? “Look at how you dress, worse than a beggar on the street. “Always embarrassing me!” At this, my nose soured, and my eyes turned red. “Jackson, what did you say? “Since being with you, I haven’t even bought a single new piece of clothing! “Everything I wear is old clothes others don’t want!” “You deserve it!” Jackson said impatiently. “Have you looked at yourself, and you still want to learn from others and wear new clothes!” At this, I froze in place. So this was my place in Jackson’s heart. “Alright, give me the money!” With that, Jackson reached to grab my bag. At that, I quickly held the bag tightly to my chest. Jackson instantly flew into a rage. “Aubrey, do you want to die? “How blind was I back then to marry someone like you! “Give me the money!” “No!” My eyes were red, and I gripped the bag tightly with both hands. Jackson saw this and spat, cursing, “Aubrey, you’re just as tightfisted as your dead mother!” “Shut up! Don’t talk about my mother!” I shouted, shaking uncontrollably from extreme anger. “What? Did I say something wrong? “Back then, I just wanted her to give a few pieces of furniture as a wedding gift, and you saw how difficult she made it! As if I was asking for her life! “Good thing she died early. Otherwise, who knows how much alimony she’d be trying to swindle from me now!” At this, my eyes turned bloodshot. Unable to restrain the resentment in my heart any longer, I fiercely slapped Jackson across the face.

The ward instantly fell silent. Jackson looked at me, his eyes red, filled with hatred. “Aubrey, how dare you hit me! I’ll really beat you to death today!” Jackson said through gritted teeth. I didn’t say anything, my heart breaking completely. This was the man I had loved for decades! I was completely disillusioned, no longer harboring any fantasies about Jackson in my heart. I looked at him coldly. “Jackson, if you dare lay a finger on me, I will immediately report you to the police for domestic violence.” “You… Clearly, you hit me first!” Jackson’s face instantly turned red in the face from anger and he was unable to speak. Just then, Madison, who had been watching, suddenly spoke up, “Aubrey, a little quarrel doesn’t need to be taken to the police station, right? “Besides, Jackson was just talking, but you really slapped him!” At this, I couldn’t help but smile mockingly, “Madison, if I were you, I would choose to shut up. “That diamond necklace you’re wearing is still a shared property of our marriage!” At this, Madison’s eyes flashed with resentment. Then she turned to look at Jackson beside her, her eyes instantly reddening, and she looked very aggrieved. “Jackson! Look at her! I kindly advised her, and she actually said that to me!” At this, a hint of heartache flashed in Jackson’s eyes. “I’m sorry, Madison. It’s my fault for implicating you and making you suffer.” Looking at the affectionate gaze between the two, I only felt my stomach churning, disgusted to the extreme. I couldn’t stay in this ward for another minute. I turned to leave. Just then, the door to the ward was pushed open. “Dad! Mom! What exactly happened!” Ella and Dylan walked in, looking very worried. “Ella, why are you here?” Jackson saw this, a trace of confusion in his eyes. “Mom sent me a text! “She said you had an accident and were in the hospital! Told us to hurry over!” With that, Ella looked at me reproachfully. “I even took time off work for this! “Now look! No full attendance!” Dylan heard this and gently pushed her shoulder. “Why are you saying that? “Your parents are more important than full attendance.” With that, Dylan looked at Jackson and me, carefully asking, “Hurry and tell us, what exactly happened?” Just then, Ella noticed Madison lying in the hospital bed, a hint of confusion flashing in her eyes. “Who is this…” At this, Jackson said somewhat awkwardly, “Ella, this is my friend, just call her Madison.” “Friend?” I laughed coldly and looked at Ella. “Ella, she is the sweetheart your dad has kept deep in his heart for so many years! “Your dad urgently called me to the hospital today just to have me take out 10 thousand dollars to pay for his sweetheart’s eyebrow lift surgery.” At this, a hint of dissatisfaction flashed across Ella’s face. “Mom, you called me to the hospital just for this?” I froze for a moment, not quite understanding Ella’s attitude. “Do you know how busy I was today? How could you waste my time on such a trivial matter?” Ella said unhappily. At this, I was stunned, unable to understand. I never imagined that Ella would actually say something like this. I thought, “Couldn’t she see how awful Jackson’s actions were!” I was devastated. “Ella is right!” Jackson glared at me fiercely! “It’s just a small matter of 10 thousand dollars, and you even called them over. You really don’t consider them at all!” “Jackson, you can’t blame Aubrey for this. She’s just a rural woman. She doesn’t understand much,” Madison added. “It’s just 10 thousand dollars! I’ll pay for it!” Dylan waved his hand very generously. At this, my heart ached terribly. I didn’t understand why everyone was blaming me. I thought, “Why was even my own daughter standing on the opposite side of me? Clearly, the one in the wrong was Jackson!”

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I’m a Blind Girl, But I Never Imagined I Was the Long-lost Billionaire’s Daughter My brothers found me begging on the streets. They brought me home, promising to take good care of me. But on the very first day, the fake daughter attempted suicide. Everyone rushed to her side, taking her to the hospital, leaving me alone at home. After that, the fake daughter kept having accidents, and all evidence pointed to me. Everyone despised me. Until one day, I was kidnapped. The kidnapper called my oldest brother, demanding a ten-million-dollar ransom. He scoffed on the other end of the line: “Lily, what are you up to now? I don’t have time for your games.” At that moment, I felt utterly hopeless. But when I climbed to the rooftop, the kidnapper panicked. “Girl, you’re going to off yourself? Hey, have you considered my feelings?” When I woke up, I found myself tied to a chair. Being blind, I couldn’t see anything, but I could smell the damp, musty air around me. I tried to move my limbs, and the chair creaked. Then, I heard footsteps. “Awake?” It was a deep male voice, sounding young but dangerous. I didn’t dare move or respond. He didn’t bother with small talk. A hand gripped my neck, forcing my head up. I tilted my head back but had no idea where he was, my gaze vacant. After a moment, he asked, “Blind?” I closed my eyes and let out a soft “Mm-hmm.” His grip loosened, and after a pause, he said, “Blind or not, don’t expect any pity from me. I’m going to call your family now. You’d better do as I say, or I’ll kill you!” I nodded obediently and said, “Okay.” I don’t know what he did next, but I assume he took my phone, unlocked it with facial recognition, and called the top contact in my list. After a brief dial tone, I heard my oldest brother’s voice. He sounded casual and slightly annoyed: “Hello? What is it now?” Kidnapper: “Is this Alexander James? I’ve got your sister. You have two days to get a million dollars, or I’ll kill her!” Alexander was silent for two seconds, then scoffed: “Nice act. Tell her that it’s Rosalie’s birthday tonight. If she doesn’t come back, she shouldn’t bother coming back at all.” Then he hung up. The kidnapper seemed incredulous and asked me, “Who’s Rosalie?” I was at a loss for words, unsure how to explain. Rosalie James was the adopted daughter of the James family. When I was very young, I was kidnapped by my family’s enemies and sold to human traffickers. My mother was devastated by the loss of her daughter and became mentally unstable. To comfort her, my father adopted Rosalie from an orphanage and changed her birthday to match mine, convincing my mother that she was me. Over time, everyone seemed to accept that she was me, the pampered little princess of the James family. It wasn’t until my parents passed away that my father, on his deathbed, told my brothers to find me. The day I returned home, my brothers surrounded me, calling me “Rosalie” over and over. My birth name was Lily, and Rosalie’s name was given to her by my father, meaning that seeing her would remind him of me. When Rosalie found out about this, she attempted suicide in a moment of despair. After that, no one dared to call me “Rosalie” anymore. My second brother gave me a new name, Lily James. He said, “You’re so small and thin, let’s call you Lily. It’s pretty and easy to remember.” What he didn’t know was that I was small because of malnutrition from a young age, and thin because I had rarely eaten a full meal. During those years away from home, I was sold to human traffickers. They said I had a nice voice, so they blinded me and taught me to sing begging songs. I only got to eat when I earned money. But my brothers didn’t care about any of this. They only cared about whether Rosalie would feel hurt.

The kidnapper still wouldn’t give up. He called two or three more times, but my oldest brother kept hanging up. He didn’t even get a chance to show Alexander the photos of me being kidnapped. On the last call, Alexander finally exploded, yelling into the phone: “Lily, what are you playing at? I don’t have time for your games!” Then he not only hung up but also blocked my number. The room fell into a deathly silence, and the smell of cheap tobacco slowly wafted into my nostrils. He must have been frustrated, smoking and questioning his life choices. After a long while, I calmly asked, “Are you going to kill me?” He slowly said, “Huh?” Then he started trying to reassure me: “Girl, don’t rush. You’ve got several other contacts. I’ll call them one by one. Someone’s bound to pay the ransom, right?” I gave a bitter smile. Would they? My contacts were only my brothers, and they were probably all gathered around Rosalie right now, celebrating her birthday. No one would care about my life or death. Sure enough, when he called my second brother, William immediately questioned me: “Lily, it’s one thing to be rebellious normally, but today is Rosalie’s birthday. Can’t you let her have this day? Do you have to fight for attention right now?” “Who’s Rosalie? Her or me?” For the first time, I fought back: “Is there a possibility that today is my birthday too?” William was silent for a long time. In the background, I could hear the “Happy Birthday” song and the sound of people laughing and cheering. Rosalie’s voice was particularly sweet: “William! Come cut the cake!” He seemed to snap back to reality and lowered his voice: “Lily, stop this nonsense. Come back quickly, don’t ruin everyone’s mood.” Then he hurriedly hung up. At that moment, I felt utterly pointless. If I had known it would be like this, why did they even bother bringing me back? It would have been better if they had let me die out there, pretending I never existed. Wouldn’t that make them happier? The kidnapper was still making calls, but I stopped him. “Don’t bother, no one will pay the ransom. Just let me go, and I’ll transfer you my savings.” When I first came home, Alexander gave me a card. He said Rosalie got $2 million in pocket money every month, so I should have the same. He’d been transferring money to me monthly. I had never seen so much money before and didn’t know how to spend it, so I just saved it all. The card was linked to online banking, so I gave the kidnapper the password and told him to transfer it himself. He was quite principled and immediately untied me, letting me go. Before I left, he suddenly asked, “Girl, do you want me to take you home? Will you be okay on your own?” I waved him off with a smile, saying, “No need, I have somewhere to go.”

I left and felt my way up to the rooftop. The wind was strong up there, making me sway. I slowly walked forward, the wind getting stronger with each step, until my foot hit a low wall. I crouched down to feel it, and after touching the top of the wall, I managed to sit on it with great effort. The street must be right below, right? I couldn’t see, but I hoped I wouldn’t land on anyone if I jumped. As I clasped my hands together and said a silent prayer, a familiar male voice came from behind me. “Girl, you’re going to off yourself? Hey, have you considered my feelings?” The kidnapper’s voice sounded a bit nervous. It made sense. He had my phone and had made ransom calls to my brothers. If I died, they might really think he killed me when the ransom failed. Well, since I was going to die anyway, I might as well do one last good deed. I sighed and said to him, “Brother, can you bring me my phone? I’ll record a message as a suicide note. That way, my death won’t be connected to you.” He sighed too: “Girl, it’s not just that. There’s also a daily transfer limit on your bank card. It’s only ten thousand a day. Why don’t you come down, and tomorrow we can go to the bank together to withdraw the money?” I remained sitting on the edge of the rooftop, not moving. The kidnapper’s voice softened, as if coaxing a child: “Girl, help me out one last time, okay?” After a moment of standoff, the kidnapper moved behind me, gave me a quick chop to the neck, and then grabbed my waist to pull me back. Halfway through, I covered my neck and said to him, “Brother, I was about to come down anyway. You didn’t need to hit me, it hurts.” “Oh, you didn’t pass out?” He apologized: “Sorry, girl. I saw on TV that people always pass out when you do that.” “Watch less TV.” “Got it.” I was taken back to the kidnapper’s place, but this time he didn’t tie me up. He even got me a towel to put on my neck. The kidnapper’s name was Jack Wilson, a very ordinary name that matched his simple personality. I wondered how he ever got the courage to attempt a kidnapping. After he finished tending to my neck, he asked what I wanted to eat. I thought for a moment and said, “I’d like some cake.” I had only eaten cake once before, on the day I first returned home. My brothers had prepared a welcome cake for me. But that cake had only been cut once before the housekeeper let out a scream, and then everyone rushed upstairs. I couldn’t see, but from their conversation, I learned that Rosalie had attempted suicide, and there was blood everywhere. Alexander carried her into the ambulance, with everyone else following closely behind. I wanted to go too, but William stopped me. He said, “Rosalie is afraid of you. She was shaking just looking at you. You’d better stay home.” So I was left alone in the empty house. I ate a few bites of the cake, but perhaps because I had been used to eating stale food and had never had cream before, I suddenly felt sick from eating too much. I threw up terribly but managed to clean everything up before everyone returned, not wanting them to notice. They were my family, and I didn’t want to worry them. Nor did I want them to think I was a burden. I carefully maintained my relationship with everyone like this, trying to fit in. But in the end, I realized that no matter how well-behaved and understanding I was, it couldn’t compare to a single tear from Rosalie. I was really tired.

Jack went out to buy me a cake, reminding me not to wander off before he left. With nothing else to do, and not wanting to eat his cake for free, I felt my way around the room and made the bed. When he returned, there was a hint of surprise in his voice: “You can do housework?” “A little bit. I can manage by feeling around,” I smiled and asked, “Impressive, right?” As I smiled, I lowered my head, and the corners of my mouth slowly turned down. Actually, I knew I wasn’t just keeping busy; I was deliberately trying to please. Over the years, I had grown accustomed to smiling at everyone. I tried to do whatever I could, humbly pleasing everyone. Afraid of causing trouble for others, afraid of being disliked, afraid of being abandoned again… Just like a stray dog that had been taken in, carefully observing the owner’s expression every day, not daring to eat even an extra bite of food. Thinking that this way, I could hold onto a bit of warmth. I lowered my eyes, not saying a word. Jack seemed to notice my low mood and pushed a piece of cut cake towards my hand. “Girl, eat some cake. Don’t think too much. Those brothers of yours are sick in the head. If I had a sister like you, I’d cherish you more than anything.” I suddenly froze. The soft cream slowly melted in my mouth, but I couldn’t taste any sweetness. Tears fell from the corners of my eyes, sliding down my cheeks and past my lips. They were salty. At that moment, even I was shocked. I was actually crying. Before, I didn’t cry when the traffickers beat me, I didn’t cry when I couldn’t beg for money and had nothing to eat, and I didn’t even cry when my brothers abandoned me. But now I was crying because of a kind word from a stranger. I really was useless. I bit my lip, trying to hold back, but the tears were like a broken dam, unstoppable. “Hey, girl, why are you crying?” A rough hand brushed across my cheek, and I instinctively flinched, saying, “Don’t hit me.” The hand froze instantly, then moved away. I wiped my tears and explained with a smile, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that. I just remembered some bad things.” Perhaps because I had cried, the atmosphere became particularly heavy. For some reason, I suddenly asked, “Brother, if I pay you, can you be my brother for a day? Just one day.” Before Jack could respond, my phone rang. I fumbled to answer it, and my third brother Christopher’s cold voice came through: “Lily! Where the hell are you? Do you know Rosalie has been waiting for you all day? Why do you always have to cause trouble for us?” “I’m not coming back,” I took a deep breath, trying to keep my voice calm. “I won’t bother you anymore from now on.” “You think you’re all grown up now, huh? If it weren’t for Dad’s dying wish, do you think anyone would want to take care of you? I’ll give you one hour. If you’re not back by then, I’ll tell Alexander to cut off your allowance!” I wanted to argue back, but I couldn’t help but burst into tears. Just as I didn’t know how to respond, someone took the phone from me. Jack’s angry voice came from beside me: “Didn’t you hear her say she’s not coming back? What’s with all the questions? Go to hell!” Hearing a man’s voice, Christopher was stunned for a moment, then his tone became somewhat anxious: “Who are you? Why are you with my sister? What have you done to her?” Jack’s tone was hostile: “Who I am is none of your business! And she’s not your sister anymore. Don’t call again! Get lost!” The call ended, and the person beside me sighed, handing me a pack of tissues. “You don’t even know how to argue, just crying. It’s okay, I told him off for you.” Something ruffled the top of my head, very gently, like petting a cat. “Girl, from now on, I’m your brother.”

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James Sullivan’s long-lost love had returned after six years, bringing their five-year-old son with her. He said he wanted to give the child a complete family and begged me to let them be together. “Let’s get a divorce. She’s pregnant,” he finally said after a long hesitation. My fingers whitened as I gripped my cup, and I quickly asked, “Did you cheat on me?” James looked stunned for a moment before replying, “No… no, I only met her a few days ago. We were once deeply in love, but our families didn’t approve. When she left me six years ago, I had no idea she was pregnant.” The cup slipped from my hand, crashing to the floor. Water seeped into the carpet, darkening a small area. In my daze, I heard James say, “The child… he’s five years old now.” It took me a while to find my voice again. I started planning the divorce: “This situation is your doing. As for your mother—” I paused, choosing my words carefully. “You’ll need to explain things to your mother. My parents might give you a hard time too, but I can’t stop them. Be prepared for that.” “We don’t have much in terms of shared assets. We own two properties together. This one will be mine, and the one in City A, closer to your office, will be yours. I’ll pack up your belongings from this house and give them to your assistant tonight.” James had been listening silently. He interrupted me: “I’ve wronged you. The house in City A should be yours too. And our stocks and mutual funds – you should have all of that.” I nodded silently. We didn’t have much in shared assets, but neither of us cared much about material things. James was just trying to ease his guilt. “Handle the divorce yourself and explain it to the family elders,” I said, rubbing my temples tiredly. “Once you’ve convinced them, send me the divorce papers to sign. I’ll sign them and send them back.” “After we get the divorce certificate, have your assistant leave it in the living room of the house in City A. I’ll pick it up when I have time.” The mental strain had exhausted me. I could no longer keep up the facade. “Mr. Sullivan, it’s getting late. If you have things to do, you should go. Oh, and don’t forget to leave your house keys.” After he left, I could no longer hold back my tears.

The divorce took a toll on James. Our mutual friends in the social circle gossiped to me that James’s mother was furious. For a while, he was walking around with visible handprints on his face. The elderly Mrs. Sullivan actually called me once, her voice filled with disappointment: “If he wants a divorce, let him have it. Can’t you do something about it? The child? The child is a Sullivan. Does Rachel Thompson deserve to be part of our family? I’ll accept the child, but her?” Her voice softened at the end: “Amelia, dear, I know you’ve been wronged. I’ll make it right for you. You—” I cut her off, saying, “Mrs. Sullivan.” There was a noticeable pause on the other end. I continued, “Mrs. Sullivan, I’ve already agreed to the divorce.” The formal address hurt the old lady’s feelings. She had always been fond of me, treating me like her own daughter. After a long silence, she sighed deeply and hung up. Despite the uproar, it only took about a month for the Sullivan family to soften their stance. No matter how angry Mrs. Sullivan was, she couldn’t resist when such a small child stood before her, timidly calling her “Grandma.” James personally delivered the divorce papers to my parents’ house. He knelt before my parents for an entire day before my mother finally called me to come back. James had always been the golden boy. When I returned, I saw him standing under the ginkgo tree in my family’s yard. The recent turmoil had clearly taken its toll on him, but soon, he would see the light at the end of the tunnel. I called out to him, and he turned. I managed a small smile and said, “I thought you were going to mail these to me?” James remained silent for a moment before replying, “I needed to apologize to your parents in person.” He looked at me, his dark eyes deep with emotion, and added, “And to you as well.” I quickly turned my head away, blinking hard, then extended my hand and said, “Alright, give me the papers.” I signed the documents and sent them to James’s assistant. Not long after, I received a text from James saying the divorce certificate was on the entryway table in the City A apartment, and I could pick it up anytime if I needed it. I politely replied, “Noted, thank you.” When we ran into each other at private events, we would nod and smile. James would ask cordially, “How have you been?” “Fine, thank you. And you?” “I’m doing well.” It was as if we hadn’t shared a life together for three years, five months, and six days. Of course, those three-plus years left their mark. During the divorce, my health took a turn for the worse. After the divorce, I experienced prolonged insomnia, loss of appetite, and bouts of vomiting. After these symptoms persisted for over two weeks, I went to the hospital. With the test results in hand, I sat on a bench in the hospital garden for an entire afternoon, marveling at how cliché my situation had become. I saw James when I was picking up my takeout. He was leaning against his car, smoking, with three or four cigarette butts at his feet. It dawned on me that the hospital I had visited was invested in by the Sullivan family, so it made sense that James had found out so quickly. I involuntarily stopped in my tracks. James looked up at me, quickly stubbed out his cigarette, and waved his hand to disperse the smoke in the air. Then he looked at me, a silent standoff ensuing. After what seemed like an eternity, I heard him say, “What do you plan to do about this child?” He stood before me, his voice strained as he asked, word by word, “You’re not thinking of keeping this child, are you?” I didn’t know how to react or what expression to wear when faced with James asking such a question. I tried to remain calm as I countered, “We’re divorced now, aren’t we? This is my business, Mr. Sullivan.” James lowered his gaze to look at me. The streetlight cast shadows across his face, fragments of light dancing in his eyes. Something seemed to be churning in those ink-black eyes, but he suppressed it. He said, “You know, Amelia, if our families find out about this child…” He trailed off, but I immediately understood. If our families knew about this child, James and I would be forced to remarry. Especially considering his long-lost love and her child, they would never have a chance to be accepted into the Sullivan family. That’s why he rushed over as soon as he heard the news. I, who hadn’t uttered a single unnecessary word during the divorce, who could still smile when being mocked by our social circle, who could maintain a cordial demeanor when seeing James… I finally raised my hand, and after months, that heavy slap finally landed on James’s face. He silently accepted it. I went to City C alone for the procedure. As I lay on the hospital bed under anesthesia, I saw the ginkgo tree outside the window. The wind was strong that day, causing the leaves to flutter down in droves. I remembered that day when I held the diagnosis report, not knowing what to do. After clutching my abdomen and thinking blankly for a long time, I ordered my first proper meal since the divorce. At that moment, I thought, if the child were born malnourished, it wouldn’t be good. As I emerged from the hospital bed, holding my abdomen, I saw a tall figure leaning against the wall. When James trembled and came to support me, I pushed him away with one hand.

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My half-sister Nancy was supposed to be my husband’s soulmate, but she was afraid of Hector Shang and asked me to marry him in her place. For my mother’s medical bills, I reluctantly agreed. Two years of marriage, and my husband wasn’t at all like the rumors said. Instead, he was incredibly loving and affectionate towards me. Before our third anniversary, Nancy wanted me to “return” him to her. But as I was blocked at the door, Hector gently caressed my face, his eyes dark and possessive, “Lily, have I been too indulgent with you?” “Lily.” Hector called my name softly. His husky bedroom voice, combined with that devastatingly handsome face, made him an absolute Adonis. “Hector~” “Lily, relax, don’t be afraid.” Hector was always so considerate in these matters. Completely unlike the rumors that painted him as cruel and ruthless. I dare say you couldn’t find a more model husband than him. But Hector’s true love was supposed to be my sister Nancy. I was just a substitute. “Focus on me.” Unsatisfied with my distraction, Hector bit down on my collarbone. I winced in pain. “Hector Shang, are you a dog?” The corner of his mouth curved into a smile. “Mm, I’m yours alone. If you don’t want me, I’ll turn into a mad dog.” His teasing made me laugh, which only encouraged Hector more. “Gentle~” “They say our Lily even speaks in such a sweet voice, I simply can’t hold back.” Hector braced his hands on either side of my pillow, his eyes growing darker with desire as he sought me more urgently. After a night of passion, I woke to find Hector already preparing to leave for work. “Lily, tie my tie for me.” Ever since he learned I could tie a tie, he’s had me do it for him almost every day. Hector sat on the edge of the bed as I carefully tied his tie, unaware of how his gaze grew more intense. A broad hand gently stroked my shoulder. I frowned and glared at him. “Don’t distract me.” After I finished with the tie, he grabbed my waist and pulled me onto his lap, kissing me deeply for a long time. Only when my lips were swollen did he finally let go. “Lily, I want to die in your arms.” “You scoundrel!” I laughed as I shooed him off to work, not taking his words to heart. With me, Hector was always the gentle husband, unlike the rumors. I was just about to go back to sleep when I heard my phone ring. “Hello.” “This is Nancy Shen. I’m sending you an address. Meet me there, we need to talk.” She hung up before I could reply. The truth is, I’m not really Hector Shang’s wife. My sister Nancy is.

Apparently, Hector had his eye on Nancy back then, but she was afraid he would be abusive and volatile like the rumors said. So Nancy came to find me. At the time, I desperately needed money and had gone to the Shen family to beg. “Didn’t you say you’d never take a cent from the Shen family?” “Didn’t you say you’d never come back to this house, even if you were dead?” I ignored my sister’s taunts and knelt on the ground crying as I begged our father. The truth is, Nancy was Father’s daughter from before he was married. She always called herself the child born of true love. My mother was originally the young lady of a prestigious family. After marrying Father, she helped him climb the social ladder to join high society. But after my mother’s family fell on hard times, Father divorced her without hesitation. Mother and I had no choice but to move to my grandmother’s home in the countryside and become self-reliant. But Mother had always been frail since birth. The hard work took its toll and she fell ill. I went to beg Father, and he soon agreed to lend me money, on the condition that I marry Hector Shang in Nancy’s place. At the time, I foolishly agreed without really understanding. The day I moved into the Shang family home, Nancy mocked me. “Congratulations, from now on your life will be hell.” “I hear Hector Shang is abusive. With your weak little body, who knows if you’ll be able to take it.” So this substitute marriage was actually a deep pit. That’s what I thought too. But after marriage, Hector was extremely doting towards me. Jewelry and designer goods flowed into the Shang home like water. I had bodyguards escorting me whenever I went out. I never had to lift a finger for anything. Every time I felt Hector’s love, I would think to myself: He must really love Nancy. Otherwise, how could he change from the rumored volatile, violent man into this incredibly gentle person now? I needed to go out, but I had to shake off the bodyguards. Reluctantly, I called Hector. “What is it? I just got to the office and you already miss me?” “Be good and wait for me to come home tonight.” Steeling myself, I spoke up, “I want to go shopping with friends. But every time you have bodyguards follow me, I feel too embarrassed to ask them out.” There was silence on the other end for a moment before he replied. “Alright. Keep your phone on. Will you have dinner with me tonight?” Hearing his pitiful tone, I immediately agreed. “Of course, I’ll definitely be back for dinner with you.” “Mm, have fun, darling.” After hanging up, Hector sighed and gazed out the window at the birds flying by. Indeed, no matter how beautiful the cage, it can’t keep her.

When I met Nancy, she was dressed impeccably in designer clothes, exuding an unmistakable air of wealth and status. “What did you want to see me about?” I had no patience for pleasantries with her. When she first entered our home, she drove out my mother and me. How could I not resent her? If not for her and her mother, I wouldn’t have suffered so much. And my mother wouldn’t have worked herself sick just to pay for my college tuition. Nancy stirred her coffee and laughed derisively. “Mrs. White, have you gotten so used to being a rich man’s wife that you think you can take over permanently?” I knew Hector’s true love was supposed to be her. So in my relationship with him, I always felt guilty and uncomfortable. “You’re the one who didn’t want him.” “Well now I do.” Nancy’s words left me completely stunned. Seeing my shocked expression, Nancy slowly continued, “It’s time for us to return to our rightful places.” Return to our rightful places… Give Hector to her? No, return him to her. My heart sank. I couldn’t hide the unwillingness on my face. Nancy noticed and warned me, “Your mother’s medical bills are still being paid by the Shen family. Are you sure you don’t want to return Hector to me?” I felt frustrated and snapped in a low voice. “He’s not an object for you to want when you feel like it.” “And then give away when you don’t want him anymore!” Nancy laughed lightly. “Lily, don’t overestimate yourself. You have no right to negotiate.” “Hector has only ever loved me. You’re nothing but a substitute. Don’t think you actually belong in that world.” Nancy’s scathing words left me completely silent. I’d heard from Father that when Hector came to propose marriage, just the engagement gifts alone were worth two years of the Shen family’s profits. So they didn’t dare refuse the marriage, afraid of Hector’s retaliation. Everyone in the city knew that Hector was ruthlessly vengeful. Rumor had it that when he was driven out by his stepbrother and mistress years ago, he went to the countryside with his mother to recuperate. But when he returned years later, he immediately crushed the entire company. Now that stepbrother couldn’t even find a job, let alone start a business. Hector didn’t spare Father either, personally reporting his bribery and sending him straight to jail. He wouldn’t give that stepbrother any chance to survive. This ruthlessly cruel man was only gentle with me. I knew it wasn’t because he favored me, but because of his true love, Nancy. “Lily, what’s mine is mine. You can’t steal it away.” “Father was like that, and so is Hector.” I felt suffocated inside. I didn’t dare to bet. I was afraid Hector would retaliate if he found out the truth. I didn’t dare gamble with my mother’s wellbeing. And I didn’t dare bet on Hector’s illusory love for me. What I learned from Father was that love is the most unreal thing in this world. Fleeting and ephemeral. “Give me a month.” Hector’s birthday happened to be at the end of the month. “Two weeks.” For the first time, I stood up to Nancy and prepared to leave. “If you’re willing to wait, I’ll return him to you. If not, then forget it.” Nancy’s voice came from behind me. “Fine.” After I left, Nancy cursed under her breath. “Little bitch, now you dare threaten me!” The truth was, Nancy didn’t really want my leftovers either. But seeing how good Hector was to me, it made her insanely jealous. All of this was supposed to be hers. I walked out onto the street, feeling like I had nowhere to go. Did I really have to return him to Nancy? I walked aimlessly until I reached the company building. Suddenly I desperately wanted to see him.

Hector was in a meeting. His assistant told me to wait in his office and brought me some coffee. Suddenly lowering his voice, the assistant said to me. “Ma’am, it’s lunchtime but the CEO is still in the meeting. He’s rejected all the proposals. Could you maybe…” I understood what the assistant meant and decisively stood up to go to the meeting room. This wasn’t the first time I’d been asked to do this. I knocked on the door of the meeting room, well-practiced. As soon as I pushed it open, Hector’s piercing gaze, so sharp it could be felt even through his glasses, made everyone feel a chill down their spine. But his eyes quickly softened as he stood and walked towards me. “Why are you here?” “I wanted to have lunch with you.” The employees behind him gave me a thumbs up. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Now that the wife was here, the CEO would finally calm down. Hector ordered some food and gestured for me to look out the window. “I heard you can see the most beautiful fireworks in the city from here on New Year’s Eve. Let’s come then.” New Year’s was indeed approaching, but by then, I would probably already be gone. “Mm…okay.” He keenly noticed something was off with my mood and frowned seriously. “What’s wrong? Didn’t enjoy shopping? Or you don’t want to see the fireworks? Prefer to stay home?” I looked at his concerned eyes, thinking to myself that I had deceived him. “It’s nothing. I just feel so happy being with you.” My childhood wasn’t happy. After Father was discovered to have a child from before marriage, my parents argued constantly. So I never felt much security growing up. Later, when Nancy was brought home to be raised, I was too timid and got bullied a lot. But Father always turned a blind eye. Only when Mother made a fuss would he pay any attention. Hector’s love for me was almost unconditional. Buying me whatever I wanted, coming home on time and avoiding social events, no scandalous rumors, a perfect gentleman in every way. Though he would get angry for a long time if he saw other men talking to me. I knew it was just because he cared about me too much. No, cared about Nancy. Hearing me say this, Hector’s expression softened. “Me too.” “Lily, you’re a gift sent to me from heaven.” There was something in his eyes I couldn’t quite understand…nostalgia?

I looked at Hector. He had no idea I wasn’t Nancy. When we first got married, Hector would still call me “Nanxi”. But I always felt uncomfortable, so I told him my nickname was “Lily”. He was so happy then, calling me that over and over. He said me telling him my nickname meant I was starting to accept him, to grow close to him. “Hector, do you really love me?” Hector didn’t understand my question and teased. “What’s gotten into you today?” “I’ll prove to you tonight that I only love you. I’m saving all my energy for you.” His flirting made me blush. Hector’s gaze was always so gentle when he looked at me. That night, I was especially proactive. Probably because I was afraid of our impending separation. After this, we’d be strangers. Hector held me in his arms as I wrapped my legs around his waist, clinging tightly to his neck. In the heat of passion, my neck arched in a perfect curve. He placed a kiss on my throat. It made my body tremble. He wasn’t doing much better. Groaning, his breathing ragged and uneven. “Lily, you’re so good tonight.” Praised like a child, I tried even harder to please him. But he still maintained the upper hand. I drifted off to sleep in a daze. In my hazy state, I heard him say: “Lily, I’ll love you forever.” “When will you recognize me?” “Silly girl.” When I woke up, Hector had already left for work. There was a message from him on my phone. “Rest well. It’s my fault for indulging in your temptation last night. If you’re sore, remember to use the ointment.” I blushed and hid under the covers. After tidying up a bit, I went out. Thankfully Hector wasn’t having me followed anymore. Nancy was accompanying me to handle the paperwork for going abroad. “Accompanying” really meant making sure I actually left. “After I’m gone, you better treat my mother well. Otherwise, I can come back anytime and expose you.” “Don’t worry.” Nancy knew not to jeopardize her big plans over small matters. After finishing the paperwork, I went to my mother’s nursing home. She was frail now, mostly bedridden. When I arrived, I saw her knitting. “Lily, why are you here?” “I was just passing by.” Mother looked at me contentedly, stroking my cheek. “Lily’s gotten so pretty. Your husband really knows how to take care of you.” I had told Mother the medical bills were paid by my husband. With no one from the Shen family visiting her, Mother never knew the truth. “What’s wrong? Did you have a fight with your husband?” “No…” I paused for a moment. “Mom, my husband and I might have to go abroad for work. You stay here and focus on treatment. Once you’re better, I’ll come get you.” Mother quickly tried to reassure me. “Don’t worry about me. You two just focus on your work. I don’t want to be a burden.” Tears welled up in my eyes as I buried my face in her embrace. “Mom, I’m sorry.” I might never come back in this lifetime. To keep our agreement, I had to stay away forever. Only then would Nancy ensure my mother’s treatment. “What are you saying? It’s Mom who’s useless. Otherwise you wouldn’t have had such a hard time.” The pampered young lady had a difficult time adjusting to life in the countryside. But Mother still had her pride. Even when times were tough, she refused to ask the Shen family for help. Though sometimes she would wonder if she had failed Lily. “No, I have the best mom in the world.” Mother came from a scholarly family. Like her, I was well-read and knowledgeable. And she gave me all her love. After leaving the nursing home, I suddenly felt nauseous, like I was going to throw up. My eyes widened in shock. Could I be pregnant?

I’m not sure what I was hoping for, but I went to the hospital for a pregnancy test. It would take some time for the results though. What I didn’t expect was for Hector to show up. In that moment, I felt anxious. If I really was pregnant, it would be impossible to “return” him. A despicable part of me begged: please let me be pregnant. I think…I’ve fallen in love with him. Hector looked tense. “Why didn’t you tell me you were getting a pregnancy test?” If this hospital wasn’t partly owned by him, he wouldn’t have known his wife came for a test. “I…I wasn’t sure if I was pregnant.” “I was afraid…of getting our hopes up for nothing.” Afraid of getting my own hopes up. Hector let out a relieved sigh and hugged me. “There’s nothing to worry about. We’ve only been married for three years. We have plenty of time.” “Besides.” He lowered his voice mysteriously. I leaned in to listen. “If we have a baby, I’ll have to abstain…” I quickly covered his mouth, embarrassed as I looked around. How could he say such things? Hector grinned and moved my hand away. “It’s true. Not only would the baby steal my wife, but I’d have to compete for your attention.” Suddenly I felt hopeful too. If it was a girl, Hector would surely spoil her rotten. “Do you want a boy or a girl?” “As long as you’re the one having it, I don’t care if it’s a boy or girl.” In that moment, my heart was filled with joy and anticipation. Suddenly a nurse called out a name. “Nancy Shen, please come in.” Hector helped me up, acting as if I was already heavily pregnant. But I was lost in thought. The nurse had just called my sister’s name. I had almost forgotten – I was just a substitute. “Based on Mrs. Shang’s test results…” The doctor trailed off, glancing at Hector. He tensely gripped my hand. “Is something wrong with my wife? Or the baby?” I grew worried too. The doctor shook his head. “It’s like this – the chances of Mrs. Shang getting pregnant are quite low…” Rich people care most about having heirs. The doctor was clearly trying to gauge our reaction. My eyes immediately darkened. So I wasn’t pregnant. And it would be difficult for me to get pregnant. It felt like the last bargaining chip I held had just crumbled to dust. As we left, Hector put his arm around my shoulders and made me look at him. “Lily, the truth is I don’t even like children. I only want you.” I knew he was lying to make me feel better. Seeing how dejected I looked, Hector joked to try and cheer me up. “Maybe I’m the one with the problem. Not putting in enough effort. We still have plenty of time, it’ll happen eventually.” I looked at him helplessly. Hector didn’t know that I just felt like I had lost my last reason to stay by his side. “It’s okay, don’t worry about it.” That night as I lay beside him, I had trouble falling asleep. Suddenly Hector pinned me beneath him, with a slightly threatening tone. “Stop overthinking. It’s just a baby. If we have one, great. If not, that’s fine too!” “You’re my wife. I don’t want to share you with anyone.” I looked up at him as tears slid down from the corners of my eyes. He gently kissed away the tears, then slowly kissed my neck. That night was especially tender and passionate. Hector was extremely enthusiastic, as if trying to distract me. “If you really want a child and we can’t have one, we can always adopt.” I cried, “I just want to have your baby.” “We will, someday.” The night was wild. I initiated several times. But in my heart, I had started a countdown. Because I knew Hector’s birthday was approaching soon.

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My husband, William Harris, fell in love with my best friend Sarah Ward after undergoing a heart transplant. Because the donor was Sarah’s boyfriend, Daniel Wilson, William insisted he was Daniel. I tried everything, desperately hoping to bring back the man I once loved. Until one day, I overheard a conversation between William and Sarah. “William, you tricked Paige into thinking you received my boyfriend’s heart transplant just so you could be with me. Don’t you regret it?” William’s voice was cold and indifferent. “She’s just a woman. It doesn’t matter if I threw her away. As long as I have you, that’s all I care about.” So it had all been a carefully staged lie. A setup. A betrayal. “Get out of my house! How dare you covet your best friend’s man?” William threw the water cup at me in disgust, and it shattered against my forehead. Fresh, red blood started to flow down from my forehead. “Paige, maybe you should go for now. I’m just afraid his heart can’t handle this much stress,” Sarah said softly, cowering in William’s arms while looking at me. I watched the strong bond between the two of them. It seemed like that they were unable to part. My heart felt like it was being torn apart. A painful, scattered sensation overwhelmed me. One was my husband of five years, and the other was my best friend from university. William, due to his congenital heart condition, had received a heart transplant from Sarah’s boyfriend, Daniel, who had passed away in a car accident. When he woke up from the surgery, he insisted that he was Daniel. I forced a smile and placed the soup box on the table beside the hospital bed. “Sarah, this is the soup I spent three hours making. Please have William drink it later.” I came out of the bathroom after tending to my wound, and as I passed by the hospital room door, I saw Sarah throw the box directly into the trash can. I paused for a moment, sighed, and decided to leave. Back when William was diagnosed with heart disease, I was not only worried but also surprised. I had been married to William for two years, and his routine was always disciplined. As a university teacher, he had even represented the school in a basketball match. Two months ago, he was diagnosed with congenital heart disease. While I was sleepless, worrying about finding a heart donor, Sarah’s boyfriend had an accident. Daniel’s car brakes failed on his way to work. Coincidentally, his heart was a perfect match for William. However, William woke up from the heart transplant surgery and insisted he was Daniel. He no longer recognized me. When I went to bring William home, he coldly refused. “Paige, I’ll say it again. I’m Daniel, not your husband. I’ve seen many women like you, vain and shallow. You disgust me.” “Paige, maybe Daniel… William should stay at my house. It will help his recovery.” So, I packed up and moved into Sarah’s house. The first night back, I carefully prepared a table full of dishes, all of William’s favorite foods. I hoped that he would recover soon. “Ugh, Paige, are you doing this on purpose? Don’t you know I’m allergic to eggs?” William took a bite of the pie, realized it had egg in it, and quickly spat it out, glaring at me. I didn’t know if Daniel was allergic to eggs. I only knew that William loved my eggs benedict. “You really are Daniel. Daniel is allergic to eggs.” I saw Sarah tearfully covering her face in distress, and William stepped forward, gently holding her and comforting her. I thought, “William, are you still William?” I left the house in despair to take out the trash and saw a figure standing still over there. It was David Parker, one of William’s close friends. I approached and greeted him. “David? How did you know William moved into Sarah’s house? Although, he probably doesn’t want to see you.” David glanced at me, silently sizing me up but didn’t speak. His gaze shifted back toward Sarah’s house, and then he turned and walked away. “How strange,” I thought.

By the time I returned, William had already fallen asleep. After all, he had just been discharged from the hospital, and his body still needed to recover. “Paige, don’t worry. As long as Daniel’s heart and William’s body don’t have any rejection, I will return William to you,” Sarah said carefully, walking out of William’s bedroom, giving me a firm promise. But the very next day, Sarah collapsed and was hospitalized. “Paige, you poisoned Sarah? You vicious woman!” As I anxiously arrived at the hospital, what greeted me was a heavy slap from William. “William, don’t blame Paige. I ate something bad myself,” Sarah said, her face pale, getting out of bed to stop William from unleashing his fury on me again. Seeing Sarah was about to collapse, William, unable to care about me, hurriedly stepped forward and caught her in his arms. “Sarah, you’re too kind. You don’t need to protect her!” I covered my cheek, looking at William with pain in my eyes. I thought, “William, do you even remember when you married me, you knelt in front of me, promising you’d never let anyone bully me? So, that didn’t include yourself!” Sarah stayed in the hospital for three days. Although the doctor suggested she could be discharged that day, William insisted on having the doctor prescribe three days’ worth of nutrition fluids because he was worried. I watched as William carefully cared for Sarah by her bedside, thinking, “Does he know that, during the days when he was unconscious, I took care of him just like this?” “Paige, you got Sarah hospitalized. If you still have any conscience, you should take action to atone for it.” I thought, “Yes, as Sarah’s close friend for four years, I know her eating habits well. I’m jealous of your love for Sarah, so I poisoned her food. William, is that really what you think? But you’re my husband.” I began caring for two frail patients, taking over all the household chores and meals at Sarah’s home. “Paige, I know you didn’t do it on purpose. Maybe it was something I ate outside. Don’t mind what William said,” Sarah explained, looking guilty. “Sarah, you know, William is my husband, at least for now.” I watched as Sarah’s face turned pale instantly. “Paige, stop with your dirty thoughts. Don’t even think about it. If you dare to say anything to hurt Sarah again, you better watch out!” William warned, pulling Sarah protectively behind him with disgust. I wearily took off my apron and laid it on the table. “Even if you are Daniel inside, you can’t escape the fact that your body is my husband, William.” I left Sarah’s house, feeling overwhelmed by everything. I needed to pick up Coco. Coco was a parrot I had raised. Ever since William had been hospitalized, I entrusted it to his friend, David. “Liars, liars!” As soon as I arrived outside David’s door, I heard Coco’s squawk. “If I told you I’m actually Daniel, would you believe me?” I looked at David, who was clearly annoyed, with a wry smile. “David, what are you joking about? Or have you fallen for Sarah too?” Feeling frustrated, I ignored him and picked up the birdcage, turning to leave. “Why does it feel like everyone around me is bewitched?” I thought. I took Coco to the park and walked with a stranger, an old man. For the first time, I felt relaxed. My phone kept ringing, and fearing something might have happened to William, I quickly answered it. “Paige, are you atoning for your sins like this? It’s already this late and you’re still not home to cook? Do you want Sarah to starve?” William’s furious voice came through the phone. I couldn’t help but laugh bitterly. Was he really implying that without me, they would starve to death?

After all, I had promised Bella that I would take good care of him, so I still went to the market. Bella Harris, William’s older sister, was a girl who grew up with us in the orphanage. Her life had ended at just twenty-three. She had been drugged and assaulted while working a part-time job at a bar. When we got her call, William and I rushed out of class without hesitation. On the large hotel bed, Bella lay there naked and hopeless. Blood poured from between her legs and her wrists, soaking the sheets in dark red. I grabbed the blanket with trembling hands and quickly covered her, holding her close in panic. I felt like I was losing her. “Paige, I won’t be able to protect you anymore. What I worry about most is William. Please… take care of him for me. “William, I know you have feelings for Paige. Treat her well. Or I won’t be able to rest in peace, even after I’m gone.” I saw William’s eyes turn red, brimming with hatred, his fists clenched, his face twisted in fury. Bella died in the prime of her life, while the man who ruined her, protected by power, walked away unscathed. William and I leaned on each other, working and studying harder than ever. But I never forgot Bella’s final words. I took good care of William. I returned from the market with Coco and hurried to make dinner. “William, William!” As soon as Coco saw him, it called out his name. I didn’t miss the faint smile that briefly flashed across William’s face. I thought, “William, do you still remember Coco?” Back then, William had been preparing for the university recruitment exams. Worried he wouldn’t have time for me, he had spent an entire month’s living expenses to buy Coco from the pet store. I thought, “William, do you still remember that month we lived off nothing but bread? We couldn’t even afford noodles.” “Liar, liar! William is a liar!” Coco said again. I was busy cooking and didn’t notice how William’s eyes turned cold. That afternoon, I went back home to get Coco’s food and supplies. “Coco?” I called its name as I entered, but to my surprise, there was no response. I didn’t even bother taking off my shoes and rushed inside. Coco’s lifeless body was lying in the cage, cold and stiff. Panic surged through me. I reached out with trembling fingers to touch it, but its body was already rigid. My mind went completely blank. “Paige, I saw it chirping nonstop. I thought it was hungry, so I gave it a little chocolate, but…” Before Sarah could finish, I slapped her hard across the face. I told her. I told her how much Coco meant to me. It was family. William stormed out and slapped me back, then quickly checked Sarah’s cheek before turning to glare at me. He warned, “It’s just a damn animal. So what if it’s dead? Paige, touch Sarah again and I swear I won’t let you go.” I held my cheek, stunned, staring at him. “William, that was Coco. Our Coco.” I searched his face, hoping desperately for a flicker of guilt, or sorrow. But all I saw was coldness and ruthlessness. When I arrived at Bella’s grave, I saw a bouquet of gardenias resting there. These were her favorite flowers. She loved them because they symbolized lifelong devotion. “Was it William?” I thought. I looked around with hope, but there was no one. Only my own lonely, stubborn figure in the empty graveyard. Maybe I was wrong. Right now, William was probably somewhere comforting the fragile Sarah. I let out a bitter laugh at myself. I buried Coco beside Bella. “Bella, look. You won’t be alone anymore. Coco will keep you company. And don’t worry. I’ll take care of William.” It wasn’t until the sun dipped below the horizon that I turned and left. Only then did a man step out from behind the tall tree.

I returned and found William wasn’t home. “Paige, William is Daniel. I know it’s hard for you to accept. But Daniel came back to me. As my best friend, shouldn’t you be happy for me?” Sarah said, swirling the wine in her glass, a mocking smile tugging at her lips. I stared at her, not understanding how Sarah had become this person. We had spent four years together in college, practically inseparable, sharing everything. She knew how much William meant to me. “Why are you putting on this act? If you love Daniel so much, why are you still clinging to William? “Is it just because William has Daniel’s heart?” “Paige, after all these years, you still don’t understand me,” she sighed, looking at me with a hint of pity. “Paige, do you think William will still want you after seeing you hurt me?” I heard the click of the door unlocking. Sarah’s expression instantly changed. She smashed the wine glass, grabbed a shard, and slashed it across her own arm. Blood streamed down in a chilling red line. Before I could react, she stumbled toward the door in panic, just in time to crash into William as he stepped inside. “William! I won’t call you Daniel anymore, just please, tell Paige not to kill me!” I didn’t even get a chance to explain. William stepped forward with long strides, shielding Sarah behind him, and shoved me hard. I fell straight onto the shattered glass, red liquid spreading beneath me. Whether it was wine or blood, I couldn’t tell. “Paige, didn’t I just warn you?” The coldness in William’s eyes cut into me like a blade. I couldn’t bear to look anymore. Without another word, he scooped Sarah into his arms and rushed out the door. “Paige, I won’t let anyone bully you.” William’s old promise echoed in my ears. “William, treat Paige well.” Bella’s dying wish flashed in my mind. I looked around the empty room. My body was so numb I couldn’t even feel the pain anymore. Dazed, I walked out. Just as I was about to faint at the bottom of the stairs, I collapsed into someone’s arms. I woke up again to see David. My injuries had already been treated. “Paige, don’t you want to know the truth?” he asked, handing me a file. “I’m the Daniel Sarah’s been talking about. “Sarah’s favorite flower is the daffodil. She always said people should only love themselves. She has a mole right here, on her chest…” “Stop…” I shut my eyes tightly, refusing to hear more. There was no way David could know her so intimately. But David went on. “Back then, Sarah didn’t want to make our relationship public. So she made up Daniel. “Which means William has been lying to you this entire time, working with Sarah to deceive you.” I spent a few days recuperating at David’s place, and William hadn’t sent me a single message since. David, on the other hand, was always out from dawn to dusk, but he would bring back delicious food for me every evening.

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I had an arranged marriage with Lucas Gray. I couldn’t forget my childhood friend, and he had an unresolved love for his childhood sweetheart. The kicker? Those two were actually a couple. Originally, we agreed to secretly sabotage their relationship and then divorce once we succeeded. But when I saw them kissing, Lucas forcefully kissed me. He said, “Your childhood friend kissed my sweetheart. I can’t let myself be at a disadvantage.” I believed him. Until later when I got pregnant. I cried! He said, “It’s legal, and you made the first move.” 0 On the day Lucas and I got our marriage certificate, the wedding photographer tried multiple times before sighing in frustration. “Are you two really here to get married?” “Sir, you look like you have a grudge against this lady.” I chuckled. “You’re right, he does kind of hate me right now.” That’s because the person he wanted to marry wasn’t me, but his childhood sweetheart Bella Johnson. I was actually quite satisfied with him though. Even though the person I wanted to marry wasn’t him either, but my childhood friend Zack Carter. But what could we do? My unattainable childhood love and his unresolved sweetheart were passionately in love with each other. After discovering their relationship, I tried every way I could to break them up. But my efforts were largely ineffective. Then my family received a marriage proposal from the Gray family. I was happy about it. Arranged marriages, you know – all wealthy heirs understand. It’s just a piece of paper, not about feelings. The key point is that his situation was truly similar to mine. I’d gain a highly intelligent ally. We could break those two up and then divorce later. Plus, I heard from my dad that the Gray family had willingly conceded several big projects to seek this marriage alliance. At least three hundred million dollars in profit per year. No matter how you look at it, I was coming out ahead. Looking at Lucas’s gloomy face beside me, I had to admit his looks were really not bad. Even angry, he was so handsome. I should try to cheer him up a bit. I stood on my tiptoes and hooked my arm around Lucas’s neck, whispering in his ear. “Don’t worry, we’ll figure out our situation in due time.” “Come on, let’s take the photos first.” I grabbed his hand and adjusted our position. He looked at his hand tightly gripped in mine, then at me. His expression changed from gloomy to expressionless. Well, as long as we could get the photos taken, that was fine. After leaving city hall, Lucas drove me home. I was flipping through our two red marriage booklets when I suddenly spoke up. “Husband.” The car suddenly slowed down. Lucas turned his head, his eyes locked on me with complex emotions. I continued. “Sigh, I’ve wanted to call Zack ‘husband’ for so long. I wonder if I’ll ever get the chance in this lifetime.” Before I finished speaking, Lucas let out a heavy breath and suddenly floored the gas pedal. Terrified, I grabbed Lucas’s arm and promised him. “Don’t worry, I’ll definitely make sure you get to call Bella ‘wife’!” Lucas didn’t respond. His face was tense, and the car sped up even more. I gripped the handle and screamed repeatedly. This was too much, Lucas. Just because he couldn’t marry the girl he liked. Was he trying to drag me down with him? 0

That evening, I moved into Lucas’s house with my belongings. Not much, just one suitcase. I hadn’t planned on staying long anyway. It was just to appease our parents, and to make it more convenient when we discussed plans to break up the other couple. Lucas wasn’t home. I toured the rooms one by one with my suitcase. Finally, I chose a large south-facing suite. “I’ll stay in this room.” The housekeeper, Mrs. Wilson, looked troubled. “This is the master’s room.” “It’s so empty it looks unused. What a waste to let him have it. I don’t care, I want this one.” As we were at an impasse, Lucas strode over and pushed me into the room. “Fine, we’re married after all. We’ll share.” “Sharing is fine.” I was certain he would remain chaste for his beloved Bella. I relaxed and flopped onto the bed. Then the mattress dipped beside me. Lucas’s lips curved into a smile as he flipped over, trapping me in a small space. Since he had just returned from the office, he was still in his suit. The silk satin tie hung by my ear. I couldn’t resist, mimicking a move from manga. I reached out and grabbed his tie, twisting my wrist to wrap it around once. The tie shortened, bringing Lucas’s face closer. He was so handsome, with sharp, defined features and captivating phoenix eyes looking down at me. His hot breath burned my cheeks. We remained frozen for a long time. My heart was pounding like a drum. I looked away, no longer daring to meet his gaze directly. “Bella really has no taste, rejecting someone as handsome as you to like Zack instead.” I was the first to back down, releasing his tie and pushing him away. “You’re the same.” Lucas walked to the bathroom door and took off his suit jacket. “I’m not the same. Zack and I grew up together. The timing of when you meet is very important.” “Timing?…” Lucas repeated those two words, chewing them over as he started unbuttoning his shirt. I jumped off the bed and quickly headed for the door. At the doorway, I paused and turned back. “Lucas, you look super hot in a suit. Wear them more often in front of Bella.” Turn, close door, all in one smooth motion. I let out a breath and swallowed hard. I had accidentally caught a glimpse of his chest muscles. They were so… full… 0

That night, I lay in bed texting Lucas. “You there?” He replied instantly. “Mm.” “Let’s discuss our battle plan for breaking up Zack and Bella.” “Fell asleep.” Damn, this Lucas doesn’t seem to care at all. He stopped replying to my messages altogether. For the next few days, whenever I caught him, I’d ask, but he always brushed me off with various excuses. Eventually he just started leaving early and returning late from work, going straight to his room and locking the door as soon as he got home. I stayed up late writing a detailed plan, but he wouldn’t even look at it. He was really slacking off, totally unreliable. Men, if they don’t put in effort, how can they find love? I’d have to rely on myself. Finally, on Saturday, I caught Lucas just as he was leaving his room. “Even CEOs need to rest, right?” “Time to put some effort into your love life.” Lucas looked me up and down for a few seconds, his brows furrowing. I twisted into an S-shape and did a little twirl for him. “Just bought this sexy dress. How do I look?” “Going to seduce Zack with it. Won’t he be head over heels?” Lucas averted his gaze, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he paused for a good while. “No good. You’re flat-chested. That dress just emphasizes your flaws.” ??? You can call me eye candy, but saying I’m flat-chested is not okay! Angry, I walked up to him and put my hands on my hips, sticking out my chest. If I wasn’t half a head shorter than him, I would’ve shoved my chest in his face to open his eyes! “Where am I flat? Where?!” “I’m a B cup! 34B!” “Are! You! Blind!” The sexy dress was a low-cut, tight-fitting spaghetti strap number. I’d even stuffed in two extra pads. I’d definitely squeezed out some cleavage, yet he dared to call me flat! Lucas tilted his head back towards the ceiling, turned around and fled into his room. With a bang, the door was locked. Soon after, the sound of the shower running came from inside. Oh? Taking a shower to smell nice before seeing Bella? What a closet romantic. 0

In the end, I changed into a plain black dress. Lucas was right, we were going to spy on them, so it was better not to stand out too much. But he wore an all-black suit. Looking arrogant like some young mafia boss. We had barely started tailing them when several fangirls came up asking for his SnapChat. So the situation became: Zack and Bella strolling arm in arm. Me hiding and sneaking around behind them. And Lucas lagging behind, smiling and dealing with fangirls. I was fuming. I rushed over, about to start scolding him. But then I heard Lucas’s deep, magnetic voice. “Sorry, I’m married.” Then he looked at me with eyes full of tender affection. Lucas was such a good actor. That one glance was full of the deep love of a man who adored me to the bone. I quickly swallowed my anger and put on a smile, linking my arm with his. Instantly, I received several glares from the fangirls. I curved my lips and raised my chin. Why did I feel a sense of pride, like I was showing off that this handsome man belonged to me? 0

Flirting with those floozies almost made us lose sight of our targets. I pinched Lucas’s arm, gritting my teeth as we hurried to catch up. Zack and Bella went into a movie theater. Lucas and I quickly bought tickets and sat right behind them. The movie was a romantic French art film. I couldn’t focus on it at all, staring at every move the couple in front of us made. They held hands for a bit, then whispered to each other. I anxiously poked at Lucas, telling him to quickly think of something. But he just took my hand in his. “Watch the movie properly. It’s very artistic.” Fine, fine, fine. No wonder no one loves you. Our rivals are right in front of us, about to kiss, and you still have the mind to appreciate art. So infuriating! I tried hard to pull my hand away, but he held it firmly. Just as I was about to turn and scold him, the couple in front had already started kissing. I frantically tugged at the hand he was gripping, as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. I leaned close to Lucas and whispered urgently. “What do we do?! They’re kissing!” “Should we use the soda or the popcorn?!” I was so eager my butt had left the seat. Lucas remained as calm as an outsider, not responding. His eyes were fixed on me as he suddenly pulled hard. I lost my balance and fell into his arms. He cupped my face and lowered his head. In the dim light, I couldn’t see clearly, but his eyes seemed to be sparkling. An ambiguous atmosphere arose spontaneously. The way he looked at me was exactly like how the male lead in the movie gazed at the female lead. I recoiled in shock, trying to dodge backwards. “Hey hey, what are you doing?” Lucas lowered his voice, full of endless temptation. “I can’t let myself be at a disadvantage.” “…” His kiss fell lightly. His lips were surprisingly soft, with a hint of coolness. In the stuffy movie theater, it was like a cool drink, quenching my thirst. My head was in a daze. Lucas only let me go when I was nearly out of breath. I was gasping for air, my face flushed red. The couple in front had disappeared, but Lucas acted like nothing had happened. By the time Lucas helped me into the car, I was in tears. Lucas rarely showed a panicked expression. He hurriedly wiped my tears, asking softly what was wrong. I cried out loud. “Lucas, that was my first kiss!” “I hadn’t even kissed Zack yet, and you took it! You owe me, you owe me!” But Lucas just smiled. The kind of smile that showed all his teeth. “Then I’ll let you kiss me once too, to make it up to you.” He grinned at me mischievously, looking just like a playboy toying with someone’s feelings. I couldn’t stop crying. Lucas took out his suit handkerchief and wiped my tears. He cupped the back of my head, really about to kiss me. I pushed him away forcefully, giving him a solid slap. “Lucas Gray, you’re taking advantage of me!” “Do I look like the kind of woman you can just play around with?!” Not giving him a chance to speak, I rushed out of the car and took a taxi home. 0

I stayed at home for half a month. I turned off my phone completely. Lucas came every day, but I refused to see him. Finally my parents couldn’t stand it anymore. “You newlyweds have been fighting long enough.” “Lucas said earlier that you two got along well. If it’s not some major issue, just forgive him.” What sincerity? What sincerity does he have? Coming to my house after work every day and lingering outside – is that what he calls sincerity? I irritably pressed buttons on the remote, flipping through channels. This stupid TV didn’t have anything I wanted to watch. But from the corner of my eye, I was drawn to something shiny in my mom’s hands. In a black velvet box lay a dazzling piece of jewelry, sparkling brilliantly. I scooted over. “Mom, what’s that?” Getting closer, I saw it was a diamond necklace. Shaped like a phoenix with spread wings, ready to take flight. Even though I’d seen many nature-inspired designs before, I was still struck by its powerful sense of vitality. “This is Lawrence’s new work. Only he could create such a lifelike piece of art.” My mom’s eyes were full of admiration. Her fingertips kept tracing the edge of the box, like she didn’t even dare to touch the necklace itself. I smacked my lips beside her. “His works are so rare, how did you get this, Mom?” My mom glanced at me and sighed, with a regretful look like I was wasting a treasure. She shoved the box into my arms. “Lucas brought it. It’s for you, to apologize.” I couldn’t help but smile, my lips curving upwards. I may not really appreciate art, but what girl doesn’t love sparkling diamonds? Opening the card at the bottom of the box, my expression changed. I suddenly sprang up from the sofa. [Zack and Bella are having dinner at Rose tonight. Change clothes, wear the necklace, and let’s go together.] Rose was a famous romantic restaurant known for proposals. What was Zack planning to do by taking her there?! I quickly picked out an evening gown that best matched the necklace, slipped on some heels, and rushed out the door. Lucas was wearing an all-white suit, hands in his pockets, leaning casually against his Maybach. I seriously suspected he was deliberately posing. Like some cliché Prince Charming. I looked down at my own pure white gown. Fine, then I guess I’m the cliché Snow White. As soon as I got in the car, Lucas took my hand. “What are you doing? Trying to take advantage of me again?” “We’re legally married. How can it be called taking advantage?” “We’ll go in like this. When Zack sees us, he might be shocked and realize the one he truly likes is someone else.” “This is using jealousy to trigger deeper emotions hidden in one’s heart.” As expected of the heir to Gray Corp, his methods were more sophisticated than mine. I gripped his hand back, sliding my slender fingers between his to interlock our hands. “Then let’s make it look more convincing.” His long fingers trembled slightly, then held mine tightly. 0

I was so nervous that I didn’t notice Lucas sitting up straight, his posture slightly stiff. Entering Rose, I thought we’d sit to the side and pretend to run into them by chance. But to my surprise, Lucas led me directly to sit opposite Zack and Bella. What a dramatic confrontation. My palms were sweating nervously, sticking to Lucas’s hand. Bella, with her bright eyes, spoke up first. “Luke, what’s this about?” “My wife, Lily Nelson.” Luke? She was still calling him that even though he’s married? I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and showed off the big diamond on my ring finger. Eat your heart out. Zack’s expression did become a bit unnatural. “Lily, when did you two…?” I linked my arm through Lucas’s, feigning intimacy. “We just got our marriage certificate a month ago.” “It’s a business marriage.” To avoid misunderstanding, I added that last part specifically. “Congratulations. Is that necklace Lawrence’s new work? I tried so hard to get it but couldn’t. I can’t believe Luke got it and gave it to his wife. He really dotes on you.” “Zack, I want one too.” Bella clung to Zack’s arm and pouted. I stared at Zack, my smile growing wider. Zack pressed his lips together without responding, lowering his gaze. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. “I have some good news to share too.” Bella held out a gold-embossed invitation. “Zack and I are getting engaged. The engagement party is the day after tomorrow.” “We’d like to invite you two as a couple.” She emphasized the word “couple” heavily. Lucas took the invitation, his expression natural. “We’ll be there.” Engaged? They’re getting engaged? My head suddenly felt like it was exploding, my ears ringing. My stomach felt empty and nauseous. I retched a few times and left the table. As soon as I turned away, tears started falling. I quickened my pace, running out of the restaurant. Behind me, I heard Bella’s surprised exclamation. “Is Lily pregnant?” 0

The night of Zack and Bella’s engagement party, I got drunk at a bar. I ordered eight male models to surround me, with two kneeling to massage my legs. If I couldn’t sleep with the man I liked, I might as well sleep with a hot guy, at least to make myself feel better. I was stroking the chins of the male models one by one, trying to decide who to take home tonight. That’s when Lucas burst into the private room. His face ashen, he fished me out from among the male models. I sprawled on the table, refusing to leave, my eyes still on the models. “Hey hey, what are you doing?” “I haven’t chosen who to take home yet.” Lucas’s expression darkened further. He hoisted me over his shoulder, looking as fierce as if he was kidnapping a bride. “If you want to crash a wedding, go to the engagement party.” “Did you come to the wrong place? Why are you looking for me?” Back home, I was tossed onto the sofa. The more I thought about it, the more wronged I felt. Tears and snot flowed freely. Lucas frowned, his lips pressed into a line as he wiped my face with a silk handkerchief. I clutched Lucas’s shirt hem, not letting him leave. “You owe me my male models. You owe me, you keep me company, waaah.” Actually, looking closely, Lucas was much more handsome than those male models. Great body too, and clean. Most importantly, those lips. So soft. I hooked my arms around his neck, hanging my full weight on him. I breathed into his ear, biting out each word. “Why don’t I just pick you for tonight.” Lucas’s eyes flashed. He looked down at me for two seconds. Then he grabbed the collar at the back of my neck and plucked me off him. “Look carefully. I’m not one of your hired male models.” I grinned at him: “You’re my husband.” Lucas didn’t hear clearly. “What?” As he leaned down, I pounced on him. Lucas held my hands, his breathing unsteady. “Lily, do you know what you’re doing?” He bent down and picked me up in his arms. With a few long strides, he carried me into the bedroom. “Lily, don’t regret this.” My head was so dizzy. Why would I regret it?

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