Chapter 2

By now, everyone saw Bradley as a delusional man desperately trying to marry into a wealthy family.

In their eyes, he had no shame and no limits. Even the marriage certificate proving that he and Lilian were legally married had been locked away by the Johnson family. Bradley had no way to prove the truth, and no one was willing to believe him.

The worst part was that he had spent all this time waiting for the day Lilian would publicly acknowledge their marriage. Now, he was beginning to realize that day might never come.

Outside the police station, the sunlight was painfully bright. Lilian's assistant picked Bradley up and drove him to an upscale private club.

It was Matthias's birthday, and Lilian had gone all out to celebrate.

Bradley had barely walked out of the police station when she instructed her assistant to bring him to the party. She did not even give him time to clean himself up or change out of his bloodstained clothes.

Inside the private room, Lilian looked stunning in a long, elegant dress. She lowered her eyes as she poured red wine for Matthias, without even glancing in Bradley's direction.

Her voice was filled with irritation.

"Bradley, I'm busy. Could you please stop causing trouble? I honestly don't have the energy to keep bailing you out of jail."

Was this not all her fault in the first place?

Bradley smiled. Suddenly, he felt exhausted.

"Lilian, let’s get a divorce."

The room fell completely silent.

Matthias tactfully excused himself and headed to the restroom. Only then did Lilian finally look up, her beautiful eyes settling coldly on Bradley's face.

Bradley instinctively turned his head, trying to hide his humiliation and battered appearance.

Lilian's brows drew together, and her voice turned icy.

"I asked you to come here and celebrate Matthias's birthday, and this is what you choose to talk about? Do you have any idea when it’s appropriate to bring something like this up?"

There was a trace of reproach in her eyes, but not a hint of concern for his injuries. Bradley's heart sank, leaving him hollow and numb.

As he looked at the untouchable, confident woman Lilian had become, he felt as though he were trapped in a dream.

Was this really the same Lilian who used to sit beside him on the sidewalk, sharing instant noodles and refusing to leave even a drop of broth behind?

Bradley repeated, dazed, "Lilian, I said I want a divorce."

She looked at him, her expression impossible to read. Then she set down her wineglass with a sharp clack, perhaps a little harder than she intended.

"Bradley, today is Matthias's birthday. Don't ruin the evening. We can talk about what happened this morning when we get home."

When she noticed how swollen his face was, her expression softened for a moment. However, the instant she saw the blood covering his clothes, the fingers she had started to extend toward him abruptly pulled back.

Lilian was disgusted by him. She was actually disgusted by him.

How ridiculous.

"Matthias's birthday is the most important thing right now. Come over and sit down."

Bradley had compromised again and again over the years. He was already worn out beyond words.

His fingers unconsciously closed around the doorknob as he prepared to leave.

"Lilian, you’ve changed. You are nothing like the person I used to know. Now, I can’t even understand what you really want anymore!"

The words hit a nerve, and anger flashed across Lilian's face. She lifted her head abruptly, her eyes narrowing as she fixed him with a furious stare.

"Changed? Changed? That’s all you ever say! You keep telling me I'm not the same person I used to be. Do you think I became like this for my own sake?"

She let out an icy laugh, her voice thick with years of buried resentment.

"Bradley, take a good look at the life you are living now. Which part of it did you earn on your own? Everything you have came from me.

“Without me, could you afford to live in a place like this? Could you enjoy the comfortable life you have now, without ever having to worry about food or money?

"You’re only enduring a little hardship for the time being, and you cannot even handle that? Do you still want to become the Johnson family's son-in-law? If you want to be part of this family, stop expecting everything to be easy."

"Then I don't want it anymore!" Bradley finally shouted the words he had been holding back.

The moment they left his mouth, he felt as though the last of his strength had drained away. His voice held nothing but deep disappointment.

Lilian, however, did not hear the pain behind his words. All she saw was a man behaving selfishly and throwing a tantrum.

She stared at him calmly.

Just then, Matthias returned from the restroom and pushed open the door.

Lilian froze for a moment. Then, her expression softened immediately.

"You’re back. You said your stomach was bothering you earlier. Are you feeling better now?"

Matthias noticed Bradley standing alone to one side and looked uncomfortable.

"Did you two have an argument? Is this about the interview earlier today?"

He took a step forward, his face full of apology.

"I’m sorry, Bradley. That reporter was pretty sharp, and everything was just to keep our families happy. Lilian had no choice but to hold my hand in front of the cameras. Please don't be upset."

Matthias was dressed in a perfectly tailored suit, every movement polished and graceful.

Bradley felt painfully inferior. He instinctively pulled his hands back and secretly wiped the blood staining them against the back of his clothes.

"Matthias, this has nothing to do with you. You don't need to apologize."

"Bradley, don't say that. Lilian is your wife, and I already feel terrible about how long I have had to play the part of her partner in public. If the two of you end up fighting because of me, I will feel even worse."

Bradley gave a faint smile before shaking his head bitterly.

"You don't need to apologize. It won't happen again. I'm getting a divorce."

A flicker of shock crossed Matthias's eyes.

At that moment, Lilian looked up. Her anger reached its breaking point, and her voice turned sharp and cutting. "Bradley, stop being unreasonable!"

Bradley held her gaze, his throat tightening.

"I'm not throwing a tantrum. I just don't want people treating me like some useless man who lives off a woman, or a pathetic loser who’s willing to throw away every bit of his dignity just to please you. I have pride too—"

Before he could finish, Lilian closed her eyes briefly. Then she spoke with sudden, mocking amusement.

"Fine, Bradley. I can’t believe how ungrateful you are. All right! You want to talk about your pride? Then give back everything I have given you, and I will agree to the divorce."

Bradley froze.

"What do you mean?"

"I already told you. Everything you have now came from me. Give it all back, and I will divorce you."

The air in the room seemed to freeze.

When Bradley hesitated, the corners of Lilian's lips lifted slightly. Her eyes were filled with ridicule.

"What’s wrong? Can’t bear to give it up? Don't forget who has been supporting you all these years."

She paused, then continued.

"If you don't want to pay me back, then apologize in front of everyone. How does that sound?

“I’ll even give you a little dignity. You can apologize once for every single thing I bought for you. You’re always talking about how you have pride and how you don't want people calling you a useless man who lives off a woman, right?

“Fine. I’ll give you what you want. Once you finish apologizing, you can keep everything. You can tell yourself that you earned it by trading away your dignity."

Matthias stared at Lilian in disbelief. "Lilian, this is too much!"

"Stay out of it. Let him apologize. He’s the one who wants to leave, isn't he? If he can’t pay me back, he can figure out how to settle the debt himself. I don't even want those things anymore."

The love Bradley had carried for Lilian for so many years finally completely disappeared.

A mocking voice suddenly rang out from nearby.

"Wait a second. Did you not just say you had pride? Then get down on your knees and apologize! When you think about it, haven't you been living off our Lilian all these years? Let everyone see just how much pride you really have!"

Laughter and taunts erupted around the room, yet Lilian remained completely expressionless, as though none of it had anything to do with her. Bradley stared at her for a long moment, his eyes reddening as his hands curled into tight fists.

Then, with everyone watching, he slowly bent his knees and lowered himself to the floor.

...

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."

With Lilian and dozens of other people watching, Bradley kept his head lowered and apologized for every item, one after another.

Each time he spoke, it felt as though someone were grinding his dignity into the floor beneath him. His knees trembled uncontrollably.

However, he did not stop.

He repeated the apologies mechanically, over and over, until his voice grew hoarse and his lips turned pale. Even then, he refused to raise his head.

Lilian watched his miserable state. Something inside her chest suddenly tightened, but she still cut him off with a harsh voice.

"That’s enough! You’ve ruined Matthias's birthday!"

Bradley lifted his head. His eyes were bloodshot, and his voice was heavy with pain he could barely put into words.

"You said one apology for every item..."

He clenched his teeth stubbornly, as though finishing the task was the only way to hold on to the last scraps of his dignity.

Lilian finally stood up, her voice laced with angry sarcasm.

"Bradley, why do you insist on going against me? Didn't I tell you that I would explain everything when we got home? What difference would it make if you just lowered your head for once?"

Bradley let out a short laugh.

He had been lowering his head for five whole years. He had already humbled himself until he could sink no lower.

Lilian had used his love as permission to hurt him without restraint. The heart that had once been willing to give her everything was then covered in wounds, too damaged ever to be repaired.

After apologizing three hundred and fifty times, Bradley slowly rose to his feet, still looking dazed.

He glanced at the things on the table. His voice was so exhausted that almost no emotion remained in it.

"That should settle the debt. Not everything I own was bought with your money, either. I apologized three hundred and fifty times. I didn't leave out a single thing you wanted me to pay back."

He paused, then shifted his gaze away from Lilian's face.

"As for your birthday party, I won't interrupt it any longer."

With that, Bradley forced himself to stay conscious and pushed the door open.

"Bradley! If you walk out today, don't ever come back!"

Lilian's furious voice echoed behind him, but Bradley kept walking without looking back.