Julianne remained in her car. She watched as I slid down the slope and attempted to save the people in the car.When she saw how dire the situation was, her eyes narrowed with glee. A cruel gleam flashed through her gaze as she began imagining how the current situation would play out.It was a cold winter night, and I was trying to save the people in the wreckage. However, I wasn't able to because I lacked the strength. Not only that, if the car exploded, I would perish as well.To her, it would be the perfect, most seamless accidental death in the world! Julianne wanted me dead very badly. Hence, her first thought upon seeing such a situation was to imagine how I would die. She was happy because she wouldn't have to get involved.Not only that, but she also thought about how it wouldn't matter if she couldn't be with Irvin once I was dead. With me gone, she would be the only and most important woman in his heart.With a cruel smile, she opened her car door and got out.The fir
I pulled the child out of the car. Picking him up, I was about to move away from the wreckage.Irvin had just placed the pregnant woman on the ground. When I turned, I saw him running toward me, his eyes burning with pure rage.Before I could react, he lunged toward us. We rolled away from the car wrapped in his arms and came to a stop facing away from it. Irvin was shielding us with his broad frame.Then, there was a deafening bang. The car had exploded! It was immediately engulfed in flames.The sound of the explosion and the raging fire triggered a flood of memories in my mind.I flashed back to the beginning of my sophomore year. I was working on an experiment in the university lab when one of the juniors mishandled a substance. This caused an explosion, which created a huge fire.The explosion had knocked over a cabinet, which fell on top of me. Trapped underneath it, I was unable to move. I could only watch as the flames crept closer. I thought I was going to be burned aliv
My past self had always hoped Irvin would choose her for once whenever a situation like this occurred. She had hoped he wouldn't choose Julianne again, who would obviously pretend to faint.However, the current me desperately hoped otherwise. I prayed his heart would break for her just like it always did in the past whenever she fainted. I hoped he would drop everything else, rush over, and sweep her away.That way, I could finally divorce him!Irvin had saved me once before. And he had done it again just now. But no matter what, the harm he had caused me couldn't be wiped clean.I felt conflicted because he had saved me. However, it doesn't change my desire to divorce him.Besides, my past self had also saved him many times before. In fact, if we were keeping score, I had saved him more times than he had. So I didn't owe him a thing.Thus, I prayed he would choose Julianne. This way, our marriage would come to a quick and clean end.However, just like always, he dashed my hop
Fear was written all over Irvin's face.It seemed he couldn't bear to think about what would have happened if he hadn't shown up in time and helped me."Emi, I know you're kind-hearted, so I understand that you can't just stand by and watch when someone's life is in danger. But…" He trailed off again.I looked at Irvin, amused by him saying he knew how kind-hearted I was. The irony wasn't lost on me, and I couldn't hold back my laughter.This was the same man who had called me vicious and malicious. And now, he was calling me kind-hearted?Irvin was stumped by the sight of me laughing. However, he seemed to have realized something and quickly returned to his senses."I'm sorry, Emi. I…" He trailed off yet again.He wasn't good at apologizing, so he didn't know what to say. He also felt his apology would be pointless. The more he thought about it, the more foolish he felt.I was someone who was willing to risk my life to save a complete stranger. Thus, he shouldn't have called m
After leaving the surgical ward, I had to walk past the general ward on my way out.An idea suddenly came to mind just as I did. So, instead of leaving the hospital, I headed to Julianne's room.Irvin had been injured. Because of this, he had been preoccupied with getting examined and treated. He was also worried that I would think there was something going on between him and Julianne.Despite all this, he had still thoughtfully arranged for Julianne to stay in a luxurious VIP room.None of my family members had come to visit me when I woke up after falling off the cliff. When I was discharged from the ICU ward, I had been placed in a noisy eight-person room.Comparatively, her single occupancy VIP room was so much more comfortable. So much so that it didn't even feel like one was staying in a hospital.I knocked on her door.Julianne thought Irvin had come to check on her. She happily opened the door and was about to call his name coquettishly.Her smile instantly vanished whe
Without giving Julianne a chance to respond, I said, "Also, once you get home, make sure to tally up everything Irvin has ever given you. I'll be sending people to collect them very soon."I added, "If you don't return them, I'll sue you and request a court order to force you to comply."In the past, Irvin would always give her valuable gifts while I only received freebies. Seeing this, my past self would cry.So now, I decided to reclaim all of her gifts.The money that Irvin gave to her to spend was mine. Plus, the money she had spent in the past was from my and Irvin's joint account. Thus, it was also mine.My husband had cheated on me. He also bought expensive gifts for his mistress with my money. Since this was the case, I—the wife—had the right to reclaim these items as they belonged to me.Julianne's eyes widened in shock.She hadn't recovered from the shock of Irvin transferring all his assets to me. And now, I told her I was going to reclaim everything she had been give
Irvin called me before I even made it home."Is this really necessary, Emi?" he asked.He might not have been direct, but I knew what he was referring to. Julianne had surely run as fast as she could and complained to him about what I had said.He was calling me because he wanted to back up his dearest "sister" and stepmother.I huffed disdainfully. "Why wouldn't it be?"Irvin sighed wearily. "Regardless, Emi, she—""Don't tell me that she's still my sister. You may consider her as such, but I don't!"I absolutely hated hearing people tell me Julianne was my sister, no matter what. It was as though I couldn't hold her accountable for anything she did just because of that."You know the drugging incident fiasco happened because of a misunderstanding, Emi. Can't you please let it go?""No, I don't believe that. In fact, I think it was all a scheme to set me up! I'm going to keep digging into it, and you can't stop me! If you can accept this, great. But if you can't, feel free to
"However, from now on, I will no longer recognize Henry Quill as my father," I said. "Apart from offering support that he needs when he gets older, I will no longer have any contact with him. I also ask that he never reach out to me ever again."I continued, "Simply put, our father-daughter relationship ends here!"He had given me life, and now I was going to help him get his life and freedom back. So we're considered even.Mom and Jeremy were stunned by my words. They were in a daze as they never expected me to say something like this.After all, I had always longed for a family and desired love.There once was a time when I would've sacrificed my life for them if they showed me even the slightest bit of kindness. But now, I was severing ties with them.Snapping back to reality, Mom began chastising me. "Are you out of your mind, Millicent?"She and Julianne truly were like mother and daughter, despite Julianne being adopted. Mom had said the same thing she did.I chuckled hum
"Ms. Quill, you—" Grace sputtered.From her expression, I could tell she wanted to say, "You really will say anything to save your pride. How will you get in if you won't follow us?"Just then, a few people walked out of the hall. At the lead was an elderly man with white hair.Upon seeing me, the elderly man's stern expression morphed into a smile. "Emilia! You're here!"I returned the smile and walked up to greet him, "Hello, Professor Weiss."I had met several influential figures during the Global Technology Forum in Lestoria. Among them, I had gotten along best with this man, Professor Richard Weiss.After exchanging pleasantries, Professor Weiss turned to Mitchell and asked, "Who is this man? What gives him the right to bar you from attending the conference and call you an academic fraud?"Professor Weiss was the biggest name in the physics field. He was someone everyone respected and dared not offend.Hearing this, Mitchell quickly explained, "It was a misunderstanding! I
"Of course!" Grace said.Moving to my side, she linked her arm with mine in a friendly gesture. It was as though we were on very good terms.She continued, "Not only is she an incredibly skilled researcher, but she's also my sister-in-law—which means she's also a member of the Hardwell family. So, Mr. Slate, any accusations of her being an academic fraud must be a misunderstanding!"Upon hearing how solemn Grace was, Mitchell couldn't help but look at me."If you aren't an academic fraud, then why would Ms. Calder say that about you?" he asked.I coolly returned his gaze. "That's a question for Ms. Calder, not me."Mitchell frowned and looked displeased. He clearly hadn't expected that answer.Grace turned to me and said, "Alright, Emi. Let's go inside together!"Her expression read, "Come on. I'll bring you in."Irvin didn't understand why I hadn't been allowed in despite having an invitation. He also didn't know why I had been mistaken for an academic fraud and was being bar
I looked down at my phone and was zooming in on the image of the data. But before I could even take a good look at it, Emma squeezed my arm."Holy crap! Emilia. Isn't that your ex-husband's brother!" she exclaimed.I instinctively looked up—just in time to see Irvin opening the car door and courteously helping Grace get down.Grace flashed a gentle smile at Irvin, then linked arms with him. To onlookers, that intimate gesture made them look like a loving married couple.I thought back to how Irvin had been near tears when we had met on the first snowfall of the season. Yet now, he was holding another woman's arm and playing the role of her devoted husband.I couldn't even describe how I felt at that moment.Then, I recalled how much Irvin had despised Grace before. Yet, in just a month, he managed to make it look like they were happily married. I feared it wouldn't be long before he began to feel sympathy for her. And then, per Grace's scheme, Irvin would eventually truly becom
William wasn't the type to repay a life-saving favor. So, for the past two years, Julianne had always wondered why he treated her so well and was especially attentive to her health.It was only after she returned to Claudeville that she finally understood.It turned out William had a sickly niece he cherished dearly—one whose survival depended on Julianne. Upon learning this, she suddenly felt she had the upper hand again.While she still couldn't figure William out entirely, she had come to understand him somewhat. She knew he would continue to tolerate her—for the sake of his sickly niece—as long as she didn't do anything out of line.To be clear, Julianne made my life difficult because she hated me. But as long as she didn't harm me, she knew no one would hold it against her. After all, William's niece needed her blood to live.The more she thought about this, the more pleased she became.I could see it plainly in her eyes. Her expression seemed to say that even after all thes
Seeing how determined I was, Emma didn't press any further.Just as we were about to leave in the car, another car pulled up beside ours. When I saw who stepped out of it, my eyes widened in shock.Emma saw them too and tugged at my sleeve in surprise. "Emilia, isn't that your ex-husband's brother and sister-in-law?"I was just about to say yes when Grace suddenly collapsed into Irvin's arms. He picked her up and rushed toward the hospital.Seeing this reminded me of how I had wished that Irvin would come and save me when I was drowning.I chuckled mockingly.Noticing something was off with me, Emma turned to me. "Emilia, what's wrong?"I withdrew my gaze. "Nothing."Then I told the driver to start driving.As the car drove out of the hospital, Emma stared at me. She hesitated at first, but then curiosity got the better of her "Emilia, looking at how you reacted to your ex-husband's brother… Is it true that he's actually not Timothy, but Irvin?" she asked.She had been with
Only after our car had driven far into the distance did William finally withdraw his gaze from Noah's car."Was Ms. Quill's assistant rescued?" he asked.Matthew immediately replied, "Yes, she's been taken to the hospital. She's out of danger."William hummed indifferently in response, then got into the car and left.…By the time I woke up in the hospital, night had already fallen.I was surprised to see Noah sitting at my bedside—surprised that I was still alive and that it was Noah who had come to save me.Seeing me awake, Noah stood up excitedly. "Emi, how are you feeling? I'll get the doctor!"I wanted to tell him I was fine, but my voice came out hoarse when I opened my mouth.Suddenly, I remembered something and quickly reached out to grab Noah before he could leave to call the doctor.Before I could even ask, he already knew what I was going to ask. "Your assistant's fine. She woke up even earlier than you," he said. Hearing that, I breathed a sigh of relief.Noah
Emma was also quite smart. Once she calmed down, she immediately understood what I meant. She wanted to say something, but I had already opened the car door and pushed her out.Seeing several people swimming toward us, I shoved her again, urging her to leave quickly.In the face of life and death, survival would become an instinct for everyone. So even though she didn't wish me harm or want to leave me behind, she swam away with tears in her eyes. Not long after she left, those so-called "rescuers" surrounded me.When they noticed someone had swum away, they exchanged hand signals underwater, planning to send some after her and others to capture me. Realizing this, I quickly pointed at myself, trying to tell them that I was the one they were looking for. Then I turned and swam in the opposite direction, hoping to lure them away and buy her more time to escape. But even though they understood my gesture, they didn't believe me. They still sent people after her.They were very
There was only one road from the airport to the city, and William's car was right behind ours.Matthew, who was driving, immediately sensed something was wrong when he saw our car suddenly accelerating at an alarming speed.He quickly said, "Mr. Ashford, something's wrong with Ms. Quill's car!"William, who was busy reading the documents, immediately looked up. His gaze darkened when he saw how recklessly the car in front was moving."Catch up with them!" he ordered. At that moment, his phone rang. It was Noah calling, and he sounded anxious on the other end. "Uncle Will, are you with Emi right now? I just heard that Madeleine is planning to kill her! "I don't know the exact plan, but I heard they're making a move on the way from the airport to the city. You need to be careful! I'm heading to the airport right now!"Noah's words made William's expression grow even darker. …While Emma was still processing the situation, I noticed something strange about the driver. If the
Just like that, we came back alive from the brink of death in an instant. It felt like we were in hell one moment and in heaven the next.Perhaps I was still too scared. So scared that even after the plane had stabilized for a while, I still couldn't find any strength in my body. I was still shaken by the fear and couldn't fully snap out of it.William was also holding me tightly the entire time, not letting go. The softness of my body in his arms stirred something in him that he couldn't describe. He instinctively didn't want to let go.It wasn't until a flight attendant knocked on the door to check on us that I finally returned to my senses.William also let go of me instantly. The sudden emptiness in his arms left him feeling rather hollow.He came to realize something, and his already deep gaze darkened even more, making it even harder to read.After the flight attendant tidied up the cabin and left, William, who had been perfectly fine and warm just moments ago, suddenly tur