Professor Green was elegant and refined. He smiled politely and replied, "Mr. Sawyer, there's no need to be so courteous. Ms. Quill has already thanked me."Irvin frowned. Men had a keen sensitivity to their territory, and Irvin instinctively disliked Professor Green, even though the latter had just saved me, his wife."If you ever need anything, feel free to come to me. Now, I'll be taking my wife with me," said Irvin while pulling me into an embrace so tight that I couldn't even struggle out of it.Professor Green noticed my discomfort and frowned. "You're making her uncomfortable. She's still very weak."Irvin's grim face darkened further at Professor Green's words. However, he loosened his grip on me slightly and glared at Professor Green without any of his earlier gratitude."Mr. Green, I'm grateful for you saving my wife. Whatever you need, I'll do my best to fulfill it. But you don't have to concern yourself with her anymore."The possessiveness in his voice would've made
I felt repulsed whenever I looked at Irvin and Julianne. I didn't want to disgust myself any further by continuing to think about them.Irvin knew he was wrong for what happened yesterday, so he didn't get as angry this time."Emi, I know what I did yesterday wasn't right, but look, you're fine now. You know Lianne's always been weak. Who knows what could have happened if I'd waited longer to take her to the hospital?"Yesterday, I even publicly swore there's nothing between us, and you'll always be my wife. So, can't you just stop making a scene? Lianne's situation is urgent. Let my assistant take you home."With that, he turned and walked away, not giving me the chance to say anything.Watching him rush off, I frowned in disgust.One second, he was so possessive of me, and the next second, he ran off to take care of his lover. It was ridiculous to think he had claimed nothing was going on between them!I really wanted a peaceful divorce. However, with Irvin's hypocrisy and nau
My gaze darkened. "Mr. Walker.""Yes, Mrs. Sawyer?"Although his tone was respectful, the contempt in his eyes displeased me."You're fired. I'll have HR arrange compensation for you. Go pack your things and leave."I should feel lucky that even though I had made the mistake of leaving the academic path I loved for Irvin, I hadn't completely lost my mind.After investing everything into Irvin, I didn't walk away empty-handed. When the company became publicly listed, I secured shares second only to Irvin's.As the second-largest shareholder of the company, I had the authority to fire someone.In my journal, I had recorded numerous instances where Mr. Walker had humiliated me, and I was certain that a third of my emotional pain came from him.He was an employee who not only failed to respect the boss but actively belittled and manipulated me. Keeping him around would be absurd.Mr. Walker's eyes widened in shock. "What?""You heard me. You're fired.""Mrs. Sawyer, did you hit
While waiting for the test results, I couldn't help but ask about Mr. Holland. Back when I decided to drop out of school and venture into business, the disappointment in his eyes haunted me to this day, making me too afraid to contact him even after all these years.All I've ever dared to do was send occasional holiday greetings in the group chats we were both in.Mr. Holland had really put all his heart into teaching me back then. He was already established in the industry, so he didn't need to take on graduate students anymore, but he made an exception just for me. He was the second person in the world to treat me well, aside from Grandma.However, I dropped out after being accepted into the graduate program with him as my mentor. The only reason I did that was to take care of Irwin, as he was too busy to do so himself when he first started his company. Back then, he often had stomach issues, so I wanted to be there for him.My memories were coming back to me now. I remembered ho
"Emilia, you bitch, how dare you show your face here!" A woman lunged at me as she screamed.Before I could back away to avoid the woman's attack, Shaun stepped in front of me, taking the brunt of the blow on my behalf.Seeing him frown from the impact, my expression turned cold.The woman, furious at not being able to hit me with her bag, pointed at Shaun and screamed, "Who are you? Why are you shielding this bitch? Are you her lover?"Now I know why you've changed so much, Emilia Quill! You've been fooling around with someone else! I'm going to tell Irvin, so he'll give you nothing in the divorce, you cheating bitch!"Katie's daughter was just as vile and uncultured as herself.I stepped forward and said coldly, "Simone Fisher, between me and Irvin, we both know who was actually unfaithful. You'd better watch your mouth!"Simone had grown up with Irvin and Julianne. She was Julianne's number one bootlicker, so naturally, she didn't like me at all. She was just as bad as her mo
I tried to shake him off, but his grip was tight. I didn't dare to struggle too hard, so I looked at him coldly. "Let me go. I'm not going to apologize."Irvin frowned. "Would you rather go to jail instead?"He'd thought that it was just an accident; he only found out that I had supposedly pushed Julianne into the pond because of Simone's shouting earlier."Did you know that you almost killed Lianne?" he demanded. "I've already told you that I won't have anything to do with Lianne anymore. Why did you still go after her and push her into the pond?"Why did you have to be so cruel, Emilia? Why can't you show Lianne some kindness?"Once again, he blamed me for everything, just like my diary said. No matter what happened between me and Julianne, he would always take Julianne's side without looking into the matter.My parents and Jeremy were the same. Ever since Julianne turned up in my life, everything was my fault. I was always the wrong one, the malicious one, the one who couldn't
I looked at my parents innocently. "I'm just saying that Julianne looks healthy. What, I can't do that now?"My parents were livid. "Millicent, when did you become like this?" Mom scolded. "Your sister's always been nice to you. She was even trying to stop us from calling the police on you. "But not only did you not appreciate her kindness, you even mocked her! Do you have any conscience left? Why do you always treat Lianne like this?"She was so angry that she put down the bowl to slap me. "First, you got Lianne kidnapped and refused to apologize. You even told her to kill herself, causing her to end up in the hospital. "Then, at your grandmother's birthday celebration, you humiliated her and pushed her into the pond. Don't you feel at all guilty after doing so many vicious things? Milicent—"Before Mom could continue her tirade, Dad cut her off. "There's no use talking to her. Call the police and get her arrested. She's beyond saving. Let the police discipline her for us! Sh
Now, the shares were the first thing that Dad thought of. He was so eager to get that 10% share for Julianne.It was as if the 10%, which was worth billions, were nothing more than 10 dollars that he could take from me effortlessly.I didn't know when I gave them the idea that my money was free for them to take.Even though Julianne's expression remained unchanged, I saw her clutching her blanket with barely concealed excitement.I'd thought that she had pushed me into the pond in the spur of the moment, driven by her anger. It seemed like I had been too naive.If this was premeditated, that meant that she would've found another way to lure me to the pond one way or another if I hadn't gone near it yesterday. She might even orchestrate something else to make it look like I had harmed her, and then use the opportunity to make my parents force me to give the shares to her.She was the one who wanted me dead, but she managed to make it look like it was the other way round.This w
These prominent scholars might be able to speak eloquently during academic discussions, but they weren't fond of socializing. Hence, when invited to dinner, their first instinct was to decline.It wasn't until Professor Weiss explained that we would simply be continuing the day's discussion while eating—rather than it being a formal meal—that the scholars finally agreed to join us later that evening.Hungry for more knowledge, my attention was fully focused on these professors. All I could think about was what questions I could ask them over dinner. I was so focused that I didn't even notice Irvin repeatedly glancing at me as we left.We took a shuttle back to the official conference hotel. Then, after saying temporary goodbyes, we headed to our respective rooms to change.Once inside the room, Emma couldn't hold it in any longer."Oh my god!" she exclaimed. "I thought I was pretty smart because I had a high IQ. I had always been a top student and managed to get into one of the to
While I couldn't completely let go of Irvin, I was no longer the person I once was.Back then, I had placed love above all else, so loving Irvin had been the most important thing to me. I'd devoted myself to him and treated him like he was my entire world. He had been the source of all my emotions—from happiness to anger, and from sorrow to joy.Now, my top priority was my studies and research. I would never again give up the academic path I loved so deeply for anyone.…Julianne watched as Mitchell apologized to Professor Weiss and tried to curry favor with him. Then, she saw the way Professor Weiss treated me with warmth and respect. Hatred simmered behind her eyes. She felt life was so unfair. She had to work hard for everything she wanted, and yet those very things seemed to fall effortlessly into my lap. She didn't want to take any more risks. But despite this, she was so furious that she couldn't resist the urge to. She wanted to destroy me once and for all.Grace obse
Mitchell felt humiliated from having to apologize to me so publicly, so he was already in a bad mood. And when he heard the tone Julienne used with him, his expression soured even more."Who told you Ms. Quill is an academic fraud, Ms. Calder?" he shot back.Julianne clearly hadn't expected that. She was caught off guard by the question. Then, as though sensing someone's gaze on her, she turned her head. And when she spotted Irvin, she froze.Julianne had kept tabs on Irvin, but they hadn't seen each other face-to-face ever since she faked her death. So, their sudden encounter shook her.I lowered my gaze when I saw Julianne and Irvin lock eyes.I had recognized Julianne the moment I saw her. My family had too. Thus, I believed it would be the same for Irvin as well.Our relationship problems started because of Julianne, so they should end with her too.Having grown up together with Irvin, she knew she couldn't hide who she really was from him. Regardless, she couldn't admit she
"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