Chapter 3

Chapter Ninety-Five

Hearing what Max said, Bella only gave a slight smile, but deep down, she felt an intense disdain for this man. She couldn't understand why she had once been so deeply in love with him, to the point where she believed that if she didn't marry him, she wouldn't want to marry anyone else.

However, Bella still felt fortunate that she had discovered how disgusting this man truly was. More importantly, she and Max didn’t have any children together, which was one of the reasons why she didn't feel guilty for betraying her husband.

When they arrived home, Max, still slightly intoxicated and in a good mood from two pieces of good news that evening, was feeling extremely relaxed. From behind, he watched Bella, admiring her beautiful figure. Even just looking at her back was enough to make others feel captivated. Max quickly stepped forward and embraced her from behind, greedily inhaling the sweet and seductive fragrance of his wife.

"Bella, you smell so good..." Max whispered close to her ear.

Max had no idea that his sudden touch made Bella shiver, her skin breaking out in goosebumps as she struggled to swallow the overwhelming feelings of disgust and nausea rising in her throat.

But in order not to be discovered, Bella tried her best to suppress her discomfort, gently pushing him away as she softly said, "I know you're very happy tonight, but I'm feeling a bit tired... maybe because I'm pregnant now, and also, what happened with Pearl tonight has left me in no mood for anything."

Thinking of Pearl, Max's expression immediately showed irritation and annoyance. "Just ignore her. Don’t concern yourself with that ungrateful person anymore. Who does she think she is to talk to us like that?"

Of course, Bella had no concern for Pearl; Pearl was just an excuse for her to escape from the current situation. Bella still appeared sorrowful as she said, "Maybe another time. To you, Pearl might just be a secretary, but to me, she's a close and only friend."

Without waiting for Max’s response, Bella went straight to her bedroom and locked the door, ignoring Max as he repeatedly called for her from outside.

The first thing Bella did was check her phone. Tonight, she had posted numerous intimate photos of herself and Max, along with sweet captions full of love, as if she truly adored her husband.

Because Bella had never had many friends—in fact, apart from Pearl, she had no other friends at all. Moreover, Bella was a reserved person who didn't like posting photos or sharing her life on social media. Although Bella was a rich family's daughter, her social media presence was nothing special, and no one really paid attention to her.

Bella saw that Pearl had viewed the pictures she posted tonight, but Pearl didn’t leave any comments or reactions, making it hard for Bella to guess what Pearl was thinking.

But Bella was certain that Pearl would be furious when she saw those pictures.

…

In the dark room, the sound of shattering glass, breaking objects, and the furious screams of a woman echoed. She relentlessly smashed everything in sight, disregarding the injuries to her delicate hands that were always meticulously cared for, unable to stop herself from destroying everything.

"Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?! Damn it! Damn it! Why? What the hell? Why do they treat me like this? Do they think I'm a fool? Bastards!" Pearl kept screaming, smashing everything within her reach.

It didn’t take long for the entire room to look like a complete wreck, even more chaotic than a battlefield.

Pearl continued her rampage until she had no strength left to hold anything, finally collapsing onto the cold floor, crying out in pain. Her cries were filled with despair and helplessness that couldn’t be put into words. She couldn’t understand, nor could she grasp why her fate always ended in rejection.

She had always believed that she had sacrificed a lot, given so much, only to hope for something that was deserved in return, never daring to ask for more.

"Bella, you wretched bitch, damn it! Why can you live so well while I can’t? Why do you get everything so easily while I have to sacrifice so much and still fail?"

Pearl hated Bella. Why was Bella born into a wealthy family, even though both of them lost their mothers at an early age? But why did Bella have a father who loved her so much, while Pearl’s childhood was filled with nothing but violence and poverty?

Why was Bella, who had nothing special about her, able to live a life of wealth and love, while Pearl could only endure the daily beatings and abuse from her father?

It was clear that Pearl was more beautiful, smarter, and more talented, yet she never received anything good. Pearl despised Bella's purity and simplicity; she scorned Bella's kindness and goodness. Simply because Pearl saw it as fake, she believed Bella was only pretending to be good while actually looking down on those at the bottom of society, like her.

How could a wealthy young lady like Bella become friends with her? It had to be because Bella wanted everyone to see her as kind-hearted, someone who never cared about others' backgrounds. But in Pearl's eyes, Bella's kindness was condescending Pearl.

Pearl didn’t know when it started, but she had never wanted Bella to live well; she wanted Bella to suffer everything she had. If Bella experienced the same pain as her, would she still maintain that benevolent face and kind-heartedness?

Therefore, during university, Pearl often secretly posted false, malicious rumors about Bella using an anonymous account on the school's forum. The posts were so frequent that many students took notice, and at the same time, Pearl portrayed herself as a beautiful, kind, and pure figure in everyone's eyes.

Because Bella was quiet and reserved, rarely updating her social media, she had no idea why she was disliked. Bella thought that her shyness and introversion caused many of her classmates to dislike and despise her, thinking she was strange. Only Pearl stayed by her side, comforting her without ever being annoyed, which is why Bella always valued Pearl and cherished their friendship.

But then Max came into their lives, and Pearl's world took a turn. Pearl couldn't accept that even though Bella was isolated and disliked at school, she could still happily get engaged and fall in love with a successful, wealthy man like Max.

Meanwhile, the men Pearl encountered were all without money, useless despite their good looks. She always compared her boyfriends to Max and found that none of them could match him. Max was too wonderful; even at a young age, he was already a successful businessman with a lot of money.

At that point, Pearl realized that even though Bella was isolated at university, what about later? No one could deny that Bella's father was very wealthy and owned a large company; Bella's life had been destined for happiness and luxury from the moment she was born.

Pearl's jealousy toward Bella grew even stronger. Pearl didn't want Bella to be better than her in anything, including the man beside her. So, Pearl wanted to steal Max from Bella. While Bella and Max were just in the early stages of getting to know each other, Pearl continuously approached Max.

Pearl also knew that Bella was simple-minded, and as long as she kept it hidden a little, the foolish Bella would never find out. Due to Bella's foolishness and Pearl's cunning, Pearl successfully seduces Max. It was easy to seduce Max because he only agreed to date Bella because she was the only daughter of Mr. William. Becoming Mr. William's son-in-law would pave the way for his future success.

Another reason was that Bella was so naïve, like a child who knew nothing about love and relationships; her provincial nature made it easy for Max to approach her however he pleased.

At first, Pearl seduces Max out of jealousy and the desire to take Bella's man to feel victorious, but she finds that he has many similarities with her. In the face of Max's sweetness and wealth, Pearl falls in love with him, willing to stay by his side, waiting for him to dump Bella and take over her father's company.

Pearl had thought that her efforts over the years would yield sweet results, but the ending turned out to be so tragic!

"What have I been doing all this time? No, I can't accept that all my efforts have gone to waste like this..." Pearl muttered to herself, staring into the void.

She didn’t know how much time had passed or what she had been thinking and mumbling about. By dawn, as the first rays of sunlight filtered into the room, which looked like a battlefield, a woman sat on the cold, messy floor, staring blankly into space.

A sleepless night had left dark circles under her eyes, her face pale and sickly, and her dress, soaked through, had yet to be changed. Pearl’s appearance at that moment could only be described with one word: "pathetic."