All Chapters of 18 Hours of Surgery Couldn't Save Our Marriage: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

The door to the hospital ward burst open as my mother charged inside."You ungrateful wretch! Grace didn't sleep for three days trying to save you, and the moment you wake up, you spout this nonsense?"I looked down. "Haven't you always wanted a daughter? Why don't you take her as one? Such a wonderful woman is wasted on me anyway.""You!" Mom trembled with rage.Grace Reed steadied her, saying gently, "Mary, please don't get upset. Derek just woke up. His mind isn't clear yet."I let out a cold laugh. The way she called my mother was so intimate.The attending physician entered, frowning as he glanced at Grace, whose eyes were red and swollen."Mr. Hudson, you just came back from death's door. Your health should be the priority. As husband and wife, you shouldn't fight when you just cheated death."I closed my eyes, refusing to engage. The ward fell silent except for the monotonous beeping of the medical equipment.Shortly after, a student nurse entered carrying a syringe. "W

Chapter 2

After word spread about my divorce from Grace, I became the ungrateful modern-day villain who abandoned his savior. The nurse changing my IV clearly jabbed the needle into my vein with extra force."Ouch." I winced in pain.She rolled her eyes, muttering under her breath, "Serves you right, you ungrateful bastard."Her voice was just loud enough for me to hear. I did not bother responding, but I filed a complaint against her.Afterward, Grace's senior colleague, Dr. Michael Anderson, came to visit."Derek, people should know how to repay kindness." He patted my shoulder earnestly. "Grace gave up her opportunity to attend an international academic conference abroad for your surgery. You can't be foolish and break her heart."I listened with no expression. "That was her choice. What does it have to do with me?"Dr. Anderson was left speechless and walked away while shaking his head.Mom entered carrying chicken noodle soup, slamming it down on the bedside table with a loud thud

Chapter 3

I tilted my chin up defiantly. "What gives you the right to speak to me like that?"Ryan was momentarily speechless, then said with concern, "Dr. Reed, don't bother with this jerk. Let's go.""You all—" Mom was about to say something when she was interrupted by a commotion.A middle-aged woman stormed in aggressively, pointing at me and cursing, "So, you're Derek, the ungrateful bastard? You make me sick! Dr. Reed delayed my son's surgery to save you! How dare you mention divorce? You animal!"Getting more worked up, she grabbed the portable urinal from under my bed and splashed its contents all over me.A pungent stench filled the air. I was stunned. Grace then rushed into the bathroom and returned with a towel to clean me off.I did not appreciate the gesture. I snatched the towel from her and silently wiped the urine from my face and hair, cursing, "Damn it, this divorce is happening right now!"Grace was slightly taken aback. "Derek, what's wrong with you? Please don't casua

Chapter 4

When I woke up again, my head was wrapped in thick bandages, and the severe pain made me dizzy and disoriented.A young, professional-looking woman sat beside my bed, watching me intently.Just then, Mom pushed open the door. The moment she saw the woman, she charged forward like she had encountered her worst enemy."You're the homewrecker! How dare you show up here after wrecking someone's marriage?" Mom screamed, reaching out to grab Victoria Jones' hair.Victoria frowned and dodged away."Mom, she's my assistant.""Ma'am, I'm Mr. Hudson's assistant."We both spoke at the same time.Just then, Grace and Ryan entered the ward. Upon seeing Victoria, Grace's face instantly turned pale, and her body swayed.Ryan immediately steadied her, glaring at me with hostile eyes."Derek, you've gone too far! Dr. Reed has lost so much weight worrying about you, and you actually brought your mistress to the hospital ward!"Witnessing this scene, Grace burst into tears. The last time I had

Chapter 5

A video was playing on the screen. It was security footage from a parking garage.In the footage, a shadowy figure approached my car stealthily while carrying a toolbox. He opened my car door and worked inside for a long time.That person was Ryan.Grace's face turned deathly pale, her eyes filled with disbelief."No... This can't be real..." she murmured.I ignored her and pulled out a vehicle inspection report from the folder, throwing it in Ryan's face."Brake system, deliberately sabotaged. What do you have to say for yourself?"The situation had spiraled beyond everyone's expectations, but Mom remained stubbornly in denial.She pointed at Victoria, screaming, "It's all you! You shameless woman! You forged evidence to frame Dr. Cross just so you can be with my son!"Ryan immediately caught on and chimed in, "Exactly! That's got to be it! Mr. Hudson, you'd stoop to such despicable methods just to get a divorce!"The bystanders and patients' families began whispering among

Chapter 6

I signaled Victoria to play another video. It was the same underground parking garage.Grace was leaning against the hood of her car while Ryan embraced her from behind."Dr. Reed, you really can't get divorced right now?"Grace's face flushed red. "Didn't we already agree? We need to wait a bit longer.""But every time I see you two together, I go crazy with jealousy.""You silly man." Grace's voice carried indulgent laughter. "I only love you."The video was short, but every frame cut like a knife. Mom stared in shock, pointing at the screen and then at Grace, unable to speak for a long time."You... You two..."The hospital ward fell deathly silent. The patients' families, who had been so righteously indignant moments before, now looked at Grace with complicated expressions."My God, Dr. Reed doesn't seem like that kind of person.""She's actually cheating on him.""That poor husband of hers. He's been completely betrayed."Grace's face went from white to red. She stared

Chapter 7

"You... What are you saying?" Grace's voice was shrill, filled with a panic she hadn't even realized.Ryan was also stunned as he looked at us in confusion. I let out a cold laugh and signaled Victoria. She understood and opened a set of photos on the tablet.On the left was Harry from our college days, wearing a white shirt and laughing brightly on the basketball court. On the right was Ryan in his white coat, his features bearing a striking resemblance to Harry. Especially those eyes, clean yet touched with melancholy.The hospital ward was filled with gasps."They look so alike...""It's like they were cast from the same mold."Mom was also dumbfounded, looking back and forth between the photo and the real Ryan. "This...""Grace, what do you have to say now?" I stared at her. "You weren't into Ryan at all. You were just looking for Harry's replacement.""No... That's not it..." Grace backed away while speaking incoherently, bumping into the wall."I didn't... I love you, De

Chapter 8

The photo's background showed a cozy cafe.Grace and Ryan were seated together with two toddlers between them, a boy and a girl who looked about two or three years old. The four of them looked exactly like a family.Mom stared at Grace in disbelief. "Grace, you... Didn't you say you wanted to be childfree?"Grace's body went completely rigid."Who said I wanted to be childfree?" Grace suddenly laughed, her smile carrying a hint of madness and vindictive satisfaction. She looked directly at me, saying each word clearly, "I never wanted to be childfree. I just didn't want to have your children."Mom staggered backward as if struck by lightning, collapsing into a chair."Why... Why would you do this...""Why?" Grace turned to Mom, her eyes ice-cold. "Because he doesn't love me at all! He married me just to possess me! He was jealous of Harry and wanted to steal everything that belonged to him, including me!""That's a lie!" I trembled with rage."A lie?" Grace sneered. "Do you da

Chapter 9

Mom was completely speechless. The daughter-in-law she had once been so proud of turned out to be such a venomous woman."This is horrible..." she whispered.I looked at Grace, feeling nothing but emptiness in my heart. My heart had gone completely numb.I began, "Grace, aren't you curious? How do you think I found out all this?"Grace whipped around to look at me.I said slowly, "I'll tell you. All of this was investigated at the request of Harry's mother.""Mrs. Thompson?" Grace's pupils contracted sharply, her face full of disbelief."That's impossible... Mrs. Thompson moved back to her hometown years ago. How could she...""She never went back," I stated calmly. "After Harry died, she moved to a different city. She always felt there was something suspicious about Harry's death, but as a single woman after her divorce, she couldn't investigate much on her own."Until six months ago, when she happened to see Ryan's photo in a medical journal."I looked at Ryan with sharp ey

Chapter 10

As Grace passed by me, she stopped. She looked at me with hollow eyes. "Derek, I'm sorry."I could not forgive her. A simple apology was not enough, especially after ten years of lies. We were beyond repair.Ryan was criminally detained for attempted assault and falsifying credentials. Grace was fired from the hospital for embezzlement and harboring a criminal, facing further police investigation.The two innocent children were sent to live with their maternal grandparents.After that, Mom fell seriously ill. She could not understand how the daughter-in-law she had doted on for over ten years could be such a terrible woman.On the day I was discharged, Victoria came to pick me up. The sunlight was beautiful and felt warm against my skin."Mr. Hudson, where to?""Let's go to the beach," I said.The car drove along the coastal highway. I rolled down the window, letting the sea breeze caress my face.I had never felt so free. For over ten years, I had been trapped by my love and

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