Linda nodded seriously, recalling fragments of memory. The woman had worn a black dress and had a gentle, sophisticated air. She'd offered Linda a drink.She remembered those delicate fingers reaching out, looking especially pale under the glinting glass, and that large blue diamond ring."Oh, and she had a mole behind her right ear.""She wore a blue diamond ring and had a mole behind her right ear. That's all I can remember," Linda strained to recall more."I see," Sarah said quietly.Linda, seeing Sarah's impassive reaction, could only think about the horror of facing court. She couldn't bear the thought of total ruin."Sarah, please, for the sake of our old friendship, let this go. I deeply regret letting my emotions drive me to such a terrible mistake!" She looked up, tears streaming down her face.Sarah couldn't help but remember their first meeting in the hotel restaurant, when Linda had approached with such a bright smile. That memory was still vivid."I'm leaving.""W
Walking under the trees along Riverside Drive, Sarah approached the villa where she once lived with her parents. She hadn't been back since their deaths - there was no one waiting here anymore.She disliked being alone in the empty villa; it only made her feel suffocated.As she pushed open the door, it creaked loudly. Years of dust swirled up like fog, making her cough violently.Sunlight streamed in, illuminating the thick dust floating through the living room. Beyond the layers of grime, she could smell mold and dampness.The heavy beige curtains held echoes of her mother. She remembered countless times rushing into her mother's arms after school, and into her father's embrace when he returned from work.Now it was all gone. She was alone.If her father were still here, she could have cried to him when James asked for divorce. But she couldn't.She made her way to the storage room where her old belongings were kept.In her former bedroom, thick books still sat on the windows
Mia dropped two sugar cubes into her coffee, noting Sarah's pale face. "Sarah, have you really broken up with my brother?"Sarah gave a bitter smile. "Mr. Reynolds and Miss Wilson must be childhood sweethearts. I wish them well.""That's not true!" Mia burst out. "Sarah, please don't misunderstand. There's nothing between my brother and Vivian. He doesn't have feelings for her.""I heard your grandfather is already discussing it with the Wilsons. Vivian told me herself." Sarah recalled her conversation with Vivian and the scene outside the bar.Mia shook her head. "Sarah, Grandfather never said anything about my brother and Vivian. He's always respected my brother's choices. I know he loves you."Sarah smiled cynically. "If your grandfather respects his choices, why would he do those things?"She didn't know what Zachary was hiding, nor did she want to know.When she and Mia were kidnapped, he was chatting happily with Vivian.When she went to the hospital in pain, she saw him
After Dean Larson left, only Sarah and Zachary remained in the counseling office.Sarah kept her eyes on her papers, letting an awkward silence fill the room."Shouldn't a counselor show more concern for her patient?" Zachary raised an eyebrow.Sarah put the papers in her drawer and replied evenly, "What psychological issues bring you here, Mr. Reynolds?"Zachary stared at her intently. "Heartbreak. I'm in agony every day. What should I do?""Mr. Reynolds, perhaps no one has told you, but heartbreak is a normal emotional response, not a psychological condition. If you feel your distress has become unbearable, I'd suggest emotional release or emotional sublimation techniques," Sarah explained professionally.Zachary watched her with interest. He loved seeing her this way, confident and passionate. It seemed more... like her true self."What are these emotional release and sublimation techniques?" he asked, feigning ignorance."As the names suggest, emotional release involves con
Zachary frowned deeply. "Who told you all this?""Who else but your childhood sweetheart?" Sarah scoffed."Sarah, none of that is true. You should know how I feel."Sarah's eyes glistened with tears. "No, I don't. Have you said these things to Vivian? Or do you only say them to me?""I made things clear with her in Saint Nock. She must have been upset when she went to tell you those things."Sarah nodded. "But our problems have nothing to do with her. I hope you understand that."Long before Vivian's revelations, she had already lost faith in Zachary.Zachary’s initial optimism had completely deflated. He'd known how Sarah would treat him and prepared himself for harsh words, yet he couldn't stay away."Sarah, I really did come for counseling," Zachary said seriously.He'd been having nightmares lately, seeing bloody scenes every time he closed his eyes, leaving him tossing and turning all night.Sarah noticed the dark circles under his eyes and knew he was telling the truth.
Zachary followed her out, handing her the bag of desserts. "Don't forget these."After giving her the treats, he sat in his car with a heavy heart and drove away.The next evening as work ended, Mia caught Sarah. "Sarah, are you free after work?""Where are we going?" Sarah asked curiously.Without answering, Mia pulled her toward a car waiting outside campus. Sarah felt relieved when she saw it wasn't Zachary picking up Mia today.The black Bentley headed toward the suburbs, moving further from the city center. Sarah sensed something was up, while Mia seemed unusually excited, barely containing her giggles in the car.When they stopped, they were at a small hill. Mia tugged Sarah along. "Sarah, you can see the sunset from here."She pointed toward the horizon, and Sarah looked.The setting sun cast a rosy glow on her face, her eyes sparkling with pink light, making her look especially gentle.Standing on the hilltop, though it wasn't very high, she could see East Coast City s
BANG!Multicolored flowers bloomed across the sky, burning bright before fading like falling stars - hauntingly beautiful.She had never seen fireworks like these before. They were breathtaking, so bright they outshone the stars in the night sky.She exhaled deeply, as if releasing her burdens. "They're beautiful."Zachary moved closer to Sarah. "I don't know what Vivian told you, but I need to make this clear - we're just friends. Nothing more, no other feelings involved."He paused before adding, “But you should stay away from her."Sarah frowned. "Why?""She's not who you think she is. She's different from Lucy or Charlotte."Sarah thought for a moment. "Are you saying she might hurt me?"She suddenly remembered Linda's words about the woman with the blue diamond ring and the mole behind her ear. It must have been Vivian. She was dangerous.Zachary lowered his eyes and said softly, "Sarah, I'm worried about you."Sarah took a deep breath, looking at Zachary in disbelief.
"They were beautiful." Sarah fell silent after that, staring blankly out the window until they reached Melvin's house.In the continuing Bentley ride, Mia looked worriedly at her brother. "Is Sarah angry with me?"Sarah had maintained an expressionless face and hadn't spoken to her.Zachary patted her head reassuringly. "She's not angry with you. She just doesn't want to see me."His eyes darkened as he pressed his lips together.Mia could see her brother's disappointment. The situation was beyond her control now. She'd thought Sarah would forgive him after seeing the fireworks, but she'd been too naive.Sarah must have been deeply hurt before to be so angry now. Mia nudged Zachary's arm, pouting. "Brother, you need to win her back!"She could sense her brother's recent depression and Sarah's unhappiness. They clearly loved each other, yet here they were.Back home, Sarah's mind was filled with thoughts of the fireworks and Zachary's words.She couldn't be sure if everything Z
At the front desk, Sarah watched seven or eight people standing in line, all holding identical discount vouchers. This was likely a company team-building activity.She listened to their chatty discussions, which included some crude language as they made no effort to hide their rough backgrounds."This place is so luxurious! The company really splurged to send us somewhere this fancy. I've never stayed in such a nice hotel in my life.""Me neither, but let's not forget why we're actually here and pretend we're just on vacation!""Oh, come on, who's going to forget?"Sarah's ears perked up. These people's conversation seemed suspicious, almost as if they wanted others to notice them.After about fifteen minutes, when everyone ahead had finally checked in, Sarah presented her VIP custom invitation and completed her member registration. She lay on the spacious bed in a room with floor-to-ceiling windows that offered views of the beach and ocean.It was noon, and sunlight spilled onto
"Mr. Sanders, I believe I was very clear in my email. With the current uncertain situation, cooperating with me is the most rational choice," Zachary said seriously.Melvin burst out laughing. "I might have believed you if you'd said this a few years ago, but times have changed. Zachary, do you remember what you promised me before? Have you kept any of those promises? Neither three years ago nor now have you delivered."When Melvin mentioned three years ago, Zachary's eyes filled with gravity and shame. No one understood better than they did what had happened—that horrific scene was too painful to even think about.He moved his lips. "People can't always live in the past."Even he couldn't believe his own words.Melvin said with self-mockery, "Listen to yourself. How absurd that sounds. People indeed can't live in the past forever, but Sarah has been trapped in that darkness for three years. Do you dare to face it? To uncover it?"After being wounded, a bleeding injury slowly form
Vivian exhaled deeply and said anxiously, "Grandfather, what happened last time upset Zachary, and he won't see me now. But I'll handle it properly."Old Mr. Wilson gave Vivian a meaningful look. "Good. I certainly trust your abilities."After seeing Old Mr. Wilson into his car, Vivian returned to her office and made a mysterious phone call, giving some instructions.After hanging up, her face broke into a satisfied smile, as if she was already enjoying the sweet taste of victory.At the Sanders Group."Smack." Sarah hit Melvin hard on the head.Melvin winced in pain. "Are you doing this on purpose? Taking personal revenge? I haven't even bothered you lately."Sarah shrugged, looking innocent. "Didn't you say your right eyelid keeps twitching? The left means money coming, the right means trouble. I'm just using an old folk remedy to ward off the bad luck."Melvin couldn't help rolling his eyes. "I don't know if the bad luck is gone, but I almost got a concussion from your 'remed
"Don't any of you have something to say?" Old Mr. Wilson sat in the chairman's exclusive seat, leaning back with an expressionless face as he surveyed the room.Some shareholders had come just out of respect for Old Mr. Wilson. They exchanged glances for a moment before Mr. Jefferson finally broke the silence, "What if we lower our prices or add more package deals?"As soon as he finished speaking, several members of the company's management team eagerly agreed. "Mr. Jefferson makes a good point."Old Mr. Wilson twirled the dragon-headed cane in his right hand, his expression revealing neither approval nor disapproval.Vivian, who had remained silent since the start of the meeting, finally spoke up, "I don't think that's appropriate."She looked at everyone present, her tone serious, "First, the Sanders Group's revenue has already exceeded the projected line by over a billion. If we lower our prices, even if we attract more customers, the overall result will be the same."By this
Vivian never expected that despite her orders to keep the detained shipment a secret, the board of directors would somehow catch wind of it.As soon as the meeting began, the middle-aged man sitting in the first seat on the right frowned and questioned her, "Ms. Wilson, are you hiding something from us?"Mr. Jefferson had the largest shareholding in the Wilson Group after Vivian and her grandfather. Compared to others, his words carried more authority.Naturally, Vivian had to show him some respect, given that she was the younger generation."Mr. Jefferson, by seniority, I should call you Uncle. You've watched me grow up. Do you think I would hide anything from you?" Vivian decided to play dumb first. She was certain these people had only heard rumors and hadn't yet gathered evidence.This was indeed the case. Mr. Jefferson narrowed his eyes, his expression unchanged, speaking in a tone that was half-joking, half-threatening, "Ms. Wilson, please don't say that. When it comes to bus
Charlotte ignored her, still peering behind the caretaker.The caretaker patted her chest and smiled as she approached. "Are you looking for Mr. Chancer? He went back to work. He asked me to take care of you. I thought you might wake up soon, so I went out to buy some nutritious soup for you.""You're saying he left? He left before I even woke up?" Charlotte struggled to open her dry lips, her voice raspier than ever before.Hearing this, the caretaker quickly set down the thermos and handed her the cup of tea from the table. "Please drink some water to soothe your throat, but don't drink too much. You've just given birth, so try to stay in bed and rest as much as possible."Charlotte found the water being offered to her ironically bitter.She had endured excruciating pain to give birth to James's child, yet he couldn't even spare a simple "thank you" for her efforts. Was this the marriage she had schemed so hard to get?Did she regret it? If someone asked, she might answer yes, b
"Answer me. Do you most hope it's heads or tails?" Sarah's voice carried an undeniable authority.The woman finally spoke. "Tails."Before Sarah's hand moved, the woman hurriedly corrected herself, "No, no, no—heads."Her indecisiveness reminded Sarah of her former self. Choosing between reason and emotion was often the hardest decision. It had once taken her several days to make up her mind.Sarah opened her palm. The woman's eyes widened, staring as if trying to burn a hole through Sarah's hand. But quickly, she discovered that Sarah's palm was completely empty. There was no coin at all.No heads or tails—there wasn't even a coin to begin with.Seeing the woman's confused expression, Sarah smiled and said, "In the moment I opened my hand, your heart already had the answer. I can't tell you how to solve your problem, nor can I make the decision for you. But you should know that you only have one life, while love can be found more than once. The fact that you're troubled by this s
This single subtle gesture revealed her inner feelings. Without needing to look further, Sarah immediately understood. Through the monitor, she could see that the photograph was a selfie of a man.Beyond heartbreak, she couldn't think of any other explanation.The emotion release room had been open for nearly a week. During this time, she had observed many clients. Those who came to release their emotions fell into several categories: heartbreak, work conflicts, friendship issues, personal disputes, or being stuck at a crossroads in life, unable to make the right choice.They came here to vent their emotions, and often only after destroying everything could they finally see what they truly wanted in their hearts.This was Sarah's original purpose in creating the emotion release room. But more importantly, this wasn't just a simple place to vent emotions—it offered clients more valuable services, such as guidance from top psychological counselors to help them quickly resolve their tr
"Enough. I've heard too many words like these. It's all for my own good, it's all to protect me—using these noble-sounding excuses to make me believe him, to understand him. Well then, why don't you who want me to believe him try to convince him to believe in me? Are you all underestimating me, or overestimating Vivian? I don't want to hear this kind of talk anymore. Everything he suffered today was his own choice."In this moment, Sarah's coldness fully erupted. She was no longer indifferent or dismissive, because she simply couldn't ignore the pain in her heart.Mia hadn't expected Sarah to say such things today. She held Sarah's hand sympathetically. "Sarah, I'm sorry. It's because I wasn't thinking. I shouldn't have said those things that upset you."When emotions reach their breaking point, they tend to explode, but often calm down shortly after the outburst.Sarah had regained her composure. She shook her head with a bitter smile. "This isn't your fault. Since the doctor is he