Chapter 0002

At the dining table, Hansel didn't seem pleased with what had been served for breakfast. "Where's my pumpkin soup?"

"You mean cream of vegetable soup?"

"Cream of vegetable soup?"

"Yes. I know that Ms. Sutton makes that all the time. It's the one made with pumpkin, potatoes, onions, and celery, right? Um, I don't have as much time to prepare all the ingredients for that.

"The pumpkin, potatoes, onions, and garlic have to be roasted and freshly puréed beforehand; it's best if it's slow-cooked the night before. And then the soup has to be stewed and slowly brought to a simmer over open fire for hours after that.

"I don't have the same amount of patience that Ms. Sutton has to always be checking on the fire every few minutes. Also, what I make will probably still taste different from what she makes. On top of that—"

"Bring me some marmalade," Hansel interrupted.

"Coming right up, Mr. Johnson."

"Why does this taste so different?" Hansel glanced at the bottle packaging. "The packaging is wrong."

"That jar is empty now. We only have this brand left."

"Go and get two jars of the other one at the supermarket, then."

"It can't be found anywhere, Mr. Johnson."

Hansel wasn't amused. "Why not?"

Martha smiled rather awkwardly. "Ms. Sutton made the marmalade herself. I don't know how—wait, Mr. Johnson! Aren't you going to finish your breakfast first?"

"No."

Martha watched in bewilderment as Hansel stormed up the stairs. Why did he lose his temper all of a sudden?

…

"Hey, you lazy bum, it's time to get out of bed!"

Miranda flipped over in bed and didn't even bother opening her eyes. "Shut up. I want to sleep a while longer…"

Winter Jefferson, Miranda's best friend, had already put on her makeup and was in the midst of choosing a purse to go with her outfit.

"It's going to be 8:00 am. Don't you need to rush home to make breakfast for your most beloved Mr. Johnson?"

Miranda used to stay the night at Winter's place from time to time, but she'd always leave before the crack of dawn to make her usual cream of vegetable soup for Hansel, who was extremely prone to gastric problems.

The mere thought of it had always rendered Winter speechless. Was Hansel paralyzed? Or was he too dumb to order delivery on his own? Why did he have to go and make life difficult for Miranda?

In other words, he'd just been spoiled rotten.

Miranda was still reluctant to get up from bed. She shook her hand at Winter and said, "I'm not going back. We broke up."

"Oh. So how long are you planning on staying broken up this time?"

Miranda didn't answer her.

"Oh, well. Go back to sleep, then. I've left some breakfast for you on the table. I'm going to work now, and I won't be back for dinner because I've got a date tonight. But you'll probably be gone by then, so just remember to close the windows by the balcony before you leave."

Eventually, Miranda woke up due to hunger.

She ate the sandwiches Winter had left for her and stared at the sun shining outside the windows. She couldn't remember the last time she'd slept in and woken up without an alarm.

After she was done with breakfast, she changed her clothes and went straight to the bank.

The first thing she had to do was cash out the check for 50 million dollars. She wouldn't be able to rest until she had the money in her hands.

Then, she went into the second bank next door and said, "I'd like to speak to your private banking account manager, please. I'd like to deposit ten million dollars."

Ultimately, Miranda spoke to the bank manager himself, who offered her a considerable annual interest rate. Miranda tried negotiating with him to increase the rate by a little bit, and he accepted it.

Using the same tactic, Miranda went to two other banks and deposited ten million dollars in each of them, managing to get interest rates that were higher than the previous bank she went to each time.

Finally, Miranda walked out of the last bank as the new owner of three black cards with 30 million dollars' worth of savings and 20 million dollars' worth of liquid cash funds.

"I guess this breakup was worth it after all." She'd become a millionaire overnight.

Then, Miranda walked past an extremely popular hair salon and went in. She signed up for their membership, which was worth 2,000 dollars. She was immediately treated like a VIP and was allowed to cut the queue ahead of the others.

She sat down before the mirror and looked at her long brown hair and large curls. This was the first time she hated how she looked.

"Ma'am, you've taken such good care of your hair. You look exactly like a doll!"

Miranda had always kept her hair like this because Hansel liked it. He said he liked how it felt. Every time they had sex, he'd always thread his fingers through her hair afterward.

However, that also meant she always had to spend a lot of time grooming herself because of her long, brown curls.

Miranda smiled at the hairdresser and said, "Please cut it short, straighten it, and dye it black."

A doll was still a toy, no matter how pretty it was. She wouldn't stop anyone from looking like a doll, but she was done being played like one.

Miranda walked out of the hair salon, feeling like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

She happened to walk past a clothing boutique that had a sale on, so she walked in and bought herself a white T-shirt and a pair of jeans.

She wore them straight out of the shop. They matched the sport shoes she was wearing today, anyway.

Eventually, Miranda found herself outside Bedford College. She watched as the students rode their bicycles in and out of the gates as the sun set in the sky, gradually falling into a daze.

"Sol! We're here!"

A young man suddenly whizzed past Miranda. "What are all of you doing here?"

"We thought of visiting Dr. Young together, so—"

"The hospital won't let so many people in at the same time," Solomon Hall said. "Here, I'll just take the two of you along from the Faculty of Bioinformatics."

Bioinformatics? Dr. Young?

Miranda suddenly snapped out of her reverie. She hurried forward and asked the students, "Who did you say was sick just now?"

Solomon looked at the pretty young lady talking to him. He was tongue-tied for a few seconds. "D-Dr. Young."

"Dr. Christine Young?"

"Yes."

"Which hospital is she in?"

"Westerton Hospital."

"Thank you."

"Err, by the way, which faculty are you from? Are you also one of Dr. Young's students?"

Miranda didn't answer Solomon's question. Instead, she turned around and ran off.

Even after she reached Winter's condo, she still couldn't calm down.

How could that old lady be sick? Was Christine still the same old lady who'd jump and knock her on the side of her head whenever she got mad? How ill was she?

Miranda scrolled through the contacts on her phone and stopped at the name "Jade Fisher". After deliberating for a long time, she still didn't manage to find the courage to dial the number.

Back then, Miranda had turned down an offer to further her studies with the Combined Master's and Doctorate Program at Bedford College. She'd turned it down without batting an eye because she'd wanted to be with Hansel.

In fact, she hadn't even worked a day after graduating from her undergraduate studies before running over to Hansel to be his perfect housewife.

Christine had to be immensely disappointed in her.

"Mimi? You're still here? Why didn't you go back?" Winter asked in surprise as she changed out of her shoes and put on indoor slippers.

Miranda felt her lips tugging upward. "What? Are you trying to chase me out?"

Winter tutted and said, "It's a miracle that you're holding out so long this time. I remember you not even lasting half an hour after you guys broke up the last time because he called you."

"There's soup in the pot. Help yourself."

Winter's eyes lit up at once. She immediately hurried into the kitchen and poured herself a hearty bowl of cream soup. While eating, she couldn't help sighing and saying, "Hansel is such a lucky bastard to get to eat this every day…"

"Remember to wash the dishes once you're done eating. I'm going to bed."

"Hey, are you really not going back?"

Winter's question was answered with the door closing quietly. She tutted again and muttered, "She seems to be a little bit more sensible this time."

…

That same night, at the lakeside mansion, Hansel was making a call.

"Mr. Johnson, the bank confirmed that Ms. Sutton cashed out the 50 million dollars in person today. The time is 12:05 pm this afternoon—"

Hansel ended the call as he looked out of the window coldly. "Miranda Sutton, what games do you think you're playing this time?"

If she thought that doing this would make him want to get back together with her, then she was sorely mistaken. He'd never budge on any decisions he'd already made.

"Cal, care for a drink tonight?"

Half an hour later, Hansel pushed open the door to the private room, and Calvin was the first one to greet him. "Hey, Hans! Everyone's here except you. What shall we have tonight?"

Hansel just continued walking into the room. Calvin didn't move; he looked out the door behind Hansel.

"What are you waiting there for?"

"Where's Miranda? Is she still parking the car?"

Hansel's face immediately darkened.