I was found by an older man who was fishing early in the morning. When he cast his line, the hook accidentally snagged onto me, and no matter how hard he pulled, it wouldn't come loose. He got closer and saw me floating in the water. Terrified, he dropped his fishing rod and ran to call the cops.When the police pulled me out of the water, I was barely breathing. The doctors who treated me didn't think I would survive, and my family didn't even bother signing the consent forms for further treatment. Yet somehow, I clung to life and became a medical miracle.The moment of impact when I fell was excruciating, but waking up afterward was so much worse. The pain was unbearable; it felt like my body was punishing me for surviving. Out of the 206 bones in a human body, I had broken 108, some of them shattered into fragments. Every inch of me hurt, and the torment made me wish I hadn't made it.I couldn't move, nor could I stand anyone touching me. Even when the nurse lightly pressed o
The man frowned when he saw the shards of glass on the floor, his cold, arrogant demeanor becoming even more intimidating. "Throwing tantrums and breaking things in the hospital? When are you going to grow up?"I stared at him, completely confused. I wondered, "A tantrum? Breaking things? Who's this guy?"He looked like he had more to say but seemed to think better of it. Instead, he scowled and said, "Lianne is refusing to leave the hospital and go home because of your antics."She's upset and talking about leaving. No matter what, you're going to apologize to her today and convince her to stay."He stepped forward and reached out to pull me off the bed. Instinctively, I recoiled from his hand and shouted, "Who are you? I don't know you! Don't touch me!"Although I could move now, my injuries hadn't fully healed, and the thought of someone touching me terrified me.He frowned, clearly annoyed. "Emilia, what are you doing now?""What am I doing? I don't even know who you are! Yo
Suddenly finding out I had a husband made it impossible to fall asleep, so I decided to call my best friend, Cordelia Lowell. I hadn't reached out to her for months because I didn't want her to worry about my injuries. Thankfully, she hadn't contacted me either. If she had, she definitely would have found out how badly I was hurt.But the moment the call connected, I couldn't help but feel a little bitter as I said, "Cordelia, you're so mean. I didn't call you, so you decided not to call me either? It's been over two months! Not a single call or even a text. Are you serious?"I expected her to hurriedly explain that she had been somewhere remote, buried in research, with no signal or way to contact me. Instead, there was a long silence on the other end before she finally said, "Emilia, we're not friends anymore. Did you forget we cut ties?"Her words hit me harder than the revelation about my mysterious husband. I was completely stunned. Cordelia was my best friend in the world—
I did not sit idly by during the month I spent in rehab. I made sure to conduct a thorough investigation of my relationship with Irvin and Julianne.Irvin and I had married for love—I thought I was marrying for the right reasons. I had poured everything into helping him start his business, even abandoning my studies to become a housewife so I could take better care of him.But all along, he was just using me, pretending to care. The truth was, he was in love with Julianne.After Julianne returned, things became clear. On our wedding anniversary, Irvin took Julianne to see the Northern Lights. On my birthday, he took her to Thogyo to enjoy the romantic spring season. For Valentine's Day, he gave her enough red roses to fill an entire villa and a massive diamond ring. Meanwhile, I received only the free gifts he got when buying her presents.Despite all of this, I didn't want to divorce him. After the pain, I still served him, running around taking care of him, just hoping to keep
Immediately, everyone started calling me cold-hearted. Amid their curses, I noticed Julianne's smug and provocative look.Ever since she moved into our house, I had repeatedly fallen victim to her supposed "gentle kindness". She was someone who could be ruthless, even with herself. It reminded me of the time she had framed me by grabbing my hand and forcing me to push her down the stairs. It resulted in her spending over a month in the hospital due to her severe injuries.After I spoke, she gave a pitiful yet sweet smile, and with the knife in her hand, she cut her throat.If it hadn't been for Irvin's quick reflexes kicking in, leading to him grabbing the knife before she could do any real damage, she might have bled out right there. Sometimes, I almost admired her for how far she was willing to go.Despite Irvin's quick actions preventing Julianne from bleeding to death, the knife still left a deep cut. It wasn't life-threatening, but even a small injury was enough to make Irvin
Mom was about to say something when my quick agreement stunned her. It seemed that was entirely out of her expectations.Even Dad, who was ready to blow his top, was taken aback.After all, the past me would never have agreed to a divorce even if they threatened to beat me to death.Before they could recover from their shock, I added, "I'm still not fully recovered and don't feel like moving around—I don't think I'll go with you to apologize. Once Irvin drafts the divorce agreement, have his lawyer bring it straight to me."With that, I pulled the covers over my head and lay down.The soaked quilt felt suffocating, and I felt like I was struggling to catch my breath. Still, it was better than facing my parents' impending joy.My parents knew me well enough to realize I wasn't bluffing. Though they were incredulous that I agreed so readily, they understood that I genuinely wanted a divorce.Hence, it didn't take long before their kindness and affection surfaced."You silly child
Startled, I instinctively took several steps back.I thought he was pretending to be drunk so that he could take advantage of me. But what I didn't expect was for him to be even more dangerous than that!"Honey... I'm back..." He staggered to his feet and lunged at me.With his tall stature and muscular build, I might not survive if he managed to knock me over. Frightened, I ducked to the side.He missed and met with the ground instead, his massive body shaking the floor with a loud thud."Honey…"A pair of doe eyes looked up at me, utterly dejected. He probably couldn't believe I would have avoided him.His expression resembled that of a child whose happiness had been crushed—one who had joyfully run to embrace his most trusted person only to be pushed away.As much as I didn't want to, I felt somewhat sorry for him.I began to understand why I used to be so infatuated with this man, reluctant to let go. His face was precisely my type—charming in a way that tugged at my heart
"Emilia, how many times must I tell you? There is nothing between Lianne and me—especially not what you're thinking! Stop using divorce as a threat. Even if you do, I'm not sending her abroad!"I thought it had finally dawned on him that I genuinely wanted this divorce. Who would have known that he would twist my words? Here he was, accusing me of using divorce as leverage again.This inability to communicate with him in a human language was driving me to the brink of despair.Once again, I looked at him with a grave expression and said, "Irvin Sawyer, I'm not being dramatic, nor am I using divorce to threaten you. And I certainly don't intend for you to send Julianne abroad. "I sincerely, wholeheartedly, truly hope you two can be together! If I could cut my heart open and show it to you, you would be able to see just how genuine my blessings are for you two!"Irvin clenched his hands into tight fists at his sides. The veins on the backs of his hands bulged.I once told him I wa
I was feeling extremely frustrated by the whole situation.And somehow, Irvin chose this exact momIn her eyes, Emilia wanting the divorce was perfect.ent to bother me at my home.With Julianne acquitted, I no longer had any bargaining leverage over him. Everything we had discussed was now moot.Unless it was about collecting our divorce certificate, I didn't want to say another word to him.Oblivious to my frustration, he said, "I told you Lianne wouldn't intentionally hurt you! But you refused to believe me!"It was obvious Irvin was especially relieved by the outcome of the investigation. He was glad Julianne hadn't hurt me on purpose. Otherwise, he wouldn't know how to face me.I looked at him in exasperation.Just as I was about to ask him to get lost, he spoke again. "I've calculated all the assets under my name, babe. Here's the voluntary asset transfer memorandum. And this is the newly drafted divorce agreement per your request. "I've already signed it, so only your s
Upon seeing the look in Julianne's eyes, I was sure of my suspicions.She definitely did try to set me up all those years ago. She just hadn't anticipated that I would suddenly regain awareness and leave the hotel.Julianne had always been meticulous. As such, the depths of her mind were unfathomable.Right now, she had failed to harm me and ended up harming herself instead. Still, it was possible she had anticipated this current outcome when she schemed to gain control over Phillip.Her goal had been to climb into his bed, and she needed to figure out a way to do so. In the end, Phillip had unknowingly helped her by drugging and seducing her.Regardless of how she achieved her goal, she was going to make herself out to be the victim.And given this, she probably figured she would harm me in the process if she could. Even if she couldn't, she would still walk away from this situation unscathed.I had to admit, Julianne really had thought everything out thoroughly. Every step was
I was deep in thought after learning all this new information. "Who sent the video to Julianne?" I asked. "What was their purpose?"I refused to believe Julianne wasn't the one behind it. "The man who sent the video died in a car accident last year," Mark replied. "Because of that, we have no way to verify if he had edited the surveillance video himself. We also can't determine his purpose behind sending the video to her." This lead turned out to be a dead end.I fell silent again.A short while later, I asked, "What about the other evidence? Like the one where Mr. Sawyer had drugged Julianne? Is it authentic?""It is. We've verified its authenticity," Mark responded.I didn't know what to say.Mark was the best lawyer around—sharp and meticulous. If he had verified the evidence, there was no doubting its legitimacy. Had I really misunderstood Julianne? Was she truly not the culprit?All this time, I thought that she had intentionally conspired with Dad to have me appear
Although I believed that Irvin had an ulterior motive when he said he would transfer all his assets to me, he most likely thought that I was still the same as before and couldn't bear to see him being treated unfairly. He might have thought that as long as he showed me enough love, I would give in and listen to him without needing him to actually do anything. That I would do whatever he asked me to do.In the end, he wouldn't have to pay any price to have me withdraw the lawsuit and publicly declare that Julianne was innocent.He never truly intended to give me all his assets.However, this wouldn't stop me from my sweet goal of making sure he would leave our marriage with nothing to his name. Both he and Julianne would suffer in misery. As I listened to music, I drifted to sleep in a great mood.I felt that no matter what Irvin was plotting, I wouldn't be losing out on this. However, I forgot that whenever Irvin told me to wait, it had never led to something good.Just like
"Why did I give birth to someone like you!"Just as Mom was about to grab me, Shaun stepped forward, placing himself in between us. As he stood in front of Mom with his tall frame, she felt intimidated and didn't dare to move."Mrs. Quill, Emi and I are just classmates. Please don't insult your own daughter like this! If she's a shameless cheater, what does that make you?" He added, "And did she say something wrong online? Aren't you just like that? To be honest, I'm curious like everyone else. Why would you help an adopted daughter and harm your very own?"Shaun really was curious like the other netizens, wanting to know Mom's reasoning. He couldn't understand how she could treat the daughter she carried in her womb for ten months this way.Mom instinctively snapped back, "I never helped Lianne harm her! She's the one who's so wicked and…"As she spoke, her voice gradually softened. It was as if she suddenly realized I had never actually done any of the horrible things she said
After eating a mouthful of stew, I got up to open the door. Given how urgently this person was knocking, I thought it was my mom who had come to confront me.After all, many people had been cursing her out for helping her adopted daughter frame her own child after my public statement.Mom cared a lot about her reputation. I think she must be on the verge of losing it now, with the whole internet firing away at her. Afraid that she would hit me the moment she saw me, I didn't open the door fully and just left a small crack open.After Irvin had yanked off the chain lock on my door last time, I immediately had the sturdiest and most expensive one installed. The locksmith told me that no one would be able to break this lock.I prepared for the worst and finally opened the door.To my surprise, it wasn't Mom. It was Shaun.I was stunned for a moment.Outside the door, Shaun also froze at the sight of the chain lock in my house.After snapping out of it, I smiled awkwardly and f
It didn't matter whether he truly wanted to make amends or had other intentions. There was no harm in giving him a "chance" as long as he transferred his assets to me.Hearing this, Irvin's eyes lit up instantly, even brighter than before. He must have thought that, just like before, I would forget everything and fall in love blindly with him again after his gentle comfort.He was so excited that he wanted to hug me.I lowered my gaze to hide the disgust in my eyes and stepped back. "There's no need to rush. Let's handle the important matters first."Go have your assets evaluated with a lawyer. Once you've transferred them to me and signed a new divorce agreement stating that you'll voluntarily leave the marriage with nothing, I'll immediately withdraw the charges."Of course, right after that, I would charge Julianne with attempted murder for hiring a crime organization. She wouldn't even have the chance to leave the detention center!And if he chose to save Julianne, it would b
"What condition?" Irvin instinctively asked."We get a divorce, and you leave with nothing," I answered. "As soon as we get the divorce certificate, I'll drop the charges." Didn't he love her so much that he was willing to do anything for her?So be it! Let me see if you're willing to give everything up for your true love.He expected me to drop the charges and feel bad for his mistress just by listening to his words? He must be delusional!Julianne had never worked in years, yet she had the money to hire a crime organization to kill me. Whose money did she use? It was so obvious that there was no need to guess.Even though Irvin and I had a frosty relationship, his money was still our shared possession. Julianne had actually used my money to kill me. How pathetic must I have been?And now, he had the audacity to ask me to drop the charges. Not only did he expect me to let her off the hook, but he also wanted me to make an announcement online that everything had been a misund
"Trust me, there's no way Lianne has set you up like that to do you harm," Irvin said. "I know she doesn't like seeing you do well, and she's not exactly a great person. But the reason her mind is so twisted is because she misunderstood you."He added, "Even if we assume the worst, maybe she isn't like this because of the misunderstanding but because she's truly a bad person, no matter how bad she is, she wouldn't ruin her own chastity and her life just to hurt you!"Julianne's long-standing feelings for Irvin made him believe that no matter how terrible she was or how much she wished me harm, she wouldn't sacrifice her chastity to harm me.After all, he deeply believed that Julianne wasn't such a terrible person."Emi, I misunderstood you before and hurt you. You know how painful it is to be misunderstood. Please don't inflict the same pain on someone else, okay?" he pleaded.Irvin wanted me to remember how painful it felt when I was misunderstood and detained so that I could fee