Chapter 1

Julie Stamford and Samuel Lloyd had been childfree by choice for five years. One day, Samuel suddenly adopted a pair of twins.

He told Julie to treat them like her own, saying that he planned to leave his multibillion-dollar estate to them.

Julie thought he had changed his mind about not having kids, so she went to the hospital to have her IUD removed and start preparing for pregnancy.

However, the doctor gave her a shocking diagnosis. Her uterus had been removed five years ago.

…

"Some women are born without a uterus. But Ms. Stamford, that's not your case. Yours was surgically removed," the doctor said cautiously.

Julie was completely stunned. She'd only had one surgery in the past five years, which was the insertion of an IUD. Samuel had been there with her the whole time.

Normally, that procedure didn't require general anesthesia. However, he'd used his status to pressure the hospital into giving her the most expensive general anesthetic, just because he couldn't bear to see her in pain.

Could it be that her uterus was removed during that surgery?

It was impossible. Samuel had waited outside the operating room the entire time. How could the hospital dare to do something like that?

Julie was lost in thought when Samuel's elder sister, Abby Lloyd's voice suddenly echoed from nearby.

"Sam, this is way out of line. Bringing those illegitimate children home was bad enough, and now you're bringing Cynthia in too? Are the two of you planning to carry on your affair right under Julie's nose?

"Abby, we're not having an affair," Samuel said with a dark expression.

"Cindy once saved my life. Being good to her is just repaying a debt."

"Repaying a debt by having Cynthia give birth to a pair of twins for you? Sam, a man can't be such a jerk. There has to be a bottom line."

"That wasn't my choice," Samuel said angrily.

"Cindy's father was gravely ill at the time, and his only wish before he died was to see Cindy married with children. I owed her my life. Giving her a child was the least I could do. I didn't have a choice."

"Repaying a debt again? So, you secretly married her behind Julie's back, then tricked Julie into getting an IUD, and used that chance to have her uterus removed?"

That one sentence hit Julie like a bolt of lightning. Her vision went dark. She could barely stay on her feet.

The one who had removed her uterus was Samuel?

"Abby, Julie was scared of the pain. Childbirth is painful. I couldn't bear to let her suffer. And besides, when we went for the exam, the doctor said she had uterine fibroids. If we didn't remove them, it could've been life-threatening. Things turned out fine, didn't they? Cynthia gave birth to twins. Our family has heirs now.

"Julie didn't have to go through the pain of childbirth, and she's no longer in any danger. As for Cindy, she's been diagnosed with a terminal illness. She won't live much longer. After all, she gave me a son and a daughter. I couldn't just let her die all alone, so I wanted to bring her home to spend her last days with us."

Samuel acted as if he were doing it for everyone's best interest. "What I'm doing might seem a bit absurd, but it actually benefits everyone. Abby, just don't say anything to Julie. Cindy only has one week left. After that, everything will be over."

Julie had no idea how she made it back home. She just felt cold. The house that had once felt warm now chilled her to the bone.

The house was filled with memories of her and Samuel. Julie had always believed that Samuel was the man who loved her most in the world. They had kissed under the aurora, skydived hand-in-hand from thousands of feet up, and embraced while diving deep into the ocean to gaze at the underwater starry sky...

Samuel was the heir to a prominent, wealthy family. His status normally wouldn't allow him to do such extreme sports. But Julie loved them, so he always went along.

He once held her tightly and expressed his deep affection. "For you, I'd risk anything. As long as you're by my side, even if I have to die right away, I'll have no regrets. I'll only ever love you."

The vows he once made had now soured and gone stale.

Julie broke down. She couldn't bear the sight of those fake memories any longer. She lit the fireplace and started burning everything they'd once shared one by one.

As she was burning them, Samuel suddenly returned with Cynthia Morgan by his side. She looked pale and frail in a hospital gown.

"Julie, this is Cynthia Morgan. You know her. She's my mentor's daughter." Samuel barely noticed what Julie was burning. A gentle smile was on his face, and lies flowed effortlessly from his lips.

"Her parents passed away. Cindy's all alone, and she has late-stage lymphoma… She doesn't have much time left. I couldn't leave her to die alone in a hospital. That's why I brought her back here to recuperate. Don't worry, Julie. I've hired a full-time maid to take care of her. You don't need to do anything. Just pretend she's not even here."

Between the lines, Samuel had clearly already made the decision. He never intended to discuss it with Julie.

"Alright." Julie tossed the last photograph into the fireplace. It turned to ash in seconds, just like their marriage.

Chapter 2

Cynthia moved into the Lloyd residence, just like that.

Their family of four was finally reunited.

The twins lit up with surprise and delight the moment they saw her. The younger one, Anna Lloyd, couldn't contain her excitement and blurted out, "Mommy!"

Thankfully, Samuel reacted quickly. He wrapped his arms around Julie and kissed her cheek, smiling as he said, "Anna is calling for you."

In fact, those twins had already been living in the Lloyd residence for three full months and never once called Julie "Mommy".

Before knowing the truth, Julie had always loved them as her own children.

To keep the lie going, Anna shot Julie a fierce glare and muttered reluctantly, "Mommy, I want some nuts. Peel them for me."

Nuts were hard to crack, and peeling them would hurt Julie's hands. Anna wanted to see her suffer badly for trying to take Samuel from her real mom, Cynthia.

Anna had always asked Julie to peel nuts for her. Julie thought she just liked eating them, so she never gave it a second thought and peeled them every time.

Now, looking at the blatant malice in Anna's eyes, Julie's heart instantly grew cold.

"If you want nuts, ask the maid to peel them for you," Samuel said, stepping in to shield Julie.

He took her hand in his and added gently, "Her hands are too soft. I can't even bear to ask her to peel them for me."

Cynthia's face darkened instantly.

She silently shot Julie a glance full of resentment before suddenly asking out of nowhere, "Sam, where are your rosary beads?"

Samuel always wore a string of rosary beads on his wrist.

Julie had personally traveled to Saintbrook to get them for him.

With deep devotion, she had climbed to the summit of Ruby Mountain at over 10,000 feet above sea level to pray for his well-being.

Those beads had been blessed by the priest at the mountaintop church.

Samuel had been deeply moved. He had worn them ever since on his left wrist, never once taking them off.

But now, his left wrist was bare.

"Where are my rosary beads?" Samuel was also startled. "I was definitely wearing them this morning..."

He started panicking and was about to search for them. But when he looked up, he suddenly met Cynthia's eyes, her gaze smoldering with desire.

Her face was flushed unnaturally as she licked her lips. Under Samuel's gaze, she quietly placed her hand on a spot between her legs.

As she did so, she deliberately swayed slightly and let out a soft moan.

"Sam, my stomach hurts all of a sudden. Can you help me upstairs to lie down for a bit?"

The implication couldn't be clearer.

Samuel's breathing turned heavy. His voice was hoarse as he said, "Julie, I'm taking Cindy upstairs to rest. Watch the children, alright?"

Without waiting for a response, he practically rushed to support Cindy as they headed upstairs.

Julie felt the chill in her heart deepen. She told the maid to take the children away, while she quietly followed them up.

The bedroom door was left ajar. Samuel hadn't even bothered to lock it.

"You wicked little thing. Are you out of your mind? How could you put my rosary beads there?"

Samuel's words sounded angry, but there wasn't a trace of anger in his voice. If anything, there was a flicker of excitement he couldn't quite hide.

"Sam… It's too deep. I can't get it out. Can you help me?"

Cynthia grabbed his hand and guided it between her thighs.

Soon, Julie heard the sound of beads falling to the floor. A rosary bead, covered in an unknown liquid, slowly rolled to her feet and stopped.

Julie closed her eyes in despair.

The beads she had painstakingly obtained for him had now become a prop for their affair.

Right under her nose, they mocked her love and defiled her faith.

She didn't need a marriage like this or a man like him.

Chapter 3

Julie had completely given up on Samuel. That very evening, she contacted a lawyer to draft divorce papers for her. At the same time, she hired a professional team to erase all traces of her existence.

"I want to disappear completely and erase everything that proves I ever existed. How long will it take?" she asked over the phone.

"At least a week," the other party replied.

Hearing this, Julie paused for a moment. Samuel had said that Cynthia only had one week left. After that, everything would be over. He would return to his family and love Julie with all his heart.

Thinking of this, Julie couldn't help but laugh.

She wanted to point at his nose and tell him, "Samuel, do you really think the world works that way? After you've had your fun, you can just come back like nothing happened. Do you expect me to wait for you? No, I won't be waiting. And you won't be able to come home either. When you want to return to the family, you'll find that you no longer have a home."

"Alright, one week it is," she said without hesitation.

"I've transferred the money. Make sure I completely disappear, leaving no clues."

The next morning, that defiled string of rosary beads reappeared on Samuel's wrist.

Julie felt a wave of nausea rise in her chest. She couldn't even finish her breakfast.

However, Samuel wore an expression of someone expecting praise. "Julie, I found the rosary you gave me. It's the symbol of our love. I'll wear it for the rest of my life. I won't ever lose it again."

Just as he finished speaking, Cynthia suddenly doubled over in pain across from them. She coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed, convulsing on the floor.

"Cindy! What's wrong?" Samuel rushed over and picked her up in his arms.

At that moment, both children suddenly burst into tears.

Anna pointed at Julie and shouted, "Daddy, it was Mommy! She put mango juice in Aunt Cindy's food! Aunt Cindy's allergic to mangoes! Mommy's trying to kill her!"

Samuel frowned. He instinctively defended Julie. "Anna, don't say that. Julie wouldn't do something like that."

But the next second, Lucas Lloyd, Anna's twin brother, suddenly rushed over. He covered Anna's mouth and said nervously, "Stop it, Anna! If you keep talking, Mommy's going to kill us!"

As he spoke, he deliberately tugged up his sleeve, revealing his scarred arm. The arm was covered in bloody marks, one after another, as if whipped with a barbed lash.

Samuel's pupils constricted. He looked up at Julie, disbelief written all over his face. "Did you do this to them?"

Julie's face remained calm. "Would you believe me if I said no?"

Back when they got married, he'd promised to trust her unconditionally.

But now, Cynthia was lying in a pool of blood, and the two children were covered in wounds. All Samuel felt was rage.

"They're only five years old. Why would they lie? And in this house, who else would dare lay a hand on them except you? Julie, they're just five. How could you be so cruel?"

Cynthia was still convulsing on the floor. Samuel didn't bother saying anything else. He picked her up and turned to leave for the hospital.

But just then, Julie suddenly felt her breathing become difficult. Her throat felt blocked, and red rashes quickly appeared on her body. It was a typical allergic reaction.

"Juice… I'm allergic to pineapples…" she gasped, clutching her neck.

All she'd had that morning was one glass of juice.

Everyone in the house knew about her allergy. The maids were always careful, and they'd never add pineapples when making it.

Anna shot her a smug look. She was the one who had added the pineapples.

"Sam…" Julie struggled to breathe. She tried to call out to Samuel, hoping he would take her to the hospital with him.

However, Samuel merely gave Julie a cold glance.

"Julie, stop pretending. Who in this house doesn't know you're allergic to pineapples? Who would dare put them in your drink? You've done something wrong. And instead of admitting it, you're faking an allergy for attention. I'm truly disappointed in you."

With that, he turned and walked away, carrying Cynthia in his arms.

Julie was left alone, collapsing to the floor. She cried for help, but no one answered.

Chapter 4

When Julie woke up again, she found herself lying in a hospital bed. The one keeping watch beside her wasn't Samuel. It was the maid.

"Mrs. Lloyd, thank goodness you're awake," the maid said, still shaken.

"I was the one who brought you here. I made the juice too. I swear on my life, there was no pineapple in it."

Julie closed her eyes, a single tear slipping from the corner of her eye. "I know."

The maid had made the juice and was absolutely sure there were no pineapples in it. And yet, she still chose to believe Julie's allergy was real and rushed her to the hospital.

But where was Samuel? The man who had promised to love her for a lifetime had left her at home to die!

Cynthia's room was right next door.

When Julie got up in the middle of the night to use the restroom, she saw Samuel sitting by Cynthia's bedside, keeping watch.

Back when she was the one who was sick, Samuel would stay by her side day and night just like this.

A prominent figure like him had countless things to handle every day. Yet, he'd always drop everything to take care of her whenever she was sick. He'd bring her warm water, cook for her, and coax her into taking her medicine...

Thinking back to those days, Julie's eyes filled with tears. She couldn't understand why a once-beautiful relationship had become this.

"Sam, I'm dying. Before I die, I just want an answer from you."

Inside the ward, Cynthia lay in Samuel's arms, tears glistening in her eyes. She asked weakly, "After all these years, have you ever loved me?"

Samuel fell silent. He couldn't bring himself to answer.

"Even just a little?" Cynthia sobbed. "Sam, I'm not asking you to love me wholeheartedly. If you have even a trace of real feeling for me, I can die without regrets."

Samuel's heart ached as he looked at her tear-streaked face.

He could no longer suppress his feelings. He reached out to pull Cynthia tightly into his embrace.

"Cindy, of course, I have feelings for you. Forgive me. I can't say I love you because I have Julie. I can't betray her. But if Julie didn't exist, I can tell you this with absolute certainty. You would be the woman I love most in this world."

It felt like someone had stabbed a hole straight through Julie's chest. The cold air rushed in all at once, sharp and bitter.

She reached up and touched her cheek. Only then did she realize she was already in tears.

She used to believe Samuel and Cynthia were together merely for excitement. She had thought it was only physical, and there was no love between them.

But how could there be no love?

When Cynthia coughed blood and collapsed, Samuel's eyes were filled with worry.

Even when Cynthia placed the rosary beads—something Julie had prayed for with her whole heart—in that filthy place, he hadn't blamed her.

The scale in his heart had already tipped.

Julie turned and walked away in tears.

She had only taken a few steps when her phone buzzed.

Cynthia had sent her a video. Beneath the video was a caption that read, "Everything he once gave you, he's given to me too."

Julie tapped on the video, and a lively wedding ceremony filled the frame.

Julie immediately recognized it as the place where she and Samuel had held their wedding. Not only was the venue the same, but the wedding layout and all the decorations were identical. For a moment, Julie even thought the video was of her own wedding.

It wasn't until Cynthia, dressed in a wedding gown, appeared in the frame that Julie gasped.

"Cindy, I already heard from Sam. You're pregnant with his twins!"

In the video, Samuel's mother, Stella Huffman, held Cynthia's hand affectionately. It seemed like she was very pleased with Cynthia.

"I'm over the moon! You've done so much for the Lloyd family. Although you and Sam can't get legally married, I promise you'll have whatever Julie has. And whatever she doesn't have, I'll make sure you do!"

As she spoke, Stella removed the emerald bracelet from her wrist.

"This is the Lloyd family's heirloom. It once belonged to royalty. A queen once wore it," she said with a smile.

"There's only one of these in the Lloyd family. It's passed down to our daughters-in-law."

She slipped the bracelet onto Cynthia's wrist. "Cindy, you're the only daughter-in-law I acknowledge."

Chapter 5

Stella had never liked Julie because of their decision to remain childfree.

She always assumed it was Julie who insisted on not having children.

In fact, Julie loved children very much and always wanted to have a child of her own. She was an orphan with no relatives in this world.

A child would have been the only blood relative she ever had.

Why wouldn't she want one?

It was Samuel who insisted on not having children.

Right after they got married, the two of them happened to watch a childbirth documentary.

It was raw and graphic. Samuel was deeply impacted after watching it. After that, he refused to let Julie have a child.

"Childbirth is terrifying, Julie. I don't want you to go through that. Everyone says giving birth is like walking through the gates of hell. I can't even bear the thought that I could lose you. Julie, I can't live without you. If I lost you, I'd go insane. I don't want children anymore. I just want you."

At the time, Julie had been touched.

She thought Samuel must have loved her so deeply that he couldn't even bear to let her go through childbirth.

Uterine fibroids were not life-threatening at all. Now, looking back, perhaps Samuel had already been planning to remove her uterus from that moment. That documentary about childbirth complications might even be something he deliberately showed her...

A few days later, both Julie and Cynthia were discharged from the hospital.

Samuel had spent the past few days taking care of Cynthia. He hadn't even realized Julie had also been hospitalized, and her ward was right next to Cynthia's.

Julie couldn't be bothered to say anything. After all, she had no intention of continuing her marriage with Samuel.

However, Samuel put on a magnanimous air and came to Julie, saying, "Julie, I forgive you."

Julie found it laughable. What right did he have to say that?

He continued to say, "We're husband and wife. No matter how far your actions went, I'll forgive you. But I hope it doesn't happen again. As punishment, I'll sleep in the study for now. You should take this time to reflect on yourself."

With that, Samuel packed his things and moved to the study. That same night, Julie received a provocative video from Cynthia.

In the video, Cynthia lay beneath Samuel, her clothes disheveled.

She moaned softly. "Sam, harder. Make me forget the pain, forget everything. Let me only think of you, love only you!"

Listening to Cynthia's passionate and explicit confession, Samuel visibly became excited. His movements grew more intense.

Overwhelmed with passion, he held Cynthia tightly and blurted out, "Cindy! I love you!"

"Sam, what did you say?" Cynthia looked overjoyed. "Say it again. I want to hear it!"

Samuel's expression darkened instantly.

Apparently, that "I love you" had slipped out without him realizing. Now that he was back in his senses, he didn't want to be that kind of man who betrayed his wife. No matter how Cynthia pleaded, he wouldn't repeat those words.

Seeing this, Cynthia immediately burst into tears. "Sam, I'm dying. And even now, you can't say those three words to me while fully sober?"

Samuel looked tortured. "Cindy, don't force me."

"Then I'll just die now!" Cynthia opened the window, pretending to jump out. "No one in this world loves me anyway!"

"Cindy, what are you doing? Get down from there!" Samuel was panicked.

"I don't want to."

Cynthia bit her lip, tears running down her cheeks. "You don't love me. What's the point of staying alive?"

Half her body was already hanging outside the window.

Samuel's heart clenched. He rushed forward and pulled her back into his arms.

"Who said I don't love you? I love you so much it's driving me insane!" he exclaimed furiously.

"Do you think I want to be the kind of man who betrays his wife and his marriage?"

His eyes were red as he shouted, nearly breaking down.

"I love Julie! Betraying her makes me sick to my stomach! But I can't help it. You're driving me insane. You've turned me into someone I don't even recognize!"

Cynthia finally looked satisfied. She wrapped her arms around his neck and said sweetly, "Sam, can I take that to mean you love me just a little more than you love Julie?"

Samuel's face darkened. "Don't push your luck."

The video ended there.

Julie, who had been crying, suddenly let out a laugh.

So, Samuel did know he was disgusting.

He was the one who betrayed their marriage and Julie. What gave him the right to act like he was in pain?

After wiping away her tears, Julie downloaded the video and sent it to her lawyer.

"This is proof of his affair. He also had my uterus removed without my consent. I won't be showing up for the divorce. I don't want to see Samuel again. You'll represent me and handle all the legal proceedings. You can name your price, but I'm not just asking for a divorce. I also want you to help me reclaim my uterus."