For three years of marriage, every meal at home was cooked by my father and me.

Even when we had a fever or were burning up, he never stepped into the kitchen.

Yet now he was willing to cook porridge for another woman.

I let out a bitter laugh. It felt like a knife had cut me open.

Before getting into the car, Heidi suddenly turned back. Her face was filled with kindness and fragile innocence.

“Do not dirty your hands because of disgusting people. Heaven always has justice.”

The bystanders were instantly moved to tears.

Someone even spat on me a few times.

More people cursed while walking away.

I straightened myself, every wound on my body burning with pain.

But when I thought of my father, I gritted my teeth and rushed back to the hospital.

People pointed at me everywhere I passed.

That was when I realized the court video had already gone viral online.

Heidi had become the delicate angel millions wanted to protect, while my father and I were cursed as parasites, villains, and swindlers.

When I walked into the ward, my father was wrapped in layers of bandages, both legs shattered, even his breathing trembling.

I almost collapsed from the pain in my chest.

Others in the room murmured complaints.

“A person like that is vicious. Injuring himself just to fake an accident.”

“He better not try to extort us. Tell them to get out.”

I tried desperately to explain, but no one wanted to believe me.

My father listened to their words, shaking with anger as he pounded the bed.

He had spent his whole life helping others, yet he was being insulted like this, all because he trusted the wrong person.

He looked at me with hopeless eyes.

“I treated Caleb like a son. He has never been wronged in his life. Why would he help others hurt me? What did I do wrong?”

I could no longer hold back. Tears streamed down my face.

But the people around us kept mocking.

“You are all vicious. This is the retribution you deserve.”

More and more people crowded around the door, throwing filthy and hateful looks at us.

I could not bear to let my father suffer another second. I decided to discharge him.

But when the doctor brought the bill, I froze completely.

All the charges had been raised to more than ten times the original amount.

The doctor lowered his voice.

“You offended someone you should not have. Some debts must be paid.”

Bodyguards surrounded me like hunters blocking their prey.

It was clear they would not let us go without the money.

My hands trembled as I took out my phone, only to find the account balance had become zero.

Caleb had transferred everything out.

I called him immediately.

Caleb’s voice was lazy, even amused.

“Heidi has been having trouble sleeping. Consider this her emotional compensation.”

I could not stop myself from shouting.

“That is my father’s medical fee.”

“As long as you publicly admit you slandered Heidi, she will give you a large payout,” Caleb said calmly.

“His legs are already broken. There is no point saving him. Better to admit guilt and let him spend the rest of his life comfortably in bed.”

“Once this is over, I will live well with you again.”

The next moment I heard a heavy thud on his end, followed by breathy, intimate sounds.

Realization struck me instantly.

My phone slipped from my hand. I covered my mouth, fighting the urge to vomit.

Before the doctor could call security, the police arrived.

“Heidi and Caleb reported that your father attempted to extort them. We need to bring him in for questioning.”

My father had just finished surgery and was in unbearable pain.

I knelt and begged, but the officers could only shake their heads.

“These are orders from above. We cannot do anything.”

I tried to block the bed, but they said I was obstructing the law.

My father was dragged away violently, the bandages on his legs turning red with fresh blood.

I ran after them, but when I reached the corner, a black bag suddenly covered my head.

A storm of fists and kicks crashed down on me.

“How dare you lay a hand on Caleb’s woman. Learn your place.”

“Do not kill her. She is still Caleb’s wife.”

“Wife? Caleb never cared about her. His heart has always been with Heidi. If she had not forced herself in, she would never have married him.”

I did not know how long the beating lasted before they finally left.

I lay curled on the ground, motionless, like a discarded rag.

Seven years ago, when Caleb first took over the family business, it was my father who used every connection he had to help him stabilize the situation.

Later, when I was kidnapped, it was Caleb who fought his way into the hideout and carried me out on his back.

That day, I cried in his arms, believing I had found the person I could trust for the rest of my life.

And now, for another woman, he had driven us into a dead end.

Fortunately, only three days remained.

I dragged my weakened body back home, only to see piles of luggage thrown out at the door. My chest tightened violently.

Caleb had tossed out everything that belonged to me and my father.

This house was bought with my father’s entire life savings.

What right did Caleb have to throw us out?

I felt as though I could barely breathe. Just as I turned to leave, I caught a glimpse of the scene inside the house through the gap in the door.

Heidi was sitting in Caleb’s lap, feeding him spoonfuls of porridge.

I forced my trembling hands still, raised my phone, and quietly began recording.

Caleb’s hand was wrapped around her waist, fingers wandering restlessly. His voice was low and intimate.

“In those days, I was too poor. I had no choice but to marry for family interests and let you marry someone else. All these years, you’ve suffered.”

Heidi’s face flushed, her expression dripping with sweetness.

“No, even if I married someone else, have we ever stopped talking? The only one who can satisfy me in bed has always been you, Caleb…”

Her words ignited him instantly. Caleb lowered his head and kissed her hungrily.

“When the baby is born, we’ll go abroad together. Alright?”

Heidi let out a soft sound.

“Last time I got pregnant, you forced me to end it. Why do you want this one?”

My heart clenched as if someone had grabbed it.

Half a year ago, she had been pregnant.

That was also the first time I became pregnant, and he forced me into surgery, claiming it would affect his work.

I had always thought he was just ambitious.

But the real reason was that Heidi disagreed.

My fingers shook, but I kept the phone steady.

Heidi buried her head in his chest, her tone dripping with malicious sweetness.

“At that time, we didn’t know whose the baby was. How could I let someone else carry a bastard?”

Then came the sound of sticky kisses.

Heidi’s breathing grew soft and tangled.

“Don’t worry. This time, the baby is ours.”

Her words exploded in my ears, each one like a blade slicing straight into my chest.

I could no longer watch. I lowered my phone and turned to leave.

But my weakened legs gave out. I stepped wrong and knocked over a vase by the door.

It shattered loudly.

Caleb rushed out at once. When he saw how disheveled I was, his expression stiffened for a moment before he shouted,

“What did you do to yourself this time!”

The next second, he dragged Heidi into his arms protectively, his eyes filled only with concern for her.

“Trying to get my sympathy again? Stop using this kind of pathetic trick.”

Heidi recovered quickly and let out a mocking laugh.

“Planning to go to court again and accuse me of hitting your father? Who would believe you?”

I looked at them coldly.

“If your affair goes public, who people believe is another question.”

Caleb’s eyes widened with rage.

“Julia, stop spouting nonsense! I only invited Heidi over for porridge. What filthy thoughts are you imagining?”

“If you would just apologize publicly, we could still live together peacefully. I’ll give you a child. Why won’t you agree?”

I had no interest in arguing with him. I hid my phone securely.

Just then, Heidi spoke softly.

“Caleb, go get another bowl of porridge. Mr. Fang doesn’t seem unreasonable. We can talk calmly.”

As soon as Caleb walked away, she dropped the gentle facade and forced me into the corner.

Her voice was low, like a snake hissing.

“Do you know why I hit your father? Because he deserved it. Who told him to show off in front of me? Caleb belongs to me. Even if he marries you, he is still mine. Your father deserved what happened.”

Here is the refined English translation, faithful to the emotional tension and novel tone, without adding unnecessary words and without any forbidden symbols:

I couldn’t help but throw a punch, but my body was covered in injuries. I was no match for her.

In an instant, she had me pinned to the ground.

She stepped on my chest and leaned down, her lips brushing my ear.

“If you insist on being disobedient, I’ll make sure you learn your lesson. Your father died in prison because of you.”

I struggled and raked my nails across her ankle, leaving a deep scratch.

Seeing Caleb about to come out, Heidi immediately clutched her forehead and let herself collapse onto the floor as if she had been shoved.

Caleb saw her fall, and the bowl in his hand shattered against the ground with a sharp crack that tore through the air.

He rushed toward us, screaming, his fury twisting his face into something monstrous.

“Julia! How dare you touch Heidi? Can you afford to compensate for the child she’s carrying? You and your father’s lives wouldn’t be enough!”

He charged forward, grabbed my shoulders, and shoved.

I was thrown hard, my back slamming into the sharp corner of the entryway like a heavy hammer striking me.

Pain exploded in my chest. My vision went black. I staggered, then collapsed.

I heard Caleb’s hysterical roaring, Heidi’s fake frightened sobs, and the murmurs of people around us.

The noises tangled together, stabbing into my ears like countless needles.

I tried to push myself up, but my body refused to move.

My consciousness cracked open, leaking away rapidly.

In the last moment before everything went dark, I saw Caleb glaring at me with a frown, yet still holding Heidi protectively, terrified that she might be startled.

Then the darkness swallowed me completely.

When I opened my eyes again, the first thing that hit me was the sharp smell of disinfectant.

The white ceiling swayed slightly in my vision. I tried to move my fingers, but they felt weighed down by something heavy.

The curtain was pulled aside. A doctor stepped to the bedside, his expression calm.

“You’re awake?”

I nodded. My throat burned as if scraped raw by sandpaper.

The doctor sighed, speaking as gently as he could.

“Julia, when you were brought in, you were experiencing massive bleeding.”

My heart clenched, but I forced myself to ask, “So…?”

He paused for a moment before answering.

“The baby is gone.”

My breathing caught in my chest, unable to move.

“The baby…?”

I repeated softly, as though confirming something I had never imagined.

The doctor continued, “You were three weeks pregnant. It was too early to detect. But your injuries were severe, and the embryo couldn’t continue developing. We have already completed the procedure.”

My fingertips slowly turned cold.

So I had been pregnant.

In the middle of their blows, their insults, all the despair… I had been carrying a tiny life.

And now he was gone.

Because of their push.

Because of their violence.

Because of their cruelty.

Seeing me silent, the doctor added in a low voice, “Your injuries were caused by assault. We have reported it according to protocol. Once your condition stabilizes, you’ll need to give a statement.”

I closed my eyes. My chest felt as if it had been torn apart.

Images flashed through my mind: Caleb’s indifferent shove, Heidi’s triumphant smile, her words about letting the old man die in prison.

Each one cut like a blade.

The baby was gone.

And the marriage I had fought so hard to hold together collapsed completely in that moment.

I opened my eyes. My voice was cold as a winter night.

“There’s no need to continue with the police report. Please help me preserve all medical records, emergency documents, and surgical reports.”

The doctor paused, surprised.

“Of course, but you need rest.”

“Don’t worry.” My tone was calm, yet so firm it allowed no refusal.

The doctor could only nod and leave.