Winston's initial warmth, spurred by her accident and hospitalization, immediately faded as she saw the unmistakable joy on Josie's face. As expected, no matter how much someone from a small, rural place tried to change, they couldn't shake off their inherent pettiness.

Three hundred thousand dollars. Winston wouldn't even consider giving Zelda a gift at that price, yet Josie acted like she had won the lottery. Winston's expression grew cold. "Zelda cut her hand. I'm going to check on her."

Josie ignored him. Instead, she transferred the money to the hospital and called Janice. "Winston lent me $300000. I'll pay him back when the project is done. I'm ready to join the team and start learning anytime."

Janice rescheduled her start date for a week later in consideration of her health. After two days in the hospital, Josie returned to her cramped, run-down rental apartment to continue packing. She probably wouldn't be coming back to this city again.

Five days before her departure, she booked a flight. Winston saw a picture of the flight details in Janice's social media feed and immediately called her. "Why are you going Scotland?"

"Just a trip," Josie responded, not wanting to cause more trouble.

Winston paused for a moment before letting out a cold sneer. "I thought you were supposed to be some bigshot career woman. Even Mr. George seemed to think highly of you, but look at you now. Didn't take long for your true colors to show. Does it feel good spending money you didn't earn?"

Josie didn't respond. She knew arguing with people like Winston would only make him more convinced he was right. Besides, she would be returning the money eventually. It didn't matter when he found out.

Winston was enraged by her indifference. He uttered a harsh threat before finally hanging up. "Josie, you better hurry up and try to please me. I might still marry you out of our years of relationship. Otherwise, you won't get a single cent!"

Four days before her departure, Josie went to the office to finalize her resignation and then met with her landlord to terminate her lease. When Winston arrived and saw the empty apartment, he froze momentarily. Then, he curled his lips into a mocking smirk. "What, are you so sure I'll marry you? Can't wait to move into the Carters' house, huh? Zelda's birthday is tomorrow and my parents will be there too. If you really want to marry into the Carters, you should think about how to impress them."

Josie scowled in disdain for the first time as he thought of the heartless couple who left the young Winston and the gravely ill uncle. They even pretend to be dead, then flee abroad. "They left so decisively back then, leaving behind a mess. Now that everything's settled, they want to come back?"

If they had been able to disappear for so many years, they would have surely been involved in that accident back then. They weren't dead, but Thomas had spent seven years bedridden. What had he done to deserve that? Winston could afford to forget because he had been spared a lot of hardship during those years under her care, but Josie couldn't.

Winston's face turned grim and he slapped Josie hard. "Josie! Is that how you talk to my parents? Just because I give you some face, you really think you're the savior of the Carters? The money you gave me over the past seven years isn't even a drop in the bucket compared to the Carters' wealth."

A bright red mark formed on her cheek as she stared at the man before her, now completely unrecognizable. The child who clung to her like a stray puppy, terrified of being left again, slowly faded from her recollection.

All that remained was the tall man coldly looking down at her, saying in an unquestionable tone, "No parent would ever not love their child. They must have had their own reasons. The love they give me will be far greater than what you've given me all these years! You have to come to Zelda's birthday party tomorrow. Otherwise, not only will the marriage be off the table, but you'll have to return the thirty thousand dollars!"

So, on the third day before leaving, Josie wore a washed-out shirt and jeans and went to the Carters, which had become luxurious and noble again.

Winston did not give her an invitation. As soon as she got outside the door, Josie was stopped by the staff. As a last resort, Josie could only call Winston. After a dozen calls went unanswered, she realized she had been blocked.

Meanwhile, Winston was swirling his wine glass, projecting his phone screen onto a large screen. Young men from the capital were laughing at the constantly ringing call interface.

"I bet she'll keep calling, up to 30 times!"

"No way, she's not that dumb. She'll probably switch numbers. I say she'll give up after trying five different ones!"

Zelda smiled. "A smart woman would have left by now. Only someone as shameless and pathetic as her would keep clinging to Winston."

Winston smirked. "She wouldn't dare leave. If she did, she'd lose the $300000."

He was right. Josie couldn't leave on a whim, but she didn't insist on calling. She asked the staff to pass on a message. Then, she sat on the curb outside and quietly flipped through the study materials sent by Janice. Winston clearly wanted to give her a hard time. There was no point in calling anymore.

Josie sat in the cold wind for two hours until the evening banquet was about to begin and then Winston finally arrived. His brows furrowed at the sight of her outfit. "I told you to wear a gown. Even if $300000 isn't enough to buy a nice one, you could've at least rented something decent."

Josie looked at him calmly. "Are you done playing? Can I leave now?"

Winston had won his bet and gained face in front of everyone. Now, he had a little more patience. He put his arm around Josie's shoulder, leaning on her with a touch of drunkenness. "Josie, don't be angry. I came to find you, didn't I? They wanted me to bring you in after dark. I came out early because I felt sorry for you."

Josie looked at him with disappointment. "Winston, do you find it amusing to play with people like this?"

Winston chuckled softly in her ear, his hot breath spreading across her neck. "Other people can't even play this kind of game. Only I can. Because I know, no matter what, Josie, you won't leave me. I'll take you to change and then you can meet my parents. Once they approve, we'll get our marriage certificate. After that, you'll move into the Carters' residence with me."

Marriage certificate? Josie curled her lips into a mocking smile. She might have fallen for his fake tenderness if she didn't understand French. Alas, Winston would only do what he said on the phone that day. The marriage certificate would belong to her, but the wedding, blessings, family, life and everything would belong to Zelda.

When the paperwork was done, Winston and Zelda would fly abroad to start their real life together. What about her? She'd be left behind, clutching a meaningless red booklet and an empty promise, stuck handling the Carters’ affairs in this city.

Josie felt a wave of bitterness in her heart, but she still nodded obediently on the surface. "Okay."

Only three days left until she could leave. Exposing everything now would cause unnecessary trouble. She was exhausted. She didn't have the energy for any more of this.

It was the first time Josie was formally appearing in public. Although Winston looked down on her, he couldn't let her embarrass the Carters. For that reason, he had prepared an extravagant gown for her.

Now, as he looked at Josie standing before him in a dark red mermaid dress, her figure curvaceous and her expression as cold as an ice queen, he was momentarily stunned. Winston snapped a photo and sent it to their group chat. "Gotta hand it to Wallace's latest design. Even an 'old woman' like Josie can look good in it.

Soon, his phone started buzzing with notifications. He didn't go to see it but took Josie's hand and went to the banquet hall with her.

All eyes were on them as they walked in. Some were envious, some were surprised and some were even jealous. Winston's mood lifted considerably. However, his expression stiffened when someone asked which prominent family the lady belonged to. "She's not from our circle."

Before he could finish, a sharp, playful voice chimed in from the side. "A lady? Don't flatter her! She's just a country bumpkin."

Zelda, dressed in a delicate pastel pink princess gown, walked over gracefully, exuding elegance and nobility. The people around her joined in, scanning Josie with mocking eyes and clicking their tongues in disapproval.

"Zelda, even you're giving her too much credit. She's not just from the countryside, she came straight out of the deep mountains!"

"She doesn't even have to worry about getting kidnapped. The moment she steps off the car, she knows this place better than the traffickers themselves!"

Thinking about Winston's shared photo in the group chat and the compliments that followed, Zelda clenched her teeth and looked down at Josie with condescension. "Did you really think that putting on a designer gown would turn you into a peacock?"

Soft snickers echoed around them, the initial admiration for Josie replaced by ridicule. Winston's face darkened, his expression shifting between embarrassment and anger. He frowned and scolded in a low voice, "Zelda."

Zelda pouted in displeasure, then quickly latched onto Winston's arm, pushing Josie aside. "Winston, I was just joking with her. She's not even mad—why are you?"

She turned her head and smiled sweetly at Josie. "Josie, your life has really improved since being with Winston. It's my birthday today and you didn't even get me a gift."

Winston's face darkened. "Josie, I told you it was Zelda's birthday. How could you come empty-handed?"

If she could, Josie would have walked away right then and there to end this farce. "You only told me at nine o'clock last night. I didn't have time—"

"Enough." Winston cut her off coldly. "That's no excuse. Apologize to Zelda."

Her body was still weak from the effects of drinking the other night. Standing so long on an empty stomach made her stomach ache, but she knew they wouldn't let this go easily. As expected, Zelda smiled sweetly. "We all know about Josie's financial situation, so we won't make things hard for her."

She then picked up a glass of wine and held it out. "Since you're such a good drinker, why don't you down this as an apology? Then I'll forgive you."

Josie knew she couldn't avoid this, so she swallowed her discomfort and accepted the glass. However, she sensed something was wrong as soon as she drank it. With her tolerance, one glass of wine shouldn't have made her feel this dizzy. Moreover, a strange heat was spreading through her body.

She tried to grab Winston's arm to tell him, but he coldly pushed her away. "Zelda drank too much and isn't feeling well. I'll take her upstairs to rest. You can look around."

Josie's vision blurred quickly and she saw double. She stumbled and tried to walk out of the crowd but was hugged by a pair of hands that came out of nowhere.

Meanwhile, Zelda stood obediently by Winston's side, saying to his parents, "Josie also came to celebrate my birthday. Let's go find her later, okay? She'll be so surprised to see you two!"