Lucas stood at the stove, frying eggs. Lily slipped behind him, gently wrapped her arms around his waist, and rested her cheek on his back with a sweet smile.

The moment she saw me, she let go and took a step back, putting on a delicate expression. “Sister-in-law, I have a headache. Can Lucas get my hat for me?”

Without a word, Lucas turned around and headed upstairs.

As soon as he disappeared, the softness on Lily’s face vanished. She approached me, her red lips curling into a smug smile.

“Lucas said that the bastard in your belly should’ve never been kept.”

My eyes snapped up, fingers trembling.

She gave a mocking smile and leaned in. “Do you know the Carter family? They’re backing me.”

She paused, watching my face change.

“If the Carters so much as lift a finger, Beijing will shake. What can you use to fight me?”

My fists clenched.

The Carter family—an elite lineage with over a century of power—held influence over half the country’s economy. Even the mighty Turner family was insignificant in comparison. In front of the Carter's, everyone else was dust.

Suddenly, Lily stumbled backward and threw herself onto the floor, crying out.

“Sister-in-law! I know you hate me for stealing Lucas! Are you going to kill me now?”

“Nina!” Lucas rushed down the stairs and shoved me aside.

I stumbled onto the edge of the coffee table, pain shooting through my lower back.

He knelt and wrapped his arms protectively around Lily, eyes ice cold.

“What did you do to her? Can you stop being so unreasonable for once?”

“I didn’t touch her!” I said, my voice shaking.

“You’d better not have,” he snapped. Without sparing me another glance, he picked her up and walked toward the door. “Lily, let’s go.”

I stood frozen in the living room, my hand slowly moving to cradle my belly.

Lucas didn’t come home for two days.

I quietly took down our wedding photos from the wall, one frame at a time. The sound of the last one hitting the trash echoed like a final goodbye.

My phone vibrated.

“Nina, I’m sending someone to pick something up. Can you give it to him?”

In the walk-in closet, the set of jewelry worth tens of millions lay quietly in a velvet-lined drawer. I remembered how he once said while taking photos of it, “This is for the most important person.”

I stared at it for a long time, then smiled faintly.

Expressionless, I took out the jewelry and handed it to the driver at the gate. Then I turned and came back with a manila envelope.

“Wait,” I said calmly. “I’ll go with you. Take me there.”

The driver hesitated but nodded.

The car pulled up in front of a lavish estate, ablaze with lights and the sound of a live orchestra flowing out into the night.

“Ms. Shaw, happy birthday!” Cheers and well wishes rang out as I walked in.

All eyes turned toward me.

“Isn’t that Mr. Turner’s wife? What’s she doing here dressed like that? So tacky.”

“I heard she’s clinging to him shamelessly. How pathetic.”

“Mr. Turner should’ve dumped her ages ago. Ms. Shaw is carrying his child now. Why won’t she just leave?”

“She even tried to push Ms. Shaw down. What a heartless woman…”

I ignored the murmurs and kept walking.

Lucas’s brows furrowed when he saw me. “Nina, why are you here?”

I smiled. “It’s Ms. Shaw’s birthday. How could I not attend?”

I held out the jewelry box. “What she wanted.”

Lily’s eyes sparkled as she reached for it. She opened it slowly, deliberately, so everyone could see.

“Lucas, this is for me?” she asked sweetly.

Lucas didn’t respond. His gaze lingered on me, unreadable.

She giggled, “Put it on for me?”

After a pause, he picked up the necklace and fastened it around her neck.

Then, on tiptoe, she suddenly threw her arms around his neck, kissed his cheek, and turned to me with a triumphant smirk.

I didn’t say a word.

Suddenly, Lily staggered with a cry. “Ah!”

Lucas rushed to catch her and then turned to glare at me. “What are you trying to do now?”

Without responding, I handed him the document folder. “Sign.”

He opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Lily clutched her stomach. “Ah! Lucas, my stomach... it hurts!”

Panic flickered in his eyes. Without even glancing at the document, he scrawled his signature, scooped her into his arms, and said, “I’m taking you to the hospital!”

I turned to leave, clutching the signed papers—only to be tripped violently from behind.

I crashed to the ground. My forehead slammed against a metal fixture, and a warm stream of blood began trickling down my cheek.

Lucas turned instinctively, eyes filled with hesitation as if he might come help me.

“Lucas! It hurts... please! The hospital!” Lily sobbed, gripping his sleeve tightly.

He froze, then turned away and carried her out without looking back.

I lay there, the blood in my eyes turning the world red and blurry.

Around me, people stared. Some looked amused. No one moved.

Grinding my teeth, I pushed myself up from the cold floor. It was only then that I noticed—my wedding ring was gone.

It must have slipped off during the fall. It had always been loose. I just hadn’t realized how loose.

Ignoring the gawking crowd, I limped out of the venue and flagged down a cab.

“To the hospital,” I said.

The driver looked alarmed. “Miss, your head’s bleeding!”

I wiped my cheek. My hand came away red. I gave a faint smile.

“It’s fine. I won’t die.”

At the hospital, the doctor frowned while dressing my wound. “Mrs. Turner, you’re still pregnant. Why are you doing this to yourself?”

Before I could answer, the television overhead blared a breaking news bulletin.

“Shocking report! President Turner’s wife faked her kidnapping and cheated on her husband! Suspected of carrying another man’s child and secretly seeking an abortion!”

My vision went black for a moment.

Before I could react, the door burst open.

Mrs. Turner stormed in and slapped me across the face. “You disgrace! You’ve humiliated our whole family!”

Reeling from the blow, I stumbled back. Before I could find my footing, men in black suits grabbed me and dragged me into the Turner family’s ancestral hall.

“Kneel!” Mrs. Turner barked.

I struggled, but my knees were forced down hard onto the freezing tiles.

She pulled out her phone, her voice sharp and unforgiving. “Lucas! Your wife’s scandal is all over the news! Everyone’s laughing at us!”

On the other end, Lucas’s voice was tense. “Mom? Weren’t you and Dad in Australia? Why—”

“What? We can’t come home now?” she sneered. “You see what kind of woman you married?”

“You’re too soft! She cheats on you, and you still defend her? Are you going to let her drag this family through the mud?”

I raised my head and screamed at the screen, “Lucas! Say something! It’s not true—this is your—!”

“Nina,” he interrupted, his voice low and hoarse, “Just bear with it for now. I’ll make it up to you later.”

The midsummer ancestral hall was like an oven. I knelt there on burning tiles, sweat mingling with the blood still seeping from my forehead.

Then came a stab of pain deep in my abdomen. Warm liquid ran down my legs.

“My baby... my baby!” I scrambled to the door and pounded on it, frantic. “Let me out! Please, save my child!”

Mrs. Turner’s cold voice came from outside. “Didn’t you say you aborted it already? Why didn’t you finish the job?”

Sobbing, I dug my fingernails into the wooden door, leaving smears of blood in the cracks. “It’s Lucas’s baby! It’s his! It’s his!”

But the only answer was the sound of retreating footsteps, growing farther and farther away.

I spent the entire night alone, soaked in blood.

By morning, the door finally creaked open.

A man in black stood there, face emotionless. “Ma’am, I’ll take you to the hospital.”Lying on the operating table, I opened my eyes and felt life inside me slipping away, little by little.

My phone buzzed beside me. A message from Lucas appeared on the screen:

"Nina, I'm sorry. I’ve wronged you. I’ll explain everything to Mom later."

My fingers trembled, and a single tear rolled down the side of my face.

The day I received the divorce certificate, I dialed a number I hadn’t touched in five years.

The call connected, and a familiar deep voice, warm and amused, came through.

"So, you’re finally willing to come back to me?"

A week later, Lily appeared at the press conference for her new drama, proudly showing off her pregnant belly.

Clinging to Lucas’s arm, she beamed under the flashes.

"Thank you for your blessings. After the baby’s born, I’m heading to Hollywood to advance my career..."

Amid the lights and noise, I stepped quietly into the venue.

The lively crowd fell silent.

Lucas’s face stiffened. "Nina? What are you doing here?"

Without a word, I approached him and placed the divorce certificate in his hand.

His eyes widened. He quickly grabbed my wrist and whispered,

"Nina, stop this! Didn’t I say I’d make it up to you once this was over?"

Just then, the doors flew open.

A black Rolls-Royce stopped outside, drawing gasps from the crowd.

"It’s Jonathan Carter! Head of the Carter family!"

Lily’s eyes lit up. She rushed forward eagerly.

"Uncle! What brings you here?"

I remained where I stood.

Jonathan’s gaze swept the room and landed on me.

He walked over, extending his arm. I took it naturally.

Lucas stepped forward in shock, voice shaking.

"Nina! Are you insane? He’s Lily’s cousin!"

Jonathan shot him a cold look.

"A man like you doesn’t deserve for my daughter to be hurt."

The room erupted in murmurs.

I turned to face Lucas and spoke softly:

"I forgot to introduce myself. This is my father."

Lily went pale instantly.