On the night of my trial marriage with my arranged marriage partner, my fiancé’s childhood sweetheart burst into crying into the bridal chamber.

Before I could react, he anxiously led her into the bridal chamber and locked the door.

No matter how much I called out, he refused to open the door until I fetched the spare key.

When I opened the door, I saw his childhood sweetheart lying comfortably on our bridal bed with her lips firmly planted on his chest.

In response to my questioning, he replied nonchalantly, “Everyone has their own needs. You don’t mind, right?”

His childhood sweetheart looked up contentedly. She said to me in a feigned tenderness, “Yvonne, Ken always says you’re generous. You won’t argue with me about such a small matter, right?”

I sneered, took out my phone, took a photo and sent it to his family group chat.

[I don’t need a groom anymore. Either return my dowry or find me a more suitable partner.]

——

The photo was sent to his family group chat. Within minutes, countless messages flooded in.

[Yvonne, this is Ken’s fault. Come back tomorrow and I’ll help you teach him a lesson!]

[We’ll always be family. We’ll see each other again. Listen to Mom and remove the messages from the group chat. Let me handle this.]

Ken’s mother was frantic and sent me repeated messages of dissuasion.

When she saw I hadn’t replied, she called me again.

His mother was a close friend of my mom’s. She was an elder who had watched me grow up and had always been very kind to me.

I thought it would be awkward not to answer the call.

I hesitated for two seconds, then answered. But before I could say anything, Ken, lying on the marital bed, spoke again, unhurriedly. “Regina can’t live without me. Clear her a room at home tomorrow and she’ll live with us from now on.”

As he spoke, he suddenly thought of something. In a tone that held no room for argument, he said, “From now on, I’ll put Regina to sleep before returning to my room. You’re not allowed to bother her about this. If you can’t even tolerate her, there’s no point in us trying to have a trial marriage.”

Ken leaned calmly against the headboard. His eyes were gleaming with a sharp light as he looked at me.

His words were like a hot flame which struck me hard in the face.

No one knew that I had been secretly in love with him for a full ten years.

When I first found out the person I was going to marry was him, I was so happy I couldn’t sleep all night.

I thought my secret love had finally been revealed.

So when he proposed a trial marriage, I didn’t refuse.

I naively believed that love could be build.

As long as I did my best, he would eventually fall truly in love with me. I never imagined that on the first night of our trial marriage, I would witness such a ridiculous scene.

Bitterness and anger spread endlessly in my heart.

I secretly clenched my hands and tried hard to suppress the surging emotions within me.

On the other end of the phone, Ken’s mother was furious. She roared, “Ken, are you a fucking crazy? How dare you say such a thing? What do you think of Yvonne?”

Instantly, her voice echoed through the quiet room.

Regina’s face paled instantly. She frantically climbed off him with tears of grievance streaming down her face.

Ken was stunned for a moment, then quickly pulled her into his arms. He glared at me with wide eyes and shouted, “Yvonne, how dare you call my mom to complain! If you don’t want to live here, just say so.”

“Why are you complaining to Aunt Elsie? Are you trying to drive a wedge between Ken and his mother? What’s the difference between you and the troublemakers who ruin other people’s family harmony?”

Regina’s eyes were filled with mist, but she spoke to me with a stubborn expression.

Ken’s eyes were filled with heartache. He carefully wiped the tears from her face and whispered soothing words like he would a child.

“Don’t be afraid. I’ll take care of everything. No matter what my mom says, I’ll always be by your side.”

As I listened to these words, the little hope I had left in him was completely extinguished.

Just then, a message suddenly rang from my phone. I lowered my gaze.

[I’m a self-disciplined person. I’ve never had a girlfriend, nor have I flirted with anyone of the opposite sex who’s inappropriate or casual. Do you think I’m a good match for you?]

The person who sent this message was Albert, Ken’s younger uncle, only five years older than him, who was often away from home busy with his career.

The marriage between my family and the Norman Family was arranged by our grandfathers.

My father once asked me to choose between the mature and steady Albert and the unsophisticated Ken, whom he disdained.

At the time, I was attracted to Ken’s youthful spirit.

I resolutely chose him. But now, when I thought about it, whether I liked him or not didn’t seem that important.

I pondered for a moment and replied: [Okay, then, when will you be back?]

He seemed to have been waiting for my reply.

The next second after the message was sent, he quickly replied: [In half a month.]

As if he was afraid I’d misunderstand, he quickly added: [I want to shift my career focus back to Stellis. Give me half a month.]

I silently replied with a “hmm.” Unexpectedly, Ken had already walked up to me.

As soon as the message was sent, he angrily snatched my phone and slammed it to the ground.

“Yvonne, why are you quiet? Did Regina poke a sore spot in your heart? Or are you going to complain to Mom again?”

When he looked at me, there was no tenderness in his eyes that he had for Regina.

There was only obvious disgust and impatience. Just like the first time I went to his house as a child. He chased me away with a look of disgust.

He shouted, “Little beggar, you’re so dirty! Get out of here! You’re not welcome in my house!”

And he was angry simply because Regina accidentally bumped into me while serving tea and ruined my beautiful princess dress. “I’m telling you, Yvonne, if you really want to marry me, put away your evil thoughts and take good care of Regina, or I won’t marry you!”

I looked up at him coldly and said calmly, “Okay, then our trial marriage ends here.”

Ken seemed surprised by my words. A flicker of surprise was shown in his eyes.

But then, he sneered, “Do you think I’ll care about you just because you’re backing off? Don’t be ridiculous. It’s over. Do you think I want to be with you?”

His face darkened and he pointed outside. He coldly said, “This is my home. Get out!”

I gave him a deep look. I said nothing more.

I turned around, picked up my suitcase, which I hadn’t even had time to pack and walked out.

However, the moment I closed the door, his furious roar suddenly rang out from inside. “Get out! Once you’re gone, don’t ever come back!”

My mother told me that after the arranged marriage was finalized, she would take me to the Norman Family to discuss the marriage. Ken sat idly on the sofa, looking at me with an indifferent expression.

As the two families brought up the topic of marriage, he slowly began to speak.

“I’m tired of it. I don’t want a wedding, just a marriage certificate.”

I didn’t like the elaborate wedding process either, so I agreed.

He then said, “The dowry your family gives can’t be greater than the betrothal gift my family gives. This is the rule of our Norman Family. If you want to be my wife, you must abide by it.”

My mother was already worried that I wouldn’t feel confident enough to be bullied after marrying, so she prepared a generous dowry for me.

So, after some thought, I finally agreed.

Finally, he said, “I’m not determined to get married yet. Let’s try it out for three months. If it works, we’ll get married.”

I thought he was being responsible for our future, so I agreed.

But to my surprise, my repeated concessions made him look at me with increasing disdain. He asked me, “Yvonne, are you so desperate to get married?”

I wasn’t. I just wanted to marry the man I loved.

That day, I really wanted to tell him. I’d loved him for ten years. Marrying him had become my greatest wish.

It was my mother who stopped me in the nick of time. On the way home, she told me. “No matter how much you love someone, don’t expose your weaknesses to them. You never know when your weaknesses might become a boomerang back at you.”

She said that no matter how much you loved someone, you must maintain your self-respect.

I carried my luggage home. My parents were surprised to see me back.

They kept asking me why I’d come home so late at night.

I didn’t hide anything and showed them the photos I’d taken.

My mother’s face paled as she saw the absurdity in the photos. She shouted, “I’m going to the Norman Family right now. I have to get an explanation from them!”

I shook my head and reached out to stop her. “Forget it, there’s no point in doing such meaningless things. Besides, he’s not the only single man in the Norman Family; he still has his uncle.”

If I couldn’t be his bride, I could at least be his aunt.

My dad slapped his thigh excitedly when he heard this.

He kept praising me. He favored Albert over Ken.

A few years ago, he got drunk at a party and insisted on becoming closer to Albert.

But he ruthlessly rejected him. He still remembered this incident. That night, I slept soundly at home.

When I woke up the next day, Ken’s mother personally sent someone to invite my parents and me to the Norman Family’s house.

They wanted to apologize for what happened the night before.

From now on, we should remain part of the Norman Family. There was no need to make things awkward.

So we arrived on time. Unexpectedly, upon arriving at the Norman Family’s house, we heard the merciless crack of a whip.

As the whip fell, there was a stubborn, angry retort. “Regina and I are innocent. Yvonne is just imagining things. What does it have to do with me? Besides, I don’t like her. You’re the ones forcing me to marry her!”

I’d known Ken disliked me all along. But hearing him say it in person still pricked my heart uncontrollably.

When we entered the room, Ken’s back was covered in crisscrossing whip marks. He knelt awkwardly before Theo, who sat in the middle. Seeing us, Theo quickly subsided and invited us to take a seat.

“My dear in-laws, you’ve come just in time. We can discuss the marriage now…”

“What marriage? I told you, if Yvonne can’t accept Regina, I won’t marry her!”

Ken raised his head stubbornly and looked at me with disdain. Theo gave him an ambiguous look and said to himself, “Whether you agree or not, Yvonne is always the daughter-in-law of our Norman Family…”