“Lucas, I know you’re unhappy about the arranged marriage our family set up for you. But forcing your younger brother to take your place, do you think that’s right? You should apologize to Mr. and Langford right now.”

My mother’s voice rang out sweetly, but I could hear the cold blade beneath her words. I sneered inwardly.

In my previous life, I had stormed onto the stage to confront Tristan and my mother never had the chance to shift the blame onto me.

Now I understood: Tristan dared to pull this stunt because he had my parents’ full support.

No wonder they suddenly insisted on a full ceremonial wedding steeped in old rituals, complete with a custom-made mask that covered my face from start to finish. It wasn’t about honoring tradition, it was about concealing the truth.

I’d only returned to the Everhart Family two years ago, while Tristan had been raised by them since birth. In their hearts, he was the real son. Two decades of affection had long outweighed a mere blood tie.

Tristan glanced at my mother, then stepped forward and knelt beside Sienna with practiced grace.

“Uncle, Aunt… Sienna and I truly love each other. Lucas has no feelings for her. Forcing them to marry will only bring misery to both sides. I’m willing to marry into the Langford Family and be her husband…”

Before he could finish, Daisy cut him off, voice sharp and cold.

“What nonsense are you spouting? You don’t have a yang constitution. Marrying you would only doom Sienna!”

She glared down at him with disdain. “And you? You’re nothing more than an adopted bumpkin from the countryside. Do you really think you’re worthy of marrying into our family?”

Tristan’s face turned ghostly pale. His lips trembled, bitten so hard they bled.

Seeing this, Sienna’s eyes filled with pity. She turned on her mother with righteous fury.

“Mom! What age are we living in? How can you still believe in these feudal superstitions?” She helped Tristan to his feet and shot me a venomous glare.

“Lucas, that so-called sacred bloodline of yours is a lie. You must’ve bribed some quack to fake those results!”

“You can crash the wedding all you want, but I’ll never marry you. The only man I will ever marry is Tristan!”

Tristan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and wrapped his arms protectively around her.

“Lucas, you were the one who said I could marry Sienna, so I agreed to step in. Why are you making a scene now?”

I nearly laughed aloud.

They’re the ones who schemed behind my back, yet now they’re turning the blame on me?

I took a deep breath, pulled out my phone and tapped open a message.

“Tristan. Mom. Dad. You all sent me this text yesterday, saying the wedding had been postponed to the evening. So why did it go ahead as scheduled?”

In my past life, if I hadn’t randomly seen a photo of the wedding car online, posted by a bystander, I would’ve missed everything. I would’ve shown up to an empty venue, too late to stop anything.

I angled my phone toward the crowd. The wedding photographer zoomed in. The contents of the message flashed across the massive screen behind the stage for all to see.

A low hum of murmurs spread through the guests. “So it’s true… The Everhart Family really favors the adopted son.”

“I’ve heard Mrs. Everhart has always doted on Tristan. Looks like she’d do anything to help him marry up.”

“Poor Lucas Everhart. After all those years lost, he finally returns home, only to find his own parents never truly accepted him.”

My father, who had been silent this whole time, suddenly turned crimson with rage.

“Stop spouting nonsense! This has nothing to do with favoritism. Lucas refused the marriage, he asked Tristan to take his place!”

“Fortunately, Sienna and Tristan are genuinely in love. Otherwise, they’d both be miserable.”

I let out a cold laugh.

“When did I ever refuse? I’m standing here today because I came to marry Sienna.”

The words barely left my lips before my father raised his hand and struck me hard across the face.

Smack!

“Lucas! How dare you! First, you run from your wedding and now you fabricate text messages to frame your family? You think the marriage alliance between the Langford and Everhart families is some kind of joke?”

“Sienna and Tristan’s wedding is already done. You… you have no place in this anymore!”

I wiped the blood from the corner of my mouth and lifted my gaze.

“I don’t mind holding another wedding ceremony, so long as Miss Langford is still willing to marry me.”

The moment I expressed my willingness to marry Sienna, Daisy’s expression softened with relief.

“Lucas, the Langford Family only acknowledges you as our son-in-law. This wedding doesn’t count. We’ll hold another one tonight—and this time, nothing will go wrong!”

Panic flashed across Tristan’s face. He turned urgently to our parents for help. My mother stepped forward, blocking the Langford Family members just as they began to leave. Her voice rang out sharply.

“Since things have come to this, I won’t keep it a secret any longer. The real reason we didn’t want Lucas to marry Sienna… is because he’s incapable.”

Her words fell like a thunderclap.

“Over the years, he’s been fooling around with countless women. The doctor said he’ll never be able to function properly again.”

All eyes turned toward me, laced with contempt and revulsion, as if I were the one tainted and despicable.

I gave a slow, calm smile, then reached into my pocket and pulled out a neat stack of photographs. Deliberately, I flipped through them one by one so everyone could see.

“Mother, are you referring to these women?”

The photos revealed Tristan in intimate situations with various women, arms entwined, kisses shared, shirts half-off. Evidence of his indulgent, chaotic private life.

Each image had been purchased at great expense.

In my previous life, Tristan hadn’t taken his life because of me. He ended it out of sheer terror, after being blackmailed with these exact photos and receiving a devastating medical diagnosis.

I’d cleaned up his mess back then. I had even paid those women off, trying to protect his so-called legacy.

What I hadn’t known was that he had left behind a suicide note, one that blamed everything on me.

“If Lucas hadn’t ruined our wedding, I could have stayed by your side… We could’ve lived happily as a family of three. I hope in the next life, I can meet you and the child again. Sienna, please forgive my cowardice.”

That note shattered everything. Sienna blamed me for his death. In her twisted grief, she tied me up, doused me in gasoline and set me on fire.

But this life… this life will be different. Let’s see without my extreme yang constitution to protect her whether Sienna can even survive past twenty-five.

Suddenly, Tristan lunged forward, yanking the stack of photos from my hand. His face was a mask of panic.

“These photos are fake! All digitally altered! Don’t believe him!”

With trembling hands, he tore the photos apart, pieces fluttering to the floor like ashes.

“Lucas,” he snarled, “you were the one sleeping around. You photoshopped my face onto your mess!”

Unfazed, I pulled out a small USB drive and held it up.

“The originals are on this drive. If you’re so confident, let’s have a professional analyze them. Let’s see who’s lying.”

A flicker of fear flashed in Tristan’s eyes. He clutched Sienna’s shoulders, voice trembling.

“Don’t listen to him! He forged everything to drive a wedge between us. Sienna, the only one I love is you. You know I’d never touch another woman, please, believe me…”

Sienna stared at him for a beat, then gave a firm nod. She turned toward me, her eyes filled with disdain.

“Lucas, do you really think dragging Tristan down will make me change my mind?”

“I’d rather become a nun than marry you.” She tossed her hair over her shoulder and sneered.

“Mrs. Everhart already exposed your wild personal life. Stop embarrassing yourself.” I chuckled lowly, my eyes narrowing.

“Tristan, do you dare go to the hospital right now for a full check-up? Let’s find out which of us is actually ‘incapable.”

His breath hitched. His hands balled into fists.

“I…”

Before he could finish, Sienna pulled out her phone and dialed.

“You really won’t give up until you’re humiliated, will you, Lucas? Fine. I’ll make sure you never show your face again.”

She called the family’s private physician on the spot. Tristan stood frozen in place, his expression a portrait of dread.

Shortly after, I followed the male doctor into the examination room for a thorough evaluation.

Thirty minutes later, the doctor returned and with a heavy expression, turned to Sienna and shook his head.

I stared at Tristan, who stood shielding Sienna in his arms like a knight guarding a stolen queen.

“Tristan,” I said coldly, “it’s your turn.” Sweat beaded on his forehead.

“I… I don’t need to take any test,” he stammered. “Sienna is already pregnant with my child. Isn’t that proof enough?”

The room fell silent for a beat.

Feigning shock, I raised my brows and let my voice project clearly for all to hear.

“Pregnant? But Sienna and I only agreed to marry a week ago. Are you saying she conceived before that?”

Gasps echoed among the guests.

“Then… the two of you have been involved this entire time?”

I looked from Tristan to Sienna, my tone mocking.

“If you had told me earlier that you were together, I never would’ve agreed to this farce of a marriage alliance.”

I turned my gaze to her, my voice laced with bitter irony.

“And you, Sienna, already entangled with Tristan, yet you still agreed to marry me? Why?”

Whispers rippled through the crowd.

“So it was Lucas Everhart who was being used all along…”

“Looks like Tristan was the one eyeing Miss Langford from the start.”

“Poor Lucas. No wonder he caused a scene.”

Sienna, completely unfazed by the judgmental stares, nestled shyly into Tristan’s embrace.

“Tristan, didn’t you say we had to keep it secret for the first three months?”

Daisy, fuming with rage, clutched her chest and pointed at her daughter.

“You will abort this child immediately! Your father and I will never acknowledge it!”

She trembled as she yelled, “You must marry Lucas, do you hear me? Without him, you and that child won’t live to see tomorrow!”

“Sienna, we’re your parents. When have we ever wanted to harm you? Just listen to us this once!”

But Sienna held her stomach protectively, shaking her head.

“This is my child with Tristan. If I lose it, I won’t survive either.”

“We’re already married. No one can separate us now.”

Then her eyes turned sharp.

“You just want to use Lucas’s body to break the curse, right? If that’s all it takes, why not let me spend the night with him tonight and get it over with?”

The air turned ice-cold. Tristan’s expression darkened at once.

“Sienna! He’s still my nominal brother. You’re my wife now. How could you even suggest spending the night with him?”

“Didn’t you say the curse was fake?” she retorted without hesitation.

Then she turned her glare on me.

“I find him disgusting. I don’t want him to touch me. But he’s been following me around, begging to sacrifice himself.”

I laughed, dry and cold.

“You really thought I’d want to spend the night with you?”

I turned to Mr. and Daisy, voice calm but sharp.

“Well, now that everything is out in the open, there’s no need to pretend any longer.”

“I won’t interrupt your happy occasion.”

I placed the USB drive down on the table and gave a slow, deliberate smile.

“Consider this my wedding gift. Watch it closely, Miss Langford.”

Then I turned and walked away.

Behind me, chaos broke loose.

“Lucas! If you walk out now, don’t ever come back! We no longer recognize you as our son!”

“Don’t try to drive a wedge between Sienna and me. She’ll never believe you!” I didn’t look back.

Let them shout. Let them scream. That night, I received a text from Tristan.

“Lucas, you’re really pathetic. Your own parents love me more than you. Even your fiancée only wants me. What’s the point of living?”

“Oh, and the dowry and shops the Langford Family promised you? Sienna already transferred everything to me.”

“Your parents cut off your allowance too. You’re a penniless beggar now.”

“Beg me nicely and I might consider throwing you some scraps.”

I stared at his smug message, imagining his twisted little smile.

Then I walked out of the bathroom and glanced at the woman reclining on the bed.

“Rosie Langford,” I asked quietly, “someone said I’m now a penniless beggar. Will you despise me?”

Rosie Langford smiled softly as she handed me a stack of cards.

“Mr. Everhart,” she said gently, “you saved my life. My body, my heart and my money are all yours now.”

Just as I was about to respond, the clock on the wall struck midnight. My phone rang.

It was Sienna.

Her voice on the other end was frail, barely a whisper.

“Lucas… please… save me…”