Seeing how easily I agreed, suspicion flickered in his eyes.

“Don’t play any tricks. No matter what you do this time, I will never marry you.”

I let out a soft laugh, my expression calm and unreadable.

“Who you marry is your choice. It has nothing to do with me.”

Hearing this, Adrian Hughes looked a little embarrassed. He ground out, “You’d better mean that!” before taking Isabella Reed by the hand and leaving.

The Hughes family seemed to want to say more, but knowing their son’s serpent curse already had a supposed cure—and that marrying me would bring them no benefit—they all left as well.

My father, afraid I might be heartbroken, tried to comfort me.

“Claire, don’t be upset. Three-legged toads are rare, but two-legged men are everywhere. I’ll call someone right now to set you up on a date.”

My mother wiped her tears.

“Your father’s right. There are plenty of good men in New York City—we don’t need Adrian Hughes.”

I smiled and nodded, humoring them with a few words.

Just then, my phone rang.

When I checked, it was a message from Adrian’s uncle, Ethan Hughes.

“You’ve broken off the engagement with him? I’ll be back in the country next week. Wait for me.”

In my previous life, after my death, it was Ethan who collected my body and sent Adrian to prison.

It wasn’t only Adrian who had someone he regretted losing—I did too.

Thinking of that, my eyes softened, and I replied, “Alright, I’ll wait for you.”

A few days later, I heard there was a century-old lingzhi mushroom being auctioned.

My grandmother had been gravely ill a few years back, and this lingzhi would be perfect for her recovery.

I gathered three million and went to the auction in person.

The moment I stepped through the door, I heard Adrian’s voice.

“My serpent curse has already been cured, thanks to Isabella buying me the antidote. We’re getting married next month—everyone is invited.”

Cured?

I glanced at his face suspiciously, and when I caught sight of those faintly blue-tinged pupils, I couldn’t help but curl my lips in a mocking smile.

The poison had reached his brain in less than two months. What Isabella had bought was probably not an antidote at all, but a catalyst.

Give it a few more days and Adrian would be sprouting scales—I couldn’t wait to see him mutate.

Someone in the crowd couldn’t resist asking:

“Mr. Hughes, wasn’t your fiancée the eldest daughter of the Bennett family? How is it Miss Reed now?”

Adrian snorted coldly, his tone dripping with disdain.

“Claire Bennett? She’s nothing—hardly worthy of marrying me. I canceled that engagement long ago. Don’t bring her up in front of me again—she’s bad luck.”

Others quickly chimed in, echoing his contempt and belittling me.

I couldn’t be bothered to respond and simply found a seat in the corner.

It was then that Isabella seemed to spot me.

She leaned close to Adrian and said softly, “Adrian, Miss Bennett is in the back. Do you think she’s following you on purpose to get your attention?”

I saw irritation flash across his face.

He turned, gave me a cold, cutting glare, and barked:

“Claire Bennett, have you no shame? I already broke off our engagement, and yet you’re shamelessly clinging to me? Is this how your parents raised you?”

All eyes in the room swung toward me.

Feigning surprise, I retorted, “From the moment I walked in, I haven’t spoken a single word to you. Attending an auction is ‘clinging’ to you now? If you’re sick, go get treatment—don’t have your episode here.”

Adrian was momentarily speechless, his face darkening with rage.

“Don’t try to argue. A scheming woman like you? I would never like you. Give up already!”

A gleam of satisfaction flashed in Isabella’s eyes as she added,

“Miss Bennett, a woman should have self-respect. You’re not for sale—there’s no need to be this cheap, is there?”

Her words drew a chorus of jeers from the crowd.

“Well, a prostitute isn’t usually this pretty. How about this—I’ll give you a hundred thousand for one night with me.”

“A hundred thousand? Too cheap. I’ll offer five hundred thousand. If you serve me well, I’ll add more.”

Hearing these comments, even my normally steady composure began to crack into anger.

I fixed Adrian Hughes with a cold stare and enunciated each word:

“Control your dogs. If you let them out to bite again, don’t blame me for what happens.”

The men’s faces darkened at my words, and they looked ready to hurl insults back—when the auction began.

The very first lot was the century-old lingzhi.

I had just lifted my paddle when Adrian called out, “Light the sky lantern!”—a bid that was deliberately meant to compete with mine.

My breath hitched, and I couldn’t stop myself from saying, “The Hughes family doesn’t lack rare tonics. Do you have to fight me for this?”

He turned his head with an arrogant smirk.

“Isabella’s pregnant—she needs something good to nourish her. I think this lingzhi is perfect. Do you have a problem with that?”

Isabella giggled, throwing herself into his arms.

“Adrian, you’re so good to me.”

I took a deep breath, forcing my anger down.

Ordinary people who undergo mutation from a serpent curse rarely survive more than seven days. There was no need to waste my energy on the walking dead.

I rose to leave—but was blocked by the Hughes family’s bodyguards.

Adrian’s voice was icy.

“Did I say you could go?”

I frowned at him. “What do you want now?”

“You’ve ruined my good mood. Kneel and kowtow a few times, and I’ll let you out.”

It was pure, baseless bullying.

I trembled with fury, pulling out my phone to call the police, but he snatched it away and smashed it to the ground.

“You think you can provoke me and just walk away? The world doesn’t work that way!”

I glared up at him.

“I haven’t done anything—what right do you have to make me kneel?”

He let out a cold snort.

“By right of being the heir to Hughes Group.”

When I still didn’t move, Adrian ordered the bodyguards to force me to the ground.

From above, he looked down on me, arrogance dripping from every word.

“Aren’t you proud? Let’s see if your spine is really harder than everyone else’s.”

The bodyguards slammed my head into the floor over and over. After more than ten blows, a pool of blood spread out beneath me.

I shook violently with pain, my heart filling with boundless hatred.

Isabella covered her mouth in feigned shock.

“Adrian, she still looks defiant.”

Adrian’s brows shot up, and his voice turned colder.

“Still defiant? Then strip her clothes and make her kneel all the way out!”

Hearing that, my breath came faster. I struggled desperately to escape, but they surrounded me completely.

The long gown on my body was soon ripped to shreds. Curling up, I felt tears of humiliation prick my eyes.

The men’s naked gazes fell over me as they jeered loudly:

“Didn’t think Miss Bennett had such a figure. Wonder what she tastes like.”

“Bet she’ll have you in ecstasy!”

The sharp, grating laughter drilled into my ears, and I couldn’t stop trembling.

A flicker of lust crossed Adrian’s eyes.

He crouched down and whispered in my ear,

“How about this—spend the night with me, and I’ll have someone bring you some clothes. What do you say?”

I raised my eyes to him, glaring with pure loathing.

“Bastard.”

His expression cooled.

Sensing something was off, Isabella’s eyes flickered. She clutched her stomach and said,

“Adrian, my belly hurts—forget her, take me to the hospital.”

At her words, Adrian stood immediately.

“What’s wrong all of a sudden? Come on, I’ll drive you.”

Once Adrian left, the others quickly dispersed as well.

I painstakingly gathered the torn scraps of fabric from the ground, using them to barely cover myself.

When I got home, my mother happened to be there. The moment she saw my head covered in blood, she was terrified.

Not wanting her to worry, I told her I had tripped on the street and hurried back to my bedroom to tend to the wound myself.

As I stared at the gash on my forehead, I clenched my fists.

At most, he had seven days before the serpent curse erupted. I was looking forward to seeing Adrian Hughes’ miserable end.

Before I knew it, the day of Ethan Hughes’ return had arrived.

I was just about to head out to pick him up when, coming downstairs, I saw Adrian and Isabella Reed.

Adrian spoke to my mother with arrogant condescension.

“I’m getting married the day after tomorrow. Since our families have known each other for so many years, I’ll allow you to attend. Make sure you arrive on time.”

With that, he tossed the wedding invitation onto the floor.

His purpose wasn’t to deliver an invitation—it was to humiliate my parents.

My father trembled with rage.

“We’re not interested! Get out!”

Isabella sneered.

“Uncle, why so angry? Adrian was just being kind—he thought you’d never seen such a grand occasion and wanted you to broaden your horizons. How can you be so ungrateful?”

Seeing this, I quickened my steps toward them.

Just as I was about to speak, a cold voice came from outside the door.

“The day after tomorrow is my engagement to Claire Bennett. I’m afraid I won’t have time to attend your wedding.”

Ethan Hughes walked in, naturally placing himself between me and them.

Adrian’s face turned an ugly shade at his words.

“Uncle, that’s not a joke you can make lightly.”

Ethan’s expression was calm.

“When have I ever joked with you?”

“She’s a woman I cast aside. What business do you have picking her up?”

Adrian’s eyes were bloodshot as he glared at Ethan with pure malice.

In our last life, he’d been outmaneuvered by this very man and thrown into prison. He’d thought Ethan’s motives were about the family fortune, but it seemed now it was for revenge on my behalf.

Ethan, unwilling to waste words on him, said simply,

“My affairs don’t need your interference.”

Adrian shot me a venomous glare.

“Fine, fine, fine. I’d like to see if the family will approve of you marrying her!”

Then he dragged Isabella away.

I looked up at Ethan. He was still as handsome and composed as ever—time had left no marks on his face. If anything, he looked even better than he had three years ago.

Thinking of what he’d just said, I couldn’t help asking,

“When did we decide to get engaged? How come I didn’t know about it?”

He smiled faintly, pointing at the large pile of gifts behind him.

“Didn’t I come here today to claim my place?”

Naturally, my parents were delighted with him, and the engagement was set.

On the day of the engagement banquet, I was busy making the rounds to toast the guests when I suddenly received a call from Adrian.

He was in a panic, his voice shaking as he cried,

“Claire, my body is mutating—please, please save me!”

I was silent for a moment before laughing.

“Mr. Hughes, you must have dialed the wrong number. I don’t do curse removal. If that’s all, I’ll hang up now.”

Hearing I was about to hang up, his voice turned desperate.

“Don’t! Claire, I was wrong. I really was wrong. Right now only you can help me. I don’t want to become this… this thing.”

“If you’d known this would happen, why do what you did back then?”

I spoke the words, then deleted his number and blocked him in one go.

After the banquet, Ethan escorted me home—only for us to see the Hughes family car parked outside.

Robert and Martha Hughes rushed up to me as if they were mad, clutching my hands with tear-streaked faces.

“Claire, you can’t just watch him die! Our families have been connected for so many years—can you really bear to let Adrian perish?”

Suppressing my irritation, I pulled my hands free and said coldly,

“Uncle, Aunt, it was Adrian himself who said he didn’t need me to get the medicine, and he was the one who proposed breaking the engagement. I owe the Hughes family nothing—so what exactly is the meaning of this now?”