I looked up and saw Conrad walking toward me, surrounded by a crowd.

As he approached, the whispers of the crowd immediately ceased.

Conrad and I had grown up together.

When we were five or six, our families arranged an engagement between us.

Whenever anyone bullied me, he was always the first to stand up for me.

When he made a mistake and got punished, I was the first to plead for him.

Until now, no one had ever doubted that I was Conrad's true love.

But today, on my 22nd birthday, he brought another woman with him.

Kelly was thin and delicate, a fragile little flower standing close to his side.

Conrad smiled, speaking affectionately in her ear.

She looked at me, her face instantly panicked and flustered. She quickly stepped forward, bowing to me in a deep ninety-degree gesture.

It was exactly the same as in my previous life.

Even the single teardrop hanging from her eyelash was identical.

In my last life, it was this pitiful, helpless look that had bewitched Conrad.

I had grown up in a family where marriages were arranged for business and status, so I never expected love.

Her appearance made me feel a pang of bitterness, but it didn't cloud my judgment.

When Conrad wanted to break off our engagement, I didn't cry or throw a fit. I just calmly tried to reason with him, considering the many years our families had known each other.

"Kelly's just an orphan. She doesn't have much work experience. Even though you two…

"But if you marry her, your grandpa won't approve. It'll only bring trouble.

"Conrad, why don't you just keep her as your mistress for now? Once…"

I left my words vague.

"Once you're the heir, won't you be able to do whatever you want?"

I had said these things to protect her, but it only ended up causing me trouble.

In my past life, the moment I saw Kelly bowing, I had rushed to help her up.

This time, I just watched coldly. When she realized no one was paying attention to her, she crumbled to the ground without hesitation and groveled at my feet.

She was practically kissing the ground, drawing gasps from everyone present.

Melanie tugged at my sleeve.

There were many guests today, all eyes on us.

I tightened my grip on her hand.

What was the rush?

"Kelly!" Conrad’s face was already dark with anger.

Kelly slowly lifted her head.

With her tear-filled eyes, it was hard not to feel a little sympathy.

She glanced back at Conrad, then at me, biting her lip as she continued groveling.

I leisurely took a sip of the red wine in my glass.

I couldn't help but wonder—just how long could she keep up this act?

Yes, Kelly was acting.

Her innocent demeanor was all a facade, and even when she "committed suicide" by jumping off a building in my past life, it was an act.

I was on the rooftop, all alone, when I overheard her sweet, almost melodic voice.

She was crying, pleading with a man.

"I'm just an orphan. If I don't use some tricks, how would Mr. Reese ever care about me? Please, help me again. Let me make him feel guilty! Mr. Reese loves me, but because of my status, his family will never approve of me. He promised he'd marry me. I have to do something and make him feel guilty, so he'll feel sorry for me! Please, just one more time! I just need to pretend to jump off the building, and Mr. Reese will feel indebted to me for the rest of his life!"

She was such a good actress.

She fooled Conrad, fooled me, and even fooled the press.

I once asked Conrad why he cared so much about Kelly.

"I was born as the Reeses’ heir. Everyone caters to me and worships me. They respect and love me, all because of my family's money and power. Even you, Shirley—if I wasn't a Reese, would you still marry me?"

His words left me speechless.

If he and I weren't of similar backgrounds, we never would've grown up together, let alone gotten engaged or married.

"Only Kelly—she's the only one who truly loves me and is willing to give everything for me. Shirley, how could I resist such pure love?"

His words almost tricked me.

As the daughter of the Harmons, I'd always been cautious and reserved.

I had to consider my parents and the family; I couldn't just give everything up for one person.

We both missed one important possibility.

Whether Conrad was poisoned or drugged, Kelly's intentions were clear from the start.

She had planned to climb her way into his life from the very beginning.

"Enough!" Conrad snapped.

The room fell silent.

Kelly trembled, slowly looking up, her eyes filled with pleading.

The message was clear.

She had ruined my engagement and turned me into a joke in front of everyone—she felt guilty.

If I didn't say anything, she wouldn't stop.

Fine.

Let her keep going.

I raised an eyebrow and continued sipping my wine.

Kelly gritted her teeth, preparing to grovel again.

Conrad suddenly stepped forward, slapping my wine glass out of my hand.

"Shirley, don't go too far!"

"Shirley, is this how the Harmons taught you to behave?"

Conrad's face was cold, and the room fell silent in shock.

He pulled Kelly into his arms, gently cradling her. "Shirley, apologize. If you apologize now, I'll pretend nothing happened."

I almost laughed out loud.

I'd been so naïve back then.

The moment I caught Kelly's lie, I called Conrad, telling him everything I had seen.

I warned him to be cautious of Kelly.

The next day, Kelly was dead. She was really dead.

The media reported that she had jumped because she never got a legitimate place in Conrad's life.

Conrad told me, "I'm glad you warned me. Otherwise, I would've been tricked."

After that, I always believed he had truly forgotten about Kelly.

After all, he hated being deceived.

But the day I died, I realized that when he said he had been tricked, he was talking about me.

"Shirley, are you mute? Kelly didn't do anything. I wanted to break off the engagement. Apologize to her. I won't hold it against you for the humiliation she experienced."

I looked at Conrad, and couldn't help but tug the corner of my lips into a smile.

I must've been blind. I'd always thought he was intelligent.

"Are the elders inside?" I asked a passing waiter.

I then elegantly walked toward the door.

Conrad followed me, asking, "What are you doing? Are you going to tell on me?"

I ignored him.

He continued following me right up to the door. "Shirley, don't think just because you're the Harmons' daughter, you can force me into marriage. I've already promised to marry Kelly. I will never marry you."

I turned to look at him.

As he'd said, he was born into privilege. Everything had come so easily for him. He had no idea what it meant to have a strong wife by his side.

Perhaps my cold gaze stunned him for a moment.

Just as we reached the door, Conrad's grandfather, Jonathan Reese, asked, "Shirley, what's going on here? Are you two that inseparable?"

The entire room of guests watched.

I took a step forward and bowed. "Mr. Jonathan, today is my birthday, and I'd like to make a wish. Conrad and Ms. Dunn are in love, and I admire their relationship. I don't want to tear them apart. Mr. Jonathan, I hope you'll let me break off the engagement with Conrad."

The room fell into silence immediately.