Confusion clouded my eyes as I stared blankly at the lavishly dressed woman before me.

"White roses symbolize purity, yet this bouquet is stained."

As soon as she spoke, murmurs rose from the surrounding crowd.

"There's blood on it!"

"Doesn't she know receiving blood-stained flowers is the worst taboo in our line of work? I hear it brings a curse."

The mutters reached my ears, but before I could gather her thoughts to explain, Christian knocked the bouquet from my hands and onto the floor.

His expression darkened instantly. His eyes, fixed on me, were filled with fierce displeasure as he snapped, "Serena, I never imagined you could be such a vicious woman."

"Someone, take her to the main hall and punish her according to the family rules," he ordered.

Christian didn't spare me even a trace of dignity, publicly ordering my punishment. I knew how brutal his family's punishments were.

Years ago, when he insisted on marrying me, he was given one hundred strikes. His back was bloody and raw, yet he gritted his teeth and refused to give in.

It wasn't until the last strike that I couldn't bear to watch anymore.

Throwing caution to the wind, I cried out and rushed forward, forcibly taking the blow for him. That single strike knocked me unconscious for an entire day.

Now, they roughly forced me to kneel before Jocelyn.

I struggled wildly, resisting with all my might. "Let go of me! Christian, you can't treat me like this!"

Jocelyn, standing nearby, shook her head as if disappointed by my defiance. "Serena, Chris is doing this for your own good. I know you blame me for stealing his love, but you shouldn't resort to such underhanded methods to harm others."

I stared hatefully at the woman who had stolen everything from me, wishing I could rush forward and take her down with me.

I barely opened my mouth when the butler rushed over. He whispered something into Christian's ear and suddenly, every eye in the room was fixed on me.

"Who would've thought the seemingly noble and magnanimous Mrs. Leighton is such a promiscuous woman? No wonder Mr. Leighton fell for someone else."

"Mr. Leighton and Miss Stone share true love. Unlike her, who plays around so recklessly."

Hearing this, my heart lurched violently. It turned out someone had leaked the news of my visit to the hospital for an abortion to the media. Now, reporters and paparazzi swarmed outside the Leightons' residence.

In an instant, I became the focus of public scorn.

I looked at my phone, which was filled with hot searches bearing my name.

"Serena Clarke, the wealthy wife of Christian Leighton, couldn't stand the loneliness and got pregnant after an affair."

"Wife of capital's richest man is pregnant, but the baby isn't her husband's."

…

My mind went completely blank. My dull, empty eyes drifted to Christian, but he showed no intention of defending me.

Of course, even that man believed the baby in my belly wasn't his.

Soon, I was placed under house arrest. The servants roughly threw me into the basement.

As I stared into the pitch-black, damp and gloomy space, my entire body trembled uncontrollably. I cried out in despair and helplessness, but Christian only watched me indifferently.

"When you're ready to admit whose child this truly is, I'll let you out," he said.

I knew he was forcing me to confess.

As the last glimmer of light vanished, I was engulfed by darkness and an overwhelming sense of terror instantly washed over me. Trembling, I curled up in the corner.

How could Christian not know that darkness was my greatest fear?

I couldn't help but recall how, in the past, Christian would keep every light in the house on 24/7 because I was afraid of the dark. Just to make me feel safe.

Today, he was personally throwing me into this endless abyss.

My hands and feet slowly grew cold, then numb and finally stiff.

But his words echoed relentlessly in my ears. "I've already contacted PR. We're going public with a live stream tomorrow."

I've known him for so long; I knew this was a notification, not a discussion.

I refused like a madwoman, screaming and questioning him. Still, all it got me was being locked in the basement, supposedly to "clear my head."

My consciousness gradually faded.

After a long while, the basement door opened. I didn't know how much time had passed, but that night felt impossibly long.

I was dragged out and taken to the study, like a lump of mud.

Christian calmly looked up. When he saw how exhausted and worn out I looked, a flicker of complex emotion crossed his eyes before vanishing swiftly.

He set down the documents in his hand, his sharp brows furrowing slightly as he leaned back into the sofa. That man spoke ruthlessly. "Have you made up your mind?"

His tone carried an unyielding authority, but I just closed my eyes in silence.

Seeing that I still wouldn't give in, Christian placed his phone in front of me. The person on the video screen was none other than my brother.

Because of that, I finally compromised.

Before leaving the study, I ended up asking the one question I had to.

"Do you love her?" I asked in a shaky, completely broken voice.

"I do," Christian answered without hesitation.

I smiled bitterly at those words, though my vision was already blurred. "What about me?"

The air instantly froze and it felt like we were locked in a silent confrontation. After a moment, Christian broke the silence. "I loved you once."

Loved me once. How ridiculous.

When we were in love, he would have given me the best of everything in the world. But now that he didn't love me, he wouldn't even let me go.

I sat in front of the phone, watching all the vicious comments scroll endlessly across the screen.

My heart twisted with pain, the agony intensifying with every beat. My limbs also began to tremble uncontrollably.

However, no one noticed that cold sweat had soaked my back.

After saying that last sentence, all my strength seemed to drain away. I stumbled to my feet and left.

Before I could even catch my breath, the first thing I saw when I walked out of the room was my brother tied tightly to a chair.

As soon as Jocelyn saw me, she barked an order to the servants to press the nearby button, without a word of explanation. Instantly, a surge of electricity coursed through my brother's limbs.

All my pent-up resentment and rage immediately erupted at the sight. I lunged desperately toward her, but Christian firmly blocked me again.

"This is a crime, Jocelyn! I'll kill you! Let go of my brother right now! You deserve to die!" I roared in a hoarse voice.

Jocelyn, however, seemed oblivious. She buried herself in Christian's embrace as if hurt.

"Serena, I'm doing this for your own good. Electroshock therapy is the fastest way for a patient to recover their memory. Don't you want your brother to get better quickly?"

The smell of flesh scorched by electricity wafted through the air, mingling with my cries that shifted from furious curses to desperate pleas. "Please, Christian. Stop the shocks! My brother will die, he really will die!"

"I'll do anything you ask, just spare my brother," I begged.

Christian remained standing there, completely unmoved. He just said faintly, "Jocelyn is only doing this for your good."

The electrotherapy was indeed effective. That very night, my brother remembered everything. Unable to bear it any longer, he ran out despite everyone's attempts to stop him.

Then came the sound of a violent crash …

"No!" I let out a final, desperate scream, my hoarse voice cutting through the silent night like a sharp blade.

My brother died on the spot.

Cradling him in a pool of blood, I felt the last fragile shard of hope within me break apart. I had thought about calling the police, but Christian virtually controlled everything in the capital.

In the end, I didn't even manage to dial the emergency number before I got locked away again.

That day, Christian surprisingly came into my room.

"All of this was an accident," he said.

Accident? It was easy for him to say.

"I'll choose the best burial plot for your brother and make sure he's properly laid to rest. I advise you to abandon any thoughts of reporting this."

I knew I couldn't win against him.

I let out a self-mocking, bitter laugh. As the last tear slid down my cheek, I felt my crying run dry and with it, our marriage had come to an end.

One blow after another had nearly shattered me. Yet before I could recover, Jocelyn came knocking.

"You saw it yourself. Chris loves me now. I advise you to leave while you still can," she whispered.

The Jocelyn before me was a different person from the innocent girl she was in front of Christian.

"I'm willing to leave," I said expressionlessly, as if I were talking about something that had nothing to do with me.

That woman stared at me in shock, seemingly unprepared for such an immediate acquiescence.

Shortly after, I placed the divorce agreement in front of her.

"As long as you can get Christian to sign this agreement, I'll immediately give you the position of Mrs. Leighton."

I had long been tired of being in that position, anyway.

Jocelyn worked quickly. That very afternoon, she placed the signed agreement right in front of me.

How ironic, even I found it incredibly difficult to meet Christian now.

I felt in a daze as I stared at the divorce agreement in my hand.

The promises we once made, the memories of our love—it all feels like a lifetime ago. No matter how deep the love, it seemed the outcome was always the same.

I booked a ticket for the earliest flight to France, the place I'd always wanted to visit most.

Right after we got married, Christian had just taken over the company and there were so many undercurrents swirling within it. On top of that, his family had suffered significant losses just so he could marry me. We hadn't even had time for a honeymoon before Christian was swallowed by work.

Back then, he promised me, not just once, that he would take me to France.

I waited and waited, but what finally arrived was a divorce agreement.

After mailing the signed papers, I started packing. I only took some personal belongings and my documents.

As I was about to leave, I passed the study and heard Christian's voice.

"Mr. Leighton, this is so wrong. This will ruin Madam's reputation. She has already done so much for you … "

The secretary's sentence was cut short by Christian's dismissive interruption.

"Just do what I tell you. Her reputation isn't worth much. Jocelyn's archaeology team needs funding. That lady was so kind, she already donated the assets I 'voluntarily gifted' her to charity."

My steps froze. A chill ran up from my feet and a familiar feeling of suffocation washed over me.

I took a bracing breath before finally turning to go.

As soon as I arrived at the airport, I received a message from Jocelyn. [Christian really loves me. Don't you want to see what everyone online is saying about you right now?]

My expression tightened.

[I just casually mentioned that the archaeology project lacked funds and Christian immediately put your photos up for auction online.]

[Tsk tsk, who would've thought you could fetch such a high price?]

I clicked on the livestream link she shared.

The first thing that caught my eye was my photographs. There were countless images from every conceivable angle, even my semi-nude pictures, all laid bare for the world to see.

At that moment, my mind went blank, like a kite with its string cut. My hands and feet went ice-cold as if submerged in icy water and my fingertips shook uncontrollably.

So, that's what Christian had been talking about—auctioning my photos online.

I turned on my phone in a panic. The live auction was still running and the bidding had already soared to fifty million.

My head suddenly spun. I had no idea when Christian had taken any of these photos.

Just as the final hammer was about to fall, the livestream was suddenly shut down. My private photos, which had been spreading like wildfire across the internet, were instantly deleted.

I quickly regained my composure. I didn't know who had helped me behind the scenes and I certainly didn't believe Christian had suddenly grown a conscience.

However, I had no time to dwell on such questions now.

I swiftly compiled all the evidence and chat logs Jocelyn had sent me, forwarding them to my divorce lawyer. Then I contacted the top PR team in the industry.

I had nothing left to hold me back anymore, driving me not only to avenge my brother but also to reclaim my own justice.

After that, I removed the SIM card from my phone and threw it in the trash can.

Before boarding the plane, I took a final look at this city, which was filled with all my pain and terrible memories. I thought to myself that I would probably never return in this lifetime.

On the other side, Christian discovered that all the videos and photos related to the auction had been taken down. Even the pictures of me on his own computer vanished without a trace.

With a muttered curse of frustration, he burst into my room, but all that greeted him was an empty space.

Before he could react, the butler rushed in breathlessly. "Sir, it's terrible! Madam has publicly posted a divorce statement online!"

Christian stared at the divorce statement on his phone in disbelief. His heart suddenly lurched and his face instantly turned dark.

"Find her! Bring Serena to me immediately!"

He couldn't help but mumble to himself, "It's impossible. I never once considered truly divorcing her."

This wasn't the first time I'd run away, but for some unknown reason, his heart grew increasingly uneasy.

"Sir, Madam's lawyer and PR team have both issued statements and are holding a clarification press conference!"