"Seven years. Not a single time missed."

Her words exploded in my ear like a thunderclap, and all the blood in my body seemed to freeze solid.

"He said only I'm worthy of carrying his child. A woman like you who sells herself for money isn't worthy at all."

Isn't worthy. The words stabbed into my heart like poison-tipped needles.

Seven years of grievance and anger erupted in an instant.

I couldn't hold back anymore. I raised my hand to slap her.

But before the slap could land, a hand caught my wrist.

Ethan stepped in front of Victoria, his brows drawn tight.

My gaze traveled up his arm and landed on the faint scar exposed at his neck. I froze.

That was from seven years ago. Grandma had just gotten sick, and the loan sharks I'd borrowed from came to collect. They blocked my door, came at me with a knife, about to cut me down.

He appeared out of nowhere and threw himself in front of me without hesitation.

That scar was from that day.

It felt like a hand was squeezing my heart—aching, sour.

The man who once took a blade for me... how had he become this?

He'd personally destroyed my chance to become a mother. Used it as leverage to humiliate me. Made me waste seven years of my youth living as a joke.

Looking at the scene before me, I suddenly felt it was all meaningless.

What was the point of fighting over this painting? It would only add more embarrassment.

I slowly loosened my grip. "Forget it. If you want it, take it."

I didn't look at either of them again. I turned and left.

On the day of the birthday banquet, I arrived at Gilbert Mansion on time.

I deliberately avoided the front hall, planning to wait until the banquet officially began before going in to congratulate Uncle Richard. But I still ran into Ethan and Victoria at the entrance.

He was holding her hand, the two of them walking over side by side.

The moment they appeared, every eye in the vicinity turned to look.

Curiosity. But even more—undisguised mockery.

"Ethan bringing the pregnant Victoria—isn't this just grinding Alex's face into the dirt?"

"I heard she only married into the Gilbert family because she took money. Pitiful, sure, but seven years without getting pregnant and she still wouldn't let go of her position. She brought this on herself."

I took a deep breath and walked past them, my face expressionless. I ignored the whispers. Didn't look at either of them once.

When I reached the banquet hall, I caught a distant glimpse of Chairman Gilbert in the seat of honor. His gaze landed on me, something complicated flickering in his eyes.

I gave a slight nod, then found a corner seat and sat down, quietly waiting for the banquet to end.

Not long after, Victoria held Ethan's hand and walked straight toward me.

The surrounding chatter gradually died down. All eyes followed, hungry for a spectacle.

She stopped in front of me. A flicker of awkwardness crossed her face, one hand still pressed protectively over her lower belly. She nudged Ethan, signaling for him to speak.

He frowned, then looked at me. After a moment of silence, he finally said:

"Alex, I want Victoria to keep this child."

He stared at me intently, probably waiting for me to explode into hysterical rebuttals like before.

After all, over the past seven years, every woman who got pregnant with his child was someone I personally escorted to the hospital for an abortion—without exception.

After a pause, perhaps seeing that I didn't immediately blow up, he added:

"Victoria's already had three abortions for me. The doctor said if she has another one, she might never be able to get pregnant again."

Whispers rippled through the crowd—probably betting on how spectacular my outburst would be.

But I only lifted my gaze, met his eyes calmly, and said two words:

"Okay."

Everyone froze. The probing in Ethan's eyes gave way to shock, and he stood there blank for a moment, not reacting.

Before either of them could say anything else, the host's voice rang from the front of the banquet hall, announcing that the birthday banquet was beginning.

According to the program, next came the gift presentation segment.

Guests stepped forward one by one, delivering carefully prepared gifts to Richard, offering auspicious words of blessing.

Soon it was Victoria and Ethan's turn. She clung to his arm with one hand, the other protectively cradling her lower abdomen, holding that pine-and-crane painting as they walked slowly toward the main seat.

"Uncle Richard, I wish you blessings as vast as the ocean and a life as enduring as the mountains."

"This is a birthday gift Ethan and I specially picked out for you. I hope you like it."

Richard's gaze fell on the painting, and his eyes brightened—just slightly.

But when his gaze swept over Victoria's protruding belly, they went dark again.

With so many guests present, he held his tongue. He nodded faintly and had the butler take the gift.

"Thoughtful. Take your seats."

Victoria's smile stiffened—she hadn't expected such a cold reception—but she didn't dare push it. She followed Ethan obediently back to their seats.

The moment they sat down, all eyes turned to me.

"What about the young madam of the Gilbert family? She hasn't given a gift yet, right?"

"What did Miss Ye prepare for the old man?"

"If Miss Donaldson rushed to present a painting, then Miss Shen's gift must be even more valuable, right?"

I took a deep breath and slowly rose from my corner, walking step by step toward the front of the hall.

Better to take this chance to cut all ties.

I took the microphone from the host and said, word by word:

"Thank you to all the guests for taking the time to attend the chairman's birthday banquet."

"Today, besides offering birthday wishes, I also have one thing to announce—Ethan Gilbert and I are getting divo—"

Before I could finish, the floor beneath me began to shake violently.

"Earthquake!"

Someone screamed it first, and then the banquet hall erupted into chaos.

Guests fled in all directions, screaming, tables and chairs knocked crooked or overturned entirely.

In the chaos, I looked up instinctively—and saw Ethan shoving through the crowd, running like crazy toward me, shouting my name:

"Alex Simmons!"

For a moment, my mind went blank.

The way he ran, the panic on his face—it overlapped, slowly, with that boy from seven years ago who had thrown himself in front of a knife for me.

My heart clenched.

But right then, Victoria's shrill voice cut through:

"Ethan, I'm so scared! Don't leave me!"

I watched his steps halt abruptly. He turned toward her.

Not even a second of hesitation.

He ran back to Victoria, leaving me standing there alone, completely frozen.

The chaos intensified. The crystal chandelier overhead groaned with the shaking ground. The next second, it tore loose and came crashing down—straight toward me.

My pupils shrank. My mind went white.

At that critical moment, a dark figure rushed forward and shoved me hard.

With a deafening crash, the chandelier smashed into the spot where I'd just been standing. Fragments exploded everywhere.

I staggered, caught myself, and finally saw who had saved me—Marcus, Richard's personal bodyguard.

He stood up and turned to me. "Miss Ye, it's dangerous here. The chairman asked me to escort you out—and to give you this."

He handed me a document.

I took it. A divorce agreement. The one Richard had prepared in advance.

Following his gaze, I looked toward the main seat. Richard was being escorted out by several bodyguards.

I bowed deeply in his direction. "Chairman, thank you for looking after me these seven years—and for saving my life today."

Then I followed the bodyguards out of Gilbert Mansion.

On the other side, Ethan had escorted Victoria to a safe clearing outside. Only after confirming she wasn't seriously hurt did he let out a breath.

But before he could even catch it, the scene in the banquet hall came flooding back.

Unease coiled around his heart like vines, tightening. The more he thought, the more panicked he became.

Like something important was slipping through his fingers.

"No. I'm going to find her."

He stood abruptly. Victoria grabbed his sleeve. "Ethan, my stomach hurts—maybe the earthquake scared the baby. It feels awful…"

Before, he would've checked on her immediately. Now, he shook her off. "Have an assistant take you to the hospital. I have something to do."

He turned and ran toward the mansion without waiting for her response.

He burst into the banquet hall, shouting my name. "Alex! Alex!"

Only the wreckage answered.

He grabbed a servant cleaning up the mess. "Where is Alex Simmons?"

The servant flinched. "Miss Ye left with the chairman's bodyguards… She said she and the Gilbert family don't owe each other anything anymore."

"Left…?"

His pupils contracted. Panic crashed over him like a wave.