The next day dawned.

The woman on the bed stirred slightly, her eyebrows furrowing involuntarily.

Pain. She felt like she was falling apart.

He slowly opened her eyes. The unfamiliar surroundings of the room sobered her up from her half-awake hallucination, putting her on immediate alert.

Abruptly sitting upright on the bed, she took in the unfamiliar scene around her, her mind going blank.

Clothes were scattered all over the floor - there were men's shirts, ties, overcoats, pants - everything felt alien, except for the glimpse of a big white wedding dress peeking out from beneath a suit's trousers. That was immensely familiar.

She was wearing it yesterday.

With anxiety, she peered under the covers at her own body. Seeing herself, she panicked, rolling out of bed ensnared in the blanket, her gaze taking in her surroundings with a mixture of bewilderment and terror.

Her memory started to return, blurred like a dream, yet too real.

Ah...

A silent scream welled up within her. Her hands clenched the blanket tightly, her knuckles turning pale. Her lips quivered slightly open, but...she couldn’t utter a word. The light dimmed in her dark eyes, turning gradually into gray.

When she saw a bright red smudge staining the pure white bedsheet, it was like a blade piercing her eyes. It hurt her heart.

It felt as if a knife was gradually slicing her heart into pieces, the pain was raw and intense. The pain made her struggle to breathe, made her body feel cold, and took away her tears.

Her first time.

The first time she had preserved for so many years. Her first time that was to be given to her husband. It was supposed to be... something saved for her husband on their wedding night. It was gone now.

The pain was so intense that she became numb. She wasn't sure how long she was sitting on the ground before she slowly rose to her feet. Every small movement caused agonizing pain throughout her body. Her legs were weak, and her body was exhausted, but she seemed to hardly feel it. She entered the bathroom like a zombie, harshly washing away the marks that covered her entire body over and over again.

The physical pain was hardly a tenth of the pain in her heart.

But... No matter how much she washed, those marks seemed to remind her, mock her, and ridicule her. They were the evidence of her infidelity after marriage, of her betrayal of her husband.

When she stepped out of the bathroom, she noticed clean clothes placed on the bed. A note rested on top of the clothing, flamboyantly written: "Have a good rest."

The stranger's handwriting ruthlessly reminded her of her mistakes once again.

Discarding the note, she quickly dressed and left. The note floated to the ground, falling just like her sinking heart.

………………

Inside the office at the highest floor of the 'Imperial City', Alex who had just come out of a meeting, sat down when his phone rang.

"Talk," he said, turning his chair to gaze out of the large floor-to-ceiling glass window at the familiar yet strange view of the City.

"Young Boss, the Young Lady has awakened and has already left the hotel by car."

"Mmm—" Hearing this, Alex hung up the phone, thought for a moment, then stood up, took his coat, and swiftly left.

Just as he reached the door, Clement, who was standing at the entrance, said, "Young Boss, the Madam has asked you to come home for dinner tonight."

"I know,"

Saying this, Alex stepped into the elevator.

Clement wanted to follow, but Alex extended his hand to stop him, "There's no need to follow."

"...Yes." The command of the boss must be obeyed, as this was the basic requirement of being a subordinate.

..................

Arriving at the mansion, the grandeur of the sprawling estate before her eyes suddenly made her feel a twinge of anxiety..

Taking the tissues offered by the kind gentleman, Alex wipes her tears, pays the driver, and steps out of the vehicle.

Carrying a weight of guilt and heaviness, she takes each step towards the front door, reaching out to open it.

Inside the house, the voice of Annie filtered through, “Not sure if it would be successful, he didn't return the whole night, it probably was successful, yeah?”

Betty's hand stiffened, and her face turned instantly pale, what... does that mean?

"Should've been successful, he hasn't been back for so long, must've slept through." The person speaking this time was her newly wedded husband ... Liam.

Betty's hand grasped the door handle so tightly that her knuckles whitened.

The small suspicions that had begun to arise in her mind, were now lying bare and naked in front of her.

So it was... them.

"Shut up, both of you remember, you know nothing. When Betty returns, let her search for young Boss Alex. For such a scandal, he will be willing to cooperate with us," Edward, Liam's father, said coldly.

Betty bit her lip so hard that the taste of iron spread in her mouth.

How dare they conspire her innocence like this? How could they do this?