Chapter 5

Julian smoothed down his disheveled shirt.

“What blood? Oh, she's probably just spotting, a sign of labor, right? Send her to the hospital.”

Mr. Davis swallowed hard, forcing himself to continue:

“Madam... she’s not breathing anymore...”

A flicker of panic entered Julian’s voice. Just as I leaned closer to hear, his tone hardened, becoming cold and vicious again.

“Faking it! Keep faking it for me! I want to see how long she can keep up this act!”

“She survived under such harsh conditions in the wilderness; she can hold her breath underwater for over ten minutes! She’s just trying to trick you all because you have no medical knowledge! Call my personal physician. I’ll expose her charade in front of him!”

Mr. Davis’s eyes widened. “Mr. Blackwood, Madam’s babies are already...”

“Whose orders do you follow?!” Julian interrupted impatiently.

“Do I pay your salary, or does *that woman* pay your salary?”

“Sir... I’ll go call the doctor immediately...”

Mr. Davis sighed helplessly and left.

Seraphina, soft and pliant, pressed against Julian.

“Julian, don’t be angry. Anger is bad for your health.”

“Iris is just so good at winning people over! How is it that after only a few years, this house belongs to her?!”

Julian’s words struck me like a slap, waking me from my foolish delusions.

In just three years, he had completely forgotten his old promises.

On our wedding day, Julian, his eyes filled with love, had told me, “This is your home now, Iris. You are the sole lady of this house.”

My tears streamed uncontrollably.

Just moments ago, I was still foolishly fantasizing that if Julian knew I had died in childbirth, he might feel a trace of regret or self-reproach...

How ridiculous I was now, was how foolish I had been then.

I actually believed Julian’s promise that he would love me forever.

Years ago, Julian and Seraphina were childhood sweethearts, destined for an arranged marriage.

But Seraphina was unexpectedly diagnosed with a condition that made natural conception impossible.

So, she left without a word, boarding a plane to another country, severing all contact with Julian.

She claimed, melodramatically, that Julian was the sole heir to the Blackwood family, and how could she bear to marry him and end his family line?

To escape the pain of their breakup, Julian joined a wilderness expedition team.

And I, by chance, was the team leader.

Later, when he proposed, he said I was courageous and resilient, the embodiment of all that was good in the world.

That I was the guiding light in his lost wanderings, the destined harbor for his heart.

After we married, he decided wilderness expeditions were too dangerous.

He insisted I resign and stay home to prepare for pregnancy, to bear an heir for the Blackwood family.

However, during the days Julian and Seraphina had broken up, he’d drowned himself in alcohol and sleepless nights, his body already frail and depleted.

Under intense pressure from the Blackwood family elders to produce an heir, I worked tirelessly to restore his health while actively trying to conceive.

Finally, in our third year of marriage, I successfully became pregnant with twins.

Julian’s parents were so thrilled, they immediately called a press conference, announcing that the children I bore would be the sole heirs to the Blackwood Group.

It was then that Seraphina returned to the country.

And returned with a carefully crafted statement: “I have no interest in the company’s inheritance. Just being with Julian is all Seraphina needs to be happy for a lifetime.”

4

Julian started staying out all night, his crisp white shirts often bearing indelible red lipstick stains.

I resolutely filed for divorce, but Julian refused to let me go, citing the twins in my womb as the Blackwood Group’s heirs.