Chapter 4

Certainly, here is the adapted translation:

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As a child, in that very same place, he confidently declared that only I was worthy to be his bride.

But those days are long gone, and now he is just a stranger to me.

I didn’t want to waste any more words on them, so I reached out and pulled Cora off my bed.

"Get off my bed."

I used all my strength, and even though Jasper held onto Cora, I managed to pull her down.

I dragged her toward the door, but just as we reached it, Cora suddenly stuck out her foot and hooked the bookshelf by the entrance.

The bookshelf wobbled, and ancient books came crashing down.

3

I couldn’t spare a thought for Cora. Letting go of her, I used both hands to try to catch the falling ancient books.

There were too many, thick and heavy, and I only managed to catch one.

The rest fell directly onto Cora.

Cora cried out in pain and ran to Jasper to accuse me, but I was only worried about the scattered ancient medical books on the floor.

These were unique copies left to me by Grandma Jasper, her treasured possessions while she was alive.

She entrusted them to me for safekeeping, and I had failed to protect them.

For a moment, I was overwhelmed with guilt.

But just as I was anxiously trying to gather the books, a large hand suddenly snatched the book from my grasp.

Jasper, with a dark expression, said, "Didn’t you see your books hit Cora? Apologize."

I clenched my fists tightly. “She tripped the bookshelf herself.”

If she hadn’t hooked the bookshelf with her foot, it wouldn’t have fallen.

Hearing this, Cora's eyes shone with cunning. "Jasper, the books really hurt me. How about we burn them?"

Jasper frowned slightly but, after glancing at the old and worn cover of the book, immediately agreed.

"Sure, these old books dared to hurt my baby; we might as well burn them."

Saying this, he actually took out a lighter from his pocket and headed toward the balcony outside my room.

"These are the books your grandma left me," I tried to appeal to Jasper's conscience.

The hatred in Jasper's eyes deepened.

"My grandma died because of you. What right do you have to keep her things? Why not burn them for her!"

Grandma Jasper's death is a lifelong sorrow in my heart.

I’ve explained many times, but no one believes me.

Right now, I just want to keep the last things Grandma Jasper left me.

"No," I followed them to the balcony, jogging. "I apologize. I'm sorry, Cora, I shouldn’t have pulled you."

Cora looked down at me with mockery. "Kneel."

Kneel to her?

I’ve never even knelt to my parents.

Seeing my reluctance, Cora snatched the lighter from Jasper's hand.

With a "whoosh," the flame flickered, just a centimeter away from the ancient books.

"No..." My eyes widened as I reached out to grab them.

Cora stepped back, bringing the flame even closer to the books.

"Kneel!" she commanded.

Watching the ancient books get closer to the flame, I had no choice but to kneel in humiliation before Cora.

"Hahaha... Maeve, you finally got what you deserve!" Cora laughed heartily and urged Jasper to take a picture.

I couldn’t avoid the camera, squeezing out a few words through gritted teeth, "The books... can I have them now?"

"Of course, I always keep my word."

Saying this, Cora smiled maliciously, and suddenly brought her hands together, letting the flames engulf the ancient books.

"Stop!" I frantically tried to snatch them away.

She disdainfully threw the burning books at me and then retreated into Jasper's arms, feigning fear.

"Jasper, the fire is so big, I'm scared."

"Do you think I'm cruel? I'm just mad at her for making us miss so many years."

Jasper consoled her, "Of course not. It's just a few old books. Who cares if they hurt my baby?"

"Does it still hurt? Let me get you some ointment."

Saying this, Jasper took Cora and left my room.

I was left alone, desperately facing the ancient books about to be consumed by flames.

I frantically grabbed the nearby garden hose and sprayed the half-height flames.

But paper is flammable, and by the time I put out the fire, the ancient books were unrecognizable.

I was afraid a gust of wind would scatter what little was left of the books.

So, ignoring the heat from the charred remains, I picked up the remaining pages one by one.

By the time I brought all the ancient books back inside, my fingers were covered in blisters.

I went to the living room to find a first aid kit for bandaging, but Jasper and Cora were nowhere to be seen.

After a simple bandage, I took my phone and left.

With the wedding approaching, I needed to visit my bedridden fiancé at the hospital.