One week before our wedding, my fiancée, Chloe, told me she had to marry her first love before she could marry me. Her reasoning? His mother had passed away, and her dying wish was to see them wed. "Ray's mother always wanted him to settle down. I'm just fulfilling an old woman's last request. Don't overthink it," she said, her voice calm, as if discussing the weather. "But Chloe," I countered, "the company is launching the 'True Love' jewelry collection on the day of our wedding. It's the event of the decade." She looked at me with impatience. "It's just a few billion dollars. Can money compare to Ray's filial piety? If you care so much about that money, go find someone else to marry." Her cold words were the final straw. I understood everything clearly now. I turned around and dialed my sister-in-law. "Hey, sis. Help me find a new bride." When I got back to the family estate, my sister-in-law, Sarah, looked at me like I had grown a second head. "You're calling off the wedding?" "No," I said, a bitter smile forming on my lips. "She's marrying someone else." I had fought tooth and nail within my family to be with Chloe. I battled my parents' disapproval and strategically planned the launch of the 'True Love' collection to coincide with our wedding day to prove my devotion. Now, it was all for nothing. Sarah was silent for a long time. "Well... the only option left is Stella. Her family is pushing her to marry, and she's been looking for a partner recently." I frowned. Stella Vance. My sworn enemy since kindergarten. On the day of my engagement to Chloe, she had cursed my marriage, predicting it would end in flames. I didn't expect her to be a prophet. Time was tight. I sighed. "Fine. It's her. Ask her if she's interested. If not, I'll figure something else out." Sarah didn't hesitate. "No need to ask. She'll agree." "What?" Before I could question her further, a crowd surrounded my car. "You must be Chloe's fiancé! So handsome!" "You're here to pick her up, right? She'll be down in a minute. You two are so sweet." I gripped the steering wheel, looking down to hide the mockery in my eyes. Chloe had introduced me to her colleagues early on. To everyone else, we were the model couple. No one could have guessed she was about to marry another man. After saying goodbye to her colleagues, Chloe got into the car and handed me a model airplane. "Ray asked me to give this to you. You embarrassed him at the funeral yesterday, so you should apologize to him when you get a chance." The model was a cheap plastic miniature, obviously a free gift with purchase. I had seen it in her online shopping cart a few days ago. "I don't want it," I said flatly. Chloe frowned. "What are you throwing a tantrum for now? You stormed into the funeral claiming I wasn't his fiancée and humiliated him. He didn't even hold a grudge and got you a gift, and this is how you react?" The woman who used to protect me was gone. Now, she cherished someone else. Chloe rolled down the window, annoyed. After a long silence, seeing I wasn't going to comfort her, she sighed. "Fine. Today is the dress fitting. I won't hold it against you." It was the first time all year she had softened her tone. At the bridal shop, the manager greeted us enthusiastically. "Miss Lawson, the one hundred and twenty custom gowns Mr. Sterling ordered are ready for you." But Chloe wasn't looking at the dresses. She was staring at her phone, anxiety etched on her face. Noticing my gaze, she quickly put the phone away, a hint of apology in her eyes. "Liam, something came up with Ray. I have to go. Pick a dress for me, okay? I trust your taste." Without waiting for an answer, she flagged down a taxi and left me standing there alone. The manager approached cautiously. "Mr. Sterling... will you be selecting the dress yourself?" I looked away from the door and nodded. Of course, I would select a dress. Just not for Chloe. The bride had changed. I went home, expecting Chloe to stay out all night. Surprisingly, she returned before dinner. She strode over to me, holding a takeout container. "I drove across town to get this for you. Harry's Dumplings, your favorite." I opened the box. Shrimp dumplings. There were three missing. One had a bite taken out of it. Half an hour ago, I had seen Ray's Instagram story. The photo was of the exact same dumplings. Caption: "Wifey bought me late-night snacks. Love you, baby!" I put down my chopsticks, my appetite gone. "I don't want it. Throw it away." Chloe glared at me, displeasure radiating off her, but she held back. She sat down next to me, sighing. "You don't know how pitiful Ray was today. My parents went to his place demanding a dowry. He cried." "Ray just got back to the country; he doesn't have any money. I'm thinking of using my dowry to cover for him." She shook my arm, her voice taking on a wheedling tone. I looked at her, a scoff escaping my lips. "So, I have to pay the dowry for your husband?" In the past, I cared about Chloe. Whatever she asked for, I gave. Whatever she needed, I did. But she had personally woken me up from that dream. Since Ray returned, everything she did revolved around him. She had forgotten that I was the one supposed to spend the rest of my life with her. My response infuriated her. "What do you mean? You won't do it? You better realize, Ray is my best friend. You need to make him happy, or I won't marry you!" With that, she slammed the door and left. Feeling suffocated, I went downstairs for a run in the park. One lap in, my phone rang. It was Stella. Thinking of Stella's perpetual poker face, I hesitated for two seconds before answering. "Once you're on my ship, you're mine. Try to jump, and I'll break your legs!" Stella started with a threat. Classic. I stayed silent. She continued. "Send me your ID. We're getting the license." "I'm afraid you'll back out." Stella, you're weird. I imagined ten thousand scenarios where she used this marriage to torture me. Finally, I squeezed out a sentence: "See you at the wedding, Miss Vance." As soon as I hung up, Chloe appeared behind me like a ghost. "You're inviting Stella to our wedding? I forbid it!" She stared at me as if facing a mortal enemy. "Liam, haven't I told you not to associate with Stella? Her intentions aren't pure. If you invite her, don't blame me for causing a scene!" I hadn't even said a word, and she was already threatening me. Chloe had always disliked Stella. It was an inexplicable hostility. When we first started dating, she threw a fit because Stella and I bantered on WeChat. I eventually cut ties with Stella to appease her. And now she says... Stella's intentions aren't pure? I was about to ask what she meant when Ray suddenly leaned his head onto Chloe's shoulder. "Chloe, you're hurting me..." Only then did I notice their fingers were intertwined. Chloe coughed awkwardly but didn't let go of his hand. Ray looked at Chloe with tender eyes, then turned to me with a feigned helpless apology. "Liam, I'm sorry. Chloe and I are just rehearsing the wedding flow. Please don't mind." "I won't tell anyone you hired thugs to beat me up or that you vandalized my mother's grave. But please, don't hurt Chloe. True love is fragile." I didn't want to watch his green tea performance. I turned to leave. "Since you're so eager, I'll have someone beat you up tonight and dig up your mom's grave for real." Slap! Chloe hit me hard across the face. "Liam, how can you be so vicious?!" Her face was dark with rage, her chest heaving. Me? Vicious? She believed a stranger's slander instantly, yet five years of our relationship couldn't buy me an ounce of trust. A sudden fire ignited in my chest. I wanted to scream at her, but Ray stepped in front of her. "Liam, please. Once the wedding is over, I'll return Chloe to you." "Just show some mercy. Don't hurt the people around me, and don't hurt Chloe." He looked like he was about to kneel. Chloe hurriedly grabbed his waist to stop him, glaring at me with hatred. "Liam Sterling, stop playing your rich boy bully games!" "You know I hate that. If you still want to marry me, stop this nonsense!" She warned me not to appear in front of them again before the wedding. Surprisingly, the next day, Chloe contacted me first. She opened with a barrage of curses. "Liam, you actually dug up Mrs. Ray's grave? I didn't know you were this kind of person!" Confused, I called my assistant to investigate. What he found was shocking. Ray's mother... wasn't dead. No wonder Ray was insane enough to dig up his own mother's grave to frame me. Her death was a scam. I sent Chloe a text: "Ray's mother isn't dead. The truth is in the email I just sent you." Whether she read it or not was none of my business. The flight was booked for three days later. Stella booked it herself. When Chloe came back, she saw me packing. Half my clothes were in the trash; the rest were packed for shipping to the South City. "Why are you packing?" she asked, suspicious. "Moving," I replied curtly. She paused, not catching the subtext. "Right. Sterling HQ is in South City. We're moving there after the wedding. It makes sense to pack early." Then, she fixed me with a fierce glare. "Apologize for the grave incident ASAP. Don't make this hard for me. Do it on the wedding day. Agreed?" She tossed her phone aside and started rummaging for her ID. Today was the day she was registering her marriage to Ray. She didn't come back that night. I checked my phone. A message from Ray popped up. It was a photo in dim lighting. Chloe, wearing a maid outfit, looking at the camera. I closed my eyes, my heart stinging. I suppressed the emotion and turned off the screen. Late at night, my phone buzzed every hour. Each vibration was another provocative video from Ray of him and Chloe. Until the next morning, when Stella sent me a message. "Mr. Sterling, the flowers are blooming. You may return slowly." Attached was a photo of two red marriage certificates. And a pot of vibrant red peonies. I didn't expect her to still be keeping the flower I casually gave her years ago. A strange feeling rose in my chest. I replied with one word: "Okay." I put down the phone and organized my work files. I didn't know when Chloe had returned. She was packing a suitcase. "I'm going to stay with Ray for a few days. He can't handle the wedding prep alone. Remember to show up on time for the wedding. Don't be late." She rambled on with explanations, basically saying she was just "helping out" and warning me not to cause trouble. "Yeah, I won't go," I said, looking down. After last night, the last shred of my affection for her had vanished. Chloe looked at my calm demeanor, and a nameless panic washed over her. She hesitated. But remembering Ray's clingy pleading, she relaxed her grip on her phone. Liam loved her so much. What could go wrong? Relieved, she stopped pestering me and left my sight. I watched her leave and made a call. That evening, a helicopter landed on the plaza. A man approached. "Mr. Sterling, your helicopter has arrived. We will have you in South City in thirty minutes." I nodded and handed him a document envelope. "Deliver this to the wedding venue tomorrow. It's my wedding gift to the bride and groom." The next day, I sent Chloe a text right on time: "Happy Wedding!" At the venue, Chloe was looking around anxiously, asking her secretary, "Why hasn't Liam arrived? He promised to apologize to Ray's mother publicly today." The secretary was scrolling through the news, frowning. "I don't think he's coming. He's... busy getting married."
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