The Dragon's Blood Gem, a family heirloom rumored to command the respect of the underworld, was stolen after my wife's male assistant, Leo, was seen playing with it. My father, furious, locked Leo in the basement for interrogation. The next day, my wife stormed a press conference, threatening suicide to prove Leo's innocence. Her actions enraged my father so much he threatened to fire her and kick her out. In my past life, to protect my wife, Sarah, and her career, I had my bodyguards knock her out and take her away. Leo, for his arrogance, was sunk into the ocean, his body never found. When Sarah woke up, she never mentioned the incident again. We were as loving as ever, and she managed the family business diligently. But three years later, at my father's birthday banquet, she led a team of mercenaries into our home and murdered him. Then she tied me under a hydraulic press in one of our factories and crushed me into a pulp. As I lay dying, I heard Sarah say coldly: "Leo's body has never been found, so you don't deserve to leave a whole corpse either!" "Julian, you owe this to Leo. Use everything you have to be buried with him!" When I opened my eyes again, I was back at the press conference. Since she wants to live and die with Leo, I'll send them both to hell together! 1 "Sir," Uncle Chen, our butler, whispered urgently, his face grave. "The Chairman wouldn't accuse Leo of theft without reason. The Madam threatening suicide here... if this hits the news, the Group will be in the eye of the storm. The Chairman is furious. Please, go talk some sense into her." My father built the Blackwood Group from nothing in the chaotic Golden Triangle, relying on ruthlessness and an iron fist. If Sarah continued her scene in public, my father would ensure she lost everything. In my past life, I couldn't bear to see his hard work wasted and his dignity lost. Understanding Uncle Chen's hint, I had the bodyguards drag her away from the press conference. The result? My father and I died violent deaths three years later. A complete tragedy. Today, I just looked at Uncle Chen calmly. "If Sarah has made up her mind, no one can change it." Seeing me arrive, Sarah shouted, her voice ringing through the hall. "I saved Leo and his child at the border! They were victims of trafficking! How could they be thieves?" "Julian, don't try to persuade me! I saved Leo, and I will be responsible for him until the end!" Uncle Chen asked, shocked: "Madam, you are the Group's CEO. Going against the Chairman for a thief... if word gets out, the Group's reputation will be ruined in your hands! Besides, Leo confessed. Why blow this up..." Sarah stood up slowly, her back rigid. She looked at me, her gaze a mix of anger and bone-chilling cold. "Julian, your father is powerful and ruthless. Now he's framing an innocent man and forcing a confession? Can you dare say you haven't illegally detained and tortured him?" "If your family can do such unconscionable things, how can I not oppose him? I will blow this up! I will clear Leo and his child's names! I want everyone to know the darkness of the Blackwood family!" My fingers curled slightly. The memory of being crushed by the hydraulic press in my past life awakened in my soul. Deep in my mind, Sarah's bloodshot eyes overlapped with her gaze now. Looking at me with infinite hatred. I suddenly realized: She was reborn too. Uncle Chen turned pale at her words, rushing forward. "Madam, please lower your voice! If the board hears this..." Sarah hesitated. She probably remembered that with my father as Chairman, she was just a CEO without real power. In the end, she gave me a deep look and ran towards the basement. I calmly arranged for my men to handle the PR with the reporters and disperse the crowd. Only after that did I breathe a sigh of relief and enter my father's office. An hour later, I had already arranged for a lawyer to file for divorce and walked out feeling light. "Julian, cutting losses in time. You have my boldness from back in the day." Before I left, my father patted my shoulder approvingly. "The divorce papers will be ready in three days. Nothing to regret. A woman like that isn't worth keeping. I'll find you whatever kind of woman you want later." I held back the urge to cry and nodded firmly. In my past life, the Blackwood family business was destroyed. This time, I will not get involved in Sarah's mess! As soon as I walked downstairs, Uncle Chen ran up to me, panting, looking panicked, his voice trembling. "Sir, bad news! Go quickly! Since the Madam went down there, security says Leo lost control and started self-harming with broken glass in the interrogation room." "The Madam rushed to stop him and accidentally got her wrist artery slashed!" I rushed to the basement level. Leo was wailing, hugging his leg. Sarah, ignoring the wound on her wrist, was hugging him and comforting him softly. The child beside them was terrified, clutching his mother's hem, crying breathlessly. As soon as I entered, Leo looked like he'd seen a ghost. He collapsed to the floor, trembling like a sieve, scrambling backward. "Mr. Blackwood, please don't kill me! I didn't mean to hurt the Madam! If you must punish someone, punish only me! Benny is just a child, he knows nothing..." He shrank into Sarah's arms, acting like he didn't deserve to live. Sarah helped Leo up, glaring at me like an enemy, gritting her teeth: "Julian, what right do you have to kill him? It's not your place to judge him!" Leo cried so hard he could barely speak. "Sarah, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have put you in a difficult position... Please don't blame Mr. Blackwood!" Sarah held Leo's hand back tightly, her voice deep. "You did nothing wrong. You are innocent. The ones at fault are those heartless people!" "Julian, when I brought them back, I said I would ensure their safety for the rest of their lives. It had nothing to do with romance. No one could bully them." "Now, out of jealousy and hate, you and your father pour dirty water on them and want them dead. You are truly vicious!" "You stand at the top of the food chain, high and mighty, ignoring rules, treating human life like grass. Heaven will not tolerate this!" 2 Before I could say a word, Sarah had already decided I framed Leo. She didn't give me a chance to explain. The humiliation and tolerance I endured over the past two years burned in my chest. I couldn't help but smirk. "CEO Sarah is so aggressive now. You really have the bearing of the head of the Blackwood family." Sarah ignored her bleeding wrist and stood up straight. "Julian, do you think I, Sarah Vance, would bow to anyone? Marrying into your family was just going with the flow. Even without you, without the Blackwood family, I can carve out my own place in this industry!" When she said this, her eyes were cold and incomparably arrogant. I suddenly realized that after my death in the past life, she must have held real power in the Blackwood family for a long time. But I don't know what happened later that caused her to be reborn too. "Worthy of CEO Sarah. Indeed courageous and ambitious." Sarcastic words slipped out, but she just raised an eyebrow slightly. At this moment, Leo suddenly turned pale and sprayed a mouthful of blood onto Benny. Sarah's face changed instantly. Ignoring her own wound, she hugged Leo tightly. "Leo, don't scare me! Hold on, I'm taking you to the hospital right now!" Leo turned his head, blood still at the corner of his mouth, his tone mournful: "Don't worry about me, Sarah. You gave me a second life. Living until today is enough..." Sarah interrupted him directly. "Don't talk nonsense! As long as I'm here, you'll be fine!" I had enough of these two showing off their love in front of me. I turned and left the basement, not wanting to look at them again. But that night, Sarah forcibly moved Leo and his son into the Blackwood villa. A dozen medical experts were hired. They transformed a room into a professional medical bay. Medicine and equipment were sent in like they were free. I asked my assistant to investigate. He came back to report: "Uncle Chen said the Madam swore an oath on her father's ashes to prove Leo's innocence. She also used all her shares in the Group as collateral." "Sir, you know the Madam's father was kind to the Chairman back in the day. That's why the Chairman turned a blind eye and let them go for now." The next evening, I was sitting on the balcony reading. The door was suddenly pushed open, and Sarah barged in. Behind her, several nurses carefully supported Leo and Benny as they walked in. Anger flared in my heart. "CEO Sarah, I remember this is my home, not your private club. I didn't authorize you to bring any outsiders in." Sarah stood still, hands in pockets, staring at me sternly: "Leo has been ostracized and bullied because he has no status. Now, announce immediately that you are becoming sworn brothers with him." I stared at her and sneered. "I am the only heir to the Blackwood Group. You want me to become sworn brothers with a stranger? Trying to use my name to give him a share of the inheritance? You should ask my father if he wants a surprise son!" Leo was wearing haute couture today, looking noble, not out of place at all. But as soon as he sat down, he lowered his head and choked up uncontrollably: "Mr. Blackwood, don't mock me... I don't want anything. Status is just a fantasy to me. I'm willing to be the humblest security guard, just please don't drive me away..." Before Sarah could speak, Leo stood up and took the child's hand: "Forget it, CEO Sarah. It's natural for Mr. Blackwood to refuse. Benny, let's go. Don't trouble people anymore." Benny pouted, tears falling pat, pat. "Daddy, don't go. I like it here. I want to be with Mommy forever!" Leo looked sad, lowering his head to comfort Benny: "This isn't our home after all. It's this uncle's home. Let's go..." Sarah quickly bent down and picked up the child. "Nonsense. As long as I'm here, this is your home!" I couldn't help but sneer: "Sarah, get this straight! This is the Blackwood villa. If you want to play mommy, I won't stop you, but don't play cuckoo in my nest! Get out together while you can!" Sarah finally darkened her face. The next second, she waved her hand, and two tall, muscular bodyguards stepped forward and held me down. Then they forced me to kneel in front of them. Sarah leaned down, stepped on my shoulder, looked down at me, and ordered coldly: "Julian, what gives you the right to be arrogant? Kowtow and apologize to Leo right now!" 3 Before I could react, she stomped my head into the floor. "Sarah, are you crazy? You dare do this to me?" I screamed, tears of pain flowing uncontrollably. She didn't stop. A second kick followed immediately. Sarah laughed loudly. "Julian, don't be naive. You just have a powerful father. What do you have to be arrogant about? But now, I am the General Manager of the Blackwood Group!" "And you are just the man behind me. Men play with women and power all the time. Why do I have to be chaste just because I'm a woman? Who do you think you are? Julian, you are just a stepping stone for me, Sarah Vance." Sarah's voice was devoid of emotion. She squatted beside my ear, smiling viciously. "Do you really think you're nobler than others? In this territory of South City, what I say goes." Sarah didn't plan to give me a chance to breathe. "Let me tell you, Leo is my lover. Even if you don't recognize him as a brother, I will give him wealth and glory!" Leo put on a pitiful look, feigning refusal: "Sarah, don't say angry words. You and Mr. Blackwood are husband and wife. Why make such a scene? Mr. Blackwood, please don't take it to heart." My consciousness blurred. I spat at Sarah and cursed, "Sarah, you animal! Just wait until you're ruined!" Sarah sneered contemptuously, unconcerned. "Whatever. My father was kind to your family back then. Without the Vance family, the Blackwood family wouldn't be here today! Without you, I can still be top of the industry!" Sarah kicked me away, turned, and held the father and son's hands. "Meeting you two, saving you, was the most correct decision I've made in my life. I won't betray your trust!" "Julian, I advise you to enjoy the last good moments of your life. For the sake of our marriage, I'll leave you a few dollars for food." With a cold sneer, she led Leo and Benny through the hall ostentatiously. Then she sent dozens of people to pack up valuables, cleaning out the house. Convoys of trucks filled with jewelry and antiques drove out of the villa gate mightily under the cover of night. I could only lie on the ground in a mess, surrounded by debris. In a trance, I remembered the night two years ago. Sarah was inspecting mines in Myanmar. She stumbled upon a dying Leo and a child at the border and brought them home. I softened and felt compassion, providing them with food and clothing, and pulling strings to get them IDs. Who knew this moment of kindness would invite a wolf into the house. Every time they cried, Sarah was convinced I treated them badly, abused them. For two years, I seemed to become the outsider in this home, and they became Sarah's "family." Maybe my mistake was insisting on marrying Sarah back then, leading to the later tragedy. My thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. My assistant stumbled in, voice trembling: "Mr. Blackwood! All the jewelry has been moved out by the Madam. She ran away with that man." I gritted my teeth and held onto the table leg. "I know. Notify my father for me. Use the emergency clause to freeze assets. Put out a city-wide warrant for Sarah and Leo." Before the assistant could nod, a burning smell came from the air vent. Smoke suddenly billowed around us. The fire doors locked automatically. The assistant shouted and ran to push the door, but it was locked from the outside. I dragged my broken body to push the windows. One, two, none would open. The assistant grabbed me, shouting, "The Madam wants to murder us..." Just as he was about to scream for help, the swaying chandelier crashed down from the ceiling, hitting him directly on the head. I stumbled over, but the heat wave burned my arm. My face stung. Sarah wanted to cut off my escape completely to buy time for her defection. I quickly covered my nose and mouth, gritting my teeth. "Sarah, you will die a horrible death!" I roared internally. I wanted to climb out the window, but saw a strange black box placed in front of it. A red light blinked a countdown. Three minutes. It was a bomb! Fear wrapped around me instantly. I felt my scalp tingle. But in this critical moment, an explosion drowned out all thought... BOOM! 4 The blast wave knocked me over. I instinctively covered my ears. Intense pain shot through every limb. I tried to open my eyes. Relying on instinct, I crawled towards the corner using my elbows and knees. The room was engulfed in flames. Sarah, you're truly ruthless this round. That explosion was no accident. Fire alarms disabled. Security system down. People guarding outside to prevent rescue. I propped up my body and crawled into the bathroom inside the bedroom. Then I heard Sarah's voice suddenly ring out from the direction of the main gate, cold and suppressed, but with a hint of excitement. "Check if there are any survivors." Someone outside replied: "One man burned to death. Not sure if it's Mr. Blackwood. Everyone else ran. Only Mr. Blackwood should still be inside." Sarah didn't come in immediately. She stood by my assistant's charred body, examining it closely. A hint of secret pleasure appeared on her lips. She took out her phone and ordered calmly: "Spread the news. Julian is dead. Now, notify all bodyguards to come with me to find Old Man Blackwood." Her deputy frowned in confusion: "CEO Sarah, isn't the rescue team we arranged going in?" Sarah chuckled low, a flash of arrogance and madness in her eyes. "Rescue what? From now on, take our men and follow me to take down the entire Blackwood Group!" "But... the Chairman is powerful. Can our men beat him?" Sarah turned to him, her voice sharp: "Who said it's only our men? I've already made a deal with Myanmar. I can use their mercenaries at will." She had colluded with Myanmar forces in advance. In my past life, it was the mercenaries she hired who killed my father! Time ticked by. A few bodyguards pried open the escape door and dragged me out, half-carrying me. Ignoring the burning pain, I stumbled up and lowered my voice. "Call everyone! Go to the Group HQ to find my dad! Sarah wants to hurt him!" I pocketed the hard drive and got into the car with them, speeding towards the Group's skyscraper. As soon as I got out of the car, a group of people gathered downstairs surrounded me. The ones in front were familiar faces—elders from the Vance family branch who were in the jewelry business. "Mr. Blackwood, so many of our Vance family businesses have collapsed. Now our funds are suddenly frozen, all distribution shops are closed, hundreds of people lost their jobs. How are we supposed to live?" "Exactly. We have years of friendship. Sarah is the young mistress of the Blackwood family, practically half your kin. Can't we sit down and talk? Why make it so big..." "After all, our Vance family was kind to yours. How can you be so ungrateful? Is this how the Blackwood family burns bridges?" I swallowed the bitterness rising in my throat and said firmly: "Everyone, this isn't the time to argue about this. Sarah is leading mercenaries to storm the Group building. If you have any self-awareness, mind your own business and don't try to help her with any tricks. Otherwise, it won't just be the Blackwoods who are buried, but the Vances too!" The Vance elders froze. The crowd behind them started to commotion. "What did you say? Sarah is cooperating with Myanmar? Isn't that bringing shame to the Vance family?" "Yes! She previously proved the innocence of a thief from Myanmar. That already involves international crime!" The Vance uncles turned green and white. "That brat is crazy! Mr. Blackwood, no matter how incompetent we are, we cannot tolerate a traitor. Don't let Sarah drag the Vance family down with her. We are willing to provide government and military connections. Tell us what to do, we'll listen to you!"
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