Chapter 4

The next morning, the company called me in to handle Declan's rumor crisis.

Unfortunately, I ran into Nora.

Declan probably couldn’t bear to leave her alone and brought her along.

As soon as she saw me, she apologized, "Lydia, sorry about last night. I got drunk and tweeted nonsense, and Declan joined in, causing you trouble."

"I've already told him off. He only thinks of me and not you at all, such a big dummy."

"The things people say online are so harsh, calling you my stand-in. It's hilarious."

"They don't know how much I want to thank you for taking care of Declan all these years..."

She smiled sweetly at me.

I smiled back, "I'm Declan's wife. A wife taking care of her husband doesn't need thanks from outsiders."

"But you, being called the other woman last night, don’t take it to heart."

Nora's expression changed.

She glanced me up and down, suddenly fixating on my ring.

She smirked, "Lydia, you're wearing my wedding ring, you should return it to me."

She reached for my hand, and I, annoyed, swung my arm, accidentally hitting her face.

Nora suddenly swung her bag at me, the metal scraping my forehead, drawing blood.

She used so much force, it made my ears ring.

I raised my hand to hit back but someone grabbed my wrist from behind.

Declan appeared, coldly warning me, "Lydia, try touching her."

When I turned, he saw the blood on my face, paused, frowned at Nora, and asked, "Did you do this?"

Nora, with teary eyes, shook her head, "Declan, she called me the other woman and tried to hit me. I dodged, and my bag accidentally hit her. I didn’t mean it, I'm sorry!"

When she cried, Declan's heart ached.

Hearing her, Declan ruffled her hair, praising her.

"Anyone hits you, hit back. With me here, you don't need to apologize to anyone."

I suddenly envied Nora.

Actually, I'm quite the crybaby too, but the one who cared for me is gone.

Agent Fiona couldn't take it anymore and pointed at me, yelling at Declan, "This is your wife! Declan, are you blind? Holding onto a green tea witch and not letting go!"

"How is Lydia any worse than Nora?"

"Did you forget you said you wanted a child with Lydia? Did you forget you said being with Lydia felt like home?"

"Now you're hurting her like this, are you sure you won't regret it later?"

I subconsciously touched my belly.

Inside my body was a budding child.

Declan chuckled, casually glancing at me, emotionless, speaking calmly.

"Lydia, Phoebe, Cora—they all need to step aside."

Perhaps, at one time, Declan's feelings for me were fleeting and superficial. But now that Nora has returned, he's ready to love her.

I removed the ring from my finger, a ring that was never truly mine, and handed it back to Declan. His smile slowly faded.

After a brief pause, he reached out to take it.

Aunt Hazel caught my arm, glanced at my stomach, and gave me a meaningful look.

"Lydia, don't be foolish, you're already..."

Nora interrupted, grabbing the ring. She tried it on, but it was a bit tight.

Her smile stiffened slightly, and she tossed the ring into the trash.

"Forget it. Declan, don't be upset for my sake. I don't want a ring that's been worn by another woman. It's tainted."

Declan ignored her, keeping his eyes on me as he asked in a serious tone, "What’s going on with you?"

I looked at him indifferently, then turned and walked away. Declan, I’m pregnant, but you don’t need to know.

5

Declan is extremely perceptive. Aunt Hazel's hint was obvious enough; I think he can probably guess most of it.

I’ve been on medication for a long time, which isn’t good for the baby's development. This pregnancy was unexpected, and the doctor suggested I terminate it. I don’t want to be entangled with Declan because of this child.

Before the abortion, I moved out to avoid running into him and causing any trouble. Although, Declan probably... doesn’t care at all.

He didn’t come looking for me; he’s still living his life as usual.

Aunt Hazel sent me a video. It was at an auction where Declan gave Nora a lavish diamond ring; she laughed and threw herself into his arms. A perfect match.

Oh right, I almost forgot. Declan said Nora is back. Whether it's Nora or Nora's child, they all need to step aside.

It’s all fine.

6

The day before the procedure, I suddenly felt very anxious. I remembered the jade pendant my mom got for me before she passed was still in the home safe, so I planned to go get it.

When I got home, I found the entry code had been changed. Standing at my own front door, unable to get in, I suddenly felt quite pathetic.

I called Declan in anger. But the one who answered was Nora.

Her voice was smug as she laughed, "Nora, today’s my birthday. Declan insisted on taking me to watch the meteor shower, so we won’t be home tonight."

"I once told him that couples who make a wish on a shooting star will be together forever. I didn’t expect him to remember; I’m so happy."

"But I can’t give you the code. After all, we’re not home, and it’s not appropriate for someone like you to be in our house..."

I hung up immediately, opened the password lock, and entered today’s date. The door opened. The code was Nora’s birthday.

Inside, all traces of my life were erased. Our wedding photo on the TV cabinet was replaced by a photo of Declan and Nora. They looked so young. Declan was holding her, both smiling happily.

My succulents were thrown out, pots and all. My study had turned into Nora’s piano room.

I was stunned for a moment, then rushed into the bedroom and opened the wardrobe. It was filled with a line of sexy lace nightgowns, none of which were mine.

The safe was at the bottom. I pressed my fingerprint, my hands shaking, and took out all the jewelry, cash, and documents inside. But I couldn’t find the jade pendant my mom left me. It was the only thing she left me.

Nora knew that too. So she threw it away.

7

Nora has always hated me and my mom. When I was in school, my mom worked as a nanny at Declan’s house.

Nora came over with her parents, and when they first met, Declan’s parents introduced me, saying I was obedient, sensible, hardworking, and smart.

Nora pretended to be friendly, saying she wanted to be friends with me. Behind my back, she said, "So what if she studies well? Even if she gets into a good university, she’ll still work for us."

"Her mom is annoying too, always smiling. What’s a nanny so happy about? Old miser giving birth to a little miser, it’s disgusting."

When my mom picked me up from school and met Nora, she would laugh and call my mom a b*tch in English. My mom, not understanding, would praise her for being pretty and cute, even giving her homemade sweet potato snacks.

Nora would turn around and throw them in the trash, mocking my mom, saying, "It smells, even a dog wouldn’t eat it."

My mom was so flustered, her face turned red, and she couldn’t lift her head, which made everyone around laugh.

I threw down my backpack and went to pull Nora’s hair.

My mom saw me getting hit and rushed to shield me. She got kicked over by Nora’s friend, and suddenly a lot of blood flowed from her.

That day, my mom was diagnosed with uterine cancer. Those horrible cancer cells appeared silently, then quietly took my mom’s life.

That jade pendant was something my mom secretly prayed for me, bowing step by step up Ling Mountain before she died.

She said the Buddha on Ling Mountain was the most powerful one.

I held back my tears and asked her why. She smiled and said it was a secret and couldn’t tell me.

But I knew she prayed to Buddha when I was seriously ill as a child. She wished to exchange half her lifespan for my health and peace.

Later, I got better. The compassionate Buddha took my mom away.

After Nora found out, she mocked my mom, saying, "All the poor know is superstition. What’s the use of leaving garbage behind? Better to sell a kidney or liver for some money for her daughter."

8

At two in the morning, Declan came back with Nora.

As they entered, Nora clung to Declan’s neck, purring, "Declan, will you sleep with me tonight? I want to give myself to you..."

As she spoke, she leaned in to kiss him, but Declan dodged.

I sat on the sofa, watching Nora act shamelessly. Declan’s gaze landed on me.

Nora paused, turned back to see me, and smiled provocatively.

"Nora, if I’d known you were home, I would have asked Declan to come back earlier."

"We didn’t see any shooting stars tonight. He was afraid I’d be disappointed, so he insisted on taking me to set off fireworks."

"Nora, I'm sorry. If you want to blame someone, blame me, not Declan."

I had a bit of alcohol, feeling drowsy as I stood up and approached her, directly asking, "Where’s my jade pendant?"

Nora blinked guiltily, still smiling, "Are you talking about that jade pendant from the safe?"

"I accidentally broke it while packing. It didn’t seem valuable, so I threw it away."

My tears fell suddenly. A chill spread through my limbs, and my lips trembled uncontrollably.

My mind filled with the afternoon my mom died, holding me tightly and wiping away my tears repeatedly.

She told me not to be afraid, that she wouldn’t leave. She said she had already spoken to Buddha.

"As long as the jade pendant is here, so is Mom."

I threw the wine glass at Nora, the glass shattered on the marble, and shards cut her leg.

She was scared, took two steps back, and hid behind Declan, pitifully crying out, "It hurts."

I grabbed her collar, hysterically asking, "Where did you throw it? Where did you throw it?"

Declan came to stop me. I slapped him, cursing, "We haven’t divorced yet. Why did you bring her back? Why did you let her touch my things? Why!"

"Are you that desperate to sleep with her? Declan, aren’t you disgusted!"

He held me tightly, soothing my hair, overpowering my voice as he said calmly, "Nora, calm down."

"I’ll take you to find your jade pendant, okay?"

"Please stop crying. It hurts me to see you cry."

9

Nora threw away my jade pendant this morning, so it probably hasn’t been processed yet.

Declan drove me to the landfill, speeding all the way.

He rummaged through the trash with me, not caring about dirt or smell, getting mud all over his hands.

From nightfall until dawn, I found nothing.

When the sun rose, I suddenly felt utterly helpless.

The golden light pierced my eyes. I bit my lip to hold back tears, forcing myself not to cry.

An elderly couple at the landfill took pity on me and helped me search.

Finally, when I was about to give up hope, the grandma called out, "Dear, come see if this is it?"

I stood up abruptly, the world spinning, but I didn’t care. I ran over, pulling on my shoes from the trash pile.

Grandma held a sandalwood box, inside were scattered pieces of jade.

It was my jade pendant, but it was truly broken.

I should be happy, I suppose. At least I found it.

I tried to smile, but as soon as my mouth moved, tears fell in large drops.

Mom, you said as long as the jade pendant is here, you are too, right?

But now it's broken. Will you still be here?

Please don't leave me. Don't abandon me.

Declan pulled me close, attempting to comfort me, "Don't worry, I'll find someone to fix it."

I shook my head, telling him it was fine, unnecessary.

A moment later, Declan's voice hardened, almost gritting his teeth, "Nora, every time you say it’s fine, I swear I want to shake some sense into you. Can you rely on me just once? Is that too much to ask?"

I watched him quietly. His phone rang—Nora was calling.

He hesitated briefly before answering.

On the other end, Nora was sobbing, "Declan, I wanted to come and apologize to Nora properly, but I got lost, and now some guy is following me. I’m terrified..."

Declan rushed off, leaving me behind.

Just then, I received a message from the hospital, reminding me of my scheduled abortion later that day.