<
My stepsister was crying
g her ever c
eyes out, refusing to marry Hugo Edwards.
My dad, feeling sorry for this stepdaughter who shared no blood relation with him, immediately declared that he would never let her suffer.
“Nancy, you’ll marry him instead of your sister”
He said this as casually as if he were commenting on the nice weather.
Without a second thought, I replied, “Sure.”
My stepsister immediately stopped crying. Even my stepmother looked at me in shock.
Her shrewd eyes darted around, probably trying to guess if I had some hidden agenda.
Indeed, I did have other plans.
Natalie despised Hugo Edwards for being disabled. I didn’t.
Because what I valued was his family background.
Our Collins family was considered prestigious in Sea City Well, to be precise, the Collins family basked in the glory of my maternal grandparents‘ family.
with vast
wealth.
My mother’s family, the Shen family, had made their fortune during the Qing Dynasty. A century–old enterprise
Unfortunately, my mom
om was blind in love and chose my dad, a man who climbed the social ladder through marriage.
No matter how much my maternal grandparents tried to stop them, they couldn’t sever their bond.
ve birth to me and brought my dad back to her family, hanging her head in shame.
Later, my mom gave
My grandmother took pity on him and used her personal savings to support my dad in starting his business.
He leveraged my maternal grandfather’s reputation and connections to make a considerable fortune.
As his business grew, my mom saw less and less of him.
Later, when my maternal grandparents passed away, my mom inherited their family fortune.
That’s when my dad came back, sweet–talking his way into getting all the money from my mom.
He transformed himself into Sea City’s top tycoon and wanted to divorce my mom.
My mom couldn’t take it and jumped from a building, ending her life.
I was ten years old that year.
Before the seventh day of mourning for my mom had passed, my dad brought my stepmother and stepsister home.
He claimed it was to take care of me, but in reality, the two of them were having an affair. They turned a blind eye when Natalie tried to steal
my things.
If I hadn’t been so young, I would have slapped him hard for my mom, even that wouldn’t have been enough to vent my anger!
Heaven has eyes. Ever since my dad married this woman, his business took a nosedive.
Just recently, he was on the brink of declaring bankruptcy.
And now, out of nowhere, he dug up some old marriage agreement between the Shen family and the Edwards family.
4:06 PM c
He wanted his stepdaughter to marry into wealth, but she refused.
The atmosphere was tense.
After a long while, my stepmother finally spoke: “Nancy, are
are you…
serious?”
“Of course. I can also choose not to marry. Why don’t we let Natalie marry him instead!
Natalie immediately grabbed my dad’s arm, crying like a fountain.
“Daddy, I don’t want to marry Hugo Edwards!”
On our wedding night, as Hugo sat on the bed, I gently asked, “Do you need help getting up?”
The soft orange light cast on his chiseled face made him look exceptionally handsome and refined.
He glanced at me and said in a deep voice, “No need to trouble yourself.”
With that, he easily stood up and strode towards the bathroom with his long legs.
What? Wasn’t he supposed to be lame?
I curiously peeked around the doorframe into the bathroom. The man was about to take off his shirt.
Probably sensing my burning gaze, he spoke without turning around.
“Seen enough?”
My face flushed hot, and I quickly pulled back.
“Sorry, please continue!”
While he was showering, I searched again for all the gossip about Hugo Edwards.
At a previous public event, Hugo Edwards had been seen in a wheelchair. Because he usually kept a low profile with little information leaked, rumors spread about his disability.
But tonight’s Hugo Edwards could not only walk normally, he hadn’t tried to hide it from me.
Suddenly, a wild thought popped into my head: Could he be an impostor pretending to be Hugo Edwards?
Thinking this, I couldn’t help but sneak another peek through the bathroom door, squinting my eyes to see inside.
In the steam–filled bathroom, I noticed a dark purple circular birthmark on the man’s waist.
Hmm-it really was Hugo Edwards!
Suddenly, the man turned around.
Long, slender legs, a flawless V–line, and those eight–pack abs–who wouldn’t be mesmerized by that sight?
“Get out
As soon as he spoke, a large bath towel landed precisely on my head.
“Sorry!”
Now that I had confirmed his identity, I started to feel uneasy.
Seeing him naked the
the first time we met wasn’t exactly appropriate. was it?
4:06 PM
<
We were married, not strangers, right?
No, wait. We hadn’t even met before the wedding, so we were practically strangers!
The sound of water stopped, and my heart skipped a beat.
Whatever, I thought. If I die, I die. Worst case, il let him see me too!
Hugo came out wrapped in a towel, drying his hair as he walked.
Droplets of water trickled down his exposed broad shoulders.
He raised his dark eyes and asked with a frown, “Why are you still here?”
I froze for a moment, “Where should I be?”
“Mrs. Sun!”
A minute later, Mrs. Sun led me to the room next door.
“Ma’am, this will be your room from now on.
I think I finally understood where Hugo Edwards was “disabled“!
I don’t have trouble sleeping in new places. In fact, I felt more at ease here than at my family home.
I fell asleep as soon as I hit the bed and slept until dawn when Mrs. Sun knocked on the door to call me down for breakfast.
In the living room, a tall figure was leaning back in a chair, long legs crossed.
If I wasn’t mistaken, he was reading a newspaper?
it suddenly reminded me of my maternal grandfather who passed away over a decade ago. The old man loved to sit in his chair, basking in the sunlight while reading the newspaper.
Tsk, how old–fashioned.
The man suddenly turned his head, his dark eyes as deep as an ancient well.
“What are you looking at?”
I snickered, “You’re clearly a normal person, so why do you always use a wheelchair?‘
Hugo didn’t explain because he had already started to enjoy the breakfast Mrs. Sun brought over.
“Ma’am, please ent
Uh…
I felt a bit uncomfortable and smiled, asking the kind Mrs. Sun, “Mrs. Sun, you don’t need to call me ma’am in the future. It’s too formal. Just call me Nancy!”
“But
Hugo frowned unconsciously, “Mrs. Sun, just do as she says:
Just then, a black luxury car silently pulled into the courtyard, and an elderly woman with white hair stepped out.
This elderly lady was Hugo’s grandmother, whom everyone called the Old Madam.
