###Chapter 1
I shamelessly proposed to Victor Wellington on livestream for the 365th time.
Victor's impatient voice came through as the call connected, "Stop messing around, okay? If I say yes now, someone's going to die."
Instantly, the comments section was flooded with ridicule.
"Didn't you say you'd marry Victor after 365 days? Is this all?"
"You're harassing Victor like a lapdog every day, do you really think you’ll get a happy ending? What a joke!"
But they just didn't know how much Victor had once loved me.
When I was three, he clung to the kindergarten fence, stubbornly pressing a small yellow flower into my palm.
When I was twelve and had my first period, he ignored every stare, lifted me into his arms, ran to the infirmary, then crossed three streets to buy sanitary napkins.
When I was eighteen, I was kidnapped. He rode his motorcycle straight into the kidnappers, took multiple stab wounds and still dragged me back from the edge of a cliff.
Before he lost consciousness, his bloodied fingers gently touched my tear-streaked brow. He smiled and said, "Don't cry, Bella, I'll protect you forever."
Once, he wanted to give me the whole world and his remaining years. He even secretly wrote my name as the beneficiary in his will and insurance policy.
I thought we would love each other like this until we grew old. But then my illegitimate sister, Brielle Whitmore, appeared, and everything changed completely.
In the live stream, everyone was still laughing at my persistence, my relentless pursuit and my complete lack of dignity.
They even placed bets, would I beg Victor to marry me for the 366th time tomorrow?
But there wouldn't be a next time.
365 times—that was the deadline I gave him.
Ten days later, I would wear a white veil and become someone else's bride.
I hastily shut down the live stream, wiped away my tears and gripped a dagger in one hand, tearing off the amulet from my neck.
This amulet was something Victor got for me after I was kidnapped and I wore it for five whole years.
Uncle Sam, the old butler who had watched me grow up, was sweating profusely with anxiety.
“Miss Bella, Mr. Wellington made this amulet with his own blood after nearly losing his leg from kneeling over a thousand steps at a temple in Frostwood. You've treasured it all this time, are you really going to give it up?”
Suddenly, a gossip headline popped up on the computer screen.
Wellington Heir Books Luxury Mall, Showers His Girlfriend with Luxury Cars and Gifts
So…he completely forgot that today was our anniversary….
“I don’t want it anymore. He doesn’t want me. I don’t want him either!”
With a swift movement, the amulet shattered into pieces and my heart broke completely.
Victor and I were once the envy of everyone. I thought that after graduating from university, he would give me a grand wedding.
But in the end, it was all just a beautiful dream.
The dream is over, now it’s time to let go.
Uncle Sam’s eyes reddened and he choked out, "Alright. Then please compose yourself and prepare for your wedding with Mr. Dalton. Are you sure you don't need to tell Mr. Wellington?"
"No, Uncle. You can go and rest."
He sighed and left.
I threw the broken amulet into the trash can and finally sent a text message. [Let's break up.]
The next morning, I received his reply. [Don't act like a spoiled princess. You know I'm busy.]
Meanwhile, on Brielle's updated Instagram, she was having breakfast at the Hawthorne Sky Hotel, deliberately showing the blurred profile of the man beside her.
Seeing the man kiss away the sauce from her lips, my heart ached as if I were dying.
It all began from a rainy night more than a year ago, from a foolish act of mine.
That day, I encountered Brielle, who had been beaten black and blue by her mother. I couldn't bear it and took her back to my and Victor's home.
I was applying ointment to Brielle's wounds in the living room when the door opened.
Brielle looked up from the sofa and met the handsome man with deep-set eyes.
Victor.
That night, she sneaked into the study, climbed onto Victor's lap, but he coldly threw her out of the house.
Shortly after, Brielle rushed onto the stage at our graduation ceremony and confessed her love. Victor called her crazy and had his bodyguards kick her out.
She then bought his business trip itinerary, climbed into his hotel bed and was arrested by Victor after he called the police.
I firmly believed that my boyfriend loved me more than life itself. He also would absolutely despise a shameless illegitimate daughter like her mother.
But on the day I first proposed to him, Brielle also started a live stream, attempting suicide by cutting her wrists on camera.
"I'll never have peace if she dies. Bella, let's postpone the wedding."
After saying that, Victor turned and left.
I thought that was the only time. Little did I know, that would be the second time, the third time…
Until the 361st time, Victor told me he was on a business trip, but as soon as I turned off the live stream, I saw him in the distance, looking at new villas with Brielle.
Brielle got tired and Victor scooped her up in his arms, the movement as practiced as if he'd rehearsed it a thousand times.
Brielle wrapped her arms around his neck and shyly kissed him on the cheek, saying, “Whatever those people say, I don’t want a villa anymore. As long as you’re here, that’s more than enough for me, Victor.”
“Brielle, you’ve never received the warmth of a family since you were little. I want to give you a home.”
My blood ran cold and I collapsed to the ground, unable to get up for a long time.
It turned out that love had already shifted; a life lost was just a clumsy excuse, yet I foolishly believed it hundreds of times.
My knees were cut by the stones on the ground, bleeding profusely, but it couldn’t compare to even a fraction of the heartache.
Watching him carry her to sign the purchase contract, giving her a home, I cried alone for a long time. My entire youthful joy, my purest and most passionate love, has become a joke.
Then the phone rang. I answered and a man's exceptionally magnetic voice came through.
"Still haven't given up on that Wellington guy? This is the last time I'll propose to you. If you miss this opportunity..."
"Then I’ll marry you, Bastian!"
I bit my lip, my gaze gradually turning cold.
Victor, I am Bella Whitmore. Why would you think you still matter to me?
After a brief silence, Bastian said slowly, "Then pack your things. I'll come to marry you in half a month."
