“I’m warning you,” Ethan said coldly, “Even if you marry me, everything in the Sharp Family will still be decided by Chloe! Whether you’re at home or outside, you are never allowed to talk back to her! Right now—get on your knees and apologize to her!”
I stared at him, utterly incredulous. “Are you out of your mind? What do you mean I hurt her hand? She was the one who cut in line and then she deliberately grabbed my injured arm! And now you want me to kneel and apologize to her? Keep dreaming!”
Immediately, Chloe raised her right hand and waved it pitifully in front of him. “Look, Ethan, it’s all red! She hit me! Who knows how she’ll bully me in the future if you really marry her…”
Just then, a wave of sharp pain shot through my arm—it was getting worse, even starting to go numb.
I shoved her away and snapped, “I’m warning you—let me in now! If anything happens to my hand, not even ten Sharp families could afford the consequences!”
That line instantly caused an uproar around us.
“Who does she think she is? What a tone!”
“Everyone knows how powerful the Sharp Family is in Dominia—she must be insane!”
“The Sharp Family could crush a nobody like her with just a finger!”
Chloe suddenly snapped out of it and jabbed a finger at me.
“Quit pretending! I know your mother practically threw herself at the Sharp Family’s bodyguard just to get a chance to see Dad, all so she could beg for this marriage! Who knows what lies she told him, but somehow he actually agreed to let you marry into our family! Hmph! Like mother, like daughter. Your mom’s shameless and clearly—you’re no better!”
My mother?
A deafening roar went off in my head.
My mother was the daughter of the former richest man in the country. Their family business once ranked among the top nationwide.
Even though she later devoted herself entirely to scientific research and our family’s fortune had dwindled, we still lived more than comfortably. She was dignified, principled—nothing like the slander Chloe was spouting.
And more importantly—she didn’t know that the classified experiment I had been working on at the National Secret Research Institute had finally succeeded.
And the result of that experiment was the core technology the Sharp Group had been desperately trying to acquire.
It was because of that, Ethan’s father had begged my parents—again and again—for this engagement.
And yet, Chloe still dared to throw mud at my mother’s name.
As my mind returned from the storm of fury, I slowly reached up and removed the insignia pinned to the back of my jacket.
Then, without a second of hesitation, I slapped Chloe hard across the face.
“You love your big brother so much, right?” I said coldly. “Fine. I’ll leave him to you. This engagement is off!”
Seeing Chloe get slapped, Ethan lunged forward and grabbed my injured arm—his grip so tight that it felt like he was trying to lift me off the ground.
“She’s the woman I’ve protected my whole life. Do you think you can lay a hand on her?”
Then he turned to the men in black behind him and barked, “Break her hand.”
Chloe, clutching her face, finally snapped back into the scene and wailed through her tears,
“Do you think my brother wants to marry you? How dare you hit me!”
The wound on my arm suddenly tore open again. The pain was so sharp and I screamed. “Let go!”
In the struggle, my pin fell from my jacket and hit the floor.
The moment Chloe spotted it, she stepped on it without hesitation, grinding it beneath her heel.
As she did, she looked down at me mockingly.
“What is this cheap-looking thing? Why would anyone still wear such a tacky pin?”
My chest tightened violently.
That wasn’t just any pin—it was one of the official item of the National Secret Research Institute.
How dare she?
Fury surged through me. I wrenched myself out of Ethan’s grip and threw myself at her, ignoring the pain, grabbing the badge back from beneath her foot.
Chloe laughed wildly, clearly enjoying the sight.
“Look at her, Ethan, she’s crawling around like a dog! Why would you still marry a woman like this?”
With disgust in his eyes, Ethan looked down at me, who was kneeling on the cold floor and clinging tightly to the badge,
He raised his foot and kicked me hard.
“If Dad hadn’t been blinded by that seductress of a mother of hers, I would’ve never agreed to marry her!”
