?Chapter 1393:


    The timeline crystallized in Linda’s mind, shocking her. “That early?” she whispered, disbelief coloring her words.


    “Yes.” Ernest’s solemn nod confirmed the unsettling truth—he had carried this knowledge for some time.


    “So you really knew all along…” Linda murmured, her voice hollow as though her very essence had drained away.


    Comprehension struck her like lightning, her eyes flooding with crimson heat. “You knew all this time, and that exins everything… that’s why you never truly wanted me back then?”


    “No.” Ernest’s head moved in firm denial, his gaze unwavering. “I never harbored such thoughts. You’ve forgotten—we still nned our wedding after that incident.”


    His words knocked the breath from her lungs. Yes, that undeniable fact remained.


    Bewilderment deepened the lines on her face. “Why would you proceed with our marriage when you clearly knew about… everything?”


    Ernest measured his response, allowing silence to settle before answering with unflinching honesty. “Because I pledged to care for you throughout your life. If something lies within your desires and within my power to provide, I will not withhold it. My agreement is automatic.”


    Linda’s eyes expanded with stunned incredulity, her voice barely audible. “Just like that..? As simple as a business transaction?”


    “Yes.” Ernest inclined his head with grave certainty, not a flicker of doubt crossing his features.


    Their gazes locked in wordlessmunication, the silence between them growing heavier with each passing heartbeat.


    The atmosphere crystallized around them, time itself seeming to halt its relentless march.


    A brittleugh escaped Linda’s lips as she looked at him. “Regarding that situation, exactly how much information do you possess?”


    “Only what I’ve shared.” Ernest’s head moved in a slight negative gesture. “Nothing beyond those facts.”


    “Oh.” Linda sank backward, a crushing tide of helplessness washing over her entire being.


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    With newfound resolve, she straightened and fixed him with an unflinching stare, each word deliberately formed and precisely delivered. “Your rationality is terrifying—clinically perfect! You promised care, and care you provided—nothing more, nothing less. Even when confronted with another man’s child growing inside me, you remained utterly unmoved…”


    She drew oxygen deeply into her lungs, her gaze piercing his,den with a grief so profound it transcended mere sadness.


    “Ernest,” she whispered, her voice gaining strength with each syble, “we’ve shared more than ten years of our lives together, yet you’ve never—not for a single moment—truly loved me!”


    Her eyelids fell shut under the weight of this crushing revtion, hot tears carving glistening paths down her cheeks.


    “Linda.” Ernest extracted a tissue from his pocket and extended it toward her with steady fingers. “I will assist you through this transition. But afterward, you must forge your own path. Eric and I have both embarked on separate journeys. You also need to reconstruct a life independent of us. Don’t surrender your identity in the process.”


    “Don’t lose myself?” Linda murmured. She didn’t take the tissue Ernest offered. She didn’t even look at him. Her smile was cold. “What you really mean is, you’re scared I’ll ruin things for you. Isn’t that it?” She pressed the control on her wheelchair and rolled away without waiting for a reply.


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