After screaming, Susan still felt frustrated. She picked up her phone and called Natalie.


    Natalie was trapped in a nightmare, unwilling to wake up.


    But the insistent ringing of her phone jolted her eyes open.


    She shot up in bed, drenched in a cold sweat, the feeling of being alive suddenly very real.


    She clutched her head in agony. That memory was too painful.


    She could never forget the searing pain in her hands, her feet, her face—the agony of being shattered. It was unbearable.


    "Hah..." She took a deep, shuddering breath.


    She grabbed her phone from the bedside table.


    "Hello? Susan."


    Susan was crying with rage. "Natalie, Jared called to invite me to his wedding. What''s wrong with him, calling in the middle of the night? That man is so childish. I was so stupid to love him for so many years. I want to p myself, but I can''t bear to ruin this pretty face. I''ve finally seen the light."


    Hearing this, Natalie let out a low chuckle. "Susan, we could go. It would be a chance to see the look on his face."


    "Yes, that''s what I was thinking! I''ve already made arrangements to fly back for a few days. Things are going smoothly here, and your ten male models are incredible."


    Susan''s tone calmed, the furious edge gone from her voice.


    Natalie said, "Okay. I''ll go with you."


    "Perfect. Natalie, I''ll handle everything. I''ve dug up a lot of dirt. That blind fool will be thanking me with tears of gratitude by the end of it."


    "It wouldn''t be too much to give Monica, the woman he calls gentle and kind, a wedding gift, would it?"


    Susan''s voice was filled with a suppressed, thrilling excitement.


    Natalie replied, "Not at all."


    "Haha... I can''t wait!" Susan sounded ecstatic.


    Natalie gazed out the window, her brow slightly furrowed. Winter wasing, and for some people, so were tears.


    Natalieforted Susan for a few more minutes, theny down to sleep.


    This time, she slept without dreaming, and when she woke, it was already bright outside.


    The weather was dreary and foggy, typical for early winter, but she was in a good mood.


    She didn''t have to go to the office for the next few days. She already had some initial ideas for the winter collection design, and she could just as easily draw at home


    Remembering thatn''s grandmother was having surgery today, she had dinner, asked her housekeeper to prepare a gift, and drove to the hospital.


    At the hospital.


    Outside the operating room,n''s tall figure leaned against the wall, hands hanging loosely at his sides. He was exceptionally handsome, his lips pressed into a thin line his gaze as deep as the ocean. He exuded an air


    of defiance.


    Hecked the innocent brightness of an eighteen-year-old; instead, life had honed a sharp edge to him.


    Natalie walked over with a smile. n."


    "Yes. Herbert told me your grandmother was having surgery today, so I came to see


    how things were going."


    Natalie smiled as she approached him.


    "Thank you!" He was happy she hade.


    Natalie smiled. "Come on, let''s wait in her room. The surgery will take seven or eight hours. It''s tiring and cold to stand out here."


    "Besides, after the surgery, your grandmother will be taken directly to a sterile recovery room, not brought out this way. They''ll notify us in her room when it''s over."