"Help! Mrs. Xiao pushed Miss Song down the stairs!"
A servant's shout resounded through the whole mansion. Standing at the top of the stairs, Tracey Zhao stared at Jade Song, who was lying on the floor.
Jade was bleeding, and her forehead was sweaty, but Tracey saw that there was a smug smile on her lips as well. The next moment, however, it disappeared, and Jade whined, "Tracey, why did you do this to me? It's no use. Even if I die, Weston will never love you.
How can you be so vicious? I thought we were best friends!"
"I... I didn't..." Tracy started, but as soon as she opened her mouth to explain, she was interrupted by Amy, the maid. "You are really too vicious! Miss Song is so kind to you. How could you do that? I have to tell Mr. Xiao."
Amy took out her phone, but Jade stopped her and shook her head. "No, Amy. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have come here."
"Miss Song, you are too kind," the maid said.
"It's okay. It's none of your business anyway. Just don't tell Weston what happened," Jade said.
Just at that time, Weston's cold voice came from the doorway. "Don't tell me what?"
Weston Xiao was a strong, tall man, with a commanding presence. Slowly, he walked into the mansion, but when he saw Jade covered in blood, his eyes flashed with anger. He walked up to her and lifted her in his arms. "Amy, take Miss Song to the hospital," he said firmly.
In the commotion, no one noticed a blood-stained photo fall out of Jade's pocket. It fell to the floor slowly, landing in a small pool of blood.
In his arms now, Jade reached out and held onto Weston.
Her beautiful face was extremely pale, and her usually red lips were almost white. "Weston... Won't you come with me?" she asked pitifully.
"Good girl..." Weston said, kissing her gently on the forehead. "Amy, take good care of Miss Song. I have something to deal with, but I will be there as soon as possible."
"Weston, please don't be angry at Tracey. It's all my fault," Jade said, but when she saw Tracey rush toward the door, she lowered her head, trying to hide the hatred in her eyes.
She had always known how to provoke Weston's anger and direct it towards Tracey.
"Honey, you stay out of this," Weston said, his tone low and angry.
When Jade was gone, he turned around and glared at Tracey. His face was cold and merciless.
"Weston, please believe me. I had nothing to do with it."
Tracey tried to explain, but she knew her husband preferred Jade. He had been so tender with Jade just now.
But he had never been that gentle with her, even though they had been married for three years.
The moment she saw him with Jade, Tracey finally saw her husband's kind and gentle side, but she also realized that he had never shown it to her.
"I didn't push her. It was an accident."
She continued to explain, but her voice died when Weston grabbed her wrists tightly. Before she could react, her body was thrown down on the cobblestone path leading to the mansion. He leaned over and grabbed her chin, as if he wanted to crush her to pieces.
"Tracey, don't you see that you are ridiculous?" he asked. His voice was low and attractive, but it had no warmth whatsoever.
"You don't believe me," Tracey said softly. She wasn't surprised. She knew he wouldn't believe her, but she couldn't help feeling heartbroken.
"Believe you?" The cold aura that emitted from the man as he spoke was frightening. He continued, "You want me to believe... that Jade threw herself down the stairs just to frame you?"
"Yes..." Tracey said and nodded. She was under the false impression that he finally saw that she was telling the truth, but the next moment, she felt a hard slap on her face. She covered her burning cheek with her hand. "Why would she do that?" he asked.
Stunned, Tracey wondered the same thing herself.
Jade had always been Weston's favorite, so why would she feel the need to do this to her?
For a moment, Tracey even questioned her own memory and her own sanity.
"Weston, we've been married for three years. I thought you would at least trust me a bit..."
The next second, Weston grabbed her hair and pressed her head down onto the ground. In front of her, there were blood stains. "Look at it! That's Jade's blood. And she even defended you! And you, what have you done? Aren't you her best friend?
How can you say that she would risk her life just to hurt you?"
Tracey was overwhelmed by the smell of blood and the pain in her scalp. Still, her heart seemed to hurt more than her body.
Then, a chill ran from the soles of her feet to the top of her head.
"If anything happens to Jade, your whole family will pay for it," Weston threatened.
Tracey still tried to explain, "No, please. Jade's injury had nothing to do with me. Why don't you believe me?" Weston didn't reply. Instead, he pulled her hair even stronger and then brought her head down towards the ground. Tracey's head hit the hard ground paved with cobblestones, again and again.
Her forehead was bleeding, and she could feel the hot stream of blood run down her face and into the corner of her mouth. The smell of blood was everywhere, and she didn't even know whose blood it was anymore. Soon, the world slowly started fading to black, but before she lost consciousness, she could see the menacing smile on Weston's face.
"Mr. Xiao, please stop. If you don't stop, she will die," Henry, the old housekeeper, intervened. He couldn't watch Weston hurt Tracey so anymore.
He stepped forward and pulled Weston off her. Weston stopped and looked at Tracey, lying in her own blood, his eyes holding something inscrutable.
"Mr. Xiao, Mrs. Xiao really isn't a bad person," Henry said, trying to appease Weston. In his opinion, Tracey was a kind, lovely woman, while Jade was much, much different.
"How dare you defend her! I know very well what kind of person she is," Weston said, his words and expression dripping with disgust.
"Mr. Xiao..."
"That's enough." With that, Weston gave Tracey another disgusted look and went back into the mansion. He washed his hands and changed into clean clothes.
Then he came downstairs, where Henry was just about to call an ambulance.
"Don't call an ambulance. Just let her lie there," he ordered.
"But... Mr. Xiao, it's raining outside," Henry said, trying to somehow get Weston to allow him to get help for Tracey. He couldn't bear seeing her lying like that.
However, Weston said simply, "Maybe it will wake her up. Anyway, no one is allowed to help Tracey until we are sure that Jade is fine."
"Mr. Xiao..."
Henry wanted to say something, but he was interrupted when Weston noticed the photo lying on the floor.
It made Weston even angrier. "Henry, look at this photo. This is her true face."
Weston turned around and left. He couldn't stand to look at that woman for a second longer.
In the photo, there were a man and a woman. Blood had soaked the photo so much that the woman was unrecognizable, but Weston knew immediately who the man was.
It was his older brother, William Xiao.
Tracy had dated William before she married Weston, but he hadn't expected her to keep photos of them together even after three years.
Thinking about this, he tightened his grip on the steering wheel and slammed the gas pedal. He was on the way to the hospital.
The night had fallen, and with it, the rain.
Sharp pain finally stirred Tracey awake, but when she opened her eyes, she had no way of knowing how much time had passed. Someone close to her asked, "Mrs. Xiao, are you awake?"
"Henry..." Tracey managed to say, her voice terribly hoarse.
"Don't move," Henry said. They were at the hospital, but Henry was only allowed to bring her there after it was confirmed that Jade was safe. Those were Weston's orders, and he didn't dare defy him.
At that point, Tracey had been unconscious the whole night.
"Where is he?" she asked, disappointed that she didn't see Weston.
"Mr. Xiao is busy. He has been..." Henry sighed, trying to hide the truth.
"Busy? He is with Jade, isn't he?" Tracey sneered.
Henry didn't answer, but he didn't need to. Tracey slowly turned her head to look at the bedside table, hoping to get some water, but on it, there were some documents instead. On the first page, it said "Divorce Agreement."
'He wants a divorce?'
All the pain in her body was nothing compared to the pain in her heart. She gripped the papers tightly, her eyes filling with tears. "I want to see him," she yelled.
"Mrs. Xiao..."
Henry tried to calm her down, but she wasn't listening to him. She quickly got out of bed, and after asking several nurses, she found out that Jade was still in hospital and she would be discharged today. She ran out immediately, her bare feet freezing on the cold marble floor of the corridor.
"Weston!"
She yelled when she finally saw him. "What is this?"
"Miss Zhao, don't you understand?" He looked at her with a smirk and said, word by word, "I want a divorce."
"No. Please. Trust me. I didn't push her. I'll prove it..." she pleaded, but the disgust in his eyes made her retreat.
Finally, she smiled sadly and said, "Even after so many years, you still don't believe me."
"Does it matter?" he asked, raising his eyebrow.
At first, Tracey was stunned by his question, but then, she had to admit he was right.
It didn't even matter if she had really pushed Jade or not.
From the beginning, Weston had only ever cared about Jade, and she could do nothing to change it.
Still, she gave it one last try.
"Weston, I have loved you for ten years. I have been loyal to you since the moment I saved you from the fire. I thought you would love me back some day..." She had never admitted this to him before. She had never told him that she loved him, and that she wanted him to be with her because of love, not just out of gratitude.
However, as soon as she finished, Weston sneered. "Tracey, you are even more vicious than I thought. We are a couple, and I don't want to humiliate you, but how dare you say that you were the one who saved me?
Jade still has scars on her legs from that day in order to save me. How can you be so shameless to claim that you did it?
You have three days to sign the papers. Otherwise..."
Though he didn't finish the threat, his sharp gaze was enough to make the little self-esteem Tracey still had vanish into thin air.
'He thinks Jade is the one who saved him.
That is why he is always on her side.'
"Weston, it was me who saved you. I..." she tried to explain. After all, if he had paid a little attention to her, he would have noticed the scars on her legs.
"Enough!" he interrupted her coldly. "Tracey, I'm going to marry Jade, so just sign the papers.
If you don't, I'll find another way to make you disappear."
With that, he left, slamming the door right in her face. Then, he drove away, leaving Tracey standing there, shivering and weak.
'This is what I get after ten years of loving him.
Isn't it ironic?'
The rain started falling again.
In Jade's hospital room, Weston was standing in front of the window, which was blurry with raindrops.
He was staring at the heavy rain, the glass reflecting all the emotions in his eyes.
"Weston..." Jade said gently. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," he said, trying to relax his knitted brows. He turned to look at her. "I just can't believe that Tracey is so shameless to claim that she was one who saved me all those years ago."
When she heard this, Jade's face instantly paled, but Weston didn't notice it. He was too angry.
Jade clenched the sheets with her hands and asked, "Really?"
"You still have scars on your legs from that day. That is an indelible fact. I promised to give you anything you want in return, and so I will."
"Weston..." she said, a smile flashing across her face. She knew that no matter what Tracey said, there was no way she could change Weston's opinion of her.
She sighed, putting on her innocent facade. "It's all my fault. I thought she was my best friend, so I told her everything, down to the smallest details. Maybe that's why she said it. Weston, I don't care what others say, as long as you believe me. Please forgive her this time."
"Forgive her?" Weston yelled in disbelief. Then, he took out his phone and called someone. "Inform the police of Tracey's crimes. You know what to do," he ordered.
"What about her family?" the person on the other side asked. "They know what they have to do if they still want to do business with me.
Also, inform the school. Such an immoral student doesn't deserve to graduate. I want to make her life in H City miserable from now on."
After giving the order, Weston hung up.
Tracey was going to pay for everything she had done to Jade.
Deep in thought, he didn't notice that Jade, who was sitting on her bed, had a smug smile on her face.
Tracey spent the next three days in a strange daze. Often, she just stared at the door for hours, as if waiting for someone to arrive.
Every night, she would have the same dream. In it, Weston was gentle and kind toward her, but every time she woke up, she had to face the cruel reality again.
She kept getting calls from her family, though. They scolded her and tried to persuade her to sign the divorce agreement as soon as possible, since their whole family was under threat.
For the three days he had given her, Weston hadn't appeared even once. It was as if he had already forgotten about her.
However, he was there when the time arrived. When he saw Tracey, he was shocked by how much weight she had lost in only three days.
"Did you come to make me sign it?" she asked, smiling.
"Or what else do you think I came here for?" he responded, looking at her coldly.
"Don't worry. I will sign it." Lost in thought, Tracey sat at the dressing table and looked at her reflection carefully.
It seemed that her three years of marriage had changed her completely. She was a different person now.
The cheerful girl had turned into an expressionless marionette.
Still, she forced a smile and looked at Weston, who was sitting on the bed. "This is the first time you have entered our room."
A single tear sliding down her cheek.
She had decorated the room herself, filling it with love and warmth, but it had seen neither of those. It was terribly ironic.
In no mood to listen to her, Weston just took out the document and threw it on the floor by her feet.
"Sign it," he ordered.
"I will sign it. But on one condition," Tracey said, delicately pointing to her wedding ring. "I don't want anything else. I only want to keep this ring." The ring was the only thing she had left from this whole marriage.
"What kind of trick are you playing?" Weston asked, his eyebrows knitting into a frown.
He had left her enough wealth in order to make her agree to the divorce. He couldn't understand why she would only want the ring, so he got suspicious.
"Why don't you want to give me the ring? Do you still love me? Is that why?" Tracey only smiled. "I just want the ring. It's not a big deal to you, is it? Or do you intend to give it to your next wife?
Even if I agree, Jade may not."
At this, Tracey stared straight into his eyes and said, "If you agree to this condition, I'll sign the papers right now."
"Fine. But remember what you said. Don't regret it," he said and immediately signed his name on the document after he changed the terms according to her request. He handed it to her impatiently, worried that she might go back on her word.
Looking at Weston's signature, she realized that the last time their two names were side by side was on their wedding day. She certainly hadn't expected it to turn out like this.
"What? Are you regretting it already?" Weston asked when he heard her sigh, thinking she had already changed her mind. He sneered, "If so, we can still sign the original copy. My offer still stands."
Not saying anything, Tracey lowered her head and signed her name, her hand trembling with each movement.
Soon, tears fell onto the paper, blurring the writing.
When she was finished, she gave Weston the document, grabbed her suitcase, and left the room.
Weston was stunned by her determination.
Also, he was taken aback by his own reaction. He had finally gotten the divorce, and with it, his freedom, but somehow, he felt empty.
"Mrs. Xiao..." Henry called when he saw her coming downstairs. "Would you like to eat something before you leave?"
"No, thanks."
She shook her head and gave him a bitter smile.
"Henry..." There were so many things she wanted to say, but in the end, she couldn't get them out. She simply said, "Take care of yourself."
And then, she dragged the suitcase to the door and opened it. However, as soon as she stepped out, she was met by police officers. They walked up to her and handcuffed her immediately, without saying anything.
"Sir, I think there has been some mistake," Henry tried to explain, but Tracey stopped him.
She looked back at Weston, who was standing on the steps with a hard expression on his face, but she didn't cry. She had no more tears. Her heart and her tears were left on the paper she had just signed.
So she simply turned toward Henry and said, "Don't you understand? Mr. Xiao has arranged this."
'He is taking revenge on me.
He is going to destroy me.'
"Mr. Xiao?" Henry asked in disbelief.
"That's right," Weston admitted, looking at the scene in front of him. "Tracey, you shouldn't have pretended you were the one who saved me."
"Pretended?" Tracey asked, staring at him with her eyes wide. "Weston, do you trust Jade so much? What are you going to do when you realize she is the one who has been lying to you?
I have loved you for ten years, but now, after suffering this kind of humiliation, I regret ever stepping into that fire to save you. I should have just let you die," she said, first bursting into laughter, and then into tears. She couldn't control her emotions at all.
"Weston, when the truth comes out, you will kneel before me and beg me for forgiveness. But I won't forget what you did to me today. I will pay you back a thousand times."
Still, even though she was saying this, Tracey wasn't sure whether she really wanted Weston to regret his decision or not.
Her heart was torn between love and hate.
"We shall see about that," Weston said arrogantly from his position above them all. He clearly hadn't taken Tracey seriously. "But, Miss Zhao, you better worry about yourself. You could stay in prison for a long, long time."
At this, the final spark of light in Tracey's eyes slowly died.
He was never going to believe her.
Weston, however, wasn't finished yet. Slowly, he walked towards her, step by step. Then, he grabbed her chin and said, "Remember what you just said. When you get out of prison, I will be waiting for your revenge."
When she heard this, Tracey raised her head and glared at him, summoning all her courage.
"My biggest mistake was saving you from that fire in the first place.
I should have let you die.
But, it's okay. You will burn in hell for what you did to me."
With that, she was done talking to him, and she was escorted to the police car. Her words, however, kept echoing in Weston's mind. When he saw the hopelessness in her eyes as she was about to get in the car, doubt crept upon him.
'Did I make a mistake?'
Weston couldn't help but think in that way. The next moment, he shook his head. It couldn't be. He had seen Jade's scars with his own eyes. They couldn't be fake.
As he thought of Jade, he decided to call her and tell her about what happened with Tracey. Jade was still defending Tracey, which only made him more sure of his decision.
Jade was a kind woman, unlike his now ex-wife.
At the trial, Weston testified, and Tracey was sentenced to one year in prison.
Since that day, Weston had never come to see her again.