It all began in a magnificent villa. The roof was covered with a thin layer of snow, and the gently floating
snowflakes made it look all the more charming and beautiful. This was the main house of the Leng
Family.
The Leng Group had been prosperous for over twenty years now. However, ever since they had lost
two of their family members in a row, they weren't as successful as they used to be. Management
became hard, and for some time they were only making enough to make sure that the company didn't
die out. Despite this, the Leng Family still remained to be one of the most powerful households in J
City.
On that snowy day, Kelley was inside the grand villa, kneeling on the ground as she wiped the marble
floors. There was no way she could use a vacuum cleaner or even a mop to clean the rooms in the
villa. The only thing she could use was this small piece of cloth. This was a task she had to do every
single week.
Almost mechanically, Kelley would rinse off the rag in a bucket of water, lift it up, wring it out, and wipe
the floor. Since it was wintertime, the water in the bucket was almost as cold as the snow outside.
During times like this, her hands grew incredibly numb. It was a lot more difficult to do tasks like this as
she could barely move her fingers from how cold they were. The only thing that was warming her up
was how much she moved her arms across the floor as she tirelessly tried to clean it.
As Kelley did this, she couldn't help but count how many rooms there were left for her to clean up. The
house was much too big and had way too many rooms. It was her intention to finish this task as soon
as possible so that she could still work part-time at a store downtown. Since it was almost Christmas,
most people were doing a lot of shopping. The more items she sold, the more money she would have
for her expenses.
An hour before noon, Kelley walked out of the villa and let out a tired sigh. Just when she was about to
walk to the nearby bus stop, a woman gingerly approached her. She was wearing a fluffy hat on her
head and had a digital camera in her hand. "Excuse me. Is this the villa of the Leng Family?" she asked
as she stood on her toes, trying to get a better look in between the grills of the gate.
"Yes," Kelley replied in a trembling voice as she rubbed her hands together to warm them. "Who are
you looking for?" A slight breeze blew, but it was enough to send a chill right down to her bone. The
thin, velvet jacket she was wearing was not enough in this kind of weather.
The woman smiled politely. "Oh, I'm a reporter from the Daily Newspaper of J City. I've heard that Mr.
Henry of the Leng Group just got engaged today. I'm here to interview him for a special segment."
Then, she paused to cast another glance inside. "Why is it so quiet in there? Isn't the engagement
ceremony being held here?"
'Mr. Henry is getting engaged today?' Kelley thought in surprise. All of a sudden, she burst into
laughter. She couldn't help but feel how silly she was for thinking that she would have a chance with a
man like him. Henry was like a god high up in the sky, whereas she was a nobody, a mundane girl who
was struggling to survive. It was impossible to think that she would ever end up with a guy like him.
It was four years ago when she had first seen and fallen in love with Henry. She had just turned
eighteen at that time. It was really nothing more than a strong infatuation as she knew in her heart that
it would never be meant to be.
Just when the reporter was about to ask why Kelley was laughing, her phone suddenly rang. After
answering the call, she started to apologize profusely, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment. When
the call ended, the reporter sighed heavily. "What bad luck! I thought that the engagement ceremony
was going to be held here. Turns out it's happening right now at the Imperial Hotel. I don't know if I'll
still be able to make it on time."
Hearing this, Kelley came back to her senses. "Well, you need to get there even if it's already a bit late.
Besides, you have a report to do! I'll even come with you if you like."
The reporter took a look at Kelley, and thought for a while. "Okay, my car is over there. Let's go!"
The Imperial Hotel was one of the most prestigious places in J City. Only the highest ranking officials or
rich businessmen could afford to stay a night there, let alone hold an event.
Kelley, however, wasn't in the mood to appreciate the magnificent hotel. All she wanted to do was catch
a glimpse of Henry.
He was the only eligible heir to the Leng Group. When he was only two years old, he had been
completely shut off from the public eye. There had been no news of him for nearly 20 years. And now,
he had suddenly reappeared, and was engaged to the daughter of the Shen Family. All of the major
media outlets came to cover his story.
After a few minutes of aimlessly wandering around, Kelley managed to find a less crowded corner. With
her back to the wall, she stood on her toes and tried to spot where Henry was. It was easy enough as
there was a crowd of people surrounding him. On top of that, it was easy enough for Kelley to
recognize his handsome face.
As usual, Henry was wearing a dark, silk suit. Even though this was a formal event, he wore his clothes
casually -- there wasn't a tie around his neck and the top two buttons of his shirt were opened, slightly
revealing his strong chest.
A faint, dismissive smile constantly played across his lips as he faced the wave of reporters, their
cameras' flashes shining brightly on his face.
Kelley was much too far away to hear a word of what he was saying. After some time, her eyes
wandered to Henry's side. There, she saw the woman who was standing closely beside him. The
woman was wearing a red dress, a flock of birds beautifully embroidered at the hem. It was Anne Shen,
the famous actress. Seeing her, Kelley couldn't help but think how beautiful she was in person.
The two of them were a perfect match. With all the guests talking nothing but praise about the engaged
couple, Kelley couldn't bear to stay any longer. She turned around angrily, intending to leave. However,
she unfortunately toppled over the potted plant beside her, and crashed down with a loud bang. Her
inconspicuous corner suddenly became the focus of the whole party.
Looking over, Henry managed to catch a glimpse of the embarrassed woman leaving in a hurry. The
faint smile on his lips slowly faded away, and a sharp coldness surfaced in his eyes.
As soon as she managed to step out of the hotel, Kelley panted hard, trying to catch her breath. Her
heart ached at the sight of Henry and Anne Shen together, but at least she got to see him again. That
day, instead of showing up for her part-time job, Kelley decided to come back to school. Even though
the school wasn't that special, it still meant a lot if she could graduate. Besides, she was already a
senior, and would graduate from the university in June next year.
After returning to the dormitory, Kelley fell on the bed tiredly. She pulled the thin blanket over her to
warm up her shivering body. There was nothing she could use to warm up her cold heart, however. Out
of nowhere, Kelley started laughing to herself bitterly. 'Is there anyone else in this world who's more
ridiculous than I am right now?' she thought to herself. Tears started to roll down her eyes as she
relentlessly bit on her lower lip.
The year Henry was born, his father and only brother had died. Feeling helpless, the matron of the
Leng Family went to a fortune teller to seek for any sort of help. The fortune teller then said that the
child's life was much too hard, and so his brother and father had to be implicated. If they did not want
any of the other family members to suffer, he needed to be married to a girl who had a hard life as well.
More than a year later, an earthquake occurred in a small village in a hidden mountain area of H
Country. All the people in the village died except for a newborn baby girl. The fortune teller found out
about this, and predicated that this girl was the one Henry was supposed to marry. As it went, their
marriages had been arranged.
It was so ridiculous and out of this world that it was hard to believe that it didn't come out of a movie.
Ever since Kelley was a child, she was taken into the Leng Family. Not long after her arrival, Henry had
been sent away, and they never saw each other again until she turned eighteen.
That year, the matron of the Leng Family approached Kelley. "He had an examination," she explained
to Kelley, not bothering to mention Henry's name. "If he passed, he just might come back alive. But if
he failed, he will be nothing but a box of ashes. Please. Go see him for me."
Of course, Kelley knew who she was talking about and went to see him willingly. That same night,
Kelley was sent to an isolated island in the middle of the sea. Just when she was about to hop on a
boat to get closer to the island, her chaperone coughed awkwardly. "This is a restricted area," he said.
"Anyone who comes here without permission will die. Go by yourself if you will."
There was nothing else Kelley wanted more than to see what kind of person her husband-to-be was.
And so, she went. Kelley steadily rowed the boat alone. As soon as she landed on the island,
numerous guns were shooting right at her. In a moment of desperation, she tried to run away. Yet, the
people shooting at her were all strong and adept foreign men. There was no chance for her to escape.
At a crucial moment of life and death, she couldn't help shouting, "Henry, help me! Henry!"
Coincidentally, a woman in a black uniform heard her cries for help. Holding her hand up, she ordered
the men to stop shooting. Then, she walked over to Kelley, her brows raising in interest. "So you're
here for Henry," the woman barked coldly. "And who exactly are you?"
"I'm his wife," Kelley stammered, still feeling rattled from all the gunfire directed towards her. After
which, she looked closely at the blonde woman in front of her. "What is this place? Who are you?"
"I am the instructor in this training base. This is where we hone people who have the most advanced
and promising talents in the new millennia. Since you're already here, let's go see Henry's final
examination. Hopefully you'll still be able to see him alive."
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