Ethan Shaw had died.

Before the funeral, his wife, Stella Walker, packed his belongings and found a thick photo album.

[My True Love]

On the cover, it said—

She opened it.

The photos inside were not of her.

They were Rachel Chester—the girl Ethan had adopted years ago.

Not only that, Ethan left all his wealth to her.

Stella died with hate in her heart.

When she opened her eyes again, she had returned to the night before she married Ethan.

This time, she chose to live for herself and walked away from Ethan to pursue her own dream.

What she did not expect was that, in this life, Ethan went mad looking for her when she left. He searched for her everywhere.

Ethan Shaw had died.

Before the funeral, his wife, Stella Walker, packed his belongings and found a thick photo album.

On the cover, it said, [My True Love.]

She opened it.

The photos inside were not of her.

They were Rachel Chester, the girl Ethan had adopted years ago.

Stella had always believed that Ethan saw Rachel only as his adopted daughter.

However, every picture is filled with deep romantic love—Rachel was smiling, sleeping, crying.

Under a photo of Rachel in a wedding dress, Ethan had written a line.

[I would rather make do with it if I can't marry the one I love.]

After reading the secrets her husband had kept for so many years, Stella's face turned pale.

After 20 years of marriage, Stella was just nothing but an unwanted alternative.

The funeral began soon after.

People tried to comfort her.

"I'm sorry for your loss. Just take the inheritance and live well."

"Yes, even though there are some problems with the medicine produced by Ethan's company and he must pay a large sum, he still has enough money. You won't need to worry about your life."

Just as they finished speaking, a lawyer stood up.

"Mr. Shaw decided to leave all his money and property to Ms. Rachel Chester before he passed away."

The room went silent.

Then, someone burst in.

"Who's going to pay for our medical expenses then?"

The families of the medicine accident victims stormed in.

"She's that bastard, Ethan Shaw's wife! If we can't get our compensation, kill her to repay! An eye for an eye!"

They rushed at her.

A sharp knife stabbed into Stella's chest.

She fell.

Before she died, she saw Ethan's cold face in the funeral photo.

She slowly closed her eyes.

'I would never marry you if I could ever live again—'

When Stella opened her eyes again, she was in a messy bed sheet.

Before she could react, she heard a cold voice, "I've called our parents. The wedding will happen in five days. Are you happy now?"

Stella looked up and saw Ethan.

He was not the fifty-something man who had died. He looked like he did in his early thirties—young and full of life.

She realized she had gone back to the days before she married Ethan.

Their families had arranged the marriage when they were kids… but Ethan never liked her.

He kept delaying the wedding, and she became Harbouria's laughingstock.

One day, Ethan got drunk. Stella ran into him by accident, and they ended up sleeping together.

Ethan always believed she had planned it. He hated her even more.

Still, he took responsibility and married her.

After marriage, Ethan treated her coldly.

Still, Stella gave him everything.

She gave Ethan all the Walkers' assets when he needed money. She quit her job and stayed home because Ethan did not like her to leave the house. She even walked silently in their house because Ethan wanted quiet.

She lived like that for over 10 years, but she barely got a few rare smiles in return.

Stella once thought he was just not good at showing emotion.

At last, she knew—he had given all his love to someone else.

Memories crawled over her heart, biting her piece by piece.

She forced herself to calm down and looked at the man in front of her.

"You don't need to take responsibility," she said calmly. "Let's cancel the engagement."

She would not waste her life on a man who never loved her this time.

Ethan only gave a cold laugh. "Are you playing hard to get again?"

Stella froze.

She remembered how much she had loved him back then.

She had threatened to cancel the engagement many times, but his parents always talked her out of it.

So Ethan never believed she would leave.

"I mean it—" Stella tried to explain, but Ethan turned and walked away.

He never listened to her, which was typical of him.

Stella let out a quiet breath.

It was fine. If she wanted to break off the engagement, she only needed to talk to his family.

For the time being, she had something more important to do.

She made a call.

"Professor, can I still apply for the Artemis Project at the space base?"

The professor sounded surprised and happy.

"Of course you can! You were their top pick. But as I told you, this is a top-secret project.

"You won't be able to return nor contact anyone for ten years once you enter the Northwest Research Base. Are you sure?"

Stella studied aerospace in college and ranked at the top. Her graduate work focused on critical national technology.

After her graduation, the space base offered her a spot. It was her dream.

In her past life, she gave it up to marry Ethan. She would definitely pursue her dream this time.

"I am sure."

The professor was thrilled.

"Great! The project starts soon. You will leave in five days. Say your best wishes to your family right away."

Stella had no family to say goodbye to.

Her parents died when she was 15. Ever since then, she had been on her own.

She called Ethan's parents and told them she wanted to call off the engagement.

After hanging up, she headed to the auction house.

Stella's mother had been a famous ceramic artist. Since her mother passed away, Stella had been collecting her mother's pieces as keepsakes.

There was one piece named 'Love'. Her mother made it while pregnant with her. Stella had been searching for it for years.

She was lucky. Just before leaving for the Northwest Research Base, the piece came up for auction.

However, when she arrived, she saw Ethan and Rachel there too.

The moment Ethan saw her, his tone turned cold. "Stella, have you made enough of a scene?"

"What?" She blinked, entirely confused.

His face showed even more impatience.

"You called my parents to break off the engagement. Was it because the wedding felt too rushed? Fine. I increased the wedding budget tenfold. Are you happy now?"

Stella finally understood—they still did not believe she was serious about ending things.

"You misunderstood. I really wanted—"

Before she could finish, Ethan cut her off again, "Enough is enough, Stella."

Looking at the cold expression on his face, Stella no longer wanted to explain herself.

The wedding was in five days. Once he saw no bride at the altar, he would understand she meant it.

The auction started.

Ethan leaned closer to Rachel and said gently, "Your birthday is around the corner. Tell me what you like, and I will buy it for you."

Rachel clutched the hem of her sleeve and shook her head. "Uncle Ethan, raising me was already a huge favor. Everything here is too expensive. I don't deserve anything—"

"Don't mention it." Ethan frowned. "You deserve the best in the world."

12 years ago, Rachel's father had died saving Ethan. Since then, Ethan had taken her in.

She had been 10. He was 21.

The little girl had grown into a beautiful young woman.

Watching Ethan gaze at Rachel with soft eyes, Stella suddenly realized how blind she had been in her past life. She never realized how much he loved Rachel.

The host's voice rang out, "Next up is a well-known porcelain piece: Love!"

A snow-white sculpture was carried onto the stage—a mother elephant wrapping her trunk around her baby.

Rachel suddenly looked up.

Ethan noticed right away.

"You like this one?"

Rachel blushed and replied, "Yes... it reminds me of my mom."

At that moment, Stella raised her number. "1 million dollars."

She offered double the market price. She had to get her mother's final piece.

Just then, Ethan followed suit and offered his bid price.

"2 million dollars."

Stella glared at him sharply.

Ethan stayed calm and said, "Rachel likes it."

Anger flashed in Stella's eyes.

"That is my mother's last piece!"

Ethan froze and finally noticed the artist's name. His hand lowered on instinct.

Rachel's voice broke in, soft and trembling, "It's okay, Uncle Ethan. I never deserved something so nice anyway…"

Her eyes turned red. Ethan's chest tightened.

Without a second thought, he turned to the staff.

"I'll outbid anyone for it."

No matter how high someone else bid, Ethan would raise his bid by 100 thousand dollars.

He did not care about the cost; he had to bid the piece.

Stella's face turned pale entirely. "Ethan," she said, voice trembling. "Do you really have to do this? I never asked you for anything—not once in all these years. But just this once... I am begging you. Please let me have my mother's final piece."

Her mother had mentioned this porcelain sculpture many times. It was the one she had always wanted Stella to find.

Ethan calmly replied, "Sorry. Rachel rarely wants anything."

Stella slowly lowered her bidding paddle.

Her parents had left her a large inheritance, but her cash on hand could not compete with Ethan's.

In the end, Ethan won the piece and gave it to Rachel.

"Thank you, Uncle Ethan! I love it so much!"

Rachel smiled as she took the sculpture—then suddenly lost her grip.

Crash!

The porcelain hit the floor and shattered.

Stella's eyes turned red. She gathered the pieces and took them home, gently trying to piece them back together.

She had only managed to form a rough shape when a maid walked over.

"Ms. Walker, Ms. Chester is outside. She knelt at the gate asking to apologize. She refuses to get up unless you forgive her."

Stella did not even look up. "Tell her I won't be seeing her."

A while later, rain poured down from the sky.

Ethan stormed into the Walker Villa, face dark with fury.

"Stella, you've gone too far!"

The ice-cold man had hot anger burning in his eyes.

"Rachel has been kneeling outside in the rain for an hour! Is it that hard for you to forgive her?"

Stella's hands paused over the broken pieces.

"She chose to kneel," her voice was calm. "She destroyed my mother's work. Why should I be the one to comfort her?"

"You—!"

Ethan was shaking with rage when his assistant suddenly ran in.

"Mr. Shaw! Bad news—Ms. Chester fainted!"

"What?" Ethan's expression changed completely.

His anger exploded as he saw Stella still piecing the porcelain back together calmly. He swiped the nearly restored sculpture off the table.

Crash!

"You're heartless, Stella!"

He threw the words over his shoulder and rushed out the door, straight into the rain to carry Rachel into his arms.

Stella stared at the shattered pieces on the floor; they were beyond repair this time.

Her long-held tears finally fell.

She had chased after him, hoping he would look her way. Alas, all she got was a tragic death in her past life and coldness in this timeline.

Stella wiped her tears and knelt down, picking up the shards one by one.

She made up her mind to cut all ties and stop loving Ethan. Stella packed everything Ethan had ever given her and mailed it back.

He never picked any of the gifts himself. It was Ethan's parents who forced him to give them, and his assistant always handled the details.

All except for one—an heirloom pendant from the Shaws. It was too valuable. Stella planned to return that to him in person.

As she reached Rachel's hospital ward, she heard her voice through the door.

"Uncle Ethan, don't be so kind to me. I'm scared I'll get used to it. And then when you get married, I won't know how to let go."

Stella saw through the glass how tenderly Ethan looked at Rachel.

He raised his hand, almost as if he could not help wanting to hold Rachel—but he stopped himself.

He gently placed his hand on Rachel's head instead. His gaze was full of restraint.

"Don't be silly," he said softly. "Even if I get married, I'll always treat you well."

Rachel's eyes lit up—then dimmed just as quickly.

"As my uncle?" she murmured. "Once you have your own children, what will I be?"

"There won't be any," Ethan spoke without hesitation. "I won't have children with Stella."

Rachel froze. "Why?" she asked.

Ethan looked at her, eyes filled with complex emotion.

"After the wedding, I'll have Stella take long-term birth control pills every day. So we'll never have children.

"Rachel, I will always be your uncle. You'll inherit everything I have one day.

"So please, don't worry."