"That's when I found out that he had a heart attack."

"How could this be?" I couldn't believe it. My dad had always been so healthy. How could he suddenly have a heart attack?

"Recently, did something happen? How could dad suddenly have a heart attack?"

"Maybe..." Goden hesitated.

"Maybe what?" I looked at Goden in surprise.

Goden remained silent, his face showing hesitation.

I couldn't help but shake him. "Come on, tell me! Maybe what?"

"Maybe... because he went bankrupt and didn't dare to tell you," he finally said.

Just then, a clear voice came from behind me.

The clicking sound of high - heeled shoes echoed in the quiet corridor.

I turned around and saw it was Aya, my best friend who had repeatedly been "busy" and couldn't accompany me to look at bridesmaid dresses.

At this moment, she was exquisitely dressed, with slightly red - dyed hair, bright red nails, and eyelashes so long that they seemed like they could stab someone. Her lipstick was a vivid shade of red, so red that it looked like a lantern.

"You..." Looking at Aya's appearance, I seemed to understand something.

She had never dressed so flamboyantly before.

Once, she was like an ugly duckling following me around. My dad was a well - known entrepreneur, while her family couldn't even afford a house.

But I had never looked down on her. Whenever I had something delicious or fun, I would always take her along.

In the past, she dressed simply. Even when I bought her a whole set of cosmetics, she only did light everyday makeup.

This was the first time I saw her like this.

Once, I joked with her, "Aya, when I get married, I must dress you up beautifully, make you shine so brightly that everyone will realize what a beauty they've overlooked."

At that time, Aya blushed and said, "Oh, Elena, it's enough that you're beautiful."

I never thought that the first time I saw Aya with heavy makeup would be outside my father's hospital room.

"What did you say?" I furrowed my brows and looked at Aya.

"I said, my father's company went bankrupt!" Aya enunciated each word slowly, her eyes full of a haughty gleam.

I looked at the Aya in front of me as if she were a complete stranger. Her face was so familiar, yet the whole aura she exuded was so foreign.

"You..." I wanted to say something but didn't know where to start.

The scene froze for a moment.

Just then, the door of the emergency room opened, and the doctor came out.

Seeing the doctor, I ignored Aya and rushed forward immediately.

"Doctor, how's my dad?"

The doctor sighed. "He needs surgery as soon as possible. Without it, it will be very difficult for him to survive the day."

I felt as if struck by lightning.

"Then... let's do the surgery right away."

"Let's do the surgery, doctor! What are we waiting for? Hurry up!"

The doctor looked at me with a difficult expression.

"This surgery is very expensive, and the success rate isn't high."

"If you've made up your mind, go pay the fee first. The patient can hold on for a while."

"Money is not a problem, doctor. Please do the surgery quickly. Use the best of everything!"

I rummaged through my bag in a panic for my bank card.

"Money is not an issue. I'll go pay. Please arrange the surgery right away, doctor."

Suddenly, a scornful laugh came from behind me.

"Money is not a problem? Emelia, do you still think you're that rich young lady?"

I was shocked, and my body went rigid as I turned around. "What?"

Aya clicked her high - heels a few steps forward and jabbed her long fingertip into my chest. "I said, Wandon went bankrupt. Are you deaf, Emelia? Have you been a rich young lady for so long that you can't even understand simple words?"

"That's impossible..." I looked at Goden, who hadn't said a word since Aya showed up.

"Goden, is what she said true?"

Goden mumbled, "It's true.Your father went bankrupt, and all his assets have been frozen."

I still couldn't believe it and ran towards the payment counter.

I could only hear Aya's voice floating faintly from behind.

"Idiot. I don't believe you can swipe even a penny."

At the payment counter.

The aunt behind me urged me several times. "Young lady, if you're not going to pay, move aside. We're all in a hurry to save lives."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'll pay, I'll pay."

Tears streamed down my face. The makeup I had carefully put on for trying on the wedding dress was completely smeared.

But I didn't care.

I wiped my face with my sleeve casually and continued rummaging through my bag.

I found another card in my bag and handed it to the staff at the payment counter.

"Please check. Is there enough money in this one?"

Before this, I had tried three cards, and each one had prompted insufficient funds.

The staff at the payment counter had been a bit impatient at first, but seeing my tear - stained face, they didn't have the heart to rush me and took the card.

This card held my private savings from childhood to adulthood and was the only one in my name.

The other cards were all my dad's.

He had told me several times to get more cards, but I always refused, saying that having his was enough.

But I never expected that now, none of them would work.

Finally, this card went through.

Holding the receipt, I felt a bit more at ease.

I went back upstairs to my dad's ward again.

After the rescue, my dad was stable for the time being and was moved into the ICU, waiting for the family to make the next decision.

At the door of the ward, Goden and Aya were still standing there.

When Aya saw me come back, she rolled her eyes.

"Even though Wandon's assets are frozen, you can still pay. Rich people are really different from us. What's that saying? A crafty person has more than one hideout. Right, a crafty person has more than one hideout."

"Aya, you..." I looked at Aya in disbelief. "How could you become like this?"

"Like this? What do you mean? I've always been like this."

Aya put her hands in her pockets and looked at me sideways.

"Emelia, I'm sick and tired of your arrogant attitude all the time. Now that your dad is bankrupt, you're nothing."

"Why do you still act so high - and - mighty? Who are you trying to impress?"

"Goden?"

"Aya..." When Aya mentioned Goden, I remembered the purpose of this.

I had just been to the doctor's office and asked about the surgery cost. Although there was some money in this card, it was far from enough to cover my dad's surgery expenses.

I turned to look at Goden. "Goden, didn't dad give you a start - up fund before? Give it to me to pay for dad's surgery."

I never thought Goden would refuse. First, he was my fiancé, and second, this money was the business - start fund my dad gave him for our marriage. It originally belonged to my dad.

Both publicly and privately, he should hand it over.

However, as soon as I said this, Aya burst into laughter.

"Emelia, you're really stupid. You still don't get it."

"Do you think Goden will pay for this?"

"Even now, you still haven't understood the situation."

"You're so stupid."

I turned to look at Goden, and his eyes darted around nervously.

He lowered his head, avoiding my gaze.

It was like someone had tossed my heart into a freezer, and it was growing colder by the second.

I first met Goden at a party.

He was an alumnus from my junior high school.

That day, my friends were all clamoring to make me drink. Just when I was in a tough spot, Goden stepped forward bravely.

"Hey, leave her alone! If you want to drink, drink with me!" he said, and took all those drinks for me.

To show my gratitude, I added him on whatsapp. Later, I invited him to dinner. As time went by, we got closer.

Goden's family background wasn't good.

His father passed away when he was young.

After his mother remarried, she didn't care about him anymore.

He was raised by his grandparents.

In the past two years, his grandparents passed away one after another.

Their illnesses left him with some debts.

When we met, he was working two jobs every day, struggling to pay off those debts.

But since it was usury, no matter how hard he worked, he was only paying off the interest.

It was like a drop in the ocean.

At our third meeting, I handed Goden a bank card with the exact amount of his debt on it. He took it, and seriously wrote me an IOU.

"I'll pay you back with bank - level interest," he promised.

"If it weren't for the suffocating interest of the usury, I would never take your money."

I didn't say much.

To me, that amount of money wasn't a big deal.

The dignity he helped me maintain at that party was worth far more than that.

To my surprise, a year later, Goden really paid me back, and he even included extra interest.

He smiled and said, "Consider it a principal - guaranteed financial investment."

At that moment, I felt like he was glowing.

After that, I would ask him out for dinner from time to time.

Every time we were together, he always brought me new surprises.

Sometimes, he would take me to try roadside snacks I had never tasted before, or make small handicrafts I didn't even know existed.

Being with him made me really happy. So, half a year later, we got together.

Goden was very motivated.

After we became a couple, he worked even harder.

Often, he would stay up late in the living room of our small home, typing away on his keyboard. Listening to that sound, I felt so at ease.

Since I was a child, I had never wanted for anything.

I had never had to strive so hard for something.

But watching Goden work so hard made my life feel full of sunshine.

Another half - year passed, and I took him to meet my best friend Aya and my dad,. That was the day Goden found out just how well - off my family was.