I underwent the surgery in a remote clinic.

A proper hospital would have required a family member's signature, but I had no one.

My father lay unconscious in the ICU, and my mother had passed away ten years ago.

When the cold instruments entered my body, I was writhing in agonizing pain.

Yet, I clenched my lip tightly and didn't utter a word.

This physical pain was nothing compared to that in my heart.

My baby was gone.

The last bond between Wilbur and me was severed.

After the surgery, I didn't rest.

I dragged my weakened body back to the old Hayes family's mansion, which had been sealed off.

The front gate was pasted with a seal.

Several debt collectors were smoking on the steps.

Seeing me, they immediately surrounded me.

"Miss Hayes, you are back."

"You should pay the debts for your parents now."

"It is said that Mr. Chapman kicked you out. So how do you plan to pay?"

"You're attractive enough to find work at a club. You can be well paid there to pay the debts."

They said dirty words and shoved me.

I was knocked to the muddy ground.

A tearing pain surged from my abdomen, freshly operated on.

Blood ran down my thighs and stained my pale jeans red.

"Damn, why's she bleeding?"

"Let's hope she's okay. We don't want any trouble."

"Let's get out of here before it turns into a murder case."

The debt collectors scattered.

I curled up on the muddy ground and trembled with pain that made even breathing difficult.

The rain continued to pour.

I felt the warmth draining from my body.

My consciousness began to fade.

In my daze, a black Maybach pulled up by the roadside.

The car door opened, and polished leather shoes stepped through the mud towards me.

A black umbrella shielded me from the rain.

"Is she Wilbur's ex-wife, Alina Hayes?" The man's voice was deep, cold, and meaningful.

"Mr. Norris, she seems barely holding on," his assistant said in a low voice.

"Is she the key designer of the Hayes family's Northern Lights Initiative?"

"Yes, Mr. Norris. Although it was credited to Mr. Jeremy Hayes, Alina's father, our investigation shows that she was the actual designer."

The man, Theo Norris, crouched down, and his slender fingers lifted my chin.

His fingers were cool, with a faint scent of tobacco.

I struggled to open my eyes and met his inscrutable gaze.

There was no sympathy in his eyes, only assessment.

He seemed to be evaluating the worth of something.

"Alina." He called my name. "Do you want to survive?"

I looked at him and clutched his pant leg with the last of my strength. "Help me... I want... revenge."

He smiled faintly.

He gave a subtle yet commanding expression. "Good. As long as you have value, I'll give you the weapon for your revenge."

He took off his coat, wrapped my mud-stained body, and then lifted me into his arms.

"Let's head to the airport. We're going back to the Norris family."

Before losing consciousness completely, I heard him say to his assistant, "Wilbur foolishly discarded a treasure as if it were trash."

I spent three months in an overseas convalescent hospital.

Theo arranged for the best doctors and used the best medicine for me.

The physical wounds slowly healed, but the void inside could never be filled.

Every night, nightmares haunted me.

I dreamt of Wilbur's cold gaze, the divorce papers, and the baby who left me before even taking shape.

When I woke, my pillow was always damp.

Theo seldom visited me.

He kept busy.

As the head of the Norris Group, every second counted for him.

In the fourth month, I walked into his study with a thick stack of design blueprints in my hand.

"Mr. Norris," I said, placing the blueprints on his desk. "This is the upgraded version of the Northern Lights Initiative. I've named it the Nirvana Project."

Theo lifted his gaze from his documents.

He was expressionless, and his gold-rimmed glasses reflected a cold light.

He picked up the blueprints and flipped through a few pages.

His initially casual gaze gradually turned serious and then eventually transformed into one of admiration. "Did you make this?"

"I did."

"Did Wilbur know you had this talent?"

A self-deprecating smile tugged at my lips. "In his eyes, I was just a spendthrift who loved shopping. When I was drawing, he thought I was doodling. When I stayed up late working on plans, he assumed I was binge-watching dramas."

Theo closed the blueprints, and his gaze towards me changed.

He didn't evaluate a commodity when he looked at me. Instead, he seemed to be appreciating a rare treasure.

"Alina, you've truly surprised me."

He stood up and walked to the large window, where the bustling nightscape of the city unfolded outside.

"The Norris Group is currently expanding into the domestic market, is just in need of a good project. So I'll take the Nirvana Project." He turned back and extended his hand to me. "Welcome to join the Norris Group as the director."

I shook hands with him. "Thank you, Mr. Norris. But I have a condition."

"Go ahead."

"Three years from now, I want to return to my native country as the Norris Group's representative to oversee this project."

Theo raised his eyebrows. "You want to go back and humiliate Wilbur?"

"You are right."

"Wilbur is now a rising star in the domestic business field. After swallowing the Hayes Group, the market value of the Chapman Group doubled."

"So what?" I look up, my eyes blazing with the fire of hatred. "I will make him regurgitate what he swallowed with interest."

Theo smiled.

It carried a hint of indulgence this time.

"Alright. I'll give you three years. During this time, I'll teach you how to be a true hunter. Three years later, I'll go back with you. I'm curious to see Wilbur's expression when faced with his own oversight."

From that moment, I was no longer the weak woman who was easily bullied.

In my place was the decisive Director Hayes of the Norris Group.

I cut my long hair and exchanged my gentle dresses for sharp business attire and donned four-inch heels.

Like a sponge, I absorbed everything Theo taught me.

I learned business negotiations, capital operations, and mental chess games.

I worked day and night.

Only in utter exhaustion would I not think of the past.

Theo was a strict mentor and a devil. He never praised me.

If I did well, it was okay. If I did poorly, he would give me a sharp critique. "Alina, tears won't help you win in business. Don't let me see you be weak. If you want to win, you must be tougher than your opponent."

I gritted my teeth and fell and rose time and again.

The scars on me became my strongest armor.

Three years later, at the Bexwell International Airport, I walked out of the VIP passage wearing sunglasses and pushing my luggage.

Theo was next to me.

He was still dressed in a tailored black suit, his intimidating aura keeping others at a distance.

"Are you nervous?" he asked softly.

I smiled as I took off my sunglasses.

Gazing at the city that felt both familiar and strange, I said, "Mr. Norris, when I'm on the hunt, I only feel thrilled, not nervous."

Theo chuckled. "Good. It is the Chapman Group's celebration banquet this evening. Wilbur has invited a lot of influential figures in the city to celebrate acquiring the land in the southern part of the city. Our invitation has already been sent over."

I glanced at the large billboard not far away.

It was a photo of Wilbur and Nora.

They looked like a perfect match.

The headline read, "Mr. and Mrs. Chapman are in deep love."

In deep love?

I let out a cold laugh.

My fingers gripped the edge of my sunglasses tightly.

"Wilbur, I'm back. Are you ready to see me?"

At seven in the evening, It was at the seven-star restaurant under the Chapman Group.

A fleet of gleaming luxury cars converged amidst perfumed air and graceful figures.

Theo and I walked into the banquet hall hand in hand.

We immediately drew everyone's attention.

Theo was the mythic heir of a mysterious conglomerate and rarely appeared in public.

Although I looked different, I still bore Alina's face.

"Oh my God, is that Mr. Norris?"

"Who's that woman with him? She's stunning and exudes such a commanding presence."

"She looks a bit familiar."

"Isn't... isn't she Mr. Chapman's ex-wife, Alina Hayes?"

"How is it possible? Didn't Alina go bankrupt and disappear long ago?"

"I heard she died overseas. How could she show up here with Mr. Norris?"

The whispers filled the air.

The crowd parted, creating a path.

Wilbur, holding onto Nora's arm, stood at the center of the gathering, accepting congratulatory words.

Upon hearing the noise, Wilbur turned around.

The wine glass in his hand froze in mid-air at that moment.

Nora's smile faltered, and a flicker of fear crossed her eyes.

I walked step by step toward them while holding onto Theo.

My high heels clicked crisply on the marble floor, and each step echoed like a blow to their hearts.

"Mr. Chapmen, how have you been?" I greeted Wilbur with a smile.

My voice was frosty, tinged with an aloofness that seemed deliberately crafted to keep him at a distance.

Wilbur stared at me intently.

Shock, confusion, and disbelief swirled in his eyes at the same time.

"Alina?" His voice trembled.

He seemed not to believe that the dazzling woman before him was his same clueless ex-wife, who used to do nothing but revolve around him.

"It's me, Alina." I took out a business card from my handbag and handed it to him. "Let me introduce myself. I am Alina Hayes, the CEO of the Norris Group, overseeing all operations in the country. And I am the largest undisclosed shareholder in the Chapman Group now."

The hall was in an uproar.

Wilbur's face turned ashen instantly.

Nora staggered back a step and nearly fell.

"Impossible..." Wilbur murmured. "How could you be the CEO of the Norris Group? "You actually..."

"What?" I stepped closer. My smile deepened and turned colder. "I actually have died overseas? Or should I have been like a beggar at your feet?"

Wilbur tried to say something, but he couldn't utter a word.

Theo wrapped an arm around my waist and showed his relationship with me silently.

He looked at Wilbur with a mocking glint in his eyes.

"Mr. Chapman, thank you for not recognizing her worth back then. Otherwise, I wouldn't have found such a great talent."