When Melanie stepped out of the city hall, she held a brand-new marriage certificate in her hand.

She stared at the paper, feeling a wave of unreality, and slowly opened it.

"Mathew Fuller?" A hint of confusion passed through Melanie's eyes.

She remembered the Fuller heir being called Matt Fuller. Why was the name different?

Noticing her doubt, the man in the driver's seat spoke with a light smile. "Matt is just my nickname. Mathew Fuller is my full legal name."

Hearing this, Melanie let the suspicion in her heart fade.

Mathew drove her to the entrance of her residential complex. "The wedding ceremony will be held in one month. Remember to attend on time, Mrs. Fuller. Here is my number. Contact me anytime if you need anything."

He casually picked up Melanie's phone and added his own contact.

Suddenly he leaned over and, without warning, pressed a quick kiss to her cheek.

Melanie's face flushed bright red. She felt irritated by his forwardness.

But the man only gave a wicked grin, leaned closer and said, "You're a married woman now. You'd better keep your distance from other men, got it?"

Before Melanie could respond, he stepped on the accelerator and sped away.

Melanie walked toward her apartment. As soon as she opened the door, she saw a familiar figure.

"Melanie, you're back?" Ethan was wearing an apron, and a whole table of dishes had been prepared.

He stepped forward as usual, wanting to pull her into an embrace.

But when Melanie remembered the scene in the office, nausea surged through her.

She quietly sidestepped his arms.

Ethan noticed something was wrong and looked at her with full concern. "What's the matter, Melanie? Are you feeling unwell?"

He reached out to touch her forehead.

His movement was so gentle that Melanie felt momentarily dazed.

It was almost as if everything she had witnessed yesterday was fake.

At that moment, Ethan mysteriously pulled a velvet box out from behind him.

He slowly opened it to reveal a simple ring. "Melanie, do you remember the surprise I promised you when I returned to the country? Even though our relationship can't be made public, you will be my one and only wife."

Ethan spoke with deep sincerity, his eyes even turning slightly moist. "Melanie, will you marry me?"

Melanie's eyes instantly reddened. Thinking of the conversation she overheard in the office, the last trace of her illusion shattered completely.

She clenched her fists tightly, suppressing the overwhelming hatred inside.

After a long silence with no answer, Ethan assumed she was too moved to speak.

"No…" Melanie had just opened her mouth when the doorbell rang.

Ethan didn't wait for her reply. He hurriedly slid the ring onto her ring finger and rushed to open the door.

"Melanie, long time no see." It was Rosalyn.

She walked in slowly, smiling brightly at Melanie.

Melanie thought of her mother's tragic death and her whole body began to tremble slightly.

"Melanie, Rosalyn just returned to the country. I wasn't comfortable letting her live alone outside, so I asked her to move in." Ethan patiently explained.

"Melanie, you won't mind, right?" Rosalyn asked cautiously.

Melanie bit her lip so hard she tasted blood. She wanted nothing more than to rush forward and tear their disguises apart.

But she couldn't.

She had no evidence yet. She couldn't alert them.

The taste of blood on her tongue brought back a shred of reason.

Through gritted teeth she forced out words. "I don't mind."

With that, she turned straight into her room and began packing.

She had to leave this place. Otherwise she feared she wouldn't be able to control herself.

She threw every gift Ethan had ever given her into the trash, taking only her own belongings and the framed photo of her mother on the bedside table.

Looking at her mother's gentle smile, she felt tears well up in her eyes. "Mom, I'm so sorry. I was too foolish. I let my enemy sleep right beside me."

She gently stroked her mother's face in the photo. "Don't worry. Your daughter will get justice for you. I will make them pay."

She whispered softly, but her gaze was filled with determination.

"Melanie, this necklace is so pretty. Can you give it to me?" At some point Rosalyn had appeared without warning.

She walked toward the necklace box on the table.

Melanie's pupils contracted sharply. "Don't touch it!"

That was the only keepsake her mother had left her!

"Melanie, I just wanted to take a look." Rosalyn said as she reached straight for the emerald necklace.

Melanie rushed over to stop her. "Rosalyn, put it down!"

Rosalyn's lips curved into a provocative smile.

The next second came a sharp "crack!"

The necklace fell to the floor and shattered into pieces!

"No!" Melanie shoved her aside. Looking at the fragments on the ground, she could no longer hold back her anger.

"Slap!" She struck Rosalyn hard across the face.

Rosalyn covered her cheek, eyes wide with shock. "Melanie, why did you hit me?"

At that moment Ethan rushed in. "What happened?"

He pulled Rosalyn protectively into his arms with deep concern.

"Ethan, Melanie doesn't like me. I only wanted to look at her necklace, but she pushed me to the floor and slapped me..."

Rosalyn's eyes filled with tears, her expression full of grievance.

Ethan's brows furrowed with anger. "Melanie, Rosalyn is your sister! How could you treat her like this? Apologize!"

Melanie ignored him completely. She carefully began picking up the pieces from the floor.

Seeing this, Ethan grew even more furious. He yanked her to her feet. "Melanie Gilbert, I said apologize! Did you hear me?"

Melanie burned with rage. "Ethan Dawson, she deliberately smashed the necklace my mother left me! You know this was the only thing my mother left behind for me! Don't you understand how important it is?"

Ethan's face showed not a trace of remorse. "It's just a necklace. Did you have to be so aggressive? Besides, Rosalyn didn't do it on purpose! How could you hit her? Apologize!"

Melanie's heart twisted painfully, yet she still refused to give in.

Ethan suddenly grabbed the framed photo of her mother from the bedside table.

"No! Ethan, what are you doing?! I'll apologize! I'm sorry!" Melanie cried out in panic, but it was already too late.

Ethan smashed the photo frame hard onto the floor.

In an instant, shards of glass flew everywhere, tearing through the picture.

It also shattered the last bit of comfort Melanie had clung to.

"Remember this! This is just a small lesson for you! If you ever dare hurt Rosalyn again, I will make you pay!" With that, Ethan scooped Rosalyn up in his arms and carried her out.

Melanie finally broke down and sobbed uncontrollably.

She cried until her whole body shook as she slowly gathered the scattered fragments.

Even as the sharp pieces cut into her fingers and blood flowed freely, she refused to stop.

"I'm sorry, Mom!" She apologized silently in her heart.

Suddenly she noticed one piece of broken jade looked unusual.

She picked it up slowly and discovered a tiny USB drive hidden inside!

Melanie's eyes widened in shock. She stopped crying and carefully inserted the drive into her computer.

After seeing the contents, she felt her breath grow short and her chest heave.

It turned out her mother's death had involved the entire Burgess family!

Including her own biological father!

Rage boiled through Melanie's veins.

Not a single one of them would be spared!

She slowly calmed herself and began to think about her next plan.

At that moment her phone rang.

It was the sales department manager.

"Melanie, come to the company right now! Do you know that the billion-dollar contract you just won? Rosalyn has been appointed as the project leader!"

"What?!"

Melanie hurried to the company.

She had spent a full year securing this deal, and it was not just for the generous bonus.

Instead, it proved her capability.

From now on, she would firmly establish herself in this industry.

She would never allow all her hard work to become someone else's stepping stone.

"Ethan, why?" Melanie burst straight into Ethan's office.

He looked at her coldly. "Because you slapped Rosalyn. Consider this contract your apology. Do you know how heartbroken Rosalyn was crying last night? As her older sister, how could you treat her that way?"

Melanie froze.

So everything was just to punish her.

Ethan truly loved Rosalyn to the extreme, unwilling to let her suffer even the slightest grievance.

Melanie felt as though a huge stone was crushing her chest, making it hard to breathe.

Seeing her silence, Ethan softened his tone. "Come on, Melanie, it's just one contract. Once you become my wife, you'll have everything you want. Rosalyn just joined the company. She needs this achievement more than you do. Be generous, alright?"

Ethan walked over, intending to take her hand, but she avoided him.

Ethan frowned, vaguely sensing something off about Melanie.

He opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off. "Fine. I'll let her have the contract. It's only fair that I get a house in return, don't you think?"

Melanie swallowed the bitterness in her heart and handed over the property purchase agreement.

Seeing that she was no longer pursuing the matter, Ethan breathed a sigh of relief.

He signed the document immediately. "Alright. Let's have dinner together tonight."

Ethan returned to his usual gentleness and lightly pinched her cheek.

Melanie gave a stiff nod and turned to leave.

Once she reached a quiet corner, Melanie took out the documents hidden inside the agreement.

One was a resignation letter.

The other was an authorization form granting access to the company's high-level confidential files.

Both documents clearly bore Ethan Dawson's signature.

A slow, cold smile curved Melanie's lips. She would make him lose everything.

"Melanie, are you okay?" Suddenly Rosalyn appeared behind her.

Melanie's heart jolted. She quickly hid all the documents.

Fortunately Rosalyn noticed nothing unusual. "Secretary Gilbert? No, wait. I should call you Assistant Gilbert now."

Melanie frowned, looking at her in confusion.

"Melanie, didn't Ethan tell you? He assigned you to be my assistant." Rosalyn asked with feigned surprise.

A wave of intense humiliation surged through Melanie, her fingertips trembling.

She never imagined Ethan would go so far as to humiliate her just to vent for Rosalyn.

"Don't worry, Melanie. You've worked by Ethan's side for so many years. I won't make things difficult for you. In one week, it's my celebration banquet. You'll be in charge of planning it."

Rosalyn's face was full of arrogance and smugness.

Melanie still needed time to gather evidence, so she had no choice but to nod.

After Rosalyn left, Melanie sent a message to Mathew. "I already obtained Ethan's authorization. Send someone to get evidence of the Dawson Group's crimes as soon as possible."

Mathew replied instantly. "Received! My dear wife!"

He added a little salute emoji.

Melanie couldn't help but chuckle softly.

For a moment, she began to doubt the rumors about him.

How could such a playful man be the violent and ruthless person people described?

When work ended, Melanie left the company.

A familiar Maybach pulled up in front of her. The window slowly rolled down. "Melanie, tonight is my welcome-back banquet. You'll come too, right?"