Lily’s painting was at the center of the art gallery, and that spot was in flames. Rain doused her clothes in water and ran in to retrieve the painting.

Unfortunately, before she could escape, a huge curio cabinet fell and crashed into her.

The sharp pain made her lose her grip on the painting. With a grunt, Rain fell to her knees. The next moment, someone charged past her and picked up the painting on the floor.

Once Joshua was sure that the painting was fine, he sighed in relief. Only then did he turn to check on his wife. “Are you okay, Rain?”

Rain said nothing. Her eyes stung, and she wondered whether it was due to the smoke or the pain in her heart.

She avoided Joshua’s touch and struggled to her feet. “I’m fine. Hold the painting tight.”

At that, Joshua shielded the painting in his arms.

Disdain flashed in Rain’s eyes. She grabbed Joshua as he coughed nonstop and left the burning art gallery. Fresh blood kept dripping down her arm, and it left behind a terrifying trail.

Rain did not know when she passed out, but she did. When she woke up, she was lying in a hospital bed. Meanwhile, Joshua was sitting by her bed with reddened eyes.

Seeing that she was conscious, he quickly leaned over and anxiously asked, “How do you feel, honey? You bled so much that I thought you were going to die.”

As he spoke, he teared up. “I’m sorry. I got you into this mess.”

Rain no longer knew how she was supposed to respond. She just felt tired.

Joshua was concerned about her and regretful of his actions, but he also never chose her over Lily.

His love for Lily was like lava. It burned so intensely that it hurt Rain as well.

If she could turn back time, she would not marry Joshua at all.

Rain kept quiet, and Joshua just assumed that she was feeling weak. So, he tucked her in before he whispered, “Rest well, honey. I’m going to check on Faye. She’s hurt too.”

“Fifth time.” Rain opened her eyes.

Joshua froze for a moment and met Rain’s calm gaze. After a while, he took a step back. “I won’t go, then. I’ll stay with you.”

Once he believed that Rain was fast asleep, he left the ward quietly.

However, she slowly opened her eyes.

Rain was hurt pretty badly. She had a fracture in her scapula and went through surgery for it. So, she needed to be hospitalized for at least a month.

As such, Joshua traveled back and forth between the hospital and their house. Most of the time, though, he spent his time with Faye on the grounds that she had no one else to care for her.

Once a person was hurt to the very core, numbness would be the only thing left. Rain said nothing and spent her time quietly recuperating.

After twenty days or so, she visited the graveyard, with her assistant pushing her wheelchair.

It was her parents’ death anniversary.

In the past, Joshua would tag along to visit her parents’ graves. But the sun was setting, and he still had not visited her today.

“Dad, Mom, I might end up being alone again.”

Rain wiped off the dust on her parents’ memorial photos with a cloth and smiled. “But I think I should be fine.”

At the very least, she would no longer feel so depressed and hurt.

She was about to leave after the visit, but Joshua finally arrived with a bouquet of fresh lilies. “Sorry, Rain. Faye suddenly had a high fever, and I was busy taking care of her. I just remembered it’s your parents’ death anniversary today. Why didn’t you say an—”

“Are you a doctor?” Rain calmly interrupted him. “What’s your relationship with her? Who are you to her?”

Joshua pursed his lips. “But she—”

Rain cut him off again. “Are you going to say that she’s Lily’s sister?”

Following a moment’s hesitation, Joshua nodded.

“But I don’t like Lily.” Rain stared at Joshua. “I don’t like her or anything related to her.

“So, why do you think I should understand your stance just because Lily is involved?

“This is the sixth time, Joshua.”

This was the sixth time Joshua had neglected her since she decided to divorce him. He had two more chances. Based on how quickly he was using up his chances, Rain had a feeling that the day of their divorce was soon approaching. She smiled.

Joshua was shocked.

With wide eyes, he stared at the moody-looking Rain. He felt like it was the first time he ever truly got to know his wife.

Gradually, disappointment filled his eyes. “You’re crossing the line, Rain!”

She just looked down in silence.

Rain had kept those words in her heart for a long time. Today, she finally gave them a voice, and she felt a strange sort of relief.

She even smiled, though her eyes were filled with anguish.

Joshua just left with a cold expression.

When he returned to his parents’ house, he was furious. “I did forget about my in-laws’ death anniversary, but I rushed over the moment I remembered it! I did make a mistake, but it’s not like she didn’t do anything wrong! She’s the one who didn’t remind me or wait for me!”

Joshua never thought Rain would interrogate him that way in the graveyard and put him on the spot.

She never did that in the past.

Of course, he knew that Rain did not like Lily. But his wife had never made a fuss because of Lily, much less become angry at him.

Yet, lately, Rain had seemingly changed. She just kept arguing with him because of Lily.

This was Rain’s second time getting angry at him.

“It’s not like there’s anything between me and Faye. Why is she constantly competing with a dead person? I’ve been good to her too!”

Joshua’s expression was as dark as a thundercloud. Anna and Patrick had gotten the whole story from him. They wanted to say something but found themselves at a loss for words. They wanted to remind their son that he was supposed to remember his in-laws’ death anniversary. After all, it was an important date.

However, Joshua refused to listen to reason at this moment. He just felt like he had been wronged.

They knew that Joshua was the one in the wrong. Even so, Patrick and Anna still called Rain when they saw how sad their only son was.

“Rain, would you like to come over for dinner later? I made your favorite vegetable soup. Joshua’s here too. You can go back together once you’re done eating,” Anna offered tentatively.

After a brief pause, Rain said, “I have to get the papers for my discharge later, and I have a lot of stuff waiting for me to take care of in the company. I’m sorry, but I won’t be going over.”

Joshua’s face turned red with rage, and he threw the remote in his hand. “Then, don’t ever come here again!”

He was throwing a tantrum, but Anna knew that eight years of marriage had whittled away all of Rain’s love and patience. She was truly going to give up on Joshua.

Yet, Joshua had not come to realize this.

After Rain hung up, she placed the lilies in front of her parents’ graves. Joshua had thrown them into her lap before he left in a huff.

She had heard Joshua’s angry shouts during her phone call with Anna, and a dazed expression appeared on her face.

She had never made Joshua so upset before.

However, he was not the only one hurt by their relationship.

Rain was not some being made of metal and stone.

Mockery flashed in her eyes, and she wheeled herself out of the graveyard.

In the afternoon, her assistant handed her a form. “I’ve filled out your discharge paperwork, Ms. Zimmer.”

Rain hummed in reply. “Let’s go.”

Suddenly, she heard a teasing voice ahead of her. “Oh, you’re leaving? Why aren’t you staying a while longer?”

Rain looked up and saw Faye’s provocative expression.

“I heard that it’s your parents’ death anniversary today.” Faye stood a few steps away and smiled. “Sorry, Joshua forgot about it because he was taking care of me. Did it cause you to be late visiting their graves?”

At that, Rain’s expression turned cold. Her assistant, who also served as her bodyguard, stepped forward and grabbed Faye’s shoulder.

However, Rain’s good upbringing allowed her to control her anger. She stared at Faye and said coldly, “Instead of provoking me, why don’t you elevate yourself instead? You have nothing else aside from a face that’s similar to your sister’s.”

Compared to Lily, Faye was indeed a good-for-nothing. She was not as good a businesswoman as Lily, and she could not paint as well as her either. Even when she organized the art exhibition, she did it in Lily’s name.

However, useless individuals never liked being called out.

Faye’s expression turned exceptionally sour. But immediately after, she smiled and retorted maliciously, “What about you?

“You come from a good family, with wealth and a high status, but did you manage to win Joshua’s heart? As for me, all I need is to look like Lily.” She pointed at her own face.

Rain’s expression turned cold. But before she could react, Faye noticed something out of the corner of her eye and lunged forward.

Rain’s assistant kicked her, and she was instantly thrown back.

At the same time, Joshua’s enraged voice rang out not far away. “What did you do, Rain?!”

Joshua was still mad, but he remembered that Rain was supposed to be discharged today. He fought his anger and went over to the hospital, only to see Rain’s assistant kicking Faye.

He immediately threw away the roses in his hand and helped Faye up. Then, he turned around and snapped at Rain, “Rain, you’re being unreasonable!”

It had been a long time since someone pulled such a cheap trick on Rain.

She could not be bothered to argue and said, “You can call the police.”

Faye’s expression changed.

“There’s no need for that,” she hurriedly said. “Joshua, I’m sure Rain didn’t do it on purpose. I’m fine.”

She winced and put her hand on her waist before sucking in a sharp breath. From a corner Joshua could not see, she mouthed these words to Rain as a challenge, “Think he’ll trust me or you?”

Joshua’s expression was dark. He gave Rain a cold look before he turned around and supported Faye. “I’ll send you to the Outpatient Department.”

“Sorry for the trouble, Joshua.”

Before they left, Faye gave Rain the look of a victor.

However, Rain ignored her.

No matter how she provoked and insulted her, they did not compare to the hurt that Joshua inflicted on her all the time.

If Joshua had believed in her, Faye’s cheap tricks would not have worked.

Ultimately, Joshua would always be on the side where Lily was involved, even if the person in question was not Lily and only her sister.

Rain stood where she was before looking away. Her eyes landed on the roses on the floor.

The wind blew, and the roses swayed precariously on their stems, just like their crumbling marriage.

Rain silently said, “Seventh time, Joshua.”

With that, their relationship reached a completely new low point. Joshua refused to go home, and Rain stayed in her company.

While Rain had been hospitalized for a month, she had fallen behind on a lot of her work. This led to her working overtime for days.

Even if their relationship was a mess, she still had to live her life.

Suddenly, she received a message notification on her phone. It was Faye. She had sent a photo of her with Joshua.

However, she soon deleted the photo. Shortly after, Rain saw Faye posting on Twitter.

[Thanks for taking care of me even when I’m sick.]

With it was a photo of Faye lying in bed while Joshua was feeding her soup.

It looked so incredibly romantic that it was an eyesore. But no emotion appeared in Rain’s eyes because she knew that Joshua only loved Lily.

No one else would ever win his heart, including Rain herself.

Unfortunately, not long after, this belief would be shattered.

After working overtime for half a month, Rain finally finished dealing with her work. So, she visited the hospital for a checkup.

“Your recovery is going well. From today on, you’ll have to undergo physiotherapy.”

Rain pondered over the doctor’s instructions and decided to go home. After all, she could not keep staying in the company.

Besides, she had physiotherapy equipment at home. So, it would be easier for her recovery if she stayed at home.

However, the moment she opened the door, Rain froze.

At the center of the living room was her husband, whom she had not seen for a long time. He was kissing someone else.

When they heard the sound of the door opening, they turned around belatedly. Joshua’s eyes were still dilated with passion, and his gaze was unfocused.

Slowly, clarity returned to his eyes, and his face turned pale.

He shoved Faye away and felt at a loss as he stared at Rain. “...Honey.”

Rain turned tail and left.

Panic filled Joshua’s heart. He quickly caught up to her and grabbed her arm. “Honey, I can explain.”

Rain stopped, but her expression was cold. “Okay. Go on.”

With a pale face, Joshua said, “I thought Faye was Lily, and I…”

Rain took a deep breath and laughed in exasperation. She pointed at Faye. “So, if Lily were standing here today, you would’ve kissed her and even slept with her?! Do you realize that you’re married, Joshua?!”

When she saw Joshua looking everywhere but at her, Rain realized that she had been wrong.

Faye really did need just her face to win Joshua over.

She never felt so defeated before.

Even though her heart was already numb, why did it still hurt?

She no longer wanted to stay in her “house.”

Bit by bit, she pried Joshua’s hand off her arm and walked away.

However, Faye stood in her way with regret in her eyes. “I’m sorry, Rain. I just love Joshua too much and pretended to be my sister to seduce him. It’s all my fault. Don’t blame him. He did nothing wrong.”

Her words made Rain want to laugh.

She looked past Faye to stare at the pale-faced Joshua. Her sneer grew mocking. “You mistook someone else for Lily just because they look like her?”

Rain pointed at Faye again. “She’s despicable, shameless, duplicitous, and a clown who only knows how to be a cheap copy of someone else. Yet, you mistook her for Lily? I guess that’s all there is to your love for her, then.”

Her voice was frosty. “Or are you saying that Lily’s a despicable, shameless person with ulterior motives, just like her sister? Is that why you mistook her for Lily?”

In reply, Joshua charged at her and gave her a slap.

Rain’s face was whipped to the side, and she could taste blood in her mouth. Meanwhile, the panic in Joshua’s eyes had completely disappeared and was replaced with blatant hate.

His voice was as cold as ice. “Don’t talk about Lily like that!”

His gaze was sharp, as though he would kill her if she said another bad thing about Lily.

Rain shut her eyes. This was the first time Joshua had hit her, but the pain on her face could not compare to a single bit of the pain in her heart.

“Eighth time, Joshua.”