I slowly started to piece together the timeline upon recalling what William said over the phone earlier.

In my past life, Karen always used me as an excuse every time she met up with Wilbur, saying that I needed her to do something.

Sometimes she would claim that I wanted to eat eclairs from Nord Bakery and that she needed to go get them for me. Other times she would claim that I refused to eat the food she made, so she had to go out to buy food for me.

Karen would be gone for hours every time she went out. She would be out of breath, sweaty, and disheveled whenever she came back. On top of that, the things she said she would buy for me were never bought.

Her excuse would always be the same, telling me that the things I allegedly wanted were sold out in the store. She would claim she was late because she ran to several stores knowing that I was craving them, but they were all sold out.

On this very day in my past life, Karen went out under the pretense of buying bread for me. In reality, she went to the hospital for a prenatal check-up for her illegitimate child.

However, she was worried that the scandal might tarnish her lover's reputation as he was a married man.

As such, she secretly used my name and information to register at the obstetrics and gynecology department. She was planning to put the child under mine and William's names, making it appear as if it were our child.

Karen truly had some nerve—my alleged child was actually my sister-in-law or brother-in-law. If word of this ever got out, it would definitely go viral on social media.

However, no matter how much she schemed, she couldn't escape Wilbur's wife's keen eyes.

Wilbur's wife, Annie Ziegler, showed up at the hospital with a group of people after receiving a tip-off that Wilbur's mistress had registered at the obstetrics and gynecology department.

Upon realizing that things were going south, Karen quickly came up with some excuse to trick me into going to the hospital. She then framed me as the mistress by using the fact that the registered name was mine.

I ended up getting stripped of my clothes and beaten to death by a furious Annie.

I couldn't help but feel a surge of anger upon recalling the awful things Karen did to me in my past life. I was determined to make her pay in this lifetime and call her out about her illegitimate child.

In my past life, I was confused after William hung up on me, but I refused to let the same thing happen again.

Instead, I softened my tone and spoke up before he could end the call. "What are you talking about, darling? I've never asked Karen to buy things for me. But I happened to receive a text from a friend working in the hospital earlier, telling me that she saw Karen in the hospital.

"Do you think she might be sick? She probably doesn't want us to worry about her, so she might have been using that excuse to go to the hospital instead.

"What should we do, darling? You don't think something's wrong with her, do you?"

William panicked as soon as he heard my words. "I'll go to the hospital now!"

I had a cold expression on my face as I ended the call. I, too, rushed over to the hospital after contacting Kiesha Gunner—my livestreamer friend.

I refused to be passive like I was in my past life. This time, I would take the initiative.

Karen was just done with her prenatal check-up by the time I arrived at the hospital. She was stroking her slightly protruded belly lovingly, a prenatal check-up form in her hand.

I chuckled coldly before swiftly walking over. I then stood in front of her, quietly staring at her.

Karen was shocked when she looked up and saw me. Her expression faltered slightly before she looked down, unable to meet my gaze. "What are you doing here, Lucy?"

I forced a smile and said, "Weren't you supposed to buy me bread, Karen? Why are you in the hospital now? William even scolded me because of you earlier."

Karen fell silent for a bit. Upon having her lies exposed, she flew into rage out of embarrassment. "Where I go is none of your business! As my daughter-in-law, you shouldn't be sticking your nose into my business!"

I couldn't be bothered to start a fight with her. Instead, I stared at her coldly.

Karen grew more uncomfortable under my intense stare. Given her bad temper, it was no surprise when she raised her arm to hit me. I narrowed my eyes and quickly grabbed her arm before she could lay a hand on me.

William happened to arrive at that moment.

"Stop!" he said, out of breath. He looked beyond anxious. "What are you guys doing? Why are you in the hospital, Mom? Are you feeling unwell?"

Karen thought of a plan upon seeing William. She then flashed a malicious smile at me.

The next moment, she collapsed onto the floor with a scream. "Oh my god! Look what just happened, Will! I was only scolding Lucy for a bit, but she wanted to hit me and even pushed me! It hurts so bad!"

"Mom!" At that moment, William couldn't be bothered to question Karen's visit to the hospital.

He anxiously helped her up. However, she refused to get up and continued to slump against him, faking a painful groan, claiming her body was aching.

William got even more anxious when he heard that.

My heart skipped a beat as I rushed forward to help Karen up. I was about to explain myself when William pushed me away.

He glared at me with bloodshot eyes. "I never thought you'd be this vicious, Lucia! I misjudged you, and I really regret marrying you. I thought you were a decent woman, but it seems like I was wrong. What exactly did my mom do wrong that you're treating her like this?"

I looked at William with a frown. "It's not what you think, William. I—"

Before I could finish speaking, a commotion broke out by the hospital's entrance.

I turned around and saw a large group of people, each looking grim as they readily made their way over. A woman with striking features and a bold demeanor was at the lead.

My heart sank upon realizing that it was Annie.

I wasn't sure if it was a butterfly effect of my reincarnation, but Annie arrived at the hospital much earlier this time than she did in my past life. I wasn't even ready with my plan yet.

Just as I was about to leave to make preparations, Annie noticed us. She raised her brows before storming over.

Karen stopped yelling by then. She fell completely silent, looking pale as she sweated profusely.

Clearly, she also recognized Annie. William was the only one who was out of the loop.

Annie walked over to us with a hostile expression and chuckled coldly. "I'll give you one chance to tell me which one of you seduced my husband."

The person who tipped her off only told her that the mistress was having a prenatal check-up in the hospital. However, they didn't say much about the mistress' identity or appearance. As such, Annie wasn't sure which of us was the mistress.

Karen visibly shook when she heard those words. She glanced around nervously before her gaze landed on me.

I immediately knew she was about to frame me now.

As expected, Karen pointed at me the next moment and shouted, "It's her! She's the mistress!"

She even took out the wrinkly prenatal check-up form in order to convince Annie. "I have proof—the name on the prenatal check-up form is hers! She's here for a prenatal check-up because she's pregnant with your husband's child."

After that, Karen gave William a sorrowful look. She then said regretfully, "I'm so sorry, Will. I found out that Lucy was cheating. I know how hard things have been for the both of you, so I decided not to bring it up if she just ended the relationship.

"The reason I've been going out so often was to handle all this for her. I'm sorry for the entire misunderstanding—it's all my fault!"

With the performance Karen put on, it was such a pity she wasn't in the entertainment industry. She completely twisted the truth with just a few words.

William stared at me in shock before turning to look at the prenatal check-up form. Disappointment and anger swirled in his eyes as he gradually took in the information.

He said, "All these years, I've been doing my best as your husband, trying to satisfy you and give you whatever you wanted.

"I applied for a transfer to another office with a salary cut just because you didn't want us to be apart. You told me you liked my cooking, so I often make an effort to cook for you.

"But you're actually cheating behind my back, Lucia? How could you do that to me?" William spoke calmly, clearly beyond disappointed.

I felt upset seeing him like that. "Please listen to me, William—"

Annie erupted in a rage before I could finish my sentence. She impatiently yanked me back by my hair before kicking me to the ground.

Having lost my balance, I crashed loudly to the ground. As I hit the floor, I felt my body go numb.

Yet Annie wasn't done with me just yet. She restrained me with her body and grabbed my shirt, about to rip it off.

"You shameless bitch! How dare you seduce my husband! I'll teach you a lesson and make sure you don't repeat this ever again!"

I clutched my shirt tightly and threw a pleading glance at William. With his lips pursed and fists clenched, he turned away and refused to look at me.

I couldn't help but to call out for him. "William!"

William gritted his teeth and shut his eyes. Yet, the next second, his eyelids flew open, his muscles taut as he prepared to help me out.

Karen's smug expression instantly fell when she saw that something was wrong. She grabbed him tightly and refused to let him come over to my aid.

"What are you doing, Mom?" William asked.

The distraction gave Annie an opening—she stopped tugging on my shirt but instead aimed for my pants.

I was only dressed in a loose pair of pants as I rushed out this morning. It couldn't hold itself from Annie's tugging.

Just as my bottom was about to be exposed in public, Kiesha finally arrived with her livestreaming equipment.

She shouted loudly, "Stop! I've brought the doctor who just did the check-up! Let the doctor tell us which of the two women just had her prenatal check-up done!"