On the day Yara Cullen was released from prison, it was raining.
A chilly wind carried the drizzle, striking her as the media swarmed the prison gates.
"Ms. Cullen, in the Crestwood Estate sexual assault case, your client lost the lawsuit and took her own life six months ago. Her mother is demanding accountability. Do you have anything to say?”
"Ms. Cullen, your attorney's license has been revoked, and your mentor was forced to retire. What are your thoughts on this?"
No matter how the reporters pressed, Yara kept her head down and pushed forward, forcing her way through the crowd.
A black G-Wagon was parked by the roadside, where Westley Langston leaned against the car, smoking a cigarette.
Beside him, Elena Cullen tugged at his arm. He turned, glancing toward the prison gates.
On the day Yara Cullen was released from prison, it was raining.
A chilly wind carried the drizzle, striking her as the media swarmed the prison gates.
"Ms. Cullen, in the Crestwood Estate sexual assault case, your client lost the lawsuit and took her own life six months ago. Her mother is demanding accountability. Do you have anything to say?”
"Ms. Cullen, your attorney's license has been revoked, and your mentor was forced to retire. What are your thoughts on this?"
No matter how the reporters pressed, Yara kept her head down and pushed forward, forcing her way through the crowd.
A black G-Wagon was parked by the roadside, where Westley Langston leaned against the car, smoking a cigarette.
Beside him, Elena Cullen tugged at his arm. He turned, glancing toward the prison gates.
The two of them walked up to Yara.
Elena pointed at the scar on Yara’s forehead, her face twisted in shock as if she’d seen a ghost.
"Yara, what happened to your forehead? It’s so ugly and terrifying! You looked disfigured!"
Yara lowered her head and adjusted her bangs, trying to cover the scar, but it was too large to hide.
The scar was a result of the bullying she endured in prison.
Westley remained silent, his gaze cold and distant.
With a cheerful smile, Elena pulled out a box.
"Yara, this is a gift from Westley and me. It’s a pair of new shoes. A little reminder to stay on the right path and not make the same mistakes again."
To Yara, the words were dripping with irony.
She knew all too well why she ended up in prison a year ago, and no one was more aware of it than Elena and Westley.
Yara was a lawyer with an impeccable five-year record, celebrated as a gold-standard attorney in the industry.
Elena, on the other hand, was the Cullen family’s illegitimate heiress, brought back by their father two years ago.
She was also a lawyer, but after three years of practice, she had never won a single case, earning her the reputation as one of the most incompetent lawyers in the industry.
However, everything changed because of the Crestwood Estate case a year ago.
In that case, Yara represented the victim, a young girl, suing the wealthy businessman, Leo Harrington.
Elena was Leo’s defense attorney.
Initially, the evidence was conclusive, and victory seemed assured for the victim.
But the night before the trial, all the evidence on Yara’s computer vanished, leading to a devastating loss.
The case garnered widespread attention, and the media painted the young victim as a prostitute.
Shortly after, Yara was accused of fabricating evidence.
Her law license was revoked, and she was sentenced to a year in prison.
Meanwhile, Elena, having won the case, rose to prominence almost overnight.
For quite some time, Yara couldn’t understand how it had all happened until she stumbled upon a private chat group on Westley’s phone, consisting of him, Elena, and their father.
“Elena, your sister has her reputation and status, yet she showed you no mercy in court. I think she just wants to humiliate you.”
“Your sister was indeed out of line, Elena. Dad’s on your side.”
“What about you, Westley? What do you think?”
"Elena, just tell me which evidence or files you want gone."
…
The car drove toward the Cullen family estate. Along the way, Yara stared out at the cityscape passing by.
A year was neither too long nor too short, yet it felt like everything had changed in that brief span of time.
The Cullen family villa had been completely renovated inside and out, and Yara immediately noticed that the peach tree at the front gate was gone.
She rushed over and asked one of the housekeepers, "What happened to the peach tree my mom planted?"
The housekeeper responded with a cold glare. "Miss Elena prefers chamomile tea. She insisted it had to be grown at home, so Mr. Cullen had the tree cut down and replaced it with chamomile plants."
Yara felt as though her heart was struck with a heavy blow.
The peach tree was over twenty years old. It had been planted by her mother when she was alive and was the only memory her mother left for her.
Now it had been cut down just because Elena wanted chamomile tea.
Yara turned and headed back inside, intending to confront her father, but before she could, a hysterical woman came rushing out and grabbed her.
A sharp slap landed on her face with a loud crack.
The woman clung to her, sobbing and accusing her bitterly.
"Everyone, look! This heartless lawyer is the one who caused my daughter’s death!"
The woman was the mother of the victim from the Crestwood Estate case.
She wasn’t alone—she was accompanied by a swarm of reporters.
The blinding flashes from their cameras made Yara feel dizzy.
The woman shoved and struck Yara as she screamed, "I told my daughter not to sue! I told her we couldn’t fight against the rich. But this woman said she had the confidence to win!
"And what happened? My daughter was labeled a prostitute and jumped to her death. And now look at her—she’s out of prison! Why didn’t she die? She’s the one who deserves to die! I want her to pay for my daughter’s life!"
Yara stumbled backward from the woman’s push and fell to the ground.
Elena caught her, then forced Yara’s face toward the cameras, exposing the jagged scar on her forehead.
"The Crestwood Estate case was my sister’s fault, but she’s already paid the price. Look at her scar. The victim was just a waitress, while my sister is the heiress of a wealthy family. How could her lowly life compare to my sister’s?"
...
That night, Yara became the subject of the prime-time news.
On camera, Elena addressed her affectionately as "sister" and delivered her carefully crafted remarks, making it appear as though Yara shared the same sentiments.
When the news aired, the internet exploded with outrage aimed at Yara.
"A disgrace to the legal profession. No wonder she got a year in prison. One year was too light. She should’ve gotten life."
"Props to her cellmates for bullying her. She deserved to be disfigured. From a high-society heiress to a tabloid scandal."
"Does anyone know this shameless lawyer’s address? I’ll send her a little ‘gift’ to show my appreciation."
The comments didn’t just insult Yara. They began to escalate into threats against her safety.
After much thought, Yara decided she needed to set the record straight.
She recorded a video to clarify everything and was about to send it to the media when Westley suddenly stormed in.
He snatched her phone away and demanded angrily, "Do you even know what you’re doing?"
"I’m going to clear my name.”
"Clear your name? Do you realize how much this will hurt Elena?"
Yara stared at the man she had been married to for five years, the light in her eyes slowly dimming with each word he spoke.
This was the man who once held her hand and swore with absolute certainty that he would protect her for a lifetime.
Now, for the sake of another woman, he was demanding that she bear all the blame.
"What about the pain I’ve endured? Westley, whose husband are you supposed to be?"
"Yara, I’m your husband, but I’m also Elena’s brother-in-law. I have to stand on the side of what’s fair," Westley said, his voice laced with self-righteousness.
“Elena has been defending you wholeheartedly, and now you want to turn against her?"
Yara found it laughable.
"Turn against her? Who caused me to be hated by everyone? Has Elena really ever stood up for me? Westley, are you blind or just heartless?"
"Yara, you’re being unreasonable."
"Unreasonable? That’s you! Westley Langston, give me back my phone!"
Yara stood on her toes, reaching for the phone.
Westley raised it high above his head and, without hesitation, deleted the video.
Yara froze, her hand suspended mid-air.
"Westley Langston, what gives you the right to delete my video?"
Westley’s face was cold and unyielding.
"Yara, stop dreaming. There’s no going back for you now. Besides, one top-tier lawyer in the Cullen family is enough. From now on, just focus on being a housewife."
Yara stared at the man before her, and the last glimmer of light in her eyes finally extinguished.
She didn’t want to cry for him. He wasn’t worth it. But the tears fell uncontrollably.
"Westley, I graduated as the top student from Hudson University’s law program. I worked for five years without losing a single case. Every senior in the field said I had talent...
"And now you’re asking me to be a housewife, just so Elena can take my place!"
Perhaps Westley had long forgotten, but Yara remembered it vividly.
Back then, she was the star of Hudson University’s law program, while Westley was a poor student from the neighboring economics department.
Even his tuition had been funded by Yara’s mother.
There were always plenty of boys vying for Yara’s attention—some wrote her songs, others brought her flowers.
But none of them were like Westley, who waited outside the women’s dormitory every day.
In the summer, he brought her cold drinks; in the winter, warm tea, all for the chance to give her a ride to the library on his bicycle.
Yara never paid him any attention.
Her dormmates often mocked him, laughing and saying, "Look at him—thinking he can land a princess! Guess fairy tales really are just fairy tales."
That day, everyone burst into laughter.
Everyone except Yara. She stopped, walked up to Westley, and said, "I’ve never ridden on a bicycle before. Teach me."
Before long, news of Yara and Westley dating spread across Hudson University.
Several upperclassmen joked that they were already heartbroken before they even had a chance to ask her out.
The school forum buzzed with posts predicting how long their relationship would last.
After all, the gap between them was too great.
Westley was average in every way, while Yara stood out in looks, grades, and family background.
What no one expected was that the two would get married right after graduation.
When Yara accepted his proposal, she looked into his eyes and said, "Westley, you’ve been so good to me... so good that it almost makes me feel guilty.
“It feels like saying no to you would be letting you down. Will you keep treating me like this forever?"
Westley didn’t hesitate to give her his answer.
He held Yara tightly in his arms as if he wished he could rip his heart out and show it to her.
"Yara, you’ve given me a new life. You’ve made me feel like a real person. I’ll spend the rest of my life being good to you, and only you."
Looking back now, it was nothing short of ironic.
They had only been married for five short years, but to Yara, it felt like a lifetime ago.
There was no such thing as "forever."
A man’s promises, once spoken, were destined to be broken.
By the third year of their marriage, her father, Robert Cullen, brought Elena back into the family.
From that day on, Yara felt as though she was gradually losing both her father and her husband.
Robert, a man of few words, would spend hours patiently comforting Elena after she lost a case.
And Westley, who couldn’t even name her favorite hobbies, would stay up all night to watch soap operas with Elena.
The Crestwood Estate case a year ago was the final turning point, a line that forever divided Yara’s life from Elena’s.
…
Yara lay awake until the early hours of the morning and didn’t wake up until midday.
As she descended the stairs, she heard the sound of laughter echoing from the living room.
Elena, Robert, and Westley were talking and laughing together.
Whatever Elena said must have been hilarious, because Robert’s face was creased with delighted wrinkles.
Westley was also smiling warmly, and with a playful gesture, he tapped the tip of Elena’s nose.
The cheerful, harmonious atmosphere came to an abrupt halt the moment Yara appeared.
It was as if she were an intruder trespassing on someone else’s territory.
But this was her home.
Even the villa itself was part of the inheritance her mother had left her.
Elena leaned against Westley’s arm. “Yara, you’re so lazy. We’ve already had lunch.”
Robert responded casually, “Have the kitchen make her some pasta.”
Elena let out a theatrical sigh. “The cook said she had personal matters and took the afternoon off. No one’s here to make pasta for her.”
Without even glancing up, Robert said, “Then order takeout. Young people love takeout these days.”
As he spoke, he turned to Elena with a warm smile, every wrinkle on his face radiating affection.
“Elena, don’t think I don’t know you’re always secretly ordering takeout. It’s not good for your health. Don’t do it again, alright?”
Elena playfully stuck out her tongue.
Yara remained expressionless, averting her gaze without a word, and turned to head for the door.
Suddenly, Westley stood up. “I’ll make her pasta.”
“Westley!”
Elena’s displeasure was obvious, but Westley was already walking toward the kitchen.
She shot Yara a cold glare, rolling her eyes dramatically.
At that moment, a housekeeper walked in, holding a cardboard box. “Miss Yara, a package has arrived for you.”
Yara stopped in her tracks. “For me?”
The housekeeper set the box on the table. “Yes, the recipient’s name is yours.”
Yara frowned slightly, confused. She had just returned and hadn’t ordered anything online.
Elena’s eyes darted mischievously as she grabbed the box from the table.
“Let me see what my dear sister has been shopping for.”
She began opening the package while sneering sarcastically. “Yara, you just got back and you’re already shopping online? You must be in quite a good mood.”
Before the words were even out of her mouth, a sharp scream suddenly filled the room.
