Chapter 1
My father had been the personal bodyguard of Harold Bailey, the head of the Bailey Group. During an assassination attempt, he took a fatal bullet for Harold's father.
He survived, but the injury left him partially paralyzed.
To repay that debt, the Bailey family elders made a decision on the spot. They arranged for me to marry into the Bailey family and live a life of wealth.
But Harold had always looked down on me. In his eyes, I was just a gold digger, using my father's sacrifice to climb into high society. He humiliated me at every opportunity.
His first love was even worse. She threw wine at me in public, spread rumors that I manipulated the family into the marriage, and treated me like dirt.
At one high-society party, I became the target of endless mockery. When the elders scolded Harold for being ungrateful, he let out a cold, mocking laugh.
"Her father chose to protect his boss. That had nothing to do with me," he said cruelly. "Someone from your kind of background seriously thinks she deserves to marry me, huh? That's disgusting."
Before I went back in time, hatred had consumed me. I refused to let my father's sacrifice be treated like it meant nothing, so I insisted on marrying Harold.
I foolishly believed I could melt his cold heart someday.
But after years of marriage, his indifference, neglect, and constant defense of his first love completely drained me.
I eventually fell into severe depression, got seriously sick, and died alone in an empty hospital room.
Right before I died, I heard Harold outside the room, screaming like he'd lost his mind. I heard things smashing to the floor while he kept calling my name.
How pathetic. By then, it was already too late.
When I opened my eyes again, time had rewound. I was back to the night before the engagement party. This time, my heart was already dead.
I decided that I would never marry him.
I went straight to the Bailey family and calmly said, "The engagement is canceled. I'm not marrying you.
"From now on, I'll become a goddaughter of the Bailey family, and after that, neither side will owe the other anything."
The moment I finished speaking, Harold, the man who had always wanted me gone and only cared about his first love, suddenly went pale.
His eyes widened in disbelief. For the first time ever, he looked completely panicked.
*****
The lights inside the Bailey family mansion were painfully bright.
I stood at the entrance and took a slow breath.
Before I went back in time, I had walked through these same doors filled with nervous excitement. Back then, I wore a carefully picked dress and believed fate had prepared something beautiful for me.
Instead, what waited for me was hell.
This time, I only wore a plain trench coat. I had no makeup on, and I hadn't even bothered fixing my hair. The girl staring back at me in the mirror looked calm in a terrifying way.
"Julia, are you ready?" Gary Lane, the butler who came with me, asked carefully.
I nodded. I was ready to end everything.
The moment I walked into the hall, I saw almost the entire Bailey family gathered there.
Bruno Bailey sat at the head of the room with a stern look on his face. Relatives filled both sides of the room, their eyes carrying a mix of judgment and pity.
To them, I was just a poor girl who got lucky when my father nearly died saving someone important.
Harold Bailey sat alone on the sofa in the corner, one leg crossed over the other while he lazily scrolled through his phone. He didn't even bother looking at me.
He wore a perfectly tailored suit, and his cold expression made people instinctively stay away from him.
Before I went back in time, I had been hopelessly obsessed with that face.
Now it only disgusted me.
"Julia is here," Bruno said in a deep voice. "Take a seat."
I sat across from him and straightened my back. "I came today to say one thing."
Before I could continue, a lazy female voice drifted down from upstairs. "Oh? The future Mrs. Bailey is here?"
My heart sank.
It was Angela Glisson, Harold's beloved first love and the precious daughter of the Glisson family.
She looked elegant and refined on the surface, always gentle and graceful in front of others, but privately, she was vicious.
She walked downstairs in a silk robe and slippers, acting completely at home.
Of course, whether it was Harold's apartment or the Bailey family mansion, she came and went whenever she pleased.
Before I went back in time, I had fought with her over this countless times.
Every single time, Harold sided with her.
"Julia, why are you here so late? Did something happen?" Angela walked over naturally and sat on the armrest beside Harold, casually resting her hand on his shoulder.
Harold didn't move away.
In fact, the corner of his lips lifted slightly.
The movement was tiny, but I saw it clearly. Back then, I had been stupid enough to keep lying to myself, convincing myself that he treated Angela like family and nothing more.
I really had been pathetic.
"Angela, go upstairs," Bruno said with a frown.
Angela nodded and stood up, but before leaving, she glanced at me.
That look was full of triumph and contempt. She looked completely confident that I could never touch her.
Surprisingly, I didn't feel angry anymore.
Before I went back in time, I would've been shaking with rage. Now, I feel nothing.
The moment she disappeared upstairs, I calmly said, "Mr. Bruno Bailey, I came here today to formally cancel the engagement."
The entire hall fell silent.
Harold's aunts exchanged looks. His uncles slowly put down their coffee cups. Even Bruno looked stunned.
Harold finally looked up from his phone.
He only glanced at me once before lowering his eyes again, as if my words weren't important enough to care about.
"Julia, what did you just say?" Bruno asked, frowning deeply.
"I said I want to cancel the engagement," I repeated calmly. "I don't want to marry Harold anymore."