Chapter 2

Richard froze mid-motion, his body stiff in the air.

He stood there for a while before snapping out of it.

His gaze shifted from shock to an icy chill as he looked at me.

Richard kicked over the flower table next to him. "Charlotte, will you ever stop?

"Servants! Is that all you care about? Those worthless servants?

"Is being the lady of Northgate such a humiliation for you? Is this all you do now?

"What happened to you, Charlotte?

"Seeing you like this, I can't help but think taking you back was a huge mistake."

Was it really a mistake?

Honestly, I couldn't agree more.

If I had known he'd be carrying on with Vivian after marrying me, I wouldn't have ever walked into Northgate Manor.

I let out a soft laugh and lifted the servant contract again. "I'm that narrow-minded, always scheming type. Naturally, I can't hold a candle to Vivian's virtuous reputation. My Lord, please hurry up and transfer the servants to me."

Richard was momentarily stunned.

Edward had already run back from Vivian's side, stretching out his arms to stand protectively in front of Richard. "You're so mean, Mommy! I won't let you pick on Daddy.

"It's a servant, isn't it? Here, you can have it."

The next second, the white jade pendant Edward always wore was hurled straight at my face.

He didn't know his own strength, and the sharp edge of the jade cut across my cheek.

That gesture was like the way Richard adopted when he pressed down the slave token.

They really were father and son of the Bennett family; no matter their age, they could throw around wealth I couldn't have scraped together even if I had pawned every piece of my wedding gift when I left Richard.

Blood trickled down my cheek and dripped onto the brick floor.

I ignored the blood and bent down to pick up the jade pendant, its fine quality and warmth hinting at its high value.

With this, I could sell it for more dollars and provide extra winter clothes and food for the widows and orphans living on the estate.

Edward was still a kid, and when he saw the blood, he panicked and blurted out, "Mommy..."

He reached out to pull me closer, but Richard's hand shot out, stopping him with those sharp, bony fingers.

Richard wrapped his arm around Edward, his eyes full of mockery as he looked at me. "Edward, pay attention. When you get older, you'll meet plenty of people like her, always finding some excuse to cling to you and ask for favors.

"You have to stay on guard, even if it's your own mother."

With that, Richard led Edward away by the hand.

He never looked back at me.

I quietly wiped the blood from my face, and when I got back to my room, I was so physically and emotionally drained that I drifted into a heavy sleep.

When I woke up again, it was the bright laughter from the courtyard that roused me.

Looking out the window, I saw Vivian and Edward playing games in the courtyard, enjoying themselves without a care in the world.

When Richard met my gaze, he didn't look the least bit guilty.

In a flat, matter-of-fact tone, he said, "Vivian was so upset by all the gossip that she cried for quite a while. I was worried she'd get too anxious, so I brought her over to help her relax. Don't read too much into it."

I kept silent, standing there lost in thought, watching Edward's pure, joyful smile.

How long had it been since I last saw him smile so genuinely, without a hint of worry?

Seeing me stay silent, Richard's face flickered with a brief, uneasy look, and his tone softened a little. "If you don't like it, I can..."

"I don't dislike it," I replied.

Richard paused, then his face slipped back into that familiar, slightly sarcastic expression. "So now you're trying to get what you want by backing off?

"Figured you couldn't stop me, so you changed your approach?

"You never used to put up with things like this."

Yeah, back then, if I caught him sneaking around with Vivian, I'd have raised hell and made sure the Bennett family was in chaos.

If I ever smelled some unfamiliar perfume on his clothes, I'd have gone ballistic and shredded every last piece of his wardrobe.

I used to be the kind of person who couldn't tolerate even the smallest flaw.

But now, I had learned to keep my head down and act well.

Love? Who cared about that? What really mattered was having something tangible in my hands, something that could actually help those who needed it most.

So, I held out the contract to him again. "My Lord, you mentioned her twice. That means two servants, please mark it down."

Richard snorted, nodding along with a mocking smile. "Alright, they're yours.

"I've got an even bigger scheme for you. Want in?"

I lifted my eyes and stared straight at him.

Was he really offering me something out of kindness?

As if Richard could see right through my doubts, he spoke slowly. "Three days from now, the Harrington family's hosting a poetry gathering. Every prominent lady and debutante in the city will be there.

"You'll go there and confess in front of everyone that all those rumors were because you were jealous, so you paid an artist to forge those paintings and frame Vivian.

"If you pull this off, I'll transfer the entire estate out west, with fifty tenant families, into your name."

"Are you out of your mind?" I blurted out, completely stunned. "Didn't you already have your people shut down those rumors?"

I couldn't wrap my head around it; he was the one who acted carelessly and handed everyone the perfect gossip. Why was I the one who had to be the scapegoat for his mess?

Richard's voice grew colder. "The rumors have been put to rest, but Vivian's been so shaken that she's been losing sleep every night. Don't you think you should make it up to her?"

Charlotte scoffed, her anger barely contained. "And what makes you think I'd ever go along with that?"

Richard calmly pulled a bar of silver from his sleeve with no hurry. "Look at this. Who do you think is making sure those people on your estate have food and shelter? And who do you think is really in charge of the overseers?"

The faces of those widows and orphans haunted me.

My fists clenched, but then loosened, all strength gone. "Fine, I'll do it."

The moment I nodded, it felt like all the strength had been sucked out of me, and cold sweat soaked through my clothes.

Edward clapped his hands, grinning with excitement.

He pushed me out of the way and ran straight over to Vivian. "Awesome! Bad Mommy's finally going to say sorry to Vivian.

"Vivian is like an angel."

Vivian hid her smile behind her sleeve, her eyes glinting with barely concealed triumph. "Sorry, Charlotte, but it looks like Edward and I have a better connection."

I forced a smile, tasting the bitterness in my mouth. "It's true, there's no real bond between us."

As I turned to leave, I never saw the deep, conflicted gaze in Richard's eyes.