Chapter 1

Today was Victoria Ashford and William Sinclair's fifth wedding anniversary.

She specifically switched shifts with a colleague, planning to go home early in the afternoon to prepare.

But just as she finished packing up, a nurse called on the internal line: "Dr. Ashford, there's a last-minute appointment. Says she knows you."

Victoria frowned and looked up to see the door being pushed open. A slender woman walked in.

She wore sunglasses and a mask, covering herself completely.

Only after entering did she slowly remove them, revealing a delicate face.

Bianca Ashford—her sister in name, and also William's first love.

She was a popular star in Emerald City, famous for her pure and sweet image.

She won an award for her first film at nineteen, and by twenty-three was already a two-time Best Actress winner.

Bianca sat down in the chair, her long legs crossed elegantly.

She wore a loose, light brown knit dress with her long hair flowing down, looking stunningly beautiful.

Why would Bianca come to the OB-GYN department?

Could it be...

Victoria's hand tightened slightly around her pen. An absurd thought rose in her mind, but her face remained calm as she asked, "What's bothering you?"

Bianca leaned back, curving her lips: "My period is two weeks late. I'm a bit worried, so I came to check."

Victoria's heart kept sinking.

Two weeks late.

She suppressed her churning emotions and continued asking, "Have you been sexually active recently?"

Bianca laughed, her laugh full of meaning: "Yes."

Victoria's face went pale. Her nails dug into her palms as she looked down to take notes.

Seeing her silence, Bianca suddenly asked, "Victoria, aren't you curious who it is?"

Victoria's movements froze. She looked up to meet Bianca's gaze and saw the clear provocation in it. Her fingers curled involuntarily: "That's your privacy."

She tried hard to keep her tone steady, but her voice came out unusually hoarse.

She had already guessed who the person Bianca was talking about was.

"Go get a blood test first. You'll need an ultrasound, too."

Victoria printed out the test forms and handed them over, trying to keep her voice level.

Bianca took them, smiling with crinkled eyes, "If there's good news, you'll be the first to know."

The door closed.

Victoria stared at the computer screen for a long time, her eyes burning.

It took great effort to keep her tears from falling.

The office door was pushed open again. The people who entered were also familiar.

Her parents.

But in her heart, they had always been just Bianca's parents.

Victoria was the daughter of the Ashford family that had been brought back from the countryside. When she was twelve, her adoptive parents both died in a car accident. The Ashfords found her, saying she had been switched at birth in the hospital.

After that, she became the young lady of the Ashford family.

But not a single person in the Ashford family had ever treated her as the real young lady.

In their eyes, Bianca was the true daughter.

"Where's Bianca? Didn't she come for a checkup?" Victoria's mother, Emily Johnson, walked over quickly and asked rudely.

Victoria looked at them, long used to their attitude, and said flatly, "She went for a blood test."

Emily frowned, her tone becoming even more unpleasant: "Why didn't you go with her yourself? She's pregnant now!"

Before Victoria could speak, Emily continued bossily, "You should know by now that the baby in Bianca's belly is William's. If you're smart, you'll give William up to your sister..."

"Mom." Victoria suddenly looked up, her fists clenched tight. "You were the ones who forced me to marry William. I'm the one who took care of William for five years. Now that he's recovered and can live like a normal person, you want me to divorce him?"

Five years ago, William had a car accident on a business trip. When he woke up, he was mentally impaired, with only the intelligence of a five or six-year-old child, unable to take care of himself.

The doctors diagnosed brain damage and said he might stay that way forever. They couldn't bear to let Bianca marry a fool, so they pushed Victoria forward and had her marry into the Sinclair family in Bianca's place.

She agreed.

She married the boy she had fallen in love with at first sight when she was twelve.

Victoria stared at them both intently, questioning word by word, "Who's really your biological daughter—me or Bianca? Why should I keep giving in to her over and over again?"

Emily was stumped. Aiden Ashford, beside her, frowned and said stiffly, "How dare you talk to your mother like that! We had no choice but to have you marry in Bianca's place back then."

"Besides, she and William grew up together. They were meant to be. That was her place to begin with!"

Emily immediately chimed in, "Exactly. William doesn't have you in his heart at all. Otherwise, why haven't you gotten pregnant after all these years of marriage?"

Then, as if thinking of something, she smiled mockingly, "Don't tell me William hasn't even touched you?"

Emily's words were like a sharp awl, stabbing viciously into Victoria's heart, drawing blood.

Her fingertips dug hard into her palms, but she seemed to feel no pain.

From their wedding until now, William really hadn't touched her.

For five years, she had stayed by William's side, teaching him everything from dressing to eating, reading him the newspaper every day without complaint, until he could finally live like a normal person and gradually recovered his memory.

She thought her sincerity could melt his cold heart, but only today did she understand that his heart had long been given to someone else. There was no place for her there.

"Men, you know—if he won't touch you, it means he doesn't like you. You and William have been married for five years. If he really had feelings for you, he would have already..."

Emily kept chattering on. Victoria felt her head splitting and shouted sharply, "Enough!"

Her tone was unprecedentedly cold and hard. "I have other patients. Please leave."

Then she called security directly.

As the guards pushed him out, Aiden's face grew even uglier, and he cursed, "Victoria! You've got some nerve, treating us like this. Have you forgotten who brought you from the countryside to Emerald City, who paid for your education? You think just because you're an Associate Chief Physician now, you can look down on everyone..."

The voice grew fainter and fainter. Victoria's back remained straight until the sound completely disappeared, then she slumped in her chair.

She took out her phone from her pocket, wanting to call William.

She wanted to ask him if, when he was with Bianca, he had thought about her feelings even for a moment.

Her phone suddenly showed a new message from William:

[I have a business dinner tonight. Won't be home for dinner.]

Victoria stared at those words for a long time.

After a while, she finally called him.

The phone rang a few times, then connected.

"What is it?"

William's voice came through, flat, with a hint of impatience.

Victoria opened her mouth, but suddenly couldn't ask a single word.

"If you have something to say, say it quickly. I'm in a meeting." His tone grew more impatient.