Chapter 1

When I opened my eyes, my usually gentle and refined professor husband was loudly calling me a shrew.

"Is our wedding anniversary more important than someone's life? Sophia Brown is just my student, and she needs my help right now!"

Hearing these familiar accusations, I realized I had been reborn.

I raised my hand to cut off James Smith's anger and tossed him the car keys I was holding.

The keys hit the floor with a crisp sound, and a flash of disbelief crossed his eyes.

"Today is our wedding anniversary, but your most valued student is sick. As her teacher, you should go see her."

James paused for two seconds, then picked up the keys and quickly left. "Emily, wait for me to come back!"

I nodded with a smile, but as soon as I turned around, I called my good friend Evelyn without hesitation.

"Send a car to pick me up at the mountain road in the suburbs right away."

In my past life, I stubbornly waited for James to come back for me. I ended up encountering wild wolves, got my right leg bitten, and became permanently disabled.

Unable to handle this blow, I went to the school and caused a scene.

I spread the word everywhere that James was meeting with his female student late at night and chatting with her constantly.

Sophia became known as a homewrecker who seduced her teacher and slept with a married man.

Unable to bear the isolation and discrimination from her classmates, she jumped off a building and killed herself in front of James.

But after her death, James completely returned to family life and treated me better and better.

I thought he had finally given up on that unfulfilled student-teacher romance.

Soon after, I discovered I was pregnant, and he happily said he was going to be a dad.

But on our child's one-month celebration, he pushed me and the baby off the rooftop, shouting angrily,

"You bitch, you're the one who killed Sophia! We liked each other, but she never did anything inappropriate!"

"Today, you and this little bastard will join her in death!"

The pain of that fatal fall still seemed to linger in my body.

This lifetime, I decided to let them have each other.

In less than twenty minutes, Evelyn's car arrived. When I got in and saw Evelyn still in her pajamas, my heart filled with warmth.

Before I could say anything, she started cursing. "It's so dangerous in these mountains late at night. Weren't you supposed to watch the sunrise with your beloved husband? Where is he!"

This time, I didn't make excuses for James. Instead, I told her the truth. "The moment he abandoned me for his female student, he stopped being my husband."

Evelyn was first surprised by my words, then overjoyed. "You finally see the light! I've been saying all along that those two act way too close!"

After going back to Evelyn's place, she went to get some drinks, saying we should celebrate me seeing through this scumbag. Meanwhile, I pulled out my phone and dialed a number that had been on my blocked list for a long time.

The call was answered almost instantly.

"Emily, sweetie, is that you?"

Hearing my dad's tearful voice, I couldn't hold back my tears either, choking out an apology. "Dad, I shouldn't have cut ties with you, shouldn't have eloped with James, and shouldn't have given up that professor's invitation..."

"Emily, the university contacted me a few days ago, saying it was such a shame to lose a talent like you." My dad's words rekindled hope in my heart.

"Dad, please tell the university that I'm willing to go back and restart the project I didn't finish back then!"

He agreed repeatedly on the other end.

After hanging up, I felt incredibly grateful to be alive, to still have the chance to be with my family and friends, and to start a new life.

Evelyn and I drank to our hearts' content. I didn't wake up until noon the next day, and my phone showed dozens of missed calls from James.

Just then, the phone rang again. I answered it, and his voice on the other end sounded worried. "Emily, where are you? Why didn't you wait for me to pick you up and take you home?"

I gave him Evelyn's address, and James soon came to pick me up.

I promised Evelyn repeatedly that I absolutely wouldn't soften, and only then did she let me go downstairs.

I got in the passenger seat, but after the car started, we weren't heading home. He explained, "Sophia's being discharged from the hospital. I'm picking her up on the way."

"Don't get the wrong idea. She's my student. She's a girl alone in this city, and as her teacher, I should help her when I can."

I nodded in agreement, but I knew very well that our home and the hospital were in completely opposite directions.

James used to do the same thing before—to see me, he'd insist the distance between the east and west sides of the city wasn't far at all.

Unfortunately, now the person he was willing to go out of his way for had been replaced by a younger, prettier woman.