Chapter 489
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“Emilia, you’re absolutely disgusting. What a manipulative snake you are! I regret it so much! I regret not strangling you the moment you were born!” Mom shouted.
Then, she turned to William. “Mr. Ashford, Laimi saved your life! She’s your savior! You can’t just forget that because Emilia’s good at pretending! You can’t fall for her act and marry her while ignoring the one who actually saved you!
“You can’t do that to Lammi! She loves you so much. She’s pitiful!”
Julianne turned to Mom after failing to sway Henry and Noah. She called her every day, pouring her heart out, painting herself. as heartbroken and helpless. She told her how much she loved William and how she couldn’t live without him.
She cried about how painful it was to watch William marry me, how hopeless it felt, and that sometimes she just wanted to die.
All that emotional manipulation worked like poison. It made Mom feel like Julianne was just like her younger self–wronged, unloved, and tragic. It made her want to help Julianne fulfill her dream, to give her the happiness she never had.
William looked at Mom like she was a complete waste of air. He finally understood why I never argued with her and always just stared blankly whenever she yelled at me.
It was pointless to argue. There was no reasoning with someone like her. She would never admit her faults or feel any guilt toward me.
So William didn’t say another word to her. He simply motioned for the staff to drag her out.
Then, he turned to Jeremy. “If this ever happens again, don’t bother showing your face before me or Emi.”
William had always been ruthless. And when it came to people who hurt me, he didn’t hold back even a little. It didn’t matter who they were or what the occasion was. He would always speak with brutal clarity.
Even though Jeremy was technically his future brother–in–law, he didn’t get any special treatment. And yet, instead of getting defensive or angry, Jeremy lowered his head and quickly apologized.
“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I swear it won’t happen again!”
Compared to my parents, Jeremy was actually one of the few halfway rational people in the family.
Mom realized that William didn’t care at all about the terrible things she was saying about me. Seeing that they really were about to drag her away, she shouted, “William, I’m Emilia’s biological mother! I’m your future mother–in–law! You can’t treat me like this!”
She always said she wished she had killed me as a baby. She had made it crystal clear she never wanted me as a daughter.
Yet, whenever it suited her, she would pull out the “biological mother” card, expecting that alone to earn her love, obedience, and respect.
But the world didn’t work that way.
Whether it was love or blood ties, there was only so much pain someone could take before they stopped caring entirely.
And I had long since reached that point.
Just like I could watch Irvin collapse without flinching, I could also watch Mom being dragged out without feeling a thing.
After she was gone, William walked up to me and pulled me into his arms. “Don’t let it get to you. She’s not worth it.”
I looked up at him and smiled. “I know. I’m not upset.”
He was right. She wasn’t worth it. She would never affect my mood anymore.
William had never cared about his reputation. People could call him ruthless, heartless, or evil.
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But he couldn’t stand people calling me those things. He wouldn’t tolerate anyone looking at me with that kind of judgment in
their eyes.
So, he called Matthew and had them prepare a presentation–one filled with proof that my parents weren’t cruel to me because I
was a bad daughter, but because they were mentally twisted. They favored their adopted daughter and abused me.
Then, he displayed the evidence on the big screen in the banquet hall for everyone to see.
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