It seemed like she was being dragged into a deep pool of darkness. She could neither see nor hear anything. Bottomless darkness engulfed her. She was helpless.

 Why did it turn out like that? He was still speaking to her so gently in the afternoon. He had discussed the wedding with her. He still loved her deeply. Why did it all suddenly change?

 She had known him for ten years now since she was fifteen years old. She was now twenty-five years old. She had always thought that she was the only one who understood him deeply. She thought that he loved her the most. Why did it all suddenly change?

 Mu Yunhai felt a heart-gripping pain when he saw how helpless she appeared. He wanted to hug her. But, he suppressed his urge in the end.

 He could not be soft-hearted at the last minute! He was going to achieve his target soon!

 He must marry Wang Yunxi. He wanted to be standing on top of the world. He yearned for more money and power!

 Wang Yunxi was rather impatient when she did not receive Lu Man’s response. She did not have much time to wait for her. So, she asked her bodyguard to sign a cheque for her. It was a million dollars.

 “That is compensation for you. Don’t get close to Yunhai anymore from now on! Otherwise, I won’t be so nice toward you anymore!” She threw the cheque at Lu Man’s face when she was done talking.

 The cheque floated down onto the floor, slowly and quietly.

 For a moment, everything fell into a frightening silence.

 The employee at the bridal gown shop was standing next to them. She saw what had happened clearly. She had unspoken criticisms in her heart. She thought that throwing a cheque at somebody was only fictional and that it happened only in books. But she had never thought that what happened in the books happened in real life too.

 That cheque was just like a heavy slap to Lu Man. She soon recovered her senses. She bent down and picked up the cheque. She looked at the amount written on the cheque. She curled her lips and looked at Mu Yunhai. “By the way, you’re only worth a million dollars. It’s so cheap.”

 Mu Yunhai’s face darkened.

 “He’s not cheap. You are. You deserve only that amount of money!” Wang Yunxi spoke arrogantly.

 “I’m not as cheap as you. You only know how to gain men’s favor through money.”

 “You!” Wang Yunxi was outraged.

 “I’ll take the cheque. Don’t worry. I’ll never see him again. Even though he comes and begs for my return in the future, I’ll never even look at him!” Lu Man looked at Mu Yunhai.

 He did not love her anymore. So, she must let go of him now! Why did he betray her? Why have they become like that? Why did he embarrass her like that? He knew perfectly well how she hated betrayal!

 “Yunhai, she’s the woman whom you have loved for so many years. She’s able to sell you out for only a million dollars. She has even claimed that you’re a priceless treasure. That she wouldn’t sell you out for anything in the world! It’s so disgusting! She’s just a hypocrite!” Wang Yunxi was annoyed with her.

 1What she had said was just like a knife cutting through Lu Man’s face. Lu Man felt a burn on her face. She was upset with her confidence in him. She was so grief-stricken thinking of his betrayal. It was too much and she could barely breathe!

 She assumed that what they had was true love. She thought that they would be together forever. But, all of it had become a terrible joke now. It pierced deeply through her heart. She could not even say anything.

 What Wang Yunxi had said embarrassed Mu Yunhai. He never thought that Lu Man would accept that cheque. She loved him deeply. Moreover, she was an arrogant girl. She would never accept that cheque!

 That cheque was humiliating to both Lu Man and Mu Yunhai!

 He looked at Lu Man in sadness.

 He blamed her! How dare he blame her!

 Lu Man found it ridiculous that Mu Yunhai would blame her. But, she was unable to laugh out loud.

 How could he blame her?

 How could he?

 Everything in the past came to her now when Lu Man looked at him. But soon, it became thousands of arrows piercing through her heart. She could not help but clench her hands tightly.

 Wang Yunxi was annoyed at how they looked at each other. She even found it annoying to look at the wedding dress that Lu Man was wearing. How dare she rob her of her man?

 “Quickly take off her wedding dress!” Wang Yunxi always had what she wanted. She would always get rid of everything that annoyed her with money.

 The bodyguards who stood behind her obeyed her order. They rushed forward and tore off Lu Man’s wedding dress.

 “What are you doing? Let go of me! Just let me go!”

 Lu Man struggled to break free. She was anxious and scared no matter how calm and strong she appeared.

 The employees who stood next to them went forward to stop them.

 “It’s none of your business! Otherwise, I’ll definitely tear down your shop too!”

 What Wang Yunxi said prohibited the employees from helping Lu Man. They could not afford to upset her.

 They could only throw sympathetic glances at Lu Man.

 “Wang Yunxi, stop it!” Mu Yunhai shouted and rushed forward to stop them. He had never thought that Wang Yunxi could act so savagely.

 Wang Yunxi got angrier when she saw how Mu Yunhai sided with Lu Man. “Mu Yunhai, you can go ahead and help her if you want it to be worse for her!”

 Mu Yunhai froze there and then. He knew that Wang Yunxi was a spoilt girl. She would definitely do whatever she wanted.

 Lu Man was unable to stop the men from tearing off her dress. Her wedding dress was soon torn off. Her white skin was revealed.

 Those bodyguards did not even stop then. They wanted to tear off her dress completely!

 She resisted them with all her might. But, she was just like a fish that was thrown onto the chopping board. It was useless no matter how hard she struggled to break free.

 She could do nothing else.

 “Stop it! Quickly, stop it!” Mu Yunhai ignored how Wang Yunxi had threatened him just now. He rushed forward and protected Lu Man.

“Mu Yunhai, you…” Wang Yunxi was so angry that she stomped her feet. She was going to marry him but how could he protect another woman?

 “You’re not the Yunxi that I know. She would never do such a savage and wicked thing!” Mu Yunhai suppressed his deep anger. He stared at Wang Yunxi with great disappointment and grief.

 Wang Yunxi soon realized her mistakes. She should never have acted savagely in front of him no matter how much she wanted to. She grew anxious. She did not want him to hate her. So, she softened her voice and went to hug him. She used a sweet voice when she spoke, “I was just furious just now. How could she treat you like that?”

 “She has treated me badly. So now, I shouldn’t be with her anymore. You should be happy about that, shouldn’t you? I was with her for so many years but now, it doesn’t matter what happened. We should not end things like this even if we’re going to break up with each other. Just don’t embarrass her anymore for me. Can you do that?” Mu Yunhai softened his voice, too.

 “Fine! I’ll listen to you.” Wang Yunxi leaned against her just like an obedient child.

 Mu Yunhai was afraid that Wang Yunxi would cause more havoc. So, he led her away. He wanted to say something to Lu Man before he left. But, he did not manage to do so. He was saddened by what happened to her. But, he could not reveal his true feelings. He could only suppress them.

 He took a look at Lu Man for the last time. Then, he brought Wang Yunxi with him and left without any hesitation.

 What was left of Lu Man’s wedding dress barely covered her body. She grabbed onto the remaining clothes tightly. It seemed like she was holding onto the remnants of her dignity. Her fingernails dug into her palms painfully through the clothes.

 Her white skin was covered with striking and frightening red marks.

 But, her physical pain was nothing compared to the humiliation she had to endure.

 Her clothes were torn off in public. Her pride and self-esteem were harshly ruined.

 She felt not only pain.

 Everyone walked home hastily in the night under the street lights. However, she was just like a puppet without any soul. She walked aimlessly in the street. She felt nothing even when she bumped into somebody.

 The tall man whom she had bumped into glanced at her. He seemed to remember something when he recognized her. He stared after her until she disappeared from his sight.