Chapter 3 The Checkup Results
706 Words
My harsh words struck a nerve. The moment Julian got back, he pulled every string he had and bought an exact replica of the sapphire necklace.
Thrilled with her new toy, Chloe finally dropped the matter, stopping her complaints about me not begging for the necklace on her behalf.
Meanwhile, I used this window of peace to pave my own way out. I eagerly waited for Ruth to set up my blind dates, hoping to find a decent man who could take me far away from my toxic family.
However, before I could even receive Ruth's call, I ran headfirst into an unexpected crisis.
It happened that day at a private equestrian club event.
Desperate to steal the spotlight, Chloe deliberately chose to ride Julian's award-winning purebred horse.
But the stallion was notoriously wild and refused to be tamed by her. Before she even finished half a lap, she was brutally bucked off.
Distrusting the standard hospital staff, Julian pulled favors with his family to fly in the most elite medical specialists in the country just to check on Chloe.
But after a thorough evaluation, the chief doctor dropped a bombshell on us.
"Miss Sue only suffered minor soft tissue contusions, and her bones are perfectly fine," the doctor explained gravely. "However, her underlying health is concerning. She has a congenital deficiency. Her body will only grow weaker, making it impossible for her to bear children."
Julian was completely dumbstruck.
I was equally shocked. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine Chloe was born with a defective constitution.
But if she was already sick, why did everyone, my parents and Julian alike, stubbornly swear in my previous life that it was the radioactive necklace that killed her?
Before I could piece the puzzle together, my parents were already freaking out over the engagement.
Truth be told, my father, Jacob Sue, was merely a branch manager for one of Sterling Group's subsidiaries. We were nowhere near the Vance family's elite status.
The only reason we secured this engagement was thanks to my grandfather. Years ago, during the darkest days of Ricky Vance's startup, my grandfather risked everything, pooling every last cent he had to bail Ricky out. To return the favor, Ricky sealed a betrothal between his descendants and the daughters of our family.
Now, everyone in our circle knew Julian was the sole heir to the Vance family. There was absolutely no way his family would allow him to marry a barren woman.
Desperate to preserve a marriage alliance that was so clearly out of our league, my parents decided to reuse their old playbook from my previous life. They were going to make me substitute for Chloe.
They already ruined my entire previous life, so there was no way in hell I was going to nod along and agree to this a second time.
So, while my parents were busy trying to coax me into it, I cut right to the chase and offered a solution of my own.
"Since Chloe's too fragile to handle a pregnancy, she can simply allow Julian to have children with other women outside. When the babies are born, she can bring them home and raise them under her own name," I suggested casually. "That way, Chloe still gets to be Mrs. Vance, and they can play the loving couple."
Chloe froze. A flash of intense disappointment crossed her teary eyes before she glared at me fiercely. "You know how much I despise cheating men! How could you suggest I just sit back and watch Julian get another woman pregnant?"
She had fed our parents the exact same line in my previous life. Back then, when the news of her infertility broke, my parents immediately brought up the idea of me stepping in.
Chloe, playing the fragile victim, had screaming matches with our parents and even threw a massive tantrum at Vance Manor.
A high-society powerhouse like the Vance family could never accept such a vulgar shrew as a bride. It was only after she died that Julian finally had no choice but to marry me.
Julian abruptly pushed the door open, cutting our conversation short. "Since Chloe doesn't want me touching anyone else, there's only one option left."
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