The five burly men behind her were setting explosives, one of them asking uneasily: "Miss Susan, didn't we agree to just kidnapping?"

Susan threw a stack of cash from her bag onto the floor: "Do you want your lives, or do you want the money and to shut up?"

Zoe’s pupils constricted—the C4 explosive at Susan’s feet was enough to level the entire factory.

The roar of an engine approached from near and far, as a black off-road vehicle crashed through the iron gate and charged in.

The moment the car door was kicked open, gunfire erupted.

Julian dodged the bullets, and with a backhand shot, hit the kneecap of the armed man. There was still dried blood on his face, clearly from fighting his way in.

"Julian!" Susan screamed and dragged Zoe up, a dagger pressed against her throat. "Move another inch and I’ll slice her face to ribbons!"

Julian threw his gun away.

Zoe struggled violently: "Are you crazy? Run! She has explosive—"

Susan clamped her hand over Zoe’s mouth hard, the dagger leaving a bloody line on Zoe’s cheek: "How deeply affectionate, President Julian." She kicked the detonator at her feet. "Kneel and beg me, and I’ll let her go."

Julian’s gaze was sinister, but he actually knelt on one knee.

"Not enough," Susan laughed frantically, "I want you to kowtow!"

Zoe’s tears burst forth; she shook her head frantically, a sob emitting from her throat.

Julian bent down slowly.

Just as his forehead was about to touch the ground, gunfire exploded!

Susan’s wrist holding the blade burst into a flower of blood. Julian rose abruptly, yanking Zoe into his arms.

"Watch out!" Zoe suddenly screamed.

The moment Julian turned, a long knife pierced his back, sinking into his chest!

Blood sprayed onto Zoe’s face, warm and viscous.

She watched Julian stumble, yet he still shielded her firmly, firing three shots to take down the sneak attacker.

"Julian!" Zoe cried out in a breakdown, holding his slipping body. "Why did you come!"

Julian leaned against the wall, blood bubbles overflowing from the corners of his mouth. His trembling hand stroked her face, a weak smile on his lips: "Because... you are my fiancee."

Sirens could be heard in the distance; Susan screamed and reached for the detonator. Julian raised his gun with his last ounce of strength.

"Bang!"

The bullet hit Susan’s shoulder with precision, and she shrieked as she fell to the ground.

Julian’s hand hung down helplessly.

In the hospital corridor, Zoe sat outside the ICU like a statue.

She was still wearing the blood-stained clothes, her hands unable to stop trembling.

"Will he die?" she asked suddenly.

Lin Han shook his head with red eyes: "Believe in President Julian, you are still here..."

Zoe looked down at the dried blood in her palms.

When she died in her past life, was he also this panicked, this desperate...

On the seventh morning, the monitor suddenly emitted a rapid "beep-beep" sound.

Zoe woke up from a nap and saw Julian’s fingers moving.

"Doc..." Her throat was too hoarse to make a sound, so she could only press the call button frantically.

Julian opened his eyes slowly, his focus scattered for a moment before finally settling on her haggard face.

Zoe’s tears hit the back of his hand.

He lifted his hand with difficulty, his thumb brushing away her red, swollen corners of her eyes: "Looking ugly..."

Zoe was both crying and laughing, grabbing his hand and pressing it against her face: "You're the ugly one! Showing off by taking a knife in the chest!"

Julian’s oxygen mask fogged up; he moved his fingers slightly. Zoe leaned down and heard his breathy whisper: "If... in this life I still lost to them... would you regret choosing me?"

Zoe shook her head, tears soaking the snow-white sheets: "In the past life, you collected my remains; in this life, I will only live for you."

The curve on the ECG monitor suddenly fluctuated violently.

The doctor rushed in in a panic, only to be struck by the scene before him.

The head of the Julian Group, who had always been so calm and collected, was tightly clutching the Wen family daughter’s hand, tears streaming down his face.

Chapter 18

On the seventh morning, the monitor suddenly emitted a rapid "beep-beep" sound.

Zoe woke up from her doze, seeing Julian’s fingers moving.

"Doc..." Her voice was too hoarse to speak, so she could only press the call button frantically.

Julian slowly opened his eyes, his gaze unfocused for a moment before finally centering on her haggard face.

Zoe’s tears fell onto the back of his hand.

He raised his hand with difficulty, his thumb brushing across her red-rimmed eyes: "Looking ugly..."

Zoe laughed through her tears, pressing his hand against her face: "You're the one who's ugly! Still playing it cool while you've got a knife in your chest!"

Julian’s oxygen mask fogged up; he moved his fingers slightly. Zoe leaned down and heard him whisper, as faint as a thread: "If... in this life I still lose to them... will you regret choosing me?"

Zoe shook her head, her tears soaking the snow-white sheets: "In my past life, you collected my remains. In this life, I will only live for you."

The curve on the ECG monitor suddenly fluctuated violently.

The doctor rushed in in a panic, only to be struck by the scene before him.

The head of the Julian Group, who had always been so calm and collected, was tightly clutching the Wen family daughter’s hand, tears streaming down his face.

A month later, Julian stood by the ward window, removing his bandages.

Zoe hugged him from behind, her cheek pressed against the scar on his back: "The doctor said we can leave the hospital today."

"Hmm."

"Jasper was sentenced to fifteen years for attempted murder."

"Hmm."

"Susan went insane and was sent to a psychiatric hospital."

"Hmm."

Zoe pinched his waist in anger: "Can President Julian only say one word?"

Julian suddenly turned around and pinned her against the floor-to-ceiling window. The sunlight filtered through his broad shoulders, casting dappled light and shadow over her.

"Zoe," he leaned down and kissed her, "let's go home."

In the top-floor conference room of the Julian Group, the projector shone with a blinding white light.

Zoe clicked the remote, and the screen began to play a recording.

【"The day before the wedding, I will arrange a plane crash,"】 Jasper’s voice was clearly distinguishable. 【"Take Susan abroad then, and the three of you just need to keep Zoe occupied on the Wen family's side."】

Laughter from Lucas came through the recording: 【"Don't worry, we won't give her the energy to look for you."】

The reporters in the conference room were in an uproar, flashes firing wildly. Zoe stood on the stage with a calm expression.

"This was recorded a year ago," she said, clicking to the next video.

The surveillance footage clearly showed Susan intentionally pulling her into the water, and among those four men, not one reached out to help her.

"And this segment is surveillance from the racetrack three months ago," Julian took the remote. The screen showed Hugo’s subordinates injecting the horses with drugs.

The influential figures of the elite circle looked ashen.

Once this evidence was made public, the Jasper, Lucas, Hugo, and Jude families would be completely ruined.

As for the companies that had previously collaborated with them, they would inevitably suffer heavy losses.

The news spread faster than a plague.

#JasperFakeDeathFraud# EXPLOSIVE!

#FourYoungMastersWatchSomeoneDie# EXPLOSIVE!

#SusanThirdPartyConfirmed# EXPLOSIVE!

Jasper’s stock opened at a limit-down, and partners canceled contracts one after another.

The Lucas family’s pharmaceutical company was investigated for using prohibited ingredients, and the Hugo family’s real estate projects were fully halted due to construction violations.

The most miserable was Jude; the private equity fund under his name was suspected of money laundering and was seized by the police.

Susan was cornered by paparazzi outside her apartment; her wig was pulled off, revealing patchy scalp—a side effect of long-term use of psychiatric drugs.

She squatted on the ground screaming, letting the flashes capture her wretched state clearly.

Zoe watched the farce coldly from inside her car as the window slowly rose.

"Satisfied?" Julian asked.

Zoe shook her head: "One last step is missing."

Jasper smashed everything in his office that could be smashed.

"Julian... Zoe..." his eyes bloodshot, he took a handgun from the safe, "I want you both to die!"

He drove straight toward the Julian Building but was forced to stop at an intersection by a truck. Jasper jerked the steering wheel, and the car lost control, crashing into the guardrail.

The moment the airbag deployed, he saw Julian’s special assistant, Lin Han, sitting in the car opposite, talking into a phone.

Jasper suddenly understood.

This "accident" was the final gift Julian had prepared for him.

In the office, Zoe was peeling an apple.

The TV played the latest update: 【Jasper, the former heir of the Jasper Group, is critically injured in a car accident and is suspected of attempted murder; he is now under police custody.】