So that was what she meant.

But he couldn't give up just like that.

Meng Po had given him a month.

Even if Claire couldn't forgive him in the end, even if their fate was truly exhausted, he would use this final period of time to make up for the harm he had once caused her.

Chapter 17

Julian found a place to stay in the town.

It was near Claire’s guesthouse, making it convenient to see her at any time.

Although she always avoided him whenever possible.

He still did not give up.

Knowing she liked white bellflowers, he had a bouquet delivered to the guesthouse every day.

Knowing she loved the pastries from that specific dessert shop in the east of the city, he had them air-shipped to her room daily.

Knowing she enjoyed fireworks, he had a display prepared every night, using specific firework letter shapes to apologize to her.

Knowing she did not want to see him, he did not appear before her.

Instead, he watched over her silently.

That day, he stood guard downstairs, his gaze fixed on her room within the floor-to-ceiling glass windows.

Although he could not see her, just seeing the warm yellow light in the room and knowing she was there brought him peace of mind.

As twilight deepened, a light drizzle mixed with snowflakes began to fall.

When his assistant found him with an umbrella, seeing him soaked by the rain, he was full of anxiety. "Mr. Julian, the rain is getting heavier, and you still have injuries. You cannot stay in the rain; let's go back first".

Julian acted as if he hadn't heard and pushed the assistant away.

"I am not leaving. Leave me be".

He could not leave.

His time was running out.

In the remaining time, he only wanted to get as close to her as possible.

He knew she could see him downstairs and hoped she would soften her heart and come out to see him.

But hours passed, and Claire never appeared.

Julian stood in the rain for a long time, the blood draining from his face until it was as pale as paper.

Finally, unable to hold on, he fainted.

When he woke up again, he was in the hospital; he had been unconscious for a day.

Upon waking, he immediately got out of bed, intending to go find Claire again.

He was stopped by his assistant. "Mr. Julian, the madam is not at the guesthouse now; she has gone to the snowy mountain...".

Unexpectedly, even after hearing this, Julian insisted on going.

The assistant tried to stop him again and again but failed in the end.

Julian, bracing against the severe headache brought on by altitude sickness, spent several hours climbing the snowy mountain and indeed saw Claire there.

His heart fluttered; this was a place he and Claire had been to before.

It held beautiful memories exclusive to them.

"Claire..." Julian breathed heavily, his voice raspy from physical pain, yet he held on.

"You really are here. Did you come here because we once visited this place?"

He walked to her side, carrying a shred of humble hope.

Claire turned around at the sound, her expression calm.

"I came to find this."

She opened her hand, revealing a rusted concentric lock on which their names were still faintly visible.

It was something they had engraved together years ago and hung in a prayer house on the mountain peak.

Julian’s heart skipped a beat, and he reached out to take it.

In the next second, Claire’s hand rose abruptly, and she threw the object away with force.

The concentric lock instantly plunged into the bottomless glacier crevice, disappearing without a trace.

"Since our hearts are no longer in the same place, there is no need to keep this thing".

Her voice was colder than the biting wind.

Julian felt a sharp pain in his chest; he clutched his heart tightly, a metallic taste rising in his throat, which he forcefully swallowed back.

"Claire, my love for you has never changed..."

His voice was bitter as his trembling hands produced the peace lock he had repaired before he could give it to her, offering it to Claire.

"Look, I’ve repaired the peace lock; there isn't a single trace left. Even if it was damaged once, it doesn't matter; everything can be mended, and we can too..."

Claire took the peace lock; there was no movement in her eyes, only deeper sarcasm.

She interrupted him directly.

"Julian, things that have been destroyed, even if restored, are not the same as they were at the beginning." Her voice lacked any warmth. "Just like us; we can never go back. From the moment you chose Sylvia, we were already over."

"Didn't you do all those things back then just to force me to sign the divorce agreement? Now I have agreed and am fulfilling your wish with Sylvia; why do you keep coming back to do these things? Don't you find it ridiculous?"

She looked at him, every word like it had been tempered in ice.

Julian’s face turned pale; he stepped forward eagerly, trying to explain again, "That's not it, Claire, believe me, there was truly nothing between Sylvia and me; we were just..."

"Just what? Are you going to say you were just acting again?" Claire sneered and interrupted him. "Julian, do you think I’m easy to fool, or in your eyes, am I really such a fool that you think you can deceive me with such absurd excuses?"

"Since you claim you were acting, then for what reason did you go to such lengths to perform this play to deceive me?"

"I..."

All of Julian’s

 words were blocked.

He opened his mouth, but no sound came out, as if an invisible hand was strangling his throat tightly.

He wanted to explain, only to realize there was no way to start.

Claire had already forgotten.

No matter what he said, in her eyes, it would only be preposterous lies.

She would never believe him.

Claire turned resolutely and left along the path she came from.

Watching that figure gradually disappear, the breath Julian had been holding finally dissipated.

His chest felt tight and painful, and his unhealed old wounds flared up violently in the cold, causing him to cough uncontrollably.

The long-accumulated blood could no longer be suppressed; it surged from his mouth, leaving a glaring, bright red stain on the clean white snow.

"Mr. Julian."

The assistant who had been following him changed expression, rushed up to support him, his voice choking. "Why do you torture yourself like this? Climbing the mountain in such a state..."

There was no response; Julian’s vision went black, and he fainted completely.

Julian was rushed to the hospital again in an emergency.

The doctor issued a stern warning that his wounds were infected and the intracranial hematoma was showing signs of worsening due to the extreme cold; he had to be on bed rest.

He managed to lie in the hospital for two days, and as soon as he could get out of bed, he went to the guesthouse again.

However, he was met with the news that Claire had already left.

"Mr. Julian, I have found out; the madam already returned to the country yesterday."

The assistant looked at his devastated appearance and whispered in pity.

Julian’s figure swayed, and he immediately ordered the assistant to book a flight back to the country.

Chapter 18

After returning to the country, Claire devoted all her heart and soul to the reconstruction of the Candy House.

It carried her former dreams; she did not want it to be destroyed just like that, and she wanted to restore it bit by bit.

On the day the Candy House resumed business, after the ribbon-cutting,

Sylvia showed up aggressively.

Without a word, she began smashing things.

Fortunately, Claire had been prepared and had hired bodyguards in advance, who managed to stop Sylvia.

"Sylvia, why are you acting like a lunatic here!"

Claire roared sharply.

Sylvia, held by two bodyguards, kept screaming.

"Let go of me!"

Her face was flushed and distorted with anger, her voice sharp. "Claire, how do you have the face to come back? Didn't you jump into the sea back then? Why didn't you just die? Playing the sympathy card, are you! And even leaking those things to Julian; do you know what he did to me?"

That day at the club, after Julian left, she was beaten black and blue by his subordinates and then thrown into the basement for days and nights.

Later, she seized an opportunity while the guards were inattentive to escape.

She had never suffered such misery since she was a child, and the mere thought made her want to tear both of them apart.

But the most hateful one was Claire; if it weren't for her, Julian would never have treated her like that.

"Claire, do you think you can make Julian have a change of heart by doing this? Don't dream; no matter what you do, I will never let him be with you again!"