The Reclaimed Rose (Annalise and Steven)

"When my mom noticed Mr. Ford's hesitation, she didn't push him for an immediate answer. She simply told him if he wasn't interested, that's fine, too.

"She could always find someone else. After all, an opportunity like this-crushing a rival while boosting your reputation-doesn't come by every day.

"If he didn't want it, someone else surely will. With that, she turned to leave. That was when Mr. Ford stopped her and said he was in.

"Since my mom specialized in marketing and public relations, Mr. Ford hired her to take charge of the situation, and she handled it flawlessly. First, she released a statement hinting at the scumbag's questionable character, prompting him to step forward and defend himself.

"Then, she exposed proof that he had forced her to leave with nothing. He argued that it was because she had never contributed to the household.

"So she countered with evidence of his infidelity. He claimed his new relationship only started after the divorce.

"She pulled out the divorce certificate-along with proof that they had been involved while he was still married. Then came the documentation of his attempt to transfer assets and leave her with debts. And finally, the ultimate blow- evidence that he had refused to pay child support.

"One well-executed attack after another, and the whole world knew what kind of man my dad was. Of course, this alone wasn't enough to destroy his company. It was just tabloid gossip until my mom released proof that his company was selling substandard products and had serious internal issues.

"Mr. Ford, who had initially planned to stay on the sidelines, stepped forward. He found customers who had received defective products and had them speak out.

"Since a company's foundation lies in its products, once quality concerns were exposed, other business partners came forward with additional complaints. The scumbag's company's reputation plummeted.noveldrama

"Those who had planned to work with him backed away and instead turned to my mom's new company, And the people who had once sided with him to blacklist my mom? They could only smile whenever they saw her

After saying at that, I finally smiled. "That was when I realized whether it's relying on a man or anyone else,

nothing beats relying on your your

When you stand tall enough on your own, that's when people truly respect you.

"If you depend on a man, people will say nice things to you in front of him. But the moment you leave him, they'll say you were nothing without him, that without a man, you're worthless."

Seeing how calmly I spoke about it all, Zane reached out and gently stroked my head. "You've been through a lot."

What he truly admired was even though I understood all this, I still stepped into marriage for the sake of love. Even after witnessing my mother's betrayal, I was still willing to become a housewife.

That kind of courage and love made him a little envious.

"It wasn't that hard. The scumbag scrambled to salvage the situation for a long time after that, but it was too late. He was furious.

"He drove straight to where my mom and I were living at the time and

confronted her. He said, 'Do you

even realize how much da

you've caused my company? Do you believe that I will sue you for this?""