Chapter 1

I had been married to my wife, Claire Bennett, for fifty years.

I was eighty-two, and she was seventy-seven, and I had always believed we would grow old together.

But on our fiftieth wedding anniversary, I got into a car accident.

I thought it was an accident.

That was until I saw what happened after my death: Claire inherited everything I owned and married her first love.

Then she used the company account to post a showy message:

“My love, fifty years late. We can finally be together.”

The entire internet congratulated her on finally escaping my control, condemned me as the mistress who had destroyed someone else’s relationship, and celebrated the lovers for finally being together.

When I opened my eyes again, I discovered that I had returned to fifty years earlier.

I had returned to the day Claire knelt before me and begged me to save her sick mother.

I looked at her still-cold, distant face, put away the marriage agreement I had prepared, and instructed my assistant:

“Print out a kept-woman contract and bring it to me.”

I looked at Claire kneeling in front of me.

Even on her knees, she held herself straight, like a cedar standing in winter snow, her face cold yet restrained, as though she had suffered the greatest humiliation in the world.

In my previous life, I had fallen hopelessly in love with that cold expression of hers.

Especially when she looked at me seriously, her eyes filled with my reflection.

Back then, her eyes had been full of humiliation, and after I brought out the marriage agreement, the shame on her face had become even more obvious because she believed I was insulting her.

I looked at her and wished I could give her everything I had, as long as she agreed.

“Claire, if you marry me, I’ll transfer ten million dollars to you immediately, and I’ll arrange the best doctors for your mother.”

Hesitation appeared on Claire’s face, and the conditions I offered clearly left her conflicted.

I understood that she simply did not love me and did not want to marry me.

So I added, “Five years. You only have to marry me for five years. After that, if you want to, I’ll divorce you anytime.”

She agreed.

Back then, I had believed five years would be long enough—long enough for me to win her heart, because even a dog could develop feelings after five years.

But Claire was worse than a dog.

Five years really had moved her heart, but they had moved her greedy heart.

I thought that after being together for fifty years, she would eventually come to love me, but after I died, she could not wait to marry that man and bring him into our home, even using my company account to loudly announce their relationship.

She even slandered me, claiming I had been the mistress who came between them and used my power to force them apart.

The story even trended on Instagram, and people said their love was a once-in-a-lifetime romance, that not even fifty years apart could shake their feelings for each other.

They called me a despicable thief who had stolen the best years of their lives.

Incited by them, people threw trash and eggs at my grave, and my tombstone was edited into memes that were shared everywhere to mock me.

Meanwhile, they did not care in the slightest and squandered everything I had left behind.

I closed my eyes and forced the memories of my previous life out of my mind before opening them again to look at the young Claire in front of me.

A quiet laugh escaped me.

The marriage agreement was right beside my hand.

Under Claire’s restrained gaze, I picked up the document and put it away in my desk drawer.

While she watched, I picked up the internal phone and instructed, “Ethan, bring me a kept-woman contract.”

The instant I finished speaking, Claire’s pupils contracted, and her breathing grew noticeably heavier.

I pretended not to notice her reaction, hung up, and stopped looking at her, instead picking up another document to read.

It did not take long for Ethan to bring the contract over.

He glanced at the scene in my office but did not ask any questions, simply delivered the document and left.

Only then did I look up at Claire and throw the contract in front of her.

“You heard what kind of contract it is. Do I really need to explain it?”

Claire reached down to pick up the contract from the floor.

When she saw the four words printed on it—Kept-Woman Contract—she abruptly looked up at me, her voice filled with humiliation.

“What do you mean?”

I replied calmly, “Can’t you read?”

When I finished speaking, I saw Claire staring at me with bloodshot eyes, unable to believe I would humiliate her like this.

Of course, in my previous life, I had loved her desperately, so how could I have treated her this way?

She had grown used to my tenderness and consideration, so she must have thought that as long as she nodded, I would be willing to tear out my own heart and give it to her.

I curled my fingers and tapped them several times against the desk, staring steadily at her.

“Claire, when you ask someone for help, you should act like you’re asking for help. Sign it if you’re willing. If you’re not, get out. I’ll give you five minutes to think about it.”

Her eyes were scarlet, but in the end, the pressure of reality defeated her.

She bent down, knelt on the floor, and signed the agreement.

Claire spoke hoarsely. “I’ve signed it. You can save my mother now, right?”

Under her gaze, I picked up the phone.

“Ethan, make the arrangements with the hospital.”

When she heard that, Claire immediately let out a breath of relief and stood up.

Her legs had poor circulation after kneeling for so long, so she limped as she walked, but she did not care.

She only wanted to leave this place where she had suffered such humiliation.

Before leaving, she gave me a deep look, her eyes fixed on me as though I were her enemy.

I knew she probably wanted to kill me.

But so what?

After loving me for so many years in my previous life, she had still killed me in the end.

That day had also been our fiftieth wedding anniversary.

During that period, I had noticed that she was in a bad mood, so I bought a yacht for her as an anniversary gift.

I had also planned to announce that day that I would hand the company over entirely to our daughter.

That way, I could spend my time peacefully with Claire and travel around the world with her on our yacht.

After signing the documents at the marina, I got into my car and headed home.

Because I wanted to surprise her, I had not brought a driver and was driving home alone.

But halfway there, I discovered that the brakes had failed.

By then, my speed had gradually climbed to nearly 140 miles per hour, and I was driving along a mountain road where every turn could become the place I died.

I called her again and again, but all I heard was the cold mechanical voice.

“The number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable. Please try again later…”

Even when I crashed into the guardrail and died, I was still thinking:

Claire, there are so many things I never got to say to you.

I remained lost in those memories for a long time until the phone on my desk rang and pulled me back.

I was silent for several seconds before answering.

It was Ethan.

“Mr. Cole, everything at the hospital has been arranged. Do you still want me to tell Miss Bennett about the property transfer you mentioned yesterday?”

I froze for a moment before remembering what I had arranged in my previous life.

“No, there’s no need. Also, investigate Claire. I want every detail written down. Send me the report when it’s ready.”

After saying that, I hung up.

In my previous life, after she married me, I had transferred ten million dollars to her and signed a luxury house over to her, terrified that she might suffer even the slightest grievance.

And what had I gotten in return?

My eyes darkened.

This time, I wanted to see how she planned to continue her so-called magnificent love story with her first love without my money.