The Ninety-Ninth Time

Their mutual friends advised him.

"Royce, you should cherish her. No one in this world loves you more than Lily. If you push her away, you'll regret it."

Lily loved him; he knew that.

He had loved Lily too. Initially, the love was passionate, but later, it became dull and brought an unadmitted resentment.

Now, he had fallen in love with Nadia, a woman of humble status, yet resilient and determined, like a small white flower in the wild.

Friends continued to advise.

"Royce, be clear-headed. You've loved Lily for so many years. You can't suddenly fall for someone else. It must be an illusion; you're just temporarily confused. Deep down, you still love Lily."

Is it an illusion? He didn't know. But at present, Nadia was indeed more important to him than Lily.

...

On the way to the Jian family's old house, Royce brought up their cold war and repeated the question from the call.

"Do you want to reconcile?"

Reconcile? Of course, she wanted to reconcile, but—Lily turned to look at him. "Sure, as long as you fire Nadia, I'll never argue with you again."

Nadia, Royce's secretary.

When Lily discovered Royce's special treatment of Nadia, she asked Royce to fire her.

Royce refused, saying Nadia was exceptionally capable and there was no reason to dismiss her.

At the time, she was more anxious about how to win back Royce, believing Royce was just angry because she had been away for too long, thinking he was just upset with her.

She never believed that Royce would abandon her.

Until that morning two months ago, when she saw them together outside Royce's apartment, her arm linked with his as they walked downstairs together...

Royce's subsequent honesty was like a hand from hell tearing at her heart.

He said, "Lily, I don't want to lie to you. I've fallen for Nadia. But don't worry, my parents won't let me marry her, so our wedding will proceed as planned."

Youthful vows turned out to be so fragile.

She wanted to marry Royce; she had dreamed of it. Royce was certain she would compromise because she loved him.

But her pride wouldn't allow her to coexist with Nadia, and Royce, in love with Nadia, forced her to complete his second love.

As expected, the topic of "reconciliation" collapsed due to their mutual intransigence.

Royce's words were piercing. "Lily, if I insist on breaking off the engagement, it's not impossible. Stop making a fuss. To be blunt, in our circle, it's common for couples to lead separate lives after marriage."

Lily didn't respond. Just before getting out of the car, she sent a text message to Royce.

The message was a number: [99]

Royce glanced at the screen, indifferently put his phone back in his pocket.

This wasn't the first time Lily had sent him a number. The first was "1," and this was the ninety-ninth, hence "99."

He had asked her what it meant. Drunk, she had laughed and said, "Every time you stab my heart, I count it, Royce. When you reach a hundred, the Lily who loves you will be gone. I'll leave you."

The first time she sent "1" was last year, after their first fight post-engagement.

Royce hadn't taken it seriously, thinking she was just being petty.

After all, Lily loved him dearly. He was sure she would eventually compromise.

---

Today was the birthday of Zoya, the eldest daughter of L&S Group's chairman, Brooks.

Everyone knew the Jian family had two daughters: the outstanding eldest daughter, Zoya, and the spoiled youngest daughter, Lily.

The Jian family's favorite was the eldest daughter, Zoya, and every year, they threw a grand birthday party for her.

Her thirtieth birthday party was as grand as an eighteenth birthday celebration.

Many guests attended, most of them businessmen labeled with "money," "power," and "interest," and many young, eligible bachelors.

The arrangements were as expected, with a clear purpose.

Zoya, with her high education, good looks, and great family background, was top-tier in high society. But now, at thirty, she was still single.

She wasn't in a hurry, but the Brooks couple was.

In recent years, her birthday parties were more like matchmaking events than birthday celebrations.

Nearly every prominent family in high society sent someone to attend, especially single young men and women.

These occasions were not only for matchmaking but also for men to discuss business and for women to show off their clothes and jewelry, and, of course, to gossip about the scandals of wealthy families.