Chapter 9 Six months after our wedding , I discovered I was pregnant . [ ] When Justin found out , he rushed home from the office immediately and insisted on taking me shopping for gifts right away . ] I couldn't resist his enthusiasm and smiled in agreement . ] As soon as we stepped outside , we saw Knox kneeling at our villa's entrance , head bowed and motionless . ] ] ཕྲག 1:|: ཀློས My smile instantly vanished as I held Justin's arm and tried to walk around him . ] ] Knox stared at me as I passed by , his expression complex , but he didn't call out to me . [ ] M After Justin and I drove away , we went on a shopping spree down Rodeo Drive , buying jewelry , clothes , and handbags until our car could barely hold them all . We even purchased a vacation estate in the suburbs . ] " Aria , when our baby grows up , this will be our little family's secret hideaway , " Justin said . [ ] A warm feeling spread through my heart . [ ] When we returned home , Knox was still kneeling in the same spot . ] But this time , he called out to me . ]] " Aria , is there really no chance for us anymore ? " ] Knox's eyes were bloodshot . [ ] Seeing my indifferent expression and how I ignored him , he grew desperate . [ ] " Aria , Ruby got close to you and became your best friend because she liked me too . She's been manipulating us all these years . It's all my fault - I misjudged you . And I told you , I would never marry her , not in this lifetime . " [ ] He frantically explained , instinctively crawling to my feet and clutching my legs tightly , afraid I'd leave . ] He finally realized his mistakes , but it was too late . [ ] " Knox , I'm pregnant now . I have a new family. But even if I weren't pregnant or married , we could never go back to how things were . " I thought this would make him give up , but I underestimated Knox's obsession . [ ] When he heard my words , his face filled with disbelief , and hot tears quickly welled up in his eyes . [ ] " I don't care , Aria . I don't care if you're carrying someone else's child . " ] " As long as you stay with me , I'll work hard to support you and the baby ! Even if you never want to have children with me , that's fine too ! " 16.50 Chapter 9 Knox looked at me with eyes full of hurt and love , but I coldly kicked him away , feeling completely calm inside . ] If I didn't clearly remember his and Ruby's betrayal over these years , I might have been moved by him . [ ] When Justin saw Knox trying to crawl toward me , he shielded me behind him and looked down at the pathetic man with contempt . ] " Knox , I'm still very much alive to be a father . And even if I died someday , it would never be your job to support my wife and child ! " With that , he threw a punch . [ ] Before Knox could react , Justin grabbed him like a dead fish . [ ] Ever since I could remember , Justin had trained in mixed martial arts . I recall how the young boy would gently pat my head and say softly : " Aria , I need to train hard so when I grow up , I can protect you better . You're my little princess . " ] Now I could see he had always been protecting me . [ ] After just a few punches , Knox couldn't take anymore . His eye was blackened , blood trickled from his mouth , and he limped one leg . Yet he still struggled to stand , staggering as he tried to approach me . [ ] Seeing this , Justin coldly pinned Knox to the ground , completely immobilizing him . [ ] I sighed deeply and tugged at Justin's arm : [] " Let it go , honey . It's not worth it . He's just someone irrelevant to us now . Let's go home . " When Knox was released , he didn't pursue me further . ] Instead , he turned and limped away . I didn't know where he went or what he planned to do , but I no longer cared . [ ] After that day , I heard that the Ruby's family kept pressuring the Knox's family to make Knox marry Ruby , but Knox consistently refused . Seeing his parents ' difficulty , he went into the mountains alone and jumped from a cliff . ] After a death occurred , Ruby's father had no choice but to drop the matter and hastily found someone else for Ruby to marry . [ ] M on 44 But Ruby seemed to maintain an obsession - she had to be better than me in some way , eve if just one thing . Since she couldn't win in marriage , she focused on beauty . [ ] She decided to borrow money to pay for surgeries to become more beautiful than me . [ ] In the end , she not only accumulated massive debt , but the surgeries failed . [ ] She was left with a disfigured face for life , constantly hiding from debt collectors . [ ] Chapter 9 Later , I learned that Knox didn't actually die from jumping off the cliff . People occasionally saw him returning home to visit his parents . Apparently , he had been rescued by a monk living at the foot of the mountain . In his despair , Knox stayed at the monastery and became a monk himself , vowing never to marry . Months later , our daughter was born amidst great celebration - a beautiful little princess . Justin held her , treasuring her so much he couldn't take his eyes off her . " Aria , our little princess looks exactly like you ! " ] ] " How did I get so lucky to have two princesses in my life at once ? " [ Justin's brow was slightly furrowed from excitement or nervousness as he spoke , cradling our baby with such careful attention that it looked both awkward and endearing . During my recovery period , he didn't trust the nanny's care and insisted on taking care of our daughter and me himself . [ ] One day , as I was about to take a photo to capture a tender moment between father and daughter , I was distracted by a news notification on my phone . [] The story reported that Ruby , upon discovering Knox hadn't died , went to the monastery with a knife to force him to marry her . [ Knox firmly refused , and during their struggle , both fell down a staircase . Ruby was fatally stabbed by her own knife and died before reaching the hospital . [ ] Knox had hit his head on the stairs and fallen into a vegetative state . [ ] Reading about this outcome sent a chill through me . I quickly closed the page and opened my camera app instead . [ ] As for me , I was surrounded by endless love , feeling nothing but happiness . ] ( 0 )