Chapter 1

I forced myself to keep moving, like a dried corpse, step by step, until I collapsed at the rescue station.

When I woke up again, Nat Curme and Coral Lynd were standing by the simple bed in front of me.

There was no trace of concern in Nat's eyes. He just looked at me coldly and sneered.

"You really are something. You walked out of there by yourself. Why didn't you call for rescue?"

"It seems you still haven't realized where you went wrong, huh?"

In the past, after such mistreatment, I would have rushed into his arms, crying and scolding him, begging him to comfort me.

But after surviving Lop Nur, I felt numb to it all.

No one knew what I had gone through there, how I managed to survive.

When Nat threw me out, he didn't leave me a bottle of water, nor a single biscuit.

Under the scorching 67-degree heat of the desert, I burned the soles of my feet to a blistering mess.

There was no water, no food, no shelter in the barren wilderness.

During the day, I could only shrink like a dead person in the shadow of a hill to escape the heat.

At night, the temperature dropped sharply, and I had to crawl into thorny bushes, enduring the pain until dawn.

My body was covered in cuts from thorns and sharp stones, but these were not the worst.

I couldn't find food or water in the desert, so I dug up grass roots, ate insects, and drank the juice from cacti.

I was poisoned by the toxic cacti and a scorpion, vomiting and nearly dying.

Once, in the dead of night, a herd of wild desert pigs came charging at me, their tusks lifting me up and nearly piercing my chest.

Luckily, a pack of desert wolves showed up just in time to scare off the wild pigs, and I escaped with my life.

When Nat Curme questioned me about why I didn't call for a rescue, I wanted to scream that there was no signal in the desert.

No one ever came here, not even once a year. My survival was only due to my unyielding will to live.

Because I wasn't ready to die. I couldn't let go of the man I had loved for ten years, not like that!

Looking at Nat's icy face, I opened my mouth to speak, but my throat could only produce a raspy, hoarse sound.

Coral Lynd, who was huddling by Nat's side, pretended to be concerned as she reached out to touch my cracked face.

"Janet, really… all you had to do was apologize to Nat, but you had to oppose him."

"Besides, I'm not the kind of person who holds grudges. I've forgiven you for making me fall and hurt my face."

I looked coldly at Coral's crimson-painted lips, speaking with no emotion.

It seemed like she was bored of trying, as she pouted and hooked her arm around Nat's.

"See, Nat? Janet is so stubborn. Even now, she hasn't realized where she went wrong."

"Forget it. She's always been willful. Let's not blame her, or she'll throw another tantrum."

Nat's suppressed rage finally exploded. He gritted his teeth, his veins bulging as he shouted at me.

"Fortunately, I had foreign experts fix the damage to Coral's forehead, or I'd make you pay!"

"You wasted a whole month of time in Lop Nur, missing our wedding date. You're the one who's responsible for this!"

I glanced indifferently at Coral's smooth forehead.

She had merely rolled down a small sand dune, hit a sharp stone, and scraped her skin. Then she claimed I had pushed her.

She cried, said she'd ruined her face and had a concussion, insisting that she was going to die in the desert.

Without hesitation, Nat rushed her to the nearest hospital, leaving me to rot in Lop Nur.

I couldn't believe Nat couldn't see through Coral's act, yet he still chose to take her away, leaving me behind.

Without a word, I calmly responded to Nat's accusations.

"Alright, I'll take responsibility."

My response caused Nat to freeze for a moment, staring at me incredulously, before falling into silence.

In the past, whenever I heard rumors about him talking to another woman, I would be jealous and confront him.

But now, after he had abandoned me for Coral and came back with her to confront me, I was surprisingly calm.

My unexpected serenity seemed to confuse him. He averted his eyes, unable to understand what was happening.

In my heart, I smiled quietly. Nat Curme, I'm not going to marry you.

Because I had made a deal with a devil in Lop Nur.

The person who came out of the desert wasn't the same person who had entered.

Chapter 2

Nat and I had grown up together, both of us from prominent families.

The Curmes and the Joels were not only long-time family friends but also business partners in the northern capital's elite circle.

Since childhood, I always believed I would marry Nat. In fact, everyone in the capital thought so, too.

Nat didn't mind, enjoying the possessive love I showed him. He let me chase after him for ten years.

With my arrogance before him, all the high-society girls in the capital stayed away from Nat.

He was glad for the peace and said he appreciated how I'd kept the unwanted attention at bay. I was his "one true love."

A year ago, Nat and I became engaged, with the wedding scheduled for half a month ago.

But then, Coral Lynd, Nat's long-lost white moonlight, suddenly returned to the country. That was when everything changed.

That night, Nat went to pick Coral up from the airport, threw a welcome party for her, and completely forgot that he had promised to spend my birthday with me.

After the party, Nat didn't come home that night for the first time.

The next day, he explained that Coral had gotten drunk, and he was worried about her, so he stayed on the sofa with her.

I had an instinct that something was off, but I convinced myself that our wedding was near, so I tried not to think too much about it.

On the third day after Coral's return, Nat went to work as usual.

Half an hour later, I saw a post from Coral on her social media. Nat had quietly taken her on a flight to Urumqi, heading to Lop Nur for an adventure.

I tried calling him, but his phone was off. It wasn't until I reached his secretary that I learned he had taken Coral to Lop Nur for some wild exploration.

At that moment, I understood. Coral was an adventurer, and Nat had gone for her.

Had he told me about it in advance, I wouldn't have been so furious.

But close to our wedding, he abandoned me and secretly traveled with his white moonlight.

No woman would swallow such a humiliation.

So, I booked a flight and rushed after them, catching up to them in Lop Nur.

When I arrived, Nat was furious, saying he hadn't told me because he didn't want me following them.

After all, I had never been an outdoors person, and he feared I'd be in danger in the desert.

But I was there now, so he had no choice but to take me with him. That's when Coral fell from the dune, injuring her forehead.

"Janet, if there's nothing else, just sign this. Your family can take you home."

The rescuer's voice pulled me back to the present. I nodded and signed my name with determination.

As soon as I tried to get out of bed, pain shot through my legs, almost making me collapse.

Nat reached out to steady me, his brow furrowing deeply.

"You really do like to make things hard on yourself! If you just apologized, if you'd said sorry to Coral, none of this would have happened."

I bitterly smiled inside. What should I apologize for? What should I regret? I didn't push her; she should be the one apologizing.

I knew Nat wouldn't think like that. To him, Coral was his white moonlight.

Maybe it was because I had always been spoiled and willful in front of him.

He saw me struggle in silence, beads of sweat forming on my dry forehead, and his voice softened again.

"The rescuer said you'll recover with a few months of rest, but what you did to Coral—

pushing her down the dune and almost ruining her face—it's unacceptable. I was so angry…"

I interrupted him coldly.

"It's fine. I told you, it's my fault. I'll take responsibility for everything."

My unusual calmness made Nat freeze in place, and a cold glint flashed in his eyes.

I wanted to look at him for one last time, but instead, I turned and walked out of the room, leaving him behind.

I pushed away his support, struggling to move my stiff legs forward.

During the month in the Lop Nur, I lost eighty percent of my body's moisture.

Now, I only had the shape of a person; from the outside, I looked like a walking zombie.

I was just in my twenties, and even mummies dug up from graves looked more appealing than I did.

Chapter 3

The significant loss of muscle moisture left my whole body stiff, and my limbs were uncoordinated.

The dryness of my skin made me look like a wrinkled, dark brown piece of tree bark.

But I knew he wasn't asking why my appearance had changed.

That secret, I wasn't ready to share with him yet. One day, he would know.

Returning to North, Nat Curme took me to the best hospital for examination.

The results showed that I suffered from multiple organ damage due to malnutrition, dehydration, and vitamin deficiencies.

My muscles and skin had also suffered severe damage; my body was now akin to that of a sixty-year-old.

As for whether I could recover to my former self through rest, the doctors couldn't guarantee it.

After hearing the doctor's report, Nat's heart sank to the bottom. He couldn't believe it and grabbed the doctor's collar.

"How is this possible? She was only in the desert for a month! She made it out alive, how could it be this serious?"

The doctor looked at Nat as if he were foolish and angrily shook off his hand.

"Mr. Curme, why don't you try going a month without food or water and see if you can survive?"

Nat stood there in a daze, his eyes filled with guilt as he looked at me.

"Janet, I'm sorry. I really didn't expect it to be this serious! I will definitely hire the best nutrition experts in the world to help you recover!"

Coral Lynd was also beside me, looking at me with concern. She held my hand and said to Nat,

"Nat, I met a doctor named Mike while studying abroad; he specializes in this area. I can recommend him to you."

Nat nodded, placing a hand on Coral's shoulder.

"Thank you, Coral. If only Janet had half your understanding, we wouldn't be in this situation."

Understanding… those two words pierced my heart deeply.

What made him think Coral was more understanding than I was? Did he believe I had intentionally harmed myself?

What happened at the scene back then? I was sitting alone on a sand dune, watching the sunset.

Coral came over, sitting beside me, her eyes filled with provocation, and she said, "Janet, do you think Nat will belong to you for life?

Ha, I'm not afraid to tell you, I'm here to take him away from you."

"Do you know what happened the night I returned? He pinned me down on the bed like a beast and took me all night long.

He said only with me could he find back his long-lost passion, while you, you can't even pique his appetite."

"He even said you were the one eager to marry him; he never wanted to marry you. You're just a fool who insists on marrying him!"

At that moment, I was already furious, and hearing Coral's provocations made me explode.

I angrily stood up to confront her, intending to question Nat about the truth. But as I stood up, she suddenly screamed and fell backward.

Next, she broke the skin on her forehead and screamed that she was dying, causing Nat to throw me aside and rush her back to the city overnight.

He knew the Lop Nur was a no-man's land and that leaving me alone would lead to my death, yet he resolutely abandoned me.

His car drove ahead while I desperately shouted and chased after him, crying and pleading him not to leave me behind.

He clearly saw me fall multiple times in the rearview mirror, bloodied and bruised, yet he never stopped.

He let me fall to the ground, unable to get up, left to suffer in the vast desert, and never looked back.

While I was lost in thought, my parents rushed in. As soon as they entered, I slapped Nat across the face.

"Nat Curme! My father, Jack Joel, has cherished and spoiled me, and you almost left me to die in the desert? You must give me an explanation!"

Nat touched his face, expressionless, glancing at my father before lowering his head.

"I'm sorry, Uncle Joel. I was wrong in this matter.

I will take responsibility for all of Janet's recovery costs, and as compensation, I will reduce our cooperation with the Joel family by two percent this year."

"Pah! Do you think our family cares about that little money of yours? If my daughter suffers any aftereffects, I won't let you off!"

At that moment, Coral Lynd walked over, her heart aching for Nat.

"Nat, are you alright?"

Then she turned, glaring at my parents with resentment.

"Uncle Joel, Auntie, please don't blame Nat.