"You had to go suffer in the countryside because of me. That’s on me. Tomorrow, I’ll go and file for divorce. You shouldn’t have been dragged into this."

His voice was cold as steel. Even under the dim, flickering bulb, with his handsome face all scratched up, there was something raw and wild about his looks—rugged, not ruined.

Alice looked up and saw him standing there, posture stiff in his crisp military uniform, back straight like a yardstick.

He looked annoyed, brows furrowed tight, but he had that unshakable soldier's edge to him—sharp, unyielding, impossible to ignore.

Forget movie stars—this man could outshine any of them without even trying.

Where was this?!

Alice's head suddenly felt like someone bashed it with a brick. A flood of unfamiliar memories came crashing in.

She'd time-traveled—right into that old-school novel "Seventies Space Life"!

And she’d become the villainess with the same name, the gorgeous but vicious wife of the male lead, Henry Evans!

The original Alice? Big fan of her cousin Charles Grant. So loyal, she drugged Henry to land him in a scandal and crush his shot at leading the team.

But something went sideways—her guy didn’t show up.

And she ended up sleeping with the drugged Henry herself.

With the whole village in the know, Henry had no choice but to swallow his pride and marry her.

That ticked off the original her, who from then on made it her mission to wear Henry down.

She used her killer looks—with a face like a movie star—and top-tier flirt tactics to twist the once-stoic Henry around her finger.

She’d quit her nice clerk job at the factory the moment they tied the knot, happily stepping into her role as a "military wife."

Stubbed a finger? Slight headache? She’d immediately call the base crying, begging Henry to come home.

Henry, for his part, saw through her tricks more than once.

But every time she’d cling to him like a needy kitten, tiptoe up to kiss him and whisper, “Henry, I just missed you so much. Didn’t you miss me? Maybe... you should punish me?”

And every time, he’d cave. The tough guy simply couldn’t stay mad at her for long.

What’s crazier? She even tried talking him into quitting the military.

Good thing the man had principles—he didn’t budge.

Still, she threw enough tantrums to turn their house into a warzone.

A month after the wedding, she found out she was pregnant.

The news had the Evans family over the moon—considering male infertility ran strong in that family. Henry’s dad had been lucky to have five kids, but Henry’s generation? Doctors said none of the four brothers could father a child.

So Alice's pregnancy? It was practically a miracle for the Evans family.After getting pregnant, the original Alice got even moodier. If anything ticked her off even a little, she'd rage at the Evans family. They just had to suck it up—for the baby's sake.

Then when she hit four months, her cousin Charles finally told her to make a move.

He'd already set the stage, falsely accusing Henry, Thomas, and Nicholas of bribery and embezzlement. Even though there wasn’t enough evidence, they still ended up getting sent to the countryside as “educated youths.”

Charles kept pushing her—said this was the perfect time to end the pregnancy, get a divorce, and marry him. That way, the Evans family would take a double hit and collapse for sure.

But guess what? Just three years later, the Evans men were cleared of all charges and got their positions back. Out of nowhere, they became one of the most admired rich families around.

Henry moved on and met the reborn female lead. The two fell in love, got married, and had three adorable kids.

And the original Alice? She married Charles and it turned into a nightmare. He was cold, his folks were horrible, and in the end, the whole Grant family landed in prison with proof stacked against them.

When things got bad, they dumped all the blame on her. She got sentenced to twenty years.

She couldn’t handle prison life. Didn’t last long before she took her own life.

Good lord, what a tragedy!

Alice instinctively touched her belly, then looked up at her ridiculously handsome husband. Her heart was screaming: Any woman who wants a divorce from this man must be out of her mind! Who in their right mind would give up a hot husband and a rich future?

"I’m not getting divorced!"

No way she was going to walk away—not when the alternative was a total disaster.

Henry narrowed his eyes, his brows furrowed tightly.

She’d been throwing tantrums for days—crying, yelling, acting like the world was ending. Wasn’t she the one who wanted to leave him? Now he said okay, and she suddenly changed her mind?

"Alice Henderson, what’s your angle this time?"

His voice was tight with anger, fingers clenched so hard they turned pale. He was this close to snapping. One more word from her and he might actually strangle her.

She'd tricked him into sleeping with her, and he could’ve called the cops. But he didn’t. He chose to take responsibility and make her his wife.

That first month of marriage, when everything was sweet, he’d actually believed she cared about him.

Turns out it was all an act. All she ever wanted was to drag him through the mud and ruin his entire family.

"Henry, please don’t leave me!" Alice clung to his arm. "I only made a fuss because I wanted you to care... to pay more attention to me. I swear, I won’t do anything to hurt the baby!"

Henry stared at her coldly, his eyes like ice.

She was still putting on an act? As if he meant anything to her? Like she wasn’t already being manipulated by Charles?

She'd pulled every trick in the book just to help that guy take his spot.

He originally didn’t want to call her out, but enough was enough.

"Alice Henderson," he said, slowly and icily, "marrying me, seducing me, messing with the Evans family, helping Charles tear us down—was this your plan all along? How could you be this cruel?"Alice’s legs nearly gave out when she saw that fierce glint flash in Henry’s eyes—scared her half to death.

Yeah… the whole scheme really was something the original Alice cooked up to help her cousin.

“Author, you’re really ganging up on me now!”

Her face went pale as a sheet, and her voice trembled like she was about to cry. “It’s not like that, Henry, let me explain…”

Henry let out a cold laugh, all mockery. “What’s there to explain? The Evans family is ruined. Perfect timing for you, huh? You can get rid of the baby, file the divorce, and run off to your precious little lover. Step on my family one last time, make us the village joke, ensure we never get back on our feet. Isn’t that what you were after all along? Congrats, Alice, you got what you wanted.”

He drew in a sharp breath, fighting the urge to wring her neck. “Tomorrow, I’m filing for divorce. We're done. For good.”

Seeing the strain in his jawbone, and how hurt he looked, Alice felt like someone stabbed her right in the heart.

What the hell did the original her do? A guy like Henry—solid, steady, even in a uniform—and she threw him away for that treacherous cousin?

Alice clenched her teeth. Alright then, nothing left to lose!

She suddenly threw herself at him, both arms clamping around his lean waist like steel, burying her face into his starched uniform. “Henry, I swear I realize how wrong I was. Please, just give me another chance…”

Every muscle in Henry’s body tensed up. His voice turned icy. “Let. Go.”

“No way!” Alice pressed her head tighter against his chest. “Unless you agree not to divorce me. I’ve really messed up, but I’ll change, I promise!”

Change? Ha. A tiger can’t change its stripes. And Alice changing? Might as well teach a pig to fly.

“I said let go!” Henry’s voice shot up, sharp.

“No! I’m not letting go, no matter what!” Alice gripped him like her life depended on it.

Henry blinked rapidly, and when his eyes refocused, they were red, burning with emotion. “Are you seriously still playing games?”

“Henry, I mean it!” Alice lifted her tear-streaked face to look at him. “I was out of my damn mind, backing my cousin on that despicable plan. I'm so sorry now! I swear on everything, I won't touch a finger against this baby. I’ll go with you to the countryside. Even if it’s rough, even if we’ve got nothing to eat but gruel, I’ll stick with you through it all! Just... could you believe me one more time? Please?”

She leaned into his chest, her whole body warm against him.

Ever since she got pregnant, her whole demeanor had changed. She used to be all over him—now? She wouldn’t even let him stand close.

Now, just feeling her soft warmth pressed to him, Henry’s emotions churned. There was hurt, bitterness, and... something surprising he couldn’t quite name.

He shut his eyes, trying to calm it all down. A hardened soldier who’d seen war, yet here he was, being thrown into chaos by this woman.

“Alice, how much more damage are you planning to do to this family?” A vein throbbed on his temple. “You already pulled a fast one, and now you wanna try softening me up? Embarrass me more, is that the plan?”