Chapter 232

In his dream, Michael saw another version of himself acting like a fool—desperately trying to please a girl named Lily Green.

He showered her with resources, connections, and opportunities.

He even instructed his agent, Richard Brown, to give her special treatment, unaware that the two were already secretly involved.

The strangest part? Every time he saw Lily, he couldn’t help but feel compelled to be good to her, as if under some spell.

His mother was the first to notice something was off. With a cold expression, she warned him, "Lucy White is the only one I'll accept as my daughter-in-law. If you betray her, don’t call me your mother anymore."

His father also sat him down for a serious talk. "Lucy is the right person for you. Don’t wait until you lose her to realize that."

The most shocking was his grandmother, who suddenly stopped pressuring him into an arranged marriage and even agreed to let him marry Lucy.

He didn’t have romantic feelings for Lily—he was just grateful because she’d once saved him. Yet, an insistent voice in his head kept urging him: Be good to Lily. Repay her.

His family’s interference only made him more rebellious.

When his mother bought an apartment and arranged for him to live with Lucy, he felt like his entire life was being controlled—even his marriage.

When his family started pushing for marriage, he snapped.

Despite his defiance, he never considered breaking up with Lucy.

After moving in together, Lucy still cooked for him every day and playfully demanded his attention. He secretly adored it, but the pressure about marriage made him irritable, and he’d deliberately act cold toward her.

More often than not, he chose to stay away, burying himself in filming and rarely coming home.

They lived together, yet they barely even kissed. He often wanted to, but his pride wouldn’t let him.

Every time they went out, if Lily called, he’d abandon Lucy without hesitation.

Lucy quickly caught on, and they had a huge fight.

Lily was special—she was the first person who’d ever stood up for him. But no matter what, he couldn’t develop romantic feelings for her. He just couldn’t stop himself from being good to her.

Lily dropped hints about her feelings, even tried to seduce him. But he felt nothing—only guilt when he thought of Lucy.

Strangely, every time he tried to make it up to Lucy, Lily would "coincidentally" need him. That voice would return: Repay Lily. Be good to her.

On their anniversary, he stood Lucy up again—for Lily.

Here, the dream began to diverge from reality.

Though furious, Lucy didn’t break up with him.

When he was photographed picking Lily up from the police station, he followed Richard’s suggestion and let Lucy take the blame.

No matter how much he indulged Lily, he didn’t want to be linked to her romantically. Making Lucy the scapegoat would also pave the way for their eventual public relationship.

But things spiraled out of control.

Buried in work and with Richard sabotaging things behind the scenes, he failed to notice the online harassment Lucy was enduring from his fans.

Richard arranged a live reality show. He only agreed to join because Lucy was participating.

Then Lily showed up.

In the dream, the show played out differently. Lily shone brightly, her popularity soaring, while Lucy was maliciously edited into a villain.

Something felt off. Lucy had performed well, yet she was being twisted into a negative image.

Every time he tried to defend her, Lily would "coincidentally" appear to smooth things over, whispering, "Don’t get too close to Lucy, or the fans will attack her."

Like a puppet, he obeyed.

Richard, sensing he wanted Lucy to quit the industry, forced her to leave after the first episode.

He vaguely suspected Richard was up to something, but Lily’s affairs always distracted him.

After leaving the show, Lucy grew distant and withdrawn.

He reached out, only to be rejected. Frustrated and worried, he kept pushing until she finally softened.

One day, Lucy suddenly asked, "What would you do if I left the industry?"

His heart leapt—but he replied coldly, "Do what you want." He even added, "You insisted on following me into this world. Now you want to quit? You should’ve listened to me from the start."

He regretted it immediately.

Seeing her pale face, his chest ached—but his stubborn pride kept him from apologizing.

He dragged her out to eat, promising to take her shopping. Then Richard called—Lily had been injured on set.

Richard claimed he was too busy and asked Michael to go to the hospital.

Lily was now Richard’s client. Something felt fishy, but that voice returned: Go to Lily!

In the end, he muttered "Sorry" to Lucy and rushed off.