CHAPTER 249: CHAPTER 241: YOU’RE TERRIBLE, SO I DON’T LOVE YOU

Bella Woods walked up to Cyan Marshall and Daniel Hughes, and bowed deeply to them.

"Bella..." Cyan instinctively reached out, but after a glance at Oliver Hughes, who stood aside with an expression still unable to accept it, she sighed helplessly and lowered her hand.

Bella stood up, her hands nervously clasped together in front of her.

"Aunt Cyan, Uncle Hughes, I’m sorry, I’ve done some things that disappointed you. I know what I did was wrong, but..."

Bella glanced back at Ashton Marshall, who was standing nearby, with a heavy heart.

All along, she had been unable to face her feelings for Ashton directly.

Especially after mistakenly believing she was just a substitute for Nina Sutton, all her feelings were suppressed, thinking she was leaving anyway and that they would never interact again.

But some feelings, even if suppressed or avoided, still cannot be ignored.

"I really like the Third Young Master, it’s because he takes care of me so attentively." Bella looked at Ashton, her eyes red.

For the first time, she courageously confessed her long-hidden emotions to Ashton.

"He taught me that pleasing others gains no true affection. By being true to myself, the one who loves me will overcome all obstacles to be by my side. Accepting mistakes allows us to courageously abandon them.

Accepting my own excellence, confidently showcasing it—without fear, without flattery, without silence, life is only lived once, and I prioritize my own feelings."

Bella looked at Ashton and couldn’t help but smile as she recalled the moments since they first met.

It was just that she couldn’t quite see Ashton clearly, her eyes blurred, yet his image had long been engraved in her heart.

It had taken root, leaving an indelible mark.

Bella withdrew her gaze, wiped away her tears, and bowed once again to Cyan and Daniel.

"I’m sorry, Aunt Cyan, Uncle Hughes, I know I’ve been graced by the Hughes family, and the Third Young Master is Oliver’s uncle. I shouldn’t have developed such feelings.

But love has never been controllable throughout history, and trying to control it is just as tragic."

"I’m sorry."

At this point, besides confessing her feelings for Ashton, Bella could only apologize.

Cyan and Daniel exchanged several glances, wanting to speak but unable to say anything.

"I do not agree!"

Oliver finally couldn’t hold back anymore and stepped between Bella and Cyan.

"Bella, you’re just trying to get back at me! Because you felt I didn’t like you, you took the opportunity to hook up with my uncle. You sought revenge on me because you couldn’t have me."

"All my feelings for you were extinguished the moment you humiliated me at Sienna’s birthday party. At our original engagement party, when you allowed them to harm me, it was entirely gone."

Bella faced Oliver calmly, acknowledging the hurt he had caused, which left an indelible pain in her heart.

The past could be overlooked, but it didn’t mean it could be forgiven.

"I..." Oliver paused. "I was framed. I also threw a birthday party for you, and besides, if you hadn’t broken up with me so thoughtlessly, would I have treated you that way?"

"On the engagement party, I was unaware; I just wanted you to be more compliant. If you had listened, none of it would have happened."

Bella laughed at Oliver’s words, quite sarcastically.

Even now, it was still Bella’s fault in Oliver’s eyes.

"Fine, let me ask you." Bella’s expression hardened: "Before I broke up with you, were we considered a couple?"

"Of course! Why wouldn’t we be?" Oliver immediately said, "If you wanted, even now, we could still be considered as such. I had already prepared—this party was supposed to be our official engagement."

Bella didn’t care what Oliver had planned for today; it was unrelated to her.

Since Oliver wanted to scrutinize their relationship, she laid it out clearly: "Okay, you said we were a couple in the past."

"Then, during our relationship, were your ambiguous actions with Sienna, or even having a substantial relationship with her, considered betrayal?" Bella retorted.

Oliver paused and explained, "That’s quite normal. I’d already given you a title and assured you’d be the future Young Mistress of the Hughes family—that should be enough. As for me and Sienna, or anyone else, that was just for fun."

"That’s your view of relationships, not mine, nor a normal perspective on love," Bella calmly stated. "To me, if we’re together, it should be wholeheartedly.

You can choose not to love me and find someone else, but the prerequisite is a clean break first."

"Such views are outdated, nowadays, people advocate for free love." Oliver grew anxious, pointing at Ashton: "Do you think by choosing my uncle, he won’t find anyone else?"

"I won’t." Ashton corrected him: "Your impure view of love shouldn’t be projected onto others. I can’t guarantee the future, but during the time I’m with her, she’ll be the only woman for me. Promises and feelings are reserved for her alone."

"Uncle, you say these nice words in front of her, but who knows what’ll happen in the future? We’re all men, we know the truth," Oliver trashed his image completely, letting the words spill.

Behind Oliver, Daniel was so furious at his crude words that he was about to speak up and reprimand him but was stopped by Cyan.

Cyan remained silent, knowing full well that unless Oliver and Bella’s feelings were resolved, Oliver would continue to think about Bella.

And would seize any future opportunities to entangle further.

Better to have a clear and final confrontation.

"Your view of love doesn’t represent others," Ashton reminded coldly.

As Oliver was about to speak, Bella said, "I don’t care about the right or wrong of your view of love, but I don’t accept it, so I won’t accept you either."

"Then I can change," Oliver was somewhat frenzied. "It’s such a small thing, couldn’t you just talk it over instead of hooking up with my uncle to make me understand it?"

"You don’t need to change, because I never loved you. Even if your view of love were to become the template I wanted, I wouldn’t accept you."

"What are you saying?" Oliver stared at Bella.

Bella’s words were harsh: "I was with you only because Aunt Cyan was good to me, she wanted us to be together, as a way to repay her kindness. Even without your involvement with Sienna, I wouldn’t have gone through with the engagement.

Breaking up was just a matter of timing."

Bella looked at Oliver calmly: "You always thought I was fawning over you, but in reality, it was just because Aunt Cyan was good to me, I was taking care of her son, that’s all, nothing more."

"As for loving you? You’re undeserving. Oliver, I’m not inferior; in fact, I, Bella Woods, am much more outstanding than you, so in my eyes, you’re just average, not meeting the standards for me to love you."