Chapter 2

Six years ago, bad calls from senior management triggered a liquidity crisis at Shaw Enterprises. Rival dynasties closed in like wolves, and the corporate empire crumbled.

The rest of the Shaws vanished into thin air, leaving behind only Evelyn. The loan sharks came hunting for her.

The once-untouchable heiress became a ruined, penniless girl on the street.

She stood in the rain, begging me for a bowl of noodles.

She told me she didn't want to live anymore.

It was then that I caught sight of a distinctive birthmark on her shoulder. That single mark swept away all my caution. Defying the bewilderment and scorn of everyone around me, I insisted on making her my wife.

After we married, come rain or shine, I worked tirelessly to clear her debts. Only when I saw her reclaim the CEO seat did the truth finally hit me.

The Shaw family was never that foolish; they had orchestrated their disappearance from the start.

During the years Evelyn spent dodging debt collectors, they were quietly moving massive assets behind the scenes.

Evelyn had never truly fallen into the mud.

It was all an elaborate scheme. I was simply an accidental intruder who blundered in, tangling my life with hers by mistake.

Perhaps that was why Evelyn had always suspected me.

After all, who would be unconditionally kind to a total stranger? Who would willingly take on a stranger buried under loan shark debt?

Living with me in that tiny, cramped apartment for six years must have felt like pure misery to her.

No wonder she had shoved my hand away so coldly that night:

"You make me sick, Woody. Don't put your filthy hands on me! Do you have any idea how much this outfit costs?"

I let out a self-deprecating laugh.

Now I knew.

I also knew that whatever we had was completely dead.

She was no longer the wife who would gently wipe the sweat from my brow when I came home, softly telling me I had worked hard.

She was no longer the woman who ached for the sleepless nights I endured, grinding through multiple shifts just to knock down another chunk of her debt.

She was the almighty CEO of Shaw Enterprises now, managing billions every day.

She was someone I couldn't even meet without an appointment.

Of course. A queen like her could never be the girl I had spent my life searching for. It was time to wake up.

I expected Evelyn to hand me divorce papers right away with her usual ruthlessness.

Instead, she merely glanced up lazily:

"Julian is moving in with us. Go get a guest room ready for him."

A bitter laugh bubbled up in my chest.

Bringing another man into our home right under my nose? What did she take me for?

A dispensable servant? A living punchline?

I quietly watched as she gave the staff endless instructions, having the maids prepare his favorite meals, buying only the highest-end luxury goods for his room, and planting his favorite flowers all across the garden...

Such undisguised favoritism.

It was as though they were the real married couple.

Sometimes, Evelyn even ordered me to cook soup for Julian, knowing my cooking was decent.

Every time, Julian would put on a delicate, bashful smile:

"Woody, you're amazing."

"Unlike me, I'm so clumsy with my hands. Evelyn has never let me step foot in the kitchen... You don't mind, do you?"

"We're just childhood friends who grew up together. Please don't overthink it."

Fortunately, I had already stopped caring.

Nothing he said could pierce my armor anymore.

...

"And you just swallowed that?!"

"How the hell can you stomach this?!"

Two voices roared in my ears simultaneously. I rubbed my ear and offered a faint smile.

I was having drinks with my old college roommates, Lucas Vance and Felix Hayes. It had been far too long. Hearing what I had been through, they were absolutely floored.

"What's next? If she tells you to wash that prick's socks, are you going to run over and scrub them with a smile?" Lucas snapped, looking like he wanted to throttle me out of sheer frustration.

I shook my head, feeling a warm surge of gratitude for their genuine anger:

"The Shaws aren't so broke that they can't afford laundry staff."

"..."

Felix stared at me and threw his hands up. "Bro, you're completely hopeless."

"Back when Evelyn was drowning in debt, you were the only stubborn fool who threw away a six-figure job and a bright career to save her."

"Now she's a high-and-mighty CEO, and what did you get? Endless insults! And that pretty-boy Julian is basically dancing on your head!"

They fired off one complaint after another without pausing for breath, laying into me hard.

"Woody, keep playing the saint, why don't you!"

Then they asked again why I had been so reckless and sudden about marrying Evelyn back then. I just smiled.

I had finally realized the truth.

Evelyn and I were never from the same world. There was no point in wasting any more time on each other.

As the night wore on, our conversation drifted to the future and careers. They looked at me with genuine worry:

"What are your plans now?"

I couldn't keep living like this, grinding through grueling odd jobs just to scrape by.

And I certainly didn't intend to.

I steered the topic toward their work, and the floodgates opened. Felix, in particular, groaned as he jokingly vented:

"We have this new client, Miranda Moore. Total knockout, built an empire overseas. Can you believe she's only twenty-five? Life really isn't fair..."

"The problem is, she's brutally strict and cold as ice. She treats everyone like an annoying bug. She's giving me gray hairs!"

I listened quietly. Strangely, that name felt intensely familiar, as if I had seen it somewhere before.