It was a weekend, and I was with my wife, Chloe Peterson, at her company party, celebrating her promotion. When we arrived, her colleagues enthusiastically pulled Chloe away for photos and congratulations, leaving me feeling completely isolated in a corner. After the photos, Chloe’s boss, Mr. Sterling, walked over to me, a drink in his hand. “What’s wrong with you, kid? Are you useless? You’ve been married to Chloe for so long, and she’s still a virgin?” As he spoke, he gave Chloe’s butt a heavy pat. “Your wife is so hot, and you can’t satisfy her. What a damn shame.” I clenched my fists, trying to rein in my fury, and turned to look at Chloe, whose eyes were distant and hazy. “Chloe, did you really sleep with him?” At that moment, every single eye in the room landed on me. My wife hadn’t expected me to confront her publicly, and her face instantly dropped. “Julian, what the hell is wrong with you now? Today is my big promotion day, do you have to make a scene and embarrass everyone?” I stared her down, my gaze unwavering. “Chloe, answer my question! Did you or did you not sleep with this old man?!” My tone clearly struck a nerve. She shoved me hard. “So what if I did? Julian, we’ve been married for almost two years, and you haven’t even bought me a decent handbag!” “Look at Mr. Sterling! He just bought me a Hermès bag today.” Chloe was incredibly agitated, spittle almost flying onto my face. I suppressed the anger bubbling inside me, my eyes locked on her. “Chloe, do you even realize Mr. Sterling here is almost fifty? He’s old enough to be your father!” I thought that would embarrass her, but she didn’t care in the slightest. “So what if he’s old? It’s better than being with a loser like you!” “Mr. Sterling just promised me that as long as I stick by him, the CEO Assistant position will be mine sooner or later.” After saying that, Chloe actually leaned in and kissed her boss right in front of me. Mr. Sterling’s wrinkled face now bore a vibrant lipstick mark from my wife. “Did you bring me here today just so I could watch you cheat?” The words were barely out of my mouth when Mr. Sterling, who had been silent for a while, chuckled. “Kid, are you truly stupid or just faking it? Can’t you see such an obvious answer?” Mid-sentence, he unabashedly pulled my wife into his arms. “I told her to call you. And the purpose? It’s simple: I want you to divorce her!” I looked up at the two, their fingers intertwined, and let out a cold laugh. “From the looks of it, you two must have planned this out a long time ago, huh?” No wonder the moment I walked in, something felt off. She must have been hooking up with her company’s boss for ages. And it finally made sense why, after all this time married, Chloe never let me touch her. She was saving her first time for her boss. “Stop wasting my time. Just say if you’re divorcing me or not.” Seeing my prolonged silence, Chloe’s tone grew impatient. “Julian, I must have done something awful in a past life to end up with a loser like you.” “If someone hadn’t told me your family owned a villa back then, I wouldn’t have dated you even if you begged me!” I paused for a moment, then slowly spoke. “So you married me because my family had a villa, not because you loved me?” The moment I finished speaking, Chloe scoffed. “What else? You didn’t seriously think I’d fall for a nerd like you, did you?” Her words hit me like a physical blow. I was completely stunned. Everyone at our university knew Chloe had pursued me relentlessly for three years. I only agreed to date her on graduation day. Though I had no idea how she knew about my family’s villa, it didn’t matter now. I wouldn’t keep a woman who had cheated. “Chloe, you’re absolutely right. My family does own villas in the West End, and more than just one.” My gaze suddenly sharpened. “But I regret to inform you that, from this moment on, none of those things have anything to do with you.” My words were met with a burst of laughter from the crowd. “Knock it off, punk! Don’t you dare try to impress me. Do you even know how much a villa in the West End costs? Even our Mr. Sterling can’t afford one, and a pathetic loser like you claims to have several? Who are you trying to fool?” As the employees continued sucking up to their boss, I just offered a faint smile. “What I said is the truth. Believe it or not, it’s up to you.”
Under the amused glances of the crowd, I turned to leave. But before I could take more than a few steps, a familiar voice called out from behind me. “Julian, stop right there!” I paused, then slowly turned my head. “What, Ms. Peterson? Are you planning to invite me for dinner?” Chloe looked at me, a smirk playing on her lips, her eyes brimming with mockery. “Hey, you! Did you forget something?” I raised an eyebrow, my voice cold. “What?” Chloe pulled a divorce agreement from her bag in front of everyone, then handed it to me. “You’re not leaving until you sign this!” Chloe, still unaware of what she was about to lose, wore a triumphant expression. “Julian, as long as you agree to divorce me, you can name your price. Money or a house, I’ll give you anything.” I sighed deeply, looking at the woman before me—familiar, yet suddenly a stranger. “Chloe, are you really that eager to become someone else’s sugar baby?” Before she could respond, I suddenly chuckled. “I can divorce you, but I have one small condition.” Chloe’s eyes instantly lit up. “What condition? Just name it!” “As long as you agree to the divorce, I’ll agree to anything!” Hearing those words, the last shred of affection I had for her vanished completely. “My condition is simple: I just need to make a quick FaceTime call to your father.” “As long as David agrees to our divorce, I won’t say another word.” The moment I finished speaking, Mr. Sterling, who had been standing nearby, burst out laughing. “You really think you’re someone important, don’t you? I brought you here as a courtesy, I’m not negotiating with you.” “I don’t give a damn who you call; you’re divorcing her today, understand?!” I picked up on the thinly veiled threat in Mr. Sterling’s voice, but I couldn’t care less. My only concern was David’s stance. A significant part of why I married Chloe was because David Peterson had been my family’s chauffeur and a man I considered like an uncle. He watched me grow up, and I’d long considered him part of my family. After we got married, I kept it a secret from Chloe, mostly out of consideration for her feelings. But this woman, whose head was completely clouded by joy, naively believed I was calling her father to try and win her back. It was laughable. “Honey, let’s be magnanimous. No need to stoop to his level.” “If he wants to make a call, let him. My heart is already completely with you.” I was about to retort when Chloe quickly added: “Julian, don’t say I didn’t warn you. No matter who you call today, the outcome will be the same.” “I’m divorcing you today, and that’s final!” Seeing her arrogant expression, I almost couldn’t help but laugh out loud. “Chloe, I think you’ve misunderstood me. I’ve never had any intention of trying to win you back.” “I’m only making this call to tell your father that I’ve been nothing but fair to you and your family.” I had initially thought, out of respect for our families’ long-standing ties, to let the Petersons off the hook. But some people simply didn’t appreciate it. Like this woman, Chloe, who was once the campus darling. “Oh, please!” “Julian, I’m telling you clearly, even if my father stood right here, I’d still divorce you!” Chloe was about to say more, but I quickly raised a hand to cut her off. “Enough!” “That’s all I needed to hear.” Then, in front of everyone, I dialed David’s number.
“David, it’s Julian Hayes.” On the other end, David heard my voice and immediately spoke cheerfully. “Mr. Hayes, why didn’t you let me know you were back? I would’ve brought Chloe to pick you up!” I glanced at Chloe out of the corner of my eye and spoke unhurriedly. “No need for that. I’m with your daughter at her company right now.” David sensed something was off in my tone and quickly interjected. “Mr. Hayes, has my spoiled girl been throwing another tantrum? I’ll apologize for her right away…” David hadn’t even finished speaking when Chloe snatched my phone. “Hello, Dad, it’s Chloe! I’m divorcing this loser, Julian, today!” “My boss here said that as long as I stick by him, he’ll make me CEO Assistant tomorrow!” Before David could respond, she hung up the phone. Given Chloe’s behavior, I certainly wouldn’t show her any more mercy. “Chloe, I already gave your family a chance, but you still refused to listen.” “Since that’s the case, don’t blame me.” I took the divorce agreement, signed my name without hesitation, and handed it back. Chloe saw how decisive I was, and a flicker of surprise crossed her eyes. “Hey, you! What are you smiling at?” I looked up at her, my voice completely devoid of emotion. “What? Am I not allowed to be happy?” “Ms. Peterson, you don’t seriously think I’m still pining for you, do you?” “The ‘backer’ you rely on is merely a company CEO. To me, it’s nothing, honestly.” Chloe’s cheeks flushed crimson from my retort, and Mr. Sterling, standing beside her, immediately looked displeased. “You little jerk, are you trying to act tough in front of me now?” “Let me tell you something right here, right now: whatever tricks you have, bring them on! I’ll take them all.” Chloe, seeing Mr. Sterling stand up for her, straightened her back. “Exactly! You’re just a government official. How can you compare to my dear Mr. Sterling?” “Mr. Sterling’s monthly allowance is probably more than you’ll make in a lifetime!” A government official? She wasn’t wrong. All public servants could generally be called government officials. However, I wasn’t just a regular public servant. My position came with a certain… distinction. “No, no, no. I think Ms. Peterson is mistaken.” “Mistaken about what?” Chloe looked at me, self-righteous. “You’re not seriously going to say that the CEO of a publicly traded company can’t compare to a petty government official like you, are you?” I offered her a slight smile and nodded gently. “You’re right.” “In the face of absolute power, money is nothing.” The moment I finished speaking, the previously silent room erupted. “Oh my god, this guy is such a show-off! Mr. Sterling was on the Forbes list, how could he possibly be less than this guy?” “Exactly! Look at his outfit, he just looks like an intern. His salary probably isn’t even as high as mine.” “I’ve always said, people should know their place. Marry a wife who’s your equal. A poor guy like him, with no connections and no money, his wife was bound to run off with someone else sooner or later.” The people around me continued to suck up to Mr. Sterling, none of them seemingly finding anything wrong with their boss stealing someone else’s wife.
Mr. Sterling, seeing I hadn’t spoken for a while, assumed I was intimidated. He motioned for security to kick me out. I calmly waved my hand at him, my expression grim. “The Sterling Group, listed on the market late last year, with a market valuation of around one billion.” “Of that, the largest shareholder, Richard Sterling, holds thirty percent.” “These figures should be correct, wouldn’t you say, Mr. Sterling?” Hearing my words, the usually arrogant Mr. Sterling’s eyes flashed with surprise. “Kid, what do you mean? Are you investigating me?” I lowered my head, sighing softly. “Investigating? A tiny, newly public company like yours isn’t even worth my time.” Then, I let out a cold laugh. “Mr. Sterling, I’m just pondering one question right now.” “What question?” The middle-aged CEO’s forehead glistened with a bead of cold sweat. “I’m wondering if it’s better to just acquire your company directly, or let it go bankrupt.” “Perhaps you could help me answer that question, please?” Sensing the shift in atmosphere, Chloe, the moment I finished speaking, bravely stepped forward. “Honey, don’t listen to his nonsense! With our company’s influence, those figures are easily found online!” “I’ve known this loser for years, he’s a total nobody, no connections whatsoever!” “He’s only staying here because he wants to extort more money from you!” Looking at the woman who wouldn’t stop taunting me, my anger reached its boiling point. “Chloe! Do you really think you’ve found a good backer?!” I swept my gaze coldly across everyone present. “Every single employee standing here today, you’re all fired. Every last one of you!” The moment I said that, Richard Sterling’s face instantly changed. “You little jerk, are you really pushing my buttons now?” “Do you even know whose company this is? How dare you try to lecture my employees in front of me?!” “I’m giving you three minutes to get out of my sight, or don’t blame me for getting rough!” As Mr. Sterling roared, the surrounding employees also turned hostile towards me. “Are you saying this guy’s crazy? What a pathetic piece of trash, daring to fire us?” “Yeah, a loser whose own wife ran off with someone else, and he still has the nerve to talk?” “If I were him, I’d crawl into a hole and hide right now, instead of making a fool of myself here.” Looking at these insignificant pawns, one after another, oblivious to their own standing, I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. “Alright, alright. I’m tired of playing along with you all. It’s time to show you what real power looks like.” With that, I unhurriedly took off my jacket. Then, I slowly turned, facing Mr. Sterling. “Mr. Sterling, I believe you once said that money can solve everything.” “So… now I’d like to ask you, can you solve this?” Richard Sterling’s eyes widened, fixated on something. It was my family crest?! The next second, he gasped, “How do you have that family crest?! How is that possible?!”
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