Three years into our marriage, my wife still refused to have any physical intimacy with me. She claimed to be a germaphobe, saying she disliked physical contact with others. That is, until I discovered her in a hotel room with her first love, only to be beaten to death by the two of them. Reborn to the time just after graduation, I decided to let them be together, hoping we’d never cross paths again. Five years later, she had become a renowned pianist, attending a business conference with her boss and first love. Seeing me appear, Lily crossed her arms and looked at me disdainfully: “Ugh, what bad luck. I can’t believe this lapdog Lucas is still here, a toad lusting after swan’s flesh. He’s actually stalking me!” I smiled, my left arm around Grace, the Summers family’s daughter, and my right hand holding our daughter’s. Later, Lily showed up at my door wearing revealing clothes. “Didn’t you say you’d only love me? Lucas, please, let’s have a child together!” “Oh my, Miss Lily, you look absolutely radiant today. Such grace, truly befitting a famous pianist!” An middle-aged woman approached with an admiring smile. “Standing next to Mr. James, you two make a perfect couple. A match made in heaven, both talented and beautiful.” Lily raised her chin slightly, a look of pride on her face. James stood beside her, beaming with pride, occasionally exchanging pleasantries with those around them. “Indeed, being with Mr. James is truly a perfect combination of the business and art worlds!” Hearing the chorus of praises around her, Lily stood even straighter, her smile growing brighter. She tossed her hair lightly, her eyes full of unrivaled pride. “You’re all too kind. I’ve just put a bit more effort into piano, and James has been very supportive,” Lily said with feigned modesty, but her tone couldn’t hide her satisfaction. “Well, if it isn’t Lily and James! I never expected to run into you here!” A man in a crisp suit quickly approached, his face plastered with a fawning smile. It was Greg, a former classmate from university. She raised an eyebrow slightly, a barely noticeable trace of contempt flashing across her face, but she maintained an elegant smile: “Greg, what a coincidence.” Greg’s gaze swept over Lily and James, then he dramatically gave a thumbs up: “Lily, you’ve really made it big now! A great artist, standing next to Mr. James, you two are simply perfect together! Looking back, I was right all along. Unlike some people back then, a frog trying to swallow a swan, probably still amounting to nothing now.” Greg leaned in closer to Lily, his face full of flattery: “I always knew that Lucas wasn’t good enough for you. It’s great that you’re with Mr. James now, he’s truly your match. Oh, by the way, Mr. James, I was wondering if you could put in a good word with my boss about my promo-” James glanced at him with a hint of disdain, giving a slight nod. I finished instructing my assistant about the conference details, then noticed the cleaning lady had dropped something. I picked it up and handed it back to her. Greg, sharp-eyed, immediately spotted me. His face twisted into an exaggerated mocking expression, pointing at me and loudly exclaiming: “Well, look who it is! Isn’t that Lucas? Speak of the devil! How the mighty have fallen, reduced to helping the cleaning lady. How pathetic!” Lily followed Greg’s pointing finger, her face showing disdain as she let out a light snort: “I thought he might have amounted to something, but turns out he’s just a nobody doing odd jobs. It’s laughable, really.” She raised her chin slightly, her eyes full of contempt. James’ lips curled into a mocking smile, arms crossed, as he said condescendingly: “Now, now, Lily, don’t be like that. The man’s just trying to make a living with his… skills. Someone’s got to do these menial jobs, right?” The people around them, hearing their words, burst into laughter. The cleaning lady, looking nervous, whispered to me: “You don’t have to help me, I don’t want them talking about you like that.” I just smiled and shook my head, continuing to efficiently clean up the trash. Seeing that I didn’t react, Greg became even more animated. He swaggered over to me, deliberately bumping into me, causing some of the trash to spill out again. He then feigned innocence, saying: “Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t see you there. But my, aren’t you careless with your work.” James’ lips curled into a smile. He pulled out a business card from his pocket, holding it between his fingers, and carelessly tossed it towards me.
The business card fluttered down, landing next to the trash at my feet. James crossed his arms, a mocking smile on his face, deliberately raising his voice: “Lucas, out of consideration for Lily, I’ll give you a chance. My company happens to need a janitor, and judging by how you work, you seem quite experienced. If you’re willing, you can start right away.” He paused, his eyes full of mockery, and continued: “Of course, my company has high standards, I wouldn’t hire just anyone. If it weren’t for your past with Lily, I wouldn’t even bother with you. You should be grateful to Lily, otherwise you might be picking up trash in places like this for the rest of your life.” Lily covered her mouth, letting out a contemptuous laugh, her eyes full of derision: “Lucas, stop trying to act tough. James is doing you a huge favor. Just be a good boy and go work as a janitor at his company. At least you’ll have a job, instead of embarrassing yourself here. And stop thinking you’re a frog that can swallow a swan. Following me here must have been quite an effort for you. James is giving you this chance because he’s generous, not holding your past obsession with me against you.” Greg chimed in, “That’s right, Lucas. Don’t be ungrateful. Mr. James is willing to give you this opportunity, you should count yourself lucky.” I looked at Lily, standing there proud as a peacock, and couldn’t fathom how I had ever fallen for her. In my previous life, I had doted on her endlessly, trying to fulfill her every whim. Those expensive piano master classes, whenever she asked, I paid for them without hesitation, just so she could progress further in her piano career. For her, I even gave up my expertise and passion in computer science, diving headfirst into the unfamiliar real estate industry. Because she thought real estate was lucrative, no matter how I tried to explain the current development trends to her, she insisted I work in real estate. Later, I found out it was because James was in real estate. Back then, I foolishly believed that as long as I could make her happy, any sacrifice was worth it. But reality was cruel. Due to my lack of experience in real estate, my investments repeatedly failed. Not only did I lose everything, but I also thoroughly disappointed my family, who cut off my financial support. Even then, I never complained about her. Every idea of mine was shot down by her; she always demanded that I act according to her wishes. She remained obsessed with luxury goods and expensive cars. When I couldn’t afford to satisfy her desires, she forced me to take out high-interest loans. To be with her, I completely fell out with my family. They strongly disapproved of my investment philosophy, thinking I had lost my mind, consumed by love. At that time, I was destitute, running around trying to repay debts, working day and night. Once, she wanted to buy a limited edition luxury bag, but I simply couldn’t afford it. I still remember our conversation from that time. “Lucas, look at how pathetic you are now. I really don’t know what I was thinking when I got together with you!” Lily crossed her arms, her eyes full of disgust. “I used to be the dream girl for so many people. Being with you, I must have used up all my bad luck for eight lifetimes!” Yes, Lily was beautiful, and there were indeed many boys pursuing her at the time. I fell for her the moment I saw her. That’s why I cherished her so much after we got together. I looked at her, somewhat pitifully saying, “Lily, I’ve sacrificed so much for you. Why have you never seen it?” “You call that sacrifice?” Lily sneered, “Look at yourself now, you’ve achieved nothing and you’re drowning in debt. I should have listened to James from the start and stayed away from a loser like you.” “James, James, it’s always James with you!” I couldn’t help raising my voice, “If you like him so much, why did you even get together with me in the first place?” “It was because you relentlessly pursued me, and I was young and naive then. I was fooled by you!” Lily glared at me, her eyes wide with anger. “It was only after I got together with you that I realized you could never give me the life I wanted. Look at James, he’s already successful in his career at such a young age, driving luxury cars, living in mansions. And you? You can’t even afford to buy me a designer bag!” “So you regret being with me?”
I looked at her, feeling a wave of sadness. “Why didn’t you just reject me outright back then, instead of having me do so much for you?” “Hmph, you did all that willingly, what’s it got to do with me?” Lily sneered, curling her lip in disdain. “Besides, I wanted to see just how far you’d go for me. Who knew you’d be so useless, couldn’t even manage a real estate business properly.” “I tried my best. I gave up my passion for computer science for you, entering a field I knew nothing about. Wasn’t that hard enough?” I shook my head helplessly. Lily said contemptuously, “James is a hundred times better than you with just a single word. If I had listened to him back then, I wouldn’t be in this situation now.” Lily justified herself, “And you, you could never give me what I wanted. I regret being with you, you wasted my youth!” Married to Lily for three years, dating for one, throughout these four years, she always used her germaphobia as an excuse to avoid me, even refusing the most basic physical intimacy. Over time, I got used to this sexless marriage, assuming she really did have severe germaphobia. Though disappointed, I could only silently endure. Until that day, when I suddenly received a hotel booking message from an unknown number on my phone. The moment I saw the content of the message, my mind went blank, and I was completely stunned. My hand holding the phone couldn’t stop shaking, my eyes fixed on that line of text, which clearly showed the hotel address and room number. An ominous feeling welled up in my heart, but I still clung to a glimmer of hope that this was just a prank. I went to the address, and as I stood outside the room, my heart was in my throat. Before I could knock, I heard unmistakable sounds coming from inside the room. My blood seemed to freeze, and all I could hear were those nauseating noises. I tried to discern the voices, and the woman’s voice was so familiar. The door opened, and there stood James, shirtless. His hair was disheveled, his face still flushed, a flash of panic crossed his eyes, but he quickly regained his composure. Inside the room, Lily was wearing sexy lingerie I had never seen before. Fearing their affair would be exposed, they dragged me into the room and beat me to death. I can still recall the despair I felt at that moment. I snapped back to reality, those painful memories receding like a tide, while Greg’s disgusting face came back into focus. “Lucas, with your lack of success, you’re only fit for these lowly jobs,” Greg continued to grin, relentlessly mocking me, his face full of smug satisfaction. Ignoring him, I walked over to a nearby table, intending to sit down. He tried to trip me, but I noticed and deliberately stepped on his shoe. “Fuck you, watch where you’re going! You’ve dirtied my shoes!” He said, lifting his foot towards me, his eyes full of challenge. “What are you waiting for? Get down on your knees and clean my shoe! Consider it your apology for being such a klutz.” Hearing this, the group of people fawning over James burst into laughter, their eyes full of contempt. I coldly stared at him, saying nothing. Just then, Lily suddenly frowned, a complex emotion flashing in her eyes. She bit her lip slightly, seeming somewhat hesitant. “Greg, that’s enough,” Lily’s voice suddenly rang out, tinged with impatience. “He’s still… There’s no need to go that far.” Hearing Lily’s words, Greg’s face showed surprise, quickly replaced by a fawning smile. “Lily, I just couldn’t stand the sight of him. I wanted to teach him a lesson for you.” “That’s enough, stop it,” Lily waved her hand, her eyes flashing with a barely noticeable panic as she turned her head slightly away. James also frowned beside her, his eyes full of displeasure. “Greg, don’t waste time on someone like him. We have important matters to discuss.” Greg quickly nodded, his face full of a bootlicking smile. “Yes, yes, Mr. James is right.” They found a table and sat down. James picked up a glass of champagne, taking a small sip, his eyes revealing a hint of eagerness and greed. “I heard that the daughter of the Summers Group and the son of the Navigator Group will both be attending today. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If we can establish a connection with them, our company’s development will be smooth sailing.” James put down his glass, his gaze sweeping around the room. “I’ve heard that these two giant corporations have formed a marriage alliance. Do you think they’ll leave any opportunities for us smaller companies? I heard the son of Navigator Group hasn’t been seen in public for a long time. I was even thinking of introducing my daughter to him!” An older small business owner chimed in, agreeing with James. Lily nodded slightly, a calculating look flashing in her eyes. Just as James and the others were enthusiastically discussing how to build relationships with the Summers Group and Navigator Group, there was a sudden commotion in the crowd, with everyone turning to look. I knew Grace had arrived. Grace was wearing an elegant evening gown that far outshone Lily. When Lily saw Grace’s face, the jealousy in her eyes was almost palpable. Her brother, Edward, was holding our daughter’s hand, walking beside her. James’ eyes lit up. He immediately put down his glass, adjusted his collar, and quickly went to greet them. “Miss Summers, it’s truly my honor to see you here today.” James’ face was full of a fawning smile, his eyes revealing a hint of eagerness. The people around also gathered, starting to shower Grace with compliments. “Miss Summers, you look absolutely stunning today. Your aura is simply unmatched.” Lily, not to be outdone, pushed through the crowd. With a sycophantic smile on her face, she said to Edward: “You must be the young master of Navigator Group. You’re truly accomplished at such a young age.” Edward frowned in displeasure, not even sparing Lily a glance. At this moment, our daughter broke free from Edward’s hand and ran towards me, sweetly calling out, “Daddy!” Hearing our daughter’s voice, everyone around froze. The smiles on James and Lily’s faces instantly turned rigid. Grace also walked over, smiling as she took my hand, saying softly, “Lucas, sorry to keep you waiting.”
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