On the day we were supposed to get married at the registry office, my girlfriend Sophia had me kicked out and went in with her childhood sweetheart instead. She looked at me nonchalantly and said, “Lucas’s child needs to be registered. Once we divorce, I’ll marry you.” Everyone thought that I, being so devoted to her, would willingly wait another month for her. After all, I had already waited seven years. But that very night, I accepted my family’s arrangement for an international marriage and disappeared from her world. Three years later, I returned to the country with my wife to pay respects to our ancestors. My wife had some urgent business to attend to, so she asked the local branch of our company to arrange someone to pick me up. Unexpectedly, I ran into Sophia, whom I hadn’t seen in three years. “You’ve played around long enough. It’s time to come back,” she said. “Lucas’s child is about to start kindergarten. You’ll be responsible for dropping her off and picking her up.”
In the arrival hall, I saw someone holding a sign with my English name. As I approached, I was surprised to find it was Sophia, my ex-girlfriend whom I hadn’t seen in three years. She was there with Lucas and a few of our old friends, all craning their necks and looking expectantly towards the gate. “Sophia, isn’t that your doormat, Jack?” one of them said. Sophia, looking surprised to see me, quickly composed herself and said casually, “See? I told you he’d come crawling back.” The group snickered and turned to me. “Jack disappeared without a word back then. Now that he sees Sophia’s doing well, he’s probably been crying himself to sleep every night with regret!” “But Jack, if you wanted to pretend to bump into her, why did you just throw on some casual clothes? Couldn’t you have dressed up a bit?” “Don’t tell me you can’t even afford decent clothes without Sophia? Man, you must be in bad shape!” In the past, whenever I went to meet Sophia, I would always choose my most flattering clothes, presenting my best self to her. But now, there was no need for that anymore. My wife is pregnant, and I need to take care of her, so I dress for comfort. These casual clothes were just something I quickly changed into on the way to drop my wife off at the hospital. Hearing their comments, I realized they only knew my English name and didn’t know that I was the person they were supposed to pick up. Seeing that I remained silent, someone who used to be closer to me tried to smooth things over: “Jack, it’s good that you’re back. Actually, Sophia has been looking for you all these years… asking around for news about you!” Sophia’s smile froze, but she quickly regained her composure and said nonchalantly: “Lucas’s child is about to start kindergarten. From now on, you’ll be responsible for drop-offs and pick-ups.” Sophia was still as arrogant and presumptuous as ever. But I was no longer the boy who always tolerated her behavior. Seeing her again, all I felt was annoyance. Not wanting to waste time with them, I was about to reveal my identity when Lucas spoke up: “Jack, don’t blame Sophia. She’s doing this for your own good. After disappearing for three years, who knows what you’ve been up to?” “Looking at your shabby state now, you couldn’t even handle being her personal assistant if she offered.” “Don’t worry, no one will look down on you for helping me take care of my daughter.” Three years hadn’t changed Lucas; he was still as condescending as ever, still able to make me frown in disgust. Sophia, misinterpreting my expression as jealousy, flashed a hint of smugness in her eyes. “Alright, enough with the fuss. You can’t afford to be picky when you’re down on your luck,” she said. “Just focus on taking care of the child and stop causing trouble. Know your place.” “Don’t worry, we still have a room for assistants at my place.” As soon as she finished speaking, the people around us burst into malicious laughter. “Jack, see how good Sophia is to you? She’s worried you might be suffering out there, so she’s arranged food and lodging for you.” “It’s just helping Lucas with the kid, isn’t that much better than your current miserable life? Hurry up and thank Sophia.” Lucas straightened his clothes and said pompously, “Jack, don’t worry. If my daughter misbehaves, I’ll discipline her myself. I won’t let you suffer any grievances.” Sophia snorted and glanced at me. “What grievances could he have? He disappeared over a trivial matter back then. Now that he can’t make it on his own and has come back, it’s only right that he suffers a bit.” Hearing this, my heart skipped a beat. Even now, she still thought that getting married to Lucas was just a trivial matter? It seems the Sophia who once loved me was long gone. She was no longer the girl who, despite being injured herself, only cared about my wounds. She was no longer the young woman who, with nothing to her name, loudly proclaimed her love for me and promised me everything. And she was certainly not the successful woman who was willing to cook for me with her own hands. But it’s fine. It’s all in the past now, no need to bring it up. After all, I’m about to have a second child with my wife.
Suppressing my thoughts, I didn’t want to argue with them here. It was pointless. I looked at Sophia and said calmly, “Weren’t you here to pick me up? Let’s go.” The scene fell silent for a moment, and then they exchanged glances before bursting into laughter. Lucas sneered coldly, “Wait for you? Who do you think you are?” He pointed at the sign, “Look carefully. We’re waiting for Helina. Do you know who that is?” Of course I knew. It was my English name. “Helina is the husband of the Gu family, the legitimate spouse of CEO Gu,” someone explained. “CEO Gu is a force to be reckoned with in the business world, but she’s also quite the romantic. They say she refused to marry for years, just waiting for Helina.” “Everyone in the circle knows that if you want to get on CEO Gu’s good side, it’s better to please her husband!” Hearing their chatter, a smile of happiness spread across my face. In our three years of marriage, Amelia’s business had grown exponentially, and her reputation as a doting wife had spread just as far. Lucas, always trying to one-up me, couldn’t resist showing off: “To win her husband’s heart, CEO Gu once bid on a ‘True Love Eternal’ watch at Christie’s, worth 20 million… dollars.” “CEO Gu’s husband is the envy of men worldwide.” He paused, then pointed at my wrist and exclaimed, “It’s that one!” The scene suddenly fell silent as everyone looked at my watch. Sophia abruptly grabbed my hand, examined it for a moment, then said mockingly: “It’s quite an exquisite fake! Which delivery guy bought it for you? Giving a counterfeit as a gift, how trashy.” “Garbage.” I yanked my hand away from her, smirking as I gently caressed the watch. Seeing my happy expression, Sophia’s pupils constricted. She suddenly grabbed my wrist again and roughly wiped the watch. I hadn’t expected this to happen and was caught off guard. Lucas stepped forward to examine the watch, taking it from Sophia’s hand to play with. “It is indeed more exquisite than the fake I bought, but I’d never wear it out. It’d be embarrassing.” “The counterfeits abroad are really something else. It feels quite nice.” “Or are you saying, Jack, that you’re Helina? That you’re the legendary husband of CEO Gu?!” With that, the people around burst into laughter. After all, it was too absurd for them to believe. Amelia Gu was a world-renowned financial genius, cold and ruthless in the business world, decisive in her actions. While just three years ago, I was still hanging out with this group, a loser whose wedding was cancelled by Sophia. It seemed impossible no matter how you looked at it. Lucas twirled the watch around his finger. “Jack, let me have this watch. I’ll pay double for it.” Afraid he might drop it, I quickly said, “Give me back the watch. Amelia gave it to me…” Before I could finish, Sophia slapped me so hard that blood appeared at the corner of my mouth. “Shut up!”
Sophia looked at me with some irritation and said, “Jack, you have no right to speak CEO Gu’s name. How dare you spread rumors about having a relationship with her? Are you trying to get me killed?” Sophia’s girlfriends also looked at me with righteous indignation. “Jack, do you know how hard we worked to get this opportunity to pick up CEO Gu’s husband today?” “Sophia’s company was acquired by CEO Gu last year. We all depend on CEO Gu for our livelihoods now. Only by pleasing CEO Gu’s husband can Sophia’s position be secure.” “Now you’re here spreading rumors about having a connection with CEO Gu. Are you trying to ruin Sophia?” I wiped the blood from the corner of my mouth and slowly turned my head, meeting Sophia’s gaze. Perhaps my look was too intimidating, as Sophia frowned, a flash of panic crossing her eyes. Seeing Sophia’s strange look at me, Lucas glared at me venomously, pointing at my nose and cursing, “Jack, you ungrateful bastard. Sophia has already agreed to take you in, don’t you dare be so ungrateful and push your luck.” “Even if you hold a grudge against Sophia, you can’t use this method to get revenge on her.” Hearing this, I felt like I was back three years ago. No matter what I did, Lucas would always misinterpret my intentions and explain them to Sophia. At first, Sophia would scold Lucas. But later, she would follow Lucas’s lead and blame me. Just like now, Sophia scolded me with a tone of disappointment: “Jealous fool.” But this time, she didn’t continue berating me as she used to. After a moment of silence, Sophia took out a check for $200,000 and placed it in front of me. “For old times’ sake, I won’t do anything to you.” “Take the money and buy yourself some decent clothes. If you don’t like taking care of kids, I’ll help you find a respectable job in a few days.” “Don’t worry, since CEO Gu acquired the company, this amount of money is nothing to me now.” Sophia’s patronizing attitude made me sick. Seems like she’s been doing well lately. Under everyone’s surprised gaze, I pushed away Sophia’s hand holding the check, retrieved my watch from Lucas’s hand, and said with a smile: “No need, Ms. Song. I don’t accept things from strangers.”
Ignoring Sophia’s face, which had turned the color of pig liver, I turned to leave. But before I could take a few steps, Sophia grabbed me and coldly questioned: “Jack, you won’t even take my money? What do you mean? I’m a stranger?” I replied: “Since we’ve broken up, it’s better not to have any contact. It might lead to misunderstandings.” I thought of my slightly jealous wife. Sophia, however, glanced at Lucas with a knowing look. “The company is hosting a banquet for CEO Gu in three days. I was planning to bring you along to broaden your horizons.” “But you’ll need to buy some proper clothes, so you don’t embarrass yourself…” Before she could finish, I directly declined: “Really, there’s no need. Thank you.” Hearing my rejection again, Sophia became somewhat annoyed. Her hand, still holding out the check to me, froze in mid-air, her teeth audibly grinding. “Jack, you’ve really grown some backbone. I guess it’s true that poverty breeds insolence.” “If you don’t want to go, then forget it. I’ll take Lucas instead!” Hearing that Sophia wanted to bring him to the banquet, Lucas’s eyes lit up, and he quickly said: “Sophia, I’ll definitely perform well. I won’t embarrass you at all.” Not wanting to entangle with them any further, I turned and strode away, leaving one last sentence: “I hope you’ll still be this confident three days from now.” Quickly leaving the arrival hall and breathing in the fresh air, the nausea in my stomach finally subsided. Three years ago, my family had arranged for me to go abroad for a blind date. Defying my parents’ pressure, I begged my girlfriend of seven years, Sophia, to marry me, planning to present them with a fait accompli. Sophia agreed. But unexpectedly, at the door of the registry office, I not only waited for Sophia but also her longtime crush, Lucas. “Lucas’s child needs to be registered, so I need to marry him first.” “After a month, when we get the divorce certificate, I’ll marry you right away.” “It’s just for the child, don’t overthink it.” Watching Sophia walk into the registry office hand in hand with Lucas, I was completely heartbroken. That night, I flew abroad for the arranged blind date. A month later, I held a wedding and married Amelia. A year later, we had our first child. Recently, Amelia became pregnant with our second child. If it weren’t for accompanying Amelia to pay respects to our ancestors, I wouldn’t have returned to the country at all. Let alone run into Sophia.
Three days later, I dressed casually and arrived alone at the banquet venue. The moment Sophia saw me, her eyes lit up, and a smug smile played on her lips. “You said you wouldn’t come, but your actions speak louder than words.” “But if you want to win me back, you need to at least please me. For an occasion like this, you must dress appropriately to match my status.” I ignored her sudden bout of narcissism and tried to walk past her to my seat. After just a couple of steps, an irritated Sophia grabbed me. “Jack, I’m talking to you. Are you listening?” “Our seats are here. Where are you going?” I shook off her hand and calmly said: “That’s your seat. My seat is over there.” Following my gaze, Sophia looked towards the main table, her face turning extremely unpleasant. Lucas shot me a venomous look and pointed at my watch, shouting: “Jack, how did you sneak in here? Are you here to cause trouble? How… how dare you wear that watch?” His voice was loud, immediately attracting everyone’s attention. “Isn’t that watch the ‘True Love Eternal’ that CEO Gu bought for her husband at a high price? Today is the first time CEO Gu is appearing with her husband. How dare you?” “Did you sneak in? Are you trying to embarrass us in front of CEO Gu?” “Ms. Song, is this your friend?” Seeing that I hadn’t even glanced at her, Sophia tightened her sleeves and said calmly: “No.” Hearing Sophia’s words, Lucas’s expression brightened, and he looked at me haughtily: “Take off the watch and get out!” I looked at him with amusement and sneered: “Are you sure you want me to leave?” Lucas lost face and his eyes turned vicious as he shouted: “Stop pretending! Take off the watch now!” As he said this, he reached out to grab my wrist. I pushed away his approaching hand, stepping back to avoid him. Unexpectedly, someone tripped me from behind. I was stunned by the sudden fall. Lucas stepped on my hand and forcibly yanked the watch off my wrist. “This piece of trash, and you treat it like a treasure.” My arm ached from being stepped on, and my wrist was raw and bleeding. Yet I could only stare blankly at the now broken watch. “Pick him up and throw him out!” Lucas commanded arrogantly. People immediately surrounded me. Seeing them about to grab my arms and legs, I struggled and hurriedly said: “Stop! I’m Amelia’s…” “Slap!” Before I could finish, Lucas slapped me across the face. “Are you going to spread rumors about being CEO Gu’s lover again? You’re not worthy!” Not satisfied, Lucas backhanded me with another slap. I hadn’t planned to settle scores with him on this trip back. Because there was no need. But now, I will definitely make him pay. Sophia crouched in front of me, trying to touch the wound on my wrist, but I instinctively recoiled. She looked at me coldly: “Jack, have you had enough?” “You came here today wearing that watch and dressed like this just because you saw I’ve become successful and can’t let me go, right? You want to make me jealous?” “If you beg me, I’ll agree to take you back.” I let out a cold laugh and looked at her, saying: “Sophia, you’re finished!” Sophia frowned, about to speak, when she noticed the venue had suddenly grown quiet. The guests at the banquet began tidying themselves up and moving towards the main entrance. Sophia quickly pulled me up and whispered: “CEO Gu is here. Behave yourself!” “Don’t worry, Lucas and I are already divorced.” How absurd. I rubbed my hand that was nearly broken from being stepped on, feeling nothing but disgust for the woman in front of me. What does it matter to me whether you’re divorced or not? At that moment, Amelia entered, carrying our daughter, surrounded by a crowd of admirers. Once in the hall, our daughter fussed to be put down from the woman’s arms.
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