Chapter 3

The annual Tech and Internet Summit Gala. This was Starlight Tech's most important PR event of the year.

Ethan walked the red carpet with me on his arm.

I was wearing a custom black backless evening gown, matching his perfect, loving smiles for the cameras.

Just as we were about to enter the banquet hall, Ethan stopped dead in his tracks.

I followed his gaze.

Under the hall's crystal chandeliers stood a woman in a white lace dress.

Her makeup was flawless, and she watched us with a beaming smile, champagne in hand.

Su Nian.

She had really come back. And right at this critical juncture, just as Ethan was about to secure the "lifesaving" funding.

The hand Ethan had around my waist tightened convulsively. I could feel his entire body stiffen, his breathing turning ragged.

Almost subconsciously, he let go of my hand and strode quickly toward Su Nian.

Leaving me, his wife, standing alone at the end of the red carpet, surrounded by the media.

Whispers erupted around me. Countless pairs of eyes landed on me, eager for a spectacle.

I didn't panic. I just calmly smoothed down my dress and walked into the venue alone.

Halfway through the event, he leaned down and whispered in my ear, "Just going to the restroom," before getting up and leaving.

I watched his retreating figure disappear around the corridor's corner, then slowly counted to twenty.

Exactly twenty seconds later, I picked up my wine glass and followed him out, casually, like I was just out for a stroll.

The thick carpet in the hallway outside the banquet hall absorbed my footsteps.

I walked in the direction of the terrace, my memory guiding me, and near a corner next to the emergency exit, I heard Su Nian's stifled laughter.

"Why did you suddenly come back? Didn't we agree I'd bring you and our son back after I got the investment money from Luna's family?"

Ethan's voice was a mix of urgency and delight.

"I got sick of staying abroad," Su Nian's voice was teasing and coy.

"Leo asks for his daddy every day. And I heard that Luna woman has been acting up recently."

"Ethan, when are you going to divorce her? I don't want to be the woman in the shadows anymore."

"Soon, Nian. Just give me a little more time." Ethan pulled Su Nian into his arms.

"That idiot Luna already went to ask her uncle for money."

"The moment the funds hit, I'll transfer the assets immediately and force Starlight Tech into bankruptcy."

"She won't get a cent, and she'll be buried in debt."

"I'll take the core patents and start over with you."

"She really is such a useful tool," Su Nian giggled.

Ethan's cold voice followed, "That's all she's good for."

"Look at her, all wooden and boring. She's not even worth a single strand of your hair."

"Every day I have to look at that fake face of hers, it makes me sick."

I stood in the shadows and pressed the record button on my phone.

I recorded every disgusting word of this entire conversation.

So, this was his plan for my life, plotted behind my back. He didn't just want to steal my money; he wanted to utterly destroy me.

I put my phone away and silently returned to the banquet hall.

Ethan only rushed back to my side as the gala was ending. His clothes still carried the scent of Su Nian's perfume.

"Got caught up talking with an important client," he brushed me off casually.

"No problem." I looked at him, giving him a flawless smile. "Work comes first."

Once in the car, I sent Julian a text.

"The endgame moves up. I'm not waiting any longer."