Chapter 1

At the company's annual gala, my wife claimed I had achieved nothing. She demanded that I step down as Chief Technology Officer and hand all my research and development over to her first love.

Furious to the point of laughing, I quit on the spot and slapped the divorce papers right into his face.

"Working is so exhausting anyway. Why don't I be generous and let you take my place as the CEO's husband, too?"

For a moment, every colleague in the room stared at each other, assuming I was just throwing a jealous fit.

None of them knew that the company’s core technology lived solely in my mind. It could not be replicated, and no one could steal it.

Without me, the entire product line was nothing more than a pile of useless code.

And my wife would soon face tens of millions in damages and a complete corporate collapse.

"Ethan, our business took off this year, and you truly deserve all the credit."

"Come up to the stage. Let's take a photo together."

My wife, Serena Vance, gestured proudly toward Ethan Hayes. Ethan hurried toward her, taking her hand, and together they stepped onto the podium.

Side by side, they delivered the keynote address for the company's awards gala.

Hand in hand, they handed out holiday bonuses to every employee, showering everyone with well wishes.

They looked so intimate and in sync, practically glowing like a pair of lovebirds deeply infatuated with each other.

Colleagues holding their bonus envelopes began teasing them: "Ms. Vance, Mr. Hayes, looks like congratulations are in order! Are we getting invited to the wedding anytime soon?"

"Ms. Vance and Mr. Hayes are the dream team! We promise to work even harder for you both next year!"

Someone else in the crowd started chanting, "Get married! Get married!"

Standing at the back after arriving late, watching this picture-perfect scene, my chest tightened with a sharp, bitter ache. The pill bottle in my hand pressed painfully into my palm.

Serena and I had built this tech startup from scratch. I handled all the core engineering and client channels, while she managed internal operations. Together, we had turned it into a thriving enterprise.

However, because of the strict company policy forbidding workplace romance, we never announced our marriage. Not a single person in the entire firm knew that I was Serena's husband.

I cared deeply about today's gala and had prepared for it for weeks.

Right before it began, Serena realized she had forgotten her medication. She had suffered from chronic asthma for years, and worried about her health, I rushed all the way back to our apartment to grab her inhaler.

Now, seeing Ethan sitting in the seat that belonged to me, the truth hit me like a slap.

Forgetting her medicine was just an excuse.

She had invented a convenient lie to get rid of me so she could bask in our hard-earned victory and glory alongside Ethan.

In fact, the gala was supposed to start at nine, but to cut me out entirely, Serena had started the meeting early.

Ethan noticed me standing there looking dazed. He raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Well, look who decided to show up! Sean, why so late? The meeting is almost over!"

"We couldn't find you when it started, so I had to step in and take the stage. I'm really sorry about that!"

As he spoke, Ethan put on a show of looking troubled, standing there awkwardly as if he were entirely blameless.

Ethan was Serena's college sweetheart. Even though they had broken up back then, he remained the unforgettable first love in her heart.

Because of that, Ethan never respected me. He constantly provoked me and undermined my authority.

Yet in Serena's eyes, whenever I pushed back, it was just me being jealous and petty.

Seeing Ethan's supposed embarrassment, Serena immediately stepped in to defend him, glaring at me with cold fury.

"Sean Miller, do you ever have your priorities straight? Everyone had to wait around for you at such an important meeting. Aren't you embarrassed?"

"As the Chief Technology Officer, you don't even have basic punctuality. In my opinion, you don't deserve the title of CTO anymore!"

I wanted to defend myself. I wanted to tell her I was late because I went home to get her medication. But looking at her absolute, unyielding coldness, my lips parted, and I ultimately looked down in silence.

Serena wasn't joking. She turned to Ethan and said softly, "Ethan, you graduated from a prestigious university abroad. You have top-tier credentials and brilliant technical skills. I'll have to trouble you to take over as CTO."

She turned back to me, barking out orders, "Did you hear me? Clear out your desk immediately. Since you're not up to the job, step aside for someone who is."

I looked up, stunned. "Ms. Vance, are you telling me to hand my position as CTO over to Ethan?"

"Not just your position. Starting today, every single patent and piece of research under your name will be transferred to Ethan. Sean, you have disappointed me completely!"

The words hit me like a physical blow. My face drained of color, and my body trembled.

When we started with nothing, I gave up a secure, prestigious research position at a national institute just to support her dream from square one.

I sold my family's old home, emptied my entire savings account to fund her company, served as the sole core engineer, and ran back-and-forth securing client pipelines just to pull this dying company back from the brink.

Meanwhile, Ethan was just a parasite who snuck in through the back door. Every proposal he ever presented was stolen from a team of engineers; he was merely the handsome face reading the slides.

Yet in Serena's eyes, he was brilliant, and I was entirely worthless.

Every sign had pointed to this. Today, this relationship had finally reached its end.

My heart went cold.

I gave a slow, deliberate nod. "Fine. No problem. It's his."

Ethan couldn't conceal the spark of triumph in his eyes, but he still put on a modest act.

"Oh, come on, Sean, I'm just the new guy here. I don't have your tenure. How could I possibly push you out and take over as CTO?"

"It's just... I heard you've been running into roadblocks on the new product pipeline. It's been nearly a year without any real progress. I only wanted to help carry the load for the company."

Serena looked at Ethan with eyes full of tenderness. "Ethan, it's so thoughtful of you to care so much. Don't sell yourself short. Everyone here has seen what you can do. Our profits this year are thanks to you."

"Besides, you're an elite graduate from overseas with incredible technical expertise. This role was made for you."

Listening to Serena, I almost burst out laughing.

When Ethan joined the company, I did a background check on him. He had attended a third-rate diploma mill overseas, dragging it out for five years before essentially buying his degree.

And yet, Serena viewed him as an elite talent.

Suddenly, I really wanted to see how big of a mess he would make once I wasn't there to hold up the ceiling.