Chapter 1

I had an autistic wife who was prone to sudden, violent outbursts.

My family and friends never looked down on her; instead, they constantly reminded me to treat her with absolute kindness.

For four years, I worked multiple jobs to support her, pampering her like my most precious treasure.

Then, one night, when I reflexively tried to pull the blanket over her shoulders, she kicked me away with a cold, disgusted glare and snarled:

"Get away from me, you sick creep!"

Mary Sullivan was cured.

No one could have guessed that when she resurfaced, she would be the billionaire heiress to one of the most powerful dynasties in New York.

Throughout our four years of marriage, despite her erratic episodes, Mary had never laid a hand on me.

Now, she had her bodyguard grip my neck, sneering with pure disdain:

"You disgusting creep! Living four years like a filthy dog with you was absolute torture! I've had enough!

"If it weren't to protect the Sullivan family's public image, I would make you disappear off the face of the earth this very second!"

She tilted her chin and shot a look at her guard.

Understanding immediately, the man pinned me down against the table, forcing my hand to sign and press a thumbprint onto a legal document.

Mary’s lips curled into a mocking smirk.

"Oh, Ethan Vance, look at you now. Back then, when I had to play crazy, I was trapped and had to take your orders without fighting back.

"Now, with this clean-break agreement you just signed, leaving you with absolutely nothing, our relationship ends only when I say it does. And until then, you’ll do exactly as you're told!"

I glanced sideways at Brandon Pierce, who had his arm possessively wrapped around her waist. He was the second heir of the Pierce Group, worth hundreds of millions.

I couldn't fathom why Mary, having reclaimed her glorious status and secured such a wealthy match, still clung to a broke nobody like me. Was keeping me around solely to humiliate me in public?

Watching them fawn over each other right in front of my eyes, my only desire was to escape this toxic mess.

I was more than willing to let them be.

Yet my own relatives turned around and blamed me for being narrow-minded, lecturing me for not understanding her difficult position.

My aunt pulled me aside, earnestly preaching:

"The Sullivans did our family a massive favor back then, Ethan. We can't be ungrateful. As long as Mary still comes home eventually, what is there for you to complain about?"

I couldn't help but shoot back, "Auntie, to repay that favor, are you really willing to throw away my entire life’s happiness?

"Mary doesn't care about me at all! She just forced me to sign an agreement surrendering every single asset, leaving me with nothing!"

No matter how great a favor it was, I—a complete outsider with no blood ties to her—had paid it back in full over the last four years.

Years ago, Mary's grandmother had declared that as soon as Mary found a partner of equal status, she would hand over the entire Sullivan empire to her.

Threatened by this, the family's adopted daughter, Autumn Sullivan, orchestrated a horrific assault on Mary to seize the inheritance.

Unable to endure the trauma, Mary was pushed into severe psychological withdrawal and ended up locked in a mental institution.

Grandmother Sullivan, undergoing critical surgery overseas at the time, was powerless to intervene directly. She could only secretly beg my aunt to take Mary into our home and protect her.

She promised she would return to take Mary back within a year.

Yet after that year passed, nobody ever showed up.

Instead, Mary grew increasingly clingy toward me.

To keep Autumn from hunting Mary down, my aunt took advantage of Mary’s condition and manipulated me into marrying her.

Back then, seeing her broken state, my heart genuinely ached for her.

I worked multiple grueling shifts every single day, wanting nothing more than to give her a safe, peaceful life.

I genuinely thought we would spend our quiet, modest lives together. But instead of continuing the charade, her illness miraculously "vanished" at the perfect strategic moment.

Upon her return, Grandmother Sullivan uncovered the entire scheme. She furiously condemned Mary’s parents for their cruel favoritism and castigated Autumn for her venomous treachery.

With absolute authority, she restored Mary, the legitimate heiress, to her rightful place in the Sullivan empire.

Only in hindsight did I realize I had been played for a fool by Mary for four straight years.

Brandon arrogantly tossed a green straw hat at my feet, his voice dripping with fake courtesy: "Consider this a token of appreciation for looking after Mary all these years. I trust you won't bother us ever again."

I fixed an intense gaze on Mary.

She merely offered an indifferent smirk. "You know, green really suits you."

From that day forward, the entire social scene knew that Mary Sullivan had publicly humiliated her original husband just to elevate Brandon Pierce.

Under the guise of a casual hangout, my friend Chris tricked me into going to a local club.

Flushed from alcohol, he carelessly tried to shove a couple of cocktail hostesses into my arms.

"Come on, Ethan! It’s just one toxic girl, what are you moping around for? There are plenty of gorgeous girls out there! Mary Sullivan drained four years of your youth. Believe me, neither she nor that scumbag Pierce is gonna get a happy ending!

"So what if she's a billionaire heiress now?

"Any girl here has a better heart than her! Tonight, you're going to drink and have fun. If these two aren't enough, I'll call over a few more to keep you company!"